Part 41 Firm acceptance
“My pair will be Khushi… only Khushi…! I won’t act
with other models” Arnav said
Khushi widened her eyes stunningly. More than
Khushi, Jeff was stunned. He didn’t know what he meant. Khushi was his PA after
all.
“ASR… do you know Khushi ma’am will be fine with
your decision?”
“I just said MY(stressing) decision…” he said
looking at Khushi.
“I don’t know why you chose Khushi. She is not a
model but your PA. People may gossip about your decision, ASR”
“They won’t… because I’m not going to act with my PA
but with my wife”
“I didn’t get you”
“I and Khushi are getting married” his eyes were
still on Khushi.
“Whaaaat?” Jeff was not just surprised but shocked.
He knew Arnav’s full story. Jeff knew Arnav was a single father with three
children and he had no interest in marriage.
“Coming Friday…”
“What?”
“Our wedding”
“Whaaaat?”
“You are invited. Come with your camera…”
“Is it true?”
“Am I joking or what?”
“Did Khushi agree to marry you?” he asked with
hesitation.
“What do you think, am I going to kidnap her or
what?” he didn’t avert his gaze from Khushi who controlled her smile.
“I mean…”
“I know what you are asking. Even though Khushi has
choices, she wants to marry me”
“Congratulations ASR”
“Thanks…”
“I will tell the company about your decision”
“Mmm…” Arnav disconnected the call and smiled at
Khushi.
“How could you decide on behalf of me?” She asked
teasingly.
“When did I decide on behalf of you?” he asked in
the same modulation.
“Didn’t you say you will act only with me?”
“I just said my decision. It’s your wish to accept
it or not”
“What do you think, I will act with you?”
“Won’t you?”
“I just acted in the ad because our company didn’t
want to face loss”
“You were concerned about our company. What about
yourself?”
“Means?” She shrank her nose cutely.
“You may face loss if you don’t act with me,” he
said seriously.
Khushi frowned like, HOW?
“Won’t it be a loss for you, if your husband acted
with
someone closely?”
Khushi widened her eyes surprisingly.
“Mind you tell me how?” She asked composing herself.
“Won’t you LOSE your sleep if your husband gets
close to some other woman?”
Khushi nodded no. This time Arnav frowned even
though he asked it for fun.
“Don’t I know how hard nut you are to crack?” She
asked controlling her laughter.
Arnav rolled his eyes smilingly and said,
“But you cracked…”
“Did I?”
“Don’t you?”
Khushi flipped her lip. For the first time, he
admired her cuteness.
“The Ad agency will approach you… tell them your
decision”
“What do you want my decision to be?”
“Your wish…”
Arnav stood up to leave.
“Will your stand be the same after our marriage
too?”
“Always…”
“Won’t you compel me for anything?”
“I could I say that now?”
“Why not?”
“Situation may lead me to compel you…”
Khushi lifted her brows.
“I’m going to the office. Bye,” he smiled.
“Bye”
Arnav walked away. Khushi lay on the bed to rest.
AR
Arnav came to the office with the file. He handed it
to Aman.
Keeping the file aside, Aman made him sit.
“Whaaat?”
“Is your wedding with Khushi fixed?”
Arnav was taken aback.
“How do you know?”
“Jeff called me”
Arnav rolled his eyes.
“I think he doesn’t have any other work…”
“ASR, what a hot news this is…! How would he be
quiet after knowing that?”
“What’s the point?”
“Is your wedding coming on Friday?”
“Mmm… it will happen simply with only my close
friends”
“But, you invited Jeff who is not close to you…”
“I asked him to bring his camera…”
“Oh, yeah, though the wedding is simple, its
memories will always be special… am I right?”
“Did Khushi ask you about my accident?”
“Yeah… she was mistaken I suppose. Someone would
have told her about your sister and Jeejaji’s accident but she was thinking,
you met with an accident… but I cleared it” Aman said proudly.
Arnav rolled his eyes.
“Very thanks Aman… you have done a very good job”
Aman frowned as he didn’t know what was there to
appreciate.
“But, I just…”
“Leave it…”
“By the way, did you say you will do modelling only
with Khushi?”
Arnav nodded yes.
“You know Natasha is ready to act with you”
“So?”
“She is the top model in India”
“So?”
“You may become famous in a single Ad if you appear
on screen with her. it will give publicity to our company too”
“Do we ever think of getting such publicity?”
“No… but…”
“Aman, I don’t like modelling. Don’t we know about
the
modelling field? Natasha who walked away showing her
disinterest directly to me is ready to act with me now. It’s because the Ad
clicked, unexpectedly. All the credit should go to Khushi. if she hadn’t
insisted on me, I would not have thought of appearing in the Ad. I’m not fine
with acting with anyone…”
“Except Khushi?”
“Why not? After all, she is going to be my wife”
“Do you think you will face problems if you act with
others?”
“Not at all… I know how to keep my distance from
people. I
just don’t like modelling”
“What if Khushi says ok to act with you?”
Arnav smiled.
“Will do…” He walked to his cabin smiling.
Aman sighed raising his brows. What was he made up
of? Until yesterday, he was not ready for the marriage and now, he was not
ready to act with anyone other than his going-to-be wife. He was sure about one
thing, Arnav loved Khushi.
Evening
The children came home and rushed to their room.
They got fresh and started doing homework. So that, they could spend with
Khushi when she came from the office, unaware of the truth that she was at
home.
Arnav came home a little earlier to help Dadi in
wedding arrangements. He frowned seeing the home silent. He knew kids would
have been back from school. He came to their room and found them sincerely
doing homework. He got in.
“Good… nice to see you guys doing homework”
“Dad, Khushi didi also came?”
“She is at home only. She didn’t come to the office
today”
“But why?”
“She is not feeling well”
“Whaaaat”
Leaving everything as it was, they ran to the guest
room. They saw Khushi resting on the bed, keeping her forearm on her forehead.
She sat on the bed and smiled at them.
“Dad said, you are not feeling well…” Shali asked.
“I’m all right”
“But Dad said, you didn’t go to the office today?”
Shamli questioned.
“Yeah, after taking a rest, I feel better now”
“We finished our homework… to be with you,” Shamli
said.
“That’s so nice of you” She smiled.
“Khushiiii…”
All of them looked at Arnav.
“Your mother wants you to come back to GH,” Arnav
said.
Khushi frowned with confusion whereas the Kids were
shocked.
“Dad, you said, Khushi Didi will be here from here
on?” Aarav asked.
“I too thought she would be with us but I don’t
think it’s easy”
“Why?” Shali asked.
“A girl can’t stay at someone’s place for long”
“Why?”
“She must be their relative but Khushi is not our
relative. Her mother has the right to call her back because she is her mother”
“Can’t we make her our relative?” Samli asked sadly.
“Why not?” Came from the doorstep.
They saw Dadi entering.
“If you want Khushi to stay here, she should have a
relationship with us”
“This is why I asked Dad to marry her,” Aarav said
in a low tone feeling sad.
“Aarav is right… whyn't you marry Khushi?” Dadi
asked.
“I don’t know if it will work,” Arnav said.
“Why won’t it work?”
“Because after the marriage, she should stay with
your father
in his room. She will also have all the rights in
this family and house. she can even scold you”
“Khushi Didi will not scold us. Am I right, Didi?”
Aarav asked.
Khushi nodded yes smiling. She understood Arnav and
Dadi were trying to get a firm acceptance from the kids for the marriage.
“She will… if you guys do anything wrong…” Dadi
said.
Khushi looked at Arnav who was silent.
“That means, she will do anything with us, right?”
Shamli
asked.
Dadi nodded yes.
“She won’t go to her house and will stay with us forever,
right?” Shali asked.
“Yes… because she will become your father’s wife if
she marries him”
“Then, please marry her, Dad”
Arnav looked at Khushi and asked,
“Will you marry me, Khushi?”
Khushi looked at the kids.
“Please marry him, Didi…”
“What if he fights with me?” She asked as she didn’t
want to accept the proposal right away.
“No, Didi… Dad is a nice man. He won’t fight with
you, won’t scold you… am I right Dad? You won’t fight with her, right?”
Aarav asked.
Arnav nodded.
“See, he said he won’t fight with you”
“Ok, then, I will marry him”
“Yehhhhhh….” The kids hugged Khushi happily.
Arnav smiled at Khushi who also looked happy.
To be continued…
Part 42 Answer
The kids hugged Khushi happily.
Arnav smiled looking at Khushi who was genuinely happy.
“Kids, go and complete your
homework… you left it unfinished…” Arnav said.
They nodded ok.
“Khushi Didi, we will come here
after completing homework,” Shali said.
Khushi nodded smiling. They went to
their room.
“Khushi, the Lehanga merchant will
come here in the evening. Select one as per your taste.”
“Jee Dadiji”
“Could you come downstairs, or
shall I send him here?”
Before Khushi said, I will come
downstairs, Arnav said,
“Send him here, Dadi. Call me when
he comes…”
Dadi nodded ok and left the room.
“I can walk downstairs…” Khushi
said.
“Yeah… you can do anything” he
mocked.
“What does that mean?” Khushi
raised her brows.
“I don’t like what you did”
“Leave it Arnavji. It happened… we
can’t change it”
Arnav smiled inwardly.
“By the way, you are a genius,”
Khushi said.
