As soon as Khushi entered her room, she heard her phone was buzzing from where it was kept on the study table. But she didn't rush to pick it up, knowing it might be La or Preeto or someone else from her friend circle. She slowly started removing her bangles, earrings & took out her night clothes form her wardrobe as she thought about what Rohan had just informed the whole family about. There was a really good offer for Nikunja. They were offering well above the asking price & they were also offering to let them stay on for the next 6 months, provided they would be allowed to make the final 20% of the full payment at the end of the 6 months, when they would take full possession of Nikunja.
Rohan had also mentioned how Arnav had helped him a lot in acquiring a lot of lucrative offers in such a short time. Arnav had disposed the use of his high-end realtor, the one he had hired while looking for Rohan & Anjali's house, to Rohan, & the offer of the couple from Canada had come through this realtor only. & all the transactions would be overseen by A.R. Corps.' Property lawyer too, so that there could be no shoddy business in it. & Khushi couldn't help but feel a little betrayed by Arnav, when she heard all that. He had held her in his arms & looked at her as if she meant something to him, & he had not bothered to tell her about such an integral thing about her own home! Even considering his loyalty towards Rohan, this felt like a sneaky behavior to Khushi.
As Khushi finally picked up her phone to see who it was who was calling her repeatedly, tirelessly, she saw 'Laad Governor' flashing on her screen. & Khushi couldn't keep the wave of resentment washing all over her & she almost pressed the 'reject' button, before she stopped herself, & taking a deep calming breath, she received the call. But before Khushi could even utter the customary 'hello', she heard his furious barks from the other side, "Where were you?! Do you know how many times I called you?! What's wrong with you?" & then as Khushi continued her tight-lipped silence, his demeanor changed to concern, "Khushi? Is everything alright?... Talk to me, damn it!" Khushi bit on her lower lip in order to stop the accusations from falling out & then feeling really exhausted with keeping everything inside herself, she just burst out, "Can't you do what you preach for a change?! Couldn't you have told me how you were aiding in selling my home off in express speed while you were making out with me in my room just this morning? Why couldn't you talk to me, damn it?!... But I guess, that would have been just too much distraction for you, seeing as you weren't interested in the person I was beyond the measurements of my breasts!"
Even as Arnav felt fury coursing through his veins at the tone & language she was daring to use with him, he noted with incredulous uneasiness, the moment she mentioned her breasts, even his blistering anger wasn't able to keep him from remembering how they had felt in his palms & how she had looked when he had caressed them. But his famous ASR brand of fury raised its head immediately pushing her unique brand of attraction aside, & he had just begun with, "Khushi, don't ever dare to speak to me like that, in that tone, ever again, samjhi-?", when he suddenly recalled himself being in the same position as she was in when he was only 15. He could remember the day as if it was just yesterday.
He had just come back from having to cremate both his parents by his own hands to find a broken, weak sister, already struggling with the double blow of becoming an orphan & a jilted bride on the same day, thrown on the road out of their own home. He had not even gone into his room since he had got out of it after hastily changing from the attire of the bride's brother to the son about to perform cremation services. He had not had the chance to go & sit in his parents' bedroom & let it sink in that they were never gonna comeback ever again. Actually, for some time, in the aftermath of losing almost everything he held dear to him & his life as he always knew it, he hadn't really considered the loss of his home that deeply. Not until, he had been miles, & it seemed, light years away from it, in Delhi. & since the moment it had hit him, an extremely angry & hurt Anrav had constantly chanted in his mind, 'Home was not from where Ma left, home is where Di is!'
Arnav fisted his hand over his mouth to gather his mind together & tried to push those dark memories back to the most backward corners of his mind where they have stayed for so long, & then he said in a hushed voice, "Rohan asked me... he needed me to be discreet. He demanded my word that I won't say anything about the offers till the realtor & Mr. Roy gave him a green signal. I guess he was worried about me telling Di & Di telling someone in your family... But I gave him my word, Khushi &... Maybe I still should've told you when we... It's all messed up, Khushi-" He stopped short, feeling totally frustrated at how pointless it seemed to talk about all this over the phone, & he just ordered harshly, "Meet me tomorrow!" & he had spoken so abruptly, that it took a moment for Khushi to actually register what he had said.
