||~Something About You~||#11 *COMPLETED* - Page 78

It's strange how sometimes we start to associate a certain place with a certain someone, although in all honesty, that same place might have held different meaning for us, until maybe a day ago for some very different reason.

Arnav was almost body blocked by Khushi from the moment he entered Nikunja. & yet, for the first time since he had come back to India, he was stepping into a Khushi-less Nikunja. It was strange how all he had remembered was how Rohan & he used to play on the front porch, confide in the corners, & share philosophies under the stars on the roof, when he had come to drop Khushi off from her campus that day that now seemed so long ago. & today, the minute he stepped over the threshold, he saw Khushi. His Khushi. Dressed in Yellow & asking him shyly whether he would call her once he was done with his meetings on the day of the Shagun. He hadn't even passed her fully, when he saw her descending the stairs again, smiling expectantly at him in the Lehenga & miniscule Choli he had designed for her for the engagements, her eyes asking him if he liked what he saw. & then before he could run up the stairs & catch up with that illusive girl, he saw her from the corner of his left eye. She was wearing that ridiculously babyish Blue pajamas with Yellow stars in it, her hair up in a ponytail, & she just looked at him nervously once & stepped away into the side corridor that led to the kitchen. Arnav was just about to hurry up & go, & corner her into the store room like he had done that night when they had caught onto Payal & Akaash's conversation in the kitchen in the middle of the night, but as he stepped after his Khushi, someone held onto his elbow.. hard.

Arnav swiveled around to see the sallow face of a very lost looking Rohan. & before Arnav could ask Rohan to let go of his arm, Rohan whispered urgently, "Bachchi.. she'd never be gone without a trace like this.. for so long! Never.. It's not like her.. But do you-? I mean, do you know anywhere she might go to clear her head? She had been pretty low since we came back, & usually she sits on the roof when she's- Look Arnav, do you have any idea of where Bachchi might be?" Arnav looked at Rohan confusedly for some moments, & then reality slowly sank in. Of course Khushi couldn't be waltzing around in here when he had sprinted in here on getting Anjali's call that she was missing. Arnav gulped & said what he knew to be the absolute truth, "No. She'd never make you guys worry for nothing like this. Ever."

& as he said he recounted the numerous times he had seen Khushi taking precaution against letting her family worry for her for nothing. He remembered the elaborate plan she had made out before their first date, just so no one in her family would worry about her. & how she had panicked when she had seen there were a few missed calls from Payal that night. & then again, be it that brunch when he had behaved absolutely abominably with her & she had just wanted to avoid him, or be it the Haldi ceremony in the farmhouse, where she had just wanted to avoid the pain in her heart, he had seen how she had carefully made excuses about a tuition or a headache to her brother or her mother, before she had decided to take her leave. So it was not like her to just up & go whenever she felt low. No, Arnav just knew in his bones, Khushi wasn't deliberately doing any of this. & he started feeling so claustrophobic all of a sudden at the thought of Khushi being held against her will, that he was about to just scream at the top of his voice, when he heard the door behind him open & seeing Rohan's alarmed expression, he too turned around.

He saw Khushi's Babuji coming in slowly, looking defeated, but as soon as he looked up & saw the pale faces of Rohan & Arnav, he seemed to just shrug off sadness, & said resolutely, "Beta, the police said to wait it out for a bit.. said girls this age can go off for a couple of hours like this.. & they'll take my FIR down when they'll be sure that she's actually missing.. But, you know..I know!.. that our Chhutki won't just go off like this right? So, we'll only have to find her, hain na beta? But where to start-" & although Rohan was very close to his Babuji, somehow he was so baffled seeing his otherwise calm & composed Babuji blabbering out of his panic like that, & he was also hitting the end point of his nerve, so that he didn't catch the way Shashi's voice suddenly trailed off, but Arnav was too quick for it. He lunged forward & caught Shashi under his arms before the older man could topple over under the sheer stress he was under, & then he gently helped Shashi down over the couch, while Rohan hurriedly massaged a hand over Shashi's heart while he called his mother, wife & Buaji incessantly.

