FF: When Love And Hate Collide... Pt26 pg145 10/07 - Page 66

Originally posted by: .Dulcet

I WILL EDIT THIS FOR SURE!! no worry :D but not now :D in vacs, yo will get lamba wala comment :D

Originally posted by: cherry227

the question is WHEN shilpaaa😛

waise thanks to u now this ss is an ff!!! so comment soon 😆

Originally posted by: cherry227

sorry for the delay guys... will post it today for sure 👍🏼

Originally posted by: deelax18

hii...so love ur story.❤️👍🏼👏...makes me wish that i could fall in love..and just one more thing..can you write the dialogues too in english..i didn't learn hindi😳..oops..making it hard for me too understand in certain areas :P

Originally posted by: mysticlover

I don't know if I will read it today but I am happy I have something to look forward to!!! :-)

update after a lamba wala break! thanks guys for waiting patiently and loving this story 🤗

PART 18

Arohi chuckled again and Arjun frowned deeper. Ever since they had left the designer studio, she had been busy on her phone, messaging someone and chuckling at the responses. Who was it that she was talking to? Was it Danish??? No, it cant be. It was still office hours and she would not keep him away from his work. Then who can it be? Maybe it was some female friend. But from the past few months that he knew her, she didn't have any female friend with whom she would share jokes or messages and chuckle like a child. Not knowing this mystery person on the other end of Arohis phone was killing Arjun slowly.

Arohi bit her lip to stop from laughing and put her phone inside her bag. She turned her head towards Arjun and her smile slipped when she saw him staring at her with a frown.

"Look ahead! I donot want to die in a car accident."

Arjun snapped his head towards the road. She didn't even have the courtesy to explain whom she was talking to, and to top that she was questioning his driving skills. Arjun gripped the steering wheel tightly and tried to calm himself down. Lately he could feel himself reacting instinctively when it came to Arohi, and he reminded himself to take it easy. If she was talking to some male friend, it was still none of his business. But it was still bothering him and he could not ignore it. Forcing his brain to be logical, he let out a deep breath.

"Mujhe ye sab functions etc mein jaana bilkul achha nahi lagta. Im doing this only for Sudhir uncle. Warna mere staff ke liye bhi, I just attend the reception, hand over the gift and leave."

"Tell me about it." Arohi responded. "Shayad ye sabse pehli cheez hai jo hum dono mein common hain."

"Nai. There are a lot many common things in between us."

"Achha?? Jaise???"

Arohi threw Arjun a challenging look. From what she had known about Arjun till now, he was her exact opposite. But his declaration made her curious.

"For e.g… we both are… workaholics! We enjoy our work far beyond than for anyone to understand… or we both like to keep our personal and professional lives separate… or we both are very close to our families…"

Arohi stared at Arjun… stunned! A couple of days ago, when she was having a mental war about her feelings for this man, she had listed almost these same things as common between him and her. Their attitude towards life was different, yet there were things which she and he could relate to. A couple of them were the reason that she had grown to admire and respect him. She almost felt as if he could read her mind.

Arjun looked at Arohis expressions, looked at the road and turned his head to her again. She was still in the same position, staring at him. Confused, he snapped his fingers in front of her eyes and she blinked.

"Kya hua? Do you agree with me or not???"

"Yaa… I agree. Its just that I've thought of these things myself… a couple of days ago!" Arohi responded almost automatically, still staring at him.

Arjun looked back at her in surprise. "Arjun Singhania… and Arohi Ahluwalia… not only thinking about the same thing but even agreeing to it???"

Arohi smiled. "Freaky na…?"

Arjun smiled back. "Very!"

They both turned to look out of the windshield at the dark road, and an uncomfortable silence prevailed in the car. Arjun could literally feel the air in the car vibrating with a certain kind of energy. It was like his body was catching all kinds of signals that Arohis presence was exuding. Frustrated, he grunted and pushed his hand in his hair, messing them up completely. Was it just him or did she feel it too??? He just HAD TO find out now.

Arohi noticed the reaction but her confused mind controlled her senses to steal a glance at the man besides her. Whatever was happening between them was scaring her now. Did she just feel a certain kind of connection between them? Was she the only one who felt it or did Arjun feel it too? What is happening with her??? She reminded her mind to control herself.

After a lot of pain staking efforts, she and Arjun had developed this camarederie. And it was too precious for her peace of mind to ruin it with her hallucinations. Whatever she felt for Arjun… or had started feeling for him had to stay locked in her heart. God knows how many girls he had charmed before. Of all the people that she could develop feelings for, her stupid heart had to choose this casanova. Arohi cursed her destiny for the nth time regarding its plans for her.

Everything… every single thing in her life was in her control… except when it came to the matters of her heart. That was the single reason why she had steadily avoided into getting any kind of relationships till now. But when it came to Arjun she felt her control slipping too… over her mind and her resolve. And the last thing that she wanted to do was fall for a potential heart-breaking machine.

Ahluwalia office… Natashas cabin

"If you want to ruin someones carpet then do it to your own cabin not mine!"

D stopped pacing from one end of the room to the other just to glare at Natasha, and then continued again.

