Ananya brushed the hair aside from his bandaged forehead. With one hand still fondling his hair, she gazed down at his complacent sleeping face. Even in his current fragile and tousled state, he looked so peaceful and innocent. As she mused, the memory of him lying in a pool of blood suddenly splashed on Ananya's mind and formed a coarse lump in her throat. Kabir, when tried to rescue her from the wrath of the rebels, had been hit on his head with an iron rod. It was a massive blow that left him bleeding profusely and knocked him out of consciousness. He had even sustained a minor fracture in his right ankle and there were bruises all over his arms. Despite managing to get away with the goons with his extraordinary wit and bravery, Kabir had collapsed in Ananya's arms with a bleeding forehead. And for that one moment, Ananya had almost felt her world crashing down right in front of her eyes. All this while she had thought that she hated him and didn't want to be anywhere close to him but seeing him in that condition had certainly brought her to a stark realization about the intensity of her deep sense of pain for him. Totally perplexed and unsure of what to do she had waited a few moments right there, trying to wake him up vigorously, trying to talk to him but then, realizing the gravity of the situation had gathered herself together once again and went out to seek help. Fortunately enough she had heard her cell ringing from beneath a sack of leaves and just before the battery could die away, she managed to inform about their whereabouts to Tinu, who had called to check on her.
A soft impish smile crossed Ananya's wry lips as she remembered one of his stupid jokes from last night. Ananya Kashyap had never imagined she would ever get to witness this intriguing side of the great reporter, Mr Kabir Sharma. Still lost in the scary happenings of the night and the following sweet memories they made in each other's unexpected company, she still fondled his hair bemused but instinctively shot her hand back as she saw him stir in his sleep. The doctor had kept him on some strong sedatives that caused him to drift in and out of consciousness. Afraid not to wake him up from his slumber and invite herself a lifetime of teasing from him, she decided to move to the couch. Sliding the blanket from over his knees to cover his chest, she properly tucked him beneath it and stood up to leave but felt a sudden pull that jerked her back on his chest. The strings of her bracelets had got entangled in the buttons of his shirt that she had grabbed for him from her dad's wardrobe. "Dammit" she hissed and quickly worked her fingers trying to untangle the bracelets. While juggling with the buttons of his shirt, a weak murmur suddenly shook Ananya off her task. "Ms Kashyap..." she heard him call her name. For a second her heart almost stopped beating afraid if he really ended up noticing her midnight musings but let out a deep sigh seeing his eyes still shut. She tried to hear more attentively this time. "Miss Kashyap...main...main apse kuch kehna chahta hoon" he tried to speak, fumbling in a sleep heavy tone.
"Sir do you need anything...aap theek hain na.. Should I call the doctor??" Ananya was getting worried now.
"Main apse kehna chahta hoon ki..."
"Main yahin hoon Kabir sir...I can hear you" she held his hand giving it an affirmative squeeze.
"I just wanna say...I..I" Ananya's heart almost skipped a beat there. "What was he trying to say???" she thought.
"I am sorry Ms. Kashyap..." He spoke finally, eyes still closed. A sense of disappointment as well as shock dawned upon Ananya almost instantly. So that was what he wanted to say! She immediately cursed herself for even thinking about something else. "But sorry? Like Really?..." she pondered, eyes bigger than ever! Her mind could not register that your highness...the most famous journalist...the editor-in-chief of KKN...Mr Kabir Sharma just apologized to her. "Was this for real or the injections really affected his brain?" she could not understand.
"I am really sorry Ms. Kashyap...I know I hurt you a lot" she heard him again, this time sounding more vulnerable than ever. "Main party mein bhi apse kehna chahta tha but...I made a mistake in understanding you Miss Kashyap. I don't know how could I but galti hogayi mujhse, aapko samajhne mein. Aapki...aapki intentions ko samajhne mein. Nahin samajh paya main ki Manav ko apni news padhne dena apki choice nahin apki majboori thi...aap sirf aur sirf apna pehlu saamne rakhna chahti thi...aap sach samne rakhna chahti thi...phir chahe us sachko main logon ke samne rakhun ya koi aur, is se koi farak nahin padta. I don't know how I could not understand something so simple...I am really sorry Ananya...I am...I am really sorry.."Ananya heard him speak in silence punctuated perfectly by the rhythmic beating of their hearts. Some tears had already welled up in her eyes as she felt all her clogged up anger, frustration and pain mellow down. She closed her eyes letting a few silent tears roll down her cheeks.She could not say it openly but only her heart knew how much pain she had been through in the pastfew days. Though she had been able to prove her capability as a good reporter be it the Mahi Malhotra case or the Bhawna Shroff case, but not having him by her side would nullify all the happiness her success brought. Over the past few days, she had seen herself transform from a feisty carefree Ananya to an extremely cranky, dejected and over-sensitive version of herself, something that did not go unnoticed by even her mom. And she herself detested being like that. Being so touchy and irritated. But finally she could feel all that hurt and anger melt away with his words. Not because he apologized to her or that she needed any of his apologies, but just because she now knew, that just like her, even he did not want her to be Team Manav. And more than that, unlike what she expected, he was not indifferent to her and her emotions. Somewhere down the line, he had understood what her rightful place was and that's exactly where he ended up bringing her back. "Aapko sorry kehne ki koi zaroorat nahin hai Kabir sir...bas mujhe kabhi bhi team Manav mat kehna...I was, I am and I always will be Team Kabir! And you should never forget that" she declared softly to him and laid herself on the couch. A coy smile had crept across her lips as she drifted to sleep for a bright new day.
