FF : Yeh Dooriyaan *SahAn + Veerat* (Updated 10/06) - Page 21

Chapter 10 : Reception Dhamaka : Part 2 →

|| Continuation ||

Just as Angad had expected, all the reporters were scrambling to find out more.

"Before I answer a question, may I know why you think it was Veer instead of Gary?" He asked Gary's reporter.

"Actually," She fumbled a bit before replying with an answer that Angad knew was a lucky guess, "I had seen his personal car amidst a locality where one of the Government colleges are situated. I had thought he had a girlfriend. Just wanted to confirm the same."

"I hope she haven't seen Keerat." Sahiba whispered, her eyes showcasing her worry for her little sister. Angad replied back reassuringly, "It's a lucky guess. If she had seen Keerat, she would have asked about the person he was with."

To the reporter, he said, "Your assumption is very wrong. Kindly check your facts again before you decide to start a rumour about my little brother." The reporter looked properly chastised, but he knew she felt humiliated. Not caring about her fragile feelings, he glanced at all the others. He chose one to ask another question.

"Sir, then does Gary sir have a girlfriend?"

Angad did not glance at Gary for his reaction, but Sahiba did. She whispered with pure delight, "Gary looks like he would have a panic attack. Not to mention Jasleen bua is questioning him too."

"Good." He muttered vindictively before he answered the reporter, "Well I will let everyone know once we have met the girl. No need to spread wrong information. But I'm sure everyone will hear of any prospective news regarding the same very soon. "

"Is there a problem sir?" The reporter tried to fish for anymore news but Sahiba deflected as Angad stopped for a breath. She replied, "Not at all. Actually my would-be devrani is a very media-shy person. You might have heard her name. Seerat? Does the name ring any bells?"

Just then she saw Jasleen bua stumble in shock. She knew Angad saw it too, as he held Gary's horror filled gaze.

"Oh yes mam!" Another reporter said, "One channel is presuming that Angad sir was supposed to be getting married to a girl named Seerat. Was it true or just a pure misconception?"

"A misconception." Sahiba stated firmly while Angad kept his face guarded. This was one portion that Sahiba would have to handle without Angad. He was still coming to terms with his brother's betrayal and Seerat's deception.

"I see. Sahiba mam, another question. We have heard, as Mr. Aakal Singh Brar has also mentioned, you are an artist. Is it true you decorated the magnificent Paath room during their anniversary?"

"Yes, I did." It was short and simple answer with no inkling to her real feelings.

"Mam, how does it feel to be a part of such affluent household when you belong to a normal family?"

"What makes you think there is a difference?" Sahiba questioned back with an airy chuckle, "Actually, Angad's mom and dad are very welcoming. They had our back. And, of-course, a special mention to Daarji and Bebe, both of whom are so down to earth even after all the affluence, as you name it."

The reported looked pleased with her answer. Angad had also loosed up by then, as the media finally paved way for others to mingle with the newlyweds.

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Manveer smirked as Jasleen stumbled back in shock.

The confusion and surprise on her face was evident. To see her so unsettled after everything she had done made her feel a sense of calm. This woman had created several troubles for her family and to find her entangled in a web of her own trap made her happy.

"This time I cannot forgive her." Inder whispered, his eyes remained on Jasleen's frazzled look. Manveer glanced down, humming in response.

Truthfully she had never forgiven Jasleen for her previous slights. It all started with Jasleen getting pregnant out of wedlock. Manveer wasn't as traditionalist as she showed herself to be. But then, Brar's weren't the brand they were today. Every support counted for them at that time.

Her father-in-law had started with a small shop that had grown into a new-age company by the time she had gotten married to Inder. A single mishap could break down all the support Papaji had gathered all throughout his life. That was when Jasleen had created a scandal.

To control the damage done, she had suggested the idea of getting Jasleen married to her paramour. Manveer did not find it wrong given both of them had admitted to loving each other. At that moment, Jasleen had also been happy to get married. Although Papaji and Mumma wasn't as happy because of the scandal causer and they were traditionalist. They had accepted them grudgingly.