"There is noone in my cabin whom I can talk to. What if its not Arohi but someone else in the office?? It might be Shanti… I've seen him give her 'the look' a couple of times! Yesss… im sure its Shanti!"

Nats let out a sigh and closed her laptop. Getting up from her chair, she went and stood in Danish's path. "Relax D! I don't know but it might be something as small as he wants to know where can he buy a male perfume from… since hes new over here. Why are you making this such a big deal in your head already? And even if it is about Arohi… so what?! You still have the choice to answer him or not if you feel the question is too private. So just chill…"

D glared back at her. If he was honest to himself, he knew that what Natasha said was correct. But still he could not figure out, why was he feeling so nervous. Ever since Nats had planted the seed of Arohi-Arjun-with-feelings, in his head, he was disturbed. He felt protective towards Arohi and at the same time he had grown to respect Arjun. So he was pretty clueless how to handle it, if Natashas akashwani was true. Maybe he should talk to Arohi about it before Arjun confronts him. That way he will know what to answer.

Turning swiftly to Natasha, Danish said, "You're right. But I still feel it might be someone else in our office. And I need to do something before Arjun asks me anything. So I will see you later. Bye." They both turned towards the door and froze. The knob had just been turned and the door opened. Arjun was in the process of entering the cabin, however an employee approached him with a doubt. So with the door half open, and his hand on the knob, he turned towards the hallway to peep inside the file held out to him. It was clear that he had not seen who was inside the cabin.

D looked at Nats and panicked. He had to get out from there and speak to Arohi first, before Arjun confronted him. Looking to his left and right, he pointed a finger towards Nats and then at Arjun, asking her to tackle him, and crouched to hide underneath her desk. Natashas eyes widened as she looked at D crawling away and then at Arjun, who had dismissed the employee in time and entered the cabin. His full blown smile on seeing his friend dropped, when he saw the horror look on her face.

"Kya hua Nats? Aise kyu dekh rahi ho??? Mein koi bhoot nahi hoon…"

Natasha forced a smile on her haunted face, making her look all the more weird. "Tum… itne jaldi wapas aagaye?? I mean… mujhe laga ki trials vagaira mein bohat time lag jaayega."

"Haan mujhe bhi laga tha lekin I just had to get out of there!" Arjun walked towards her. "You know what Nats? I think Ill go home early today… baaki ka kaam ghar jaake karunga. I just have to meet someone and respond to a few emails. I don't want to switch on my laptop for that. Can I use your pc?" Arjun smiled at her frozen form and turned towards her desk.

"NO!" The sudden loud shout startled Arjun and his eyes widened as Natashas scampered to rush and stand in front of her desk. Dhondu could only see two pair of legs, one trying to get to the desk and expose him, and the other trying to stop them.

"Are you alright??? Tabiyat toh thik haina tumhari! I just want to respond to a few emails that's all… khaa nahi jaaunga tumhara computer."

Arjun again started to go around the desk, when Nats side stepped and put her hands on his shoulder. "Lekin… why Arjun? You know what? Tum aajkal kuch jyada hi kaam karrahe ho… aise toh tum bimaar pad jaaoge. Tum ghar jaao. Mein hoon na… ill respond to your emails, you just dictate to me, ok?"

Arjun frowned at Natashas weird behaviour, but her suggestion was tempting enough. He thought for a moment and then smiled. "Ok. So let me dictate right now to you. I want these emails to go out immediately. Then I want to meet Danish too. Do you where he is?"

Nats tightened her grip on Arjuns shoulders as he made to move to sit in the chair besides hers, behind the desk. She spared a glance under the desk, where D was on his knees, his hands joined in a pleading action and his mouth pouting, asking her to save him. Gulping hard, she tried to put the most convincing smile on her face.

"Why don't we have a coffee before we start? You must be tired too right? And I think I remember Danish mention that hes going to the pantry to get some coffee for himself before you guys return. So I guess you can catch him there itself. What say?"

Before waiting for Arjun to answer, Nats put her hand in Arjuns arm and dragged him towards the door, out in the hallway and in the direction of the pantry.

D's cabin…

Danish was completely lost in his own thoughts and his coffee when he reached the door of his cabin. Clutching the mug tightly in one hand, he twisted the knob on the door and opened it. The first thing he noticed was Arjun, pretending to be busy in reading a file on his desk. D startled at the door and his mind panicked, contemplating into taking a quick step back and running away, before Arjun sees him. But Arjun had already looked up and smiled at D, shutting the file immediately.

"Hi…"

Arjuns friendly hi, remained unaffected on D's impassive face. Throwing a quick 'hi' in his direction, D shut the door and moved towards his desk. Gesturing with his hand towards the informal coffee table near the window, Arjun moved towards the puff sofa chairs next to the table and seated himself on one of them. D sighed in resignation and followed his associate boss. Seating himself in front of Arjun, he kept the coffee mug on the table.

"So… tell me. What you wanted to speak to me about."

Danishs direct question made Arjun realise that he had not figured out how he wanted to approach the topic. Feeling himself at a loss of words, he looked around and said, "Nice office."

