FF:KMH2-Mohabat restart;) TH2 Pt 55 Pg142 (13/04) - Page 45

Part 44

"Lekin ye baat tumne pehle kyu nahi batayi!!!"

Rajveers voice thundered across the shanty of a room where his informer had called him. The poor guy stood shivering in front of this police officer who was famous in the department for his infamous temper. His wide eyes stared as he saw Rajveers eyes begin to redden with anger and hypothetical smoke coming out of his ears. Slowly he realised that this spitting ball of fire was actually waiting for an answer from him and he gulped. Gathering courage, he formed sentences in his head to respond in the most subtle manner.

"Lekin sir… Report mein toh sab likha hua tha. Infact maine khud ye baat likhi thi… Lekin aap mese kisine react nahi kiya toh…"

Rajveer was looking at the person in front of him, but his mind was scanning the report on his fathers attempted murder. Why he could not remember reading any such detail or any hint about it? His eyebrows furrowed in confusion at their lack of catching the information he was receiving months after the report had been made. Out of the three brothers, not one of them had noticed it and questioned it… how? Why?!! His own rhetorical question was answered by his informer.

"Sir… hume laga… ki aapki bhatiji uske saath thi… aisa ussine kaha tha toh… isliye hume laga shayad ye wohi hai…"

Rajveers eyes widened again, not in rage but disbelief. Shocked at his own apathy at processing this tiny piece of information, for the first time in his life Rajveer felt shameful. They all had been so quick and judgemental at blaming and proving Arjun to be the killer that they had not even bothered to read the entire report in detail. Had they done that, they wouldn't have lost out on these precious months, digging for information in the wrong direction. If only they had enough faith in Arohi and her words… then today this low-lying, potential criminal would not have had the guts to suggest that his niece was with the killer when he was shooting her daddu.

+

Arjun woke up with a start.

His immediate reaction was to check on his wife. Now she was facing him and sleeping, his hand still around her waist and hers holding her duvet at her chest. He looked at the clock. It was 1pm.

This was the third time Arjun had woke up in the night and all the three times he had, he first turned to check on Arohi. Relaxing his head back on his pillow, Arjun looked at the peaceful angelic face which was deep in sleep. Her mind had probably taken her in a faraway dreamland where she was very happy, the subtle smile on her face hinted at that. Knowing Arohi, Arjun could bet that, right now, she was in one of the locations shot by Yash Chopra in Switzerland. A soft laugh escaped Arjuns lips as he imagined Arohi wearing a pastel colour chiffon saree, dancing in the luscious green fields with the snow capped mountains in the backdrop. His filmy dramatic wife had equally filmy and dramatic dreams.

'Tujhe dekha toh ye jaana sanam' was her most favourite love song till date. The fact that Shahrukh Khan was a part of that movie and song, just increased the temperature on the romance barometer for Arohi. He still did not understand what she liked so much about that guy but then there were a lot many things that he didn't understand about Arohi.

Like he did not understand how she had an unshakeable belief and trust in him. Like how she functioned as if everything was fine, and if it wasn't then it will be someday. Like how she has adopted his son, his di, his dadi as her own, at times making him feel that they were related to her and not him. She was a classic combination of an immature stubborn child who refused to grow up and a worldly wise smart woman with a no-nonsense attitude. The various shades of her personality confused him. The only thing he knew with all his heart was that she was the centre of his universe and that he loved her unconditionally.

Unconditionally… doesn't that mean 'no-matter-what'? So then if he saw her chatting and laughing with a friend, who had saved her life, then why was he feeling insecure??? Or jealous! That was a sign of love maybe. People do feel jealous and insecure if their loved ones were over friendly towards members of the opposite sex, right??? Arjun relaxed feeling satisfied with his argument. But there was a niggling sensation in his heart which told him that love was supposed to make you feel wanted and belonged, there should be no place for insecurity.

