Beyond Words

Lost in thought

Arnav sat in his room, laptop open in front. His eyes were looking at the pool. His thoughts rushed between the past and the present. Di was devastated. She was holding up for the sake of the others. Her eyes looked haunted. Watching his sister suffer made him helpless. He had done everything to ensure that legally Di would never have to deal with Shyam again. He would be behind bars for a couple of years for forgery and embezzlement. But beyond that, there was nothing he could do.

Perhaps he could send Di to Lucknow for a couple of months. The change in scenery would do her good. The purani haveli he had bought as a relic of their growing up years lay neglected. Getting it renovated and set up as a vacation home could keep Di's mind off everything that had happened. He would have to run it past Nani and Di.

His thoughts turned to the vision in yellow he had gazed at for a long time yesterday. He had filed away what Akash had shared to process another day. It came back in pieces. That fateful day at Sheesh Mahal. Why did he react so much to her? Why did she get under his skin? Did he see something of the person he could have been in her? Why did he have the mad impulse to break her? To see her defeated? Yet, as she emerged smiling after each challenge he threw at her, why did it make him happy? Why did her tears move him so much? He paced the poolside unable to make sense of this loss of control. He needed to get out of the house. Grabbing his keys, he went for a drive. Focusing his energies on driving, he worked away his restlessness with every mile his car devoured.

Akash sat at his desk at work. His mom was increasingly hinting at him getting married. He closed his eyes and lay back. A serene face appeared in front. Payal ji. She was like him, simple, un-demanding. There was music in the way she uttered his name. He could imagine her making a home with him. Akash opened his eyes with a start. What was he thinking? He needed to talk to Payal ji to find out what she felt about him. He would have to deal with his mom later.

Khushi was back home still trying to come to terms with Lavanya ji's generosity. She lay on jiji's lap taking in her calming presence. Jiji always knew what to say.

Payal ran her fingers through Khushi's thick hair soothing away her misgivings. Khushi would do well. She always did. Seeing Khushi fight odds time and again imbibed Payal with a need to do something about the household income. She had asked around and started tuition classes for the neighboring kids. It kept her busy and made her feel good about adding to the family coffers.

The afternoon breeze wafted in through the windows. Pleasant thoughts of a certain tall gentleman in glasses intruded in her thoughts. Would she run into him on her way to the temple in the evening? He certainly seemed to be in the area a lot these days. Shaking away her thoughts, she looked at her sister's face. It seemed troubled.

Khushi's thoughts meandered to Anjali ji and the Raizada family. How were they dealing with the aftermath of Shyam ji's deception? Perhaps she should meet with Anjali ji some time. What would she say? What if she ran into Laad Governor? Did she not promise to not see or talk to him again?

Why then did her heart race uncomfortably at his thought? Why did she feel kinship with him? Why did she feel the need to reach out and soothe his troubled soul so much? She remembered his eyes staring at her the day she walked home after meeting with Shukla ji. What was it that she felt? Hatred? Compassion? Attraction?