Few days passed before she managed to somehow pacify her parents queries regarding her brother’s sudden absence and come back to her normal self. She had not been able to concentrate on anything else because of all that had happened. Finally, she took hold of herself and decided to get back to her work with fervour.
That’s when she remembered Raghav and decided to meet him and thank him for his help and also say sorry . She asked Vikrant to tell Raghav to meet her at the lakeside in the evening. When Vikrant asked her the reason, she said she couldn’t tell him anything.
In all these days of her absence, one could well imagine Raghav’s condition. He was short of barging into Chakor’s house to ask why she was not to be seen around but somehow withheld himself. Once or twice he tried to enquire with Vikrant too but without success. Vikrant was as ignorant as he was. Then one day, Vikrant came with the news that Chakor wanted to meet him……Whatttt, whyyyy, when, where…. Alas! Vikrant had answers only for when and where!!!!! That day Raghav was uneasy all through…. He kept wondering why Chakor wanted to meet him. Did something happen?…was he wrong about her cousin?…. is she angry? too many questions in his mind……
Nonetheless he reached the lakeside in the evening and saw her sitting on a rock there. She seemed sad. He greeted her…. she looked up …..he realised that she had been crying …..What is the matter? He suddenly realised that he couldn’t see her crying…This realisation gave him a different high…...She just said thank you and started sobbing again…. He didn’t know what to do…..He very hesitantly held her and tried to console her. She too felt a warmth in the side hug and never realised when she placed her head on his shoulders. He let her cry… the childlike innocence on her face made him go crazy….….You were right about my cousin……He was trying to keep a tab on me and was passing on information to Mr. John…..Thankfully he was not a part of our core group… so he had gathered nothing of importance …..Thank you and sorry too for having got angry the other day she murmured again…..and realised that she was holding his hands and was resting on his shoulder…She akwardly moved aside… just to brush off the serious atmosphere, Raghav said….thank-you for crying and proving that you are human too…. He received a nudge and she made a face…….He started laughing…….Chakor suddenly felt relaxed…She was smiling after many days…….She was at a loss to understand why she felt so comfortable with Raghav in such a short time that she had known him. Just then a gust of wind blew and her strands of hair were on her face. Before she could do anything about it, Raghav’s hands were already moving the strands, his fingers lightly caressing her face arising feelings and sensationsin her at all unknown places. She closed her eyes in reverie. His hands traced the outline of her face and he very lovingly said….Chakor, you are very beautiful…..A flock of birds chirping back to their nests at sunset broke the magic…..Raghav realised what he had done and was extremely sorry about it. He held his ears and said……I don’t know what overcame me Chakor…I am very sorry.....I didn’t mean bad…Please don’t take it otherwise….blah blah blah……He was clearly flustered and Chakor said…..Its Ok Raghav…..Don’t worry…..I am fine…..
Mr. John was worried with his informant’s sudden disappearance. But he put two and two together and deciphered what would have happened. He was very angry and upset. In the meantime there was an intel that the freedom fighters in Lucknow were planning something big and that they would take help from the nearby villages. So all the “British Chhaonis”(camps) in and around Lucknow were put on alert. The officers were asked to be on their vigil. Any group gathering was not be encouraged. Mr. John decided to tackle the group which met in the shed under his jurisdiction in his own way. He was very eager to impress his Officer at Lucknow and present himself for promotion. He decided to do something drastic which would scare the villagers plus impress his Officer.
Chakor couldn’t understand why she wasn’t angry on Raghav for what he had done near the lakeside. Normally anybody else would certainly have got a black eye, few broken bones and broken teeth. Instead she was smiling to herself whenever she thought of him. Raghav on the other hand was going mad thinking about ways and means to meet her. He wanted to ensure that she indeed was not angry with him after the incident. And as luck would have it, lo came Vikrant with a message saying that Chakor wanted to meet him, alone, 15 minutes before the shed meeting.
Raghav reached well before time. He couldn’t wait for the first glimpse of Chakor when she would come, though he was nervous and was crossing his fingers and Chakor all the while kept wondering what on Earth was wrong with her and why did she want Raghav’s opinion on that! She unknowingly took a little effort in getting ready too. Somewhere she was also a little jittery to meet him after the small incident at the Lakeside. But nonetheless what she wanted to speak with him was very important.
Raghav started with a jump when somebody tapped him on his shoulders. He was pleasantly surprised to see Chakor……She was looking like a fresh flower, with pink lips like a rose bud, eyes innocent and clear….. Why did Raghav feel like possessing those lips!!!Both stood drowning in each other’s eyes…. not saying anything….This time Raghav came to his senses first and said ….you are looking beautiful Chakor…she just put her head down and murumered a thank you…….why did you want to meet me? Chakor came out of her thoughts blushing…….. she said … I just wanted to know your opinion on making grenades and hand bombs……WHATTTT he almost screamed…She put her hands on his mouth…ssshhhhh don’t scream…...asking him to lower his voice….and somewhere deep in her mind wishing that it were her lips not her hands which would have closed his mouth… she reprimanded herself for thinking like this..What was wrong with her !!!…Raghav on the other hand, just wanted to pull her and kiss her…he was surprised…..when had he started desiring her so much!!!!!…. ….but good sense prevailed and both moved away…He feeling a sense of relief that the lakeside incident was not mentioned…... Whattt are you talking about??? Chakor then told him about what Rana had suggested and said ……Raghav said ……but I am not a part of the core committee…why are you asking me this???? …..What would she tell him, that even she didn’t know why on Earth she wanted his opinion!!!!! ….so she just said….. I asked a question first …….we are supposed to discuss this tonight…I want your opinion… Raghav was thrilled…..
Members had started assembling ……..Some core committee members including Vikrant were there….They were waiting for Chakor…..Suddenly several handmade grenades showered on the shed and it went up in a blaze in a moment…. …..
Raghav was about to reply, when he and chakor were jolted as if there was an Earthquake and they saw an orange ball of fire. It took them a split second to realise what had happened…. Both were about to run towards the shed when they saw some guys covering their faces and running. At once both realised who they must be. Raghav and Chakor glimpsed the villagers running with water to douse the fire,HENCE they decided to follow those guys instead, leaving the rescue work to the villagers…..
They had to be really careful not to make any sound…following those men in the dark was really difficult and dangerous too…... ducking in the bushes every now and then…..Both held hands and were walking stealthily….. Somehow they felt safe that they were together…..The men reached the Chhaoni and informed Mr. John that his work was done….They had blasted the shed……And all present in the shed must be dead and gone by now…..Mr. John let out a devilish laughter…….
Edited by 77nikita - 6 years ago
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