Graphic FF ~When Love Calls~ Note pg 84 - Page 12

Shantanu had been standing outside the lift waiting for it to come down when he spots Khanak coming towards the lift……

'Gosh, I've been living in this building for hardly 1 week now and such bitter interactions to start with……….what kind of people live in this building…………and now this girl, 2 times in a single day !! It's going to be too much !!'

He recalled the morning fiasco and the unpleasant day that went by and tried to control his frustration by breathing in and out……..

'Control Shaan…………she is crazy…………don't give attention……….. don't talk to her…………..all you need is good shower……….good food …………. And good sleep…….. Go up and sleep………..Hmmm !! Yes ………!!'

He kept talking to himself and took a vow that he will not give her any attention and will NOT fight at all…………..

Khanak too spots him near the lift and slows her speed to let him go. Sam had spent some precious moments counseling her that how she should not waste her energy and time in petty fights.

Even she kept thinking all the while in the auto and pledged that she will NOT fight………at all……….

She was infuriated when she saw Shantanu standing near lift and recalled the morning interaction, her misadventures in the ad agency and the lost project……..

She wanted to vent it on someone but tried hard not to let him disturb her……

'Control Khanak, it was not his fault SOLELY !! He was getting late too and then you left the phone and wanted to go up……..'

'But, he could have behaved nicely and instead of fighting, if at all he had co-operated, I would have saved some time……

'But still he stood there waiting, once we were up……..'

'He was very very very rude…………how dare he talk to me like that……… he spoiled my day…………'

'No Khanak, don't fight……………don't let negativity take the better of you………let him go………..'

She breathed in and out and decided in favour of peace !!!

The lift had still not come and she went and stood near Shantanu……..

For the first time she noticed that he was seriously good looking and handsome in every sense of the word………..this irks her even more and she shrugs in an expression that signifies……….'whatever' …………

He looks at her and is confused at her 'lost' expressions………….once again he reminds himself that he is not supposed to let her affect his peace of mind……

He looks away and she doesn't look at him trying to avoid any kind of conversation that could remind them of the morning debacle………….they look opposite sides waiting for the lift………..

The lift seems to have stuck at some floor and takes more than usual time.

When the lift arrives, he halts for a second to let her step in.

'Oh………he is trying to prove that he is a gentleman?'…………….'jerk'……….. no matter what he does, he cannot make up for the lost first impression'

He doesn't enter and she gets confused at his demeanor as he keeps standing at a place where he was.

She gets impatient, standing inside the lift, and asks politely, "Don't you want to go up?"

"With you??... Sorry……………..Not again."

"What????"

She gets shocked beyond comprehension could afford her………… 'like what??'

She pushes the button to keep the door open when the sliding doors start closing and steps out.

"How dare you? How insulting to a lady?"

"Lady?? Excuse me…………!!" he said smiling and walked off non-chalantly insulting her even more.

He had been trying hard but could not afford to let go of an opportunity to teach her a lesson for what she did in the morning.

She was zapped to see him walking off and followed him extremely infuriated……….

He avoids her and she goes marching behind him……

"What kind of a mannerless behaviour is this………you misbehave in the morning… again you misbehave now……….. it seems you never went to a proper school."

"Are you talking to me?" he answered very coolly………..completely indifferent.

This infuriated her even more………….she tried hard to control her anger but finally couldn't.

"You know what ??...You are a typical rude guy who needs a crash course in 'basic etiquettes'……………….asap !!"

"Ma'm, have you ever considered visiting a doctor?" he was as calm as cucumber.

"Doctor???"

"I mean……………..kind of a Psychiatrist?"

"How dare you? I am trying so hard to NOT fight with you………but it seems that there is no other way!! First of all, you do not co-operate when you see someone from your building in trouble……… then you ask a girl to walk UP the stairs for 5 floors……… you talk rudely all the way……….. fight at the auto and behave completely ungentlemanly….. and you have the guts to insult me like that ???……….. today, I got late just because of you………"

"Oh hello………I got late because of you……….. I had to wait for hours outside the officials room as my appointment got cancelled……… My day was spoilt…………. Just because of you."

"Even my day was spoilt…………I lost an important project."

"Serves you right…………. I lost on the meeting time with the senior manager……. Didn't even have food, the whole day, just because I was waiting outside his room all the while……."

"You were already late……………..don't blame it on me………. At least you could meet that person after waiting for hours………. I couldn't attend the audition for what I was called………"

"Even if you attended they would have thrown you out looking at your attitude……"

"Look at you…………you have the nerve to talk like that………..when you don't even know the ABC of manners and how to talk to girls…….."

"I don't need to learn etiquettes and manners from you…………you think you can drop your phone and all at home and the whole world will wait for you till 'Her Highness' gets it and graces the lift by boarding it………."

"I was late………. I was nervous ……….and I was worried about my phone…….. human beings do behave like that…………but how would you know……….. there is nothing human about you……….."

"I agree………I am not human…………I should not have waited at that stupid lift where your stuff lay spread all over………..I should have gone, then……….. okay, tell me… …..Why did you stop to talk to me, now ?? Why didn't you just go up when I let you…..? I tell you…………because, you are fond of fighting……….you won't get a good sleep unless you quarrel with someone………"

"Do you even know how hard I tried not to fight……"

"Well…………you failed……….you need more practice………….Don't you ever cross my way, next time………."

"You take care about yourself…………"

She walks off fuming and fretting and finally deciding that there is no point talking to him, anymore…………..takes the lift and goes up. He strolls around, for a while, trying to cool off and then rides up to his own floor.

…………………………………………………………………

Shantanu enters the apartment and drops dead on the bed…….

The day had been unusually hard on him……………the whole interaction with Khanak, twice in a day and not-so-productive meeting with the music company manager, lack of food and proper rest left him drained……..

He took a long shower ( Come'on, I'm not putting shower pics, now………..lol……)

And when he came out of the shower, he was much relaxed………..too tired to cook something for himself, he decided to go out and have dinner at a quiet Udipi restaurant….

Khanak was tired too………..

Her landlady, Gangu Bai, a middle aged female, finicky about everything her tenants did, asked her about food, but she didn't feel like having it…….. She took a shower and lay wondering on her bed about the lost project. She still felt bad about it and a small tear escaped from the outer edge of her eye…………it had been a hard day !!!

She called Sam and asked her if she would go for a movie with her. Sam readily agreed.

A movie was a perfect plan according to her to get out of this mood !!

She was upset at Shantanu too…………who had ruffled her feathers on the wrong side………. At the wrong time …………

"How dare he insult me like that…………… First things First………… …………I have to teach 'him' a lesson now !!

Shantanu entered the lift while talking to Duck on phone………

The lift opened at tenth floor and he was literally 'out-of-his- wits'…………

'What a timing'…………….he murmured to himself …………..!!!

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