ArshiFF: Strings Attached! NOTE pg53 - Page 27

Day 3 continued'

To say things got awkward from there on between Mr. Raizada and his office toy, was no understatement. It was noticed by all office gossips that Chamkilli did not venture into ASR's cabin after the shout marathon in his cabin early in the morning. It was also noticed that a very hung over Aakash had made a bowing presence into the MD's office and the office had heard and seen a bit of sibling bonding over a glass of brandy at 3o'clock in the afternoon.

While the incense of the brothers and missing Mrs Jha had been a matter of a concern to some of the employees, but it had been brushed off as all were aware of the market goodwill and bank balance of the trio.

Money it is said can solve anything.

 Somehow the shout marathon dimmed the open speculation of the office affair of the MD with a mere intern, but the cafeteria was ablaze with speculation at tea time in the evening. Khushi walked in to hear her name on every mouth and realized that the situation had gone bad to worse in the time period of few precious hours. She gulped and walked to the counter, she was not a meek person and giving up was not in her genes.

She ordered her Tea and waited while she rummaged her handbag for her wallet while she bumped with it a million times in the process, some cowardice was forgiven!

She had been exiting the cafeteria when she almost bumped into La ma'am.

'Ma'am! You are back?' the joy in Khushi's question was such that Lavanya almost anticipated a hug and she moved back in an instinctive reaction.

'Where do you imagine I had gone to, Khushi?' the question was laced by the usual amusement La had been famous for about 3years ago, but unaccustomed to such humour Khushi bit her lip in anticipation of another run down.

Lavanya noticed the reaction Khushi sported and patted Khushi on her shoulder to undo the damage on the petite framed woman. Both women had just momentarily looked up, when they noticed that the whole cafeteria was looking at them.

So was the situation my friends that both women, for their own reason thought themselves to be the sole reason for the office gossip, let us forgive their vanity and enjoy a good laugh at being aware of the true situation in the cafeteria, as they all had their eyes glued to the MD of the company standing in the corridor of his own office and pretending to read some imaginary mail off his Blackberry and sneaking looks at the intern.

Aman stood at the vantage point to view the situation exactly like we did and ever the efficient employee made his way towards the cafeteria to break the broil. He walked in with a slight nod towards Arnav and then placed his hand on the waist of his startled estranged wife, smiled towards the round eyed Ms. Gupta and took Lavanya into the cafeteria breaking the delicious gossipy moment.

Lavanya's breath had stalled the moment Aman had placed his arm around her waist, they had been married while working in the very same company and Aman had been the man who had sidestepped all occasions of PDA, sometime letting go of the legitimate ones too.

She looked up, to catch a hint of smile lingering that made her lips twitch too. She could not help but smile, Aman would smile so rarely that she savored all such occasions. Aman ordered a coffee for himself and a box of apple juice and a sandwitch for her, she had been about to protest when he caught hold of her palm, letting go of her forearm and gave it a gentle squeeze.

'You missed lunch.' He looked at the cashier, while the question how?  Lingered.

Khushi had just turned around to make a flight off the scene when she bumped into rock hard pecks, just waiting for her. She knew it was Mr. Raizada.

She brought her arms in front of her, never looking up and managed to bring some distance between the two flush bodies.

Arnav had had enough of the evasion for one day, he could tolerate a lot of things but to be ignored was a first and he was sure it was going to be the last one too. Arnav caught hold of her forearm and jerked her back to her former position and then with his free hand pushed her chin, to make her meet his eye.

'Mr. Raiza- ' Khushi struggled under his hold.

'Sir, call me Sir.'

'huh?'

'I said call me Sir.'

'But you asked me to call Aman Sir, Mr, Mathur?'

'Call him Mr. Mathur, call me Sir!' Arnav's voice rose without him knowing, Khushi moved back a step but Arnav's grip on her forearm stalled any further movement.

'How is your insect bite?' Arnav could not keep the venom out of the question.

Khushi just nodded, as if to say better.

Arnav slightly dislodged her duppata to have a better look, Khushi's eyes grew and she pushed him with all her strength. Arnav staggered a step back, bewilderment and anger replaced earlier concern.

'What the hell!'

'Stop touching me!' Khushi let out with equal force and marched off towards her cabin.

Arnav stood there for few precious seconds, turned and left for his cabin fuming.

Anjali looked at her watch for the hundredth time, it was 5:30 now, Rum-jhum should have been here half-an-hour back. She threw a worried glance towards Shyam who was by now at the door of the caf, she saw his phone flashing on the table, she picked it up and saw the name 'Payal' flash on it. Anjali saw red!

This Payal woman, who had led to the first ever doubt she had on Shyam was still calling her husband, she would give her a piece of her mind. The call got disconnected before Anjali could pick-up, she then hurriedly chalked down the number on a napkin and shoved the it inside her purse; the witch could wait!

Shyam was walking towards her with a girl next to him, Anjalli stood up to greet her family and immediately noticed the work of a concealer. The sheen could fool a man, but a woman used to the art work of the concealer pen is hard to fool.

'Anjali, this is my baby sister, my angel, my Rum-jhum.' Shyam spoke like a proud brother, Anjali could not help but smile. It reminded her of the time when Chun-mun was born. Shyam would not let anyone take Chun-mun off his site and God forbid if they wanted to give his little girl a cuddle.

'Hi, Rum-jhum.' Anjali by-passed the hand extended by rum-jhum and hugged her instead.

Payal smiled to herself and hugged her bhabhi back. It was a good day indeed.

