Greetings all you lovely people! Like I had said, I had decided to leave the fate of the story to you all, and am more than happy to continue with this for more time! Thank you all so much for the love! Most of you might already be aware that this story is super special to me, and I couldn’t bring myself to let go of it so easily either! Happy reading!
Twinj: My Lifeline: Episode 72
A quick recap: Kunj surprises Twinkle at the launch event by opening up to the world about their relationship in ways that she couldn’t have even dreamt of. They later spend some time together in private, making sure neither would forget how special the day had been to both.
“Your majesty!” Kunj greeted Twinkle with a bow and chaste kiss on her hand, struggling to hold back his grin when she walked into their room one evening, surprising her. She quickly decided to play along though, and shot him an almost non-existent smile accompanied by a stern nod. “Your throne awaits!” He said, pointing towards the wing chair that she usually sat at while she read a book, except he had put it in front of their coffee table that day. “What is the issue we’ll be discussing in my court today?” She asked, not even trying to hide her curiosity. Kunj placed a hand over her eyes, whispering “It’s a surprise!” Although she was tempted to push away his hand and look for herself, she had figured this had to be something really special, he had seemed so excited after all. So, she waited patiently. Her eyes widened when she was finally allowed to see, the viewer statistics of their song on the screen of the laptop in front of her. “We hit a milestone in record time!” She heard him gush, reassuring her that this wasn’t a dream. She threw her arms around him hastily, making him stumble but he wasn’t really complaining either. “This is just so great!” She exclaimed, her eyes still flittering across the screen. He tightened his embrace, if that was possible. “People have been sending in so much love for you, I could safely say I’m worried, or maybe jealous.?” He teased, but she had an entirely different take on it. “The truth is, Kunj, that all these people out there.. it is you they love, they admire and look up to. And that is what makes them adore and appreciate every little and big thing that is even remotely related to you. This is all about you, not me!” She insisted, her eyes welling up with the gratitude she felt for him, for all that he had done for her. “But..” He began, but she cut him short with “It’s high time you accept it and stop giving me undue credit, Kunj!” Her voice came out louder than she had intended, making her feel guilty and awkward at the same time.
Silence prevailed for a couple of minutes as Kunj thought of what to say next, while Twinkle watched him carefully, preparing herself to turn down any of his arguments the very instant that they popped up in his mind. “Let’s make a deal?” He asked cautiously, giggling when she narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “You’ll not deny all the praise that you rightfully deserve.” He stated, more of a strict instruction than a suggestion. She sighed, knowing that even if she prolonged the discussion it would only be in vain. “Deal.” She sealed it, giving his waiting fist a bump. “What do you get in return though?” She asked out of the blue, making him look up discreetly. She had caught him off-guard. There was no way he had thought of that, but an idea popped up quickly enough for him to make a safe move. “You sure you want to know that?” He whispered, and she immediately knew where this was headed. “Kunj Sarna, don’t you dare!” She warned him, and he responded without skipping a beat, “But you asked for it, sweetheart!” The usage of that term of endearment was obviously new to her, and left her stunned. Kunj, on the other hand, flashed a victorious grin, taking full advantage of the situation, running his hands that were on her waist upwards, nuzzling his nose against her cheek. She whimpered softly, and he knew he had won the argument, except that he hadn’t yet. At least not completely. “Do you think you’re allowed to try and woo her highness Twinkle Sarna?” She blurted out, smirking at him – a joke he definitely was in no mood to appreciate. “You don’t think so?” He asked, and she simply shook her head in response, challenging him. “Try me!” He dared her, but she had already made her escape.
“Twinkle! Get back here! Listen to me!” Usha heard Kunj call out at the top of his voice while she was walking down the corridor, making her stop at the door to make sure everything was alright, but neither of them had spotted her, too busy in their chase. “That’s enough!” Usha asserted a couple of minutes later, realising that this didn’t seem to end anytime soon. “Ma!” Kunj acknowledged her presence finally. Twinkle stood shell shocked, the heat rising to her cheeks as she noticed the sly smile Usha was sporting. “Did the two of you have an argument of sorts?” Usha asked nevertheless, confusing them for they had been sure she had seen them play around. “No, Ma!” Twinkle answered, but much to her dismay Kunj said, “Yes Ma!” at the same time. She threw him a glare but he was avoiding her too well, annoying her. “This girl you chose for me turned out to be very aggressive, Ma. She’s always in combat mode!” Kunj whined dramatically, receiving a pillow on his head while Usha laughed at them. “See!” He pointed out, picking up the pillow, adding “I wonder where you found her!” He quickly glanced at Twinkle to make sure she wasn’t offended, and grinned as he recognised the ‘plotting revenge’ expression she had on. He absolutely loved it when he got her all riled up, he thought she looked adorable then, and it also usually meant a rewarding tight hug when he had finally managed to convince her. If he was lucky enough, he could also have some of his *coughs* dreams coming true. “But that’s a very valid question, Ma!” She said out of the blue, making him snap his head in her direction, wondering what she was talking about. He hoped he hadn’t played his cards wrong, for in that case he would have to bear the cold treatment from her. And that he couldn’t take.
