Abhira FF : Worth the trouble : Chapter 8 Page 41 - Page 12

Originally posted by: Maneetlover123

Awesome update ☺️

Waiting to know Abhi's reaction. Yeh Abhi ithna khadoos kyu hai???

Thank you ❤️

Ab kya bolu 😆 Abhi bas khadoos hai..kyo hai..ye shayad story ke end tak thoda samajh aa jayega 😊

Originally posted by: Illuminatus.

New Prospective guy Dr. Rohan to nahi. I find him super cute. hospital scenes not happening but I wish he had a longer role.

Yaar I like Dr. Rohan too..Hope we get some scenes with him in the show again 😊

In this story it's someone else 😊

Originally posted by: Monstuholic

When will the Next update come ?

I'll update in some time. 😊

Originally posted by: Azraa01

I'm loving this soo far.

Cant wait to see where you take this track

A jealous Abhimanyu or a nonchalant Abhimanyu who doesn't care at all

Thank you ❤️

I found it funny that you have covered the whole spectrum of emotions from nonchalance to jealousy 😆 you never know what you're going to get 😊

Originally posted by: Maneetlover123

Update plssss 🙏

I'll update now 😊

Originally posted by: Abhiraaa

Please do update sooonn

I'll update now 😊

Originally posted by: LoveMyself_sri

Pls update soon

I'll post the update now 😊

Originally posted by: firewings_diya

Is this available in wattpad 😊 its so difficult fo search here. I prefer wattpad😆 and i must say its going really good. Excited for next chapter

No, it's not there in wattpad. Hmm..I don't know what I can do..should I tag you when I update? let me know.

Originally posted by: Nikki_love

Wow...I am so glad I found this here....do you write/ post on watpaad...it's easier to follow authors there.

Love this different take on AbhiRa.

Would be interesting to see what and how feelings evolve between them. Pls update soon and pls tag me.

Thank you

Thanks a lot ❤️

I don't post on wattpad..but i'll tag you when I update 😊

Chapter 4

“So????”

Akshara looked up from her laptop to see Aarohi grinning at her with raised eyebrows.

“What?”, she asked but Akshara knew what Aarohi wanted to know.

“Tell me everything! How did it go?”

Akshara had just talked to Arun who was Manish’s friend’s grandson.

“It was just a regular conversation.”

Aarohi huffed and pulled Akshara towards the bed and they both dropped on the bed.

“Don’t be like that Akshu! You hounded me to tell you everything about Neil and you still hound me to tell you what we talk everyday! This is not fair”, Aarohi shouted and pretended to be upset.

“Okay! Okay! He seemed nice.”

“Nice? What’s nice? Who says nice Akshu!”

Akshara looked at Aarohi curiously. “What did you feel when you spoke to Neil for the first time?”

“We used to argue and fight all the time so I think all I wanted to do was strangle him. That was my first feeling”, Aarohi said and laughed.

Just like her and Abhimanyu. Akshara brushed that thought away.

“How did you know that he’s the one for you?”, Akshara asked.

“It was not a eureka moment. We gradually became friends and then we grew closer. We wanted to talk to each other all the time. You already know this! You used to throw things at me asking me to put the phone down.”

Akshara laughed as she remembered Aarohi’s never ending late night phone calls with Neil.

“I waited for Neil to say something but as usual he didn’t so I took the initiative and casually told him that I loved him and wanted to spend my life with him. That’s all.”

“How boring!”, Akshara exclaimed.

“What?!”

“Yeah! Where is the angst? Where’s the pretense to hide your feelings? Where’s the drama? Where’s the family pressure? Where’s the tadka and the masala?”

“My love story is at least better than your arranged marriage story!”, Aarohi replied smugly.

That shut Akshara up.

“Oh no Aaru. I’m going to have an arranged marriage. What will I tell my kids?”, Akshara asked worriedly.

