Part I - Pg. 1
Part II - Pg. 11
Part III - Pg. 14
Part IV - Pg. 19
Part V - Pg. 24
Part VI - Pg. 29
Part VII - Pg. 42
Part VIII - Pg. 43
Part IX - Pg. 50
Part X - Pg. 54
Part XI - https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/topic/478967 (Finale & Author's Note)
The story is set in the last week or so of June, 1999 in the sylvan locales of Mount Abu, on an unexpectedly rainy and cold night, where a stranger to the town was stuck in the lashing rain and thunderstorm with a broken car and no help at hand and the entire town was dispersed in darkness.
"Oh God-damnit, is Car ko bhi abhi kharab hona tha…..Main Jaipur kabhi time par nahin pahunch paaonga, meri flight miss ho jaayegi, aur kal Mumbai mein Board Members ke saath meeting bhi hai. I have got to call up Aditya and inform him, magar is Jungle mein phone toh door, door door tak koi insaan bhi nazar nahin aa raha hai."
The stranger was new to Mount Abu, it was his first visit here and so was his irritation with things going wrong for him since the beginning, that he swore to himself that he won't keep his foot in this "crummy little town" ever again in his life as he kept trying to get the Carburator working, but to no avail, as he could barely see anything in the pitch darkness and the constant downpour of rain, which chilled his bones.
As the tall, slightly dark complexioned and well-built man looked around to see if he could get any help, he banged the Bonnet of his swanky Car with frustration and exasperation and went and sat inside the Car to smoke his umpteenth cigarette and kept muttering something to himself in anger. "This is too much, main yahan baithe baithe toh kuch nahin kar sakta, mujhe zara utar kar dekhna hoga, yahan koi phone ya help milega ya nahin." The stranger flicked off his cigarette with a casual arrogance which seemed second nature to him and placing his hand over his head, tried to make his way through the pitch darkness of the road, where his Car had broken down. Thankfully the rain had begun slowing up a bit and now it was drizzling, but for a Bombay born and bred man, the cold was literally seeping through his bones now. As the stranger kept walking, slowly and cautiously, he came to stop near a huge wroght iron gate and as he lit switched on his Cell-phone, which was only serving as a weak source of light now, since there was no connection in this god-forsaken place, he tried to make sense of the name plate which was hung in a derelict condition outside the gate. "Dhigs….No, its Dixcie's…Oh, Anglo Indian Family?" The stranger wondered once more and rubbed the lining of moss that covered the name-plate and getting his now steadily dimming Cell-phone closer to the name plate, he could finally make out the name-plate with clarity. "Dixit's. Oh Dixit?" The stranger stood up and smirked for a while wondering if these Dixit's could help him out and proceeded to open the rusty, creaking iron gate, giving a surreal ghostly feel to the Stranger, who felt pretty weird walking into some stranger's house, but dire circumstances required dire actions and the stranger was more than used to them.
As his tall figure gingerly made his way across the lush green, wet garden, which looked unkempt and wild to his eyes, he saw a small yet a typical hill-type cottage, which like the rest of the town was immersed in an eeriry darkness, only lit by a small night-lamp which hung precariously in the Verandah of the house, swining in the cold air which were now jamming the stranger's muscles and every possible tissue of his body. As the stranger huddled himself with his arms and came near to the cottage, he hesitated for a while and thought to himself, "Pata nahin koi ghar par hai bhi ya nahin….aur agar koi hai, toh kya sochega….Choti jagah hai, yahan ke log pata nahin kaise hote hai…." And suddenly the stranger felt an urge to turn back and go to his Car and wait for dawn to arise, but as he looked at the glowing neon lights of his expensive Cartier watch, he saw that it was only 8 Pm in the evening and he realized that if he did not die of the ever increasing cold, he would surely die of hunger by the time it was morning.
