PART 45….
She flickered her eyelids adjusting her pupils to the sharp yet smooth sunlight. She finally opens her eyes and sits on the bed, it takes her a while to recollect the day before happenings and she sighs remembering where she has been and a smile curls her lips into an adorable curve. She starts taking in her surroundings and soon a gasp escapes her mouth.
This is crazy!
She exclaims in her head. The pretty room leaves her bewitched. She places her feet down when she feels a little swing and her face gets covered with a wide smile. The swinging bed.
Wooh!!!! If somebody said that dreams don’t come true, I bet they don’t have a family like I do.
Enchants her internal thoughts while giggling at the room as if somebody was in constant conversation with her.
She walks towards the door by the side of mirror and as soon as she opens it, she draws in a sharp breath. The walk in closet. What can be more mesmerizing then having the most authentic clothes stacked like a princess wardrobe. Slipping in the room she picks up a comfortable outfit and quickly jumps in the bathroom to get dressed for the day. Surprisingly she was the first person to wake up. Well that’s what she thought.
After dressing up for the day she starts exploring the house and peeps into the room just next to her and a wide smile spreads on her face as she sees her brother and no sooner she has been bouncing over him.
Atharv: What the wuck?????
He blinks his eyes and looks at his sister who has been jumping over him like a five years old, she bends and kisses Atharv’s cheeks as soon as he opens his eyes.
Atharv lazily: Get off me fatty. What are you even doing?
Sukanya: Love you bhai.
Atharv sighs and placing his hand over his face tries going back to sleep, but Sukanya pulls away and chirpily replies: For the room.
Atharv smiles slightly and turns to face his sister who is all smiles: You like it.
Sukanya with shocked expressions: Like???? I love it. You know you are the best.
Atharv smiles and forwards his arms and Sukanya immediately hugs him.
Sukanya: Thank you sooooooooooo kuch bhai.
Atharv: No need to say that. You are the most precious person of my life.
Sukanya smiles blinking away her tears just like Atharv.
Sukanya getting up: Okay, now you wake up. I am hungry and I want a tour around the house too.
Atharv lazily nods: Okay, you stay here I will quickly get dressed.
Sukanya nods. As Atharv goes to get freshened up, Sukanya helps herself with some books, mostly flipping around and trying to find one according to her taste. She knew Atharv was a bookworm but his book collection left her amazed. From Sherlock Holmes to Sidney Sheldon, From J.K. Rowling to Shakespeare, he had fictions, non-fictions, biographies, comics, thrillers, encyclopedia and hell lot of journals. What a science freak! He had an entire mini library to his aide. She rolls her eyes. She huffs looking through the books.
Atharv: Got something.
Sukanya looks up at him a little annoyed and waves a comic towards him, he chuckles. Undoubtedly, she liked books but she isn’t a book freak.
Atharv: Let’s go down.
Sukanya: Umm… First let’s wake mom and dad up.
Atharv nods and guides her to their parents room. While Sukanya just keeps drinking in her surroundings they feel to such a visual appeal. Typical Rich Mansion.
On finally reaching to their parents room they knock the door for five minutes continuously, but nobody replies. Being a little worried and intrigued at the same time they open the door to only find their dear momma sleeping peacefully being entirely draped in the duvet and their dear dad being missing.
Sukanya: Where is papa?
Atharv nods blankly: No idea.
Sukanya goes to wake her mom, well she is no less then her daughter. They both can compete to end and still come up as tie winners in the game called, “WHO CAN SLEEP LONGER?”. After continued persuading for about twenty minutes Anika wakes up.
Anika: What Suk? Why are you waking me up and that too this early in the morning?
Sukanya: Well mumma the clock is striking twelve in the noon.
Anika looks at her shocked and she nods, she turns to the clock: You mean I slept through the entire morning.
Sukanya nods.
Atharv hugs her: Good morning, mumma. Technically Good afternoon and it’s okay you just slept because of the whole jet lag thing.
Anika nods and wishes him back.
Anika: Where is Shivaay?
Both the kids nod in ‘they don’t know’ fashion.
Anika then finds a note under the clock, that reads something like.
“Good morning Anika,
I left early in the morning for some office work that I need to complete, didn’t wish to wake you guys up. I know you all are tired from yesterday’s flight so sleep well. If you need anything the numbers are in the kitchen or ask Atharv, he knows everything. My driver Jake is there to drive you guys across the city, just comeback by 9:30. Have fun and take care. I will be a little too late. Sorry.
Shivaay.”
Anika sighs reading it: Why is this man such a workaholic?
Atharv chuckles: WELCOME TO NEW YORK CITY!!!!
Anika rolls her eyes: I will get ready, why don’t you guys order something for the time being.
Sukanya with wide eyes: Is that you mumma?
Anika pushes her hand away which she was playfully going to touch on Anika’s forehead: It’s just because there is not enough grocery in the house and I am not planning to cook right now. Plus I am hungry beyond measures and I suppose so are the two of you.
Both nod agreeing with her.
Anika: Alright, go and order and wait in the living room I will be there as soon as I freshen up.
Both nod and leave.
Rest of the day is spent quite unexpectedly. The trio go out to purchase grocery but neither of them wishes to go around the city for any sightseeing after being continuously being forced by an unwilling Anika they go to a near by pack but run back home within fifteen minutes, it was not so pleasing to go around without Shivaay and they kept repeating that they are missing him @ 500 times per minute. So all they did for the entire day was just to buy some grocery and place it in the kitchen and to slouch on the sofa and watch Netflix or some good Hindi movie which was in the pen drive or best of all, sleep but how long. They eventually got bored.