Shutting his eyes to the ridiculous argument, Arjun tightened his arm around Arohis waist and pulled her nearer. Her warm, calm breath washed over his face and he smiled. He opened his eyes to see her pretty face only an inch away from his. He took in the details like the curve of her eyelashes, the arch of her brow, her silver nosering glinting in the moonlight, wisps of her hair framing her face and her soft pink lips curved slightly upwards. Possessiveness surged through Arjun and a sudden urge to mark her clenched his heart. Slowly moving ahead, Arjun lightly placed his lips against hers and pecked them. Inhaling in her jasmine scent, Arjun pulled back and saw her lips stretch further in to a smile.

Amazing! Even in her sleep, his wife was enjoying the kiss he gave her?! Arjuns heart swelled with happiness and he once again pecked her lips, for a longer while this time. Passion began to take over his senses and he opened his mouth to take Arohis lower lip between his lips and suck on it. Arjun pulled her flush against him on the bed, and his hand held her nape, allowing him to deepen the kiss. Desire shot through him as he felt Arohi respond to him by kissing him back. Her hands fisted in the front of his t-shirt pulling him closer. Arjuns hand left her nape and travelled south looking for the edge of the top of her PJ's.

+

'The presence of alternate marks of footprints indicate the possibility of an accomplice in the given situation, most probably a female.'

Rajveer had read this line almost ten times in the report now. After reaching his car, he had pulled out the file from the trunk and gone through the report to cross check the validity of what his informer had said. It was clearly mentioned that there was not one, but two people present at that time and one of them was likely to be a woman. Given the circumstances, his staff had dismissed the idea, regarding the other woman as Arohi because the Ahluwalia men were busy trying to prove Arjun guilty. His blood surged in his veins and his hands tightened on the steering wheel as he realised the baseless assumptions that they had made.

This meant that there were two people inside the house at that time who were involved in the attack and those two were definitely not Arjun and Arohi. His Arohi may or maynot make mistakes, but she would never stand by and watch her daddu getting shot.

Guilt, remorse and anger pricked at Rajveers soul. His eyes misted at his lack of trust in his own blood and he almost missed the saree-clad figure which was walking along the side of the road. The girl had her back towards him and she was walking steadily. Her brisk walk spoke of the anger vibrating off her body but her shoulders were slumped in defeat. The road was lonely, since there were all the major expensive properties in the vicinity, the number of people frequenting this area was limited. As the car neared her, Rajveer noticed that her walk became faster and eventually broke off in a run. As if she was scared, and running away from someone.

Her peach coloured pallu was flying behind her as the girl cluthed her bag to her chest and ran further, trying to put distance between herself and the vehicle. If she were to fall or hurt herself, there would be noone to even check on her for hours. Worse, if she got hit by a car by her reckless running then it could prove fatal for her. Rajveer stepped on the accelerator as these thoughts plaqued his mind. He raced the car in front on her and stopped it with a screech, eventually blocking her path.

He got down from the car and banged his door shut to move towards the girl and give her an earful. But instead, his angry eyes met Rashis bewildered ones.

She looked like a hunted prey, running for her life and caught unexpectedly by a poacher. Concern and worry took over him and he closed the distance between them in three foot steps.

"Rashi…" Rajveers hands rose to hold her but stopped midway as she flinched and took a step back. Her eyes were still wide open but somehow he felt that she was not seeing him.

"Rashi… mein hu Rajveer. Kya hua??? Rashi… tum yaha kya karrahi ho???" Looking around Rajveer frowned. "Akeli ho? Tumhari gaadi kaha hai?"

Rashi still stared at Rajveer, her chest was heaving with her deep breathing. She had been trying to run from the memories, from the hurt and the pain, but they had eventually found her. She may have kicked Jignesh hard but he had kicked her in the place where it hurt her the most. She had spent a lot of time in healing her wounds. But he had just come along and ripped the band-aid off, refreshing them again. When she had heard the noise of the engine, her first thought was that Jignesh was following her to hurt her more and on an instinct she had ran as fast as she could.

Rajveers eyes softened as he saw her scared, disturbed form. Deciding to take the matter in his hands, he opened the passenger door of his car. "Chalo… mein tumhe ghar chod deta hoon."