Arnav looked at the scene of extreme chaos, & for a moment it seemed surreal to him that he was part of this nightmare. It was unbelievable that he was standing there watching someone losing their control in distress. He had made it a rule to stay away from other people's problems all through his adult life. He had had enough problems of his own. He hadn't wanted more. But right now, all the distress seemed to be his own. & if Khushi's father nearly wasn't having a heart attack in front of him, then Arnav would've liked nothing better than to just scream Khushi's name out & call her, demand people to bring her to him, threaten someone to make Khushi appear in front of him right at this instant. But somehow, at this moment, the right to throw a temper tantrum, a rage fit had been taken away from him. Arnav fought down an intense flood of nausea that threatened to take over him when suddenly he heard Khushi's Buaji cry out taking Khushi's name in a desperate call, because somehow that cry sounded like mourning to him, & he turned away from the scene in front of him. His head had started to spin a little, but Arnav knew he had to do at least a few things before the full implications of Khushi's disappearance hit him & he lost all of his senses too. He knew, it was time to call in the big guns.

~~~~~~~~~

Within the next 30 minutes, the front porch of Nikunja was swarming with 2 police patrol cars & a white SUV in which the ACP of Dhaula Khan police station had come. Manohar Raizada seemed to know the ACP quite well, & what he hadn't done, Aman had taken care of, & even Arnav was a bit confused at the rapid questions the inspector was asking everyone he could find in his sights. & Arnav could feel his impatience growing by the second. He wanted to run outside, get in his car, & zoom around all over Delhi looking for her. But the only thought stopping him was, what if someone called with some news of hers, or what if by some miracle, she herself came back?

Everyone in the family, even Arnav & his Mamaji, had taken Karan's name as the only person they suspected when they were asked about it. Rohan had sworn, Karan had to be involved in it, as Khushi only had her family & her friends from her University & around Chanakyapuri in her life. & being of the congenial & affable nature that she was, she didn't really have nay enemies who would actually go as far as to abduct her. There hadn't been any kind of ransom calls so far too. So assuming whatever it was, was personal, every person had only name for whom they suspected: Karan. But Karan being the son of a powerful political family, was a sort of immunity for him. The ACP had pointed out to Rohan that without any concrete evidence, or some sort of witnesses, they couldn't even go & question Karan just on the basis of some disgruntled family members' statement, let alone arrest him or something.

Arnav saw the helpless look that came over Rohan & his Babuji's face, & he would never admit to anyone just how caged he himself felt at that moment. But then suddenly he remembered something, & looking up at his Mamaji, he said quietly, "Mamaji, you are friendly with Karan's father, don't you? I have seen you sign the monthly contribution to his party! Can you do something, please?" Manohar Raizada looked at his nephew with mild surprise, not at the fact that he was asking Manohar to use an influence, but at the way he had said 'please'. It was as if Arnav was begging for his own life. But then he shrugged his head, & moved away to make the call. Now wasn't the time to speculate. That little girl was in trouble, & Manohar Raizada for one was very very fond of that delightful creature.

~~~~~~~~~~~

It was another 20minutes after Manohar Raizada had made the call that the inspector who had left for the Kapoor Mansion came back looking like he had news. Arnav was the first one to have reached him, but instead if answering his queries, the inspector politely replied it would be better if he addressed the family & the ACP first. Aman saw the murderous way Arnav glared at the inspector, & immediately coming forward, he pointed the inspector towards the living room where everyone else was, & he himself dragged Arnav away. Arnav detached himself & was about go & sit on the bottom stairs of the staircase leading to the 2^nd floor, where he had been morosely since the time the police had taken over, but he stopped when he heard Aman say calmly, "He was right, ASR. Technically you're not the one who gets any news about Khushiji first." Arnav turned around to face Aman slowly, & after glaring at him for a couple long second, he said through gritted teeth, "Repeat what you just said & remember I am not in my best mood. Quite the opposite actually."