Arnav gazed at her saying nothing
to know why she suddenly flattered him.
“how beautifully you got children’s
acceptance to the wedding…! I liked the way you handled them. You made them
feel like you are getting married ONLY for them”
Arnav got stuck. In which way did
she say that?
“Thank god they don’t know you are
doing this for ME”
Arnav became relaxed.
“Though you are not a family man,
you are an exact family material”
Arnav raised his brows.
“Am I not a family man?”
She nodded no.
“Excuse me… I’m a father of three
kids”
“Really? I know that” She chuckled
teasingly.
Arnav rolled his eyes.
“I agree you are a family man but
not completely”
“What are you trying to say,
Khushi?”
“A man can be considered as a
family man only if he gets married”
“Oh… really? Then?”
“Arnavji, I’m trying to say many
things… I will tell you all of them one by one as we have a lifetime to share…”
Arnav nodded his head from left to
right smilingly.
“by the way, Khushi, shall ask you
something?”
She nodded yes.
“I know you are upset with your
mother.”
“Correction… she is not my mother.
She can’t be my mother” Khushi said not showing her anger, her voice was
disappointed.
“Maybe, but she was with you so
far. This is your wedding. Don’t you want to invite her? Don’t you want her to
be a part of your wedding?”
“in the corner of my heart, I want
to invite her. At the same time, I don’t want to give her a space in my life…”
“After all, this is your marriage,
Khushi”
“Yes, if I invite her, she will get
hope that I will forgive her in some days. Then she will be relaxed. She may
start visiting RM with silly excuses. I don’t want it to happen”
“Are you sure?”
Khushi nodded.
“Rethink about it… you just have
two days”
“I already thought about it”
Arnav sighed.
“Ok, call me when Dadi sends the
lehanga merchant”
Khushi was supposed to say
something, but she stopped as her phone rang that was on the table as she put
in the charge.
“Wait…” Arnav took the mobile. His
hand stopped seeing the number.
Though it was not a known number,
he could say whose number it was as the number was fancy. After all, he just
received a call from the same number…! It was Natasha. Why did she call Khushi?
How did she get her number? Jeff might have given it to her but why was she
calling Khushi? Arnav looked at Khushi who was looking at him with confusion as
he was not giving her phone to her.
“Arnavji, is it Sapna?”
“Natasha…”
Khushi wondered. She extended her
hand. Arnav kept her mobile in her palm. Khushi attended the call.
“Who is this?”
“Natasha…”
“Which Natasha?” Khushi asked as if
she didn’t understand who she was.
“The top model in India”
“Oh…you? I’m so surprised because
you have my number”
“I got it from Jeff”
“Oh… tell me madam, why did you
call me, getting my number from Jeff?”
“I heard you are going to marry
ASR”
“Hann… So?”
“Don’t mistake me. Do you know what
you are doing?” her voice was sharp. That alerted Khushi. She looked at her
phone and RECORDED the call. She again kept the phone on her ear and said,
“Of course, yes…” Khushi looked at
Arnav who was sharply listening to her. She smiled at him and continued
smiling.
“No, you don’t know what you are
doing. I think you have lost your sense. You are a young girl and he is forty.
Your life will be spoiled if you marry an old man. If he is really a genuine
person, what should he have done?”
Khushi was silent as she didn’t
want Arnav to know what Natasha was trying to do that might make him feel low.
After all, she talked about his AGE.
“I heard you are also a rich girl.
Then why are you marrying him? Marrying someone at this age is necessary? What
will he do to marry at this age? In ten years, he will become an old man. What will
you do after that? You too have feelings. Did he consider it? How selfish…!”
Khushi’s blood boiled. She wanted
to lash over Natasha but she didn’t want to do that in front of Arnav.
“Madam, may I call you later?”
“Is anyone there?”
“Yeah…”
“Ok, you can call me anytime”
“Thank you so much madam,” Khushi
disconnected the call smiling.
“What did she say?”
“She congratulated me on our
wedding”
Arnav nodded shrinking his eyes.
“Ok, take rest…”
Khushi nodded. Arnav walked away.
Khushi waited for him to leave. She called Natasha. She received the call in
the second ring.
“Hi, consider what I say. He is
just USING you”
“I don’t think HE (Stressing) is
doing that”
“then who is doing?”
“YOU Ms. Natasha”
“Whaaat?”
“Who are you to talk to me about my
wedding? Do I know you?”
“I'm just concerned about you. I
don’t want you to fall in the mire”
“Concerned? Like really? Are you
concerned about my life more than myself? What did you say? He is selfish? What
do you know about him? What do you know what he told me? Without knowing
anything, how could you blame someone blindly? At first, who are you to poke
your nose in my matter? What did you say? I don’t have sense. Excuse me, madam…
do you have sense? Who gave you the right to interfere in someone’s matter? Who
asked your advice? Are you a free adviser or what?”
“I just said that for your
betterment. I say you in the shooting. You looked beautiful. Boys will die for
you…”
“I don’t want anyone to die for me.
For your kind information, Arnavji also has such features to die for. You too
agreed that when you refused to act with him. Today, you called the company and
insisted them to pair you with him in their Ad… right?”
Natasha was stuck. She didn’t
expect the news to reach Khushi too fast.
“Stop manipulating me, Ms.
Natasha…! Even Arnavji failed to do that. So, stop applying your skills to me.
I’m not going to back off from this marriage. If you have been alive for more
than fifty years from here on, you will see how I’m living with him clearing
all the drawbacks pointed out by you.” Khushi said sarcastically yet,
confidently.
She heard the call cutting sound.
Khushi kept the phone on the bed with a thud. She raised her head as Arnav
entered the room with a sharp gaze who listened to her talk.
To be continued…
Part 43 Hint?
Khushi was stuck, seeing Arnav
entering the room. His sharp gaze was enough for Khushi to understand that he
heard her talk with Natasha. Khushi was alert. She knew Arnav was going to
create a big scene on this issue. He sat in front of her looking down. Taking a
deep breath, he looked at her.
Khushi frowned to see his gesture.
This was not what she expected. She thought he would burst out in anger. She
tried to read his eyes but failed. She could not understand what was running in
his mind. She was supposed to say something but, stopped listening to Arnav.
“This is how people will mock at you,
try to manipulate you, brainwash you…! At least, Natasha has a purpose…! She
did that for her own benefit but people will do it just like that. They won’t
mind poking their nose into other’s life. you will have to face such scenarios
for life long if you marry me…! This is not late… you have time…”
Cutting him, she said,
“I have no time…”
Arnav was stuck.
“I have only two days for our
marriage. There is a lot of work to be done. We can’t let Dadi work alone…”
“What I’m talking and what are you
talking about?”
“I have no time to talk about
something useless, Arnavji. Just because someone called me and talked nonsense,
I can’t give my time to it because I don’t take it seriously. She spoke to me
like that ONLY because you said you would act with ONLY me. or else, she would
not give a damn about our wedding. And, I know how to cut off people who
interfere in my matter…! I will handle them. So, just leave it and concentrate
on your work”
Arnav bit the corner of his upper
lip, looking somewhere. Khushi was gazing at him. She thought he was thinking
about giving her an apt answer but he didn’t tell anything. Arnav stood
up.
“One minute…” She said.
Arnav looked at her.
“How could you ask me to back off
from marrying you, even after I removed my uterus?” She asked.
Arnav took a step. Touching her
head, he shook it slightly and walked off. Khushi frowned. What kind of gesture
it was? How did he look cool hearing such a question from her? She didn’t know
but she liked what he did.
Khushi saw him coming again. She
straightened herself. A man and Dadi followed Arnav with big-size bags. Khushi
understood he was a Lehenga merchant.
Arnav came and sat on the couch
whereas Dadi sat on the bed. The lehanga merchant spread a sheet on the floor
and sat on it. He showed the designs to Khushi who was observing Arnav’s face.
She wanted to choose the one that brought different gestures to Arnav’s face.
Arnav liked one. His face softened seeing a red lehanga. Khushi understood that
seeing his face. She took it in her hand. Arnav smiled. Her action soothed his
heart.
Khushi was supposed to finalize the
lehanga but stopped seeing the kids rushing.
“Wow… Lehangas…”
Shali and Shamli were excited to
see the variety of lehangas.
“Isn’t it looking super?” Shali
asked.
“Look at this, it’s looking so good,”
Shamli said.
Both of them pulled a Lehanga and
looked at each other smiling.
“Khushi didi, you will look
gorgeous in this Lehanga… will you choose this one?” Shali asked.
Shamli nodded yes.
Khushi looked at Arnav who was
gazing at her to know which one she was going to choose. There was no second
thought in Khushi’s mind. She simply kept the Lehanga chosen by Arnav down and
took the kids’ choice.
“Yeah, it’s so good,” Khushi said.
Arnav could not believe she chose the
kids’ choice. She gave it to the merchant and said,
“I will take this”
“Jee”
Arnav faced a tough time to hide
his disappointment. He didn’t know why he felt dejected. He should be happy
about her choosing kids’ choice but he didn’t know why he couldn’t take it
generously.
“You are so sweet…” Shali said
hugging Khushi.
“Not more than you,” Khushi kissed
her head. She noticed the change in Arnav’s face. She didn’t know why.
“Don’t you have Lehange for kids?”
Khushi asked.
“Yeah, we have but, Dadiji didn’t
ask me to bring it, Madam”
Khushi looked at Dadi.
