FF: Lootera ~ Last Chapter on page- 85~ - Page 20

7th Part:

Bihaan saw Imli go away swaying her hips smiling victoriously leaving the girl in his arms turned into a statue. Thapki unattached herself from him and left, leaving him standing there without uttering a word. Now he was a bit confused how to deal with the situation. Imli's last remark before leaving was definitely aimed to hurt Thapki by implying he and Imli shared a physical relationship and that he only wanted Thapki momentarily for sex. Well, that was good! Maybe Thapki would leave now and leave him alone in peace.

But, he didn't expect Thapki to react this way...in fact she didn't react at all...He was expecting some screaming, some crying, some serious allegations of adultery or even some fear concerning her own virtue... but Thapki didn't do any of those, surprising him once more. He was surprised before at her lack of complaints and her adapting qualities to this jungle and poor lifestyle.

Whatever, I don't care, he said to himself and shrugged. If she was waiting for him to clarify Imli lied, she can wait forever.

When he entered the room, Thapki was quietly sitting in one corner in the floor mending one of his shirts. She didn't look up at him rather kept her face averted. As if he cared...he rolled his eyes... he took out his clothes and stomped outside to take a shower. When he came back Thapki was still sitting like that not giving him any attention. He threw the dirty clothes in the floor and started to go around the room making noises.

When Thapki didn't look up at the noises he sullenly announced, "I am hungry." Without raising her head or stopping what she was doing Thapki said, "Food is in the kitchen."

If she thought, now he would inquire whether she had eaten or ask her to join him, she was mistaken. He would not do anything of that sort, he huffed. He didn't care whether she ate or not. He stomped outside once more.

When he returned sometime later, Thapki was in the same position. Still sewing his clothes. Seeing her one would think all his clothes were torn and in rags. How much could she sew? He took out his favourite assault rifle AK-103, and started to clean it, throwing occasional scathing glances at her.

After 2 hours of silence he was desperate, he didn't know what to do. He realised he was waiting for her to outburst, throw some tantrum, show any kind of reaction to Imli's venom. Anything but this dreadful calm. Since she entered his life, he kind of got used to her fussing about him, her constant hovering around him as if her world rotated around him. And during last few hours she had not even looked at him once. Bihaan felt like tearing his own hair.

After a while Thapki blew the lamp near her and settled on the floor to sleep... facing the wall. Bihaan couldn't believe Thapki could do this to him...give him such cold shoulder treatment...At that moment he would have preferred her shouting, screaming and anger to this indifference. He also settled on his bed but his eyes were focused where she was sleeping curled into a ball.

"I have a headache" Bihaan announced grumpily, not even feeling guilty for lying and waited to see how she could ignore her precious Bihaan's pain. Thapki remained as she was for a while and then sat up. She took out a strip of cloth from his almirah and came to him.

"Tie it in your head t-t-tightly you will feel better"

"I thought you said I used to love your head massages"

Thapki remained quiet for some time. Then she moved over to the bed.

Success at last!! Yippee. Bihaan secretly heaved a happy sigh. She sat close and started to run her fingers through his temple. Her touch was simply magic. Bihaan didn't realise before now that her nearness somehow pacified his inner agitation...since he woke up from his accident he always felt a sense of unrest and turmoil inside him, but since her entry he felt calm, her touch brought him inner peace which he was denying. It was as if his soul recognised her and purr in contentment every time she was near.

A drop of water fell on his forehead. The girl was crying. Shit! Bihaan felt wretched and horrible. He just wanted her close was that too much to ask?

He gently pried her fingers from his head and held them on his chest.

"What happened?" he asked even though he knew why she was crying. How long was she crying? Her face was blotchy and her nose was red. She didn't let him see her face even for once since Imli's departure.

"N-N-N-Nothing" She sniffed.

"Tell me"

"Kuch nehi---"

"If you don't tell me, how can I fix it?"

