||~Something About You~||#4 *COMPLETED* - Page 71

Khushi sat there as if she had been turned into a stone statue after Arnav's casual drawl. The hidden promise behind his words thrilled her so much that her toes were almost curling with anticipation. She took a deep breath to steady her erratic breathing & hoped the warm yellow lighting will hide the blushes that would be spreading across her cheeks now from the man sitting across her who had caused them in the first place. She looked down at the stuffed puri in her hand & figured eating impersonally was the best option for her here.

As she put the puri in her mouth, she heard him speak in a light tone, "So, how do we this?" Khushi looked up at him with the puri bursting in her mouth & for a moment she was completely clueless about what he was talking of. She looked at him for a few seconds & then scanned the table spanning between them, her expression puzzled. Then she took up a puri in her hand again, as she said tentatively, "You stab it in the middle with your thumb like this, then you take-" But she was effectively silenced by Arnav leaning over the table towards her as his left hand caught hold of her right wrist, & as the puri fell away from her hand in his clasp, she heard him speak, his eyes twinkling with amusement, "Khushi! I was talking about us! & the date! Not your Gol Gappes!"

Khushi couldn't help the tremor that shook her hand at his searing touch, but she didn't snatch it back as her immediate reaction had been. He still kinda intimidated her with his other-worldly gorgeous looks & entirely unpredictable mood swings. Then she felt his thumb slowly rubbing the side of her wrist, as he held her gaze, not permitting her to look away, Khushi realized if this went on for a little longer, she'd burst into flame herself.

Khushi tried to wriggle her wrist free of his hold, as she suddenly felt extremely shy at the way he was looking at her with eyes that spelled sin. She spluttered to say something, anything, "Um... You seem to know how to do this! That's one way of doing this!... Arnavji, hath choddiyena!" she almost pleaded for her sanity.

& she gasped when instead of letting her hand go, he just asked blatantly, "Kyun?!" She opened her mouth & then as she found no plausible excuse, she closed it again, but then she opened it again in a last attempt, "Kyun Matlab?! Bas aisehi! Chhodiye humein!" Arnav's eyes glinted as it skimmed her features glowing with resentment, & he whispered with unmistakable dare both in his eyes & voice, "Free yourself if you can!" Khushi narrowed her eyes & then suddenly she flashed her brightest smile at him as she offered graciously, "Achchha... Will you have a puri? Here, I'll make one for you!" Arnav was momentarily distracted, as he refused shaking his head, "No! I don't eat that! Too spicy! & I can't even open my mouth so wide-" But he halted as Khushi wiggled her hand free taking advantage of his distraction.

Arnav's eyes hardened as he understood her tactics & she laughed at the challenge in his eyes. Arnav looked at her smugly & said leaning further towards her, "Although, I'd eat one if you feed me, as you're probably feeling very bad, as I ordered all these for you, which is kind of a nice gesture, & I haven't eaten anything yet. Come to think of it, I think I skipped lunch as I was slammed at work today!"

Khushi saw his challenge for what it was. She knew full well that he was trying to play her by appealing to her kind nature. But even then, she couldn't help the pang she felt when she heard, he might have had nothing to eat since Devi Maiyya knew when! She scowled at him as she asked accusingly, "Don't you have Diabetes & don't you run the risk of fainting from low sugar if you go hungry for that long?" Arnav nodded his head like an attentive school boy & said in a stoic voice, "My point exactly, Khushi!" Khushi narrowed her eyes as she glared at him for several second, just knowing he was playing her. Then she muttered 'Laad Governor' under her breath, took a puri & prepared it, careful to put neither the sweet nor the hot sauce in it, as Arnav wasn't allowed sugar & he couldn't bear hot food, & then she held it out to his general direction.

Arnav looked at it for a long moment, & then he looked away, almost pouting, & said in a tight voice, "Just leave it, Khushi. I don't want it anymore!" & as Khushi tried to get a good look at him to search his face, she saw that his lips were pursed & he looked disgruntled. Khushi heaved a sigh, & said in a loudly carrying whisper to herself, "Now who's being a Chhote?" & as Arnav sent a narrow-eyed purely menacing glare at her direction, she conceded, "Ok... Ok. No need to throw a fit over it! Here, open your mouth!" She reached over & held the stuffed to brim puri to his lips. Arnav looked down at her hand for a couple of seconds, as if contemplating whether to forgive her for her earlier insolence or not, then as she appeared to be getting tired having her arm dangling in the air & was about draw it back dejectedly, he detained her by leaning a bit forward towards her hand & then he parted his lips a little.

