FF: Rishtey (Completed)

Rudra had no idea what was going on. All he knew was that this man had been holding onto his Paro longer than necessary. In the blink of an eye, Rudra pulled Paro away from the man and became a barrier between the two. It didn't last long, however. Before he could question him, Paro ran out from behind him and came between them. She knew, all too well, what he was thinking. Her arms blocked Rudra from moving forward.

"No Major Saab," she said. "Don't hurt him. I know him."

"You...know...him?" Rudra questioned.

"His name is Gaurav. He's from my village."

Gaurav? Paro had never mentioned him before. And now he suddenly appears out of the blue, and she has a past with him. He knew a lot about Paro's days in Birpur, but the name Gaurav was never once mentioned. He would definitely remember if it had. Rudra hoped for Gaurav's sake that he was nothing more than a friend. Still tense about the situation, Rudra grabbed Paro's hand and pulled her to his side, where she was meant to be. Then he focused on Gaurav.

He had scruffy black hair and dark brown eyes. His face was covered with stubble. His sharp features matched Rudra's. Gaurav was wearing dark denim jeans and a white button-up shirt. He appeared to be slightly intimidated by Rudra's stance, as he should be. However, Gaurav's attention was strictly on Paro at the moment.

"It's really you," he said to her.

"What are you doing here?" Paro asked. "I thought you were in Mumbai."

"I missed Birpur, so I thought I would visit. I'm here, in Chandangarh, on business. Mami-sa said you were married and lived here. I didn't think I'd see you."

"I am," Paro took Rudra's hand in hers. "This is my husband, Major Rudra Pratap Ranawat. Major Saab, this is my childhood friend, Gaurav."

Gaurav extended his hand out, in hopes that Rudra would shake with him. Without breaking eye contact, Rudra grabbed his hand tightly and squeezed it. The pressure caused Gaurav to flinch. Clearly, he had already made a bad first impression with the Major, especially since he practically tackled his wife! When Rudra let go, Gaurav softly massaged his hand to try and get the feeling back. Paro, oblivious to what had happened, was thrilled to see her friend.

"Gaurav," she said. "Where is Pia?"

"She's at the hotel," he replied. "I wish she came. She would've been so happy to see you."

"You should come visit before you leave. I know everyone would be happy to meet the two of you."

"I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Why not?"

Gaurav flashed a quick glance at Rudra. Paro looked up at her husband with pleading eyes. All his irritation melted the second her eyes met his. It had become his weakness. Whenever she looked at him with those big brown eyes, pleading, her lower lip almost in a pout, Rudra was helpless and gave her whatever she wanted.

"Major Saab," she said softly. "Can they visit? It's been so long since I have seen Gaurav and Pia. They are very dear to me and I just want to spend time with them, like how we used to. Please?"

Rudra slowly nodded. Even though he didn't like the idea of Gaurav around Paro, he couldn't say no to her. Apart from the pink bangles, she had never asked anything for him. So who was he to deny his wife the one thing she wanted? Especially when she looked at him with her eyes full of hope. He was becoming too weak, he thought to himself.

Paro grinned from ear to ear, "Okay. Come tomorrow with Pia. I will give you the address."

"Okay," Gaurav replied.

Paro had given Gaurav the address to the Ranawat Haveli. He promised that he would arrive tomorrow afternoon, with Pia, to meet her family. He waved goodbye and walked out of the BSD Headquarters. Rudra was still rooted in his spot. He was trying to figure out what happened. Had he just invited complete strangers to come to his home? They were from Birpur. It could be possible that they were working for Tejawat! The thought hadn't even crossed his mind! Although the case had been closed, Tejawat's men were still out there. What if this Gaurav was one of them?

As if reading his mind, Paro squeezed his hand reassuringly, and said, "He's not one of them."

"You don't know that," Rudra retorted. "You didn't think Tejawat was bad, and yet he tried to kill you."

"Rudra, trust me. Gaurav would never do anything like that. He would never put Pia's life at risk."

"Who is Pia? In fact, who is this Gaurav? Why didn't you ever tell me about them?"

"Shant Major Saab. Pia is Gaurav's younger sister. Their ma and bapu-sa died two years before they left Birpur. We grew up together. Gaurav went to finish his studies in Mumbai, and he took Pia along so she could further her studies as well. I haven't seen them since they left."

"Why didn't you tell me about them before?"

"I'm sorry," Paro let go of Rudra and grabbed her ears.

