Little Hearts❤❤❤

1. Pihu Meets Papa Again

Ram was driving towards his office and when passing by the park he saw that girl, that girl he fought with for pastry and then met on Sara's engagement. He stopped the car immediately and parked it.
"I should go apologize to that kid for my behavior and Vedika's behavior earlier. A kid should not endure my bad temper. It was a grave mistake.", he thought.
And so he entered the park and went to her. She was playing with a ball alone as there was no kid at that time in the park. She kicked the ball which went to his side, he kicked it back to her. A smile came on her face which made Ram smile.
Ram: Hey Dramebaaz.
Pihu: Oh! Hey Mr. Khadoos! Aap yahan?
Ram: Ha actually main jaa raha tha yaha se toh tumhe dekha aur chala aya. Woh mujhe tumse sorry kehna tha for my behavior and my friend's. Mujhe promise nahi todna chahiye tha. I'm sorry.
Pihu: Oh! It's okay Mr. Khadoos maine aapko maaf kia. Meri mumma kehti hai agar koi dil se sorry kahe toh usse maaf kar dena chahiye.
She smiled cheekily at him.
"What a beautiful smile she has", he thought.
Ram: Ek second! Tum yaha hi raho main aaya.
He remembered that he bought cupcakes this morning and never got the time to eat so he decided to share it with her.
He came with the box of cupcakes and told her to come with him. They sat on a bench. He opened the box of cupcakes in front of her. Pihu's eyes twinkled seeing those tasty cupcakes but then she remembered what her mumma taught her.
Pihu: Nahi mujhe nahi chahiye.
Ram: Kyun? I thought you like cupcakes.
Pihu: Yes I do. They are my favorite. But mumma kehti hai stranger se kuch nahi khate toh mujhe nahi chahiye.
Ram understood her dilemma.
Ram: Ha tumhari mumma ne bilkul sahi kaha.
Then he broke little little portions from every cupcake and ate in front of her.
Ram: Maine kha lia sab mein se. They are safe. You can eat if you want. Or agar nahi chahiye toh it's okay main rakh dunga.
Now Pihu was in great confusion.
"Yeh cupcakes toh bohot tasty lag rahe hai aur mujhe bhooki bhi lagi hai. Aur Mr. Khadoos toh Sara masi ke Prince Charming ke dost hai toh woh stranger nahi hai. Aur unhone mujhse sorry bhi kaha. Toh kya main kha loon?", she thought.
Pihu: Okay. Mujhe chahiye.
Ram(smiling): Yeh lo.
Pihu and Ram picked one cupcake for each and started eating.
Pihu: Mmmmmm...this cupcake is so tasty. Thank you Mr. Khadoos.
Ram: Your welcome. Yes they are very tasty. And they are my favorite also.
They smiled at each other with cupcake in their mouth.
Ram: Waise main na khaddos nahi hoon. Woh toh mera mood kharab tha toh uss wajah se ho gaya. Tum mujhe RK bula sakti ho agar chaho toh.
Pihu: RK?
Ram: Mera naam Ram Kapoor hai. Toh short mein RK.
It took Pihu sometime to understand what he said.
Pihu: Okay. RK toh mera naam hai Pihu. Pihu Sood. Par aap mujhe Pihu hi bulana, PS nahi.
She forwarded her hand which was covered with cupcake cream. Ram accepted her hand also with cream on his hand and they handshaked. It gave both a pleasurable feeling that they gave eachother a toothy smile.
Ram: Pihu. Pihu. Such a nice name.
Pihu: Haaa. Meri mumma ne jo rakkha hai. She's the best.
Ram smiled again.
Ram: Accha toh tum yahan mumma aur papa ke saath aayi ho?
The word 'Papa' distressed her. Tears came to her eyes.
Ram saw it.
Ram: Pihu bacche kya hua? Tum thik ho na?
Tears started falling from her eyes.
This made Ram terrified, he became anxious to think what to do now.
Automatically his hand went to his pocket and he pulled a tissue from there. It kind of shook him as for the last 5 years, after Priya left a tissue never came out of his pocket for anyone until today for Pihu. He brushed those thoughts aside and started to wipe Pihu's tears gently caressing her back.
Ram: Did I hurt you?
Pihu(giving a teary smile): No. You didn't. Actually main papa se kabhi bhi nahi mili.
Ram immediately kneeled down on one knee in front of her.
Ram: Oh! I'm sorry Pihu. Mujhe pata nahi tha.
Pihu: Mumma kehti hai ki woh bhi hamari tarah adventure pe hai. Isiliye woh mujhe milne nahi aate. But I don't think so. I think papa does not love me. Aur mumma ko puchti hoon toh woh sad ho jaati hai toh main puchti nahi.
This made Ram so sad that tears came to his eyes.
Ram: Do you want a hug?
Pihu smiled and forwarded her arms. Ram embraced her delicately and calmed her down.
After sometime they broke the hug,
Pihu: Ek second! Maine toh apni dawaai li hi nahi.
Ram was confused now.
Pihu put her hands inside her little pouch that was crossed ln her body and pulled out a small bottle. She opened the bottle and took out two blue colored peppermint tablets.
Pihu: Do you want one RK?
This made Ram chuckle and he took one from her hand and ate it.
Ram: Thank you. Toh yeh tumhari dawaai hai.
Pihu: Ha main jab baarish main bhigti hoon ya bohot zyada kha leti hoon toh yeh tablet lena padta hai nahin toh bimaar pad jayungi, sardi zukham aur acidity ho jayegi.
Ram laughed so hard at this.
"This kiddo is a weirdo", he thought.
He pulled her cheeks softly.
Ram: You are very very cute.
Pihu: And you are very very handsome.
Ram again chuckled at her compliment.
Then her concentration shifted elsewhere. She started humming the tune of 'Bade achhe lagte hain'. This ached Ram's already bleeding heart.
Ram: Bade achhe lagte hain. Accha lagta hai tumhe?
Pihu stopped humming.
Pihu: Ha bilkul. It's my favorite. Mumma and I sing it together. Mumma says it's her prince charming's favourite song.
She smiled at Ram who now struggled to smile.
Ram: Tumne bataya nahi kiske saath aayi ho? Late ho raha hoga main ghar chod doon?
Pihu: Nahi nahi. Main toh mumma aur Krish ke saath aayi hoon. Krish water bottle lene gaya hai mere lia. Aur mumma yahi thi shayad uss side pe gayi
The name of Krish started giving Ram hundreds of doubts. He started panicking so he took a stress pill immediately.
Pihu: RK are you okay? You are sweating.
Ram: Yes yes Pihu. I'm fine. Tum mujhe yeh batao Tumhari mumma ka naam kya hai?
Pihu: Ms. Sood. I mean Priya Sood.
Ram felt like a big rock just hit his head hard. But He started taking deep breaths to calm himself as he knew his condition can traumatize Pihu. After a few moments he calmed down a little and his brain started working like a maniac, joining the dots.
"Cupcakes, ek second, tablets, bade achhe lagte hain, Pinky Promise, Priya, Krish! Her eyes!", he thought.
"She can't be....she can't be Krish's child. She's.......", he mind started going blank.