Khushi looked at his parted lips, & then she heard it. Dhak dhak. Dhak dhak. Dhak dhak.

Khushi's left hand rose of its own accord to her ear to shake of the sounds resonating in it, but before she could brush off the weird alien sound, she felt Arnav's lips closing over her fingers that held the puri, & the weird sound was amplified. Hundredfold. Khushi gulped past the huge lump in her throat, & felt herself drowning in his caramel orbs. He pulled his lips back, before making sure to lick her fingers off any residual sauce. & then as he bit on the puri, the sauce in it burst out & some leaked out of the corners of his mouth to down his chin. Arnav reached hurriedly for the napkin to wipe it off, but as his hands closed around the napkin, he felt a silky touch on his chin.

Khushi shook herself as her fingers touched his rough stubble. Then she willed her suddenly numb fingers to wipe away the dampness of the sticky sauce, but friction of his stubble on her soft fingertips shot tingly feeling all the way up her arms. Khushi trembled a bit, & removing her fingertips, she wiped at the stickiness with her thumb, & she felt his eyes on her. As she swiped at his jaw one last time with the knuckle of her fingers, she looked up at him, & the awestruck expression in her eyes made her instantly snatch her hand back, as a blush started creeping up from her neck.

Arnav examined the bent head of the girl in front of him critically for some time. There was something seriously wrong with him that was messing with his head now! She had done nothing but wiped his mouth innocuously, & the way his heart was pumping frantically in the vicinity of his throat instead of being down around the chest area, was just plain ridiculous. & he wouldn't even go to what was happening downstairs below the belt! This was crazy! & then he noticed the profuse blush that was covering her face as she was looking everywhere but at him, & he suddenly realized with a jolt of happiness, it was exactly the same for her. For the first time ever, Arnav Singh Raizada was sailing in the same relationship boat as the person involved with him.

Khushi heard him speak casually through the curious Dhak Dhak noises in her ear, "As I said earlier, you'd find a way to settle the scores. Round two goes to you, Red!" Khushi looked up at him at that, her eyes registering curiosity & surprise as she asked, "Red?!" Arnav let his eyes roam over her flushed features, then held her gaze in his again as he drawled leisurely, "When you blush, your cheeks get red. When you're shy, your nose gets red-" & he halted as Khushi blurted out unable to stop, "-& when I am cold!" Arnav nodded considerately, his expression serious as he continued, "When you're cold too, your nose gets red. & you look absolutely heavenly when you wear red... You are my own unique brand of firecracker," & his brows furrowed thoughtfully as he continued, "which are also red, come to think of it! So it's only natural that when I think of you, the first word that comes to my mind is Red... followed by Khushi, then paagal, then cute-"

Then he saw how profusely Khushi was blushing & squirming in her seat, reeling under this onslaught of outrageous words from him, & Arnav decided to take it a bit slow to make her feel relaxed again. He spoke in a sulky voice in an attempt to distract her, "& I gave you so many compliments just now! & you! You couldn't even think of one nice thing to say about me?! Do you know how much I harried Aman today with those sprinting visits to the designs building today? & all for what? Not a single good word about the jacket! Do you know how bad Prabal would feel that you don't care about his creation at all? Would it hurt you to spare a good word?! All of us aren't as lucky as you to look like that," here he swiped his beautiful palm in a vertical motion to indicate Khushi's full form, "from the moment we step out of bed in the morning! For some of us," & here he motioned to himself, thoroughly enjoying her dumbfounded expression, "it takes a lot of hard work, & we'd sure like to be appreciated for it!"

No sooner had he finished that Khushi burst into spurts of uncontrollable giggles. Arnav just looked on intently, not taking his eyes off of her laughing countenance for even a second, until finally Khushi sobered up enough to confess sheepishly, "I went shopping with Jiji in the morning too. This is an outcome of that spree." She motioned to her dress. Arnav let his eyes roam over as much of the dress that was visible over the table, as if he hadn't done enough of that up until then, & then said solemnly, "Your morning was more fruitful than mine then, hands down!" Khushi couldn't help but break out in a careless laughter at his mock solemn expression, & as Arnav looked on, a grin broke out on his face too.