Sukanya while popping in a popcorn from their fourth bowl: I am missing papa. When is he even planning to come or is he going to sleep with his files only.
Anika: What shall I do of this man. I have called him a million times but all I get to hear is he is busy with his meetings. Is he planning on making an entire city or what?
Atharv keeps dodging his face from his mother to his sister hearing their comically frustrated complaints. He sighs. He was so used to all of this.
Atharv: Both of you need to relax. Papa never comes back before ten if he has loads of work to do.
Anika: Did he always use to remain so busy Atharv.
Atharv smiles understandingly: No, not always. But when he use to miss you alot he use to sink himself in his work as he had no other way to kill his alone time. Then there use to be days when he didn’t use to come before morning and well presently that’s completely not the case. But he at times he use to comes by six too. But mind it there was never a weekend on which he had left me alone.
He ends with a smile only to cheer his mother up, for Sukanya, she knew it all.
Anika smiles at him and nods, not a very happy smile but whatever she could manage at that time.
Atharv: Mumma, please don’t feel bad that was tough time for all of us. He was all alone for the very first time away from almost everyone he loved. He couldn’t cope up with all of that and whatever he did trust me it was best and there was never a minute of despair with him by my side.
Anika looks up at him with glossy eyes but a very genuine smile, he really was defending Shivaay. She nods in disbelief and kisses his forehead lovingly.
Finally, the doorbell rings making three of them jump in excitement.
Anika: I will open it.
As she opens the door she sees a very tired Shivaay looking down his phone, but as soon as he looks up at her his face glows with a magnificent smile and he puts his cell inside his pocket.
Shivaay: How badly I wanted you to open this door for me once.
He says as he takes Anika into a hug, who smilingly rubs her hand on his back to soothe him. Shivaay smiles feeling her act of comfort.
As soon as he walks in Sukanya hugs him tightly.
Sukanya: I missed you soooooooooooo much papa.
She says making him chuckle as he hugs her back and rocks her slightly.
Shivaay: I missed you too, Sukanya.
The next one is Atharv who hugs Shivaay.
Atharv: How was your day papa?
Shivaay: Umm…. Quite busy.
Anika hands over a glass of water to Shivaay as they sit together in the living room.
Shivaay: So how was all of yours day?
Sukanya wrapping her arm around Shivaay and placing her head on his shoulder: Too boring. It’s no fun without you.
Shivaay chuckles: Okay. So why not make it interesting.
Both Atharv and Sukanya’s head shoots up in excitement. While Anika gives a disapproving nod.
Anika with a stern poker face: No. Nothing doing. Shivaay you woke up earlier then all of us and you have been working all day long. So nothing doing.
Atharv and Sukanya’s face falls but the nod understandingly.
Atharv: Mumma is right.
Sukanya: Yes, she is.
Shivaay sighs: Oh god. Look Anika I am fine and believe me I am totally good. We can go out for a little while.
Anika sternly: No means no.
Shivaay: Urgh…. Anika look I will be busy all day long and not only today maybe, for the next few day, maybe, even more busy then today. So please let’s go out. I promise I would just relax and we can ho out just for dinner. I won’t even be driving. Please….
He says showing bed of his puppy do eyes, while Anika glares him sternly and he pouts making her chuckle and finally nod.
Shivaay: Okay, then let’s get going.
All nod and run to their rooms to get ready.
@MUMBAI….
In a huge ground, where there is complete darkness. A woman is seen standing waiting for someone, as soon as she feels the presence she turns being alert but soon relaxes.
Nitya: God Abeer. What’s the matter? Why are you looking so withered out?
Abeer: Nitya do you remember the day in Aryan’s house when you were about to tell Shivaay and me something but because Adi came you couldn’t complete.
Nitya nods remembering the day: What about that Abeer?
Abeer: That’s what I want to ask you. What was that about?
Nitya sighs: Look Abeer, just let it be.
Abeer being totally irked shouts being impatient: Speak up damnit. I don’t have time.
Nitya: Calm down, Abeer. Why are you being so angry?
Abeer: Tell me Nitya. For god’s sake.
Nitya nods: I think Daksh is back.
Abeer looks baffled by her words: What?
Nitya: Yup! He has come back. And I think so he is in India and maybe, he knows our locations too so he will try to harm us in anyway possible. The sort of lunatic he is he won’t give up. We had injured his self-respect so he will be back for sure and this time being more dangerous.
Abeer smashes his hand on his forehead, none of them can forget that uneventful month of their life. How can they? When it still is a haunting nightmare.
Nitya: Why do I feel that this isn’t it, you have something more that’s troubling you. Isn’t it?
Abeer nods: Roop isn’t Ragini’s chachi (aunt).
Nitya takes in an audible gasp: What?
Abeer nods: Ragini’s father was an orphan and best friend of Awasthi sir.
Nitya: No….
Abeer nods: I saw them in ayi’s album.
Nitya: What’s happening?
Abeer: I have no idea. But what I really know is that we have to keep Shivaay, Anika and all the children away from all of this.
Nitya: You are right. We will have to do something so that Ragini can’t break their family apart again. She had already ruined more then enough life’s.
Abeer: We need to get Shivaay and Anika married, half of our tension will get dissolved.
Nitya: But how. They aren’t coming back till next week or so.
Abeer fiddling with his fingers: So we will go there.
His face turns stern and showing he was serious about his decision and Nitya nods smilingly.
PRE RECAP:
OBEROI’S meet AWASTHI’S….
Keep smiling
Stay blessed
&
For now signing off
SHIVIKA ?….