“I didn’t think in the way…” Dadi
said.
“Lehanga for us?” the kids
overwhelmed.
“Why? Don’t you like Lehanga?”
Khushi asked.
“We like it very much but Dad never
bought it for us”
Arnav raised his brows.
“Yeah, he brought us shorts and
pants”
Khushi controlled her smile and
asked,
“Ok, we will wear Lehange… what
say?”
“Yesss…” they cheered.
“Shall I ask to bring Lehangas for
them?” The merchant asked.
“Do you have the same design?”
“Should check whether we have one…”
“Not one, we need two” Khushi said.
“Oh…”
“Are we going to wear the same
design?” Shamli asked.
Khushi nodded yes.
“Wow… we will be looking the same…”
Shali said excitedly.
“Please do check,” Khushi asked the
merchant.
The merchant marked the Lehange
design number and called his shop.
“Do we have SK5 in small size?”
Khushi saw Shali and Shamli looking
at the merchant curiously. He looked at Khushi and said,
“It’s available…”
“Heyyyy...” Both shared hi-fi.
“Please ask them to bring them,”
Khushi said.
“Send them to RM with someone,” The
merchant said on the phone and disconnected the call.
Shali and Shamli giggled, clutching
their hands. They were on cloud nine. After all, they were going to wear the
same Lehanga as Khushi. At first, she liked their choice and now wanted them to
wear the same design.
Khushi looked at Aarav who was sad.
“What happened? Why are you looking
sad?”
“You guys will be the same at your
wedding. What about me?”
“You will look like your father…”
Khushi said.
All of them looked at her
wondering.
“Arnavji and you will wear the same
Sherwani… ok?”
“Whaaaaat?” Arnav was shocked.
Khushi was taken aback. She didn’t
know what was there to shock.
“Sherwani and me?”
The kids giggled and Dadi
controlled her smile.
“Of course, it’s our wedding after
all…” Khushi said.
“Can’t I wear a suit?” he asked
Dadi.
She nodded her head from left to
right smilingly. Arnav rolled his eyes.
“Dad, you can’t be the same all the
time…” Shali teased.
“Yes, Dad, show some difference on
your wedding day at least,” Aarav said.
“Yes, Dad, you look so boring in the
suit” Shamli laughed.
Arnav dropped his jaw. Dadi raised
her brows. Arnav sighed.
“Yeeeehhh… I’m going to wear
Shewani…” Aarav said, cheerfully.
“Whatever…”
“Dad, when will you buy our
Shewani?”
As no one expected,
“Khushi will choose our Sherwani,”
Arnav said.
Khushi looked at him amazed.
“Khushi Didi, will you?” Aarav asked.
“If you want to choose, you can,”
Khushi said.
Aarav nodded ok happily, making
Arnav disappointed. The merchant brought Lehanga for kids. They were super
happy seeing that.
“Khushi Didi, we didn’t expect we
would wear Lehanga”
“Happy?”
“Super happy”
Arnav smiled. No doubt Khushi
scored. Even though he was disappointed, he liked what she did.
Arnav gave the cheque to the
merchant. He left RM.
“Kids, go and have dinner,” Arnav
said.
“Will not Khushi Didi come to the
dining?”
“She is a little bit tired. You go.
She will have here”
“After having dinner, you can come
here,” Khushi said.
“Okkiii…” They rushed out.
“I will send your diner here” Dadi
went.
“Didn’t you like my choice?” Arnav
asked smilingly, not showing his disappointment.
“Actually, I liked it very much”
“But you didn’t choose it”
“It’s because I don’t want to
disappoint kids”
“Will you disappoint me?”
Khushi was stuck.
“Why do you disappoint? You should
feel happy, right?”
“Mmm… but, I don't like to be rejected”
Khushi was stunned. She didn’t
expect this to take such a turn.
“Our wedding is happening based on
kids' happiness. We should not forget it. Keeping all these aspects aside, we
should concentrate on kids because they are kids. They won’t understand but
you. The image will be long-lasting in the mind we created at the beginning. We
should be careful. So, get ready to adopt the rejections,” She said firmly.
Arnav was alarmed. Was that a kind
of HINT for him?
To be continued…
Part 44 It’s an Emotion
RM
Khushi looked at HP who was at her
doorstep.
“Tell me, HPji”
“Arnav Baba called you downstairs,
Khushiji”
“Yeah, coming”
Khushi came downstairs and got
stuck to see Sapna with two big-size bags. Without welcoming her, Khushi looked
at Arnav.
“HPji said, you called me. Why did
you call me, Arnavji?” She asked.
The question was enough for Arnav
to understand how disinterested she was in Sapna. She didn’t even react like
someone called Sapna existed.
“She wants to meet you,” Arnav said
glancing at Sapna.
Khushi looked at her plainly.
“I heard your wedding is fixed.
It’s not our custom to be at your in-law’s house before marriage…” She said
with a lot of hesitation.
Khushi folded her hands whereas
Arnav was shocked. How dare she ask Khushi not to stay in RM…!
“So?” Khushi asked casually.
“Come to our house…”
“There is nothing called OUR
house…”
“Khushi beta…”
Cutting her,
“You can go…”
“Please, listen to me…”
“Arnavji, do you want me to go from
RM?” Khushi asked Arnav.
Sapna looked at Arnav.
“I would not have called Khushi
downstairs if I had known you were here to take her with you. I thought you were
here for her forgiveness. Or else, I would have dealt with you directly instead
of calling Khushi here” Arnav said.
“Damadji… I really came here for
her forgiveness only. I know she is angry with me”
“I’m glad you know that, but she is
not interested in talking to you. Don’t you see that?”
Garima looked at the bags and said,
“These are Khushi’s things… I
brought it for her”
“I don’t think Khushi will accept
them…” Arnav said looking at Khushi.
“She will accept them if you tell
her,” Garima said.
Arnav looked at her stuck.
“She needs them. Why should she buy
everything when she has them? And she was the one who bought them with her
salary. So, there is no point in denying it because I’m not related to them but
only Khushi”
Arnav looked at Khushi.
“Thanks,” Khushi said.
She was supposed to take the bags,
but Arnav stopped her.
“Wait, Khushi…”
“Hariprakash…” he called.
HP rushed to him.
“Keep them in Khsuhi’s room”
“Jee” HP took the bags to Khushi’s
room.
“Arnavji, I’m going to my room”
Arnav nodded. Khushi walked to her
room and stopped hearing Sapna saying,
“I kept your MOTHER’s photo in the
bag”
Khushi looked at Sapna widening her
eyes.
“Garimaji’s photo” Sapna added.
Khushi turned opposite her. Khushi
didn’t know what she felt in her heart. She hurried her steps to her room. She
searched in the bag for her mother’s photo. She saw a photo and took it out
slowly. She saw her mother and her eyes pooled up. After all, it was the first
time she saw her mother. She smiled in between the tears. How beautiful her
mother was! She hugged the photo, closing her eyes.
She opened her eyes sensing someone
behind her. She saw Arnav standing, looking at her painfully. Her tears-filled
face made him gulp down. Khushi asked him something and it shook him to the
core.
“What if the kids want to see their
mother’s photo in some days?”
Arnav was stuck. He didn’t know
what to say. He managed to hide Anjali and Shyam’s photo from them so far but,
he was not sure he could do that for their entire life because they were
growing. Thoughts and thinking abilities would differ while growing. What would
he tell them then?
“Will you show your sister’s photo
to them? Won’t they think she is your wife?”
“If they would like to see their
mother’s photo, I will no longer be their father and reveal the truth”
“Could you tolerate if they call
you UNCLE?”
Arnav was stunned. UNCLE? Of
course, he was their uncle indeed.
“I will try to accept the reality,”
Arnav said making Khushi speechless.
“You will accept the reality but
what about the kids? Will they accept it?”
“They should have to because it’s
the reality”
Khushi closed her eyes feeling bad
for the kids. How pitiful they were! They didn’t know who their parents were. They
believed Arnav as their father. To avoid such problems only he was not ready to
get married it seemed. But, there was no point in thinking about it anymore.
She should think of something useful.
The wedding day
The children were at the house.
They took a leave from school to enjoy their father’s wedding. Shali and Shamli
were curious to wear Lehanga whereas Aarav was excited to wear the same
Sherwani as Arnav who was weary to wear Sherwani.
Khushi was in her room. She heard a
knock and looked behind. She smiled seeing Nani standing with Dadi. Khushi
rushed to her smilingly and touched her feet.
“Be happy by winning all your loved
ones’ hearts” She said.
“Thank you, Naniji” Khushi hugged
her gladly.
“I came for your wedding”
“You should have to… after all, you
are our Naniji. I expected you to be here yesterday itself” Khushi said.
“I wanted to… but there was a Pooja
arranged in our Ashram. I didn’t want to leave it on someone. That’s why I
stayed”
“You are here, it’s enough Naniji
but you should not go back hurriedly”
“Ok, I will stay one more day here”
“Just one more day?”
“Haan… by the way, what will you do
to me if I stay here? However, you are going to be with your Arnavji” Nani
teased.
Khushi smiled mildly and said
nothing.
“Where are the kids? Subhadra said
they are in your room?” Nani asked looking at Subhadra.
“They went somewhere with Arnavji”
“Somewhere? Where?”
