Sapno Ka Shaher

36. Only For You...

"Khana khaya?" was the first question Naina asked Sameer, their hands were still very much linked.

"Haan, set par hi khaya..." Sameer answered with a smile, "sab ke saath milke..." deliberately stressing on the last line.

On his second day of the shoot, when Naina had asked him if he had his meals properly, he had informed her that he ate his food in his make-up room. Naina had scolded him that he should eat with his co-artists, whoever were available, and not alone.

"Good boy," Naina remarked with a grin.

"Tumne?"

Naina shook her head more than necessary, like a kid. Sameer had told her on the first day itself that given he would be coming home quite late, neither her nor Papa should wait for him for their meals.

"Mai fresh hoke aata hu thik hai?" Sameer said and left for the bathroom not before leaving a loving kiss on Naina's cheeks.

After freshening up, Sameer went straight back to Naina in the living room, who was casually sitting on the couch sideways. He sat facing her, copying her pose of folding one leg under another and propping head on the palm as her hand rested on the backrest.

"Kaisa tha aaj ka din?" Naina asked, grinning widely like a happy child.

Sameer explained his day in detail, telling every small part of it with zeal and excitement. He then also summed up how his overall shooting experience of the five days was. Naina saw how exuberantly he was sharing about the story of the show, about his character, the environment on the set, how he gelled with some of his co-artists and how he got a compliment when he finished his part of the show and took their leave.

Naina was very proud of her husband. Everything she was listening to about the television industry from Sameer, she had come to an opinion that the television industry was better organized and value-driven than the film industry. She hadn't personally known any of the industry closely, but whatever experience Sameer had shared during his film auditions, it failed to create a good image in Naina's perception compared to the television ones.

Something struck in her mind and she gasped, "arey... cheque to diya hi nahi tumne... bhagwanji ke paas rakh deti hu..."

"Ummm...." Sameer adjusted in his seat, "Naina, cheque nahi mila..."

"Kyu?" Naina frowned.

"Woh... yaha tv serials me 90 din ka payment cycle hai..." Sameer informed, "isme show ke pehle telecast ke 90 din baad payment milta hai production house se..."

"Haww... yeh kya baat hui..." Naina was agape, "kam se kam ek mahine baad toh dete... yeh toh free me kaam karne jaisa hua na..."

"Hmmm... lekin mujhe pata chala yaha aisehi kaam chalta hai..." Sameer shrugged. "Toh..." both his voice and eyes dropped down, "khali haath hi wapas aana pada..."

Naina sensed the disappointment in his voice. No, tonight wasn't the right time for that. She cursed herself mentally for bringing up the topic.

"Arey koi baat nahi na..." Naina shifted a bit closer to him, changing her tone to cheerful. "Sameer... itne dino baad hum aise akele hai ghar me... toh..."

"Toh?" He quickly interrupted her. His face bore mischief as he lifted his one brow.

"Toh na hum poori raat baatein karenge... sirf achchhi wali..." Naina proposed excitedly, her eyes twinkled.

"Poori raat baatein?" Sameer asked surprisingly. He thought his wife would certainly have a different idea than this. A flashback of their anniversary here in Mumbai took over his mind where neither the talk happened nor....