Track 1 - Missing
You, Tyler Hilton
"Hey, what's up?
Why are you so lost?" Sid asked her, bringing Riddhima out of her reverie.
"Nothing, just
thinking," she replied.
"Are you excited?"
He asked her.
"Sure," she
mumbled half - heartedly.
Sid sighed.
"Riddhima, I know
this is hard for you, but you have to let go off your past. You will never be
able to find happiness otherwise."
"Who says I want
to be happy, Sid?"
"Everyone wants to
be happy, Riddhima."
"I don't. I doomed
him to a life of pain. It's the least I deserve for ruining the life of the man
who I love more than life itself."
"You didn't ruin
his life, Ridzy."
"Yes, I did. He
came back for me, he apologized to me. He tried his best. And I just dismissed
him due to my misplaced sense of responsibility."
"It wasn't
misplaced, Riddhima."
"Yes, it was. As
much as I try to deny it, my loyalties lied with him more than they did with
you."
"You did what any
married woman would do, Riddhima. You chose your husband. I wish you hadn't,
but I understand where you're coming from. He did, too. That's why he left. To
make it easier on you."
"I know."
"He wouldn't want
you to be miserable, Riddhima. It would kill him. He left so you could be
happy. You should try doing that. If not for your sake, for his."
Riddhima nodded
mutely.
"Promise me you'll
genuinely, honest to God try to enjoy this wedding."
"I promise, Sid."
"That's a girl,"
he replied smiling.
"Thank you, Sid."
"For what?"
"For sticking by
me, even after everything."
"Of course. That's
what friends are for."
The plane landed
soon after.
"That was
exhausting," Muskaan announced.
"Why were you
exhausted, Sleeping Beauty? Poori flight be toh kharrate maarke so rahi thi,"
Atul retorted.
"Whatever,"
Muskaan scoffed.
"Guys, cut it out.
Tum kya bachche ho?" Anjali asked, rhetorically.
"I'm pretty sure
that the answer is yes, Mrs. Joshi," Nikki replied for her friends.
Anjali couldn't
help the blush that spread across her cheeks. Even after being married for 2
years, she blushed whenever someone called her Mrs. Joshi. But, the blush was
nowhere as bad her husband's.
"Guys let's get a
move on, okay?" Abhi asked.
Everybody nodded
and they moved towards baggage claim.
After collecting
their luggage, they moved to the pick - up area where, as promised, Rohan was waiting
for them. He waved them over, touching Nani's, Dr. Shashank's and Padma Aunty's
feet for blessings.
"I'm so glad that
you guys made the trip," he told them.
"Of course we did,"
Dr. Shubhankar replied who was holding on to Navneeta's and Samrat's hands
tightly.
Rohan knew the
senior doctors, but he was quickly introduced to Yuvi and Naina, before they
piled into the car and left.
"I've arranged for
you guys to stay with Jaanhavi and her family, I hope that's okay," Rohan asked
them as he drove.
"You shouldn't
have put them through the trouble, Rohan. They must be having their own guests.
A hotel would have been fine," Dr. Shashank replied.
"It's no problem,
Uncle. They don't really have that many guests. It's just Jaanhavi, her
brother, two of her friends and her aunt who's going to be staying there. And
the mansion is huge. She insisted that you stay with them."
"She doesn't have
many guests?" Padma Aunty asked.
"No, Aunty. Her
relationship with her father is not all that great. She hasn't talked to him
for years now. And her mother passed away when she was a kid. Her cousin is her
only family. She's the most important person in his life. She says that he's
her mother, father, friend, brother, sister, cousin all rolled into one."
"Oh."
"Yes. I would
appreciate it if her family isn't brought up at any point of time. It's a
touchy subject for her."
"Of course, don't
worry about it, sweetheart," Nani replied.
They reached
fairly quickly.
Rohan was right.
The mansion was huge. Buckingham Palace huge. And it was beautiful. Riddhima
was awestruck by it.
"Hey, where did
you go?" Rohan asked her as he slipped an arm around her shoulder.
"Nowhere, just
admiring the view."
"It's beautiful,
isn't it?"
"Beautiful doesn't
cover it," she replied.
