Unwanted ~ Interlude III

Nimisha

 

Tucking Pari into bed, I made my way back to my room and got changed.

Once changed and ready to get into bed, I turned the TV on and slipped in between my bed sheets. Laying back, resting against the headboard, I watched TV, letting myself unwind after a long day.

This is generally how my evenings went. After getting everything done and getting Pari off to sleep, I’d spend the evening either watching TV, reading a book, or getting work for the next day done. It wasn’t like I had to wait around for a husband. I could do what I want, when I wanted.

Just as my television show was getting to an interesting point, my phone started ringing. Sighing, I picked it up and checked caller ID. Ranveer.

 

“Hey…”

“How are you?”

“I’m good Ranveer, you?”

“I’m missing you and my baby girl. When are you both coming to see me again?”

 

I paused to think for a moment. Switching off the TV, I settled myself down, smiling to myself.

 

“Maybe we can come tomorrow. Pari has vacation from school now so…”

“That sounds great! I can’t wait to take both of you out.”

“I can’t wait to see you again.”

“Nimi maybe we should…”

“I agree, we should.”

“But how? Arnav won’t be pleased…”

“He’ll probably kill us both, but I’m tired of this. I just want to be with you so the three of us can finally be a proper family.”

“I want that too… When is Arnav coming back?”

“He’s meant to be coming back within the next couple of days, but who knows. Di’s been saying he’s been really preoccupied recently so who knows?”

“Hmm. Well let’s think about it. I’ll call you tomorrow morning and we can talk some more. Take care of yourself and give my baby a kiss.”

“I will do. Goodnight Ranveer.”

“Goodnight babe.”

 

I disconnected the call and I couldn’t help but smile to myself. For the longest time now, me and Ranveer have been trying to undo the mess that we had created 6 years ago. And now, finally, we were making headway.

I met Ranveer for the first time over six and a half years ago, not very long after Arnav and Khushi’s fake marriage. I had been upset, paranoid and insecure about my relationship with Arnav, fearful that he would fall in love with the woman that he’d married. I was filled with sorrow that his family didn’t like me. So I took my sorrows and insecurity to a bar.

And that’s where I met Ranveer.

We got talking, well… We got flirting. We both hit it off almost instantly. Maybe we should have realised then that we should just forget about our respective relationships and give a shot to whatever it was between us.

But any way, we got talking, one thing led to another and we ended up spending the night together.

People would assume we moved to fast, and perhaps we did. But we were two individuals who were in love with different people and wanted to be with them, but couldn’t. We wanted attention and we craved intimacy. Something we weren’t getting from our respective partners. So when we found each other, we took the opportunity with both hands.

That night we spent together was such a beautiful night.

The next morning, I was awoke by Ranveer’s phone constantly going off. So I took it upon myself to deal with the issue. I told his girl about us and hoped she’d back off.

But to my dismay, when Ranveer awoke, he expressed his regret regarding what we had done. I was shattered. Maybe it had been naive of me to assume that he would want to give our relationship a go, to assume that I had meant something to him. But I had assumed those things. He apologised, was courteous, But ultimately explained he loved his girl too much to let her go.

Fast forward a couple of days, me and Ranveer meet again. In Bali. When we had met it Delhi, we had briefly explained our situations to each other, but we hadn’t realised that our partners had gotten married to each other. That changed things between us.

We sat down and really spoke. Talking about our feelings about Arnav and Khushi and we realised that as much as we clicked with each other, we wanted to be with Arnav and Khushi. So that’s exactly what we tried to do. We went back to Arnav and Khushi and tried to make things work out with them, but I found that something had changed in Arnav. He didn’t want me anywhere near him. Ranveer too found that Khushi didn’t want to be with him.

He told me he and Khushi had a bad argument, that it was over between them. We’d both been rejected. We were both hurt. It was then we spent another night together. If our first night together had been perfect, this night was heaven. And as a result of that night, god blessed us with a beautiful baby girl. Not that we knew at the time.

Maybe I should have realised then that it was Ranveer that I wanted. But I was stupid, I still went back to Arnav, tried to convince him that I still wanted him, that I still wanted us to be together. But I was stupid. I was trying to convince him when I wasn’t even convinced myself. Maybe I should have avoided the situation altogether because Arnav spotted a love bite and he ended things with me there and then.

Maybe I should have backed off after that. I almost did…

 

*****

 

Time passed and me and Ranveer chose to embrace our relationship. Everything was going well, until we found out that we were pregnant.

Now neither of us really had an issue with having a child together. My family already knew about me and Ranveer and they had no issue with him, and he didn’t mind us having a child. We should have just accepted what was happening and just given your relationship a name. But instead the both of us tried to be smart.

We were stupid. We spoke about what we wanted and we spoke about Arnav and Khushi again. For some reason, both of us decided that we wanted to try to get back with them.
We decided that I would go to Arnav’s house, claiming that my baby was his. And Ranveer hoped that Khushi would leave Arnav and run into his arms.

We were stupid. We should have realised how we felt about each other. We should have embraced our relationship and left Arnav and Khushi alone. But we didn’t.

I went back to Arnav and he straight up denied that my child was his. I lied to him about how Pari could be his and he didn’t buy it. He didn’t buy it for even a moment. After Pari was born, Arnav demanded a paternity test. And that’s exactly what I did. We took a paternity test, but I made sure I swapped Arnav’s sample with Ranveer’s. The reports came back showing a match, but Arnav still failed to believe it. Our plan was futile.
And Khushi didn’t go back to Ranveer either. So we screwed up.

Both me and Ranveer quickly realised that we should have left things as they were. We made a mess for ourselves and we made a mess for Arnav and Khushi. But instead of just telling Arnav the truth, I chose to long out the lie, carry on living it. I should have backed away the moment I realised that it wasn’t going to work, but I didn’t.

I regretted my decision and I still do. We should have left Arnav and Khushi, we should have just carried on and moved on. But we didn’t. We were both stupid, fighting for a battle that was lost. We should have admitted that Arnav and Khushi were just extras in our lives, extras who led us to each other, but we were stupid.

But things were going to change now. Me and Pari were going to go to Ranveer. We were finally going to be a proper family. As soon as Arnav returned, this game was going to end.

 

Jalebi ~ Part 31

 

By the time Khushi awoke the next morning, it was nearing 11am. Smiling to herself, she turned in the arms of the man that was holding her close and smiled as she looked up at his face.

Arnav was still fast asleep. Tucking herself into his body, Khushi smiled as she recalled the passion they had shared the night before. After making love the first time, they had done it a few more times after that.

For the first time in a long time, Khushi woke up truly happy. Her business was hers again, and she had the man of her dreams back in her life.

Hearing her phone beep, Khushi reached out for it. It was a text from Mohit.

 

“Congratulations, you’re the sole owner of Khushiyan again! I’m just checking everything now and getting it all in order, but we’re ready to get back to work!”

 

Locking her phone, Khushi didn’t bother with the rest of her messages as she put her phone back. Her business was hers again. Arnav had sorted it all just as he said he was going to. He kept his promise, didn’t let her faith in him break.

Hugging him, Khushi couldn’t hold back. She placed light kisses on his face, moving closer to his lips each time. Feeling the sensation of soft lips on his face, Arnav slowly roused from his sleep, smiling as he slowly opened his eyes.

 

“A man could get used to being awoken like this.”

“Good morning.”

“Morning.”

 

Locking her lips with his, Khushi pushed Arnav onto his back and moved over him, straddling his body with her own. Placing her hands on his chest, Khushi rubbed her body against Arnav’s, letting him know she wanted him. Her hands moved down his body, down towards his crotch, feeling him over his boxers.

 

“Take them off.”

“I love it when you get bossy.”

“Take them off Raizada.”

 

Reaching for his boxers, Arnav pushed them off as Khushi leaned back in, placing kisses on his face.

 

“They’re off.”

 

Moving down his body, Khushi placed a line of kisses all the way down. She placed light kisses on his chest, his nipples, his pecs, just above his belly button. Grabbing hold of her hair, Arnav pulled her closer to himself as she moved further down his body.

 

“Khushi…”

 

Pressing a kiss on his waistline, it was obvious where she was headed.

 

“You don’t need…”

 

But before he could finish what he was saying, she took the top of his length into her mouth.

 

“Fuck.”

 

Holding the base of his length, she took a little more in and then some more until she could take no more of him.

 

“Khushi…”

 

Running her tongue over the tip of his length, Arnav felt his body on fire, all his sensitive nerves on fire. Moving back, Khushi let some of his length out, she then moved back in again. Arnav took a fistful of Khushi’s hair in his hands and guided her head to help her with what she was doing. They carried on, Arnav helping her to build her confidence.

A few moments later, Arnav could feel himself close so he tried to push Khushi away.

 

“Khushi I’m going to cum.”

 

Moving away, Khushi moved back over Arnav and took his lip between hers in a relatively aggressive kiss. Arnav could taste the slight saltiness of his pre release on her tongue. His hands roamed on her back, holding her close. He rubbed himself against her, needing his release.

Flipping Khushi onto her back, and moved over her, still kissing her hard. His hands rested on her breasts, massaging them as he rubbed his length against her opening.

 

“Do it Arnav.”

 

Guiding his length into her, Arnav held still for a moment, just letting them enjoy the connection between them.

 

“You like it when I just hold myself still in you don’t you.”

“Mmm.”

 

Arnav started to move slowly, a moan of feeling content leaving Khushi’s lips. Arnav moved his hips slowly, making sure to hit Khushi’s most sensitive spot.

 

“OH.”

 

As he hit her little bud every time, or even if he just brushed over it, it caused Khushi to moan out in pleasure. Hearing her moan out in pleasure, calling his name and holding him closer each time, it pushed Arnav nearer to his climax.

Pressing his lips back to hers, Arnav kissed Khushi intensely as he penetrated her body.

 

“Arnavv…”

 

Just as Arnav began to move faster, to help them both get their release, Khushi’s bedroom door banged open.

 

“What the f***!”

 

Both Arnav and Khushi jumped, but Arnav’s first reaction was to make sure Khushi was covered properly with the sheets. Covering her up, Arnav rolled off of Khushi, lying beside her, holding the sheets to himself.

 

“What the actual f*** is going on here?”

 

Rohan. Rohan had arrived.

 

“Rohan…”

“What the actual hell Khushi? I come home after weeks to find you in bed with him!”

“Let us get dressed and then we can speak…”

 

Slamming the door behind him, Rohan left angrily. Arnav turned his attention back to Khushi, who had sunk into the sheets, her hands over her face.

 

“Khushi… Are you… Don’t cry…”

“Oh god Arnav. What have… What have we done!”

“We haven’t done anything. We haven’t done anything wrong.”

“Of course we have!”

 

Arnav tried to reach out to Khushi, to touch her, but she scooted away, holding the sheets close around her body.

 

“Khushi…”

“I’m engaged Arnav! I shouldn’t have… I can’t… I shouldn’t have slept with you.”

 

Arnav looked slightly appalled at what Khushi had said, the way she worded what she had said.

 

“You didn’t just sleep with me Khushi. We made love! There’s a difference!”

“Whether we just had sex or we made love, it doesn’t change the fact that I’m engaged.”

“It makes all the difference in the world! It means you still love me and you want to be with me.”

“Arnav please just take a shower and get ready to leave. I need to talk to Rohan.”

“I’m not leaving you.”

“Arnav you don’t know Rohan like I do. He’s got an intense temper. If you stayed, he may just get more angry.”

“More of a reason to stay with you.”

“Arnav please. Just listen to me for once.”

 

Sighing, Arnav got out of bed and made his way to Khushi’s bathroom. Before going in, he turned to see Khushi still in bed, holding the sheets close to herself.

 

“Jump into the shower with me.”

“Are you being serious? Arnav my fiancé is standing right outside!”

“Okay okay.”

 

Shaking his head, Arnav went into the bathroom and Khushi prepared to get out of bed. Walking over to her wardrobe, Khushi took out a nightdress and a dressing down and went outside to retrieve Arnav’s clothes for him. Rohan was sat on the sofa, looking highly unimpressed.

 

“Rohan…”

“Take his clothes to him, get rid of him, take a shower yourself. You can use my bathroom to have a shower. You stink of sex.”

“I…”

“Please. Just go.”

 

*****

 

Showered and fresh, Khushi pulled her clothes on and went back to her own bedroom to find Arnav changing the sheets and making the bed.

 

“You didn’t need to…”

“I just thought I’d do it while you were still in the bathroom.”

“Thank you… Arnav, I know this is harsh but, please can you leave now.”

 

Nodding, Arnav moved close to Khushi, placed a kiss on her forehead and then turned away.

 

“Call me. I need to know that you’re okay.”

“I will.”

 

Pressing another quick kiss on her forehead, Arnav walked out of the bedroom and into the living room where Rohan was sat.

 

“I’m sorry you had to see what you saw Rohan.”

“Just leave now.”

 

Nodding, Arnav respected both Khushi and Rohan’s requests and left. As much as he hated Rohan he knew he needed to respect his wishes. If he were in Rohan’s position, he probably would have killed someone.

As soon as the door shut behind him, Rohan rounded on Khushi, looking at her with angry eyes.

 

“Before you say anything…”

“Shut up Khushi! Don’t you dare try to justify yourself.”

“Rohan I…”

“I said shut up. I don’t want to hear anything. I come home, after weeks and weeks and want to spend some time with you, but the moment I walk into the house, I see clothes all over the house. And if that wasn’t bad enough, I could hear you both from out here!”