“We’ll make up a fun story for them. We’ll tell them that you were going to get married to some other guy. Then jija ji made a dhamakedaar entry and carried you away from the mandap. You both got married in a mandir and then you lived happily ever after. Is that dramatic enough for you?”

Akshara opened her phone and showed it to Aarohi. “Does this guy look like he’s capable of bhagaofying me from the mandap?”

Aarohi smiled as she looked at Arun’s picture. “Aww. Akshu, he’s so cute!”

“But Akshu ek baat kahu? Tu isko kaccha chaba jaayegi.”

Akshara pretended to be offended though she had the same opinion as Aarohi’s.

“What do you mean? I’m seedha saadha and super easy to deal with.”

“Trouble with a capital T. That’s what you are!”, Aarohi giggled watching Akshara’s mock anger.

“What did you guys talk about? Did he tell you about himself?”, Aarohi asked seriously.

“Yeah he told me that he’s planning to settle down in India. He’s starting an IT firm here. He was in the US for 10 years. He did his Masters there. Then I told him about myself and my job.”

Aarohi hummed softly. “Akshu, do you really want to get married this way? It’s just not like you to meet a guy like this and introduce yourself and plan a future with him. It’s very plain and dull.”

Akshara had felt the same way while talking to Arun. “What else can I do Aaru? I have to start getting serious about my personal life. Badi mummy is right.”

“But what if you meet someone? Maybe the right one is out there somewhere.”

“I’ve chosen my way of picking the right one and this is how it is now. Arey, I forgot to tell you. He asked me out for lunch tomorrow.”

“What?!”, Aarohi yelled and Akshara covered her ears. “Since when did you become like me? Stop yelling Aaru!”

“Why didn’t you tell me this in the beginning?! We need to plan your outfit and I’m going to do your make up. You need to look your best.”

Akshara stopped Aarohi from talking further. “It’s a workday so I’m not going to dress differently and my make up will the same as everyday.”

“But-“

“No Aaru. I can’t go the hospital all dressed up. It’s not right.”

The next morning Akshara took a shower and got out of the washroom to find some clothes laid out for her.

“Aaru! I said no!”

Aarohi smiled and held the dress up for Akshara’s inspection.

“This is just a little dressy but it’s still formal so you’re going to wear this”, Aarohi says assertively.

Akshara grabbed the dress and went to change. She came out to see Aarohi ready with makeup brushes.

“If you argue with me then you’ll only waste your time. Just come and sit here quietly and let me do your makeup.”

Akshara sat down and kept looking at her watch.

“Okay, I’m done. Akshuuu kitni cute lag rahi hai tu!”

Akshara looked at herself and couldn’t see anything different. “Okay Okay! I’m getting late. Bye Aaru! See you at the hospital.”

Akshara reached the hospital and parked her car. She rushed inside only to come to a halt immediately.

I will work in the other wing from tomorrow

She had said that to Abhimanyu yesterday.

Akshara turned around walked out of the main entrance and took a left to the other wing. She went to the empty meeting room and went to sit there. Her phone had just stopped ringing when she took it out of her bag. It was Harsh.

“Hello Harsh Sir”

“Akshara?! I’ve been calling you since a long time. Have you seen today’s paper?”

Akshara got worried due to Harsh’s tone. She grabbed the newspaper while talking to him.

“Sir, I was driving. I-“

She stopped talking when she noticed the headlines.

“We’re supposed to be celebrating our win and the headlines should have been about Birla hospital’s success and not about my son’s arrogance!”

Akshara was stunned to read the article. It mentioned Abhimanyu’s callous behavior and stilted words at yesterday’s press conference.

“Did you give him a statement to read?”

Akshara shook herself out of her stupor and answered Harsh’s question.

“I did Sir. But he refused to use that”, she replied quietly.

“There’s no newspaper, no magazine that hasn’t mentioned Abhimanyu or his behavior. This is what the media can do. They can completely change the perception about a person. Abhimanyu will be termed as a rich spoiled brat and not a hardworking, able doctor who has done wonderfully well for the hospital and has helped so many people!”