Kunj pretended to be uninterested in this conversation, keeping his eyes trained on the laptop, but who was he kidding! He had to know what Twinkle was so excited to know about that she had dragged Usha to sit beside her on the couch and quipped in “How did you ever find about me, Ma? The chances of randomly crossing paths are not so high, since I myself hadn’t seen you in person until that day in my house..” Twinkle had a hundred questions in mind and wanted answers for each one. Fortunately, Usha wouldn’t refuse either. “The first time I saw you was in your college. I had come by to pick Kunj up for a recording and had been waiting by the dean’s office when you and your little gang were rushing past, laughing among yourselves, when one of them crashed into an old lady coming your way. I remember the way most of them left with devilish grins, but you stayed back to help, being really nice to her and going out of your way to make sure she got home safely. Back then I had admired you, even told Manohar Ji that I thought youngsters like you were the only reason I hadn’t lost hope in your generation.” Usha began her narration, and by the time she got through even half the incident, Kunj had already put away his laptop and was listening with rapt attention. Twinkle, on the other hand, nodded as if in a daze. She recalled the incident clearly, only she had no idea someone – not just anyone, the Usha Sarna – was watching her. Her eyes darted to Kunj momentarily and he blew her a flying kiss, while she rolled her eyes and turned back to Usha. “Of course, back then, I wasn’t looking for a bride for Kunj. That only became necessary when all my attempts to unravel Alisha’s true intentions failed. But again, by the time that need had arisen, I had seen you several times – at your college, at the Gurudwara with Leela Ji and at a few parties hosted by common friends, and I must say, you always managed to win a bigger part of my heart each time.
“Whoa, Ma! Hold on. Are you saying I would have seen Twinkle several times too?” Kunj asked curiously, straining his mind to recall any such happening when Usha nodded in the affirmative, but nothing struck his mind. “How come I never noticed her?” He added, walking over to the women and sitting on the floor beside the couch, his head resting on Twinkle’s lap like it had a mind of his own. “How would you, when all you thought about back then was your guitar ..” Twinkle began, but drifted off feeling unsure if she could carry on with her comment, so Usha finished for her, “.. or Alisha!” The two of them burst out laughing, making him snuggle closer to Twinkle in his efforts to hide from the embarrassment. “I only pictured you as a potential bride for Kunj when you had unknowingly helped resolve my dilemma at the Gurudwara one Sunday. I can’t recollect what the exact context was, for I had so much running on my mind, but I do remember every single word you said, ‘We are never in utter darkness, perhaps at that instant we just haven’t spotted the ray of hope yet. Maybe the answer to all of our troubles was tight in front of our eyes all along and we just hadn’t seen it that way before.’ You were absolutely right. See?” Usha finished, leaving Twinkle thoughtful about her own actions and words. She didn’t know when or why she had said that although it definitely seemed as something she would say. It still made so much sense, she definitely had to keep that in mind. “You have no idea how glad I am that you married Kunj and stood by his side through thick and thin, Twinkle. All I could ask for was my son’s peace of mind, and had been ridiculously selfish when I placed all those threats before Leela Ji. It was only after you came here that I realised you are as much my child as Kunj is, and you became a frequent utterance in my prayers too..” Usha was saying when Twinkle looked up from running her fingers through Kunj’s hair, to find her smiling at them in contentment. “Thank you!” Usha whispered to Twinkle just before she left the room, her voice so low that she had almost missed it.
“Who knew! Ma had watched you for months apparently .. or maybe even years!” Kunj commented after many minutes of deep thought. Twinkle hummed immediately in response, now beginning to wonder if Usha had also seen her do something clumsy or seemingly unacceptable. When she voiced her concern though, Kunj burst out laughing, telling her, “Twinkle! You so need to stop overthinking this! We’re all human, and we all make mistakes and might get caught in bad light at times. That doesn’t make us bad people! Besides Ma is so fond of you that she would fight anyone who pointed out a flaw in you! Come on now!” She couldn’t deny the latter part at least. Usha was extremely fond of her. “Just a little lesser than I love you though, because I love you most!” Kunj put forth his point, making her giggle as she bent over to gently peck his forehead.
Yayyy! That was the Twinkle appreciation episode that I’d always wanted to do, and since I decided to carry the story forward, I thought this would be the best way to start off. Hope you all had a great read. Also, I hope you all won’t make me regret agreeing to continue this. Much love!!