“I didn’t know you were coming home.”

“You would have done if you answered my calls or checked my messages. But I guess you were too busy fucking him to realise…”

“Don’t speak like that.”

“What do you expect me to say?

 

Tears prickled in Khushi’s eyes as she realised how much the situation she was in sucked. She hadn’t wanted this, hadn’t wanted to cause so much of a mess.

 

“So what, have you been sleeping with him since I’ve been out of town?”

“No! No no! Last night he came over to tell me… That my business, he got it back for me. And I guess I got caught up in the moment and we ended up…”

“So out of happiness you ended up sleeping with him.”

“I didn’t mean it to happen…”

“But it didn’t stop until this morning. So it wasn’t just a moments slip.”

“I got caught up in the moment. It felt like before again…”

“But it shouldn’t have! You’re engaged to me! Okay, I get it happened but by this morning you should have realised. If it was just a one off last night I may have understood but… The fact that you carried on until this morning means you have absolutely no respect for me or our relationship.”

“I’m sorry…”

“Sorry doesn’t change what happened Khushi. You don’t let me come anywhere near you, not even a kiss. If I try to come near you, you freak out. Yet with him, you jump straight into bed with him again.”

“But you can understand why it’s like that.”

“I understand but it doesn’t mean I agree.”

 

Looking down, Khushi felt ashamed. She knew what Rohan meant and she also knew he had a point. She shouldn’t have let herself get caught up in the moment like that.

 

“I’m sorry, I promise it won’t happen again.”

 

Rohan moved towards Khushi and placed his hand on her shoulder, his expression softening.

 

“Look Khushi, I understand. I do. You’re relationship with him, how you feel about him, I get it. But I need you to decide what you want.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, I need you to pick. Either you’re with me and you marry me and you forget about him. Or we end our relationship now and you can go back to him. It’s up to you. But bearing in mind, if you pick me, you can’t ever see him again.”

 

Looking up at Rohan, Khushi get slightly thrown. But she knew this was inevitable. And after what happened today, Khushi should’ve known this was coming.

But the real question was, what was the right decision to make? Which decision would make her happy and would be best for everyone involved?

Unwanted ~ Part 34

 

Arnav

 

“Khushi?”

 

Wait. What?! I’d been searching high and low and now… Here she was! She was actually here! Right in front of me! Basically in my arms. I’d done it! I’d found my Khushi.

 

“Arnav…”

 

She looked shocked, but not shocked enough. Raj must have gone home and told her that he saw me, that I was Arushi’s teacher.

 

“Hi…”

 

Tucking a strand of hair behind her ears, she looked down at her bag and then up at me again.

 

“I…”

 

I couldn’t believe it. I came here today to start considering tickets so I could go back home. I never in a million years thought that I’d bump into Khushi here.
I took her in. She hadn’t changed much at all. Her face was a little more rounded than it had been before but other than that, she looked pretty much the same.

Finally pulling myself out of my trance, I moved in and took her into my arms, hugging her.

 

“I can’t believe I’ve found you.”

“I…”

“Why did you leave me like that Khushi? I searched the world for you but you managed to vanish into thin air. But it doesn’t matter. It’s late but at least I found you.”

“You we’re looking for me?”

“From the moment I woke up to an empty bed to now. I never stopped.”

 

I wanted to mention Arushi. But I wanted Khushi to tell me about her herself.

 

“So… How have you been?”

 

Really Arnav? Really? I sounded like a teenager, trying to talk to a girl I fancy.

 

“Listen Arnav, I’m really busy, I need to…”

“We need to talk Khushi.”

“I know but I…”

“What are you even doing here?”

 

Now I find my voice. She looked around a little anxious.

 

“I… I came to get tickets…”

“Oh are you going on holiday?”

 

She hesitated for a moment too longer before nodding. She was planning on running away.

 

“Let’s go to my place so we can catch up.”

 

She looked horrified at the idea, and shook her head. I reached out for her, taking her hand into my own.

 

“Please. I need to talk to you.”

 

It was obvious from her expression that she didn’t want to go home with me, but there was no way I was going to let her go today. There was so much we needed to talk about, I needed to make sure that she came with me.

 

“Khushi…”

“Okay, but I need to make a call first.”

“Of course.”

 

I moved away a little to give her some space. This was actually amazing! I found my Khushi! Pulling my own phone out of my pocket, I thought to text Payal, to tell her the good news. But then I thought against it. It would be better to speak to Khushi first. I waited, and in no time Khushi wrapped her call up and came towards me.

 

“My house is only a five minutes walk, but if you want I can call us a cab.”

“Actually, I’ve got my car with me…”

“You drive now?”

 

For the first time, a little smile played on her lips and her cheeks went the lightest shade of pink.

 

“I passed about 3 years ago.”

“Wow! That’s great Khushi! Well I guess lead the way to your car my lady.”

 

Fishing in her bag, I watched as she pulled her keys out and she walked in front of me, leading me back to the car park. I waited until she clicked the car and I saw a little silver Toyota unlock.

 

“Nice car.”

“Thank you. It’s not quite your SUV but…”

“I love it. It’s very you.”

“Do you still have your SUV?”

“I do, although I rarely drive it now. I brought a newer SUV, which is my everyday car, but I didn’t have the heart to part with my original SUV.”

 

She gave a little nod as she got into the car and then I got in too. In no time, we were off.

I’ll admit, I was a little apprehensive about her driving, but the moment she got the car going, it was evident she knew what she was doing and that she was a fairly experienced driver.

I directed her towards my place and she got us there in less than five minutes.

Getting out of the car, I made my way over to the door and waited for her as she locked the car and followed me. Placing my hand on the small of her back, I led her in and shut the door behind her. I felt every single muscle in her back tense under my touch.

Leading her into the living room, I told her to take a seat while I went over to the landline and checked voicemail. I had one message.

 

“Hi chote, I’m calling on your landline because I couldn’t get through to you on your phone. Just a quick message to say everything is fine at home but call me when you have the time.”

 

Di. She needed to check in everyday, and if by chance I didn’t speak to her, she’d be sure to leave a message on voicemail. Turning my attention back to Khushi, I asked what she’d like to drink.

 

“Tea or coffee. What am I saying, you want tea of course.”

“No, I’ll have a coffee please.”

 

I felt like she’d hit me round the head.

 

“You drink coffee?”

“Not as much as you used to, but yes. I drink coffee now.”

“Well damn. Let me just go and quickly make you my special coffee and then we can talk.”

 

Going back to the kitchen, I made the coffees as quickly as I could and took out some cakes and biscuits. Putting everything on a tray, I went back into the living room and set the tray on a table. Putting her mug down in front of her, I sat down beside her, keeping a respectable distance between us.

 

“Thank you.”

 

Picking up her cup, she took a sip and smiled.

 

“How did you make this? It’s great.”

“I put my secret ingredient in.”

“Well whatever it is, it tastes great.”

 

She smiled and then turned back to her drink. I watched as she slowly drank her coffee and I too drank mine. I wanted to talk to her, ask her about herself, ask her about our daughter. But I didn’t know how to broach the topic. More than that, I just wanted to take her into my arms, kiss her senseless, maybe take her to bed and make love to her the way I’ve been dreaming about for the last six years. But we needed to take things slowly, we needed to talk about a lot of things first.

When she finished her coffee, she put her mug down and I put mine down too.

 

“So… What did you want to talk about?”

“How have you been?”

“I’ve been okay. How about you Arnav? And how is everyone at home?”

“Everyone at home is good. Did you know, Akash and Payal got married?”

 

I knew this was new information to her, but watching her expression, watching her jaw drop in shock, I got the reaction that I wanted.

 

“Jiji and Akash… No way?!”

“After you left things were hard for Payal. Me and Payal both tried to help each other through you leaving. And somehow, somewhere along the lines, Akash managed to provide her with the support that she needed and they fell in love. So they got married.”

“I can’t believe…”

“They have a beautiful little boy together now. Akshay. He turned two a couple of months ago.”

“Oh my goodness, I can’t believe…”

 

Pulling out my phone, I showed her a picture of little Akshay with Shalini.

 

“Oh he’s gorgeous! He looks so much like Akash… Wait I guess I have to call him jijaji now! But he has jiji’s eyes.”

“He’s Payal’s happiness. After the wedding, it took her a while to settle. I think she found it hard to be at Shantivan, knowing it was your home but not having you around. But things really changed when she got pregnant. We actually saw Payal smiling and since Akshay was born, she’s always happy.”

“I’m so glad. Who’s this little girl? Is she yours…”

“That’s Shalini. She Di and jijaji’s. She turned five and half recently. Just after you left, Di found out she was about 3 months pregnant.”

 

I watched as Khushi smiled, taking in the two little angels on my screen. Tears gathered in her eyes and she pushed them away.

 

“I can’t believe…”

“Shalini asks about her Bari Mami all the time. And I’m sure little Akshay wouldn’t mind being spoilt by his maasi.”

“I can’t believe… When did so much time pass?”

“You walked away and you never looked back Khushi. But for us, the last six years have dragged on. And I… I’ve missed you. Every second of every day for the past six years.”

 

She looked away from me and looked down, letting out a little sigh.

 

“Have you not missed me Khushi?”

 

Her head snapped up, eyes looking at me questioningly.

 

“Of course I have.”

“Then why did you leave me?”

“You know why.”

 

And I did know why. But that didn’t mean that I agreed.

 

“Did you guys have a boy or a girl?”

“A girl. Nimisha named her Pari.”

 

She gave a little smile, but it was a sad smile. What was she thinking about? What was going through her head? Was she thinking about how much our daughter lost out on because of another little girl?

 

“That’s lovely. I also heard you and Nimisha got married. Congratulations. Do you guys have any other children together? Or are you planning another child?”

 

Was she being serious? Did she really think that me and Nimi…

 

“Pari isn’t mine.”

 

The smile that had been on Khushi’s face a moment ago slipped away.

 

“What?”

“Pari isn’t my child. Me and Nimisha don’t have a child together, nor are we planning a child together. I’m married to her but our marriage doesn’t mean anything, nor is it even accounted for in the eyes of the law. I married her to save her name and to save the Raizada family name.”

 

I moved closer to Khushi, places my hand on her knee.

 

“You’re my wife, my legally wedded wife. The only woman I want to be with, the only woman I want to have a family with. Nimisha and Pari may have my name attached to theirs, but they don’t mean anything to me. They aren’t my family.”

“But… Why would Nimisha say…”

“I don’t know what Nimisha’s game is, and frankly I don’t care any more. I know Pari isn’t my child and Nimi doesn’t even try to convince me that she is any more.”

 

Khushi looked completely confused, she didn’t know what to think and I didn’t blame her. Taking her hands into mine, I turned her face so that she was looking at me.

 

“I told you six years ago and I’m telling you now, I know Pari isn’t mine. I don’t feel for her the way a father should feel about his child. I don’t feel anything towards her. I don’t feel about her the way I feel about Arushi.”

 

Eyes wide, Khushi took her hands out of mine.

 

“W.. Wha… What?”

“I know Khushi.”

“Arushi… She’s not…”

 

Was she actually going to try and convince me that Arushi wasn’t mine? That Arushi wasn’t our baby?

 

“The moment I met her, I was attached to her. The more I looked at her, the more I saw her in you. I was so dumb, I thought she was a relative of yours, maybe a cousin or a niece. I didn’t for a moment think she was your daughter. And then I started speaking to Arushi, I looked at her file and… I started putting the pieces together, tried to make sense of it. And it finally fit me. On parents evening, I expected you to walk through that door with Arushi. But then Raj… But speaking to him also helped because I got a better picture. That evening I was certain that Arushi was our child and I knew I needed to find you.”

“Arnav…”

“How could you do that Khushi? How could you keep me away from my child like that? You left me so that Pari would get her fathers love, but then you let our child grow up without her dad? How could you do that?”

 

Tears started falling and I shuffled closer to her, holding her. I felt tears prick my own eyes.

 

“Not only did you deprive me of having you in my life, you took my daughter away from me. You kept our daughter to yourself, didn’t even give me an indication that she existed… How could you?”

“I… I’m sorry… Raj and Veera mausi kept telling me to talk to you, to tell you about Arushi. But I found out about your marriage and I thought… I was scared… I thought maybe… I thought you didn’t want me any more. And I was scared that if I told you about Arushi, you’d take her from me and raise her with Nimisha… I left you, Arushi was all I had. If I had her taken away I…”

“I’d never have taken her from you.”

 

Placing my arm around her, she tucked herself into my arms, holding onto my collar as she let herself cry.

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

I barely heard her little mumble, but I heard it. Pressing a light kiss on the top of her head, I held her close to myself. After years and years, I felt content. This is where she belonged. With me, in my arms. My world was complete.

Well… Almost complete. All that was missing was our little girl. But soon, she too would be in my arms. I was sure of it.

Jalebi ~ Part 30

As the weeks went on, Akash carried on struggling with the businesses. He had thought that as time went on, it would get easier, but it wasn’t. The files were piling up and he found it harder and harder to get through the workload. Everyone expected him to have the answers, to know what to do, but he didn’t know! It was too much! And Arnav had completely washed his hands on the businesses. He couldn’t deal with it any more…

 

*****

 

Initially Rohan had gone for a couple of days, but he extended his trip and so Khushi had been alone at home. She hasn’t spoken to Arnav since that day when she’d invited him over to her house, but she had wanted to reach out to him. But it didn’t feel right. He still wanted to be in a relationship with her but she was now committed to someone else. It felt wrong to reach out to him, maybe give him hope when she knew that there was no hope. Not any more.