He shook his head, "We'll discuss this later. Go home. The rickshaw is still probably waiting."

Rudra watched from the entrance as Paro sat in the auto and drove away. He headed back in his cabin, where he found Aman still standing where he was almost thirty minutes ago. Aman handed the Major the file. Once he received it, he walked out the door to deliver it to General Singh. Rudra sat back down in his chair and rubbed his face. He was still thinking about his sudden introduction with Paro's friend. It wasn't like he hadn't met her friends before. When they first met, Rudra had met Bindi, only for a moment. However he hadn't paid much attention to her.

He was going to do his research on Gaurav and Pia. He didn't care if Paro trusted them. Obviously she had trusted quite a few people, only to have them betray her. It wasn't that he didn't trust his wife, it was that he didn't trust others around her. If they were a threat, then Paro's life would immediately be put at risk, and Major Rudra Pratap Ranawat wasn't going to have that. Not only that, but his maa-sa's life could be in danger as well. There was a point in time when she was Tejawat's wife. She may be with Dilsher now, but the past could come back to haunt her. It was settled. He was going to find out more about these two...but first, he had to finish the paperwork piled up on his desk!

**********

Parvati had told Mala about her run in with Gaurav at the BSD. Mala was surprised, but very excited to know that her daughter-in-law had invited him and Pia over. Back in Birpur, all the children were dear to her. She had seen Parvati, Pia, and Gaurav grow up together. They were very close, and quite mischievous. She still remembered how the girls would chase after Gaurav for stealing something of theirs, and he would come running and hide behind her. He did so even when they were teenagers. Their constant bickering somehow managed to keep them together.

Mala still remembered the day Pia and Gaurav decided to leave Birpur. Parvati had clung to them and cried, making them promise to write to her. Although they had agreed, the letters never came. Paro missed her friends terribly in the beginning, but Bindi was there to bring the pristine smile to her face. With her, Parvati's sadness lessened. Bindi hadn't replaced Pia and Gaurav, but she was able to get Paro to forget about them for awhile. It still brings tears to Mala's eyes as she recalled Paro telling her that Tejawat killed Bindi. The man was now where he belonged.

That evening, Parvati had informed the rest of the family about the visitors coming the following day. They were all excited to meet her friends from Birpur, well, everyone except Mohini. No one cared about her bitterness about the news. Instead, they all listened to Paro, who began telling stories about the three of them together. She even had maa-sa tell a few stories about the past. It wasn't just for her family's benefit, but also for Rudra, who was sitting silently next to her ever since he had come home.

Even though she had assured him, Paro knew he wasn't comfortable with the idea of having her friends visit. Tejawat's case had been closed for months now, but he was still as protective and paranoid as ever. She could still sense his discomfort, so she told stories about them, in hopes that it would lessen the tension. Paro even had maa-sa tell a few to prove that Gaurav and Pia were not bad people. She may have been wrong about Tejawat, but she wasn't wrong about them. They were like family.

Rudra knew what she was trying to do, and to some extent it was working. The tales Paro told assured him somewhat that Gaurav and Pia weren't all bad. However, he had to know for himself. He needed to see for himself and meet with them, talk to them, to know for sure. Being a BSD Major, he was anything if not thorough.

The next morning, everyone was excited to receive guests. Rudra and Danveer had left early for work so they could come home early. Paro, Mala, and Maithili were busy in the kitchen preparing food specially for their guests. It was exactly noon when they heard a knock on the door. Parvati practically ran to it and pulled the doors wide open. There, standing with wide grins on their faces, were Pia and Gaurav.

"Paro!" Pia yelled as she jumped and hugged her.

Parvati hugged her back, "Pia!"

She pulled back a few minutes later to look at Pia more closely. She still hadn't changed. The long black hair, the brown eyes, the cheerful smile...they were still the same. It was very different to see her dressed in a salwar kameez though. It was black with sheer, long sleeves. Back in Birpur, Pia would always wear colorful lengha cholis like Parvati. It seemed that Mumbai had rubbed off on her.

"It's really you," Pia said.

Paro's eyes filled with tears of happiness, "Why didn't you ever write?"

She pointed to Gaurav, "Ask him."

Gaurav suddenly tried to change the topic as he opened his arms wide and grabbed both women and said, "It's been so long since we have seen each other!"

Mala's voice came from inside the haveli, "Yes it has been. Parvati, will you not let them inside?"

