PART 1.
After the whole Aastha fiasco, Anokhi had gone into self-realization mode. She had begun to analyze her very interference in Aastha mam's and Shaurya sir's life and then she came to realize what kind of jerk she had been to Shaurya. He was her teacher and the way she handled the situation and treated him, she had no right to and now, she was embarrassed by her behavior and crossing lines. She just realize this for a very long time and now she regretted it, even when everything went well at that time. Moreover, she had started to feel things around Shaurya that she had never felt for anyone. He would just affect her like no one ever did. His gaze would hold her eyes, just to him and she would totally forget everything when he was around. It felt strange and weird and totally scary to Anokhi. That id when she decided that it'd be the best if she stays away from Shaurya.
Shaurya, on the other hand, always found himself being lectured by a certain new student and that too on his mother, which didn't just annoy and anger him to death, but also made him snap at her every now and then but right now, all he could think about was to thank that very girl. She didn't give up on his and his mother's relationship even when he had given up long back. Anokhi had been as persistent as a buzzing bee and Shaurya just had to give in, listening to his maa once, with any interruptions and so he did. The two of them cried their hearts out and then, finally Shaurya forgave her once she apologized. Shaurya even moved out of the Sabherwal mansion and Shaan, Aastha and Shaurya started living together in the bungalow he had purchased as an investment, far away from Tej, Devi and Alok. The rest of his family members were going to move in with them very soon. One girl, Miss Anokhi Bhalla had managed to open the blindfold that Devi had tied on his eyes for the past twenty five years. She was so stubborn and so confident that she made him listen to her and now, he didn't feel annoyed once about how she had behaved with him. But then again, she was the only one who had been annoying him once again, for a complete different reason. She was completely ignoring Shaurya and that wasn't really sitting well with him. Their relationship hadn't really been the conventional teacher-student types. He had no idea when Miss Bhalla became his habit and now, he had to, needed to talk to her. About something, anything and her ignoring him every chance he got wasn't helping.
" Shaurya beta, where are you lost?" Aastha asked him as she saw him sitting in his cabin. Yes, she had started teaching is SIAC. Shaurya and Shaan had fought with Tej and Alok to make this happen.
" Maa, please come in." He saw her standing at the entrance. Calling her maa had been awkward at first but now, it felt like it was the most natural thing to say to him. Aastha on the other hand, whenever she heard him call her as maa, she would just feel the happiest woman in the world.
" Why do you look so confused?" She asked, taking a seat in front of him.
" It's nothing maa. Don't worry." He lied to her, giving her a small smile.
" Shaurya, I know that we have lived without each other for the past so many years, but I can still tell when you are lying. If you tell me what is bothering you, I might be able to help you." She encouraged him to tell what was wrong.
He looked a little conflicted but in the end, he decided to talk to her since she knew Anokhi the best.
" It's Anokhi." He replied, his eyes softening a bit.
" Anokhi? Beta, I know you both don't really see eye to eye, but trust me, she is not a bad girl." His mother defended her, to which a small smile break on his lips. Earlier, he would hate seeing his mother standing up for her but now, he almost thought that is was the sweetest thing.
" That's not it maa. She has been avoiding me for the past whole month for some reason." He confessed to Aastha and she couldn't believe what Shaurya had just said.
" Shaurya....beta are you okay? You are bothered because your Miss Bhalla hasn't given you attention? And here I thought that you didn't like her at all." She teased Shaurya a little but then all of a sudden, a realization struck her.
" It's nothing like that maa." Shaurya tried to deny the claim but wasn't really given anytime to explain further because Aastha had figured it out
" You have started to like her. You like Anokhi." She replied, giving him the biggest smile possible.
" Shaurya likes who?" Shaan entered, completely shocked. She couldn't believe his ears. Shaurya liked Anokhi? How is that even possible?
" Anokhi." Aastha told her husband so that he listens to it once again to believe it.
" Beta...when the two of you are together, when are you not fighting? How exactly did you get the time to start liking her?" Shaan asked, clearly making fun of his son.
" Dad." Shaurya groaned, running his hand through his hair once. Why did his mom had to be so smart to figure it out?