 

*****

 

“Yes Aman, perfect! Let’s see if he finally breaks this time. I think he will. He’s been struggling since the beginning and the last couple of days… Well done Aman, you’ve done me proud brother. If our plan works, you can be guaranteed a promotion.”

 

Ending the call, Arnav put his phone down and grinned to himself. If Akash thought that he was smart, then he underestimated his brother. Did Akash really think that Arnav was going to let him win? That he was going to let him sail smoothly?

 

Akash had been struggling from the beginning, Arnav took advantage of that. He got Aman to manipulate Akash’s workload to overwhelm him. Arnav hoped that Akash would break, that he would ask Arnav to take the businesses back. So far Akash had been resilient, but Arnav was certain that he would break, and he could tell his breaking point was near.

 

*****

 

“Aman, where is that god damn file? I have a major meeting with investors and I haven’t got the file!”

“I checked it for you and I gave it back to you tomorrow. You’ve probably put it into your briefcase sir.”

“I have checked everywhere a million times! I don’t have it. You must still have.”

 

Aman shook his head, trying to suppress his smile. He knew exactly where the papers were, but he wasn’t about to tell Akash. He could tell Akash was very stressed about the meeting with the investors and if they wanted him to break, today was the best day to do it.

 

“Aman, please go and check again. If I don’t have that file then we’re going to be in big trouble.”

“Yes sir.”

 

Exiting the room, Aman dialled Arnav’s number, he was sure it was almost show time.

 

*****

 

There was ten minutes to go, and Aman hadn’t returned with the file. Akash felt like pulling his hair out. If he didn’t have the file, then they would lose out on a major investment.

With just five minutes to go, Akash was pacing the office, sweating profusely.

Knocking on the door, Arnav walked straight in.

 

“Bhai, what are you doing here?”

“I just came to see how you were doing. Big day today. This meeting has been booked for over three months. I just wanted to check that you were okay.”

“I can’t do it. Aman has lost the file and I don’t have all the information. Please… Please bhai, you go in and speak to them. You’ve been preparing for this for almost a year, you know all the details from top to bottom.”

“I’d love to. But this meeting can’t be taken on by anyone other than the owner of the business and that’s you.”

“But I can’t do this meeting! I’m not prepared! If I go in there, we will lose a million dollar investment guaranteed. And we need this investment!”

 

Sitting down opposite Akash, Arnav put his feet up on the desk and smiled.

 

“If you can’t do it, quit.”

“Wh… What?”

“You heard me. If you can’t do this simple meeting, then quit. Hand me everything back and I might even be gracious as to let you keep your old job.”

 

Looking at his cousin and then looking at the clock, Akash realised that he was now late for the meeting. Either he had to get himself to that meeting pronto and make himself look like a fool, or he could have a clean shave and put it all back on Arnav.

It was a hard decision for Akash. He had been planning this takeover for the longest time, and to now even think about giving everything back.

 

“Tick tock Akash.”

 

Looking between the files of papers that he needed to get through and the clock, Akash realised he was way out of his depth. He couldn’t manage it all. The longer he left it , the further the businesses would sink. There was no use being the owner of a sinking business, he’d make less money than he was when he was working alongside Arnav.

 

“Come on, decide. The investors are waiting.”

“Okay! Fine! I’ll hand the businesses back over. Please just go to the meeting.”

“Nuh uh, I’m not going anywhere until all paperwork is signed back over. Aman!”

 

Walking into the office, Aman handed Arnav a file. Opening it up, Arnav had a quick skim of the papers, making sure all his clauses were in place and everything was just as it was meant to be. Once he was satisfied, he put his signature on the papers and then handed it all over to Akash who looked wary.

 

“Don’t worry, there’s no foul play. These papers just state that you are giving back what is rightfully mine and you are handing back rights for me to have ultimate power to with anything off.”

 

Passing the file across the table, Arnav handed Akash the pen and all. Looking completely defeated, Akash looked between his cousin and the papers. Reading through them thoroughly, Akash finally signed the papers grudgingly. As soon as it was done, Arnav snatched back the papers and handed them over to Aman to have filed immediately.

Getting to his feet, Arnav walked round to Akash side of the table.

 

“Right. I think it’s time for you to get off my chair. I have businesses to get back into order.”

 

Getting to his feet, Akash packed up his things as Arnav took his seat and rearranged his desk.

 

“Meeting…”

“If you had stayed on top of things, you would have known that that meeting was rescheduled and it isn’t until next week.”

 

If Akash had looked defeated before, he was now completely shattered. He’d been played.

 

*****

 

A rapid knock on the door brought Khushi to her senses. Looking up at the clock she saw it was almost 8pm. Who would be coming at this time of evening?

Grabbing her dupatta, she made her way over to the door and opened it.

 

“Surprise!”

“Arnav…”

 

Smiling, Arnav showed Khushi the food and the champagne that he had brought with himself as he entered her apartment.

 

“Arnav you can’t be here…”

“I think I can. We need to celebrate.”

“Celebrate what?”

 

Putting the food down, Arnav handed Khushi a file over. Taking it, she opened it up warily. The moment she saw “Khushiyan” at the top of the papers, she shut the file again, handing it back over to Arnav.

 

“I can’t look at this.”

“Khushi, look at it.”

 

Shaking her head, Khushi pushed the papers away but Arnav took her hands in his own.

 

“Look at them.”

 

Taking the papers, Khushi took a deep breath before opening the file again.

 

*I, Arnav Singh Raizada, hereby sign all rights of ownership to Miss Khushi Kumari Gupta…*

 

Arnav watched expression as she read the whole document. Tears welled up in her eyes. Once she read through all the papers, she looked up to Arnav.

 

“You…”

“I told you I would sort it.”

“I can’t believe…”

“Sign the papers and we can have them filed. Aman’s waiting outside so he can get them to the courthouse.”

“But they’re closed now…”

“Arnav Singh Raizada has connections. We can get them filed tonight and by tomorrow afternoon, everything will be back to how it should be.”

 

Wiping away her tears, Khushi quickly checked everything over once more and then signed the papers and handed them back to Arnav. Getting up, he went over to the door and handed Aman the papers and told him to get it all sorted as soon as possible.

When Arnav returned, he found Khushi coming back from the kitchen, two champagne flutes in her hand. Putting them down, she gestured to Arnav to open the bottle of champagne.

 

“No, you open it.”

“No you should, after all you are responsible for sorting it all.”

 

They went back and forth but ultimately Khushi won and Arnav proceeded to open the bottle. The poured then both a glass and raised his glass for a toast and Khushi did the same.

 

“To the successful futures of AR and Khushiyan. Whether together or apart, may they always prosper.”

 

Clinking their glasses together, Khushi took a little sip before putting her glass back down.

 

“I still can’t believe… Khushiyan…”

“I promised you I would sort it. I couldn’t let you down.”

 

Arnav put his glass down as Khushi shuffled closer to her. She placed her hand on his cheek, letting her fingers graze over his slightly unkept beard.

 

“Thank you.”

 

She placed a gentle kiss on his cheek, letting her lips linger, feeling the warmth of his skin beneath her lips.

As she began to pull away, Arnav grabbed hold of her hand, keeping her close to himself.

As they looked into each other’s eyes, their need and desire for each other was evident. Arnav’s darkening hooded eyes met Khushi’s soft hazel ones as he cupped her face, brushing his lips against hers.

 

“I love you Khushi… Come back to me.”

“I… I love you too…”

 

All thoughts of the businesses and the fact that this was no longer appropriate, were completely forgotten about as their lips met for the first time in a long time. Initially, it was a brief meeting of the lips, gentle, light… But then Arnav pressed his against hers with more force, pulling her further into himself as he kissed her like a man starved. Khushi reciprocated with the same amount of intensity and heat as her hand trailed down from his face down to his neck.

Pushing her back, Arnav lay Khushi back against the sofa as his hand moved from her face to her neck and then further down to her breast. Her kameez was a light cotton one and so he could feel the little bump of where her bra was. He moved his hand, continuing over her breast until he felt one of her erect nipples. Brushing at it, Khushi felt herself go a little breathless and she hooked her leg onto his.

Her hands found their way to his tie and she pulled it off before proceeding to take the buttons of his shirt off. Arnav broke the kiss and moved off of Khushi, who groaned in protest.

He got up, and then lifted Khushi into his arms. Khushi wrapped her arms around his neck, and placed little kisses on his exposed chest. Walking into the bedroom, Arnav placed Khushi down on the centre of the bed and sat beside her on his knees. Khushi too got onto her knees and moved towards him, taking off the rest of his shirt buttons and then sliding his jacket and his shirt off. Once his shirt was off, she moved towards him once more, pressing her lips onto his and placing her hands on his ass, pulling him closer to herself. Arnav’s hands found the dori of her kameez, pulled it undone and then pulled her kameez off.

 

“Arnav…”

“Are you are sure?”

“Yes.”

 

Lying her back, he pulled her shelwar off and freed himself of his own trousers. He left their underwear on and lay her back against the bed, moving between her legs.
His hand trailed down her body, tracing every curve in slow motion, while his lips travelled down the column of her neck, and then went further still until he found one of her pebbled nipples. Pulling her bra away from her breast, he took it between his lips, his tongue grazing the sensitive tip. Khushi’s hand tightened in his hair and her leg brushed against his.

His hand carried on its travel, feeling the inside of her thighs before resting on her panties. He stroked her over her pants, running his hands along the front, putting slight more pressure on the finger that traced her entrance.

 

“Complete me…”

 

He looked into her eyes, which now were much darker than what they had been a little while ago, her need mirroring his.

Arnav wanted to play with her, prolong this moment, but he too wanted to be within her, feel her warmth around his length.

Unclipping her bra, Arnav pulled it away and tossed it aside. He pressed a quick kiss on both breasts, before lightly suckling on each nipple. He then carried on to pulling her panties away and made light work of his own underwear.

Coming back over her, Arnav gentle pushed a finger into her, to check if she was ready and was glad to find she was. Her body was wet with need, ready for the taking.

 

“Baby are you sure?”

“Yes.”

 

Lips pressed between each other’s, hands locked above Khushi’s head, Arnav carefully lowered himself into her, a little at a time. Even before pushing his entire length in, he could feel her body adjust around him, squeezing him as he made his way in.

Wrapping her legs around his waist, Khushi melted into the bed, a content sigh leaving her lips. Arnav held himself still for a moment before slowly moving, taking long strokes, making her feel her full length, pushing all the way in before pulling all the way out again.

He went excruciating slowly, savouring the feeling because up until a short while ago, he’d believed he wouldn’t experience this level of intimacy with her again. Khushi lifted her hips to meet his each thrust, her legs tightening around his waist.

 

“Faster…”

 

He had known that he’d been moving to slowly for her liking, but hearing her verbalise what she wanted turned him on, making him up his speed, move faster and harder. But he made sure that he didn’t hurt her by moving too aggressively.

Once they’d established a speed and intensity that they were both happy with, Arnav kept going, holding Khushi to himself, placing kisses on her neck.

They were both getting close and Arnav moved faster. A moan of intense pleasure left Khushi’s lips and Arnav smiled against her neck. He loved knowing that he provided this much pleasure to her.

 

“Ah… Arnav… I…”

“Sh, I know.”

 

Her muscles clenched around his length tightly, she was so close. He could feel his release coming too and moved faster, lifting her hips so he was guaranteed to hit her most sensitive spot each time.

Her head turned from on side to the other, her hands clenching the sheets below her. He could feel it, it was far more intense than anything they’d ever experienced before.

With one last thrust, they both came undone. Breathing heavy, Arnav held himself still as his length emptied its content into her body. Khushi body went slack under his and Arnav gathered her into his arms, tucking her into his chest.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

Hiding her face in his chest, Khushi gave a little nod, placing light kisses on his chest.
Arnav felt his body get heavy with sleep and Khushi too felt herself becoming light.
Soon enough, they both drifted off into the world of sleep, content for the first time in a long time…

Unwanted ~ Part 33

Khushi

 

I couldn’t believe what Raj was telling me, how could it be true. How could it be possible?

 

“What are you saying Raj? How is that possible?”

“I didn’t think it was possible but he was there, I spoke to him!”

“Are you sure?”

“Khushi, I know what Arnav Singh Raizada looks like. Even before you came into my life, I’d been following Arnav’s work closely. I know who he is.”

“But why would he be teaching five year olds?”

“I told you, he said he was helping a friend out.”

 

Sinking my hand into my hair, I sat down on the sofa. None of this was making any sense to me, how could it be possible…

 

“Has he realised?”

“I don’t think so. I mean, he asked me about Arushi’s dad because he’s read her file and I told him that her dad wasn’t in the picture. He didn’t really ask anything else.”

 

It was clear what I needed to do. Arnav wasn’t dumb, if he had any suspicions, he would start putting pieces together and he’d be able to figure it out. And Raj had told him more than I was comfortable with him knowing. I needed to get out of here.

 

“I need to leave Raj. I need to take Arushi and I need to get out of Mumbai.”

 

My words had caught Raj off guard. I don’t think he thought that I would consider leaving, but I needed to. Arnav couldn’t find us. He had his own life now and his own family. There was no space in his life for me and Arushi.

 

“Leaving… You can’t.”

“I have to. If he finds us…”

“Then we’ll deal with it! You can’t just leave!”

“I have no choice Raj.”

 

He took a step towards me, reaching out to me.