Rajveer continued to hold the door open as Rashis eyes danced between him and the car. He stood with determination in his eyes, and a small smile on his lips. Slowly, Rashis breathing came back to normal and she took small steps towards the car. Tucking her saree in, Rajveer softly shut the door and made his way to the drivers side.

+

Arohi gasped as she felt Arjuns cold hand rest on the warm skin of her lower back. Taking advantage, he slipped his tongue inside Arohis mouth looking for her own. Arohi moaned at the sensations flowing through her.

One minute back she was standing on top of a hill, wearing a violet chiffon saree with halter neck blouse, swaying to the music and watch Shahrukh Khan sing for her. The huge swiss cow had mooed behind and Arohi turned to glare at her, asking her to shut up and not disturb SRK when he was doing what he did best… romance a beautiful lady. When she had turned back to give her attention to her most favourite hero, he was nowhere to be seen but Arjun appeared out of nowhere and he had placed his lips on her. Her shocked form had been unable to respond for a while but her eyes closed involuntarily. The kiss ended very quickly and she smiled. But before she could open her eyes, the same pair of lips took possession of her mouth again.

Arohi had started enjoying the sensation when she felt Arjuns hand caressing the soft ticklish skin of her back. Probably her saree pallu had slipped down giving Arjun access, thought Arohi. Her hands slowly creeped around her husbands neck as he angled his head to deepen the kiss and his hand moved up to explore more of his wifes delicious body. Arohis eyes opened in a snap when cold skin connected with her shoulder blades and she pulled back. She looked at her surroundings while Arjuns brain refused to leave the love haze he was in. Frowning at the lack of grass and mountains, she looked down at herself and exclaimed,

"Meri saree kaha gayi???"

Arjun continued staring at her, his mind slowly and steadily fighting its way out of the trance to hear and decipher the words uttered by his wife. Nothing could have speeded up the process more, than the next sentence that Arohi muttered.

"… aur Shahrukh kaha gaya???"

Arjuns eyes widened. "WHAT?!!" He almost whisper-screamed. Arohi kept staring at his shocked eyes.

"Haan… Abhi to yahi tha… mountain pe… mere saath…" Arohi started looking around in the darkness trying to get a hang of the location.

Arjuns eyes stayed wide in shock. So she HAD BEEN dreaming of SRK and Switzerland!!! His desire laced heart was rudely awakened by his trememdous ego. He had just given her one of the most passionate kisses that he had ever shared with her and she was wondering about her saree and SRK??? Dimag kharab hai iss ladki ka!

Arjun twisted his body around so that Arohi was on her back and he was on top of her. She saw the devilish glint in his eyes which was hardened by determination. Shoving both his hands inside her top, Arjun caressed Arohis creamy back and dipped his head low to whisper in her ears,

"Tumhari saree aur tumhara Shahrukh… dono gaye BHAAD MEIN!!!"

And before she could react, Arjun smashed his lips on hers. Clothes were discarded at the speed at which light travels. Arjuns urgency and hunger was clearly evident is his gestures. All Arohi did was drown in the passionate love that her husband was showering on her, reciprocating with a passion of her own. If Arjun bit her lip then Arohi pulled his hair, each of them trying to get the most out of the other. Arohis screams of surprise was drowned in Arjuns passionate moans as he continued to ravish her body and soul, seeking the love and reassuarance of their commitment, which he hoped would soothe his heart.

+

Rajveer looked at Rashi again, but she stared ahead, refusing to even glance at him. He had never seen her like this. For a moment, he remembered the first time he had seen Rashi with Raj after the accident. She had been scared then too, and she had immediately composed herself. But right now, she looked vulnerable and broken, which pinched his heart. Over these few months, he had seen her grow stronger and happier and although he didn't know why, he had felt proud of her. Seeing her like this was not what he had expected. He had to know what had happened.