Today at one, she had been waiting for Aakash when he showed up, equally hung-over as in the morning. Payal had decided to tell him off for the kind of behaviour he had exhibited in the morning. But it had been all frivolous for he was sorry enough. Somehow he did not even need to say the words, the way he walked and the way he kept on looking at her bruised lip was message enough that he was sorry.

She was not used to grumpy men, she knew very few to begin with but none of them had the luxury to be grumpy. Aakash she could tell had sometime to be grumpy. He had opened the door to his car, she stood her ground and was about to refuse to climb in, when he looked at her and said

'I am sorry for- I mean in the morning, I was drunk, I know it is no excuse, it's just that you didn't call and that pissed me off and trust me I am not the stalking types. You can ask like anyone, in the whole freaking city, I am used to being stalked and this is all new to me.' When he saw that her expression had not changed he continued, 'I am not making excuses, trust me. What I did was stupid and so not me, it's just- I like you, okay. A lot and I would like to date you.'

'Do you really think I will date you after what happened this morning?' Payal said with a stretch in her voice. 'You can pretty much forget it.!' She said her part and rushed off the spot. She needed to go buy a concealer and meet her brother, she would have to re-schedule as she realized she should go to a doctor and quickly gave up the idea, as a case of harassment would have to be lodged in a police station with the kind of wounds she sported.

Anjali kept on thinking that she had seen Rum-jhum somewhere, but was unable to place where. Then Shyam was off telling some antics Rum-jhum and he had shared as kids.

Khushi walked out of the building as late as was possible, she had waited till the rest of the staff had vacated the office. It was mere co-incidence or so she told herself that she had walked out off her cabin only after she saw the elusive Mr. Raizada leave. It was almost 8pm and she was making way to the closest metro Station when a familiar car screeched next to her.

Khushi saw Arnav Sir looking at her, he did not even roll down the window to ask her to climb the car, he just sat there waiting for her to sit in the car, as if it was a given. Khushi fumed but not wanting to be impossible knocked at the window to politely thank him for his offer and then make her own way.

At least he rolled down the window at her knock, 'Come on I drop you home.' It was a simple statement, but it was enough that it was said by Arnav Singh Raizada.

'No, it's okay Sir. I'll take the metro.'

Arnav looked at her, square at her and then said, 'Fine, I'll drop you to the closest Metro Station. Hop on Ms. Gupta.'

Khushi had been about to say no when he erased all possibilities by getting off the car and stood next to her. She looked at him variedly and then went around the car and hopped onto it, with his assistance.

What is the point of a car, when you actually have to jump to even climb in!!

Arnav bent to take care of the seat belt, when Khushi took it from his hand, touching his warm ones.

'I know how to secure a seat-belt Sir.' Arnav gave a look that seemed to say, I highly doubt that Ms. Gupta. But he did not say anything, he just stood there waiting for her to complete the job or maybe to see if she needed his help.

He thinks I am clumsy as hell.

 In her haste to get rid of him, she pulled the synthetic belt a little too roughly. It scraped the already bruised skin at the base of her neck.

'Aow!' that made Arnav jump into action, he was there, at the spot of the injury, his callous fingers smeared his warmth at the base of her neck. He removed the belt, letting it real back in its stand, while he for the third time today dislodged the duppata of her shoulder.

'Aap-' Khushi could not speak after the look she received from the breathy, dark eyes monster in front of her. Just that the monster did not scare her, he intoxicated her.

Arnav let his fingers linger at the base of her neck, while the pad of his thumb brushed at the red blotchy skin. Khushi hissed at the contact, Arnav immediately looked at her face. She had closed her eyes, which gave him the opportunity to linger over her face at leisure.

His fingers itched to touch the milky white skin of her cheeks they were stained with red, her bow-shaped lips were moving with the continuous under-breath chattering, while her eye balls moved and were visible to him through her closed lids.

His thumb must have stopped as it broke the trance and she opened her eyes, she looked up at him, all the while her lips moved in nervousness. Arnav kept on looking at her, he placed her dupatta at her shoulder, never taking his eyes off her, then handed her the seat-belt ans walked off to the driver's seat and was off.

Khushi was so tensed that for about 10 minutes she did not realize that the Metro station had come and gone. 

'Sir, you have missed the Metro station!' Khushi said with alarm.

'Ms. Gupta the closest Metro Station is 20 minutes away.'

'Huh?'

'The closest metro station to your house, is 20 minutes away.'

'But Sir-'

'You like to make me repeat everything twice don't you Ms. Gupta.'

Khushi looked at him with fuming eyes.

'Now don't call me an imbecile! I did not know you have diabetes.'

'Kyun? Before falling all over me, mera background check nai kiya tha?' Arnav had let that slip in a lighter tone, but Khushi Kumari Gupta saw red!

'Stop, Stop, STOP THE DAMN CAR!' she shouted, with her eyes closed. Arnav had not seen it coming and kept on driving at least for a while.

Khushi as it would seem kept on seeing red!

She opened her seat belt and leapt up, her pointy nails found the skin of his jaw and his neck.

'Kya kar rai ho!' He dodged her hands for a while and in the end he had to break the car to a side and catch hold of her hands.

But Khushi Kumari Gupta was in no mood to give up, the whole scenario so escalated, that a passerby noticed the rocking of the car. That the woman vacated the passenger's seat and practically climbed the lap of the driver. The driver had his arms around the woman's petite waist, while she had hers buried in his hair. The passerby also witnessed the moan emitted by the man, while the woman continued to rock over him.

Ciao!

Love!

Chetana

Buddy me for PM's