 

“Look, Arnav said he’s leaving soon. How about we all just lie low until he’s out of town. You can’t just uproot your life and move away.”

“I’ve done it before, I can do it again.”

“But things are different this time. It’s not just you. You have to think about Arushi too. This is her home, her life, me and mom, we’re a part of her family. She has friends here. Taking her away will mean having to start all over again and she’s only a child. Starting over for her isn’t as easy as starting over for you.”

“I know but…”

“Please Khushi.”

 

Looking up at Raj, he was practically begging. All he needed to do was get onto his knees and hold his hands together.

 

“Please don’t leave. You and Arushi are a huge part of my life, I don’t know what I’d do if you both weren’t around.”

“But Arnav…”

“He’ll leave soon. And even if he doesn’t, I’ll protect you and Arushi. Even if he wants to take you both back, or if he tried to take Arushi from you, I will protect you both and I’ll fight him. I’ll do anything, just don’t leave.”

 

Over the years, Raj has done so much for both me and Arushi and he’s never asked for anything. He cared for us without asking for anything in return. I realised it was unfair just to walk away from him now but… What if Arnav found us?

 

“I don’t know…”

“Marry me Khushi. I know, I know how you feel regarding this idea, but I’m not asking you to marry me because I want marriage. I’m asking you to marry me so I can have some form of legality over you and Arushi. That way even if Arnav tried to do anything, it would be harder.”

“But marriage…”

“Please just think about it.”

 

What do I say, what do I do? I don’t want to get married. Can I even get married? I’m still married to Arnav. But Raj had a point. If I was married to him, it would change a lot. But I couldn’t marry Raj. I wouldn’t be doing it for the right reasons.

 

“At least think about it.”

“I will.”

 

And I meant it. I would think about it. Because at the end of the day, if I wasn’t going to go back to Arnav then I would have to start thinking about what I was going to do and how I was going to spend the rest of my life.

Still highly confused, I made my way up to my room.

There was no doubt about how Raj felt about me and Arushi, he really cared for us both and we cared for him. But did I care for him enough to actually want to get married to him?

Instead of going to my room, I walk passed Arushi’s and saw that she was sat doing her homework. Whatever decision I made, I needed to make sure that it was the best option for my daughter. I had to put her first. My little girl did need a dad. As much as she had Raj, she needed a real dad. Maybe Raj could be a real dad. As real as he can be without being her biological father?

Thinking about everything that Raj had told me about his meeting with Arnav, there was no doubt that Arnav wouldn’t be a good father. He was a teacher of five year olds and he was able to handle them all so well. But then he does have his own child… Maybe it’s because he’s a good father to his child, that’s helped him to be such a good teacher.

I felt so confused. So so confused.

Feeling a hand close around my shoulder, I turned to find Veera mausi looking at me intently.

Guiding me away from Arushi’s room, she led me back to mine and sat me down.

 

“What are you thinking about dear?”

“I’m just thinking about everything Raj has told me today.”

“It must be a lot to take in.”

 

That was an understand statement. It wasn’t a lot, it was an insane amount.

 

“He’s here mausi. Right here! And he’s been in such close proximity to our daughter. In my heart, as much as I say I don’t want Arushi bear Arnav, I’ve always wanted her to meet him, to know him. And to find out that she has been around him, has got to know him…”

 

Placing her hand on mine, she made it clear that she understood what I was trying to say, what I was thinking.

 

“What are you going to do now?”

“I don’t know.”

“Well, from what I heard from you and Raj, it sounds like he’s thinking the same way I am. But I do understand your dilemma. Well regardless of whatever decision you make, I’ll stand by your decision. You’re like a daughter to me any way, so whether or not you marry me son, I will still support you.”

 

I know how much it means to Veera mausi that I marriage Raj. But the fact that she supports and respects what I want, means a lot.

 

*****

 

Days passed and I started to feel slightly more at ease. The school term had ended so Arushi no longer had to be in such close proximity of Arnav and soon he’d be leaving.
I had thought about Raj and his proposal, but I realised that I couldn’t. No matter what security I could get by marrying him, it wasn’t worth it. I would never be able to give Raj the love her deserves and I don’t want him to have to sacrifice the chance of finding true love and happiness for my sake.

Moving further on from that, I realised that regardless of whether Arnav was still here or not, me and Arushi needed to leave. If we stayed, Raj would never be able to move forward with his life. And I wanted him to be happy, to get married, to have children of his own. It was due to all that of that I decided me and Arushi were going to Goa. Next week.

 

*****

 

“Raj, Veera mausi, I would like to speak to you about something.”

 

It was after dinner and Arushi had already gone to bed.

 

“What is it dear?”

 

Putting my spoon down and pushing my plate away from me, I took a deep breath.

 

“I have decided that… I… I have decided that me and Arushi are leaving here.”

“What?”

 

Mausi looked at me with big eyes, and Raj dropped his spoon, which clattered onto the floor.

 

“Khushi…”

“I know this wasn’t the response that you both were expecting, however, I think this is the best option for myself and Arushi.”

 

Veera mausi was the first to recover, while Raj continued to stare at me dumbstruck.

 

“But where will you go? And why?”

“I’ve been looking into moving to Goa. And it’s because I just feel like I need to move on with life. I have burdened you and Raj with my problems for so long. I think the time has come for me and Arushi to start our own life.”

 

Pushing his chair back, Raj got to his feet.

 

“What the hell Khushi!”

 

He wasn’t impressed.

 

“How can… How can you just decide that you’re going to leave like that?”

“It wasn’t an easy decision…”

“Arnav’s going to leave, that’s if he hasn’t left already. Why can’t you stay? Why are you…”

 

He didn’t finish what he was saying because he’d already turned away from me. Walking over to where he was standing, I placed my hand on his shoulder.

 

“Raj… Please look at me.”

 

He shook his head and remained with his back to me.

 

“Raj I know you’re angry and I know you weren’t expecting this, but I really think…”

“No I get it, you don’t see me and ma as being a part of your family, that’s why you’re leaving us. I told you how much you and Arushi mean to me and you’re still… If you were telling me you were going to back Arnav, I would accept that. But to leave us just to go somewhere else…”

“I’m sorry…”

 

He turned to face me, and looked me straight in the eye.

 

“You can leave, I won’t stop you, but I hope to god Arnav finds you. You haven’t even left and I already feel betrayed. Only god knows how he would have felt when you walked out on him without even telling him.”

 

I was gobsmacked. Raj had never spoken to me like that. But he was angry and I could understand why he was reacting like this. He loved Arushi as if she were his own and I was taking her away. I understood.

 

“I’m sorry.”

 

Shaking his head, he left the dining room and made his way up to his room, leaving me with Veera mausi.

 

“Mausi…”

“I have always said that I will respect whatever decision you make, but I will have to admit, I am disappointed you have chosen not to marry Raj.”

“I can’t mausi. You know that and you know why. I’m still married to Arnav. And more than that, I still love Arnav. It would be unfair on Raj. I’d never be able to accept him or love him the way he deserves. In fact… I am leaving for his sake. While I am here, I don’t think he will marry. Maybe once I leave, he will start considering his own marriage. I will forever be grateful to the both of you, and it is due to how much I care about you both that I have come to this decision.”

 

I could tell that mausi was taking in what I was saying, that she was comprehending and she was understanding.

 

“I just wish you weren’t leaving. You really are the daughter I never had.”

 

Rushing over to her, I wrapped my arms around her and gave her a huge hug.

 

“Thank you mausi. Thank you so much.”

 

Tears rolled down my eyes as I realised what this meant. I was leaving. Really leaving. I was leaving the people who accepted a complete stranger and loved her and her child like their own. I couldn’t believe I was actually doing this.

 

“Our home is going to be incomplete without you and Arushi.”

“And my life is going to be incomplete without you and Raj, but I think this is the best for all of us.”

 

Me And Veera Mausi hugged each other, realising that this was the end of a chapter in both our lives. And although this wasn’t the happiest of endings, it was an ending still full of hope. There was no way I was going to forget about Raj and Mausi, nor would I lose touch with them, but there comes a point in everyone’s life when we need to leave our comfort zone and move forward. And it was time for me and Arushi to do just that.

 

*****

 

Waking up early the next morning, I got my stuff together and grabbed my keys. I needed to go and buy plane tickets for myself and Arushi.

After Raj had calmed down, he’d come to find me. He’d asked me what my plan was, where was I going to stay, and more important, how was I going to get there.

Initially I had thought that I would just drive there, however after looking at the route, and looking at how long it would take, I decided against it. Me and Arushi were going to go to Goa via plane and Raj was going to drive my car down there and then come back via flight. I told him about the flat that I had found that was up for rent and told him that I had already spoken to the landlord.

I think he was quite surprised when he realised just how much I had actually decided and sorted in the short space of time.

Letting Veera Mausi know that I was going to get our tickets sorted and after asking her to keep an eye on Arushi, I left to go to the travel agent that I had spoken to. Taking my leave, I left the house, got into my car and made my way into town.

 

*****

 

Parking my car, I got out, locked it, and then made my way down to the travel agents office. Upon arriving at the door of the travel agents, I stopped to take my phone out so I could tell the agent exactly which flight it was that I had looked into and that I wanted.

Fumbling with my bag, I dropped my keys in and tried to locate my phone. Just as I managed to fish my phone out, someone bumped into me, causing me to drop it back into my bag.

 

“Dammit.”

“Khushi?”

 

Shit. Shit shit shit. Even without looking up I knew exactly who I’d bumped into. SHIT.

 

Slowly looking up, I found myself looking into a pair of molten brown eyes. A pair of eyes that didn’t look necessarily surprised to see me, especially because he’s seeing me after six long years, but still surprised.

 

“Arnav…”

 

 

Jalebi ~ Part 29

Khushi lay in the bed, staring up at the ceiling. Rohan was still out of town and so Khushi had been spending a lot of time around the house. She’d been tempted to take the calls of the Raizada’s but she wasn’t sure if she was ready to speak to them just yet. All her thoughts, all her feelings were troubling her the more time she spent alone. When she closed her eyes, she could feel Arnav’s hands and his lips on her body. When she opened her eyes in the morning, she thought Arnav was lying beside her. It was driving her insane and she couldn’t deal with it.

As time passed and Khushi remained idle, she got more and more angry at Akash. How could he take everything away from her like that? The business, fine, his greed got the better of him, but he should have realised that taking the business would lead to her losing the love of her life, her soulmate. The more Khushi thought about it, the more she realised that she couldn’t stay mad at Arnav. But how could she not? If he hadn’t accommodated the idea in the first place then this wouldn’t have happened.

Sitting up, Khushi ran her hand through her hair, tugging on the ends. This was all driving her insane! She couldn’t deal with this any more. She needed to do something to get it sorted.

Looking at the clock, Khushi realised it was only 2pm. Jumping out of bed, Khushi got dressed. It was finally time to sort this.

 

*****

 

“Khushi? What are you… Who let you in?”

“Hi jijaji. I’m guessing you weren’t expecting me.”

 

Looking around, it was obvious that Khushi had caught Akash off guard. He hadn’t been expecting for her to come to see him and it showed on his face.

Waling into the office, she shut the door slightly, and sat in the seat opposite him.

 

“Listen…”

“No. You’re going to listen. Why would you do this to me jijaji? I respected you so much, I thought you were such a nice person and you… You conspired against me the whole time.”

“I didn’t…”

“You stole my business. The one I put my heart and soul into for five years. How could you? And then Arnav… I thought he… I believed he did this to me, I thought the worst of him… How could you mess with my love and my life like that?”

 

Looking at him, Khushi waited for an answer. Akash opened his mouth and then shut it again as he felt something snap within him.

 

“You want to know why and how?”

“Yes, please tell me.”

“You deserved it. You deserved to have everything you held important taken from you. Call it revenge.”

“Revenge for what?”

 

She looked at him quizzically, trying to make sense of what he was saying.

 

“Revenge for what Akash? What have I ever done to you that’s so bad that you felt the need to ruin my life in this manner?”

 

Remaining silent, Akash played up his options. Either he could remain silent and maybe she’d leave, or he could tell her exactly how she ruined his life. Akash decided to go for the latter.

 

“I ruined your life, because you made a mess of mine.”

“Excuse me?”

“Remember when I asked you on a date in high school?”

“No? When did you ever do that?”

“It was just before I started dating Payal. I asked you out first and you completely ignored me. You said no and then left.”

 

Her forehead creased and Akash watched as she took in the what he was saying. He could tell she was confused, really thinking hard and then her expression softened.

 

“It was a dare though?”

“Yes it had been a dare, but I was generally interested in you and I actually wanted to date you. But you shot me down in an instant, you didn’t think anything of it.”

“I didn’t realise you were being serious. How was I supposed to know?”

“Would it have made a difference to your decision?”

“No. Probably not.”

“Then you deserved what you got.”

 

Looking up, Khushi tried to understand Akash and his actions.

 

“Are you… Are you actually insane?That was in high school! And besides, you got with jiji after and now you’re married to her. It all worked out for you. Why did you need to ruin my life?”

“You don’t get it do you? I was in love with you and you turned me away. I went to Payal to make you jealous. But it never worked.”

“I don’t… Why did you feel so strongly about me back then? I was so basic, so… I was invisible.”

 

Khushi felt genuinely super confused. This was insane! So Akash had been in love with her and went to Payal to make her jealous?

 

“You may have been invisible to everyone else, but I noticed you in classes. I saw how smart you were and I found that attractive. Boys back then only cared about boobs and butts. I cared about brains.”