"Koi hai? Koi ghar par hai? Hello………" The stranger's deep-throated and masculine voice called out loudly, as he stood near the glass door of the house through which he could barely see anything and again repeated the knocking, this time a trifle loudly and called out again, "Maina kaha, koi ghar pe hai kya? Is someone there?" As the stranger looked a little irritated and mumbled to himself that this was the unluckiest day for him, with everything going wrong since morning, he had left for Jaipur after a bitter, verbal duel with his girlfriend, whom he did not wish to even remember right now and then he had almost missed his plane to Jaipur, only to arrive and discover that his Car had been waiting for him in the Jaipur Airport but the Driver had been taken ill and hence, he had to drive all the way to Mount Abu, a place he had never been before. He had reached late for the Take-over meeting and had hastily concluded the same, with the deal swinging in the opposite party's favour, something which had never happened to the Stranger before and if this was not enough, his Car had broken down and he was caught up in a nasty storm while on his way back to Jaipur. "What a god-damn place, so unlucky……Not one thing went right….I am never stepping here again." He had mentioned this to himself several times since he had landed in Mount Abu and now as he stood, drenched and shivering, with no response coming from this haunted looking house, he lit another cigarette and cursing softly under his breath, stopped for a while in the Portico to finish his cigarette and then go back to his Car.
"Please apna cigarette bhuja dijiey, mujhe dhunein se allergy hai." As the stranger looked startled and surprised, he turned back to see the dim vision of someone, partly hiding behind the door and partly looking out at the stranger with fear and trepidation. As the stranger tried to look at the figure in the dim light of the lamp which alighted the Portico, he could make out that it was a young girl who had just spoken to him, a teenager perhaps, she looked like a frightened rabbit who had just seen the King of the Jungle and was dressed in what seemed like old-house clothes, but very neat and had her waist lenth hair in two plaits which hung on her slender shoulders. As the stranger extinguished his cigarette and threw it outside, he kept looking at that girl, her bright eyes shining even in the dimness of the night. "Woh…..Actually meri Car khabab ho gayi, aur mera Cell phone bhi kaam nahin kar raha…..Mujhe ek phone karna tha….Tumhare ghar pe koi aur hai, tumhare Papa, Mummmy….Koi bada Bhai?" The stranger looked very uncomfortable, realizing how odd it must have looked for that young, frail, waifish girl standing in front of him, wondering who this man is. "Ghar pe koi bhi nahin hai, mera Mummy Papa Mount Abu ke bahar gaye hue hai, aur meri behenen school trip par gayi hui hai." The girl said, now not looking so sacred, but with a shyness and hesitancy in her voice. But it was now the stranger's turn to look scared, not only had he ended up landing in a new town, on a storm-lashed, dark night, he had ended up in a house, where there was a young teenaged girl all alone. The stranger did not know what to say or react and stood wondering and then hesitatingly, but with a twing of humor in his voice said, "Tum is bhoot bangle mein akeli ho, tumhare Papa Mummy tumhein akele chod kar kaise chale gaye?" As the girl kept staring at him, with her sparkling dark brown eyes, a small smile lit up her face and she answered back, "Yeh bhoot bangla nahin hai, mera ghar hai, aur mujhe akele bilkul dar nahin lagta, poora Mount abu mere apne ghar jaisa hai." The stranger had to smile at the innocence and confidence in the girl's voice and let out a short, warm laughter and said now a little casually, "Kya main tumhare Bhoot Bangle ka…Mera matlab tumhare Ghar ka