She knew it even before he had said it, that the reason behind his silence had something to do with Rohan. Rohan had told them about how he didn't want any of them to worry about or be sad over something which may not even happen actually & thus he had wanted to be sure of everything before he informed everyone. So, Arnav was right maybe, in trying to be loyal towards his friend. & Khushi's outburst towards him actually stemmed more from her hurt over the actual sale of her home, & not from his involvement in it, so when she finally responded, she sounded a bit subdued at having to reject him, "I can't! I have to go to Ambiance Mall to pick up the Kaleere for Jiji. & then I have to meet with the decorators for the Shamiyana & the chair-tables for the front lawn, then the florists, & lastly I'll have to go & pick up Jiju & Bhabhi's rings with Bhaiya!"
Shaking his head ruefully, Arnav sighed at how the brides almost had every member of the two families on their exclusive duties, & confessed, "Di has me on rings duty also. I'll let Rohan know, I'll give you a lift & we'll pick up the rings together, & he doesn't need to come! & Aman will take care of the decorators & florists. Trust me, he's capable enough. Text me the names & numbers... What is a Kaleere & where is this mall?" Khushi was barely keeping up with his rapid instructions, & she made an irritated sound at the fast come-back of his high-handedness & divulged in an off-hand manner, "The Kaleere is tied to the bride's hand & she shakes it over the head of unmarried girls before her Bidaai & the girl on whose head it lands, is the girl most likely to be married next... It's a Punjabi thing, but Jiji wanted it since she saw it on TV or some film. & the Kaleere Jiji wanted to have till she saw it at her friend's wedding is only available at this shop in this mall, which is in Gurgaon."
Arnav processed through all she had said & rushed into speech, "Alright! I'll be done with the morning leg of meetings by 12 & by then Aman will be back from dealing with your decorators & florists. Can you meet me around 1? You name the place & I'll be there!" Khushi heard the urgency in his voice & she knew how he felt. Even she didn't want to lock horns with him after the way they had been with each other just this morning, but before she could reply, she heard him speak again, "Khushi! I just want to see you... try to explain why I didn't wanna betray Rohan's confidence!" Khushi sighed & said in a dejected voice, "Bhaiya took the day off tomorrow... he said he'll drop me off at Ambiance around 12. I'll wait for you there?"
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As Arnav stepped out of the lift that brought him up from the underground car park, he scanned the large, spacious & overly crowded foyer arena of the mall & he almost immediately spotted her. It was hard not to. Amongst all the busy looking people with a purpose in their stride & the younger crowd hanging out gathered in groups & the tech-savvy teens in front of the displays of high-def & 3-D TVs, she looked like Alice in wonderland. She was reaching inside her over-sized handbag every 30 seconds & pulling her fisted hand out, she was munching on something from it & her usual Khushi brand of short & flowy dark-colored floral print dress made her look like she was just strolling through a park.
& when a song played out on 4 nearby Plasmas about Fevicol, which Arnav was sure was an adhesive of some kind, she ran in front of it, picked up a flyer describing the features of that TV, & as Arnav looked on horrified, she also started dancing to the tunes by subtly jerking her delicious little derriere to the beats.
Arnav swore softly under his breath when he felt an overwhelming & completely alien feeling, similar to rage but much more self-destructive, tore vertically through his guts, as he saw all the males within 10 feet of her radius checking her out from head to toe. He marched at a furious pace towards her & owing to his persona, the small crowd of 6-7 guys around her instantly parted to grant him way to her. While he was still a step behind her, he grabbed her left elbow & gently dragged a stunned Khushi away sideways, saying, "I would consider saying sorry for being late & having forced to attend the lunch meeting that was too crucial cancel, but you seemed to be having a ball, so I won't bother! Did you have lunch?" Khushi tried wrenching her arm free from his grasp, & said grudgingly, "I had a few Samoses, & a Cheeseburger... & a Mexican wrap... & some Fries. But if you had just told me earlier you weren't coming on time, I would have had lunch at home! Bhaiya was home for lunch & Amma had cooked-" Arnav swiftly swiveled her by her elbow, brought her to stand in front of him, & said as if talking to a 5 year old, "I'd like to talk to you about last night, & I know food is important for you... But this is more important... for both of us. So can we find somewhere to sit & talk?"