“Make a damage control plan Akshara. I want it ready by evening. Let’s discuss it later.”

Akshara put her phone away and read the article and felt disappointed. Could she have stopped this from happening? If she was not upset with Abhimanyu then would she have tried harder to convince him to not to mess with the media?

“There’s no point in thinking about all that! We just need to fix this”, she muttered to herself and opened her laptop.

**

Abhimanyu looked at the head of staff who handed him his schedule.

“Where’s Ms. Akshara Goenka?”

“I don’t know Sir. She just sent me the schedule.”

We don’t even have to look at each other anymore. I will work in the other wing from tomorrow.

Was she seriously going to act this childish? Why was she making such a big deal about it?

He looked at his schedule and frowned when he couldn’t find any issues with it.

“What if I have an issue with the schedule? Are you going to change it or should I wait for Ms. Akshara Goenka to show up?”, he flared up.

“Sir-“

There’s a knock on the door and Abhimanyu looked at his father who was standing at the door.

“Can I come in Mr. Abhimanyu Birla?”, Harsh asked.

“Of course, Sir. Please come in”, he invited his father in who threw a newspaper at his desk.

Abhimanyu looked at the newspaper while Harsh asked the Head of Staff to leave.

“How difficult is it for you to speak a few words with the media?”, Harsh asked angrily.

Abhimanyu smiled and pushed the newspaper aside. “You wanted Birla hospital mentioned on the front page. You got it. What else do you want?”

“Not like this! Not this way!”, Harsh yelled. “Do you even know how hard I’ve worked on building our hospital’s image? It took me years! And it took you a few seconds to destroy it!”

“Don’t exaggerate it Sir. It was just a press meet and I didn’t misbehave with anyone. I didn’t throw anyone out and I didn’t act like hooligan. Yes I didn’t put on an act for the media by smiling and thanking them for their presence and I didn’t act like we’re best friends with the media. If they got offended and published some rubbish then I can’t help it.”

Harsh banged his hand on his desk. “It’s not some rubbish. It’s going to affect the way people think about us and you. When they decide to go to a hospital, this article will circle to their mind. When they come to you for a consultation, they’ll think of this article. It will impact their trust on you and on us. Good work takes years to make an impact but reputation can be spoiled by just a few words, just an article, just a prime time discussion.”

“Harsh is right.”

Abhimanyu looked up as Mahima entered his office.

“Taiji please! Ab aap mat kahiye ki ye ek bada issue hai.”

“This is a big issue Abhimanyu. People do read newspapers and do form opinions based on that. There’s a lot of chatter online and it’s not good for any of us or for the hospital. We don’t want to be talked about in a negative light.”

Abhimanyu closed his eyes took a deep breath. Then he looked at Harsh and smiled. “If this is such a big issue, we have an in-house expert to fix this taiji. Sir, is an expert. Isn’t that right, Sir? Since this is such a big calamity and I should be shaking my boots, maybe you can fix it and gloat about it.”

“Of course, I will fix it because I know my responsibilities. This is my hospital. I will not let anyone throw stones at us. I will not let them talk about my son like this”, Harsh said emotionally.

Abhimanyu laughed and said, “Sir, please. You have no intentions of fixing this for my sake. This is not about my reputation. All you care about is Birla hospital’s name being dragged into this. Let’s at least be honest here.”

Harsh bent his head and looked at Abhimanyu. “You can think whatever you want to. I can’t convince you to change your mind. But I’ll fix this for you and for the hospital.”

“Thank you, Sir. If we’re done with these frivolous issues then we can get on to serious business like surgeries”, Abhimanyu said took his schedule and scanned through it.

Harsh walked out and Mahima followed him.

“Harsh! Wait. I’m sorry. I should have tried to control the situation yesterday”, Mahima said.

“It’s okay. I should have been there. Abhimanyu asked me not to speak at the conference so I didn’t want to be there. But I should have been there.”