“They didn’t tell me”
“Unbelievable… didn’t anyone tell
you where did they go?”
Khushi nodded no. Nani looked at
Dadi and they smiled as they guessed where they would have gone.
They saw kids coming with Arnav.
“Bade Nani…” They ran to Nani and
hugged her.
“How are you, Nani?” Arnav asked.
“Doing great. How are you?”
“Fine…”
“Where were you?”
Without answering, Arnav looked at
Khushi. They diverted as Shali said,
“Nani, Nani, Khushi didi bought us
Lehanga as same as hers,” happiness sparkled in her voice.
“Is it?” Nani asked thoughtfully.
“Yes, it’s so awesome”
“She brought a beautician to draw mehndi
in our hands too, see…” they showed their hands.
“Wow… it seems you guys are
completely engaged with Khushi,” Nani asked.
“Haan… she said she will be with us
for our whole life”
“Yes, it’s because she is going to
be your…” before Nani completed the sentence with MOTHER, Khushi stopped her.
“Naniji, what would you like to eat
for dinner?”
Nani and Dadi looked at her
frowning and Arnav also noticed it.
“I will have only milk at night”
“Oh, yeah…”
“By the way, Kido, where did you go
with Arnavji?” Khushi asked.
They looked at one another and
smiled.
“It’s suspense…” They rushed to
their room.
Khushi smiled at them raising her
brows.
“Let’s go, Naniji…” Khushi called.
“One minute, Khushi bitiya…”
Khushi looked at her.
“You know very well what I was
supposed to say… don’t you?”
Khushi was silent.
“Are not you interested in being
called MOTHER by kids?”
“Does it make a difference,
Naniji?” she questioned not answering.
Nani looked at Arnav who frowned.
“What do you mean, Khushi bitiya?”
“Can’t I love them like a mother
being their DIDI? Is it necessary to be called MOM? I called a woman Mom for
more than twenty years but, got nothing called love from her. Mother’s position
is something no one could get, Naniji. I don’t want to take a risk. Just be it.
Let me be their lovable Khushi Didi. I think we should not force them to call
me Mom because mother is an emotion. It must be called with feelings. Not
everyone can become a mother”
Arnav gulped down hard. He struggled
to understand Khushi. According to her, she removed her uterus because she
wanted to be a mother to his kids. At the same time, she didn’t want to force
the kids to call her Mom.
“What if they like to call you so?”
He asked.
“I will accept it wholeheartedly if
they FEEL to call me Mom but I’m not going to expect it from them. Let me be
their friend… It’s not easy to be a friend, Naniji. It’s like walking on the
eggs. If they want to put me in their mother’s position, that day I will feel
proud of myself” She smiled, making the trio dumbfounded.
To be continued…
Part 45 The Wedding
Only important friends and
relatives were invited to the wedding. Aman was present with his wife Lavanya
and daughter Archana. Jeff was with his professional camera to shoot the
wedding and to make it memorable.
Arnav came to the stage in a maroon
Sherwani. He denied wearing a turban but Aarav, who was wearing the same
Sherwani as Arnav, curiously wore the turban in a matching color. He stood next
to Arnav and watched the ritual. Arnav did what the Pandit asked him to.
The pandit asked to bring the
bride. Arnav heard his heartbeat for the first time when he saw Khushi coming
in a sandal lehanga with gold Jarry and Mejantha with a golden border Shawl.
She was breathtakingly beautiful in the wedding outfit.
He smiled at Shali and Shamli who
brought Khushi to the stage clutching her hand from either side. They stood
with Aarav excitedly and observed the wedding.
Arnav was asked to tie the mangal
sutra on Khushi’s neck and fill the vermillion. He did, looking at Khushi who
was bowing down.
They asked to take Phares to
complete the wedding rituals. Khushi gestured for the kids to join them. They
circled the holy fire all the way giggling, enjoying the flower petals showered
on them. That made people smile.
“In the beginning, all the women
are generous but as time passes, everyone will change. Stepmother would always
be a stepmother.” Someone taunted.
Arnav and Khushi both heard it but
they didn’t react. Arnav knew he could not shut people’s mouths because not,
everyone was generous. Khushi also didn’t mind it because she didn’t think
minding about people’s taunts was unnecessary. If we started giving heed to
people’s talks, we could not concentrate on anything.
Arnav and Khushi got blessings from
Dadi and Nani. Khushi gestured for the kids to do it. They also touched their
feet and got their blessings. The kids were sticking with Khushi all the time.
They were not ready to leave her for even a second. They came to the dining
hall to have dinner with them.
Jeff asked Arnav to feed Khushi. Both
were embarrassed. Arnav gestured for Jeff not to do that.
Aman who came there with Lavanya
and Archana saw that and said,
“Arrey, don’t be shy, ASR…! Feed
your wife. Come on kiddo… ask Dad to feed Khushi,” Aman brought kids into the
issue.
“Dad, feed her,” they said,
cheerfully.
Taking a small piece of sweet, he
forwarded it to her mouth. Khushi ate it not looking at him.
“This is Khushi’s turn…” Jeff said.
She smiled at the kids and fed it
to Arnav casually. Jeff was about to say something,
“Enough… go and cover up the guests…”
Arnav said.
Jeff sighed and left the place.
The guests started dispersing one
by one. Arnav waited to know what to do next. Dadi and Nani asked them to
perform Grahapravesh. Khushi kicked the rice Kalash and entered RM officially.
When they came to the living room,
“Excuse me, Arnavji…” Khushi walked
away.
Arnav stood silently. He thought
she was going to the guest room to use the washroom. Shali and Shamli also
followed her. He sat on the couch and checked his mobile, glancing at the
pathway, expecting Khushi to come back. He stood up when Nani crossed him.
“Nani, shouldn’t go to my room?” He
purposely asked. He knew Nani would not permit him to go to his room as his
room would be decorated for the first night but to his surprise, Nani said,
“You can go, Chotte. Why are you
sitting here?” Saying, she walked away.
Arnav was taken aback. He didn’t
know why she asked him to go to his room ALONE. He had no idea if his room was
decorated even though he was not ready for the first night.
When he came to the room, he got
stuck seeing his room as normal as always. There was no decoration in his room.
Arnav straightened himself as he saw Aarav entering.
“Dad, shall I remove my Sherwani?”
“Where are Shali, and Shamli?”
“They are in the guest room with
Khushi Didi”
“Go and ask Dadi or Nani if you can
change it”
“Won’t you change it?”
Arnav nodded no as he didn’t know
he could do it.
“Ok…” Aarav left.
That was when he saw Shali and
Shamli coming to his room wearing a gown.
“Did you change?” Aarav asked.
“Yeah, we changed”
“Then, I will also change. Dad, you
too change”
Aarav said and went to their room.
Arnav didn’t know what to do. He was stuck seeing Khushi entering his room,
changing her dress. She was in a saree. Though he was disappointed as she
changed the wedding lehanga, he liked her wearing a saree.
“Did you change?”
Khushi nodded yes.
“Oh… may I?”
“Your wish. If you want to be in
Sherwani, you can” She said, seriously.
“No way, this dress sucks”
”Then, what are you waiting for?”
Arnav didn’t know what to say. He
went to the cupboard and removed his casuals. His hand stopped hearing,
“Didi, shall we sleep with you
here?”
He looked at them jerking to know
what would be Khushi’s answer.
“You guys should ask your Dad
because this is his room” Khushi cleverly escaped from answering.
The kids looked at Arnav who walked
to the washroom without looking at them as if he didn’t hear them.
“Dad won’t allow us to be here,”
Shamli said.
“Oh… ok, let’s go to your room”
“Will you sleep with us in our
room?” Shali asked curiously.
“No…” Came from the doorstep.
They saw Dadi standing.
“I already told you, if she marries
your father, she would be in his room. Didn’t I?”
They nodded yes.
“That’s ok, Dadi. I will be there
for a while and come back here…. Ok, kiddo?”
They nodded ok. Khushi looked at
Dadi. She blinked her eyes. Khushi walked with them. Dadi followed them to
their room. They saw Aarav coming, changing out of the washroom.
“Bhaiya, Khushi Didi is going to be
with us in our room”
“Is it?”
Khushi nodded yes.
“Just for a while…” Dadi said.
They nodded ok.
“I will take care of them, Dadi”
Khushi said.
“One minute, Khushi…” Dadi walked
out
“Beta, go to bed. I will just come”
They nodded ok and jumped on their
respective beds. Khushi came to Dadi.
“Tell me, Dadi”
“You said kids would think
differently if they saw the decorated bed. It was right. So, I accepted it but
this is your first night. You should be in your room”
“I will go as soon as possible,
Dadiji. I just don’t want to disappoint kids. Arnavji will understand. He will
wait for me”
Dadi nodded yes and left. She was
relieved. She thought Khushi was not interested in the first night. Thank God,
nothing was like that. Dadi felt happy.
In the meanwhile,
Arnav came out of the washroom,
changing, and got stuck not finding Khushi in their room. Where did she go? Did
she go with the kids? He sighed. He was supposed to sit on the bed, but he
stopped. Should he take the bed or the recliner? He immediately changed his
mind. Why should he sleep on the recliner? After all, Khushi was his wife. And,
he had a TASK too. He had only twenty-two days and two days already gone. They
were married. After Khushi became his wife, there was nothing to think about.
He ought to give her the share of happiness. She deserved it.