But slowly as time went by, around the birth of Gary, Jasleen had returned to the Brar home. It was on the guise for the pregnancy nearing it's end. But that had been a wrong assumption made by all of them.

In truth, Jasleen had not been able to adjust to the lifestyle of her husband. Her husband was a self-made man, working diligently in a high-government post. He was also an orphan. Hence, Jasleen had to take care of everything from cooking to taking care of the house. Although, her husband did help in the chores as well, she was not satisfied.

Jasleen had everything handed to her on a silver platter in the Brar house. She had never learnt to be accountable for her own needs. When Manveer had tried to advice her, she had laughed her away with taunts to her own marriage problems. Her sister-in-law even had the audacity on saying that she was single mother even after having an entire family and a husband.

That was one comments amongst several she had to hear from her.

However when the topic of divorce had appeared, her papaji had refused to agree to that. Manveer had stayed away from the topic. When asked she had refused to comment, only asking them to consider Gary, who had been five years of age then and Kiara, who was a baby of two. Her motherly instincts had risen seeing the children, given her own child Angad had been eight years old then.

Inder had also gotten to know about his sister's behavior against his wife. That had caused a huge row amongst the two elder siblings. When Jasleen had cruelly commented on Angad, Inder had even nearly raised his hand. Manveer had managed to stop him then.

Not that Inder had been calmed completely. No matter what their problems had been, Inder had never failed to respect or stand up for his wife if he was present. He knew it was a cause of jealousy amongst his sisters.

However their child, his Angad, was one person he had treasured the most. To harm or attempt to harm Angad was an 'punishable' offense in his book. On top of that, he had known how his sisters truly were. The only difference was Prabhjyot was all bark and no bite while Jasleen could cross any limits for her self-gain.

Manveer had watched with an indifference as her husband had thrown his sister out of their house. Only after a day when his anger had calmed and his father had brought his elder daughter inside their house again, had Inder demanded a punishment against the slight Jasleen has committed on their child. She had been denied access to her funds that was given by their father for a year in response to his demand. It was slap on the wrist from his papaji and he knew that.

It has calmed him down but from then on Inder had never trusted any of his sisters. Somehow at that time, his wife had become the daughter his father truly needed.

As both Manveer and Inder mingled with the guests, it was heartwarming to hear everyone gushing about their son and new daughter-in-law. They were intersected by Manveer's parents, both of whom demanded to see their new granddaughter.

"Mumma, chaliye mai lei chalti hu aapko." Manveer gestured her mother, bringing her towards the stage where the newlyweds were busy mingling with people. As her parents blessed them, she gave a thankful smile at Inder. Given they stayed in Shimla, due to weather conditions their flight had been delayed. It had saved them the heartache of knowing that their grandson had been dumped at the alter and that they have been cheated.

When other guests approached the kids, both of them let them be. Inder watched them, murmuring a soft prayer, 'Babaji, mere baccho par apni kripa banaye rakhna. Bohot se jung larne baki hai abhi. In dono ko ek durse ke saath ki zaroorat paregi.'

As if in response, Angad looked up from his conversation with his business associate to give his father a small but genuine smile.

≫ ──── ≪•◦ ❈ ◦•≫ ──── ≪

As the reception progressed further in the night, alcohol flowed a bit freely. Sahiba watched a bit worried at so much liquor all around. Although, she knew Keerat would be alright but she still bothered buy it. Just as she was about to look for her sister, she found Keerat coming towards her accompanied by Veer and Ekam.

"Lo ji Parjai." Veer said with a bright smile towards her, "Aapki behen apki hifazat mei. Aap dono beith kar kubh sari baat karo. Mujhe kuch kam hai." He gave a smile at Keerat, before disappearing amidst the throng of people.

"Parjai," Ekam said as she sat by her side, gesturing to Keerat to take a seat on her other side, "Ek baat batau? Keerat Di keh rahi thi ki aap designing bohot acha karti ho?"

"Thoda bohot kar leti hu." Sahiba shrugged, watching the young woman's eyes sparkle. Ekam said with a pleading look, "Then will you help me please?"

