Beyond Words

Call me Arnav

Arnav sat at his desk tapping a pen against his head. Aman poked his head in the door and knocked as an afterthought. Arnav frowned and looked up.

"What is it Aman?"

Aman extended a file marked 'Confidential' and turned to leave. Hesitating at the door, he turned again and spoke to Arnav.

"I want to thank you for having us over for the engagement. Anya usually clings to me wherever we go but Anjali ji seems to cast a spell on her. She was content to stay with her the entire evening and I had to literally drag her home that night. It means much to me..."

Arnav nodded his head in acknowledgement and called out after Aman after he started to leave.

"Why don't you bring Anya over for the Mehndi in a couple of weeks? Am sure Di will be thrilled and you can get a couple of hours to yourself? In fact, I insist you do."

With that he turned his attention back to the notepad in front of him. Aman looked at ASR in surprise and left the room.

Arnav felt restless. He paced up and down his room and eventually hit upon something that made him smile. Khushi could never resist a challenge.

Khushi delivered the days meals to Shukla ji and was about to leave when Shukla ji handed her an umarked envelope. She looked at him questioningly. He said he had no idea what was in it but ASR had asked that it be delivered to her.

Khushi's hands felt clammy. Muttering thanks, she walked away as calmly as possible. Walking to the bench in a park nearby, her fingers trembled with anticipation. What had started out as one note was ballooning into something she was not sure she was ready to handle.

"Do you trust me enough to meet me? Alone."

She looked it over a couple of times. Memories of the few times they had been alone seared her brain. Arnav had never shied away from physical intimacy. He held her as it if were his right. She shivered from the memories and reflexively rubbed her wrist as if expecting a bruise to show up.

Turning the note over, she scribbled. Inserting it back into the same envelope, she made her way back to the AR office.

Arnav watched from his window as she left the office. He gave her five minutes and sauntered back to the window. He smirked as he saw her come back and stop at their glass doors. A few minutes later, the peon knocked at his door with an envelope in his hands.

Arnav waited for him to leave and flipped it open.

"Trust is a two way street. I set the time and place. Are you game?"

He sat mulling the message and had enough of the paper games. He texted her. "I am game. When and where?"

Khushi heard her phone buzz.

"Parbat Mandir. 5:00 PM"

Arnav felt a stab of disappointment. He texted back.

"See you then. And call me Arnav"

Khushi did a double take at the message.

"What the...?"

Khushi read the text a couple of times. What was she doing? Was it a date? She felt rather clever at having set the temple as the meeting point. She had been sure Arnav... Arnav ji would refuse.

"Devi Maiyya raksha karna" she muttered as she hailed an auto.

Arnav turned his attention to the file Aman had bought in. The past night he had mulled over the havoc he had wrought on the Gupta family starting with his skirmish with Khushi at Sheesh Mahal. It was time to make amends. He called his attorney on the phone and set in motion the plan to become the new owner of Buaji's house and Gomti Nivas.