Arnav remembered what Khushi told
him one day when he denied her proposal.
*You didn’t get married not because
your kids are important to you… it’s because you’re your wife would also become
important to you if you get married. You know very well you would give equal
importance to your wife and would consider her as a part of your life. you
didn’t want to break your wife’s heart by going against her wish. You could not
do that. That’s why you didn’t get married*
Khushi was right… this was why he
didn’t want to get married. But now, he got married to Khushi like an
understanding girl. He had never seen such a nice girl in his life. She became
his wife now. She was important to him. She became a part of his life. He could
not even hurt her, forget about breaking her heart. Arnav supposed.
But… there was something in
Khushi’s mind. She didn’t want their room to be decorated because she knew
Arnav would not be interested in their first night. Didn’t she know him? he was
not even ready to marry her, then, how would he think about their first night?
More than that, she just removed her uterus. So, he would give it as an excuse
to avoid her. It would be better if she spent time with the kids. It would make
him happy who was so much in love with his sister’s children. She sighed.
To be continued…
Part 46 Denial
Khushi stayed with the kids until
they slept. Closing the door, she silently walked out. She came to their room
and found Arnav still up. Smiling at him, she removed her casuals from the
cupboard and went to the washroom. She came out within five minutes and sat on
the bed. Arnav smiled. There was no confusion in her mind in taking the bed. She
had no oscillation between the bed and the recliner, like he had. She just came
and sat on the bed, simply.
Arnav was supposed to say something
but stopped as Khushi said,
“Good night,” and covered herself
with a quilt and closed her eyes, leaving Arnav disappointed.
She could even spend with the kids
till 10 o’clock but she intended to sleep not giving heed to him who was up for
her?
He intentionally coughed. Khushi
removed the quilt from her and sat. Arnav saw that and continued coughing.
Khushi got off the bed and brought water to him. She extended a glass of water.
“Arnavji, drink it”
He nodded no.
“Arnavji, you are coughing…”
“It’s ok…” he said while coughing.
In no time, Khushi kneeled on the
bed. Clutching his nape, she made him drink water. Arnav was absolutely taken
back. He was shocked. He didn’t expect she would forcefully make him drink
water. He thought she would request him to drink water. He drank water, looking
at her. She got off the bed and walked to her side after keeping the bottle on
the table.
“It seems children are much better
than you. They obey me without a question…” She chided.
Arnav controlled his smile.
“No one forced me for anything like
you did,” he said, wiping his lips.
“I too didn’t force anyone for
anything like I did,” she said casually and sat on the bed.
“Then why did you force me?”
“It’s because you are my husband…”
“What does that mean?”
“That means…” she stopped.
Arnav nodded his head, like,
continue.
“Nothing…”
“Husband means nothing?” He asked
sarcastically.
“It depends upon the woman who
marries a man… husband gets value according to the respect given by his wife”
“What about you? Do you respect
me?”
“You know my respect for you”
“I know your respect for me but I
don’t know about the wife in you”
“What’s so urgent Arnavji? Don’t we
have a lifetime to know each other?” she lay on the bed smilingly and closed
her eyes.
“Will you come to the office
tomorrow?” Arnav asked.
She pulled the quilt down and
looked at him.
“Will you go to the office
tomorrow?” she questioned him instead of answering.
“Don’t you want me to go?”
“Do you want people to taunt us?”
“Ok… we will go on Monday”
“Mmm”
“By the way, why do you prefer a
saree all of a sudden?”
“Should not I prefer saree?”
“Khushi, what happened to you? without
anwswering my question, you are questioning me in return”
“Should not I question you?” She
questioned him again controlling her smile.
“Why not? You can question me. At
the same time, you should answer me too…”
“Didn’t I answer you?”
Arnav rolled his eyes.
“Don’t my questions have answers?”
Arnav nodded his head and lay
smilingly.
Khushi looked at him turning toward
him. Arnav looked at her and raised his brows, like, WHAT?
“I’m married…” she smiled.
Arnav nodded yes.
“You are also married”
Arnav chuckled.
“It’s because we got married to
each other”
“That’s the eighth wonder”
“Really?”
“Of course, the man who had been in
penance for ten years, married me breaking his ties…”
YOU MADE ME BROKE IT Arnav wanted
to say so but he just smiled.
Khushi slowly closed her eyes to
sleep. She opened her eyes, hearing,
“You said you forced me because I’m
your husband. Will you force me because I became your husband?”
“I forcefully made you drink water…
If I had not forced you, you would have kept on coughing. That’s why I forced
you. so, my action as a reason”
“Oh… that means you will force me
if you have reasons?”
Khushi looked at him sharply
without answering.
“You can tell me straight if you
don’t like me forcing you for anything”
Arnav was stuck. He just extended
the conversation but Khushi misunderstood it.
“I didn’t mean it…”
“Are you sure?”
He blinked his eyes.
“Thanks…” she smilingly closed her
eyes.
Afterward, Arnav also dozed off.
The next day
Khushi opened her eyes and
stretched her body in the lying position. Arnav who was working on his laptop
smiled not looking at her.
Khushi sat on the bed with sleepy
eyes.
“Good morning” her voice was
groggy.
“Good morning” Arnav smiled.
She went to the washroom. She came
within fifteen minutes, getting fully ready. She looked brisk. Sitting before
the dressing table, she combed her hair which was soft and silky.
Being so beautiful, how did this
girl think of marrying him? Arnav could not hold himself from thinking.
She stood up and left the room
without even glancing at him. Arnav rolled his eyes.
Kitchen
Khushi was making breakfast for the
kids. She was preparing her favorite cheese sandwich. She kept two sets of
sandwiches on the grill and, prepared the next sets. That was when she received
a call from an unknown number. She attended the call. She spoke keeping the
phone on her shoulder and she continued her work.
“Is this Khushi ma’am?”
“Yeah…”
“Ma’am, I’m a PR from an APT Ad
agency. Santhosh is my name”
“Oh…”
“We would like to pair you with Mr.
ASR in a jewelry Ad”
Khushi smiled.
“We think you will be apt with him”
“I’m not a professional modal”
“ASR either…”
“Yeah, but he is interested. I’m
not…”
“Ma’am, he is so stubborn that he
will act only with you. Of course, you guys look nice together. Your pair is so
awesome. Please consider, Ma’am”
“Ok, give me some time”
“Ma’am, we heard you married to ASR
yesterday. If your husband wants you to pair with him, why are you hesitating,
Ma’am? You already appeared in your company Ad, right?”
“I just did that due to
circumstance”
“Give it a chance, Ma’am. If it
doesn’t click, decide accordingly. It’s not easy to get a good chance like this,
Ma’am. Don’t you know about the industry?”
“Mmm… ok, I will do it but not
right away. We just married yesterday. We need time”
“No problem, Ma’am… we can go for a
shoot as per your comfort”
“Ok, thank you”
Disconnecting the call, the APT PR
called Arnav. He attended the call.
“Who is this?” Arnav asked while
checking a mile.
“ASR, I’m a PR in APT Ad agency”
Arnav rolled his eyes.
“Sir, we would like to pair you
with Khushi Ma’am and she accepted our offer”
Arnav was surprised. Did Khushi
accept the offer? Really?
“Is it? When did she accept it?”
“Just now, sir. she is ready to
appear on screen with you”
Arnav raised his brows.
“Oh… what’s the Ad about?”
“It’s a jewelry Ad, ASR”
“Is there any concept? Or, we
should just appear?”
“We have a small and nice concept
for the Ad sir”
“Oh… what’s that?”
“Khushi ma’am is upset with you.
You buy jewelry to coax her and your problem comes to an end”
“I’m sorry, I won’t act in this
Ad,” Arnav said without any second thought.
“But why, ASR?” he asked with
shock.
“I just don’t want to… thank you
for your offer” Arnav disconnected the call.
Khushi again got a call from the
same PR. She attended the call.
“Yes…”
“Ma’am, ASR denied acting in the
Ad”
Khushi was taken aback. Did Arnav
deny it? Why?
“Did you talk to him?” Khushi
asked.
“Just now, ma’am”
“Did he know I accepted the offer?”
“Yes, ma’am…”
“Oh…”
“Ma’am, please ask him to act in
our Ad”
“I don’t know if he changes his
mind. I don’t know why he denied acting in the Ad…”
“Please give it a try, Ma’am”
“Mmmm…”
“Thank you, Ma’am” he disconnected
the call.
Khushi became thoughtful. She
didn’t know why Arnav denied the offer. Wasn’t he the one who wanted to act
only with her? Then what was his problem? It was a jewelry Ad. The payment
would be big. Then, what was the reason for him to deny? She didn’t know
whether she could ask him or not.
To be continued…
Khushi found
herself puzzled. Why did Arnav reject the offer? Was he not interested in doing
the ad with her? She decided to call APT PR Santosh for some answers. He
answered her call promptly.
"Did ASR agree
to act, ma'am?" he asked curiously.
"Did you
inform him that I agreed to act with him?" she asked to confirm whether
Arnav knew it.
"Of course, I
did, ma'am," Santosh confirmed.
Khushi was baffled.
Santosh had told Arnav that she agreed to act with him, yet he still didn't agree.
She felt disappointed and disconnected the call. She couldn't abandon the
sandwich preparation despite wanting to know the reason for his refusal. So she
proceeded with it.