“But you’re with jiji now! You’re married to her! How could you do this to me and to her?”

“I couldn’t just let you get away with it Khushi. And then you got with bhai. Do you know how hard that was? Maybe if you and bhai didn’t get that close, maybe I wouldn’t have done anything. But knowing you were sleeping with him when I…”

“Don’t.”

 

She wanted him to stop. This was crazy. Akash wasn’t right in the head, there was definitely something wrong with him.

 

“Okay so I screwed up when we were kids, but Akash, you’re married to my jiji now and you’re happy! Why would you…”

“Because we needed your business! AR was sinking…”

“And I could have helped you! There was no need for you to steal my business from me.”

 

Waiting, Khushi watched as the cogs in Akash’s brain spun and he tried to think of something to say, but nothing came. Letting out a sigh of exasperation, Khushi threw her arms in the air and turned away.

 

“This was a waste of my time. You aren’t worth it. You can have Khushiyan and you can shove it up your ass. I hope jiji sees what kind of trash you are. She deserves so much better.”

 

Turning to look at Akash one last time, Khushi took in his slumped figure and just shook her head and made her way to leave. Reaching the door, she was shocked to find Arnav stood in the doorway.

 

“Arnav…”

 

Akash looked up from his desk, his eyes wide as he took his brother in.

 

“How long have you been here?”

 

Walking into the room, Arnav walked over to Akash.

 

“You did all this for revenge? You used me as a pawn so you could get revenge?”

“Bhai…”

“How could you Akash! Does my happiness mean that little to you? At the beginning, okay fine, I didn’t know Khushi, she didn’t mean anything to me. But when you realised I was falling in love with Khushi and you knew that I didn’t approve, you still went ahead for the sake of your revenge?”

 

Khushi looked between the two brothers. Akash had his head down, and Arnav was seething with anger but it was evident that he was hurting.

 

“Arnav leave it…”

“No! You may be able to leave it because you’ve moved on, but I haven’t! And so I can’t leave it.”

 

He marched over to Akash and pulled him out of the chair by his collar. Khushi rushed in after him.

 

“How could you do that to me? I’ve always loved you and treated you like my own little brother and you.”

“Arnav let him go!”

“If I was as low as you, I’d probably beat you up now, but I respect family.”

 

Letting go of his collar, Arnav threw Akash back into the chair and stormed out of the office.

 

*****

 

“Arnav! Arnav wait!”

Running after Arnav, Khushi needed to make sure that he was okay. Akash had looked drained and slightly mortified when she had left but he didn’t matter. But Arnav did.

 

“Arnav!”

 

Finally catching up with him, Khushi caught Arnav by the elbow, turning him to face her.
She saw the tears that had gathered in his eyes.

 

“He used me and my feelings for you to achieve his own twisted schemes…”

“Let’s go somewhere and talk.”

 

As much as Khushi didn’t want to be alone with Arnav, she knew that she needed to talk to him, he seemed a mess at this moment.

 

“Let’s go back to mine.”

“No thanks. I don’t want to get beaten up by your fiancé.”

 

Turning away, Arnav was prepared to make his way back over to his car when Khushi stopped him again.

 

“Rohan is out of town.”

“Why are you insisting we talk? Aren’t you the one who wanted to cut me out of your life for good?”

“A lot has happened and we found out a lot today, I know you’re feeling confused, so am I. So I think it would be us both good to sit and talk about it.”

 

Turning his attention to Khushi, he saw her outstretched hand, her caring look in her eyes. It was evident that no matter what happened between them, she still cared and maybe, just maybe, he had a chance of winning her back.

Nodding, Arnav led Khushi to the car and they made their way back to Khushi’s apartment.

 

*****

 

“Take a seat, I’ll get you some coffee.”

 

Putting her keys down, Khushi went into the little kitchen while Arnav took a seat on the sofa. He looked around and he couldn’t help but feel nervous. The last time that he’d been here, he left finding out that she was engaged to her arsehole of a childhood friend.
She reemerged moments later, much faster than she had done the other day and handed Arnav his coffee cup and took a seat beside him. Arnav noticed how when she initially sat down, she was relatively close to him, and then she scooted away from him. She took a sip of her own tea before turning to Arnav.

 

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m not as mad as I was initially. But I’m still mad. How could he… I can’t even begin to comprehend.”

“I can’t either. I can’t believe something that happened so long ago fuelled so much hate and anger in him. If I knew this was to happen, I would have just gone on that date with him.”

“He’s insane. And forget about us, he played Payal too.”

“Don’t tell jiji anything. She’d break down if she found out what he was doing and her reasoning behind it all.”

“Well she already knows he’s the reason why you haven’t got Khushiyan any more. I told Di any way but I got drunk the other day and told Nani who took it up with mama and Mami.”

“You got drunk?”

 

Khushi’s eyes widened as she turned to him fully.

 

“You don’t get drunk?”

“That was the old Arnav. This Arnav drinks to drown his sorrows. Although, I’ve promised Nani I won’t get drunk again.”

“But why were you so drunk that you told Nani something like that?”

 

Arnav took a sip of his coffee and put the mug down, turning to Khushi.

 

“Why do you think I was so drunk?”

“I don’t…”

“I handed my business over out of anger, the only woman I’ve ever wanted to be with is engaged to someone else and my brother is a piece of shit. Is it hard to see why I’ve been getting drunk?”

 

Turning away, Khushi looked down.

 

“You act like you’re the only one that’s hurting.”

“It seems like I am.”

 

Unable to contain herself, Khushi looked Arnav in the eye, and he could see the anger in her.

 

“Just because I’m not getting drunk and I’m not lashing out doesn’t mean I’m not hurting. You chose to give your business up, mine was taken away from me! Yes, I may not be with you any more, but you’re not with me either any more. You act like you were the only one in love in our relationship, but I was too. I had to let you go… Do you think that was easy for me?”

“You went and got engaged to someone else.”

 

Shaking her head, Khushi realised there was no point talking to him about this. He wouldn’t understand. He couldn’t see.

 

“You don’t get it Arnav. I gave myself to you and I thought you betrayed me.”

“I didn’t…”

“I know that now! But at the time I was hurting and confused and Rohan was there for me. I thought that maybe our parents knew what they were doing when they had fixed our rishta…”

“But Khushi, you know now that I didn’t play you, or cheat you. Take me back.”

 

He’d put the cup down and leaned closer to her, taking her hands in his own. He looked into her eyes, searching for an answer, pleading almost for another chance.

 

“I love you and I know you still love me. Take me back Khushi.”

 

He leaned closer, his lips almost touching hers, waiting for a response. She looked into his eyes, and could see the sincerity, the need, the desperation almost.

 

“I can’t…”

 

He leaned closer, wanting to close the gap.

 

“You can…”

“Rohan…”

 

She moved back, pulling her hands out of Arnav’s and looked away.

 

“I can’t! I can’t do that to Rohan. Not after the way he supported me at my time of need. I can’t…”

 

Getting to her feet, she turned away. Arnav too got up, his hand reaching her shoulder.

 

“We’re in love. Rohan will understand…”

“I can’t do that Arnav! Please, don’t make this harder for me.”

“So what, that’s it? Despite knowing I never wanted to hurt you, you’re still willing to turn your back on me? Does what we shared mean that little to you?”

“Please leave.”

 

Tears rolled down Khushi’s face. She wanted to be with Arnav, of course she did! But how could she just go back? How could she do that to Rohan? She couldn’t. Her bed was made and she had to lie in it now. Without Arnav…

Unwanted ~ Part 32

Arnav

After the initial paranoia on my birthday about what was going on with Nimisha and Pari, I realised that I really didn’t care. It didn’t bother me what was going on with them. If they weren’t bothering me, then that was a good thing.

My time here in Mumbai and at the school was almost over. I had a week left and after that, I would be in my way back to Delhi, back to my usual life. In a way, I was looking forward to going back, but at the same time I wasn’t. I was going to miss the kids. There was a little boy, Sumit, who I really got along with. He was a funny little guy, always knew the right things to say.

And then of course there was Arushi. The stranger who didn’t feel like a stranger. Even after all this time, I didn’t know why this child felt so familiar, like I should know her.

I’m sure if I said this out loud, or if I explained how I was drawn to this child, people would think wrongly of it, that they’d disapprove of it. Probably never let me work with kids again. But it was nothing like that. This child felt like someone close to me, like a relative. It’s an indescribable feeling. If anything, I guess it’s the way a father would feel towards his child. But there was no reason for me to feel paternal towards this child.

 

*****

 

I was in full flow, teaching the children how to put letters together to make new sounds. I was teaching them the concept that s and h together make a “sh” sound. And it was then that my phone started ringing. Reaching over my desk, I muted my phone so that I could carry on. Just as I was getting back into my flow, my phone started ringing once more. This time I picked my phone up off the desk. Payal was calling me? Why was Payal calling? And why was it so urgent that she needed to get hold of me right now? Had something happened? Khushi?

As it dawned on me that Payal could be calling me with something regarding Khushi, I knew I needed to answer the call.

But I couldn’t take a personal call while in the middle of a lesson. Looking at the time, I saw that there wasn’t long until the children would go for their lunch. I’d have to call Payal back then.

 

*****

 

Time seemed to crawl along, but soon enough it was lunchtime. The moment I got all the children to the canteen, I ran back to the classroom and called Payal back.

 

“Payal…”

“Bhai! I only realised after the second call you were in class but…”

“Is everything okay? What’s going on?”

“I got a letter. From Khushi.”

 

I felt like I stopped breathing for a moment. There must have been something in that letter. Otherwise why else would Payal have been so desperate to try to get a hold of me?

 

“What… What did the letter say?”

 

There was a pause, maybe it was for only a few seconds, but it felt like eternity.

 

“Payal…”

“She said she saw you.”

 

Now I really did stop breathing. Khushi saw me? Meaning Khushi was… She’s here? In Mumbai.

 

“Should I read the letter to you?”

“Yes please.”

 

There was another pause and there was some rustling, but then Payal came back to the phone and she started reading the letter out to me. The moment she started reading and as I started taking the words in, it was abundantly clear that Khushi had seen me and that she didn’t want to be seen. I understood her insecurities and I understood her confusion.

 

“Payal, whatever you do, don’t tell anyone at home about this. About the fact that Khushi saw me and that I know where she is.”

“Of course.”

“Let me find her and then we’ll decide how to go forward. But for now, let’s keep this between us.”

“Okay bhai. Please, find her. She’s close by. Please find her.”

“I promise you Payal. I am going to find her and I’m going to bring her back.”

 

At that point, I wasn’t just making a promise to Payal, but to myself and Khushi as well. I was going to find her regardless of anything else. Even if it was the last thing I did, I was going to find her. But how was the real question.

 

*****

 

After thinking about all things Khushi related for a while, it became clear that I could leave Mumbai like I planned to. So I’d be leaving this job still, but I couldn’t go back to Delhi yet. I needed to find her. I wasn’t going to go back to Delhi without her.

But how was I meant to find her?

Just as the lunch break was coming to an end, Veer walked into my classroom.

 

“Hey, you okay?”

“I’m good Arnav, yourself? How do you feel that you’re leaving at the end of the week?”

“I’m glad that I’m nearly done, but at the same time, I’m really going to miss the kids.”

“I’m sure they’re going to miss you too. Any way, I came to let you know that on Wednesday evening, you have to hold a parents evening and meet with the parents of the kids. As it’s the end of term, you need to give progress reports.”

“That’s fine. What do I need to do to prepare?”

“Just take out the file for the kids of your class, write the letters to the parents and specify what time you’d like to come in.”

 

It seemed straight forward enough. I told Veer that I’d get it all sorted and just as he was about to leave, I decided I should try my luck.

 

“Hey Veer, random as it is, I just wanted to ask, have you seen Khushi around Mumbai?”

“You wife?”

“Yeah?”

“No I haven’t. Why? Is she here?”

“I don’t know, was just curious.”

 

I watched Veer. He seemed to be racking his brains, trying to remember if he had seen her. I told him not to worry about it and he left just as the kids started coming back to class.

I turned away, and it was then then that I heard a little voice behind me.

 

“My mama’s name is Khushi.”

 

Turning around, my eyes widened as I saw the source of the little voice. Arushi.

 

*****

 

For the rest of that afternoon, I was completely dazed. Arushi’s mother was called Khushi. Once the children left at the end of the day, I remained in the classroom, in my chair, thinking.

Slowly all the pieces of information I knew about Arushi started fitting together.

The mother who made amazing jalebis, single mother. Father with the same birthday as me. A father who wasn’t in the picture because he was working in Delhi. A diabetic…

Running a hand through my hair, I realised that this was insane. Was Arushi… Was she… I couldn’t even think about it, couldn’t comprehend. It felt like a huge bag of bricks had just been dropped on my head. I recalled everything I had thought and felt since I first met Arushi. That feeling of knowing her. I thought back to how I thought she was a relative of Khushi’s. Never for a moment did I even consider that maybe this child was… I couldn’t even say it.

I needed to check my facts before I got ahead of myself. Getting to my feet, I pretty much ran down to the office and asked for the staff for all the files on the kids in my class.

Once I got them, I took them back to my classroom and dug out Arushi’s one first.

 

Name: Arushi Singhania.

Singhania? Where did this name from? I carried on reading.

Mother : Khushi Singhania.