The next morning, Kabir arose from his slumber, to find the curtains drawn in the bedroom. From the silhouette shadings in the room he could make out it wasn't sunny yet. A cool breeze blew through the air, making the leaves rustle softly in backdrop. As he struggled to turn on his back he could feel each muscle of his body ache due to stiffness and exhaustion. His eyes fluttered, squinting slightly, before finally adjusting to the light in the room. Rolling over to his side he slowly sat up and looked around trying to fathom where exactly was he. Or more importantly, where was Ananya! The room was small but well-kept with a single bed in the middle that seemed a bit too small for his near five feet 11 inch height. On the right side of the bed stood a bulky book-shelf loaded with a rich collection of books on journalism and reporting expertise. And there was a dresser to the left, on which lied, a bundle of funky bracelets, something that caused a relieved smile sneak to the corner of his lips. Looking into the mirror he noticed to be no longer in the same clothes he had been wearing the whole day and there was a mesh white bandage wrapped around his forehead. Kabir could suddenly recollect his fight with the rebels and how he had been hit on his head from the back. But then where was he? And which place was it. Before he could get up from the bed and walk out he suddenly felt his nostrils flare with a familiar tangy scent, approaching in his direction. Soon enough Ananya walked into the room holding a tray with two mugs of steaming coffee and some chocolate oreos. She wore an embroidered white kurti fitted perfectly around her sleek figure, beads of water still dripping from her loosely hanging curls. As she closed the distance in between their bodies, It took Kabir almost a few seconds to catch his breath. He looked at her more intently than ever, his gaze not leaving her sight even for a second.
Ananya pursed her lips seeing him trying to get up from the bed.
"Don't even think about that!" she squealed, keeping the tray aside. "Sir aapke right ankle mein hairline fracture hua hai...so please hun don't try to be a hero atleast here. You can't put so much pressure on your foot" she chided sounding like a strict whining nurse.
"Miss Kashyap waise I must say aap reporter kaisi bhi ho but daanti bahut achcha hain" he teased her, a mischievous grin forming on his lips. She could not believe he was still bantering with her even in that broken condition of his. She rolled her eyes and offered him a cookie. He took one and had a small bite.
For the next few minutes either of them continued to sip on their coffee in comfortable silence. The impact of the happenings of last night had still not faded completely.
"Ananya tum jaldi se ready ho jao humein abhi office jana hai" Kabir said breaking her train of thought.
"But sir kyun?Maine to wahan sabko inform kar diya hai ki hum theek hai. Kahin aap us baghi ka interview air to nahin karna chahte na?" Ananya asked raising a brow in his direction.
"I must say Ms. Kashyap aap utni bhi stupid nahin hai jitni shakal se lagti hain" Kabir smirked leaving her with a puckered expression on her face.
"Han bas duniya mein ek yahi to samajhdar hain baki sab to gajar mooli hain" Ananya chattered angrily under her breath.
"Gajar mooli ka to pata nahin Ms. Kashyap but han ek mirchi zaroor hai jisse main janta hoon" he winked causing warm blood rush to her cheeks.
"Aap pls hun! Don't try this with me...apni flirting uss Malvika ya Trisha ke liye sambhal kar rakhiye...I don't like all this"
Kabir giggled at her stupid cuteness and looked knowingly in her direction, arms crossed on his chest. "Waise Ms Kasyap jab Manav Gupta aapke saath flirt karte hain to to apko bura nahin lagta" he taunted leaving her flabbergasted for a moment. Ananya could not believe what she just heard. Did it really affect him when Manav tried to flirt with her or was she understanding too much! She liked to believe in the former! But before she could continue with any of her further antics, Ananya suddenly remembered they had to see the doctor for his checkup.
"Kabir sir ek problem hai...hum abhi KKN nahin ja sakte"
"But kyun"
"Woh isliye kyunki humein abhi hospital jana hai...doctor ne kaha tha jaise hi aapko hosh aye to ek baar checkup karwane ke liye" she declared in a firm tone.
"Ms Kashyap pls I am fine now...mujhe kisi checkup ki koi zaroorat nahin hai" he tried to resist but Ananya was adamant. And after one moment even he knew there was no point arguing. You surely cant have the last laugh if its Ananya Kashyap at the other end.
At the hospital, the doctor checked on Kabir's wounds and re-dressed them. He gave all the details of his medicines and diet to Ananya and prescribed a shot for pain relief. Ananya had almost giggled at his face drain color seeing the needle. To see a man as sturdy and strong as him fear a small needle was a sight!
"Sir dariye mat...stay calm" she had quipped looking mischievously at him.
"Dar kaun raha hai Ms Kashyap" he fumbled eyes still concentrated on the needle.
"Sir agar dar nahin rahe to mera haath kyun pakda hai" Ananya winked, and Mr Kabir Sharma was left stunned for once! It was the first time he had been beaten at his own game and to say that he loved this new development would just be an understatement. Smiling playfully to himself he slowly let go of her hand and closed his eyes, for once not fearing the outcome of the unknown. For somewhere he wanted to know what lied at the other side of the fence...
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