phone use kar sakta hoon? Mujhe Bombay call karna hai." The girl had now come out and as the stranger looked at her more carefully, he saw a youngish, tall and thin girl with a wheatish complexion and a rather cute, innocent face, but it was her eyes which took him aback for a moment. Even in the darkness, they seemed to shine like a pair of bright candles; a lucid brown, almond shaped eyes set in a very pretty and sober looking face. "Must be Pushkar's age…..maybe a year or two younger." Thought the stranger as the girl opened the door of her house for him and he followed her with a slight consternation. As the girl led him inside the darkened hall, she told him to wait as she went and lit a couple of candles in then mantle-piece and a corner of the room alighted brightly and the stranger looked at a slightly run-down, but rambling room, which had some very old, tattered furniture, some stuffed toys lying in a corner, a couple of photographs on the mantle-piece and some other knick-knacks lying. The stranger looked at them and suddenly remembered his palatial, almost palace like home which had the most expensive and exquisite curious from around the place scattered around the whole house. As the girl lifted the phone and kept jabbing at it for sometime, she looked back at the stranger and in a very apologetic tone said, "I am sorry, lagta hai phone dead ho gaya….Dial tone nahin hai….Shayad Baarish ki wajah se." The stranger wanted to curse his luck again, but refrained from any temper display, not wanting to scare off his benevolent host and just shrugged his head. "Not my day I guess. But thanks, tumnain help toh offer kiya. Kuch nahin hota, meri gaadi bahar hai, main usi mein wait kar leta hoon, kal subah dekhte hai kya karna hai." As the stranger smiled back warmly at the girl and made his way back to the front door, she called out from behind hesitatingly, "Suniye….Agar aapko koi problem nahin hai toh aap raat yahan guzar sakte hai…..baarish phir se shuru ho gayi hai, aur yahan raat ko bahut thand ho jaati hai, aap subah tak yahan ruk saktein hai, shayad phone bhi theek ho jaaye." The stranger stopped in his tracks and looked very unsure for a moment, he desperately wanted to stay in the warmth of the house and would have killed to have a cup of tea, but how could he spend the night in a strange house with young girl for company, he wondered what to say or do. "Actually…..Woh…..Thanks a lot by the way. Main thodi der ruk jaata hoon, jab baarish band ho jaayegi, toh main apni Car main wapas chala jaaonga. I hope that is alright." The girl just nodded and went inside somewhere in the darkness as the stranger sat on the sunken sofa and ruffled his wet hair and relaxed his almost broken back a bit.
"Chai." As the stranger opened his eyes with a start and looked up, the girl was standing a few feets apart from him, with a Cup of Tea in her hands and a towel in the other. "Thanks…..Thank you so much….Tum hain takleef karne ki koi zaroorat nahin thi waise." The stranger smiled at the girl as he greedily took the steaming cup of tea from her hands and almost burned his mouth while gulping it. "Wow….Tum toh bahut acchi Chai bana leti ho….bilkul meri Billo Massi jaisi." As the girl kept standing and handed over the towel, she asked curiously, "Billo Massi?" The stranger had finished the Tea and was feeling much better, he looked at her again and smiled broadly and said, "Haan, meri Massi….Chandigarh mein rehti hain, woh jab bhi mere ghar aati hain, toh main unhi se apne liye Chai banvaata hoon." The girl smiled back and said, "Toh aapki wife ko bura nahin lagta?" The stranger looked taken aback and burst out laughing and after a moment said, "Wife hoti toh bura lagta na? Meri shaadi nahin hui." The girl looked embarrassed as she realized she shouldn't have spoken too much and then for a while both of them lapsed into silence.
