Content Warning: Some contents in this chapter might be slightly disturbing. I have tried my best to use words which might not have disturbing effect. I hope it works...
Here goes One of the important chapter of the Story...
CHAPTER 21 - PART B
It was a birthday full of surprises for Arnav. First, Kushi came to his house and wished him at 12. Then his mother and sister planned to surprise him in the morning but in turn got surprised or more precisely shocked by him. After Kushi left, he expected his mother to create a big drama. She did start it but his life saviour, his brother-in-law, came and put an end to drama. Shyam asked his mother not to fight on his special day. He also added that Arnav's is not a child anymore and he knows what he is doing. This comment made his mother silent for time being.
After morning chaos, it seemed like it was a normal day with his family. Kushi's call
in the evening was a complete surprise. She said that she wants to have dinner with him and had booked table in his favourite Italian restaurant. The food ordered by her was according to his taste. She was silent and uncomfortable yet tried her best to hide it. To make her comfortable, Arnav commented about the classy inners of restaurant.
It did the trick. She argued that it is costly and most of the things are unnecessary. She could never comprehend why restaurants need costly wall hangings to attract customers. Good and worthy food would do the trick. She commented about almost everyone around them; how their posh clothes and accessories are unwanted. For god's sake, they are here to have dinner and not to walk on ramp. Finally she scowled how she is wearing one of such posh piece of cloth, AR designer saree because of him.
Arnav never remembered asking her to wear this saree for dinner still he kept quiet. She was getting comfortable in this place and the fact will startle her. Plus, what's the need to ask the question when he knows the answer. She wore it for him. She knows that it will make him happy.
"Are you coming up?" Kushi asked Arnav as he pulled over his car in front of her house. He checked his wrist watch. "I guess I cannot. I lied to maa that I am partying with friends. But she knows better and if I don't reach in time, then I am dead." He said with apologetic smile while she nodded and got down before waving him a good bye.
Not more than two minutes had passed since she locked the door, when she heard the door bell. She opened the door with a smile knowing who will be on the other side. Raising her brows, she questioned him about his sudden arrival while he eased himself into her house and locked the door.
"I forgot to thank you properly for the dinner." He reasoned and engulfed her in hug. She too wrapped her arms around him as she heard him say "Thank you for making this birthday so special and perfect! Thank you for coming into my life. Love you!" He pecked her shoulder before pulling away from her slightly so that he could capture her lips.
It is his way of saying thanks and she accepted it wholeheartedly. As they broke the kiss, he rested his forehead on hers and his fingers began to play with her cheek and tendrils of her hair caressing it. He does it almost after every kiss as he enjoys her unsteady and warm breath falling on him.
"Did I tell you how beautiful you look in this saree?" He asked her. She shook her head with her eyes fixed on his shirt button with which she was playing.
"You look so ravishing, so ravishing in this saree... that all I want to do is..." he paused trying to control his still uneven breath.
Kushi expected him to say something like I-want-to-rip-it-off-and-ravish-you' but what he said sent shivers through her spine.
"Capture you perfectly in my memory so that when I take my last breath, I could remember this face and die peacefully."
He was sincere and this made her feel guilty. He needs so much more than her. But here she neither could give what he deserves nor could leave him so that he will get what he deserves. It's a complete mess! So she did what she is best at; covering up.
"You and your silly romantic talks! You opinion might get changed after few days! Who knows?" She said sarcastically.
"hmmm...lets see after few days!" He said with same sarcasm leaving butterfly kisses all over her face. By now, he had learnt that this sarcasm is her way of covering up things and he also doesn't mind it.
"Kushi..." he whispered near her earlobes.
"Hmm..."
"Can I ask you something? Will you answer it honestly?"
Kushi pulled her head back to look into his eyes. "What do you want to know?"
"Today morning when maa asked you about marriage, why did you leave abruptly? We both know your answer! You are not the type who is scared of telling it loud. Still why did you keep mum?"
