Valley of Flowers

Chapter 26

KHUSHI looked up as though compelled to find Arnav's caramel brown eyes staring back at her. 'Arnav?' She took in his dishevelled appearance-- his hair, a little too long curled at his nape, a few days growth of beard on a gaunt face, mud-streaked clothes and shoes. Her heart lurched when she saw that he had lost some weight. Her face contorted with apprehension as realization hit her with full force.

'Arnav! What are you doing here? Don't you know how dangerous it is here right now?'

His face suffused with anger. This girl would never change. 'What are you doing here?' he retorted. 'Are you rehearsing for your movie here in the middle of nowhere?'

She ignored his jibe. 'Look at how this place is Arnav,' She spread her hand toward the destruction meted out by nature. 'You could have been killed.'

'Stop protecting me Khushi!' He strode up to her. 'I have had enough of women manipulating my emotions in the name of love!'

She didn't know if it was the drizzle or Arnav's words that made her shiver. Arnav had discovered his mother's deception. Tears welled up in her eyes when she thought of the shock and pain he must have had to face. She wasn't even there to console him.

'How did you know I was here?'

'It was very simple really,' he said his tone laced with sarcasm. 'First I thought Shyam had kidnapped you. Then the police told me to get out of their face and ruling this out as a domestic dispute. So I decided to take your letter at face value and went looking for you in Mumbai. Even though your friend assured me you were not there, I still searched for two whole days. Finally, I came here – on a hunch.'

'I ...I am sorry Arnav.'

'As much as I wished I had killed him, I am Thankful to Shyam for his blunder which revealed the truth about mom. Why didn't you tell me Khushi?' He demanded.

'I was going to ---'

He didn't let her finish. 'Then you decided to run!'

Khushi's eyes flashed with anger at his tone. 'Look who's talking? You keep running off to the farm house whenever you are upset.'

'Are you trying to tell me that this is an "eye-for-an-eye"?' Arnav took a few steps toward her, his eyes simmering with a barely controlled temper.

She took a few steps back ward. 'Didn't you also want to do something like that when you first met me eight months ago?'

'You let me go on believing a lie!' He lashed out.

'What was I supposed to do? It had been five long years Arnav! I had moved on. I was all set to marry NK ---'

'You had moved on?' He took a step closer to her, backing her into the tree, 'How?' He raised his eyebrow in a familiar manner. 'By holding onto my tattered t-shirt?'

Khushi's flushed. She had forgotten that bag in a hurry. She stood silently thinking of all the memoirs she had collected over the years. It was something she had started as a child of thirteen and hadn't been able to wean herself off, even as a grown woman.

'I would never have let you marry that moron.' He said arrogantly.

Khushi's eyes flashed with anger. 'NK didn't turn up that day,' She reminded him. 'And that was no thanks to you!'

'So what? You think marriage would have stopped me?'

'Of course not!' She shot back. 'You don't believe in the institution.'

'Do you blame me?' He came up to her and held her arms. 'It did nothing for my parents, my sister, Lavanya -- just to name a few. Would only marriage, prove my love for you?'