As the stranger dryed his hair, he looked around at the random photo frames adorning the mantle piece, and he could only make out a vague outline of a family of five in them and not able to see the picturecs clearly. "Yeh, tumhari family ki photographs hain?" remarked the stranger, keen to say something and remove the awkwardess of the situation, the girl who had now been trying to do something in her notebook by the dim light of the Candle looked up and a warm smile spread her face as she answered back, "Haan…Mere Papa, Meri Mummy aur hum teen behene." The stranger's face also lit up with a smile as he noticed the gleam of pride and love in the girl's voice as she spoke about her family and suddenly the lonliness of his own life suddenly filled his heart as a sad, forelone look came on his face. "Aapke ghar mein kaun hai?" Asked the girl, closing her notebook and looking up at the stranger with interest that can only be attributed to girls of that age. The stranger smiled and replied back casually, "6 naukar, 3 driver, 2 maali, 2 cook, 4 guards and 1 Butler." The girl kept staring at him as the stranger broke out laughing to be joined the girl also and she said, "Baap re, itne saare log…..ek ghar mein? Mera matlab tha aapke parivaar mein aur kaun hain?" The stanger smiled wanly and replied, "Meri choti behen hai, uske pati hai, jo mere bachpan ka dost hai, aur uski maa bhi, jinhein mein beeji bulata hoon. Aur meri behen ke teen bacche hai, tumhare hi umar ke honge takreeban." The girl now looked curious and excited and said, "Aur aapke Mummy Papa?" The stranger kept quiet for some time and said slowly, "Unhein guzre hue bahut saal ho gaye hain." The girl was silence as she looked at the stranger for some time and felt sad at the look of lonliness on his face and suddenly said, "Aapko Linear Equations aate hain?" "Kya? Linear Equations?" The stranger was surprised then smiled jovially and took the notebook from her hand and placing it delicately near the Candle light, he gave one look at the equation the girl had been attempting and shrugging his head in the manner only grown-up do when they are addressing a child's problem, he grinned and quickly finished the equation for her. "Yeh Lo, tumhar jawab. Tumnein X ki value galat nikali thi, isi liye tumhara answer galat aa raha tha." As the girl took the notebook back from the stranger, her face now filled with awe, she remarked, "Lagta hai, aap Maths mein bahut acche hain….Main kab se yeh equation lekar baithi thi, magar mujhse ho nahin raha tha. Thanks a lot." The stranger waved his hand non-chalantly and replied a little boastfully, "Maine Finance mein MBA kiya hai, Maths is my field of expertise." As the girl looked at him a trifle amused at his boastfulness, she could not help but smiling at the stranger who seemed to have infused sudden warmth and cheerfulness in the dreary darkness of the cold, wet night that had left her lonely in the house.
As the stranger drifed to sleep, he was awakened sometime later, with a waft of freshly cooked food filling his sense and he woke up with a start and looked around the strange surroundings and it took him a while to realize that he was in someone's house in this non-descript small hilly town!
"Aap khana kahan lenge? Sofa mein ya Dining Table par?" As the stranger rubbed his eyes and looked at the place from where the sound was coming, he saw the girl coming out from a room which might have been a kitchen and was holding some dish in her hand as she placed it neatly on the old, wooden dining table in one corner of the room. The stranger got up and went near her and said, "Tumhein khana banana ki koi zaroorat nahin thi. Waise bhi tum nein meri help ki hai, I think I should go now, shaayad baarish band ho gayi hogi." As the stranger went near the glass window and looked out in the pitch darkness, he noticed to his dismay, that the outpour had only increased and he heard the girl remark, "Aap roti lenge ya chaawal?" The stranger looked back the girl and did not whether to laugh or just grin and he sent and plopped himself on the chair, which seemed to give away anytime and said, "Kuch bhi khila dijiye. Aap ka ghar hai, Aap ne khana banaya hai, mein aapka mehmaan hoon aur aap meri mezbaan." The girl laughed and went inside the kitchen and came out after some a moment holding a Hot-box in her hand and placed a steaming, hot chappati onto the Stranger's plate, as he looked up and noticed the girl once more, "How strangely mature she looks for her age, she must be only a few years older than Anu, maybe Pushkar's age….but there is something so grown up about her." As the ravished stranger piled his plate with the simple but delicious dinner, he ate more than he usually did and as he licked the last morsel of the Daal, he remarked, "Maine itne waqt ke baad, itne dil se khana khaya hai. Really, you are a fantastic cook?" As the girl cleared the table, she smiled and answered back, "Aapke ghar ke 2 Cooks se bhi accha?" The stranger laughted back and said, "Haan, un se bhi accha….Infact, maine is se accha khana sirf apni Massi ke haathon ka bana khaya hai." The girl blushed in the dark and cleared away the table.
