CHAPTER 78
SARANG
Sarang-
(n.) 'I wish to be with you until death.'
"Dhyaan rakhna apna", Deepak said softly. Monami nodded, looking around at the luggage and making sure she wasn't forgetting anything. "Waapas kab aayegi?"
She looked up, taking a step closer at his sad eyes. "Jitni j-jaldi ho s-sake", she promised. "Aap bhi dh-dhyaan r-rakhna apna, Papa."
"I'll call you Sunday ko", he said.
She stared at him for a long moment before throwing her arms around his neck. He kissed her head gently, patting her back. She closed her eyes, basking in the warmth of his arms. "I'll wait f-for your c-call", she said.
"Naa karoon toh khud kar lena", he said.
She pulled away, frowning at him. "Kyun n-nahi karoge? Aap hi k-karna."
He chuckled. "Theek hai." He patted her head. "Take care of yourself there, okay? Sid ka bhi dhyaan rakhna." He paused for a moment. "Training theek se karna."
Her mouth spread in a wide smile and she nodded. "Haan." The smile he gave back was hesitant and uncomfortable but Monami appreciated all the effort he was putting in. She couldn't ask for more. "Bye, Papa."
"Bye, baccha", he said. "Waapas jaldi aana."
The words, for once, weren't hostile. She turned away, her eyes welling up slightly. She used to say it to her mother. She took a deep breath, walking out of her house.
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
Karan glanced at the clock, pursing his lips. "Kya hua hai?" Faizi asked, glancing at him. "Subah se clock kyun dekhe jaa rahe ho?"
He looked at him, shaking his head slightly. He turned his attention back to the laptop. The first day of the year was an off on the occasion of New Year but with January having arrived, the expected date for bomb blasts also inched closer. They needed something concrete to act on.
"Monami ka wait kar rahe ho?" He teased.
He looked up, narrowing his eyes. "Chup kar jaa", he snapped. He was. He was waiting for Monami. But Faizi didn't have to know that. "Main... Main kyun wait karunga uska?"
He laughed slightly, shaking his head. He turned back to his laptop, continuing to read. "Waise hume dikh raha tha", he said. "Tum itne din se thode murjhaaye lag rahe the. Jab se mahutarma gayi hain. Miss kar rahe the?"
Karan glared at him. "Kuchh bhi sochta rehta hai", he snapped. He turned back to his laptop when he glanced back, glaring at the screen. Why did Faizi have to know him so well? He should have been paying attention to Koel. He shook his head, concentrating back on the report.
But before he started reading again, his eyes flickered down to the time. There were still at least, a couple of hours. He heaved a sigh.
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
Sanju rested her head back on her boyfriend's shoulder, closing her eyes as he gently carressed her hair. "Sanju?" She opened her eyes. He was staring at her with tender eyes, a small smile on his face.
"Kaa?" She raised an eyebrow. "Aise kaahe ke laane dekh raho hai?"
His smile widened slightly and he shifted a little till they both were sitting a little more upright. "You are so beautiful. Tumhe pata hai?" He muttered, leaning closer. She closed her eyes as he leaned forward, gently kissing the corner of her mouth. "I love you." He gently cupped her cheek, his lips brushing with hers.
Her phone rang and the two jerked apart in surprise, looking down at the device. She closed her eyes, her heart rate slightly lowering as she grabbed her phone. Amma. She took another deep breath before accepting the call.
"Amma!" She greeted. "Jai Maa Bhavani!" She glanced up at Sid, who heaved a small sigh, rubbing his face.
"Naye saal ki bahut bahut mubarak, Sanju", she greeted. She glanced back at the phone, smiling at her. "Maudi... kiske saath hogo tu? Kaam kar raho hai kaa?"
She hesitated. "Nahi, Amma. Kaam nahi kar raho. Woh uh, hum..."
Her eyes narrowed. "Maude ke saath hogo?" Her voice was lowered. Sid looked up, his eyes widening. He pointed at the door, silently gesturing that he was dashing out. "Hume baat karno hai." He froze, looking at the phone.
"Amma... woh, uh..." She looked at her mother before up at her boyfriend. "Karo baat phir."
Sid set his hair quickly, nervously smiling when Sanju handed the phone to him. "Namaste, Aunty ji", he said awkwardly. "I am Sid G." He shook his head slightly. "Siddharth."
There was complete silence from the phone and Sanju frowned, leaning over. Her mother was inspecting Sid, looking him up and down. He glanced at Sanju. "Namaste", she said finally. "Naye saal ki mubarak tumhe."