"I'm really glad
you made it, Riddhi," he told her softly. Of all the people he associated with
at Sanjeevani, he was the closest to her.
"Are you kidding
me? I wouldn't have missed this for the world."
"I know you've had
a hard time adjusting these past few years. And that because of some concocted
notion in your head, you feel like you need to be miserable, but I'm glad
you're trying to let go off the past."
"Do you and Sid
exchange notes on what to talk to me about?" She asked him.
"No, why?"
"Because he said
something very similar to this to me on the plane."
"We both care for
you, Riddhi. And we want you to be happy."
"I know. Thanks
for being such a good friend, Ro. Talking to you always makes me feel better."
Rohan smiled and hugged
her.
"Looks like no
one's home," he announced when no one opened the door after the 3rd
ring.
"They knew we were
coming today, didn't they?" Anjali asked.
"Yes, they did."
"What a way to
greet their guests!" She scoffed.
"Anjy!" Rohan
shouted, appalled. "It must have been something urgent. Ray was supposed to be
here when we came around."
"Well, he's not
here, is he? And now, we're going to have to wait out here till he does."
"No, we won't. I
have keys, so you won't be stranded outside," he replied, pulling out his keys
and unlocking the door.
The interiors of
the house were just as impressive as the exteriors. Riddhima was completely
spell bound. It was as if someone had made this house just for her. Everything
was exactly the way she wanted it to be in her own dream house someday. From
the placing of the sofa to the arrangement of the pillows and from the paint on
the walls to the spacing of the house. Everything was exactly how she would
have wanted it to be, had the house been hers. The uncanny resemblance this
house bore to her dream house was eerie.
"This is
beautiful," Nikki announced.
"Glad you think
so," Rohan replied. "Why don't you guys get settled in? I can help you guys put
your bags away and then you can rest some. Ray should be here by then."
Tired and
exhausted, everyone agreed.
Rohan showed
everyone to their rooms. He busied himself around the house, picking stuff up
and tidying around.
"Good going, Mr.
House Husband," Riddhima told him.
He jumped up on
hearing her voice. "Ridzy! You scared me."
"I can see that,"
she replied laughing.
He shook his head
at her and returned to the task at hand.
"You seem to know
your way around the house," she commented.
"I practically
live here, anyway. Of course I know my way around here."
"Oh."
"Yeah."
They made small
talk for sometime and Riddhima helped him.
They were just
done with the cleaning up when his phone rang.
"Hello," he
answered, stepping away to take the call.
Riddhima shook her
head at him and sat down on the couch, surfing channels on the TV to pass time.
He came back
sometime later worried out of his mind.
"Hey! Everything
okay?" Riddhima asked him.
"No, it's not. I
have to go."
"What happened?
You're looking pale. Sit down. I'll get you some water."
"Now, tell me.
What's going on?" She asked him as she sat beside him and offered him a glass
of water.
"That call was
from London. The Board said that they've gotten an ultimatum to shut down the
New York Sanjeevani."
"What?"
"Yes. I have to
go. Now."
"Okay. Okay. Calm
down," she said. "I'll call Uncle. He can make the reservations. And then Aunty
will get your stuff packed. You can leave from here."
Rohan nodded,
dazed.
"I didn't know
there were problems with the New York Sanjeevani," she whispered.
"Yes, there are.
We're facing a very big financial crunch. The hospital has been making losses
for years. It's not really feasible to continue right now. And if the situation
doesn't get better, I'm afraid we won't have another option."
"Isn't there
anyway to raise funds?"
"Our loan applications
have been declined. We've tried almost every bank, financial institution and
private investor in New York and London. They don't think it's a good
investment or that we'll be able to repay the money, which might be true."
"What about
charities? Fund raisers?"
"The money
received from all those events wasn't enough to cover the amount that we
needed."
"What about a
show? Or a concert? When we were facing financial problems at Sanjeevani
Mumbai, that's what we did."
"The budgeted
forecasts aren't exactly in our favour for that. The cost for such a thing
would likely be more than the money we generate," he answered. Except if we get him, he thought. But
then, immediately reprimanded himself for thinking that. He understood why that
wasn't possible.
"It's okay. Relax.
I'm sure you'll come up with something."
"Thanks."
