Chapter 12- Conflicted.
Piya was drying her hair after her bath when the phone rang. 'About time!' she thought. 'It's been an entire week, why the hell hasn't he called?'
'You better have a good explanation for this, Abhay,' she said sternly as she answered. He snorted. 'What, I don't even get a Hello?' 'You deserve a kick,' she snapped. 'Why the hell haven't you called?' 'You didn't call either, sweetheart,' he rejoined. 'And you yell at me?' 'This is your fault,' she fumed at him. 'You were the one who started it!'
'Calm down,' he said. 'I'm sorry, I just got so busy, what with this survey, and the seminar-'
'What?' she asked.
'Oh, I haven't told you yet,' he said. 'I have a seminar in Delhi, and I need to prepare my speech, and I also have to stay there for like three months since I need to do a survey-'
'Hang on,' she interrupted. 'You're coming here? When?'
'Maybe next week,' he said casually. 'The problem is, I'm not being able to find a good place to stay in temporarily. If you know someone, could you please-'
'Don't be silly!' she told him. 'I'm here, aren't I? You could stay with me!'
'But your family-' he began.
'Nonsense,' she said briskly. 'It's my apartment, I do what I want, okay?'
'And you live alone?' he pressed.
'Yes,' she said, with a twinge of irritation. 'So what?'
'It's not safe, Piya,' he said. 'I mean- come on, it's unsafe, you're a single woman-'
'Abhay?' she interrupted in an oversweet tone. 'Shut up. My sister's family is across the corridor, and I am perfectly safe. If you don't want to live with me-'
'I didn't say that,' said Abhay quickly. 'So, um- I'll see you soon?'
'Yeah,' she said. 'Happy journey, Abhay.'
'And Piya- thanks,' he said gratefully. 'You're a huge help.'
'No problem,' she replied. 'I've got to go to the office now, though. Call me later, yeah?'
'Okay,' said Abhay, breathing a sigh of relief as he cut the call. He had been risking everything on Piya's inviting him to stay, because he knew that he needed to be close to her. He needed to find out everything, every detail, that only Piya could tell him.
It wasn't long before Abhay made the journey to Delhi. He called her up, asking for an address, and she immediately gave him a very detailed one, informing him that she was skipping office, that day, so she could greet him.
As Abhay pressed the button corresponding to floor number 10 on the elevator, he felt a twinge of apprehension. He needed more than ever to keep his feelings under control now, at least till his mission was over.
He pressed the bell. Less than a minute later, the door opened, and there she was. Abhay had just time to wonder if she'd grown more beautiful when she embraced him in a hug. It was entirely innocent, Abhay told himself- yet his heart beat erratically as he inhaled the familar fragrance, and it took every ounce of self control he possessed not to kiss her then.
'Well, come in,' she said at last, pulling away, her face flushed in what he assumed was excitement. He dragged in his suitcases, as Piya caught his arm, pulling him, giving him a quick tour.
'On your right is my library- don't you dare mess it up- then this one is my bedroom, and this one- she took him to a room adjoining her own- is yours. Bathroom's on your left.'
'Thanks, Piya,' he said, grinning. 'This is great.'
She smiled. 'Well, go and get changed then,' she said. 'I'll get lunch.'
She turned to go, but impulsively he caught her wrist. 'What?' she said.
He couldn't help it. He brushed his lips across her forehead and whispered, 'Thanks.'
Piya smiled slightly, her face going a light shade of pink.'Well, then.'
And then she was gone.
Piya knew it was going to be difficult, but then she herself has signed up for her own doom. It felt so good to be Abhay's friend and the fact that he was now living with her for a three months filled her with bittersweet emotions. He would only stay for three months, and at the end of it all, he would leave. She wished she weren't such a coward, she wished she could tell him her feelings for him, but then again, could she live with the fact that she had destroyed whatever she had with him? No she couldn't.
He noticed she was indeed happier than before, more willing to reason than fly off into temper, less vocal in her outbursts. He asked her about it within two days.
She smiled at him, flipping her hair back. 'I just followed your principle in life.'
'Sorry?' said Abhay. 'Principle?'
'Yes,' she said. 'Find your happiness in making others happy. It doesn't matter if you're not, but at least you have the satisfaction of seeing someone smile.'
'I am happy, Piya,' said Abhay defensively.