" But seriously beta....Anokhi? She is definitely Anokhi but not in a million years I could have this idea that she will be the one becoming my daughter in law." Shaan said, taking a seat right next to Aastha.
" Daughter in law? Shaan, our boy has just started to like her. Aren't you a bit advanced?" Aastha asked to Shaan, totally amused.
" I am advanced because I know him. He never loses one night's sleep over a girl and then suddenly this girl walks in his life, challenging him at every step of the way, standing up to him, answering him back, forcing him to listen to others for once and most importantly, guiding him to the right path. She is our Shaurya's match now that I come to think about it.
" But what if she doesn't feel the same way about me?" Shaurya, for some reason asked them instead of stopping his parents from discussing about a girl being his match.
" Then you back out." Aastha replied, a little firmly.
" But not before putting in efforts to make her realize that she likes you back too. But if she doesn't, then you back out." Shaan completed what Aastha had to say and Shaurya nodded his head, understanding.
" Beta, I have known this little girl since she was twelve years old. She is headstrong, determined, hardworking and kind. But sometimes, she is a little oblivious to things happening around her or with her. She may not realize somethings if she isn't guided properly. Now, I have guided her for a very long time in academics and career but I can't help you out here. You have to do that." Aastha added the last part, teasing her son a little.
" Maa." He said, adjusting his glasses.
" Now listen to me Shaurya, Aastha will invite Anokhi for dinner tonight so that you both can properly talk. She may be able to avoid you here in college but she won't be able to avoid you at home." Shaan suggested, first looking at Aastha who nodded slightly and then at Shaurya, who was nodded slightly too.
This might just work. Atleast one could be prettt hopeful about it and Shaurya was.
...................................
Anokhi had just been invited by Aastha ma'am for dinner at her place and she couldn't say no.
" Maata Rani....how am I going to avoid Shaurya sir at his own house? I will have no option but to talk to him and then all those butterflies in my stomach will go mad again!!! Please, please make him busy with some work in the evening and I will leave as early as possible." She muttered to herself, formulating a plan of her own.
She had been successfully dodging Shaurya for the past so many days and Aastha ma'am had to call her for dinner! This was so not fair!!!
" Miss Bhalla, are you planning to just stand outside the classroom today?" Shaurya, who had been observing him for the past ten seconds finally decided to make his presence known.
Anokhi immediately turned to search for the source of the voice which manages to make a shiver run down her spine.
" No sir.....I'm sorry." She muttered, looking at him and then clutching her bag slightly, walked inside the classroom and made way to her seat as Shaurya started to teach and she began jotting the notes down.
The rest of the day went just like that. By the end of the day, as she went to the hostel to rest for a while and get ready to leave, she was getting nervous for some reason.
" Relax Nikki, it's just dinner with Aastha mam. Why are you feeling like this stupid?" She asked herself, keeping a hand on her chest, trying to calm down.
Then, getting ready as she put on a pastel pink kurti with while plazzo pants and putting a little kajal and lip balm on, she was ready to go.
Then, as she was exiting the SIAC campus to take a cab to Aastha's place, she heard a car honk, grabbing her attention towards it but she did not turn back because she exactly knew who it was, Shaurya sir. He would 200 percent would ask her to sit in the car and she won't have any reason to refute so she decided to ignore him and immediately sat in the auto quickly. He also called her name once but she didn't dare peek outside the auto.
" This girl is impossible. Sunaa tha usne but respond hi nahi kiya. Pata nahi kitna avoid karne ki koshish karegi yeh." Shaurya muttered to himself as he followed Anokhi's auto.
It took them about ten minutes to reach the house. Shaurya was driving a little slow so that he makes sure she reaches properly.
As Anokhi paid the auto driver and Shaurya parked the car, she couldn't avoid him at all. How would she?
" Miss Bhalla, I did call for you outside the college gate." Shaurya said as he walked towards her.
" I am sorry sir. I didn't hear." She lied, biting her bottom lip, looking away.
" Sure Anokhi." He replied sarcastically as the two of them walked in the house.
" Welcome beta." Aastha ma'am came and hugged Anokhi, she gladly returned it back.
" Thank you for having me over ma'am." She replied, giving Aastha and Shaan a polite smile.
" Come on in." She asked her and the lot sat in the living room.
" So Anokhi, how's college?" Aastha asked her and then laughed.