This must be how Khushi went under the radar. She used a different surname, one I would never have thought of. I carried on reading through her file, looking for any details that could refer to her father. But there was no father listed, no contact details for a dad. The only mention of her father was in the notes, where it said that Arushi had diabetes and that it was inherited from her dad.

Leaning back in my chair, I put my hands on my head, taking it all in, trying to comprehend.

Looking at the date of birth, I counted back 9 months. And sure enough, it went back to around the time Khushi left me. If this was my Khushi and I was right, then it means that Khushi was very, very early pregnant when she left me. Too early to tell. She probably hadn’t known herself at the time that she was pregnant.

Putting all the pieces together, I had conclusive evidence to believe that Arushi’s mother and my Khushi were the same person. And that Arushi… Arushi was my… My daughter.

I couldn’t believe it. COULDN’T BELIEVE IT. I had a daughter. Arushi…

Oh my god.

 

*****

 

Parents evening time had arrived and I met one parent after another. As I ticked the kids off, I got closer and closer to Arushi’s name, meaning closer to Khushi. How would she react when she saw me? Would she turn and bolt? Or would she just freeze up?

Time went on as I carried on meeting with the other parents until finally, I was awaiting on Arushi and her mother…

Sitting in my chair, I leaned back, shut my eyes, and tried to steady my breathing.

It was then there was a knock on my door.

Sitting up straight, I smoothed down my tie and ran my hand through my hair.

 

“Come in.”

 

This was it. If my suspicions were correct, then Khushi would be walking in now.

Arushi rushed into the room, and following close behind her was… A man? Arushi said hi, but my eyes remained fixed on the man in front of me, who also looked taken aback upon seeing me.

Who was he? Where was Khushi? Pulling myself together, I got to my feet and put my hand out to the man.

 

“Hi, I’m Ar…”

”Arnav Singh Raizada.”

 

As he walked towards me, he shook his head, pulled himself together and came and shook my hand.

 

“I’m Raj Singhania, Arushi’s father.”

 

Arushi’s father? But I thought Arushi didn’t have a dad? What on earth? What was happening?

 

“Please take a seat.”

 

Raj sat down opposite me, while Arushi went to the back of the classroom and started playing with the little toys that I’d left out.

 

“I didn’t realise you teach Mr Raizada.”

“I don’t. My friend owns the school so I’m just doing him a favour. This is my last couple of days.”

“Oh I see. Well seeing as I’ve had the pleasure to meet you, I’d just like to say that I’m a huge fan of your work and your business. I’ve been following the performance of your business very carefully.”

”Thanks. But we can discuss that later, let’s talk about Arushi.”

 

I still didn’t understand what was going on. Who this guy actually was. Nothing was making sense, but for now, I needed to do my job.
So I opened up my file and I started talking through all the notes that I’d made on Arushi over the past couple of months.

 

“So all in all, you have a very talented child and she’s a pleasure to work with.”

 

Looking up from her toys, Arushi smiled at me and then looked away again.

Now that I’d actually thought about it, her resemblance with Khushi was striking. She had to be my Khushi’s daughter. And she had to be my daughter. I was sure if it.

As the meeting neared it end, I realised that I needed to ask Raj more otherwise I’d never be able to rest in peace.

 

“I’m sorry if this is intrusive, but when I was looking at the records of children when inviting parents, I didn’t realise that Arushi had a father. I mean, you’re not listed as her father. I was under the impression her dad wasn’t in the picture?”

 

I don’t think Raj expected me to ask this because he looked slightly taken aback. But I knew I had to ask him. Given everything that I had learnt, I didn’t understand how he fit into the equation.

 

“I… I’m not really her dad.”

”What do you mean?”

 

I watched as he turned to Arushi who was in her own little world before he turned back to me. Letting out a little sigh, I watched as he recomposed himself.

 

“Arushi and her mother are paying guests at my house. They live with me and my mother, have done for over 6 years now. Well her mother has been with us for over six years, Arushi came into the picture afterwards.

A couple of years ago, Arushi got teased by the children in school about how she didn’t have a dad. So I guess you can say I stepped up for the role. But she knows I’m not actually her dad so it’s okay.”

 

If my suspicions were correct about Arushi being mine and Khushi’s child, then that means Arushi suffered a whole lot because I wasn’t around. But in my defence, I didn’t even know she existed.

 

“Where is Arushi’s father?”

 

Raj hesitated. Did he know who Arushi’s father was? Did he know that I was her dad?

 

“He… He doesn’t live around here.”

 

Looking at his watch, Raj got to his feet.

 

“I’m sorry to call out meeting short but I need to get going.”

 

He was escaping. My questions were making him uncomfortable and that further solidified my suspicions. I was damn sure Arushi was my Khushi’s child. Mine and Khushi’s child. She had to be. Answer Raj knew Arushi was mine.

I needed to find Khushi and I needed to find her soon. If this really was my Khushi and if Arushi really was my daughter, it means I’ve missed out on years with her and I need to fix things to make up for lost time. I needed to find Khushi.

 

I needed to.

Jalebi ~ Part 28

As days pass, it became abundantly clear that Arnav was struggling to come to terms with the events that had taken place. By 5pm every day, Arnav is completely drunk. Anjali had thrown out all the alcohol in the house, but despite that, he still managed to get drunk.

 

“Anjali bitya, what are we to do? Chote can’t carry on like this. He was hurting so at first I didn’t say anything despite being completely against his actions. But now. This is too much.”

“I know Nani. I’m trying, but I don’t know what to do.”

“Have you been able to get through to Khushi?”

“No. But I know Payal has been talking to her.”

 

Nani nodded and then sat down. She was stressed. Seeing her grandson like this was really hurting her. Arnav was always so strong, so kept together. And now all of a sudden he was a complete and utter mess and there seemed to be no way to help him.

 

*****

 

“But Khushi…”

“Jiji please. How about you come round and meet Rohan? He’s really nice, I’m sure you’ll really like him.”

“Khushi, I told you Akash doesn’t want me to contact you. He’s holding you responsible for Bhai being such a mess.”

 

Gritting her teeth, Khushi stopped herself from telling Payal that Akash was the cause of the condition Arnav was in, not her.

 

“There’s nothing I can do jiji. I’ve moved on and he will too. Any way, I have to go now.”

 

Before Payal could say anything more, Khushi put the phone down. She didn’t want to speak about Arnav any more or hear how much he was struggling. She had received a number of calls from the Raizada household and a tonne of messages from Anjali. She understood their concern for Arnav, but at the same time there really wasn’t much she could do. She’d made her bed and now she had to lie in it. It was hurting her, knowing Arnav was a mess and that’s she was the cause of his state, but she just couldn’t bring herself to face him.

Sitting down on the edge of her bed, Khushi scrolled through her camera roll and found a picture of Arnav. It was one she had taken of him while he was asleep in bed. His hair was over his eyes and his bare chest was on show. Looking at the picture, it hurt Khushi’s heart as she realised just how much she actually missed him. How she wanted to lie beside him again, to be able to push his hair out of his eyes and cuddle into his chest. But she couldn’t. That phase of their life was over and she was trying to move on with Rohan.

Locking the screen of her phone, Khushi put it down and got to her feet before turning to fix the bed. As she leaned down to fix the pillow, a strong pair of arms came to hold her, their body pressed against hers.

 

“Hi.”

“Rohan let me go please.”

“Nope…”

 

Pushing her hair over to one shoulder, Rohan pushed Khushi’s kameez off her shoulder and attempted to kiss her exposed skin.

 

“No!”

 

Moving out of his grip, Khushi fixed her clothes and moved away from him.

 

“I can’t… I’m sorry. I can’t.”

“We’re getting married soon, we don’t need to worry.”

“It’s not that. I just can’t do this… With you… I…”

 

Clenching his jaw shut, Rohan looked to Khushi. He didn’t say anything, but his eyes said it all. He wasn’t impressed.

 

“Right. Okay. Whatever. I just came to tell you I’m going out of town for a few days. I need to get some work related stuff sorted. I was going to ask if you wanted to come with me, but I think it’d be better if you stayed here and tried to get your head sorted.”

“I’m sorry…”

“I’m being patient with you Khushi, you know I am, but you’re starting to test my limits. I get that you’re not ready to get intimate with me, but I need you to at least start trying to accept me.”

“I am… I will…”

 

Grabbing his things, Rohan said goodbye to Khushi and then left her room. Sitting down, Khushi realised that she really needed to find closure, if she didn’t, she’d never be able to move forward. She realised with Rohan out of town, now was probably the best time to get anything done.

 

*****

 

“Sir, do you know where the file is?”

“If I knew where it was, I wouldn’t be asking you! Find that god damn file! I have a meeting with the Mehta’s in less than an hour.”

“Maybe you should ask ASR…”

“I am ASR.”

“I mean Arnav sir…”

“No. I can do this myself. I don’t need his help.”

 

Akash dismissed Aman who shook his head and walked away. Ever since Akash had taken over, the whole company was a shambles. Even though all the employees were slightly scared of Arnav, at least they knew that he was fair and that if he got angry, there was a reason behind it. But Akash… If was unable to do something, he’d take it out on everyone else. And he never was able to do anything. If Arnav was a natural born charismatic businessman, then Akash was the complete opposite. He couldn’t lead a business when he didn’t even have business knowledge. No matter what his qualification stated, his business’s acumen was zeeo and he couldn’t control his temper at all.

Aman had never minded having Arnav as a boss, but right now, he prayed for Arnav to return so they wouldn’t have to deal with Akash any more.

Akash was struggling. Nothing was going right for him. Since his time here as the owner, he had failed to close any deals successfully and he was constantly messing up at meetings because he seemed to always have the wrong files on him.

He had never struggled this much when he was working alongside Arnav but now, nothing was going right. But he wasn’t going to admit defeat and go to Arnav. He would manage this. How hard could it be to manage two businesses that were fully equipped with more than capable staff. If Arnav and Khushi were able to do it, then surely he would be able to do it too.

 

*****

 

Arnav was sat by his bar, drinking his sorrows away. Nani walked in and wrinkled up her nose. Arnav was just attempting to reach out for the bottle and was about to pour himself another glass when Nani stopped him.

 

“Enough is enough Chote. This isn’t you! You aren’t a drunk. You need to start coming to terms with what had happened in your life and you need to start working through your issues.”

“I’ve tried Nani, but I can’t get anything sorted and I can’t make things right. I’ve failed Khushi and I’ve failed myself.”

“Chote you can’t blame yourself.”

“Oh I don’t. I mean I do, but I blame my brother too. How did I ever trust that scum?”

 

Devyani Raizada looked at her drunk grandson, her eyes wide. What was he saying?

 

“Chote, what do you mean?”

“I mean, I didn’t steal Khushi’s business, Akash did. He took advantage of the fact we were both distracted from the night before and used that against us. I trusted him despite knowing he had bad intentions and now I’m suffering while he’s living the life.”

 

Devyani knew that she should be angry at Arnav. She didn’t miss what he meant when he said they were distracted from the night before. And she knew exactly what he was insinuating happened between him and Khushi the night before. But she wasn’t angry. If anything it hurt her more because she realised that Arnav’s feelings for Khushi were very much real, otherwise he would never have slept with her. He knew what their families rules were and he wouldn’t go against his Nani for the sake of any old woman.

But more than that, she was concerned about what Arnav was saying about Akash.

 

“Chote, are you sure about what you are saying about Akash?”

”It’s the only thing I’m sure about any more. He went against my wishes, stole my girlfriends business and ruined my relationship with the woman I worked so hard to win over.”

“Arnav, I will sort this. I’ll sort it all for you, but you need to stop drinking.”

”There’s nothing that can be done Nani. To give Khushi her business back, Akash needs to sign off the papers and he’ll never do that. And even if he did, she’s getting married to someone else. My life is destroyed.”

”We will sort this Chote. Just please stop drinking.”

 

Arnav looked into his nani’s eyes. It was evident that his behaviour was hurting her and he couldn’t bare to see that hurt in her eyes. He put down his glass and pushed it aside.

 

“I’ll try Nani. Only for you.”

 

Thanking Arnav, Nani turned around. She needed to go and speak to Anjali. If there was any kind of funny business going in, Anjali would know. Arnav wouldn’t be able to hide anything from his Di.

 

*****

 

Slumped over on the Anjali’s bed, Devyani couldn’t believe what she was being told. How could one brother do that to another brother?

 

“Anjali bitya, we need to get this sorted.”

“But what can we do Nani. Akash won’t hand the business back over and Khushi is about to take Chote back.”

“We need to talk to Mamorama and Mahendar”

“I don’t know Nani… Chote wouldn’t want to cause problems within the family.”

“I know he wouldn’t, but this needs to get sorted. Chote is a mess and I’m worried… I’m worried that if he can’t pull out of this, he’ll do something stupid.”

“He wouldn’t do that Nani.”

”At this moment I don’t know what he’d do. He’s hurting so much.”

“Maybe if you spoke to Khushi…”

”I’ve called her as you have, but she isn’t taking our calls. No Anjali, I think we need to sort our house first before trying to contact Khushi.”

 

Getting to her feet, Nani walked out of Anjali room and made her way over to mama and Mami’s room. Anjali knew this probably wasn’t the best thing to do, but maybe Nani was right, maybe this was the only thing left to do. Getting to her feet, Anjali went after Nani, but made sure she stopped by Arnav’s bedroom first. His door was open and so Anjali could see him lying on his bed, facing the ceiling.

She’d never imagined her brother would fall in love to this extent. But then she never expected her other brother to stoop to such an extent. Sighing, Anjali left Arnav and made her way over to mama and Mami’s room to find Nani already there, speaking to them.