Kushi thought for moment and decided to tell the truth. "I know that you know my answer. I also know that if I had said it out loud, it would have hurt you even though you know what I was going to tell. I didn't want to hurt you!"
"Why is it so? As far as I remember, you are not in love with me! Then why?" He asked with caught-you' smile irritating Kushi.
"I may not love you, Arnav! But I do care for you and your happiness. You are also important to me." She said once again proving that no one can win Kushi Kumari Gupta in argument. It was Arnav's turn to get irritated. This girl will never accept her love' He thought angrily.
He realised her body from the hug before giving a sarcastic comment. "yeah, yeah...I know how important I am to you! That's why you chose that stupid case over me."
This angered Kushi. "I thought we are over it!"
"We may be but it doesn't change the truth. You chose that case over me!" He suddenly lost his cool.
"That's because that case is important to me more than you. If you ask me to choose between you two, I would happily choose my case!" She retorted in frustration but didn't realise the effect of her words until Arnav's face lost its colour. She cursed herself for spilling the truth knowing it will hurt him. At any time, she will choose case over him. But there was no need for her to say it to him especially today when she had done so much for him to make him happy.
"Arnav...I..."
He stopped her. "It's ok, Kushi. Sometimes truth will be bitter still it is truth." His voice was low.
"I didn't mean to hurt you...I..."
"I am okay, Kushi. I think I should leave now. Or else my mother might come here searching for me! Who knows! Bye." He made poor attempt to show that he is alright and turned to leave.
The way he walked showed he was hurt; disappointed. She is the reason for it. It breaks her heart to see him like that. She clenched her fists tightly hoping that physical pain will take over mental anguish. From corner of her eyes, she saw his dejected form. She can't allow him to leave like that. It will kill her.
Arnav grabbed the door knob and was about to turn it when her words froze him.
"My mother was ra**d to death..."
His mind was processing her sentence when he heard another one.
"In front of my eyes..."
He jolted his head towards her to meet her red eyes.
"I was eleven then..."
With two long strides, he was next to her, holding her shoulders and trying to comfort her. But it seemed like she didn't recognise his touch. She was in different world with her eyes fixed to the ground. "Kushi..."
"She died in front of my eyes. I couldn't do anything. I was a kid and powerless. I couldn't even get justice to her. I still feel guilty!" Suddenly becoming alarmed, she jerked up and looked at him. "But now I have everything. I am lawyer and I have power. Even after this if I didn't fight for that girl, not only maa, but even I could never forgive myself."
She held Arnav's arms. "This is not just another case to me Arnav. For me, this...this case is everything. And you are not trying to understand it! I really don't want to hurt you but..." She turned her head to other side biting her lower lip.
Arnav was in shock to react but soon gathered himself. "Kushi, I am sorry. I don't know..." Noticing a lone tear falling from her eyes, he held her chin gently and turned her head to face him. "I am sorry Kushi, really sorry. I just wanted you to be safe. Other than that..." He stopped spotting so much pain in her eyes. "Are you ok?"
Kushi closed her eyes for a second and then nodded. "I am okay." When she opened her eyes again, there was no trace of pain that Arnav thought it was his hallucination. She looked so normal; calm and composed. How can someone collect themselves so quickly? Arnav was amazed.
"I want to change my dress. This heavy saree is not so comfortable." The way she said and left made Arnav to believe that she wanted to be alone. Good that at least now she acts like a normal girl. He hoped that she will be more composed when she steps out of the bathroom. Discarding any thought of returning home, he walked into her bedroom still in daze, trying to digest what he had heard.
Kushi's mother was ra**d in front of her eyes!
Who did that? Why they did that? And what happened to Kushi after that?
He had so many questions to ask her. But he was not sure whether he has enough courage to hear her answers. He slumped on the bed rubbing his eyes suddenly feeling exhausted. That's when he heard the soft click of bathroom door. Arnav didn't expect her to sit in washroom and cry for hours. At the same time, he didn't expect her to change her dress and compose herself in four minutes.