" You tell me that ma'am. After all, I am your student." She replied back, grinning.
As she made small conversations with Aastha and Shaan, she felt a pair of eyes on her for the past thirty seconds. She tried her best not to look at Shaurya but failed and gave in her temptation to look at him.
" Why don't you and Shaurya talk, I'm just going to the kitchen to make some final preparations for dinner." Aastha asked her, trying to give them time together.
" Yes, I'll help you." Shaan added, getting up but Anokhi had legit started to panic.
" No ma'am, I'll help you in the kitchen. I can't cook that well but I am a good helper." She said, getting up herself.
" No beta. You sit and leave dinner to us." Shaan interrupted and she couldn't counter him and had to sit down and looked around, trying to find something interesting to do because she was sure that Shaurya wasn't really interested in talking to her and she was trying to avoid him but how on earth was she supposed to do that when they were just the two of them in a room!
" Miss Bhalla, why are you so nervous? You know that I don't bite." Shaurya joked, trying to normal her up.
" I.....I am not nervous sir." She replied, trying to appear as confident as she could at the point.
" Okay, then may I know why exactly have you been avoiding me for the past month?" He asked her pretty directly and she was taken aback. Why would he think that?
" I am not avoiding you sir. I always answer whenever you ask me anything in the class." She put her stand out, furrowing her eyebrows.
" I am not talking about the class. I am talking about outside class." He clarified as he went to sit on the couch right opposite to her's.
" Because I have already intruded a lot in your life already earlier?" She did pose it as a question but all in all, it was really the answer to Shaurya's question.
" Miss Bhalla, we have been crossing lines with each other long before we even knew each other's names. Do you remember when you lectured me during the prize distribution back in Kapurthala or how I shouted at you on your very first day at SIAC?" He asked, his eyes softening a bit.
" Yes sir but now that everything is well between Aastha ma'am and you and the two of you are happy, why would I lecture you and as for you shouting at me, I haven't really given you a reason for a very long time." She replied, shrugging her shoulders slightly, trying so hard not to let the man sitting in front of her know that the way he was looking at her was doing something to her heart, her stupid heart.
" So what you mean to say is that you don't like talking to me if it's not related to economics?" He asked her, raising an eyebrow and she filched at the question. Hoe exactly is she supposed to tell him what she likes or doesn't in matters concerning him? She herself has no idea what she feels and figuring it out is not easy so she instead decided to reverse the question.
" Sir, so what you are implying it that you like talking to me even if it's not related to economics. I am not sure that is even possible because earlier, all you asked from me was to stay away from your personal matters!" She exclaimed, feeling more confused than ever.
But before Shaurya could answer, Aastha was here, asking everyone to join the dining table for the dinner when she realized how bloody bad her timing was and gave a sorry look to Shaurya who tried to assure her that she had no interrupted. Anokhi, on the other hand was relieved that the conversation was over because she was not sure if she wanted to know his answer. What if he broke her heart? Wait....broke her heart? Why was she caring so much for this man that she had given his words the power to break her heart? What was wrong with her!!
As the two of them walked to the dining table, Shaurya pulled out the chair for Anokhi who muttered a small thank you before sitting and the four of them started to eat.
" Miss Bhalla, I am going to tell you exactly what I feel tonight and I will also know what you do, even if that brilliant brain of yours haven't figured it out yet." Shaurya thought as he looked at Anokhi who was busy talking to Shaan and he smirked a little.
She was the most innocent girl he had ever come across. Fierce but innocent. Strong but a little shy. Determined but a little unsure of herself and what she thought. Well, but she did make him a better person without even realizing it and he had no intention of letting her go if she felt the same way for him like he did.
Hey Guys....Happy Women's Day to all the wonderful women around. I am proud of each and everyone of you!!
This is the first part of the TS. The second part will be posted tomorrow. I hope you all like it.
Do review this one.....it would mean the world to me and will only motivate me further.
Love you all, until next time....
Bye!!!💕💕💕
Links to my other works ----
https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/topic/5212825
https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/topic/5212714
https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/topic/5212498
https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/topic/5212306
https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/topic/5212157
https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/topic/5211920
https://www.indiaforums.com/forum/topic/5212088
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