The children
happily gathered in the dining area to enjoy the sandwiches prepared by Khushi.
Arnav took a seat alongside them. She served everyone, including Arnav, and
tried to avoid looking at him.
"Khushi Didi,
this sandwich is amazing," Aarav exclaimed, raising his hand in approval
while taking another bite.
"Thank you,
sweetie," Khushi responded cheerfully.
"We love the
sandwiches. We're lucky to have someone at home who prepares them so well. Hai
na?" Shali asked Shamli.
"Haan, will
you make them for us often?" Shamli asked eagerly.
"Sure, baby.
I'll definitely make them if you like it," Khushi assured.
"But Dad
doesn't like sandwiches; he prefers pancakes," Aarav added.
"Who said I
don't like sandwiches? Of course, I like pancakes a lot, but that doesn't mean
I don't like sandwiches. I do like sandwiches, and Khushi's sandwich tastes
great," Arnav stated as he took a bite.
Khushi glanced at
him, and he smiled back at her. Although Khushi reciprocated with a smile, it
felt forced, and Arnav noticed it.
"Khushi Didi,
will you make this again tomorrow?" Aarav inquired.
"I'll
definitely make it again, but not tomorrow. We shouldn't eat it repeatedly...
Okay?" She asked politely.
"Mmm..."
Aarav nodded in agreement.
"Good
boy..." Khushi said, gently caressing his hair.
Arnav sensed Khushi
was upset because she avoided looking at him. He had a hunch about the reason,
but he wasn't entirely sure if he was right.
After breakfast,
the kids were about to head to their room when they heard Khushi announce,
"Guys, we're going to an exhibition this evening. Get ready!"
"Yay!" The
kids exclaimed with joy, while Arnav looked at her in surprise.
"We're going
to the exhibition…" They hugged Khushi.
"Exhibition?"
Arnav asked, with a furrowed brow.
Khushi nodded.
"There will be
a lot of people there..." Arnav said as if she didn’t know about it.
"Of course,
it's an exhibition..." She simply said.
"It's not safe
to take the kids there," Arnav said.
"Chotte, the
exhibition is for children, not adults,” Nani said.
“Don't worry, I'll
take care of them," Khushi said confidently.
"How will you
manage them on your own?" Arnav asked restlessly.
"I will...
because they are good children," Khushi said, looking at the kids with
pride.
"No, I can't
allow you to take them there."
“Arnav, when Khushi
is confident about it, why are you bothering? Let them go” Dadi gave her
supporting hand to them.
“No, Dadi…I can’t…
kids, we will go later, ok?”
Khushi looked at
the disappointed faces of the children. She felt bad for making them
disappointed.
"I'm sorry,
Arnavji, but I'm taking the children to the exhibition. If you're so concerned
about them..."
Cutting her off,
Arnav replied,
"Yes, of
course, I am concerned about them."
"Then you
should join us too." She folded her hands.
"What?
Me?" Arnav was almost jerked.
Khushi nodded,
"That's
right."
"That's
impossible... Me at an exhibition? Ridiculous..."
Khushi looked at
the kids, disappointed, as they went to their room, feeling distraught.
“Why should I take
them, Arnavji?”
“Khushi I told
you…”
“Arnavji, they are
kids. They would like to visit joy-filled places…”
“We will take them
to Disney Land in their summer holidays”
“You will take them
to Disney land and of course, to the space too… We are on leave. We will be
busy if we start going to the office. I just thought to use it useful with
kids. They will expect it from us…”
“They never
expected it from me…”
Cutting him,
“It’s because they
knew you… they knew you wouldn’t take them to the simple places. That’s why
they would not have expected it from you but my story is different. They would
surely expect something NEW from me. They would have heard stories about the
exhibition from their class friends. They too would like to visit such places.
I just thought not to disappoint them. I don’t think you will understand their simple
desires…”
She went to the
kitchen. Arnav rolled his eyes. He sighed and followed her.
Nani and Dadi
exchanged smiles.
Khushi cleaned the
grill with tissues.
"Are you upset
with me?" Arnav asked.
Khushi looked at
him and shook her head from left to right.
"Khushi, the
exhibition will be crowded. I'm allergic to crowds..." he said making a
weird face.
Khushi turned her
face opposite to him and suppressed a smile.
"Oh, really? I
didn't know that." She said managing herself.
"Ok... If you
want to take the kids to the exhibition, Aman will take them." He tried to
compromise her.
"No need,
Arnavji. Forget it." She said making a face.
"All right,
we'll take them... Happy now?"
"But you're
allergic to crowds." She asked making a sad face.
"That's
fine..."
"You've never
been in a crowd before?" She asked with concern.
Arnav nodded no.
"If you have
never been in the crowd, how will you manage then?" Her expression was the
same.
"What do you
mean?" He frowned.
"What if you
get lost there?" She asked, barely containing her laughter.
"No no... I
won't..." Arnav said, not realizing she was teasing him.
He caught on and
looked at Khushi, who was stifling laughter. He rolled his eyes, understanding her.
Khushi burst out
laughing and Arnav smiled biting his lip, raising his brows. Arnav was supposed
to leave the kitchen, but stopped when he heard,
"I heard you
refused to act in the Jewelry Ad with me," Khushi asked, could not hold
herself.
Arnav looked at
her, turning around.
"I refused to
act in the Ads, not with you." He cleared.
"May I know
why you refused the offer?"
"I didn't like
the concept." He said plainly.
"What
concept?" Khushi asked as she didn't know the concept.
"You are upset
with me and I give you a jewellery set. You immediately forget the issue and
become happy. What kind of concept is this? Rubbish..." he frowned.
"It's their
Ad, so they try to glorify their product..." Khushi found a reason for the
concept.
"Khushi, is
this a way to promote their brand?”
Khushi folded her
hands.
“Ok, fine. They can
do it, but I don't want us to appear in it."
"But
why?"
"This Ad makes
you look silly... I can't let my wife's image down...”
Khushi smiled. She
liked his concern.
“You could have
told him the reason”
“Why should I? It’s
not my concern. This is their Ad. They can make as they wish…”
“It’s just an Ad
Arnavji. Why are you taking it so seriously?”
“Getting consoled
for a mere jewellery set is not YOU. I don’t want people to see you in that way. That's
why I denied” he said and he left the kitchen, leaving Khushi overwhelmed.
To be continued…
Part 48 Acceptance
Arnav was suffocating. He promised Khushi that he
would also accompany them to the exhibition. He was not used to being amid the
crowd. He hated crowded places. Adding to it, the exhibitions would not be up
to HIS standard. That bothered him. As of now, Khushi would have told the kids
about his acceptance. There was nothing to think more. He came to their room
and smiled at Khushi who was in their room.
At the same time, Khushi received a call. it was
from APT Ad PR Santhosh. Khushi attended the call, looking at Arnav.
“Ma’am, this is Santhosh”
’Yeah,”
“Ma’am, did you ask ASR why he denied acting in our
Ad?”
“The reason is simple, Santhoshji. Arnavji doesn’t
like your concept”
Arnav who was about to put his mobile in charge,
stopped and looked at Khushi. Was she talking with Santhosh?
“Concept? Why didn’t he like it, Maam?”
“He doesn’t want me to be shown in the Ad as a silly
wife, who gets consoled for a jewellery set” She laughed.
Arnav connected his phone with the charger smilingly
and came to the recliner.
“Ma’am, this is just an AD. How can we promote our
brand if we don’t use such a concept? We would like to highlight our brand
ma’am”
“Of course, I don’t deny it. Arnavji thinks this is
not a way to promote the brand because not everyone can be wealthier to buy
jewellery set to coax his wife, right?”
There was a silence from Santhosh’s side.
“If you want to promote your brand, you should
highlight your specialities”
“Specialties means? What you are talking about
ma’am?”
“See, instead of coaxing the wife with a jewellery
set concept, the wife thanks her husband for introducing the brand to her with
good designs and quality that gave her satisfaction and happiness…”
Arnav smiled while logging in to his laptop.
“How could we bring it on screen, Ma’am?”
“Husband comes home. His wife rushes to him all
smiling. he asks her the reason for her happiness. She says she gifted her
mother a jewellery set. She was highly satisfied with the quality and the
prize.”
“Wow… excellent ma’am”
“At the end of the Ad, the husband gifts her a
jewellery set to get the same satisfaction of bringing a smile to her wife’s
face”
“Wow… you are so awesome, ma’am”
Arnav was gazing at her with disbelief because he
wanted the Ad to be exactly the same. Khushi’s next stance made him more
surprised.
“This is not my concept but Arnavji’s”
He looked at her widening his eyes who was not
looking at him.
“He wants the Ad to be like this. He will act if the
Ad has such a concept” She said smiling at him.
“Ma’am, give me five minutes. I will call you back”
“Sure” Khushi disconnected the call.
Arnav leaned on the recliner, folding his hands,
smiling at her.
“It seems you changed the concept of the Ad…”
“No no… I just told him my idea”
“Then, why did you say, it’s my idea?”
“It’s because you wanted the same”
“How do you know?”
“Just guessed”
“Could you guess my ideas so accurately?”
“Am I guessed accurately?”
Arnav nodded yes.
“If it is so, will you sign the Ad if they change
the concept?”
“Do you think they will change the concept?”