Rajveer stopped the car, but Rashi continued to look ahead, not reacting or even asking him why he stopped. Rajveer removed his seatbelt and turned to look at her. She still looked ahead. Rajveer slowly held her hand, which was resting on her lap and kept his other hand on hers. His warmth started seeping into Rashis cold skin and she she turned her head to look at Rajveer with questioning eyes.

"Pata hai Rashi… Jab mera Gauri se divorce hua tha, tab mujhe bohat gussa aaya tha. Issliye nahi kyuki mein Gauri se pyaar karta tha, lekin isliye kyuki main voh nahi dekh paya jo mujhe dekhna chahiye tha. Lekin uss gusse ko maine daba ke rakh diya, kisise share nahi kiya. I was not only angry, I was also hurt. Infact ye meri sabse buri aadat hai, ki mein apna gussa constructively use nahi karta. Lekin jab Arjun pe dad pe attack karne ka ilzaam laga, tab maine saara gussa, apni saari bhadaas usspe nikaal di. Ab agar mein sochta hoon toh mujhe lagta hai ki Gauri ka gussa bhi maine Arjun pe nikaal diya. Uss gusse mein, mein itna andha hogaya ki jo dekhna chahiye tha woh dekh nahi paaya. Lekin aaj mein pachta raha hoon."

Rashis face calmed down on hearing Rajveers confession. She was still not sure why he was confessing this to her, but the gesture and the calmness in his voice made her want to listen to him. She felt like embracing his calmness so that she could make her heart come back to normal. Noticing the change in Rashi, Rajveer got more confident and he continued.

"Arohi, waise to pagal hai, lekin kai baar samajhdari ki baatein karti hai. Voh hamesha kehti thi, ki apne feelings ko dabaake mat rakho. Gussa nikaalo mat, gussa express karo chachu… Express karne se aapka bhi mann halka hojaayega. Lekin isska matlab ye nahi ki aap weak ho, ya kamzor ho. Isska matlab ye hai ki aap itne strong ho, ki aap apne weakness express karne se nahi darte."

Realisation dawned on Rashi as she looked into Rajveers eyes.

"I know you're a very strong and confident woman Rashi. Lekin mujhse apni problems share karnese tum weak nahi ho jaaogi."

Rashi eyes welled up at Rajveers soft and sweet declaration. Her face scrunched up in pain and tears ran down her face when Rajveer slowly undid her seat belt and pulled her in his arms.

Later as they drove off, Rashi dozed off on the seat. She had still not told him the reason for her misery but Rajveer felt content. She had confided in him with her fears by crying in front of him. A satisfied smile grew on Rajveers lips and he leaned forward to switch on the radio in a low volume.

Khwabon ki lehre… Khusiyon ke saaye

Khushbu ki kirne… dheeme se gaaye

Yahi toh hai humdum, voh saathi, voh dilbar, voh yaar…

Yaadon ke naazuk paron pe, chala aaya pyaar…

Rajveer turned to look at Rashi, her tear streaked face finally looked peaceful as she slept. He remembered the pain and anguish that had been there as she had unloaded all her worries on his shoulder in the form of tears. Rajveer softly grabbed Rashis hand and entwined her fingers in the gaps between his. The beautiful lyrics softened his heart and he had a hard time tearing his eyes from her face to watch the road.

Mohabbat ka dariya ajooba niraala, jo thehra voh paaya kabhi na kinaara…

Jo bekhauf dooba, wohi toh pohach paaya paar…

Yaadon ke naazuk paron pe, chala aaya pyaar…

Chalaa aaya pyaaar… chalaa aaya pyaar

Rajveer never realised when love had walked into his heart for this amazing woman. He looked at her and promised himself that he will find out the reason for her misery and deal with it in his way. Firmly tightening his hold, he kept their joined hands on his lap and drove with a smile on his face, whistling away to the melody.

Kabhi zindagi ko savaare sajaaye, kabhi maut ko bhi gale lagaye…

Kabhi jeet usski hai sabkuch, gaya ho jo haar…

Yaadon ke naazuk paron pe, chala aaya pyaar

Chalaa aaya pyaaar… chalaa aaya pyaar