Story of Our Life

Chapter 23

"Priyu, sunn rahi hai?" Rajesh called his daughter out, as she sat in front of him lost in her own thoughts. He had been explaining about a complex account to her but she seemed in a faraway land to him.

"Lagta hai kisi ke khayalon mein khoyi hain Di!" Shivani said loudly, pulling Prerna out of her thoughts.

"Kya?" She asked, looking confused.

"Main picchle 15 minute se tujhe ye account ki details de raha hoon...tune kuch suna yaa nahin?" Rajesh asked again as Prerna blinked like a lost kid. "Matlab nahin suna."

"Sorry Baba, wo main office ke baare mein soch rahi thi." Prerna said and looked down at the file in front of her, boring her eyes in to it to hide her blushing face.

She was not really lying, after all, she was thinking about office...specifically about a certain incident that had taken place in the same office. It had been almost three days since that fateful day and Prerna still felt goosebumps when she thought about it. Which was very, very often. Honestly, it was getting embarrassing now.

"Aisa kya hai office mein Di, jo aap ghar mein bhi wahin ki sochti ho?" Shivani teased yet again and Prerna frowned.

"Muh band kar aur jaa. Main aur Baba busy hain yahan." Prerna grumbled as her mother entered the study room with glasses of haldi doodh for all.

"Bas bahut ho gaya kaam." Veena said as she put down the tray. "Chup chaap doodh piyo aur sone chalo sab, itni der ho gayi hai."

"Haan, haan...doodh piyo, taakat badhao!" Shivani chuckled and took a glass of milk, putting it in front of Prerna. "Aapko zarurat hogi Di."

Prerna's face went red as she fumed in anger and blushed hard at the same time. Without saying a word, she picked up her glass and left the study room, grumbling about how annoying younger siblings are all the damn time.

"Tu kyun itna tang karti hai isey." Veena shook her head. "Naraaz hokar chali gayi!"

"Bahana tha Maa...abhi room mein jakar ek-do ghante phone mein dekh dekh kar Di ko smile hi karna hai!" Shivani mumbled.

"Kya matlab?" Rajesh asked and his younger daughter just shrugged. "Sach-sach bol Shivi, kya maamla hai?"

"Arey Baba...koi maamla nahin hai." Shivani sighed and sipped on her hot milk. "Bas mujhe lagta hai Di ko apne kisi colleague par crush hai aur main time pass ke liye unko tease karti hoon."

"Crush matlab?" Veena frowned and so did Rajesh.

"Matlab...pasand karti hai." Shivani said and the parents looked at each other before smiling ear to ear. In two seconds, they pounced on their daughter with questions.

"Tu mili hai usse? Kaisa hai wo?-

"Acchi family ka hai? Aur gharwale-

"Kaunsi post par hai-

"Dikhne mein kaisa hai-

"Arey...arey ruko Maa-Baba!" Shivani almost laughed. "Mujhe bas lagta hai."

"Kyun lagta hai aisa?" Veena pressed her younger daughter for answers. "Usne tujhse kuch kaha kya?"

"Isme kehna kya hai, dikhta hai." Shivani mumbled as she sipped on her milk, trying to avoid looking straight into her parent's eyes.

"Shivi saaf-saaf bata, ye baat ko ghuma mat!" Rajesha locked his arms together and Shivani sighed, putting her glass on the table.

"Okay, naam-waam I don't know but maine dekha hai Di ko raat ko der tak messages karte huye, smile karte huye and you know...blush karte huye. Isiliye I think unhein office mein koi pasand hai." Shivani shrugged.

"Tujhe kaise pata office ka hi koi hai?" Veena asked and Shivani stood up, rolling her eyes.

"Ab wo office ke alawa kahin jaati hain kya? And unke college friends mein sab ladkiyan hi hain." She said. "Aap log overthink karna band karo. And aapko toh pata hi hai...agar Di ko koi pasand hoga toh wo apne aap aapko bata degi."

Veena and Rajesh shared a look again as Shivani picked up her half-drunk glass.

"Achha goodnight. Aur please Di ko mat bolna ki maine ye sab kaha, warna mujhe poore saal sofa par sona padega!" Shivani complained and left, leaving her parents in wonder.

"Usne tumse kuch kaha hai kya?" Rajesh asked and Veena shook her head.

"Mujhse zyada wo aapke kareeb hai. Agar kuch aisa hoga toh aapko hi batayegi." Veena smiled. "Waise...agar ye sach hua...aur agar ladka achha hua toh main toh tension free ho jaungi!"

"Baat toh sahi kahi. Ab bas, upar wala meri beti ko khushiyaan hi de!" Rajesh smiled at his wife, who nodded in agreement.

---

Mohini Basu was just leaving The Crown Hotel, one of the city's most expensive hotels, after attending an exclusive event for NGOs. It was almost close to midnight and as she waited for her chauffeur, she saw someone she was not expecting to see at all.

"Prerna Sharma...?" She gasped in shock as she saw Prerna smile and laugh as she got down a luxurious car and entered the hotel with a man.

Hand in hand. 

At midnight.

"What in the world is going on?" She mumbled and very quietly, decided to follow them.

As the couple stood at the reception, Mohini stared hard. Looking at Prerna's chirpy face, it did not look like this was her first time doing this. The young woman seemed relaxed, happy even as she held hands with the man, blushing at him and laughing at whatever the hell he was saying.

As the couple entered the elevator, Mohini heard the man telling the elevator operator the floor and quickly, got into the nearby elevator. Two minutes later, the doors opened to the 22nd floor and Mohini, like a mouse, stepped out. Looking around, she could see Prerna and the man walking towards a room and stayed hidden as they entered it together and closed the door behind them.

"My, my, my!" Mohini could feel her heart beating as fast as a jet. Even though she could not pin point where she had seen this man, but his face had seemed very familiar and that peaked her interest more than ever. 

He was well-built, dripped money and was very good looking. Truly, Mohini was shocked at the fact that Prerna Sharma, the pure and pious daughter of Rajesh Sharma, was very probably going to spend a night with a man before marriage and had, very clearly, done this before.

"What a scandal!" She chuckled and shook her head. "Isilye tune mere Anu ko reject kiya...kyunki tujhe isse bhi badi macchli mil gayi fasane ko...oh my, such a gold digging bitch you are Prerna Sharma! Sleeping with a man years older to you for money! Just wait and watch now, I am going to drag your reputation to the mud and of this man's as well. He's going to drop you like trash in no time. Go on, have fun spending tonight moaning and groaning, because by tomorrow morning, you'll be crying!"