He started looking around that's when he noticed Priya and Krish standing a little away from them noticing everything. And suddenly the puzzle was solved. He looked at Pihu intently, greeish grey eyes with a tinge of brown, Lips like him, Cheeks and Hair like Priya.
"She's mine. She's my kid, my daughter. She's my daughter", he thought.
Tears started flowing from his eyes.
Noticing it Pihu again put her hands into her pouch and pulled out a tissue and started dabbing it on his face to wipe the tears.
Ram(calming himself a little): Tissue tissue pe likha hota hai....
He didn't know why he even said that maybe he just expected her to complete it. And surprising him to the core, Pihu said,
Pihu: Rone wale ka naam.
They both laughed heartily.
Pihu: Par aap ko yeh joke kaise pata hai? Yeh toh mere papa ka joke hai.
Ram: Bas aise hi Pihu. Pata hai.
He decided not to tell her the truth now as he can't take any risks with her.
He hugged her again.
Ram: Okay. I'll go now. I've some work.
Pihu's face fell which gave Ram immense joy with sadness.
Pihu: Can't you stay longer RK?
Ram: Not today bacche. I promise I'll meet you soon.
Pihu: Please don't make promises to me. I know you won't keep them.
This made Ram feel disgusted with himself but he decided to compose himself.
Ram: I promise to keep my promises from now on. I'll make it upto you. And Pihu, don't worry bacche I'm sure your papa loves you. More than anyone in this world.
Pihu nodded with a smile.
Ram: Bye Pihu. See you soon.
Pihu: Ek second! RK?
Ram: Yes?
Pihu(narrowing her eyes): Shweta ya Angira?
Ram started laughing. He cradled her in his arms, held her close to his heart then twirled her once.
Ram: Tum 4 years ki bacchi nahi Dadi-amma ho.
They both chuckled merrily.