As Devyani and Anjali explained what was happening, the colour fell from both Manorama and Mahender’s faces.

 

“Sasuma… Are you sure? Our Akash bitwa… But he never goes against anything Arnav bitwa says. Why would he do something like this?”

“That’s what I don’t understand Manorama. If Akash wanted a share of the business or if he wanted more responsibility, then Chote would have given it to him, but why… I don’t understand.”

“Anjali bitya, you tell us, Arnav bitwa tells you everything.”

 

Explaining everything she knew, Anjali talked them through everything Arnav had told her. Both Akash’s parents were in disbelief, but they didn’t disbelieve what was happening. They had senses the tension between the two brothers and seeing how Arnav had been, all the stories fit together.

Manorama turned to her husband.

 

“Call Akash home now! We are going to sort this.”

 

As Akash’s father dialled his sons number, Anjali turned and found a pale looking Payal stood at the door.

 

“Payal…”

”He… He’s the reason…”

“We didn’t want you to find out like this.”

“He’s caused this? My sister’s life is a shambles because of…”.

 

Payal felt her world come crashing down around her as she turned away. How could Akash do that? How could he do that to Khushi? How could he do that to Payal!? Did he not for a moment think that he was hurting her if he hurt her sister? How could he?

 

*****

 

“Okay yes! I am responsible for everything that’s been happening between Arnav and Khushi and with the changing ownership of the business, but I had a good reason for it.”

“What reason could you possibly have for cheating your brother like that and ruining his life? Akash, have you seen Arnav bitwa recently? Have you seen the state he’s in? If you wanted more share of the business or more responsibility, why didn’t you just ask him? Why…”

”Ma please. I did what I needed to do to protect myself and secure myself a future.”

 

Anjali and Nani remained quiet as they watched the face off between Akash and his parents. Admittedly, they had been worried that Manorama would react badly, that should would side with her son and refuse to believe what was going on. But if Manorama loved her son, she loved her nephew equally.

 

“Akash bitwa, he’s your own brother!”

“He’s not my own brother! He’s my cousin! Everyone acts like…”

“Don’t! Don’t you dare say anything against my Arnav bitwa. He has always loved you like a brother, always cared for you. He would do anything for you.”

 

Turning away from his mother, Akash was fuming. How dare his own parents tell him he was making the wrong decisions and that his actions were wrong? Shouldn’t they be telling him that he did a good job, he secured their family a stable future?

Turning to leave the room, Akash saw his wife standing in the doorway and she looked livid.

 

“Payal…”

 

Walking towards her, Akash stretched his hand out, urging her to take it. She didn’t. Coming up to her, Akash stood before Payal, waiting for her to say something. Remaining unmoving for a moment, Payal thought about everything she’d learnt that day. Pulling her hand back, she slapped Akash across the face, hard.

Everyone in the room gasped as they took the seething Payal in.

 

“Payal…”

“How could you? How could you do that to my sister? You may not accept bhai as your own brother and may not care for what you do to him, but Khushi is my sister and I love her! Did you not think…”

“I did it for us! So we’d have a better future!”

“Right. So for our happy future, you destroyed my sister’s life?”

“She seems fine to me, she’s getting married…”

“Are you stupid? You know as well as I do that it took Khushi so long to accept her feelings for bhai, to give their relationship a go. It took her so long to admit that she loved him, she was ready to spend her life with him and you… You took that happiness away from her.”

“Again, she seems fine, she’s getting married…”

”She’s only doing that because she’s trying to run away from all this! She’s never been good at dealing with her problems and this… I can’t believe you…”

 

Shaking her head in disgust, Payal realised that there was no point arguing or trying to explain anything to Akash. Entering the room, she approached both Nani and Manorama.

 

“Dadiji, ma ji, I would like to go home for a couple of days.”

 

Akash turned around to protest, but he saw his mother and grandmother had already given her permission to go. Turning away, Payal left the room, throwing one angry glance at Akash before she left.

Did he do the wrong thing? Had he made a mess? Why was everyone so angry when all he was trying to do was make a future for himself?

 

Unwanted ~ Part 31

Khushi

“Mama mama! Can you make special jalebis for my Mr Raichanda?”

”Your special jalebis?”

“Haan mama! It was Sir’s birthday today. And did you know, he got sugar ki bimaari too like me!”

 

I looked at Arushi, and I’m pretty sure that my eyes were bulging out of my head. Her Mr Raichanda has the same birthday as Arnav? Is diabetic like Arnav? Even his name… Could it be…

No no, of course not. It’s not possible. It’s just a coincidence. That’s it. Purely coincidental.

 

“I’ll make jalebis for your teacher and you can take them tomorrow.”

“Yay! Thank you mama.”

 

Placing a quick kiss on my cheek, Arushi rushed away. Something about all this was starting to make me feel uncomfortable. Everything about this man made me think about Arnav but it couldn’t be. Of course it couldn’t be. I was just overthinking, worrying for no reason.

 

*****

 

Have you ever realised how quickly the weekend comes round? Some weeks it feels like the week doesn’t end, whereas other times, Saturday seems to come round so quickly.

It was Saturday today, and me, Raj and Arushi had come to the mall. I needed to pick some bits up for myself and Arushi and Raj decided to tag along with us.

 

“Mama! I just remembered! I forgot to tell you that my teacher said that the jalebis were the best jalebis he’s eaten in a long time and that you make them exactly like his wife makes them.”

“Oh that’s good, that means he liked them?”

“He said he loved them!”

 

Hearing this made me feel some kind of relief. Since hearing about Mr Raichanda being a diabetic who shared the same birthday as Arnav, I had been worried about the what ifs. But hearing that this man was married and his wife made him good jalebis put me at ease. I mean, I know Arnav is married to Nimisha, but she never struck me as the type to make jalebis like me. So it couldn’t be Arnav. Surely not.

Turning my attention back to my daughter, I watched as she tugged at Raj’s arm because she saw a large bear walking around. It was one of those, where there was someone inside a bear costume, trying to promote something. But Arushi was still to young to realise that there was a normal person inside.

 

“No Arushi, we need to get you new shoes.”

”PLEASE mama!”

 

She looked up at me with big eyes. But I was immune to her big eyes. Raj however was not.

 

“I’ll take her to see the bear. You go and pick anything you need and we’ll meet you at the shoe shop in 20 minutes.”

 

Jumping, Arushi hugged Raj’s leg before taking his had again and dragging him towards the bear. I looked around myself and decided that maybe I should go and get myself a coffee while I waited for them.

Walking over to the little cafe, I ordered myself a coffee and took it to a little table by the window.
There used to be a time when I hated coffee. I used to make a coffee for Arnav every morning and he would force me to take a sip and I never would. Then one day, I actually did take a sip and I positively hated it.

But since coming here, I found myself drinking more and more coffee. I still wasn’t on Arnav’s level of coffee drinker, but I didn’t mind it either.

Taking my phone out of my bag, I scrolled though my messages, replied to a couple and then put my phone back. Picking up my coffee, I took a little sip and looked out of the window and then looked away again.

 

Wait a minute…

 

Eyes wide, I looked back out of the window again and there… There he was.

Blinking twice and rubbing my eyes, I needed to make sure I wasn’t hallucinating and I wasn’t.

There, stood just across from the coffee shop was Arnav. I should turn away, make sure he didn’t see me, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him. There he was. Rubbing my eyes one more time, I needed to make sure that he was actually real. Closing my eyes and opening them again, he was still there. He was real.

I felt frozen, stuck. I didn’t know what to do. Quickly turning away, I needed to get out of here and fast. Arnav couldn’t find me. I remained sat in my seat and when I looked out the window again, he was gone.

What… How? Did he know that I…

Taking my phone back out, I called Raj.

 

“Khushi?”

“Raj, I’m going to the car, come quickly. We need to leave.”

“But Arushi’s shoes…”

“Please. I need to go home now.”

“Khushi…”

“Please Raj! Just bring her and let’s go!”

 

I disconnected the call before he could say anything more and left the coffee shop. I looked over my shoulder at least a million times as I made my way back to the car. Arnav wasn’t following me and I don’t think he saw me.

Once I got to the car, I tried to stay hidden behind it, just in case Arnav did turn up, but he didn’t.

What was he doing here? How was he here? Arnav didn’t have any business in Mumbai? I mean he had his branch of AR, but he never really came down here. If anything needed to be done, he’d send Akash or mama ji. He never actually came to Mumbai himself. So why now? Did he somehow find out that I was here?

Hitting the side of my head lightly, I pushed that thought away. He wasn’t here because of me. He’s moved on with his life. He’s married to Nimisha. He wasn’t here for me. He must be here due to his own personal work. But regardless, I needed to lie low. I didn’t want to have to bump into Arnav randomly. I couldn’t deal with that.

It took me a while, but I remembered that day when Raj had seen in the paper that Arnav was in town due to business. I had forgotten all about that. So that’s why he was here. He must still be in down due to work regarding AR. That made me feel a little bit of peace. It means that he didn’t know that I was here and that he wasn’t here for me. Suddenly, I felt like I could breathe again.

A little time passed but not a lot when Raj and Arushi finally joined me. Unlocking the car, Raj strapped Arushi into her seat before coming over to me. I got into the car quickly and he came over to my door.

 

“Khushi, is everything…”

”Please just get into the car. I’ll explain everything when we get home. But now we need to get out of here.”

 

Raj looked at me like I was slightly crazy and I couldn’t help but feel slight crazy. He took a long hard look at me before finally shutting the door and coming back over to his side of the car. Sliding into his seat, he got ready and soon we were off. As we drove home, I felt myself calm down a little, but not a lot. Arnav was here. He is here! I saw him! He was right in front of me.

Leaning back in my seat, I rested my head against the headrest and shut my eyes.

He looked pretty much the same as he did all those years ago. Only his stubble was no longer stubble, he had a full beard. His hair was a little longer than how he liked it six years ago, but other than that he looked exactly the same.
It didn’t seem as though he had gained much weight, nor did it seem as though he had lost any weight.

Six years had passed, over six years, but he hadn’t aged at all. He still looks pretty much exactly the same. I wonder what he would think if he saw me. Would he think I’ve changed?

Seeing him again, it’s cooked up all kinds of feelings within me. I feel good, seeing him again after all these years, but at the same time, it also feels bittersweet.

Bittersweet because even though I saw him, I couldn’t speak to him, couldn’t hold him close, couldn’t touch him…

 

*****

 

The moment we got home, Raj sent Arushi off to find Veera mausi. He made sure that she was well and truly out of the room before turning his attention back to me.

He walked over to where I was standing and placed a hand on my shoulder. This makes me pay full attention to him. Taking me by the hand, he led me over to the sofa and got me to sit down and then he sat down beside me.

 

“What happened? Are you okay?”

“I…”

 

Taking a deep breath, I replayed what had happened in my head and then started to explain to Raj.

 

“I saw Arnav.”

“You did? Did he see you?”

”No. No he didn’t.”

“Then why did…”

”I panicked. It was afterwards that I remembered that you had already told me that he was here. When I saw him… I just froze. I thought maybe he had found me and I guess I got a bit scared. But then, when I was able to calm down, I thought about it properly and I realised I didn’t need to panic. I’m sorry Raj. I realise that I must have really got you worried as well.”

 

Placing a hand on my knee, he gave me a small smile before removing his hand again.

 

“It’s okay. I understand why you reacted the way you did. It must have been really weird to see him again after all these years. I can understand why you got so scared. But Khushi… Maybe you should try to reach out to him?”

 

Looking up, I could feel myself become tense again.

 

“Why would you say that?”

“I just think that maybe you should. Before we were speaking hypothetically, but now… Knowing he’s here, actually having seen him, I think maybe you should actually speak to him.”

”But what would I even talk to him about? Besides I don’t want to cause any trouble. He looked well. I’m going to assume he is doing well in life. I don’t want to re-enter his life and cause problems.”

 

Sighing, Raj got to his feet.

 

“I’m not going to argue with you, but I think maybe you should. Think about it.”

 

With that Raj left. I remained seated and I thought about what he had said. But I couldn’t… I couldn’t speak to Arnav. What would I say to him? I don’t even know how he feels about me. Would he mad at me that I left him, or would he react indifferently?

I needed to get my head straight. I needed to get everything I was feeling down. I needed to write a letter to jiji.

 

*****

 

“Dear my pyaari Jiji,

I hope this letter finds you in good health and I hope you’re really happy. It was about time I wrote you another letter any way, but I’m writing this letter to you as a way of trying to clear my own head.

I was out today, and I thought I saw Arnav at the mall. I know, crazy right? At first I thought maybe I was hallucinating, maybe because I’ve been missing him so much that I had started seeing him. But after I paid close attention, I realised that he really was there.

Now I would love to say that I handled the matter well, but I really didn’t. I hid and then I ran away, hoping that he didn’t see me.

I was out with my friend, the one who’s house I am staying at as a paying guest. I told him that I saw Arnav and I saw how I reacted. He thinks that I should try and reach out to him, maybe speak to him, but jiji, I really don’t know what to do.

You know how I feel about him, you know I still care for him. But I don’t know how he feels about me. What if I do try to speak to him and he completely shuts me out? What if he really has moved on with life and doesn’t want to have anything to do with me? I’m scared jiji. Part of me wants to speak to him, but at the same time, I’m scared that he doesn’t want to have anything to do with me. Being away from him hurts in one way, but to be rejected by him would hurt even more I think. I can’t just drop into his life again. I can’t, can I?