Pia and Gaurav froze as they saw Mala. After their absence, they hadn't known what had happened to her, except that she was no longer in Birpur. They were very much surprised to see her there. Paro gestured them in and introduced them to the entire family. They each touch their elder's feet, seeking blessing. It seemed that they had instantly won everyone's heart. Even Mohini warmed up to them a little bit, but she never dared to admit it.

In a matter of hours, Pia and Gaurav had made themselves members of the Ranawat family. Paro had explained to them everything that had happened between her and Rudra, from the fake marriage to Varun to accepting Mala back into the family. They were stunned upon hearing everything that had happened while they were gone, but were happy to see how it all worked out for the better. Pia and Gaurav talked about themselves and Mumbai. They were very different from each other. While he was soft-spoken, she spoke her mind. He was even-tempered, and she had a tendency to lose her temper. However, one thing was for certain, they were very protective of each other. Gaurav had caught Sumer glancing at his sister with a smug look and instantly put his guard up. When Sumer saw the death glare from him, he backed off. Gaurav had managed to joke with Dilsher, who was all too happy to hear how he tried to defend himself from the two woman when they were younger. If he was going to defend his side, then Pia wasn't too far behind defending her's and Paro's side. Pia liked to give her brother a hard time, but everyone could see she loved him dearly.

In the midst of the laughter and arguments, Rudra and Danveer had returned from work. It sounded like a madhouse when they entered the haveli. Everyone was laughing their hearts out. Sumer was bent over, holding his stomach, trying to breathe. Even Samrat and Maithili were laughing freely. Mohini was trying hard to stifle her laughs, but it made her look ridiculous. Paro was sitting in between Pia and Gaurav, holding onto them as she tried to grasp for air. Gaurav was leaning his head on the arm of the chair, and Pia had her head on Paro's shoulder, trying to stop laughing.

Mala was the first to notice their presence, "Bhai-sa. Rudra. You're home. Come meet our guests."

Rudra and Danveer introduced themselves. Gaurav silently acknowledged them, but Pia had other plans. She was meeting Rudra for the first time. He was Parvati's husband. Since Pia had always considered Paro her older sister, she would have to see that man who was now her jeeju. She had to see for herself what her friend saw in him. Pia stood up and walked up to Rudra, despite her brother's futile attempts to stop her. He covered his eyes with one hand, but peeked through his fingers. He loved his sister very much, and he would protect her if Rudra did anything, but sometimes he wished that she wasn't so bold. He already wasn't on Rudra's good side, and she was not going to help. Gaurav glanced over at Parvati, who was staring at them nervously. He could tell she was just as worried as he was, knowing Pia's nature.

Rudra was not prepared to be confronted by Pia. In fact, when she walked up to him, he froze, unsure of what she was doing. She was a little shorter than Paro, but more intimidating in her stance and disposition. He was not one to back down though. What he didn't know was that neither was she. The room was now completely silent. Everyone was staring at Rudra and Pia, waiting for something to happen. For a minute, they stood facing each other, him with his hands by his side, and her with her arms crossed on her chest. The tension was building up as everyone looked at each other anxiously.

Pia finally spoke, "So you are Paro's husband. Major Rudra?"

"No I'm the housekeeper," Rudra replied sarcastically.

And that was it. Pia's serious expression disappeared and she burst out laughing once again. She turned back to Paro and said, "I like him!"

Everyone let out a sigh of relief as Pia sat back down. No one went up to Rudra and questioned him directly like that, except Parvati. The Major watched as Pia hugged Paro. Just as Gaurav was about to join the hug, Pia slapped his arm away and continued hugging Paro, while her brother was left to rub his arm. Parvati smiled and laughed wholeheartedly with the rest of the family.

Rudra felt a smile play on his lips as he saw the joy on his wife's face. She was truly happy to see her friends. It had been a long time since he'd seen her smile so brightly. Seeing her like this warmed his heart. He still wasn't too fond of Gaurav. He was a man after all, and didn't care for men he didn't know around Paro, but accepted it because seeing him made her happy. Pia was exactly how Paro had said. She wasn't afraid to confront him. Rudra wasn't sure what she was going to say when she opened her mouth. Obviously his response was good enough for Pia because she accepted him as a suitable husband for Parvati. He liked and respected her courage. As the evening progressed, Rudra came to one conclusion: Gaurav and Pia weren't as bad as he thought they'd be.

**********

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