“No Harsh. Abhimanyu kabhi kabhi aisi baatein kar deta hai jo kaafi chubti hai.”

“Chubti toh hai. Dard bhi hota hai. Let him hold on to his hatred and I’ll keep trying to make amends with him”, Harsh smiled and left.

**

Akshara looked at her watch and then peeped at her phone. She was getting late for her lunch but she didn’t know if she could go or not.

“Akshara? Why are you sitting here today? What’s wrong with your office?”

Akshara turned around to see Harsh walk inside.

“It was a little noisy in that wing so I decided to sit here Sir.”

Harsh sat down and Akshara looked at her phone again.

“Did you have your lunch?”, he asked.

“Not yet Sir.”

“Then go and have your lunch. We still have time to discuss the plan. It’s getting late. Please go and have your lunch.”

Akshara hesitated and asked, “Sir, I need to go out for lunch. I’ll come back as soon as possible. I’m almost done with my work and-“

“Akshara! It’s okay. Please go. You don’t have to come back quickly. We’re anyways going to stay back late so take your time.”

“Thank you Sir.”

**

“I’m so sorry! I was stuck at work and there was a crisis at the hospital”, Akshara explained hurriedly.

“It’s okay Akshara. Please have a seat”, Arun smiled and gestured for her to sit.

“Shall we place our orders first?”, he asked and Akshara agreed. They placed their orders and looked at each other and smiled.

“So?”

“So?”

They laughed and Akshara asked, “So, how’s work? Are you having a tough time setting up your office?”

“It’s been difficult. Starting a company is a lot of work.”

“I can understand.”

“What’s the crisis at your hospital?”, Arun asked.

“There’s an unsavory article in today’s newspaper about the hospital.”

“Oh yeah. I read the article. I thought of you when I realized that it is about Birla Hospital. Dr. Abhimanyu Birla, right? He’s the son of the owner, I guess. So, is it true? Everything that is mentioned in the article?”

Akshara hesitated for a moment. “It’s not true.”

“So, he’s actually a nice guy?”, Arun asked.

Akshara wanted to say no but Abhimanyu was nice to everyone but her so she said, “Yeah, he a good guy and a great doctor.”

“Oh, that’s sad that the media chose to target him.”

Akshara shrugged and said, “It can happen to anyone. But we’ll fix it. That’s what we do.”

“So, you handle PR activities along with management work at Birla Hospital?”

Akshara was about to answer when she looked at her right and noticed Abhimanyu at the corner table. He was sitting with two other guys that she didn’t recognize. She was shocked to see him here. Was it really him? She narrowed her eyes and stared at him. He was having a serious conversation and didn’t seem to notice her.

“Akshara?”

She snapped out of it and looked at Arun with guilt. “Sorry, I just spaced out.”

“You’re really pale. Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah yeah I’m fine. And yes, I handle both PR and management.”

Arun continued to speak and Akshara looked at Abhimanyu from the corner of her eye. Had he seen her already? Was he here when she came in? Or did he just come?

Akshara was lost in her thoughts but she realized that Arun had asked her about her future career plans.

“It’s a long term plan but I want to open my own management firm. I don’t know when it will happen but that’s what I want to do at some point in life.”

She was losing track of the conversation but she quickly peeked at Abhimanyu again. Why wasn’t he looking at her? Didn’t he care at all?

“Our food is here.”

They started eating and Akshara made an effort to ask a few questions to Arun and tried to listen to him earnestly.

“I’ve lived in US for over a decade but I always knew that I would come back to India and settle here.”

Akshara smiled and looked to her right. Why was she even looking at him? Even if he knew that she was here, he wouldn’t bother. It’s not like he’s going to come over and talk.

“Akshara?”, Arun touched her hand and Akshara looked at him and gave him a small smile.

“You seem to be thinking about work”, he said.