“He asked me for five minutes. He wants to discuss
the concept with his officials, I suppose. If they TRULY want us to be in the
Ad, they will approach us with the changed concept”
“Let’s see…”
Khushi was supposed to leave the room, but she
stopped hearing,
“I’m not used to being in the crowd…”
Khushi looked at him.
“I don’t know what to do. Will you guide me?”
“Don’t worry. There is nothing you can’t handle. We
are going to escort the kids… that’s important”
Arnav nodded his head. Khushi again headed out.
“What are you going to do now?” he asked.
“Will prepare something for kids for lunch”
“Don’t do that”
“But why?”
“Taking them to the exhibition is fine but preparing
something for them is not advisable because they will expect it from you
whenever you are at home”
“Haan… if they expect that from me, I will do that
for them”
“You can’t… because you are a working woman. You
rarely get a chance to be at home. I don’t want you to be working in the
kitchen instead of taking a rest”
“I can manage, Arnavji”
“You can manage now because they are kids. They are
growing. Their needs and expectations will also grow. You may not fulfil them.
Or, you may struggle to cope with them…”
“Mmm… if I can’t handle them, I will resign the job.
What say?”
Arnav was shocked to hear that. Resigning the job?
“Whaaaat? To serve the kids, are you going to resign
from the job?” he asked unbelievably.
“Of course, it happens in many houses…”
“It won’t happen here,” he said controlling himself.
“Why won’t it happen, Arnavji?”
“I said no…” he folded his hands.
“Why?” She too folded her hands.
“Do you forget what you PROMISED me?”
“Promised? What did I promise?” she didn’t get him.
“Didn’t you say, you will take care of my need for
your whole life as you are a working woman? If you resign the job, how will you
fulfil my needs?”
Khushi looked at him trying hard to know if he said
that for a joke or if he was really serious.
Of course, she said that when Arnav avoided her
proposal by saying that he registered all his property in the kids’ name and he
had nothing for himself. She understood he was hinting at that now.
“Won’t you take care of ME, Khushi?” he asked
seriously.
Khushi was confused as she could not understand
anything from his facial expression.
“Don’t worry, Arnavji. I will take care of you by
giving a few Ads… what say?”
Arnav rolled his eyes smiling.
“Don’t worry, Arnavji. The kids are so
understanding. They will understand me. You just don’t bother about them” She
left the place smiling.
Arnav sighed. No matter how hard he tried to hold
her in his room, his tricks didn’t work with Khushi.
That was when Khushi’s phone rang that was on the
bed. Arnav walked to it and saw Santhosh’s name flashing. He received it to
know their decision.
“Hello, Khushi Ma’am…” he was excited.
“Arnav Singh Raizada…” Arnav said in ASR’s style.
“ASR… thank God, you attended the call” he became
more excited.
“Why?”
“We changed the concept of the Ad. It will be like
how you want it to be”
Arnav smirked. He expected it.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, ASR… our officials liked the concept so much.
It’s just awesome”
“Ok… go ahead…”
“Thank you so much, ASR”
“Mmmm…”
“One more thing, ASR”
“What?”
“Our officials want the Ad to be a lighthearted
romantic…” he said, with slight hesitation.
Arnav became excited. Romantic?
“Means…?” He asked not showing his curiosity.
“They want Khushi ma’am to HUG you”
Arnav could not hold his lips from curving.
“Oh…”
“At the end, they want you to peck her forehead,
after gifting the jewellery set”
He smiled.
“Oh, but I don’t know Khushi will be fine with it”
“Oh, Noooo…”
“Do one thing. You don’t tell her anything. I will
handle this”
“Thank you so much, ASR”
“That’s ok”
“Shall we fix it?”
“Yeah, you can”
“Thank you so much, ASR”
“Yup”
Santhosh disconnected the call happily. Arnav was happier
than him. He just wanted the Ad to be with dignity. As he didn’t expect, it
would be ROMANTIC also. Of course, it was a lighthearted romance. So what?
Would not it be the stepping stone to their relationship?
More than that, he didn’t know how Khushi was going
to REACT to it. He was curious to see her face when she was in his arms.
To be continued…
Part 49 Romantic?
The kids were happily getting ready for the
exhibition. Khushi asked them to wear a light outfit. She herself chose divider
skirts for them and short pants for Aarav.
Khushi came to their room to get ready after making
the kids ready. She got stuck, forgetting herself seeing Arnav in a T-shirt and
jeans.
*He looks dashing no matter what he wears* she
thought.
Arnav saw her looking at him all lost. He raised his
brows, seeing a thin smile on her face that thinned his lips.
“Are you ready?” Arnav asked.
That brought her sense back.
“I will be ready in a few minutes…”
“A girl and getting ready in a FEW minute? I won’t
believe it…”
He chuckled and Khushi laughed.
Taking her clothes, she said,
“It’s 5:35…”
She went to the washroom. She stopped before
entering the washroom and looked at Arnav.
“You look fetching in this outfit”
“Fetching? Really?”
She nodded yes pressing her lips and closed the
door. Arnav smiled. Did he FETCH her attention?
She came changing within five minutes. She looked
gorgeous in a simple kurti and jeans. She went to the mirror and combed her
hair. She left it freely. Applying bindi, vermillion on her partition, and lip
gloss, she looked at Arnav who was already looking at her.
“I’m ready…” She said.
Arnav clapped his hands without making a sound
stylishly.
“Let’s go…” She turned to leave but stopped hearing,
“Is it necessary to wear LIP GLOSS?”
She looked at him with a slight frown.
“Don’t you like it?”
“Of course, I like it… it’s so ATTRACTIVE… but, I
don’t think you need it…”
Khushi was thunderstruck. He walked out, looking at
her facial reaction smilingly.
Khushi stood like a statue. What did he mean? Was he
ATTRACTED her? Why did he say she didn’t need it? Was she already attracted
without lip gloss? Did he talk about her or her LIPS? Khushi felt a rise in her
heartbeat. She gulped down pressing her chest. She jerked hearing kids calling
her. She rushed out.
They came to the parking. As usual, Khushi sat in
the back seat with Shali and Shamli. She let Aarav sit with Arnav in the front
seat. She didn’t want to disappoint him by changing the places. She didn’t want
them to feel a difference in her. Though she had a reason, that disappointed
Arnav. He thought Khushi would sit with him.
They reached the exhibition. Khushi removed MASKS
from her bag. She forwarded it to the kids.
“Wear this… this is one of the most crowded places…
be careful. Ok?”
They nodded ok and wore the mask.
“Is it necessary for me too?” Arnav asked.
“More than the kids, it’s necessary for you…”
“Why?” He frowned.
“To avoid people recognising you…”
“Means?”
“As you become a popular model by our company Ad,
girls may surround you…! You may get stuck in between girls…! It will stretch
our time…!” She said.
Arnav didn’t know if she was telling the truth or, teasing
him. He looked at the mask and then at Khushi.
“Don’t you think this is too much?”
“If you have doubt, just get out of the car without
wearing the mask and check,” She said confidently.
Without thinking, Arnav got down to prove she was
wrong.
Khushi also got down with kids. Arnav came to them.
“Let’s go…”
That was when they heard,
“Hey, look at there… AR Suiting modal”
They saw a few girls looking at them who were
supposed to get into the car. They ran to him.
“Sir, shall we have a selfie?”
Arnav looked at Khushi who raised her brows with a
cute attitude. The girls took a few selfies with him even before he agreed to
him.
“Thank you handsome” They rushed away giggling.
Khushi looked at him folding her lips. Taking the
mask from Khushi’s hand, Arnav wore it, making her chuckle.
They entered the exhibition. The kids were
awestruck, seeing its feature. It seemed like a jugglery for them. Giant wheel,
Merry-go-round, Columbus raid, roller coaster, mirror house, Horror house, 3D
show, Big size Pappad, Colorful giant bubbles, etc., etc.,
They went on all the rides one by one. Khushi held
them tight protectively not wanting to make them scared.
They got down from the giant wheel.
“Are you scared?”
“No, it’s adventurous…”
“That’s nice”
Khushi brought them cotton candy without colour. It
looked exactly like cotton.
“Is not it pink in colour?” Shali asked.
“The artificial colours are banned because it’s
unhealthy and cause many diseases” Khushi said.
Taking a little cotton candy from Khushi, Arnav
tasted it.
“It tastes so sweet” Arnav frowned.
“Dad, it’s because it’s a candy” Shamli giggled
teasingly. Shali and Aarav shared hi-fi with her.
Khushi controlled her smile, biting her lip.
After enjoying the exhibition thoroughly, they
decided to leave the venue. That was when Aarav saw the Pizza shop. He nagged
Arnav and looked at the shop. Arnav nodded a strict NO. Aarav’s face hung.
Khushi was supposed to say something, but Arnav stopped her.
“Khushi, I won’t compromise in this… so, don’t try
to manipulate me”
“No, I don’t try to manipulate you… I just want to
say,”
“No need to say anything regarding…”
Khushi sighed.
“Dad, what harm if we eat only one time?” Aarav
asked making a face.
“Let’s go…” Arnav walked without answering to Aarav.
All of them stood looking at each other.
“Kiddo, Dad doesn’t even like to talk about it.
Don’t make him disappointed. He accompanied us to the exhibition. He respects
our wishes. If he doesn’t want you to eat pizza, don’t ask him about it again.
Ok? Don’t spoil your good mood for a single thing you didn’t get. Then Dad will
feel bad” Khushi said.