She smiled, and it was neither mocking nor pitying, but a strange mixture of the two, and something else in it. 'Are you, Abhay? Are you really?'
He shrugged. They were standing side by side in her balcony, her hands less than five inches apart from his.
He fought off the insane urge to lace his fingers with hers, and shrugged. 'Maybe. I don't know.'
She smiled, a small sad smile. A few strands of her hair escaped and he tucked them back without really meaning to. 'You know me better than most,' he said at last.
'You would have made a good psychologist, you know.'
'Thanks,' she said, sounding amused now. 'Nice to know I had a backup career.' She bumped her shoulder teasingly with his.
'I should go in,' said Abhay. 'It's my lecture tomorrow- I need to go over my notes again.'
He turned to go, but this time it was Piya who caught his arm.
He looked down at her, her face was serious, her eyes urgent.
'Listen-you need to know something,' she said.
'Yeah?' he said.
'Yeah,' she agreed. 'Do you know the people who'll be speaking in the seminar besides yourself?'
Abhay's eyebrows rose. 'No, though I could find out,' he said. 'It didn't matter very much, since I probably know half of them personally.'
She shook her head. 'But you know there are doctors coming from abroad too, right?'
'Of course I know that,' he said belligerently. 'Where are you going with this?'
'I'm supposed to be the part of the team that covers your conference tomorrow,' said Piya. 'Don't look like that-Leena forced me. Anyway, I also have an interview lined up with one of the doctors coming from the US.'
'That's great news, Piya,but-'
'It is not great news!' she said suddenly, and he realised she was extremely nervous about something. 'I- don't you know who it is? It's Gaurav.'
The blood drained away from Abhay's face as he stared at her. 'He's coming here?' he hissed, his voice low and hard.
'Leena doesn't know,' she said, looking apologetic, 'So she put me to interview him.'
'Know what?' he snapped.
'Know that he slept with your ex-girlfriend,' she muttered.
He knew he had to keep up the charade now. 'And how did you know?'
She blushed fiercely. 'I-you told me that night you were drunk.'
'Remind me to never drink again,' he said, looking away for fear she would spot the lie in his eyes.
'Oh, I will, since this is my home,' she said , grinning, but her smile faded. 'I'm sorry Abhay. I thought you should know- he's going to be one of the speakers tomorrow.'
He looked hard and cold as she watched him, all traces of mischief gone, and not for the first time she felt a powerful surge of hatred for the traitor Gaurav.
'Typical,' he muttered, then looked at Piya with a smile, but it was a cold, hard one. 'And you will be there while I'm speaking, right?'
She nodded. 'As part of the audience.'
'Well, that's nice to know,' he replied. 'It's pretty reassuring that someone out there is my friend.'
'Abhay?' she said softly, knowing he was furious.
He looked down at her. 'Yes?'
'You- you'll upstage him,right? You'll give the best speech?'
He shrugged. 'Maybe I will. Maybe I won't.' He tried not to let it show how much he was tensed, but Piya seemed to know .
'You will,' she whispered, and suddenly she was Ice Queen again, her eyes cold and dangerous. 'You will upstage him, you will. I know you will.'
He didn't know how she knew to comfort him, and he felt relief course through him that she wasn't coddling him...
Once again, though the logical half of his brain screamed in protest, he yielded, and held her in an embrace, her head on his chest.
After a while, she broke free. 'You should go and...revise,' she said.
He let out a low chuckle. 'That worrying part of you hasn't changed, has it?'
She scowled at him. 'You should worry too! I'm going ballistic with trying to pen which questions to ask.'
'All the best, then,' he said, turning to go. She heard her reply over his shoulder, 'Same to you, Abhay.'
They spent the rest of the evening sitting across each other in the drawing room, while Abhay went over his notes and Piya through her old interviews, and her own notes on Gaurav. Working with Piya in the same room was soothing, helping take the nerves off.
They did not speak another word all evening, but Piya couldn't help sneaking glances at Abhay, remembering how his face had turned cold and ruthless at Gaurav's name. She had never seen him so angry, so dangerous, and it told her that it was a side of his Abhay kept locked away most of the time, unlike her, who had had too much practice with her mean side.
It was midnight when she interrupted Abhay. 'You should sleep,' she said. 'It's a long day tomorrow.'
He glanced up at her , then at the clock. 'You're done?' he said, and Piya hoped she had not imagined the disappointment in his voice.