Aman stared at him for a couple of seconds. He was actually very afraid of Arnav Singh Raizada, although he seldom let it be known. He masked it well under his efficiency. But one thing Aman had discovered after working side by side with Arnav for almost 4months now was, Arnav was never as human when he was when it came to his Khushi. That thought rendered some comfort to Aman as he went on gently, "I am just saying ASR.. Suppose, there was an accident.. & I am not talking about present circumstances, cause I am sure Khushiji is fine wherever she is! I am just saying in the event of an accident, you won't be the one they'd notify or call over to the hospital, you know? They'd probably call Rohan Sir. & it'll be the same if the cases were reversed! In your case, they'd probably call Anjali Ma'am. So, you can't really want to kill the inspector here just because-"

Arnav cut him off harshly, "So what are you saying, Aman? That they call the next-of-kin? Fine! So, if Di were hurt, I'd be the one called-" Aman quickly interjected daringly, "But you won't be called, ASR! Rohan sir would be!" Arnav this time took a threatening step toward Aman & growled, "So, if Khushi's brother trumps me, why won't Di's brother trump her husband?" Aman took a cautious step back, & said in a placating voice, "No one trumps the husband.. not really, ASR. Unless he's very undeserving! You see, Anjali Ma'am's name, her whole existence is tied up with Rohan Sir. They have even taken on each other's relationships! You can't trump that! The reason I am saying all this is.. we work side by side for such long hours.. I handle every aspect of your life. & in the process, I get to know things about you.. & people most often shy away from marriage because they don't want the responsibilities. & marriage means responsibility! So maybe it's the other way round for you. You clearly do want every responsibility, every news, everything that has to do with Khushiji. & you want them before anyone else! So maybe it means you want to be that guy for her?.. The one who trumps all?"

Arnav listened to Aman with growing-by-the-minute astonishment. He didn't know which was more astounding, the fact that Aman was talking to him such daringly, or the fact that his words had a ring of clear truth that Arnav hadn't expected them to have. & in the end, Arnav just felt tired. All he was ready to admit at that moment was he needed Khushi more than his next breath. Arnav started climbing the stairs to go up to the roof, where Khushi always went when she felt alone, & threw over his shoulder tiredly, "The police are following too many procedures & she's been gone for almost 5 hours now. I want her back. & if I go out once to find her, I am afraid I won't be able to come back till I do. I'd be lost. Find her now, Aman! Bring her back right now."

Aman heard the despair in Arnav's voice, & he turned away to act on it. Obviously he had had his resources out to search for Khushiji. Now it was time to start pulling the threads & see what each one brought at its end.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lavanya was sitting in front of her dressing table, crouched & slightly swinging back & forth as she was hugging her knees. She mumbled to herself once again, "I am not a bitch." She was not! She had been through incredible heartache that day at the brunch when Arnav had coolly set aside her affections for him. It had hurt her so much. But not as much when she had caught Arnav lovingly caressing Khushi, & smearing Haldi over Khushi's cheeks from his own by rubbing his cheek against Khushi's. Lavanya had almost felt blind by rage that day! It was one thing to have your heart broken & it was another thing altogether to see you best friend trample all over the pieces of your broken heart! So today, when she had gone back to offer Khushi a ride after all that she had done, Lavanya had been glad to see her accepting a lift from someone else, She hadn't really wanted to spend any more time in Khushi's presence. But before she could have driven off, she had seen the car take a mad swerve & turn away from the direction of their home. & after a moment's hesitation Lavanya had followed that car.