She made all
arrangements for him and within 30 minutes he was on his way to the airport.
She hoped
everything was fine. He didn't need all this in his life, days before his
wedding.
She sat there,
lost in thought when the front door opened.
"I'm sorry I'm
late! I was in the basement and lost track of time!" A very familiar voice
called out.
She heard
footsteps coming closer. "Riddhima?" He whispered tentatively.
She turned around.
It was him.
She smiled and got
off the couch to hug him. He hugged her back.
"Hey, Rahul."
"Hey. What are you
doing here?"
"We're here for
the wedding."
"We?"
"Yes, everyone is
here. Mumma, Papa, Nani, Di, Jeeju, Abhi, Nikki, Muski..." She trailed off at
Muskaan.
"Muskaan?" He
asked.
She nodded
hesitantly.
"Oh."
"Why?"
"What?"
"I mean what are
you doing here?"
"Didn't Rohan tell
you?"
"What?"
"I live here,
Riddhima," he replied.
"Here?"
"Yes."
"Ray?" She asked.
He nodded. "Actually, people here can't pronounce Rahul properly. So, Ray."
"Oh."
"How... How are
you?" She asked him.
"I'm good. You?"
"Fine."
They stood in an
awkward silence for sometime after that.
"This is so
awkward," Rahul mumbled. They looked at each other and started laughing.
That's how the
others found them. Laughing their heads off like maniacs for reasons unknown to
them.
"Rahul!"
More hugs and
greetings were exchanged.
Rahul and Muskaan
greeted each other civilly, but the undercurrent in their tones was hard to
miss. They both sounded so heartbroken. It hurt their friends to see them like
that.
Hopefully,
spending these days together would bring them back.
The girls knew
that Muskaan still loved Rahul with all her heart despite everything that had
happened. He left me because he loved me,
she said, which was true. Rahul had left her because he couldn't give her
children and everyone knew how fond she was of kids.
It had been
difficult for Muskaan in the beginning. She hated him for leaving her. But, as
time passed, she realized that as difficult it was for her, it must have been
for him as well. And, he hadn't left her because he didn't love her anymore. He
had left because he thought that them being together would snatch Muskaan from
a life she wanted. She loved him more for doing this for her.
Though she didn't
like the fact that he had made the decision without her, she could easily
understand where he was coming from. After finally admitting to herself that
she would have done the same thing had she been in his place, the forgiveness
came easier than she expected.
She just hoped
that someday he would understand that she didn't want any children if they
weren't theirs.
They sat there,
reminiscing for a long time before Nikki noticed the picture sitting proudly on
the side table.
She picked it up,
wanting to make sure what she was seeing was right. Her breath caught in her
throat when she saw the girl in the picture.
"Ra... Ra... Rahul,
do you know her?" She asked pointing at the photo.
"Of course, I do,"
he replied, rolling his eyes. "She lives here, too, you know."
"Oh my God," Nikki
whispered. "Armaan."
Everyone was
stunned on hearing that name leave Nikki's mouth. Ever since he had left, 7
years ago, no one had talked about him, especially in front of Riddhima. They
knew how hard it was for her.
"What?" Abhi
asked.
"Armaan. Armaan...
I have to... Oh my God! Does anyone have his number? Anyway to contact him?
Please... I... I..." she said, growing hysterical with each passing second.
"Relax. Nikki,
it's okay," Abhi tried to comfort his wife.
"No, Abhi. You
don't understand. I have to... He has to know. He should know... he's...he's... Oh
God! I..." She couldn't even complete her sentences.
"Shhh... it's okay,
Nikki. Deep breaths, honey."
Abhi wrapped her
up in his arms, trying to get her to breathe normally. But, it was of no use as
she kept mumbling Armaan's name and that she needed to get in touch with him
and that they didn't understand.
That's when Rahul
decided to intervene.
"Nikki, it's
okay," he told her, catching hold of her shoulders. He made her look him in the
eye, before he continued. "He knows. He knows. Okay? It's fine."
"He... he does?"
"Yes."
A fresh wave of
tears spilled from her eyes as she hugged Rahul tightly.
"You're not lying,
are you?" She asked Rahul hesitantly.
"Do you think I
would lie about something so important?"