He smiled. "Aapko bhi. Happy New Year."
"Hume aasha hogo tum humaari maudi ke saath kuchh khel dikhaawaa naa kar raho ho." Her mother's eyes narrowed. "Agar kar rahe ho toh yaad rakhno, tractor ke paiyon ke neeche aano se koi bachta naa hogo."
"Amma!" Sanju protested. "Dhamkaao mat."
"Aunty ji, aapko tractor laane ki kya zaroorat hai? Aapki beti bahut toh hai. Agar mujhe khelna hi tha, toh itna khatarnaak game nahi khelta main. Sanju se panga lunga? Ha. Waise, I see the family resembalnce. Violence se kaafi pyaar hai aap dono ko." He let out a nervous laugh, and Sanju hit his shoulder lightly, shaking her head.
Her mother stared at him for a long moment. "Maude... kitni... kaa kehto hain tum shehari logon ki bhaasha mein?" Sid stared at her in confusion. "Sanju ko tu kaa kehto hai? Woh teri kaa hai?"
"Girlfriend?" He said hesitantly.
"Haan! Girlfriend. Kitni reh chuko hain teri?"
"Amma!" Sanju protested again. "Yeh nahi puchho. Aur kaa farak padhto hai? Abhi ek hi hai aur woh hum hain." She took the phone from him. "Aise sawaal naa puchho." Her mother frowned. "Pehli baar baat kar rahe hogo. Thoda... aaram se. Please keh raho hain."
"Theek hai, theek hai. Waapas de use. Hume baat karno hai!"
Sid swallowed slightly, taking the phone back. This was going to be a long, scary call. He cast a look at Sanju. It was for her. It was worth it.
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
"MONU!"
It was all the warning she got before she was thrown to her bed, a mass on her as it hugged her tightly. She smiled, wrapping her own arms around him. "Sid", she greeted happily.
"I missed you", he said, getting off of her.
"Monami Madam", Bala said, and she turned around, finding the cadets there. "Aapke bina inn logon ne mujhe itna tang kiya. Aap aise jaaya mat karo."
"Happy New Year", Koel said, and she smiled, as they all settled themselves in her room. They fell into random topics of conversation, and she sighed happily, staring at them. She had missed them.
"Achha, achha, listen. I want to show you guys a trick", Parikshit said, and they all stared at him expectantly. Despite the rocky start, he had more or less found his place in the tight knit group and Monami found herself quite comfortable with him now, although she didn't quite have much of a friendship with him outside the group.
He held up his empty hands, showing them his palms. His fingers moved for the splitest second and he was holding a knife. Monami blinked. What? Where did that come from?
"Ek second, kya?" Sid said, staring at the knife.
"Aapne kahan chhupaaya tha yeh?" Bala asked, looking at his sleeve. He grabbed his hand, pushing back the sleeve. There was nothing. "Mujhe bhi sikhao!"
He grinned, tossing the knife in the air and catching it by the handle again. He shook his head. "Yeh mujhe Faizi Sir ne sikhaaya tha. Aise hi, randomly. I met him in the mess raat ko ek baar, and unhone mujhe expect nahi kara tha. And he pulled out a knife itna hi fast. And I was so surprised. But it's actually pretty easy."
"Yeh tumhe Faizi ne sikhaaya hai?" Koel asked. She crossed her arms. "Mujhe toh kabhi nahi sikhaaya." She huffed. "I'll ask him aaj. Tumhe sikhaaya par mujhe nahi. Unfair."
"Better cadet ko sikhaaya", he teased.
Monami pursed her lips as Koel picked up a cushion, catching the man straight in the face. He sighed as it fell off to the floor, glaring at her. Parikshit talked a lot. Too much. Sometimes- a lot of times- it got him hit.
"Arey, aap dono baad mein ladhna", Bala interjected. "Parikshit Bhai ji, mujhe bhi seekhna hai."
He gave him a devious look, shaking his head. "Mujhe kya milega?" He challenged.
"Hum tumhe iss ravivar uphaar denge jab hum bahar jaayenge", Prem ji bribed.
"Sunday", Koel said to Sid, who closed his mouth, nodding. He vaguely remembered he had asked that before too. Hindi was hard.
Parikshit made a show of thinking. "Sikha dunga", he assured. "Par only if you guys say 'I am the best cadet.'"