"Kaisi help?" Ekam turned to face Sahiba and Keerat fully as she excitedly said, "Next week I have a farewell party at school. But I had not manage to select even a single dress to wear. Anything I managed to choose, Angad veerji disapproved of it."

Sahiba was surprised to hear Ekam's words, "Your veerji selects your clothes?"

"It's my fault!" Ekam pouted, "I asked him to select them. Veerji is a perfectionist. I thought he would help me and I would get the 'Farewell queen' award too. But unfortunately he is rejecting everything I chose!"

Sahiba was amused and a bit baffled too. When she promised to help her, Ekam squealed and ran towards her mother to share the news.

Keerat mumbled to Sahiba, "Bade log aur unki bade nataunki, Di. Farewell party toh humari bhi hui thi par aise awards toh na mile the."

Sahiba reprimanded her gently, "Keerat..! That wasn't nice. Every school has their own rules."

"I know." Keerat made a sad pleading face, "Sorry." Sahiba shook her head at the act but chuckled clasping their hands together. "Tujhe pata hai Keerat, jab tu ayi ajj, mujhe laga ki meri iss rooh mei jaan wapas ayi hai. Ek ajeeb sa ghutan ho rahi thi. Bohot akela mehsoos bhi ho raha tha."

Keerat gave her a compassionate and understanding look, "Di, ek baat mujhe bhi aapko kehna hai. Ajj na pehli baar apne aap ko akela laga tha jab ajj ke din aap mere saath nehi thi."

"Pagal!" Sahiba chuckled wetly, her arms engulfing her sister lovingly. Her mind went back to the commotion in the morning that was caused by Jasleen. It still made her blood boil to hear such venom being spewed about her little sister.

They had just come down the stairs, when they had heard Jasleen speak. After being profoundly ignored by her sister-in-law, Jasleen had been left fuming at her perceived insult.

"Parjai, main ek baat nehi samaj parahi...!!" Jasleen face was curious but her eyes held a glint of cruelty, "Yeh gundi jaisi kuri ko aap kyu bulana chahti ho yeha? Aur uss batameez aur tez zubaan kuri ke khatir itna kuch? Uske parivaar ne humare Angad ko kitna bada dhoka diya hai..!!"

"Enough Jasleen!" Inder spoke, his annoyance clear at her words, "Tumhara khana bina kadwa bole hazam na hota kya? Subha subha yeh kya suru kar rakha hai?!"

Manveer, who had taken note of Angad and Sahiba, on the stairs kept quiet in response. She wanted to see whether Sahiba would take this slight lying down. She wanted to see whether she would stand up for herself.

"Kadwa bolti hu, veerji, par sach bolti hu!" Jasleen responded ferociously, eyes bright with unnamed emotions. Inder exhaled, trying to control his temper.

"Toh aapki sach bolne ki aadat kaha gayi thi jab aapko sach bolna tha?"

Sahiba's livid voice roared. There was a moment of silence in the room as they realized they had an audience who had heard everything.

"Batayie! Chup na rahiye Jasleen ji." Sahiba's glare was ferocious as she stood in front of her, "Main bhi janna chahti hu ki aapki yeh sach bolne ki aadat kaha gayi thi jab uski zaroorat thi."

"Zubaan na lara kuriye..!" Jasleen warned, her anger rising at the actual person who had insulted her even further on the wedding day by her actions when she exposed her.

"Sahiba." Sahiba smiled. A sharp pretty smile with her golden flecked eyes narrowed; it would have frightened anyone and even Jasleen was at unease when she saw the smile, "Nam hai mera. S-a-h-i-b-a. Pronunciation bhi aapko sikha diya maine. Istemal kijiye. Permission toh maine deh hi diya hai. Muhurat ka intezaar karne ki zaroorat nehi hai."

Jasleen fumed, as her temper rose at the mockery in Sahiba's eyes. She spewed venom without thinking anything as her anger came to the forefront.