Nikki came out of
the hug and shrugged.
"Trust me. I'm not
lying. He knows she's here. Of course, he does. He's here, too."
"He is?"
"Yes, he's been
living here these past few years. We all have actually."
"Who all?"
"Me and Ammy and
Jenny."
"Ammy? Jenny?"
Nikki asked, perplexed.
"Like I said,
people here have a hard time calling us by our actual names. So, we westernized
them a little."
Nikki nodded,
smiling.
"Tell me
everything."
"What do you want
to know?" Rahul asked, smiling.
"What can you tell
me?"
"Everything. From
the moment they met till today. I can tell you everything."
Nikki's smile was
blinding.
"When?"
"Almost 7 years,
now. They found each other."
"Oh my God!" She
said, yet again. But this time, her face was wide with a smile.
"How was it?"
"Hysterical.
Emotional. Sentimental. Beautiful. Amazing. I don't... It was the purest thing
ever. It was like coming home."
"I bet they didn't
let go off each other for days."
"Armaan refused to
let her go to the washroom alone."
"Of course he did.
That overprotective idiot. He cried, didn't he?"
"Buckets and buckets.
I'm pretty sure that he cried enough tears to keep a family from ever being
thirsty for months."
"I was so worried
for him. But, I guess I didn't have to be. Something tells me he was looked
after pretty well," Nikki said.
Rahul smiled and
nodded.
"Good."
"Who... Who are we
talking about?" Riddhima asked, dreading the answer. Had Armaan found someone
new to love?
Nikki gasped,
realizing her mistake little too late. She replayed her conversation with Rahul
in her mind. It could be interpreted in an entirely different manner, which
Riddhima seemed to have done.
"Jaanhavi. She's..."
before Rahul could continue, her phone started ringing.
"Sorry, I have to
take this," he replied, looking at the caller ID.
"Dr. Rahul
Grewal," he answered.
"Hey, Ray. It's
Holly. Jenny's been in accident," a somber voice greeted him on the other side.
"What?"
"She's been in an
accident."
"Oh my God! How...
How is she?"
"They're looking
her over."
"Who is?"
"Kiara," Holly
replied, hesitantly.
"Are you daft? You
let Kiara take her case? After everything?"
"She was the one
who saw Jenny first."
"I don't care if
she saw her first. Get Matt on it. If Kiara is anywhere near my girl by the
time I get there, she's going to have her ass kicked. Am I clear?"
"Yes."
"Good."
He took a deep
breath.
"Does Ammy know?"
"The guy who got
Jenny here told me that he informed the person on her Last Call' list to
inform them of the accident. I checked. It was Malakh."
"Shit," Rahul
swore under his breath.
"How long ago was
this?"
"About 15
minutes."
"He must be
getting there any second now."
"I know."
"Okay. Okay."
Rahul said, taking a deep breath to calm himself.
"Do me a favor."
"Anything."
"Have someone
cover for you. I want you to stay with Ammy till I get there."
"Okay."
"And no doctor is
to talk to him about anything till I'm there. No one says anything. Absolutely
nothing. Okay?"
"Okay."
"Good. Keep Dr.
Sanders on standby."
"Are you sure?"
"I really hope it
doesn't come to that. But, I need to cover all my bases."
"Okay. Okay."
"Relax, Holly. If
you panic, he's going to lose it, okay?"
"Yes, I know. Get
here soon, Ray."
"I will."
xxx
The weekend is upon us and as promised, the first chapter of TDBU!
Hope you guys liked it! :D
As you must have noticed, chapters now have titles. Go me!
They'll all be song lyrics, cz I just love music. So, how good would it be to combine my two passions, writing and music, eh? You like it?
I'm going to post all the lyrics to any song in the title in the post after the chapter, so be on the lookout! Also, all these songs are great, so check them out when you have the time!
Regarding ILYLTF, I still haven't written the chapter, but I'm hoping I can upload tomorrow. It might not be possible because I'm going for HS3 (finally!) today and then I've got some other stuff to do. But, I'll try my best!
I'm super duper excited for the movie, especially since anyone who's seen it is saying that it's KSG's movie and a treat for all his fans!
Go Karan! We love you, baby!
Edited by DMGThings - 5 years ago
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