They all looked at each other, before back at Parikshit. "Chhodho", Bala said. "Itna bhi achha nahi hai." The others nodded in agreement. His mouth dropped open in affront.
"Main Faizi se seekh lungi", Koel declared.
"Arey!" Parikshit said, as they all turned around from him. Monami let her smile through as he gave them an offended look, muttering to himself.
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
A man leaned forward in his seat. His hair were shaggy, falling in unkept strands around his face, his beard ragged and wild. "Kya pata chala?" He asked.
A younger male produced a few photos. "Special Agent Major Faizuddin Siddiqui", he said, pointing to the man in the photo. "Uske saath... uski girlfriend. Koel Roy."
The man in the chair- clearly the boss- hummed, staring at the picture. "Ladki ke baare mein kuchh pata hai?"
"Cadet hai iski", he said. The superior's eyebrows shot up. "Abhi bandon ko lagaaya hai iske baare mein pata karne ko."
"Tell me more about him."
"Faizi bolte hain sab ise. He is 30 years old. Baap ne chhod diya the bachpan mein, Maa ne paala hai." The man produced a few more photos. "Uske parents." The superior glanced them over. "On a professional front, he is one of the best shooters. Arms and ammunition specialist hai. Weapons se deal karna bahut achhe se aata hai. Bold hai, daring hai. Kaam aata hai."
The superior hummed. "Ek aur tha, na, agent?"
"Special Agent Major Karan Shergill." He threw another photo down. "Single hai. Baap shaheed hai. Maa bhi nahi hai. Adopted hai. Jisne adopt kara hai." He slid over more photos. He tapped the photo of a man. "Colonel Pushpinder Batra. Parakaram Academy ke head. Karan Shergill ke adoptive father." He produced more pictures. "Yeh uska badha bhai, Bhabhi aur uski bhatiji. They are very close." The man inspected the pictures. "Professional front par, he is very sharp. Strategy expert hai. One of the best. Dedicated, strict, fierce. He is a man to look out for. Iska dimaag bahut tez chalta hai."
"Yeh dono ek doosre ko kitna jaante hain?"
"Kaafi achhe dost hain." The man hummed. "Training ke time se saath mein hain. Tab se roommates hain."
"You can go." The boss stared at the men's pictures. "Tum dono se chun kar badla lunga main." He picked up Koel's picture, inspecting her. He glanced at Faizi's picture. "What will break him more? Agar ise maar doon yaa ise bech doon?" He picked up Karan's picture. "What will break him?"
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
Karan forced himself to slow down. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. Slower. Calmer. Why was he so eager to meet her? It has been just 5 days. Not even a week. He pushed open the door of the mess, pausing when he heard the slightest sounds of the utensils.
Monami was there. He took a deep breath, walking closer. She was reaching up to the shelf, grabbing something. Karan leaned against the doorframe, taking her in for a long moment. It was almost a relief seeing her back in their little, nightly ritual. She turned around, pausing when she caught sight of him. Her mouth twisted up in a smile. "Sir! I m-missed you", she said.
He smiled. He walked closer, eyes tracing her over. Nothing had changed really, the same shine in her eyes, the same upturn of her lips but he still took her in just the same. His gaze drifted back to hers. "Good to know", he said. He turned away, grabbing the coffee and dumping some in the two cups. He closed his eyes, biting his tongue. Good to know? Really? "Uh..." He turned to her. "Ghar jaakar kaisa raha?"
She smiled, moving closer. "Good", she said. She sighed a little, looking up at him with a smile. "You know... m-main aur Papa... I th-think we u-understood e-each other a-after a long t-time. Aa-Aapne kya kara? An-Anything eventful?"
"Boring din", he dismissed. "Kaam kara bas."
She eyed him. "Mera b-bina aa-aap b-bore ho gaye?" She teased.
He looked at her. Did she have any idea how true that statement was? "Yeh samajhkar tum khush rahogi toh yeh hi samajh lo", he said. She chuckled a little, shaking her head. He poured the boiling milk in the cups, handing her one of them. She took a sip, sighing a little happily. "Tumhaare ghar par toh isse better coffee nahi hogi? Imported coffee wagera wagera."
She looked up, and then down at it. "Haan. Par... I m-missed this." She looked up at him, leaning closer. His throat went dry and he stared into her eyes. "M-Maybe I m-missed the co-company."