She had followed the car all the way to a posh apartment complex in Tilaknagar. She had stopped her car outside the buildings' gate, which had looked fairly very new, & had seen with horrified eyes when a man had come out of the driving seat & coming over to the passenger seat had reached over to take what looked like an unconscious Khushi in his arms. & then another man had come out from the back of the car with a hockey stick in his hand, & he had gone over to give out some money to the security guard. That's when the man carrying Khushi had turned & Lavanya had recognized him. It was that Shyam person that Buaji had been trying to fix Khushi up with. & that's when it had all been clear to Lavanya.

Khushi must have teased that man too with her fake-innocent & seemingly angelic beauty! & now she was going to pay for it. Things like these had to happen to s**ts like her. The moment Arnav had come around, she had had no qualms in betraying her friends & anyone else who had come in her way. So, in a way she deserved everything she got. So La had just reversed her car & had come back home. As it is that place wasn't that far from Chanakyapuri.

But the gnawing feeling of guilt had come later. When her eyes had fallen on a page of an assignment. It was Khushi's handwriting & it was an assignment submitted in La's name. & then as Lavanya had picked up another book, she had frozen. There were more of Khushi's hand-writings than hers in her own book. Scribbling to help La understand the topics or to highlight their importance. Or La's own handwriting depicting inside a heart how Khushi & she were best friends forever. & while she had been trying to ignore this, a harried Rohan had come to ask her about Khushi. & she had blatantly lied out of panic. How could she tell Rohan she had deserted Khushi in such a far location from home? & then as the minutes & hours had passed, her guilt had only accumulated. She had heard from her mother, police had come. Now, how did she go & tell them what she had seen? Won't they brand her as a bitch forever?

La pulled over a notebook with Khushi's handwriting on it & started crying in earnest hugging it tightly to her. Why did Khushi have to go after Arnav like that? Why couldn't she just give him up for La like she always did? Why didn't La think before she made the rash decisions? Why did she herself think she was a bitch? Why didn't someone come & just beat Khushi's whereabouts out of her?

Unfortunately for Lavanya, the person who always helped her out of dilemmas & answered her questions wasn't in a position to help even herself.

Arnav didn't know why, but his legs were drawn towards the collage hanging on the wall beyond her study table on their own. Maybe his desire to see her face were guiding his movements, but Arnav halted stiltedly as soon as his eyes fell on the snaps arranged haphazardly on the board. Right at the middle of all the snaps was a new one. It was from the engagement of Rohan-Anjali & Akaash-Payal. There were six people in the photo. On one side there were Rohan-Anjali & on another side there were Akaash-Payal. & on the middle, Arnav looked on at the camera, looking incredibly smug about something, almost smirking at something, & beside him Khushi was standing, looking not at the camera, but at him. The adoration & adulation clearly visible in her eyes, & love overflowed from them. & Arnav felt the tight leash that he had maintained on his emotions for so long starting to slip.

He remembered how it had riled him to not be on the board with all the milestones of her life, & how she had retorted that it was him who had not wanted to be in any frame with her. Arnav's hand slowly rose as he touched Khushi's cheek lovingly over the glossy photograph, & the broken voice just came out from deep within him, "Red! I want to be in every frame of your life & I want you in each one of mine! I am sorry! Tum bas wapas aa jao. Wapas aa jao.. Bas!"

Arnav felt a hand over his shoulder & turned away, a little startled, to see Rohan's muted face. Rohan looked away from the naked anguish in Arnav's eyes, & not finding anything to say, he apologized unnecessarily, "Sorry.. Didn't mean to interrupt- Woh.. the police needs a photo of Bachchi.. So.." Rohan looked back at the collage as Arnav did too. For a moment both of them were taken in by the smiling faces of Khushi that dazzled them from every snap of the collage. Rohan was so astounded by the intensity of the love shining in Khushi's eyes in the photo belittling every other one in the middle of the collage, that he missed it for a couple of second when Arnav spoke up, "I.. never wanted to go behind your back.. or betray you like that. Ever. But it wasn't about you or me anymore. It was about her. Once you take notice of her, it's really impossible to forget her, you know?" Rohan promptly nodded in agreement. His sister was exceptional & he knew that.

Part 75