'Yeah, I am,' she said, standing and stretching. 'Won't you at least go to-'
'I need an hour or two more,' said Abhay. 'You go get your sleep.'
She went back to her room, and Abhay watched her go, feeling a sinking feeling in his stomach. He shook away the stray thought and continued to pore over his speech.
When he finished, he gathered up the sheets of paper and stacked them,switching off the light and going to his room.
As he passed her bedroom, he suddenly heard sniffles and soft screams from Piya's room. All sleep gone, he rushed in. Piya was curled up in her bed in the foetal position, and she was shaking and crying, her words incoherent. 'No- no- I didn't- Please!' her voice rose to a shriek. Abhay put an arm around Piya and cradled her to him, rocking her lightly, whispering soothing words. Suddenly he felt her twitch, and knew she was awake. 'Piya?' he whispered, switching on the bedside lamp. 'What were you dreaming about?' Tear tracks stained her face, but she shook her head. 'I can't remember,' she whispered. 'I can rarely remember what my nightmares are about. Did I- did I disturb you?' she asked, and she looked childlike in her innocence, in the way she looked up at him, eyes wide and trusting, yet slightly fearful.
He simply pulled her closer. 'No,' he said. 'You could never do that.' 'Abhay, what's happening to me?' she said, breaking into sobs again. He kissed her forehead, stroking her back, as her body shook. 'Nothing will happen to you,' he said firmly. 'I won't let anything happen to you.' Gradually her body stopped shaking, and Abhay realized she had fallen asleep. He was loath to leave her alone, but then considered that Piya would probably freak out if she saw him on the bed. He adjusted her head on her pillow and moved away, but then he felt a soft tug and realized Piya's fingers were fisted around his shirt. He sighed in resignation : it was as if the very fates were conspiring against him. He leaned closer, put an arm over her, and fell asleep almost before he was aware of it.
When morning came, Piya woke up to find her face extremely close to Abhay, his arm under her head, and their limbs tangled together.
For a minute it presented a charming picture to her, when reality asserted itself, and she disentangled herself, moving away, and Abhay woke. 'Mo-or-ning,' he yawned, and stretched. The reality of he situation seemed to dawn upon him too, for he looked directly at a blushing Piya, and said, 'This isn't what it-' Piya shook her head. 'It's all right.' 'I really would have gone,' continued Abhay, 'but you were holding my shirt, and I just didn't have the heart to-' Something in her warm expression clouded over. 'I don't want your pity,' she said turning away. 'If I disturbed you, you should have woken me up and told me to let go.'
He caught her shoulder and turned her back to face him. 'It's not pity, Piya,' he said calmly, smoothing over her temper, which was showing signs of rearing its head. 'It's just concern, okay?' She drew a deep breath and calmed down. 'Sorry,' she said. 'It's just- I'm sort of independent- I don't like being coddled by anyone. I can take care of myself.' 'I know,' he said. 'That's what defines you, you know? That fire in you- that's who you are. You're not weak, so don't think I see you as weak.' She smiled at him. 'By the way- thanks,' she said. 'I mean- for everything-' He groaned. 'Oh, puh-lease. It was in the job specifications, you know.' Catching her mystified expression, he laughed. 'Job specifications, considering I'm supposed to be your roommate, plus what I am... You're perfectly nutty, you know.'
She hit him with a pillow. 'Out! Get out!' she snapped, but she was holding back a smile. They went down together, but then Piya took her car, while Abhay went in another, which had come to pick him up. As they were about to leave, Piya sqeezed his hand suddenly. 'Do well,' she whispered, impusively kissing him on the cheek. 'All the best.' For a split second, he forgot where he was, but then replied, 'You too, PJ.' She swatted his arm in mock anger as she walked towards her own car.
Once in the hall, Piya watched the dais carefully. Abhay was the first speaker, and going by everyone's faces, they were highly impressed, except for one. She recognized him at once- Gaurav.
She watched as he looked almost bored, and felt a rush of fierce pleasure as she imagined stabbing him in the neck with the pen she was holding. Abhay was a gifted orator, he held almost everyone spellbound, and was followed by a thunderous applause as he finished. Piya fidgeted in her seat, wishing it would get over and she could start her 'interview' with Gaurav. A malicious smile curved her mouth as she went through her questions. Yes, the interview would surely be memorable for Gaurav, of that she was sure. When it finished , nearly five and a half hours later, Piya bid farewell to her team, walking towards the speakers. She followed them get down, and follow each other down a corridor. Abhay walked behind everyone, as though he wasn't interested in everyone else, but soon she saw Gaurav slowing his pace to match Abhay's.