Akshara pulled her hand away from his and said, “Yeah I need to get back to work. I only get an hour for my lunch break.”

“Sure, I also have to get back to work. It was nice talking to you Akshara.”

Akshara replied in kind and shook his hand. She didn’t look at Abhimanyu’s table again and walked out of the restaurant. She sat in her car and sighed in relief. She drove to the hospital and kept thinking about Abhimanyu. What kind of a coincidence was this?

She parked her car at the hospital and got out and was stunned to see Abhimanyu leaning against his bike.

“What are you doing here?”, she asked.

He walked towards her and grabbed her hand. “What’s wrong with you? What are you doing?”

He ignored her and continued to walk towards the main entrance of the hospital.

“Why are you holding my hand? Have you lost it?”, Akshara snapped at him.

They entered the hospital and Akshara noticed everyone staring at them and silence fell over.

“Everybody is looking at us!”, she whispered.

Abhimanyu walked towards the offices and Akshara had no choice but to follow.

They walked into Abhimanyu’s office and Akshara pulled away from him and whirled around to confront him.

“Are you out of your mind?!”

Abhimanyu stepped closer to her and asked, “Who was that guy?”

Akshara had thought that he hadn’t even seen her there or he just didn’t care. But right now he looked like cared. A lot.

“Why do you care? Don’t you remember what happened here? Don’t you remember what I said? We don’t have to look at each other and we don’t have to talk to each other.”

“Who was that guy?”, he asked again.

Akshara raised her head and looked straight into his eyes while answering. “I’m not answerable to you. It was my official lunch break and I can do whatever I want to do in my free time.”

Abhimanyu stepped closer and Akshara gulped nervously. She didn’t want another confrontation with him.

“I already told you not to step into my personal space”, she said calmly.

“Do you really think that I don’t know when someone wants me to move away from them and when they want me to be close?”, he whispered and took another step towards her.

Akshara was blocked by the door from behind and there was this stone faced man in front of her. She had nowhere to go.

He raised his hand to push her hair aside and she held his hand. “I told you not to touch me.”

“Why are you getting so affected? Why are you breathing so hard? Why is your heart rate up?”, he asked.

She tried to push him and he grabbed her hand. “Why was he holding your hand?”

Akshara took a moment to understand what he was asking. Then she realized that he was asking about Arun holding her hand at the restaurant.

She snatched her hand away and looked at him triumphantly. “It’s none of your business but I’m going to marry that guy.”

Abhimanyu stepped back and frowned. “What?”

“I need to go. Harsh Sir must be looking for me.”

“Akshara, I’m trying to have a serious conversation with you. Stop joking around!”

Akshara huffed in annoyance. She opened her phone and set Arun’s picture as her wallpaper.

“See? I’ve set his picture as my wallpaper. I’m that serious. Now, stop annoying me and let me go.”

She walked towards the lobby but stopped when Aarohi blocked her.

“Is it true? Were you holding hands with Abhimanyu Sir?”, she asked in awe.

Akshara grabbed Aarohi’s hand and held it. “This is called holding hands!”

“He held my wrist and dragged me to his office”

Aarohi’s mouth dropped open in shock. “But why?”

“He had a problem with my lunch date”, Akshara replied with a frown.

“Akshu! Does he like you?!”, Aarohi whispered in joy.

Akshara unlocked her phone and showed Aarohi her wallpaper. “This is your jija ji! You should tease me with him!”

Aarohi laughed and clutched her stomach. “Akshu, you just met him today. What’s wrong with you?”

“Sometimes you just know. Arun is the one for me.”

Aarohi touched Akshara’s forehead to check if she’s alright. “Stop it Aaru. I’m fine!”

“What did Abhimanyu Sir say? What did you guys talk about?”

Akshara hit her head and muttered, “I’m telling you about Arun and you’re only interested in asking me about Abhimanyu!”

Akshara’s phone rang and she checked to see that Harsh was calling her. “Oh no! I have to go. Bye Aaru!”