I honestly don’t know what to do. I just feel like too much time has passed and that I’ve left it all too late. Maybe if all this had happened a couple of years ago, then maybe I would have approached him, maybe I would have tried to speak to him. But now… After over six years, I don’t think I can do that to him.

I don’t know what to do.

I hope you are well jiji and I hope everyone at home is well too. I miss you all so much and I really do wish I could come to visit. Maybe I will do. I don’t know. But for now, please know that I think about you all all the time and that I miss you more than anyone else.

Also, please don’t tell Arnav about this letter. Please don’t tell him that I saw him. Don’t alert him that we are in the same place. I don’t want him to find me. Please jiji, please, don’t tell him.

Love you lots and lots,
Always thinking of you.
Yours, Khushi.”

 

Signing off my letter, I read it back to make sure that it was perfect and then took an envelope out of my desk along with a stamp. I would send this off first thing on Monday and jiji should get it by Wednesday. I was unsure about whether or not to actually mention that I saw him, just in case she alerted him, but this was my jiji. She wouldn’t do that. She wouldn’t say anything to him.

 

*****

A few days had passed since I had sent the letter off to jiji. Maybe she would have received it by now. I wish I had given her a number so that I could talk to her, but I knew that was dangerous. With a number they would have a direct link to track me down. At least with a letter, even now that I had made it clear that me and Arnav were in the same city, it would still be hard to find me even if anyone tried. There are a crazy amount of people in Mumbai and it’s also a huge city. It would take ages for them to find me. Plus I know for a fact that I am not the only Khushi here. So even if they tried to locate me using my name, it would take a long time.

When I arrived in Mumbai, I had decided to drop both my maiden and my married name. So here, I wasn’t Khushi Kumari Gupta, or Khushi Kumari Gupta Singh Raizada. Here I was just Khushi Singhania. Singhania is Raj and Veera mausi’s surname and I had asked them before using it. They didn’t mind. So if any of my family did try to find me, they’d have to go through all the Khushi’s to find me. I had done the same with Arushi. I hadn’t given her my maiden name or Arnav’s name. She was Arushi Signhania. Initially, I had thought of naming her Arushi Singh Raizada, but then I realised that her name would draw too much attention to her. To have the Raizada name, someone would have alerted the Raizada’s and they would have found us.

With all the bases covered, I believe that we are relatively safe. There’s no way Arnav would be able to find us even if he did know we were here. We were safe. He wouldn’t be able to find us…

Jalebi ~ Part 27

By the time Arnav arrived home, he was a wreck. His eyes were bloodshot and he was in a foul mood. The moment he stepped through the door, Anjali came rushing over to him.

 

“Chote! Where on earth have you been? You went out hours ago, saying you just needed to pick up a new laptop charger and there’s been no news from you since. Do you know how many times I’ve called you? Do you know how worried I was?”

 

Arnav listened to everything his sister had to say, not entirely taking in a word she was saying. Anjali realised that Arnav’s attention was somewhere else. Taking a good look at him, she saw his red, puffy eyes.

Taking his arm, Anjali led Arnav into the living room, sat him down on the sofa and then sat down beside him.

 

“Chote, what’s the matter?”

 

Arnav remained stoic for a moment before responding by laying down on the sofa, his head on his sisters lap and his arms around her.

 

“My life is over Di”.

 

Completely breaking down, Anjali looked down at Arnav completely alarmed. She couldn’t remember the last time her brother broke down in this manner. Arnav usually always hid his emotions from her, tried to be tough for her, but right now…

Anjali stroked his hair as he cried. Nani came outside, hearing the commotion followed by Shyam and Manorama.

 

Mami came over to Arnav and sat on the sofa by his feet, her hand on his back.

 

“Arnav bitwa, what happens?”

 

Calming down slightly, Arnav wiped his eyes and sat up.

 

“I saw Khushi…”

 

The Raizada women and Shyam all looked between each other, not entirely sure how they should proceed with the conversation.

 

“Kya? Khushi’s back? Did you speak to her? What did she say? Chote, did she say anything to you?”

 

Shaking his head, Arnav looked at his Di and took her hands in his own.

 

“She’s engaged.”

 

Mami gasped as did Anjali. Nani turned to Shyam, her eyes wide as she realised what was happening here.

 

“She’s engaged? But how Saale Saab? Only a few weeks ago you and her were talking about marriage. How in this short time has she managed to go and get herself engaged?”

“She’s engaged to her childhood friend jijaji. The man her parents had initially picked for her. I met him when we went to London and you don’t understand how smug he was. I want to kill him!”

 

Anger irrupted within Arnav. How could she actually do that to him? How could she move on just like that? Did their relationship really mean that little to her? Turning back to his sister, Anjali could see the anger in his eyes.

 

“Did she not tell you as well Di that she wanted to spend her life with me? Then how could she do this? She says I’ve deceived her, but what has she done? She promised herself to me and now she’s with another man. How could she do that to me?”

 

Getting to his feet, Arnav stormed off towards his bedroom. The Raizada’s all looked between each other, unsure of how they needed to deal with this issue.

 

“Maybe I should go and speak to Khushi. Tell her that whatever happened wasn’t down to Chote.”

”She won’t believe you Rani Sahiba. I’m sure Saale Saab would have tried his best to make her listen to him. But she like him is also hard headed. I don’t think any of us getting involved will have any benefit.”

“But Chote… He’s so broken. We have to do something before he does something stupid. I’ve never seen him this upset, or this angry.”

”I think we just need to give him some time to cool down and come to terms with everything.”

“He’s never loved anyone the way he loves Khushi and I don’t think he’ll ever love anyone else as much as he loves her. I don’t think he’ll ever fully come to terms with what has happened…”

 

*****

 

Pacing his bedroom, Arnav tried to come up with a plan. He needed to do something. Anything! He couldn’t just sit and wait for her to go and get married to someone else. He needed to fight for her. But his options were limited and he didn’t know what to do. He had thought that by telling her the truth about Akash, she would maybe reconsider, but she hadn’t. There had to be something! Running his hand through his hair, Arnav yanked the ends of his hair in frustration. Why was this happening!?

 

*****

 

Dinner was served and ready. The Raizada family all sat around waiting for Arnav to come down before they could start eating. Hari Prakash emerged from Arnav’s bedroom and made his way down to the dining room.

 

“Arnav Bhaiya has said that he doesn’t want to eat now, you all should continue.”

“Has Chote had something to eat at least? If he doesn’t eat he’s going to fall ill?”

“I took him some coffee and some toast a little while ago.”

”Okay. Leave him gor now, I’ll take some food to him later.”

 

Leaving the dining area, Anjali turned to her husband and sighed.

 

“Shyam ji, we have to do something, I can’t see Chote like this.”

 

Akash, who had been absent when Arnav had returned home, looked up from his food.

 

“What happened to bhai now?”

 

Turning her attention to Akash, Anjali couldn’t believe that Akash was asking this question. After all, he was the main reason why Arnav was in this condition. She wanted to say something, make it known to the family that Akash was the cause of Arnav’s plight, but she stopped herself. Her Chote didn’t want the family to know about Akash and she was going to respect his wishes.

 

“Chote saw Khushi earlier and it didn’t go well.”

 

Looking up from her food, Payal’s eyes widened.

 

“Khushi’s back?”

”Yes. Chote didn’t say when she returned, but yes she’s back and she’s engaged. Did you know about that?”

”What? She’s engaged? To who? How could she get engaged and not tell me about it?”

 

Anjali felt sorry for Payal, she looked genuinely hurt and stressed about the fact that Khushi was engaged to someone and she didn’t know about it. Telling Payal everything Arnav had told her, Anjali watched as her expression fell.

 

“I can’t believe… But she loves Arnav ji so much. I can’t believe she… Why would she do this to herself?”

“I don’t know Payal. I really don’t know.”

”Di, do you think I should talk to her? Explain to her about bhai’s condition? If she knows how much he is hurting, surely she’d…”

 

Intervening, Akash looked up from his food and stopped Payal in her tracks.

 

“Don’t you dare! You are not to say anything to Khushi. She’s made her decision and it seems as though she is sticking to it. If she cared for bhai at all, she never would have gotten engaged to someone else in the first place. If she’s can do that’s to bhai, she doesn’t deserve him. Besides, with which right do you want to go and talk to her? The both of you shared everything and she didn’t even tell you about her engagement, that should tell you how she sees you. You are to say nothing to her Payal, I forbid it.”

 

Payal looked slightly taken aback. Akash had never spoken to her like that and she didn’t understand why he was speaking like that now.

 

Anjali watched Payal and Akash’s exchange closely and her heart went out for Payal who looked hurt and confused. On one hand she’d just found out that her cousin had made a huge decision regarding what she was going to do with her life without telling her, and on the other hand, her husband was giving her a hard time.

 

“Why are you being like this? She’s my sister and despite her decision not to tell me, I still love her. I’m sorry Akash, but I can’t just turn my back to her, I know she’s going through a hard time too.”

“Payal Bitya is absolutely correct. Khushi is hurting too and she can’t just get upset with her and turn her back from her. Payal, I think you should calm Khushi and see what she has to say.”

 

“Ji Dadiji.”

 

Leaving the table, Payal went upstairs to make her call. Akash remained at the table, his hands fidgeting under the table. What if Arnav had told Khushi that he was the one who had caused the hand over of the business? What if Khushi told Payal? It could cause problems in their relationship. But seeing how Dadi had spoken, he didn’t think he would be able to stop Payal. He just had to hope for the best that Arnav hadn’t told Khushi anything.

 

*****

 

Both Arnav’s bedroom and the study were a mess. Papers had been thrown across both rooms, a couple of vases had been broken… Arnav had been through the papers over and over and over again to the point where he had almost memories the whole file. There was nothing in there that was going to help him give Khushi her business back without involving Akash.

Arnav was now sat in their little bar, with a glass of vodka. Anjali had followed the trail of mess and saw her brother downing the glass of alcohol in one go.

 

“Chote! What are you doing?”

 

Turning around, he saw Anjali walk in, her eyes wide with shock.

 

“I’m drinking Di. What does it look like?”

“But you don’t drink like this. Chote come on, stop.”

 

Taking the bottle of vodka away from Arnav, Anjali took her brothers face in. He looked tired and angry and confused and broken.

 

“You can’t do this to yourself Chote.”

“What’s the point Di? What am I living for right now? My brother who I’ve always loved had taken the one thing I loved most in my life. My business isn’t mine any more and the woman I love… She’s someone else’s. I have nothing Di. Just this bottle of vodka.”

 

He made to take the bottle from Anjali but she had it away from him.

 

“Chote, I know your hurting, but this behaviour needs to stop right now. We will find a way to get this sorted…”

“But I won’t get Khushi back.”

 

It was evident that he was really struggling to deal with what was happening to him. Anjali felt broken herself. She didn’t know how to help her brother.

 

“You know Di, back in high school, I never really noticed her. But when I saw her at the reunion last year, I was completely blown away by her. And then I started to get to know her and I started to fall in love with her. It took me ages and ages to make her accept my feelings and give our relationship and chance but… It was all for nothing.”

 

Resting his head against the bar, Anjali pat her brother on the shoulder. She didn’t know how to comfort him, didn’t know what the right thing was to say. As much as she felt her brothers pain, she did understand what was going through Khushi’s head. She’d taken a chance on Arnav and subsequently had lost everything she had ever worked for. As much as Anjali wanted to go and talk to her, to try and get her to reconsider, she knew that Khushi’s feelings right now and the way she was behaving, were completely justified.

 

“Chote, go to bed. It’s been a long day for you.”

 

Nodding, Arnav got to his feet, stumbling slightly as he got up. Anjali took hold of his arm and he held onto her for dear life as she guided him towards his bedroom.

Upon arriving at his room, Arnav crashed onto his bed the moment he saw it. Moments later he was fast asleep. Taking his shoes off and tucking his in, Anjali looked at her brother who was completely exhausted and completely heart broken. She needed to do something to help his sort all this, but what and how? How could she get Khushi to reconsider, especially now when she was engaged to someone else. Making sure Arnav was asleep, Anjali backed out of his bedroom and made her way towards Payal’s.

Knocking on Payal’s door, she waited to be let inside.

 

“Come in.”

 

Pushing the door open, Anjali saw Payal quickly wipe her tears away and she sat up a little straighter on the edge of the bed.

 

“Di? Did you need something?”

”Were you able to get hold of Khushi?”

 

Anjali watched as Payal’s shoulders slumped slightly but she nodded.

 

“She didn’t say much, but she’s invited me round to her apartment so that I can meet Rohan. Di, this isn’t right! Nothing about any of this feels right. We need to do something! Khushi can’t marry Rohan, I know her, her heart belong to and with Bhai. If we don’t do something, she’ll go on to making the biggest mistake of her life.”

”I know Payal, but I don’t know what we can do.”

“Anything Di. We can do anything but we need to do it soon. I’m worried Khushi is going to speed up the wedding process now that she knows we all know. I know what she thinks like, she’s going to try to run further away.”

 

Sitting down beside Payal, Anjali took Payal’s hand into her own.

 

“We’re going to sort this mess, and we’re going to get Khushi back for Chote. I can’t see my brother like this.”

 

Anjali felt a new power within her. Akash had messed with her Chote’s life and had ruined everything for him. But she wasn’t going to let him win. She was going to get Khushi her business back and Khushi back for Arnav, even if it was the last thing she ever did.