Part 4
On the outskirts of Udaipur, there was a hilltop temple of Lord Shiva. Abhimanyu was a regular to this place as it gave him peace and solace. The temple was surrounded by nature in its fullest form with buzzling sound of trees, chirping birds, cold breeze and complete view of the city. It was the only recreation for Abhimanyu apart from work. When he wanted to be away from all the familial problems and wanted to connect with himself, he came here to meditate. He used to spend long hours when he had no appointments or surgeries. He brought Akshara to confront her as he thought there would not be a place much better than this for them to have a heart to heart conversation. As they climbed the hill, Akshara was enthralled by the beauty. On reaching the top, she quickly offered her prayers in the temple and reached the edge of the cliff. As it was getting slowly darker, the view of the city from the cliff looked more than beautiful. With her arms stretched out, she breathed in the fresh air closing her eyes and taking in the serenity of the place. Abhimanyu was used to all of this and he always enjoyed the place as if it were a first time. But this time, it was completely different for him, he was mesmerized not by the beauty of the place but by the beauty of his ladylove. She looked absolutely breath-taking with the view behind. He longed to hug her from back.
As he was lost in his won thoughts, she turned towards him and told, “khoobsoorat se bhi zyaada khoobsoorat hai. Thank you for bringing me here” she smiled at him. She continued,” Waise Kya baat Karni thi?” He got irritated that she is always on point and never wants to spend time with him. He replied,”Waise bhi tumhe Kaunsa mere saath time spend Karna hai. I just wanted clear certain things with you.” Akshara looked at him questioning. As he started talking, he kept moving behind, “tum kahan thi jab mein Uss aag mein fasa tha?” “Main woh…..(looking down) she did not expect him to ask this question. His gaze was on her and she felt like he was burning her down with those sharp eyes. Finally gathering courage and gulping down, she looked at him and said,”unn bachchon ko first aid ke liye leke gayi thi.” He sighed at her, “seriously? Logon ke ECG mein variation hota hai jab woh jhoot bolte hai lekin tumhare case mein ye ulta hai. Jab tum sach bolti ho tabhi tumhe ghabrahat hoti hai.”
He continued,”so you didn’t even think of me?” She immediately replied,”Arohi toh thi tumhe bachaane”. He had almost lost his temper now, his voice raised,”jhoot.” Akshara looked at him blanked out while he continued,”kya cctv cameras jhoot hai. Kya woh saare saboot jhoot hai jo ye kehti hai ki tumne mujhe bachaya hai.” She once again gathered courage, “Haan toh.?” He was taken aback by her indifference,”jhoot kyun bola.? Aur kyun bachaya? Marne deti kam se kam roz roz Marne se achcha hai ki ek baar mein sab khatam ho jasyega.” She felt a pinch her heart when he told her this. Still she stood unaffected. He continued his growl,”maana ki tumhe koi farq nahi padtha ya Shahad tum koi bhi hota tum yahi Karti….. “ while he kept moving backwards and had reached the edge of the cliff. Akshara noticed him and asked him to come back,”dekho please iss taraf aa jao. Hum baat karenge aaram se.” He shouted,”no. Jab tumhe koi farq nahi padtha mere jeene marne se mere hone naa hone se toh kyun fikar hai ab tumhe. Jaao tum chod do mujhe mere haal pe” saying so he threw the car keys. She was standing there in tears not knowing how to make him come back. She kept pleading him but he did not budge.
On one hand, it was her promise that she made to Arohi which stopped her and on the other hand, it was her life which was hanging there on the edge. She had already given him enough heart break and pain that she did not have the courage to break him and also herself again. She once again called him,”Abhimanyu please, meri baat suno. Come this side. Let’s talk and sort.” Wiping away his tears,”there’s nothing left to talk between us. Just go”. She once again begged him and he screamed, “ jab koi farq nahi padtha….” Before he could complete, she broke down and shouted,”farq padtha hai. Tum ho toh main hoon.” He could not believe she finally confessed. He came running towards her, kneeled and before he could cup her face and wipe her tears, she hugged him tight and buried her head in his chiseled chest as though that was her safest place. She cried her heart out.
She confessed everything from how she had fallen in love with him the day she saw him, how she had waited for his arrival that day when came home to ask her hand for marriage, how Arohi emotionally blackmailed her to lie to him, hoe she took away all her credits, still keeping quiet that her sister would one day understand her. He could not bear her tears more. He lifted her chin up and wiped her tears, “ sshhhh….. bas”. But she did not stop, “ I am sorry. I broke your heart not once but a thousand times. Main tumhare maafi layak nahi hoon. Main toh tumhare kisi bhi layak nahi hoon. Tum itne bade doctor aur main kuch nahi. I am incapable of having someone like you in life.” She kept her feelings, her insecurities in front of him showing her vulnerable self. Still wiping her tears, he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead to pacify her, “You are incapable of me? Kis ne kaha tumse? You are my sole happiness, my peace. Zindagi itni khoobsoorat nahi thi tumse pehle. Mujhe sirf tum chahiye bas.” At that they hugged again. Akshara was finally feeling light on letting out her long pent up emotions. She loosened her grip on him and the hug which was more out of fear of losing each other became gentle and passionate still being intense.
The darkness of the night, the peace amidst the buzzing sound of the wind, and them in each other’s arms under the moonlight looked like a perfect fairy tale. She did not want the moment to end. She wished the night to be a never ending one and they stay like this forever. He smiled and told her, “mujhe bhi”. She blushed at that. How he reads her heart every time. Their moment was, however, disturbed by Akshara’s phone. It was Kairav’s call and she excused herself to pick it up. Abhimanyu was irritated but had no other option than allowing her to pick. By the time she finished the call, he was inside the temple lighting up fire with some wooden logs that he found nearby. Akshara came calling him, “Abhimanyu….” before she could continue, he corrected her,”Abhi….” She smiled and said, “Abhi…. Chale. Derr ho gayi aur sab ghar pe meta wait kar rahe hai. Bhaiya he kaha kuch Zaroori baat karni hai.” He came near her, taking her hands in his, caressing them, he told her,”I want to marry you now. Will you?” She was shocked as she never expected him to ask like this.”aise? Yahan..?” He asked her,”do you believe me?” And she nodded yes. He told her,” I want to make you mine forever now. Mujhe nahi pata lekin mujhe yahi sahi lagta hai. Kal agar tum phir apne parivaar ke liye naa Bol dogi toh tumhare bade papa kisi aur se tumhari shaadi karwa denge and I can’t take that chance. I can’t imagine a life without you Akshu. You are mine and only mine.”
p.s I hope this part made sense. Thank you all for waiting and all the lovely comments. Sorry could not reply to each one of you. Once again thanks for all the motivation.
Ghum Hai Kisikey Pyaar Meiin
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