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As the waiter went away after serving there instant coffees before them at the small caf at the ground floor of the mall, Khushi held her cup & tried to draw some warmth from it. They had come & sat in this small corner table for more than 15 minutes now, & he hadn't said a word. He was just looking at her in that weird penetrating way of his. & just when she thought he had given up on talking for the day, he spoke, "I know how hard it can be to let go of your home, Khushi... & I knew how Rohan would react if I offered to help him out... In fact I did offer, way back! When he had first told me about how Uncle & he were struggling with the upkeep... It'd have been perfect for me! I wanted to buy a house for Di & if I could have gotten Nikunja, she'd always be in a 2 minutes distance from Nani & me! But Rohan rejected me so vehemently!... Saying it'd be too much & the only way he'd let me buy the house for Di was if he could invest half in it. But that's another thing, Khushi! Fact is, there was no way Rohan & Uncle could keep up with the rising costs of maintenance of such a huge property in an area like that! It was like maintaining an elephant!"
But Arnav stopped his speech as he saw how upset Khushi was being by his deliverance of facts, & for the first time in his life he wished he knew the technique of sugar-quoting his words, & feeling inadequate, he just bluntly charged on, "But I can do it for you... Khushi, I can always buy Nikunja myself, you know. & seriously it'd be nothing! It's not that big of a deal! Even I have some emotions attached to the place &-" This time Khushi hastily cut him off with a shocked gasp, "You don't think I raised the subject so that you could... No! Never. Neither Babuji, nor Bhaiya, or for that matter, even I don't want you to do that! I just..." As she trailed of, Arnav made an impatient 'tch' sound & charged on, "I don't see what the problem is-" & this time Khushi leaned towards him & covered his left hand with her right one as she asked him gently, "Did you let your Nani or Mama buy Sheeshmahal back for you? Don't you remember what that was about?"
This time they both stayed silent for some long, heavy moments, & Arnav briefly wondered why this girl could remind him about that day & talk to him about Sheeshmahal without him plunging back into that dark place inside himself. As he watched the hazel eyes restlessly running over his own face, he wondered what would have happened if he hadn't let those gossipmongers chase him away thousands of miles away from Delhi, from Di, & from her. & now as he thought of doing the same again, going away from her & placing that ever widening spasm of distance between himself & Khushi again, he clutched on Khushi's right hand desperately, as his head suddenly felt terrifyingly empty as if his oxygen supply had been cu t off, as if he had stopped breathing. & Arnav slightly shook his head from side to side to as he sent repeated urgent instructions to his heart from his mind, "What the-! He couldn't, couldn't, under any circumstances, couldn't fall for this crazy, unbelievable, irrational & mostly crazy child sitting adorably in front of him! Unacceptable!"
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"Let's watch half a movie!" Arnav immediately swiveled his head towards her in a horrified jerk, & almost yelled, "You've got to be kidding me!" Khushi widened her eyes at his almost comically horrified expression & pouted, "Why? We could watch Dabbangg 2! Salman ji has done such a great job!" Saying this, she went & hooked her arm through a cut out of Salman Khan in a police uniform & presented a face at Arnav which said, she wasn't leaving till she got some Salman Khan time at the theater.
Arnav shook his head disbelievingly, & said in an appalled tone, "No! What the-! You- Khushi, let go! Let go of that!" & as Khushi continued shaking her head sideways in an inflexible manner, he tried to coax her, "Khush- Red! Let go! People are staring?" When Khushi went on with her obstinate head shake, Arnav swore softly under his breath & just went & tugged at her other arm to make her let go, & this time it was Khushi who started moaning, "No! Arnavji, let go." Arnav was firm too, "No. You let go!"
& none of them had any inclination of letting go any time soon in their weird tug of war, if they hadn't been turned to stone by the sudden exclamation towards both of them that came from two very familiar voices.
"Chhote! What are you doing here?!"
"Khushi! What are you doing here... with Arnavji?!"
Hope everything in your life gets sorted out and it gets better.
Khushi is angry on Arnav and tells him so too. He recalls his loss of home and perfectly understands her pain. Khushi confirms that Rohan asked Arnav to hold the news back from anyone. She knows her bro too well!
I had no idea that they are called Kaleere! Nice!😊 Christian communities follow similar custom, I have heard.
The dress is damn cute! Alice in Wonderland!😉
Yeah, Fevicol is only an adhesive and has nothing to do with Kareena or Salman, absolutely no!😆
Khushi is so not bothered about her surroundings, she is just being herself! Arnav sees red when men ogle at her and a sense of protectiveness washes over! Loved their convo there!
Khushi gently handles the situation when Arnav offers to buy Nikunj.
Aha! Realization time for Arnav! Falling for her is unacceptable, says his mind. I bet all these instructions will promptly be sent back to the mind by his heart! 😉
Precap: Watching half a movie!? Huh, I feel so incomplete if I miss first 5 mins of the movie.
Payal and Anjali see them?😳
Awesome update!
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