Thapki seemed to cry harder after that.

"You can't f-fix it, no one can... I understand every t-t-thing. You lost your memory...you didn't know I e-e-existed, so I d-d-dont blame you. Jo bhi hona tha ho ch-ch-chuka...I just w-w-want--", she said between sobs.

"Yes what do you want?" Bihaan prepared himself for her announcement to leave him.

"I just w-w-want you to give me one chance. I w-w-will try to be... will try...to satisfy you...do anything you w-want me to do, just t-t-teach me and I will ...I will try my level b-best to pleasure you...you won't need her. Please don't go to her, I-I-I will let you do a-anything to me. Just d-d-d-don't---", Thapki began to cry earnestly after that.

Bihaan took few moments to process what she was trying to say. When he realised she was proposing him to use her body as an object just so that he wouldn't go to Imli for sex, he had an explosion in his brain. What kind of monster she thinks I am?

"I will slap you if you talk like this ever. What's wrong with you? Why are you demeaning yourself? Imli is a crazy lady...you believed her? She was baiting you and you took her bait..you stupid girl... She is Durga's daughter, she nursed me back to my health after my accident, so she has a soft corner for me, nothing else...we don't have any other relationship but that of friendship..."

Thapki stared at Bihaan's eyes through her tears and Bihaan didn't look away. He won't explain again, if she didn't believe him, couldn't see the truth in his eyes good on her, he would not clarify himself again; after all he had his pride too.

After a minute of staring at him Thapki gave a small squeal and buried herself in his chest. She hit his chest with her small fists and began to cry again.

"How can you be so c-c-cruel? How can you let me go on t-thinking that you t-t-two have--? Bohut bude ho tum, bohut gande...achcha nehi ho t-t-tum..."

Bihaan let her beat him...her small fists were not inflicting any pain...He was suddenly feeling as if a heavy burden disappeared from his chest now that she believed him. He wrapped his arms around her and snuggled her tighter.

"I will not forgive y-you ever for this, for letting me t-think you---"she sniffed tiredly into his chest.

"No?"

Thapki shook her head doodling in his chest with her fingers, still sniffing softly.

"What would you have done if I really had a relationship with some girl? I didn't know about you."

"I don't k-know...I only know you are m-m-mine, and my Bihaan would have never d-done anything like that to me, whether he r-r-remembers me or not." Thapki said absurdly.

"Yes that I can see, you are willing to sleep with me in competition with a vindictive woman, though you are not ready."

Thapki didn't reply anything to that but hugged him tighter. They stayed like that for some time in companionable silence.

"Waise, why did you say I need to teach you stuff, don't you know----? We must have done...stuff together...you should know what I like or what we both like..." Bihaan said after a while.

Thapki blushed at his query but he didn't see it because her face was still hidden in his chest.

"Mmm...No..."

"How come, no?"

"We haven't actually d-d-done that yet." Thapki blushed some more.

"Why not? How long have we been married?"

"Mmm...1 and half y-years..."Thapki said feeling like a fool.

Bihaan nudged her to look up to his face.

"And we have never done it in 1 and half years?" he asked incredulously.

"No---"Thapki said embarrassingly. "Actually when we g-got married we didn't like e-each other much...in fact we used to t-t-think the worst of each other."

"Achcha?"

"hmm...then over time we became f-f- friends...then eventually best friends...I have lost the c-count of times you s-saved my life or saved me from d-dire situations..."

"Always the damsel in distress, aren't you?"

"Yes." Thapki said happily, "And you were my k-knight in shining armour in disguise. You still a-a-are."Bihaan nodded his head not wanting to argue with her this once... he wanted to know more about them.

"So we were both c-c-confused when our friendship turned into romantic love." Thapki continued.

"Then what happened?"

Thapki laid her head in his chest. "Once we realised we really love each other we decided to get married again and start fresh"

"How long it took to realise that finally?"

"About 11 months."