As the stranger again went to the battered old sofa and sat there, he stared out of the window, only to hear the sound of rain falling relentlessly on the roof and he shaked his head in frustration and then again looked at his young rescuer dedicatedly clearing the table and arranging the place. The stranger kept staring at her in the darkness, her slim, slight form moving around with a practiced patience, her hands deft and controlled and her eyes……such eyes…..there was a rare sparkle in them, an honesty he had not seen before in anyone, an innocence which looked untouched and pure, a confidence which belied her tender age…..a smile lit up the stranger's face as he had an urget to smoke, but decided against it. Getting bored he walked upto the Mantle piece and tried to see the pictures, the Candles on the Mantlepiece had almost extinguished and he could just make out hazy outlines of a middle-aged couple, maybe a few years older than him and three girls. The stranger smiled and thought to himself, a perfect, happy family, full of love and warmth…..and then his eyes fell a greeting card that was kept aside and without thinking much, he picked it up and opened it…"Wishing a darling daughter and the best sister in the World a very Happy 16th Birthday…..With Love, Papa, Mummy, Pia and Rano!" As the stranger kept staring at the Card and then looked back at his host, who had again gone back to the kitchen, he wondered for a while and kept the Card back again and went and sat in the Sofa. "Really Princess,you are a fantastic cook, meri girlfriend ko toh paani bhi ubalna nahin aata." The stranger called out from the Sofa merrily and laughed on his own joke, the girl answered back, "Girlfriend? Unka naam kya hai?" The Stranger laughed a little more and said jovially, "Roshni, Roshni Chopra….Magar usmein Roshni jaisi koi baat nahin hai." The girl did not look very amused with the Stranger making fun of his own girlfriend, but he looked very amused and kept laughing. "Aap un se bhi aisa hi mazak kartein hain, unhein bura nahin lagta?" The girl kept talking from the Kitchen, while the Stranger called back, "Who cares? Use meri baton ka bura nahin lagta, mujhe uski baton ka bura nahin lagta….We really don't care for each other you see." The girl kept quiet for some time and as she came out with a Tray in her hand, she said, "Toh woh aapki Girlfriend kaise hui? Kya aap unse…..Pyaar nahin karte?" The Stranger smiled in the dark at the girl who sounded truly appalled and intrigued by the lack of emotion in the Stranger's voice while talking about his so-called Girlfriend and said almost in a whisper, "Pyar……Hota kya hai Pyaar? Magar joh bhi hota hai, woh mere man mein Roshni ke liye nahin hai, and as far as I know, uske man mein bhi mere liye yeh so-called Pyaar nahin hain."
"Coffee." The girl handed over a steaming cup of Coffee to the stranger, as he took it and remarked back, "Lagta hai, tumahre ghar mein kabhi koi mehmaan nahin aate, isiliye saari khatirdari mere liye chodi di hai." The girl smiled shyly and took a place some distance away from her guest and said, "Ma kehti hai, Athithi Devo Bhav….Mehmaan bhagwaan ka doosra roop hota hai, pata nahin nar ke roop mein kab naryaan ghar aajaye." The stranger broke out laughing loudly and retorted back, "Young Lady, aapko yeh jaan kar khushi hogi, naa mein bhagwaan hoon aur nahi narayan." As the girl lookd at her Guest, she spoke with a little hesitancy but with an inner conviction, "Phir main surely keh sakti hoon, ki aapki Girlfriend woh nahin hai, jise bhagwaan nein aapke liye chuna hai, woh jab aap ki zindagi mein aayegi, tab aap ko pata chalega, ke yeh Pyaar kya hota hai. " The stranger kept gazing at the girl and then broken out laughing loudly and kept laughing for some time and then in between his mirthful laughter said, "I can't belive this…Main is andheri, sunsaan, baarish waali raat mein, ek Bhoot Bangle mein, ek 16 saal ki ladki se apne Love Life par discussions kar rahoon hoon. This is priceless." As the girl lapsed back into silence, amused, embarrassed and completely taken in by her charming guest, they kept looking at one another in the darkness of the room, only lit by the flickering lights of the now extinguishing Candles.