Khushi didn't know how the rest of the evening passed in a blur of free flowing conversation & shared funny story of their childhood together. More food kept coming on in frequent intervals, but for the life of hers, Khushi wasn't aware of their details anymore. She was too absorbed in the magnetic male in front of her to notice anything else in the world.

Arnav too thought how anyone who knew him from long would be shocked to see him here now, so relaxed & actually enjoying an evening just by the virtue of the company present. He felt as Khushi knew everything about his private life anyways, she didn't ask him questions that he didn't want to answer. Thus he didn't feel the need to be on his guard constantly, which took the edge off him, & he found himself relaxing & getting intoxicated by the magical beauty sitting in front of him laughing & talking, as if she was sent down from up there somewhere to specially rock his night.

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When it was about half past 8, it suddenly started to drizzle, in slow pace, but it became clear that soon it'd heavens would pour down in earnest. About half-a-dozen waiters came out with large offset Cantilever patio umbrellas, but Arnav looked at the time & told Khushi they should make a move so that he could drop her off home before 9, as with the rain her family must be anxious for her to return. Khushi was warmed by his concern for her family, & she was actually too full to eat anymore, but there were still a few Jalebis left on the dessert platter. She looked at the Jalebis wistfully & suddenly looked up at Arnav with a bright expression, "Do you have room in your pockets? They are so delicious!" & Arnav didn't know which he was more surprised at, her bizarre request, or the fact that he was considering granting her wish just so that look on her face won't be marred. Then he shook his to ward off the insane thoughts, & said briefly, "I will actually give the jacket back to Prabal tomorrow. It's too casual for my style." & Khushi didn't know why she was pouting so much as Arnav steered her towards the car up front with a waiter holding an umbrella above them, the fact that she had to leave the Jalebis behind, or that he wouldn't be keeping the jacket in which he looked devilishly handsome.

As Khushi sat in the passenger seat, while Arnav sped the car on, she wished he'd drive slow, cause soon they'd run out of road as her home was not that far, & she wanted to stay right where she was. As they passed the big park of their society for the use of the area's residents exclusively, Khushi rested her head on the seat to look at him sideways & let out a wistful sigh & said, "You know how this would end in Salman Khanji's Movies? With a dance in the rain!" No sooner had she finished the sentence, Arnav swerved the car & drove in through the open gate of the park, & then parked the car with a swirl right about in the middle of the ground. Khushi had barely registered what was happening, when he got down from the car, came over to her side, opened her door & stretched out his palm for her to take it.

& then she noticed it. He was getting drenched! & she shrieked, "Arnavji! Aap... Come inside. I didn't mean that we should-" but Arnav waved his hand in the air impatiently & said in a teasing voice, "This night can't end with your Salman Khan on your mind... Come on, Red. Don't I even deserve a small dance at the end of the evening?"

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Arnav stepped forward & took her hand in his as he helped her out. He reveled at the feel of her soft hand in his rough one & how her hands seem to fit perfectly in his. Then Khushi came & stood, shaking, a few feet away from him. She ran her free hand up & down her other arm in an attempt to drive away the cold of the freezing waters, & then complained between chattering teeth, "Shh... I bought this dr... dress just t... today! This is my most exp... expensive dress ever! & now I am st... standing out in the rain in my best dress because you for... forced me to & tomorrow it'd be tot... totally ruined!" & before Khushi could stop her stammering babble, she felt herself being forcefully pulled towards his torso by his hold on her & she crashed completely on his chest, as his arms came up to hold her in a tight, warm, embrace.

Khushi felt warmth spreading to each fiber of her being, as her frozen limbs began to melt from the heat his hold generated, & then she heard him whisper with his mouth inches from her eye level, "You were freezing... Ab theek hain?" & suddenly Khushi felt it. It was alright. For the first time in days, it felt right. Her life felt right! For the first time in days, she felt like she was in the right place at the right time. For the first time in days, she wasn't feeling restless, she wasn't feeling as if something was very wrong with the core of her existence, some wrong that would never be right. & as the feeling of rightness seeped into her heart, Khushi clutched the lapels of his jacket tightly & pressed herself more snuggly into his body. & his arms tightened more around her if possible, to the point of almost breaking her delicate ribs, & then she felt him start to move, & moving her along with him to the gentle sway of his body.