They nodded ok feeling sad. Khushi felt bad for
them. They got seated in the car. Khushi purposely spoke to them to make them
casual. Slowly the situation changed and the kids started talking with joy.
Arnav noticed it.
They reached RM. Nani and Dadi were in the living
room, waiting for them.
“How was the exhibition?”
“It was awesome,” They said happily.
“Ok, go and eat dinner”
“No Badi Dadi we ate a lot in the exhibition” Aarav
said.
“What about you?”
“I too don’t want anything” Khushi said.
“You Chotte?”
“I will eat” Arnav said as he didn’t eat anything.
“Ok, come getting fresh…” Nani said.
Arnav nodded ok and went to his room.
“Guys, you to go and get fresh…”
The kids went to the room.
“Wow, Khushi bitiya, the kids obey you without
fussing”
“They are good, Naniji”
Dadi and Nani smiled at each other.
“Of course, they are but they won’t listen to
everything said by us…”
Khushi smiled as she understood what they trying to
say.
Within a few minutes, she saw Arnav coming down, all
fresh. She served him dinner.
“Are not you going to eat anything?”
She nodded no.
“Have a banana at least”
She didn’t deny it. She sat with him and ate a
banana. She waited for him to complete eating and went to their room with him.
She went to the washroom and came changing.
“Thank you so much Arnavji”
Arnav raised his brows.
“For what?”
“For accompanying US to the exhibition”
“It was really awesome. Felt happy and stress-free.
Thanks…” He said.
Khushi smiled.
“Kids are happy… you are showing them a different
world. Fortunately, it makes them happier…”
“They would be more and more happier if they had
gotten PIZZA…”
“No Khushi. I don’t want them to get the hope that
they can get something unhealthy from me if they are adamant”
“They are not adamant… they obeyed you”
“They have to…”
“What I would like to say is…”
“Khushi, please… I don’t want you to conflict with
me in
anything”
“Until you listen to me, how could you know if I’m
in conflict with you?”
“If I don’t like something, if you want to talk
about it to me, what does that mean?”
Khushi didn’t want to argue with him about it
anymore. Some
things could not be argued but proved. So, she kept
quiet.
“Oh… I accepted the Ad offer”
Khushi lifted her brows. Arnav nodded yes.
“But, how did it happen?”
“They changed the concept” he smiled.
Khushi nodded from left to right with a slight smile
and lay, covering herself.
“They have an obligation”
Khushi looked at him to know the obligation.
“They want the ad to be ROMANTIC.” He intentionally
cut off
the word SLIGHT.
Khushi widened her eyes. She could not believe Arnav
agreed to act in the Ad even after knowing their demand. What was there in his
mind? She tried to read his face but his face looked like crystal clear water.
She could not read anything.
To be continued…
Part 50 Shoot
“They want the Ad to be ROMANTIC,” Arnav said,
intentionally cutting off the word SLIGHT.
Khushi widened her eyes. She could not believe Arnav
agreed to act in the Ad even after he got to know about their demand. What was
there in his mind? She tried to read his face but his face looked crystal clear
water. She could not read anything.
“Tomorrow is a Sunday. We will be free. I think we
should finish the Ad shooting tomorrow. What say?”
Khushi stared at him. She did not know what to say.
Arnav didn’t wait for her reply though. Taking his mobile, he dialed Santhosh.
He attended the call.
“Hello, ASR…”
“We are free tomorrow. You can use our time if you
want”
“OK ASR. We will fix it”
“Don’t you want to get the authority’s permission?”
“They will make immediate arrangements ASR because
they know how busy you are. I will let you know the timing”
“Ok…”
“It’s already late. So, I won’t call you but drop
the message”
Santhosh said and Arnav knew why. He didn’t want to
DISTURB them when they were together.
“Ok”
“Good night, ASR”
“Good night”
Arnav disconnected the call, looking at Khushi.
“The shoot will take place tomorrow. Get ready…”
She didn’t know what he meant by GET READY. She
didn’t know how she should get ready. He took the right side of the bed. Khushi
gazed at him. Arnav looked at her, turning his face. Khushi covered herself
with a quilt.
“Are you feeling cold? Do you want me to reduce the
AC temperature?”
She nodded no.
“Then, why are you covering yourself? The
temperature is mild…”
She was silent. She was covering herself because her
clothes might mess.
“I’m used to it,” she said plainly.
“Oh…” He pulled the quilt a little and slipped into
it making her perplexed.
He looked at her and said,
“I’m also used to it”
His facial expression was serious enough while
telling that. Khushi pulled her face inside the quilt. She widened her eyes
when she saw Arnav also did the same.
“It feels good to be inside the quilt…” he smiled.
Khushi blinked her eyes softly. Arnav closed his
eyes smiling, making Khushi gasp. She could not conclude his mind. After a
while, she slowly closed her eyes and drifted into sleep. Arnav opened his eyes
and made sure that she was sleeping. He removed the quilt and kept it aside. He
waited and observed her move whether she would feel chill or not. Khushi didn’t
get disturbed from her sleep.
Arnav frowned. If she didn’t get disturbed, why did
she always cover herself? That was when Khushi turned opposite to him in her
sleep. Her top rolled up a little and revealed her lower back. Arnav averted
his gaze gulping down. He understood why she covered herself with the quilt. He
again covered her with the quilt. He turned opposite to her and closed his
eyes.
The next morning
Arnav woke up from his sleep and found Khushi fresh.
She was combing her hair, sitting in front of the mirror.
“Good morning” he smiled, looking at her through the
mirror.
“Good morning,” She said, turning behind.
“When did you wake up?”
“5o’ clock”
“Why so early?”
“We have a shoot today. Before leaving RM, I would
like to cook something for the kids as today is Sunday”
“Mmm… what are you going to cook?”
Khushi smiled at him and left the room without
answering. Arnav raised his brows and sighed. He looked at his image in the
mirror.
“Mmm… it seems after the wedding, girls would become
like this…typical wives…!” he sighed and went to the washroom.
When he came downstairs, Shali shouted,
“Dad…Khushi Didi is preparing your favourite
Pancakes”
Arnav saw Khushi coming with a plate full of
pancakes. She served them all. Arnav felt bad for putting Khushi on the random
wives’ list. Arnav ate relishing it. He said nothing even though it tasted
good.
Khushi finished having breakfast quickly and went to
their room to get ready. She looked simple.
Arnav and Khushi left RM. Arnav drove the car
towards the Ad agency studio.
“You look simple”
“However, they will provide me costume… I will have
to change it… that’s why I preferred a simple dress”
“By the way, I’m sorry”
“For?”
“When you refused to answer me about the breakfast,
I thought you became a typical wife”
Khushi chuckled.
“The pancakes are so good” he smiled.
“Thanks”
They reached their destination. Everything had been
ready for them. They were given a costume. Khushi was stuck as they provided a
SINGLE room. She looked at Arnav perplexed.
“We are husband and wife after all…” he shrugged.
Khushi was silent. He was not wrong. After all, they
were a couple.
“I will leave after changing… after that, you can
change,” Arnav said.
Khushi nodded ok.
Arnav started removing his clothes, observing her
expression through the corner of his eyes. Khushi removed her phone and checked
messages to avoid looking at him.
Arnav smilingly changed the dress.
“Close the door. The makeup artist will come to make
you ready,” he said.
Khushi nodded. Arnav left the room. She got ready.
As Arnav said, the makeup artist knocked on the door. She Made up Khushi ready.
Khushi liked the light makeup with a Pinkish shade, matching her pink and
golden work suit with a mild jewellery set.
Arnav’s eyes smiled along with his lips, seeing her
so mesmerizing. The director explained the sequence to Khushi.
“Ma’am, you should run to ASR, seeing him entering
home, and hug him”
Khushi looked at Arnav standing next to her,
listening to the director.
“Shall we go for a take?” the director asked.
“No… we will go for a rehearsal…” Said Arnav and all
of them looked at him weirdly. What was there to rehearse a hug? The question
was raised in the director’s mind but he didn’t have the guts to voice it out.
Arnav understood what was cooking in his mind.
“She will be confident if she utters the dialogue
once” he managed.
The director gave them time to rehearse. Khushi ran
towards Arnav smilingly. Arnav stood looking at her. when she hugged him, Arnav
circled her waist and lifted her from the ground. He rotated her in the air and
put her down. Khushi looked at him shockingly because it was not in the script.
“What happened? You look happy?” Arnav asked.
Khushi didn’t tell her dialogue as she was numb.
“See, this is why I asked for rehearsal,” Arnav
said.
The director nodded smilingly.
“Now, shall we go for a take Khushi?” Arnav asked.
She nodded with an awkward smile. They went for the
take. Khushi made up herself and acted and the second take clicked.
The final shot came. Arnav gave her a jewelry set
and Khushi again hugged him. Arnav lifted her chin and read her eyes those were
bewildered. He kissed her cheek and looked at her who was closing her eyes.
Arnav again hugged her with a mild smile. The director was looking at them
forgetting to say anything. he didn’t know what to say because as per the
script, Arnav should kiss her on her forehead.
Arnav looked at him and said,
“Forehead kiss would not be romantic but respectful.
That’s why I kissed her cheek”
“Excellent…” The director said.
Arnav nodded and looked at Khushi who had not come
out of the shock yet.
To be continued…
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