After a momentary lapse of silence, the stranger said softly, "By the way, wish you many, many Happy Returns of the Day….Darling Daughter and the Best sister in the World." The girl was so stunned for a momet that the Cup of Coffee almost fell from her hands and then as she kept staring at the stranger, both of them begin laughing jovially. "Aapne woh Mantlepiece par rakha hua Birthday Card Pad liya?" The stranger looked a little embarrassed and nodded his head, "I am sorry, usually mein itna curious nahin hota hoon, magar aaj pata nahin kyon, subah se sab kuch ajeeb hi ho raha hai. Waise janamdin ki bahut mubarak ho tumhein." The girl thanked him gratefully and then suddenly her mood changed and she became a little somber. The stranger looked at her, not with pity but with a sort of empathy you feel for a friend and remarked, "Tumhein bura lag raha hain na, ki aaj tumhare Birthday par tumhare Parents and Sisters nahin hai? Kabhi Kabhi aisa ho jaata hai, hum jo chahte hain, hume woh nahin milta…..Magar, hey, no problems…..We will do a small celebration here, right now." The girl looked startled and embarrassed and said that it was alright and that her family will be back tomorrow and she will celebrate with them then. The stranger was now enthusiastically looking out for something and as the girl looked at him with curiosity, he said, "Ghar mein koi mithai hai? Kuch bhi, Barfi, Ladoo….anything?" The girl looked a little taken aback and said, "Main subah mandir gayi thi, wahan ke Prasad ka ek ladoo pada hua hai….Laoon?" The stranger told her eagerly, "Haan Haan, Chalega….Waise mujhe Ladoo bahut pasand hain!"
The girl hid her grin and in an amused way, went inside and after a while very hesitantingly got a small Ladoo placed precariously on a plate and as she placed it on the centre table, the stranger, in an excited, almost child-like way, stuck a used candle which was lying on the Mantlepiece on to the sweet and lit it in one strike. "Mujhe kya dekh rahi ho, Birthday tumhara hai ya mera….Ab is Ladoo mein 16 Candles toh jala nahin sakte, isiliye ek se hi kaam chalna padega…Come on blow it." As the girl looked at the stranger, her eyes suddenly felt moist and she felt a little jittery, "Hey bhagwaan mein yeh kya kar rahin hoon? Ghar par koi bhi nahin hai, mein akeli is sunsaan, aandhi aur baarish waali raat mein, ek ajnabi ke saath……magar pata nahin kyon, inhe dekhte hi, ek ajeeb sa vishwaas man mein aaya….." As the girl kept looking at the stranger who stared back at her and prodded her to blow the Candle, she smiled shyly to herself and proceeded to blow the Candle and cut the Ladoo into two pieces as the stranger clapped gleefully and sang "Happy Birthday to you Young Lady with no name" with so much enthusiasam that the girl almost forgot what an awful voice this stranger had and laughed her head off, laughed as she had never laughed before, so much that her eyes filled with tears and she stared crying, racking with sobs. "Arre kya hua…..Hey Princess? What happened? Tum ro kyon rahi ho, kya maine itna bura gaya?" The stranger looked extremely concerned and immediately went near the girl and sat with her, placing his hand tenderly on her shoulder, for the first time even coming so close to her. The girl stopped crying and looked up at the Stranger, it was almost close to midnight now that the Stranger had been with her, but it was the first time, she actually looked at his face….He was what her younger sister Pia would describe as, "Devilishly Hansdome" and the girl immediately blushed with this thought and looked the other way, as the stranger paused awkwardly and moved his hand away from her shoulder and asked her again, "What happened? Tum royi kyon?" The girl just nodded her head and said nothing and then they were both immersed in silence, and she spoke up, "Mujhe aaj bahut akela lag raha