Four minutes?!? He needs at least an hour to take in what he had heard.
She stepped out wearing a blue coloured half pant and old cream colour tee shirt. Her hair was fixed in messy bun. Her eyes searched for him in the hall and when she couldn't spot him, her gaze turned to her bedroom.
"Are you planning to stay here?" She asked in a casual tone, towelling her face, as if she didn't tell him her dark secret few minutes ago.
"yes!" He kept it short not sure what to talk and leaned back on head board spreading his legs lengthwise along the bed.
"hmmm..." She hummed throwing the towel on the table in the corner and walked to the other side of bed. She kneeled down on the bed and stretched her tired body with a yawn. "Your mother is going to think that I am real bit**!" She commented and crawled two steps to reach him. He chose to remain silent.
"Shall we sleep?" He nodded to her question. She rested her head on his chest with one hand around his waist and other, as usual, on his shirt button. She traced the frame of the button with her finger hoping against hope that she will fall sleep. Arnav is late sleeper. She can't even sneak to take her pill. She knew that without sleeping pills, sleep will be an impossible task for her today. But today could be different. Because she had hardly touched her sleeping pills after Arnav had stepped in to her life.
Arnav wrapped his left arm around her and patted her gently. One hour passed in silence. Both were lost in their own thoughts. Knowing that she is still awake, Arnav asked her "tum teek ho?"
The concern in his question made all the hell to break loose. Two fat tears fell out of her eye sockets with rocket speed and soaked his shirt. She sniffed to control her tears but it seemed like she had no control over them today.
"Kushi!" Arnav called out becoming alarmed. Holding her shoulders, he made her to sit. She was sobbing with her eyes closed.
"Kus..Kushi...Are you alright?" To see someone strong like Kushi to cry like her world has ended was very tuff. Arnav couldn't see her in this condition. He wanted to do something and take all her pain away.
Kushi nodded to his question with her eyes still closed. As more tears fell out of her eyes, she began to bite her lips trying to control her sob. Arnav gently placed his hand on her shoulder and her whole body began to tremble while she cried out loudly.
"I am not okay!" She said in between her sobs. "I have never been okay..." She looked at Arnav for a second and began to cry more. "HELL, HOW CAN I BE OKAY?!? I SAW MY MOTHER GETTING RA*** BY FIVE PEOPLE! I..." She shouted and again cried covering her face with her hands.
"Kushi...Relax..." Arnav managed to say after gulping the lump in his throat. She bended down and buried her face in her thighs. "Kushi..." He said patting her trembling back. Her whole form was shaking. Arnav thought that it was because of her crying but as her trembling grew more, he became startled. He lifted her up to notice that her breath has become ragged and she was sweating profoundly.
"Kushi!" He held her cheeks. She was trying hard to breathe while her body was shaking vigorously. Arnav knew that these are symptoms of panic attack. He, himself, had got the attack twice or thrice, when he tried quitting drugs. But none was severe.
He made her lean on the head board and began fanning her face with a file which was lying on the desk next to the bed. Fresh and good flow of air is necessary to regularise the breathing. He was holding her sweaty, cold and shivering hands in his free hand. Both of their phones were outside, so he decided to wait till she gets little better before calling the doctor.
After twenty minutes, which seemed like twenty hours to Arnav, her breathing became almost normal. She was neither sweating nor her body was trembling. She murmured something and he couldn't catch her words. So he moved closer to her.
"That...is an...imp...ortant file...idiot!" She whispered grumpily in his ears. It took a minute for Arnav to understand her words and when he did that, he moved back with a stupid grin plastered to his face.
That sounded like His Kushi!
"I will call the doctor!" He said before standing up and came to halt when she stopped him.
"I am fine!"
Arnav gave an I-can-see-how-fine-you-are' look to her.