"You know", he forced out. "Koi aur sunega toh kahega tum mere saath flirt kar rahi ho." She blinked, leaning back. Her cheeks reddened noticably and she ducked her head, her hair curtaining her face. He took a deep breath, looking away.
"Sorry", she said and he looked at her. "Mera woh in-intention n-nahi tha." She shook her head. "Aa-Aapne New Year k-kaise m-manaaya?"
"Academy mein party thi", he replied. "Sab log the. Bas waise hi. Tumne?" She smiled, describing the pretty fireworks in the sky, the happy moments with her father and Karan rested his head on the cabinet door, listening to her quietly. Somewhere in the descriptions, her voice faded in the background, and his attention was tuned into inspecting her.
Almost as if he was standing under a waterfall, a cascade of memories pushed through, almost making his knees weak at the sudden onslaught.
'You are interested in them. Tum unhe jaanne mein interested ho. You want to understand every part of what makes them them.'
'Monami Mahajan, tumhe samajhna chah raha hoon par tum toh samajh hi nahi aa rahi.'
'Woh ek bheedh ka hissa ho sakte hain and you will still pick them out because tumhe lagta hai unke jaisa koi ho hi nahi sakta hai.'
'Karan, Monami ko nihaarna band karo.' 'Main... Main bas observe kar raha tha.'
'Jab tum kisi se pyaar karte ho, everything about them seems... endearing. Even things jo tumhe generally pasand nahi aati hain.'
'Aa-Aapko toh in-interest nahi, na, in s-sab ch-cheezon mein?' 'Tumhe toh hai. Dikhaana.'
His grip loosened on the cup and he barely caught it before it smashed on the ground. Monami had paused speaking, looking at the cup and then up at his face. "Kya hua?" She asked. He swallowed, looking down at her. Her concerned eyes stared back at him and he looked away, gripping the mug a tad bit tighter. "Sir?"
"I'll..." His voice was shaky. He cleared his throat, keeping his mostly full cup on the slab. "Monami, I'll... I'll meet you kal. I need to go." He walked out before she could question, not that he particularly had the capacity to talk to her at the moment. Anyone, really.
He needed a moment. Or two. Or more than two.
Because everyone was right. He was in love with her. He closed his eyes, leaning against the wall just outside the mess. He ran a hand through his hair. How had he been so blind? He was in love with Monami. He was hopelessly, crazily, madly in love with Monami. How had he not seen it before? It was... the simplest of truths. Karan Shergill loved Monami Mahajan.
---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---
Karan ran a hand through his hair, pacing in his room nervously. He took a deep breath, sitting down on the edge of his bed. He stared at Faizi's sleeping form for a long moment, trying to pull his mind back. His brain had exploded in chaos the moment the realization had struck.
He loved her. He was in love with her. Deeply, crazily, madly in love with her. Holy shit.
He clicked the desk light on, sitting on his desk and grabbing a pen. He flipped the diary open, staring at the empty page for a long moment before he even uncapped his pen.
'I love Monami.'
He let the pen fall from his grip. He stared at the words quietly. He loved her. He closed his eyes, rubbing his face. He picked up the pen again.
'Yeh sochkar bhi ajeeb lag raha hai. Turns out... Faizi sahi keh raha tha. I was in denial. Kyunki... isse zyaada obvious kya hi ho sakta hai? I am in love. Kaise nahi dikha mujhe yeh pehle? Apne khudke actions? Unki implications? Apni feelings? Kaise nahi dikhi?
When... When did I fall in love with her? Pata nahi. Kyun hua usse pyaar? Woh bhi nahi pata. Par... pyaar hai. Yeh pata hai. Woh ek bahut zaroori hissa ban chuki hai meri zindagi hai. Yeh pata hai. Uske bina nahi jeena chahta. Yeh pata hai.
Jitna... Jitna sochoon, utna obvious ho raha hai. Utna... dikh raha hai. Jaise dhund ke baad ab finally, roshni ho gayi hai. Loving her isn't something I am doing. Shayad isliye itna samay lagaa yeh samajhne mein.
Usse pyaar karna mera hissa ban chuka hai, meri... meri fitrat ban chuki hai. Usse pyaar karna saans lene jaisa hai. Effortless. Usse naa pyaar karna shayad... shayad hoga hi nahi mujhse. Aisa lag raha hai jab tak jeeunga, usse pyaar karna band nahi kar paunga.
I don't care if it's wise or not because I am in love and there is no going back. I am in love with Monami Mahajan.'
Channel V Dil Dosti Dance
Arjun