She neared closer to them, ready to launch an attack of her own if needed. 'So, Abhay, that speech was rather well written, but there were a few mistakes in the statistics, whose help did you use?' His lip curled into a sneer.
Piya could see Abhay's face, terrifying in its coldness. 'It's Dr.Raichand to you, Dr.Khanna,' he replied in an icy, distant voice. 'About those facts- If you had paid attention, you would have heard me mention the names of every organisation and survey which would support them. It is unfortunate indeed, that your attention span remains as limited as ever.'
'Oh, come now,' said Gaurav, smirking. 'You can't still be sore about that. Have you even managed to snag a girl these years?'
Piya chose this time to make her presence felt. 'Oh Dr.Gaurav, such a pleasure to finally meet you,' she said, effervescent in her warmth. 'Such a fluent, confident speaker- you must know me right? I'm from GenY, you agreed to an interview-'
Gaurav's denamour changed at once, as he smiled so widely it was almost a leer. 'This way, if you please,' he said. 'We could conduct this interview-privately.'
All smiles, Piya followed him down the corridor, but as she glanced back she saw Abhay look at her with a mixture of shok and outrage on his face, before he turned away. Piya wondered about it, but realized she needed to focus.
They started off very well, Piya asking him all the standard questions about his work and his life. Once she was sure he was relaxed enough she moved in for her kill. 'So, Dr.Gaurav, if I may be so bold to ask- do you have any significant other?' she said sweetly. He smiled slightly. 'Not really. I was in a long term relationship with Sharon Fine, but we separated a few months ago.'
Piya raised her eyebrows. 'Miss Fine? Would she be Dr.Raichand's ex-flame?'
For the first time he looked unnerved. 'How-how did you-' he began, but Piya waved him away. 'Oh, we have our ways, doctor. So tell me-' she leaned forwards, 'Are the rumours true? Is it true that you betrayed your best friend by sleeping with his then-girlfriend? Is it true that she played him?'
He stood up at once, his face contorting with anger. 'How dare you,' he hissed. 'You are not authorized to ask me such questions-'
'Is it true, then?' she asked sweetly. 'Is it true you betrayed Dr.Raichand for a woman?'
'Get out!' he snapped. 'How dare you-'
'So how did it feel?' she pressed on, relentlessly. 'How did it feel to see him broken? How did it feel to know you were a cause of that heartbreak? Were you ever-'
He made grab for her, intending to throttle her, but Piya twisted away, still smiling. 'I understand you are not forthcoming with your personal life,' she said coolly. 'Very well, I will just contact Dr.Raichand.'
He stood like a statue as she walked out, and as she glanced back, she saw his face pale with fear, no doubt thinking of his faults laid out for the world to see in a magazine.
She hummed in a self satisfied manner as she entered her apartment. Abhay was nowhere to be seen. 'Abhay?' she called, but there was no response. She found him in the balcony , leaning out and looking down. 'Abhay?' she said. There was no response, so she pulled at his sleeve. 'Abhay!' she said. He turned to look at her, his face set in fury. 'Had fun, did you?' he said, his tone clipped. She stared at him bewildered. 'What?'
'I didn't know you admired Gaurav so much,' he hissed. She stared at him. 'Really, Piya? Flirting with someone like that? I thought you had standards.'
Rage pounded through her. How dare he accuse her like that? 'I was not flirting with him,' she snapped. 'Don't you dare judge me-'
'Sure looked like it, the way you two were smiling at each other,' he ground out.
'What the hell is your problem?' she burst out. 'Say I flirted with him- so what?'
'So you admit it,' he said, his voice cold.
'No, I didn't!' she said, her voice rising to a yell.
He grabbed her shoulders and pulled her to him : they collided with a jerk. 'I did not flirt with him,' she hissed through gritted teeth. 'You have no idea- I would never do that, because-'
'Because?' he asked, jerking her.
And then she said something which shocked him beyond belief.
PS. Yes, I am an evil woman😛 By the way, the song "Tumse Hi Tumse" from Anjaana Anjaani almost perfectly describes Abhay's feelings for Piya..I love that song.😛
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