tha, yeh mera pehla birthday hai, jab ghar par koi bhi nahin hai, kisi ne mujhe phone kar ke wish bhi nahin kiya…..aur aapne mere liye yeh Birthday Cake, Birthday song……Bas mujhe itna accha laga, ki rona aa gaya." The stranger didn't know what to say for a moment and then taking one half of the Ladoo stuffed it into the girl's mouth and jovially retorted, "Chalo, isi bahane tumhien yeh ajeeb si mulakat toh yaad rahegi aur yeh ajnabi bhi…..main toh is raat ko aur tumhein kabhi nahin bhool paoonga….." As the stranger stuffed his mouth with the now stale Ladoo, licking his finger with pleasure and sat on the Couch again, the girl kept looking at the stranger and thought to herself, "Main yeh raat poori zindagi bhar yaad rakhoongi aur aap ko bhi……"
"Lagta hai baarish thamne ka naam hi nahin le rahi hai…..ab itni der toh ho chuki hai, main yahin Couch par so jaata hoon, tum apne kamre me jaakar so jao, aur andar se darvaaza band kar lena." As the girl looked on unblinkingly at the Stranger, he pulled himself long on the Couch and almost immediately dozed off. The girl kept staring at him for some time, then disappeared into her room and came out after a while with a blanket and very softy and quietly covered the Stranger with her favourite Blanket and sat on a Couch opposite to where the Stranger was sleeping and as far as she could remember, spent the rest of the night looking at his dark, slouched form resting peacefully on the Couch.
The girl did not know when she woke up, but the clear, bright rays of Sunlight filtered into the Living room and hit her eyes and she woke up rubbing them lazily and then all of a sudden jumped out of the Couch and looked around frantically. It all seemed like a magical dream to her, the Prince who came, conquered her young heart and vanished…..The Stranger was nowhere to be found as the girl practically ran out to the Garden and swing open the gates, but his Car was also not there. The girl walked back, dazed and in a kind of stupor, wondering if the entire episode of the night before was nothing but the figment of her young mind.
As the girl dragged herself inside the house, Sunlight filtering in the room, giving it a completely different appearance from the previous night, her eyes fell on a shining object kept on the Mantlepiece, near the Family Photograph. The young girl walked slowly towards the Mantlepiece and saw a Gold Chain with a Crystal Locket emblazoned on it lying on top of a folded piece of paper which looked like it was torn from her Maths Notebook. As the girl took the chain in her hand, the Crystal dazzled magnificiently from the rays of Sunlight which were filtering inside the room! It was the most beautiful piece of jewellery she had ever seen in her Life. The girl then picked up the folded piece of paper and opened to see it scribbled in a slanting, mature handwriting, written in Pencil;
Dear Princess,
Did anyone tell you, that you look like an Angel when asleep? I didnt' have the heart to wake you up, not after I made you Cook and give me Company last night! How can I ever thank you or repay for the kindness you showered on a stanger? They say that what goes around, comes around...so I hope that Life gives me atleast once chance to pay back your kindness. Please keep this Crystal locket as a Birthday Gift from my side, this will be a reminder of our wonderful and strange meeting for all the years to come! Take care of yourself and do practice more on the Linear Equations!
Lots of Love,
'Ajnabi'
PS: Do you mind knowing that I planted a teeny-weeny kiss on your Forehead before leaving...Just couldn't help it!
As Bani read and re-read the letter time and again, she grinned widely, as tears flowed down from her eyes...Bani clutched the letter in her hand and did a sort of twirl around the room....Guess that is what falling in love feels like, afterall!