D frowned. He could make out that Arjun was buying time but now he was the one too anxious to hear him talk. Speaking to Arohi had been futile because as usual, she had more important work to do. And when he mentioned about the meeting with the designer, she went into a fit of laughter, singing about something like 'Arjun and Sanjay sitting in a tree… k… i… s…' and then she doubled up laughing and left for the washroom. Everyone acting so strange around him had irritated D a bit, and he had tried to calm himself down with a cup of coffee, lest he vent all his irritation on Arjun.

"Come to the point Arjun."

Arjun straightened in his seat and loosened his tie. Pondering for a moment, he looked at D straight in the eye.

"I needed to talk to you about something important. Man to man."

D just nodded his head.

"I know that… this office… has strict regulations against employees dating each other…"

D scoffed and Arjun looked at him, asking him to explain the reaction.

"Dating??? Arjun… a husband and wife working in this office have to treat each other as colleagues… nothing more! Dating bohat durr ki baat hai."

Arjuns eyes widened. He had heard about this bizzare rule but never thought that it was actually implemented.

"But Danish. There must be people who like each other… in this office. Or who would like to know each other. You just cant control peoples emotions right? I mean I know that professionally it is ideal, but after all we all are humans."

Danish shook his head. "Arohi has set this rule herself. And you know how the rules set by Arohi are treated in this office…"

Arjun frowned. So she set the rules… fine! But arent rules meant to be broken?! And if anyone can convince Arohi to act out her feelings… if she DOES like him that is… then that anyone was D. So Arjun had to patao D first to get Arohi to even acknowledge her feelings for him.

"Ok. But what is your opinion about this rule? I mean personal opinion. What if… you fell for someone in this office…"

Now it was D's turn to frown! What does that mean??? "Arjun… im married."

"That's not relevant. My question is do you personally approve of this rule? Shouldn't a person get a chance to know the opposite person if he/she is attracted to it???"

D was completely confused now. What was this man talking about! He had expected Arjun to ask about Arohi or some other person in the office whom he liked or wanted to date. But he was asking vague questions. Why was Arjun avoiding taking the name of that person???

"Whom are you talking about Arjun???" D looked suspiciously at him.

Arjun felt like he was talking to the wall. Was this man slow? Didn't he just ask his personal opinion!!! So then why was he asking this question.

"What do you mean by 'who'… im talking about you!"

Dhondus eyes widened. Arohis song played in his mind…

Arjun and Sanjay sitting in a tree… k… i… s…

's… i… n…g…! Omigod!!! Was Arjun…? No no… it cant be! He was the biggest casanova in the world… flanked with girls all the time. How can he be gay??? So, that's the reason why he was not taking names! And he wants to know ME better???'

He kept staring at Arjun in shock.

'Maybe he has realised it now… after so many years. Poor guy! No wonder he was trying to make himself feel better by surrounding himself with girls all the time… just to convince himself and the world that he was straight! But nature can really be cruel… Such a fine man… and no girl will ever get the privelege of having him forever. To think of it, if I was gay, then I would have been honoured to think that Arjun likes me. But unfortunately Im married… and I still like women!'

D looked at Arjun with pity in his eyes. Not knowing how to break it to him, he slid forward in his seat and placed his palm on Arjuns hand. Next moment he just withdrew it with a jerk, feeling totally uncomfortable. Joining his hands together, he gave Arjun a sympathetic smile.

"I can understand what you're trying to say. But unfortunately, that is not possible. If only your feelings could be reciproated… but im afraid… that cant happen."

Arjun looked back stunned. Arohi didn't like him? How was that possible!!! He was not delusional… how could he read so many signs incorrectly. But D was saying it with so much confidence, did that mean Arohi had already told him about whatever was happening between them??? He felt his head spinning with the questions arising in his brain. He had seen the effect he had on her… she could not be faking it! But then why was D saying…

"How can you be so sure??? I feel you should check again before you say something like this…"

D was taken aback! Was Arjun questioning his masculanity???

"I have checked! And I don't need to check again. Just because you've realised something today, doesn't mean everyone is like you."

Danish looked offended and Arjun looked at him puzzled. Why was he getting angry about it??? It was not like he was accusing him of something. All Arjun wanted him to do was speak to Arohi once more before he could conclude that she doesn't have feelings for him. Because if Arohi said NO, then there was a reason behind it, and Arjun would have to know it.

"But Dhondu…"

D lifted a hand to stop him. "Enough Arjun. I don't think theres anything more I can say about this topic now. I think its best that you leave it."

Arjun looked confused, as D got up and folded his hands, indicating Arjun to leave. Arjun followed suit and exited cabin with a huge question mark on his face. D turned out to be weirder than he had ever imagined!

Inside the cabin D was frowning deeply. It was his first experience of driving on the other side of the road. He could almost feel the endearing way that Arjun called him 'Dhondu'. Shaking the uncomfortable feeling off him, he started packing to leave the office and run home to his wife.

So i decided to take the fun approach! i like the light heartedness associated with this ff and hence wanted to make it a fun meeting between arjun and d... however there will be a few wounds opened soon and hence i wanted to prepare you guys for that lots of roller coaster to follow... please comment and give me your opinions!!!