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By evening, Raman could not wait to get home as he was sure Ishita would be home to prepare dinner. It was about time he straightened out Jhansi Ki Rani. She could have at least made one call to him. She called him so many times before just to yell at him, so what's stopping her now?
But when he arrived home, she wasn't there. In fact no one was home except for Papa who questioned him on Ishita's behaviour and if he had scolded her again. That started a lecture session that lasted a full half an hour."Who said only the Madrasis could lecture? Papa was the clear winner!" Raman mumbled. "And all this for something I don't know how I'm responsible for! Ishita, this is the limit!" Raman swore under his breath.
As soon as Papa went next door to see Ruhi and spend some time with Appa and Amma, Raman rang her number. She would know who Raman Kumar Bhalla was now!
"Where are you?" Raman demanded as soon as she answered.
"I'm at the clinic, I had told na-"
"No, you didn't- not to me. Wait there, I'm coming," he ordered.
"Why?" Ishita asked.
"Well,
because- because- I have a toothache! And talking to you is making it worse..."
Raman supplied proudly.
"Good, then hang up the phone!" he heard her say and the line went dead.
"Hello? Hello- did she actually hang up on me? No one has ever done that to me before," Raman was bewildered by what Ishita had done. She should have offered an explanation. He could not let this get out of hand.
She unlocked the door and let him in, locking it after him.
"What? Decided to move into the clinic? That would be a good idea, you know..." Raman would have continued but seeing how tired and irritated Ishita looked, especially by his presence there, Raman decided to play safe.
"What? You see me after a whole day, and this is what comes to your mind? You're incorrigible!" It was so easy for him to upset her.
"So, don't try! I'm happy the way I am!" Raman said looking around the clinic. He's never seen it this quiet. "Anyway, why didn't you call me?" he asked. This had bothered him the whole day.
"Did you phone fall into the toilet bowl or something?" she retorted.
"It
would have after you called!" he answered to annoy her.
"Are you sure your teeth hurt or is it just your tongue, as usual?" Ishita asked, getting annoyed.
Raman remembered what he had told her earlier, about his toothache, and immediately kept quiet or risk being kicked out of the clinic.
They walked to Ishita's room and Ishita pointed to the examination chair. Raman walk towards it anxiously, deciding to sit on it after some contemplation. Ishita pushed him backwards gently and placed a plastic covering on him and sat down on her chair, preparing for the examination. She motioned him to open his mouth. "I can't believe I actually want it open," Ishita mumbled to herself.
Raman fidgeted nervously. "You know what? I feel perfectly alright now- there's no pain anymore," he declared, raising himself up, while Ishita pushed him back down.
"The best time to get it treated is when there is no pain, so open up," she said firmly.
Just then the phone rang and Raman heaved a sigh of relief when Ishita went to answer it.
"Yes, Ravi, it's confirmed, I will be there. Of course, I won't. Ya, I know the place. Okay, bye," she said smilingly and ended the call.
"Who's Ravi?" Raman demanded. "And where are you going with him?"
"Lie down, Raman, let me check the stitches at least," Ishita said, sitting down again, trying to get him to open his mouth. After some thought, Raman did as she asked.
Some time passed before she spoke. "Now let's see, you wanted to know what that call was about, right? That was Ravi, the guy who's co-ordinating the dental camps at a few schools, tomorrow. I'll leave at six and will get back to the clinic by noon... That's what I'm preparing for. One of my nurses fell sick today, and that's why I have my hands full," she informed him as she concentrated on the secrets of his mouth- at least that was the only part that she had some control over.
He couldn't speak with the instrument in his mouth and the close proximity of Ishita's face was disturbing him, but not in a bad way. It was okay when he was in pain, but there was nothing wrong with his teeth now. The only problem was his heart. Why was it beating so fast?
Ishita had rested her right hand on his chest. She wouldn't have done this with her other male patients, but Raman Kumar was different. It felt comfortable... but why was his heart beating so fast? Her eyes left his mouth and met his. They looked at each other for an instant, trying really hard to read each other's thoughts.
"You know, I may not like the man I married, but I do respect him and our marriage, so you'll never have reasons to doubt my faithfulness- unlike you" she said and Raman tried to remove her hand from his mouth to speak.
"Whaa?" Raman asked, surprised by what she said. What did she mean by that?
"Okay, we're done" Ishita said removing the plastic and getting up. "You're right- you're absolutely fine, which makes me wonder... then, why did you actually come here...?" she asked looking doubtfully at Raman, who had got up and was now racking his brains for an excuse.
PART 3 - FINAL
"It's- it's Ruhi, she was asking..." he tried.
"Ruhi? She called me right after she got back from Amma's house. She sounded fine," Ishita fought back a smile seeing how Raman was struggling to answer her.
"Papa wanted to know if we had fought-"
"Oh, really? When haven't we?" Ishita asked.
"Ya, ya- and that's what I told him," Raman answered more to himself.
"Raman, look, I'm very busy-"
"Doing what? I don't see-"
"That's just it! You don't see-"
And there was complete silence for what lasted like a whole minute. Then Raman raised his eyebrows questioning her.
"What?" Ishita asked.
"And... ?"
"And what?" Ishita was getting irritated.
"I'm waiting. There was supposed to be a lecture. Are you disappointing me, Ishita?" Raman smiled in amusement.
"No, that's your speciality. And besides, I'm too tired for lectures , so just leave," Ishita told him patiently.