Rano and Pia had come back from their school-trip and were pestering Bani to open the Presents they had got back for her Birthday..."Open it Di, tell us whether you like it or not." Bani nodded her head as she set about preparing the Lunch, her Parents were expected back today....The last two days had been spent in sleepless nights as Bani kept thinking about her Fairytale rendevouz with the Stranger. Just then the phone rang and putting the Cooking Stove on Sim, Bani rushed towards the Phone, it was working for a change...."Hello...Papa...Aap kahan hai....Hum log aapko itna miss kar rahein hai....Papa....Kya hua...." As Rano and Pia looked on towards Bani, she stood with the phone recieve her in her hands, dumbstruck and numbed......a lone teardrop falling from her cheeks.
7 Years Later - Mumbai
It was 7 years since that fatal telephone call from her Father had told her that their Mother died in a Road Accident in Mumbai, where they had gone to viist one of their relatives. The last 7 years had been the toughest in Bani's life, she had become the nurturer and protector of her Family, as her Father had taken to drinking and was barely in a position to give any solace to the three young girls. Bani took upon the mantle of being the Mother and Head of the Family, growing mature beyound her years, as if her childhood had been shut and locked up forever in Space. The only memory which had helped Bani sustain, survive and flourish was the magical night she had spent in the Company of the Charming Stranger, whom she still referred to in all her thougths as 'Ajnabi.' And then a month ago, her Father had collapsed because of a massive Cardiac Arrest. Before his death, he had handed over a Letter to Bani and had told her to leave Mount Abu and go to Mumbai, where an old acquaintance of their Family will help them out.....Reluctantly and with a heavy heart, Bani had set about winding her House in Mount Abu and leaving with Pia and Rano for Mumbai.
And here she was...Waiting in the Guest Room of 'Walia Mansion'.....As Bani looked at the crumpled letter in her Hand, she wondered what the future held in store for her. The Letter was written for her Father, by a certain, Mr. Jai Walia, one of the richest men in India, belonging to an Old and Wealthy Aristrocratic Family. The letter stated in a clipped and two the point manner that if something is to happen to Nishikant Dixit, the writer of the Letter would be responsible for his Family. Bani wondered time and again, who this person was, whom she had never heard before in her House and why was he being so generous towards her Family. As Bani looked around, she saw Pia admiring the superlative Carpeting and Upholstery that bedecked the room...Bani had never seen anything so beautiful but somehow the whole house had a Cold look.
"Wow Di, kya ghar hai! I wish, jab meri shaadi ho, toh main bhi kisi aise hi ghar mein rahoon." Pia gushed as she felt the sheer silk curtains which covered the huge Bay Windows overlooking the Ocean from a distance. Rano made a wry face as she sat awkwardly perched next to Bani, who spoke softly, "Yeh sirf makaan hai Piya, isme Ghar jaisi koi baat nahin hai..."
As Bani spoke, she realized that the Crystal in her hand, which had been her constant companion for the last 7 years, slipped from her fingers and fell on the floor. Bani rushed towards it and bent down to pick it up, as she heard a deep baritone speaking in a cold and deliberate manner, "Yeh mera makaan hai...Jai Walia ka makaan, aur yeh kahin gharo se behtar hai."
As Bani looked up startled and scared, she kept standing to her spot, frozen to the ground....Bani kept staring at the Tall, Tanned and Broadly built man, with piercing black eyes set in a classically handsome face, his silky black hair, interspersed with just a hint of silver in them. Jai Walia gave a frosty look at Bani, showing no signs of any interest and seated himself royally on the Couch, one leg on the other.
Bani kept standing where she was, not able to believe what she thougth she had just saw....No, it can't be....How can it be possible? As Jai Walia asked Bani in the same clipped and authoritative voice, "Tell me, what do you want from me?" Bani felt as if she had almost stopped breathing, but her heart knew that her gut feeling was bang on....Jai Walia was her 'Ajnabi', the stranger who had come to her House, that rainy, storm-lashed House, 7 years back.....
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