"Janna hai na tujhe? Thik hai, sun..!" Jasleen's eyes glinted with hatred as she spoke out, "Let's start with you. Maine jo bhi kiya aapne parivaar ke liye kiya. Anyway you did exactly what I thought you would. The person whose mother turned out to be a fraud and whose sister turned out to be cheater; how can that person be different from them? You also proved that by agreeing to marry Angad. Sanskaar tere mei tere Mummy ke hi hai, hai na? "

Sahiba barely twitched at those words. On the other hand, except for Manveer and Inder, the youngsters especially Angad, Veer, Ekam were shocked at seeing their aunt speaking in such a despicable manner. Gurleen tried to send Ekam away but the young girl refused to. Manveer noticing that gestured at Gurleen to let her stay and watch. She felt that the youngsters needed to see the true faces of their family members. As parents, they couldn't shield them every single time.

Seeing her target completely unconcerned about her hate filled words made Jasleen see red. A smirk played on her lips, as she used her final ace on her sleeve. Her next words disgusted everyone.

"That girl, what's her name? Right, Keerat." Jasleen felt a calm when she saw Sahiba's eyes having an emotion shining in them. It was the first reaction she had gotten from her. Hence she continued to speak, "Tujhe pata hai, Manveer parjayi ne uss kuri ko bulaya hai yeha pe wo bhi tere vaaste. That girl, your sister, is a typical goon. I mean, look at her! Kabhi kabhar toh samaj bhi na aata ki woh ek kuri hai yeh munda!" She gave a mocking laugh.

By then Sahiba had curled her fingers; her anger actually rising at those mocking and sick words.

"Nak pe gussa sawar rehta hai uska! Na kapre pehnne ke dhang na baat karne ka koi tameez hai. I mean, what will we say if she comes to visit you here? How can we be seen with her? Sara prestige ek chutki mei chala jaiga!" Jasleen felt vindictive enough to take a dig at Manveer too, "Sacchi Parjayi..! Mujhe na aapka yeh idea samjh na aya."

"Samajh ne ke liye dimaag lagta hai." said Sahiba, as she expressed her utter disgust, "Ajj aapne apni aukat dikha hi diya." Jasleen's eyes widened at the audacity of the girl, "Sanskaar ki baat aapne cheri thi. Maine na. Par, I think, aapke kya sanskaar hai yeh yeha pe khare har ek log bohot ache se samjh chuke hai. Please look around."

Sahiba pointed out the youngsters to Jasleen whose eyes widened at seeing Veer and Ekam there, both of whom look disgusted. Even the calmest out of the brothers, Veer, looked furious.

"Zakham aap mujhe dena chahti thi, par khud hi ghayal ho beithi." Sahiba gave a humourless smile, "Aapke parivaar ke log aaj aapka asli chehra dekh bhi liya. I don't think they will trust or see you in the same light ever again. Koi apne pair per kulhadi marna aap se sikhe."

After that, Jasleen had left from there feeling humiliated. As in the morning everyone had been left feeling disoriented at the way Jasleen had spoken, none of them had felt like eating.

Veer had left immediately after that, informing Manveer that he would pick up Keerat from the college on his way back from the studio. Inder had also informed that his appetite had disappeared.

Seeing Gurleen's sad face and even though she did not want to, Sahiba agreed to have breakfast. It had brightened up Gurleen while Manveer had given her a tentative thankful smile. The breakfast had been postponed as Angad had said that both had them had somewhere to visit. They would return to have their breakfast.

That's how Sahiba had managed to meet Keerat before she left her Maasi's house for her first day at college. The sisters had nearly cried at seeing each other while Angad had been amused and overwhelmed to see Sahiba as a motherly figure for Keerat (just like Keerat had said on the wedding day). So when Keerat arrived with Veer, the sisters had simply hugged while Sahiba taken her on to her newly assigned workspace in the house.

"DI!"

Sahiba was startled, causing Keerat to look at her concerned, "Aap thik ho? You look a bit pale for a moment."

"Mujhe kya hoga?" She laughed of her sister's worries, "I am alright. Just a bit tired with all these...!" She glanced at the still mingling people on the floor. Dinner hasn't even started and it was past midnight. She was used to staying up late but never had been so idle in her life.

She composed herself on seeing Angad arrive with Veer. Quirking an eyebrow at the brothers, she slumped back on the seat.