"I can't. Ru-Ruhi told me to come back with you or- or- don't come back at all," Raman tried to say it as solemnly as he could.
"Ruhi said that? Really? Well, okay then. Suit yourself," Ishita said and went to her desk. "They're some sandwiches and hot coffee in the pantry," she said looking up from her laptop.
"Is that what you had for lunch?" Raman tried to disguise his concern and sat on a nearby arm chair after studying the awards and certificates on her walls and in the cabinet. "Should have experts verify their authenticity," he mumbled to himself.
Ishita ignored him.
"How long is this going to take, by the way?" Raman asked restlessly.
"You wanted to wait, so wait quietly," she said and printed out some documents.
An hour later, she had finished all the preparations for the next day and was very, very tired. Raman was asleep on the chair. She felt pity for him. It was thoughtful of him to come and look for her. She wondered if he had had his dinner. She didn't see him eat the sandwiches. Neither had she. They had to go home and have a proper dinner.
She woke up Raman when it was around 10:00pm and they left the clinic shortly after that. Ishita's car was left in the underground car park where it was safe.
They rode silently for a while, when it became unbearable for Ishita not to ask him the questions that were running through her head the whole day.
"Do you really still love her? That much? After all that she did?" There was no stopping the questions that came out in a rush from Ishita's mouth.
"Who?" Raman asked, muttering under his breath, "the silence could only last that long, I suppose!"
"Shagun. You were talking about her the whole night. Do you know how disturbing that was?" Ishita begin to let her frustrations out, bit by bit.
Raman thought for a while. Sleep talking? What else after this? Sleep walking? All the shaadi ke side effects? What else would a man, married to a crazy woman do?
"Wait a minute... I said that? In those exact words?" he asked, curious about what else he had revealed. Couldn't a man have secrets in his own room anymore?
"Lots, you said lots and lots of things-"
"And amongst these, I actually mentioned her name?" How could he even say her name in his sleep? It only brought out the worst in him.
"You didn't have to. I could connect the dots," Ishita insisted.
"Arey wah, kya bhatt hai, how clever you are, darling," Raman said sarcastically. 'Stupid' should have been her middle name- wait, it was Raman Kumar now and that would make him- never mind!
"If you couldn't live without her, then why did you guys break up?" Ishita demanded.
"Who broke up? She left me to live with that jerk! And when did I ever say that I couldn't live without her?" Raman was fuming now. How dared she accuse him like this? Why would he want the devil in his life again?
"You did! Last night!" Why wasn't he admitting that he still had feelings for Shagun? Ugh! This was so upsetting!
"Are you out of your mind? How could I have said something that I never even thought of? Ishita, I'm getting a psychiatrist to examine you," Raman said, totally confused. How chaotic could someone's life get after one crazy night?
"You said beautiful eyes, stubborn-"
"That could have been your mother, no? Raman asked sarcastically.
"You said mule," Ishita added.
"What? Mule?" the story was getting more and more interesting.
"You said stubborn like a mule, nose that flares up like a horse's nose when she was angry and a parrot's mouth. Did you have to compare her to animals, by the way?" Ishita asked, still upset.
"You're describing almost every female I know, yaar," Raman said, almost bursting out in laughter. Even in his sleep he could crack jokes...
"And yes, another thing- you wished she would listen more than she talked," Raman was genuinely amused and intrigued now.
"And I suppose you listen more than you speak?" he asked her matter-of-factly.
"You were talking about Shagun!" Ishita insisted.
"That's crazy. You're crazy. That will never happen, and you should quit your job and become a story writer. You'll write really funny ones!" Raman suggested.
"So, if it's not her, then who is it? And what happened again? What were you trying to forget? What did she make you remember?" Raman was right. She was going crazy. In fact she has been crazy the whole day. If only she knew who it was. She had to know.
"Ishita, so you know, I don't understand a word you're saying. How many cups of coffee have you had today?" Oh God, has she totally lost it over some stupid stuff he might have said?
"Someone very pretty, but stubborn and someone who gets equally angry... someone you've fallen in love with after Shagun? It couldn't be in the office or Mihir would have told me-" Ishita spoke more to herself and saw Raman stare at her when he realized that Mihir was her spy at the office.
"Someone at home...?"
Just then, Raman slammed on the brakes so hard that the both of them were jolted forward.
They stared at each other, realizing the impact of what Ishita had just said and what Raman had revealed in the night.
Raman had talked about Ishita.
He had fallen in love again. He tried to forget to love again after what Shagun had done to him... but Ishita made him remember the feeling of falling in love, being in love...
She was crazy- someone he couldn't live with but at the same time, he couldn't live without her even for a few minutes. Not seeing her today had driven him crazy...
Wanting to know who Raman had talked about, the person he could be in love with- the thought of him in love with someone else instead of her... it had driven her crazy...
The realization hit them both hard, just as their faces blushed in embarrassment.
It took them a while later to speak again, and when they did...
Ishita asked him, "Did you call me a mule and a horse?"
To which he answered, "Didn't I call you a parrot too?"
THE END
So, guys, I hope you've enjoyed reading my story. Thank you so much for taking the time to read. Please leave your comments as I would love to hear from you.
Chimpsy
Originally posted by: Nikki_Titli
wow fantastic start..loved it...u write so well..!! plz continue soon 😊
Originally posted by: priya_ts
Great story! You have done an amazing job!!! 😊
Waiting for the next part.
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