"Oh" Thapki could feel Bihaan become rigid under her. He could very well calculate and deduce that was the time he was almost murdered. Thapki snuggled into him harder as if she didn't notice the change in him.

"Do you know, once y-you gave me a star as a gift? A real s-star. You named it Twinkle Twinkle T-Thapki Star."

"Did I?"

"Yes. And once, you m-m-made me a necklace of seven coloured pearls in your own hands for my birthday."

"I sound like a wimp." He said and Thapki hit his chest with her fist.

"Oww ", Bihaan said in mock pain.

"You were not, you were the m-most bravest, strongest and honest p-person with a heart of pure gold. You still are. And you used to love me more than a-anything in this world."

"Don't let my fellow dakus hear it. I will be out of my job. No one will take me seriously anymore."

"You maybe a daku now, b-but you haven't really changed a bit. You are still the s-same."

Bihaan didn't reply. He felt like a fraud when Thapki keep comparing him to his old self. Thapki seemed to hold Bihaan in a high pedestal but now that he was Raja he was not sure he should be in that pedestal anymore. Because deep down he knew he had done things as a daku he shouldn't have done. So he kept quiet about that matter.

"So why we used to hate each other?" he said instead, running his fingers through her long hair.

"Mmm...We were k-k-kinda prejudiced against each other because our first m-m-meeting didn't go really well."

"Why what happened in our first meeting?"

"I used to work in your b-brother's office. One night there was a party and I broke my h-heel while dancing. So I came to the office to fix it and there y-you were with your friend. I mistook you as an intruder and you c-called me a cat and made fun of my s-stammering."

"You do resemble a cat somehow...especially the way you cling--owww"

Thapki dug her nails into his chest. "S-s-say that again. I dare you" Thapki challenged.

"Arey wah, you even have nails like them." Bihaan still teased and Thapki dug her nails deeper enough to hurt.

In split second, Bihaan rolled and pinned Thapki beneath him. The entire situation suddenly changed and became heated. Thapki stared at Bihaan like a rabbit caught in a car's headlight. She began to breathe hard. Her thin loose shirt had come off one shoulder leaving it bare to Bihaan's eyes. He slowly lowered his mouth and gave a small peck to her lips experimentally. Her lips clung to his when he removed his. He lowered his mouth again and kissed her properly again.

They made out for quite some time, when Bihaan's inquisitive hand started to look for access to her bare flesh, he noted her subtle stiffening. He kissed her once more and said, "Don't worry, chuk chuk gadi, only when you are ready. There is no hurry."

He looked at her beautiful face only to see her eyes swimming in tears. He instantly became alarmed but before he could say anything she hugged him tight.

"Oh Bihaan, how long have I waited to hear your ch-ch-chuk chuk gadi...I am your Chuk chuk gadi...do you remember calling me that?" Thapki asked with hope in her beautiful eyes.

How Bihaan wished he could answer yes.

---------

Days seem to pass quickly after that. Every morning, they woke up entwined into each other's arms. After breakfast, Bihaan went to his work but he tried to return home to his wonder as soon as he could. He couldn't believe his luck there could be a girl who could love him so unconditionally without any reserve. No matter what he did she seemed to think the sun shines out of his ass. It was so easy to make her happy. She never wanted anything in return of her love. The only thing she ever seemed to want was him, his companionship, his love. And Bihaan suspected he was diving headlong deeper into love with her as well.

She had changed his ramshackle hut which was only a place to sleep before into a home just like she had changed him. In one week she had been in his life, he felt like a completely different person, he didn't feel broken anymore, she was his missing piece. He hadn't suffer from any migraines or panic attacks since she came to his life. For the first time in 7 months he felt happy and content. At the same time he was scared of losing her and the new founded happiness; everything right now was too perfect to be true. He was scared something might happen to take away his happiness.

And that was exactly what happened when Imli came to visit him at work one day.

Chapter-8