"Kya hogaya?" grumbled Sahiba, "Kab tak khatam hoga yeh? Mujhe aur yeh saab accha nehi lag raha."

Angad replied, as he extended his hand, "One dance and the dinner. We can have the dinner in our room. I asked Mumma to deal with the rest of the party. I had enough as well."

"Aab dance bhi karna parega? Aur kya natak baki hai inn logo ke liye?" Sahiba's annoyance was easily seen, as she placed her hand in his. She was mindful of the lurking press and eavesdropping people.

"Chinta na karo Parjai." Veer reassured her, "Bas ek dance then both of you can disappear. Aur dance floor mei aap aur Paaji akele nehi ho. Keerat, Tauji, Tayiji aur Mumma and Papa bhi honge waha."

"Main?" Keerat hissed, eyes narrowed at Veer as she mumbled to him, "Aap pura pagla gay ho kya? Main yeh dance-wance nehi kar sakti."

"Keerat," Veer whispered at her, "Parjai ke vaaste toh ek dance kar hi sakti ho..! Meri lead follow karna, koi problem nehi hoga."

Keerat glared at him response but took his elbow gingerly when he gestured. Huffing at his words that knew how to easily convince her, she followed him to the dance floor.

On the other hand, Angad and Sahiba were a bit surprised at seeing the pair on the floor with them.

"Mujhe laga nehi tha ki Keerat dance karegi." The astonishment in her voice was so clear that Angad couldn't help but quirk a smile. He replied, "Veer ko logo ko manana bohot achi tareeke se aata hai."

She hummed in reply as she gingerly allowed her hand to rest on his shoulder while he clasped their hands. Her eyes wandered over his shoulders to the people around, "Gary bhi join kar raha hai."

"Karne doh usse join aur meri taraf dekho. Media ke cameras yehi hai."

Her eyes flickered up to meet his, while he leaned in to twirl her around so that her back faced his front. Quickly twirling her out again, he brought her in his arms.

"Tumne ek chis notice ki?" Angad mumbled, as he made her dip, before twirling her around in a circle followed by the other dancing pairs.

"Kya?" Sahiba was focusing on her toes instead of anything else; she did not want to be taunted for not knowing how to dance. Not to mention her feet could be seen clearly even when the saree was floor-touching.

"I am going to lift you up next. Try to notice a waitress with glasses. She is behind Jasleen bua."

Just then, Sahiba was lifted up effortlessly. She was a bit nervous, but keeping a general angle of her neck she managed to see what Angad was referring to, and she barely managed to stifle a gasp. As Angad brought her in his arms again, twirling her around to the position of her back to his front, he whispered, "Dekha?"

They swayed for a while, so Sahiba could whisper back, turning her head subtly as if she was lost in his eyes, "Seerat di yeha kaise ayi?"

"Veer ka idea hai. Live streaming maine aise hi nehi karwaya. Tum logo ke aane se pehle, Daarji ne aur papa ne exclusive interview diya tha. Ayi hai ussi jaal mei faske. Not to mention, mujhe office se phone aya tha ki usne office phone kiya tha Gary ke bare mein puchne vich. Waise naam nehi diya tha but call trace kiya tab pata chala ki woh ussi ka mobile number hai."

"Toh aap yeha pe itne shaant ho ke kyu khare ho?"

They twirled around again, facing each other. He replied, meeting her eyes, "Business mei kitne din ayi ho?"

Sahiba's nose scrunched up at that, "Yeh kaisa question hai?"

"Answer me." He demanded. Feeling annoyed and tired, she replied, "Five years."

As they final ended the dance, posing for some final photographs; Sahiba glanced up in a silent query.

He replied, smiling down at her for the photographs, "You are new in the field then. You are not ruthless in the manner you should be when dealing with backstabbing people. In business there is a rule. You do not do a deal if it is not profitable for you. If I catch Seerat now, it won't be profitable for me. On top of that she is backstabber. Let everything come out in the open and then I shall confront her too. For that to happen, Seerat must come to me. Not the other way round."

"Aur wo hoga kaise?"

"Let's head to our room. I will tell you there."