Fitoor

Chapter 55

Kaimur

Bihar.

Mishti Bose

"Kaise?" I asked him.
"Kaise matlab kya?" He whisper shouted.
"Kaise zinda ho tum?" Abir looked at me, actually glared at me.
"Seriously? Chuha hai wo. You think I'm brave enough to go against a rat?" His reply made me scoff.
"Ofcourse. Kya expect kar rahi thi mai!" And there he goes again, rolling his eyes.
"Tum jao. Bhagao usko." It was my turn to look around.

"Huh! Doctor ho tum. Itne chote janvar se dargayi to bade bade operations kaise karogi? Learn to be brave!" His pravachan was striking my nerve. This man had the audacity to talk like this when he was the one, who shouted like a teenage girl and locked us both in the bathroom, whilst claiming that he saw a rat. Seriously, give him an Oscar.
"First of all, mere room me kya kar rahe the tum?" Abir looked at me.
"Chai dene aaya tha. Geet ke dadaji ne force kiya so." I knew it was a lie but some part of me was happy that he wanted to see me.

"Par ye buddha na zyada sawal puchne laga hai. We have to come up with a proper story. Warna pakde jayenge." He continued to ramble.
"To kya? Hum yaha kyu aaye hai? Un dono ke shaadi ki baat karne ke liye. Us kaam ke alawa sab kar rahe hai." I huffed.
"Oh hello! Mujhe bhi koi interest nahi hai okay, to be your husband. Coffee me zeher milake peelunga usse pehle." Abir smirked.
"Aur wo coffee mai hi banaungi." I gave him a sweet smile.

"Yaad haina tumhe mirchi wala shondesh?" He started coughing, looking outside desperately to escape as I chuckled.
"Kyu nahi madam ji? Almost ulcer hone wala tha mujhe." His dramatic reply made me pinch his hand.
"It was not even spicy. Indian ho tum, learn to uphold the reputation." Abir looked at me like I was talking Spanish.
"Pehle us chuhe pe concentrate kare?" He asked being irritated.
"Okay." I sighed and stood, crossing my arms.

"Ek kaam karo, gaana gaao. Chuha kya saara mohalla bhaag jayega." I hit his arm as Abir giggled.
"Bada aaya bolne wala. Tum banao koi plan. Oh wait, uske liye dimaag chahiye na. So sorry, maine realise nahi kiya." And he hit my arm now. Then we started hitting each other, like two cats fighting. Seriously! We're grown adults why can't we act like one!
"Mishti! Aye chudail kaha hai re tu? Nashta nahi chahiye kya?" Maanav's loud voice interrupted us.
"Maanav! Gadheda bahar chuha hai please usko bhaga de! Mai pakka tere honeymoon pe nahi aungi." I shouted. Abir kept a disgusting face.

"Bahar aa be, kab ka bhaag gaya wo bechara jaanvar." We both sighed in relief and this idiot stepped out first! So I grabbed his collar in alarm and in the process, he directly fell on me and I stuck to the bathroom wall. We were nose to nose close, and I'm pretty sure he looked at my lips before slowly lifting his eyes to meet mine. That alone made me move forward and close the gap but as soon as I got the thought, I stopped. It was like splashing cold water on my face.

Abir must have realised, so he respected my space and stood far away. I cleared my throat and muttered an apology. I guess he regretted it, coming so close to me.
"Pehle mai jaungi. I'll cough loudly as signal, tab bahar aana." He nodded silently and I scurried away.
"Mishti." I turned around to look at Abir.
"Ek pal ke liye bhi sochna mat, that I regretted what happened now." This man doesn't stop surprising me. Without giving any reaction, I tried to run away to hide my red face.

"Kya hogaya be tujhe? Andar bahut garmi thi kya? Laal hogayi hai tu. Chal bahar chalte hai jaldi." Maanav kept on ranting but I didn't hear a word.

What did Abir Bharadwaj mean by saying all that!

Abir Bharadwaj

Never had I ever thought that after three years, I'd have a moment with her. Good thing was that every word I spoke to her was true. I didn't regret one bit of it. Though I had to beat myself up upon that thought, I just didn't give a damn to anything. I was just letting universe do its work. Just then, I got a call from Appa. I frowned. He wouldn't call unless it's an emergency.

"Kya hua Appa?" I asked as soon as I picked up the call.
"Nothing putta. Don't worry. Bas tumhara yaad aaraha tha." I smiled slightly.
"Pranav ke saamne mat boliye. Aapka phone chura lega phirse." He laughed loudly.
"Sab theek hai waha? Mishti kaisi hai?" He questioned.
"Haa, abhi ke liye Mishti bomb explode nahi hua. So we're all fine here." Appa chuckled.

"Khayal rakho theek hai? Zyada tang mat kar us ladki ko." He teased.
"Aapko na zero bharosa hai aapke bete pe. Don't even try to deny it." I said, annoyed.
"Are aisa nahi hai, Abir." He was still giggling.
"Accha, how are they?" Appa paused.
"Bose parivar? They're doing okay. Vijay bol raha tha kuch meeting ke baare me, shayad next week me schedule hoga." Now I was intrigued. Vijay Bose had given up the control of the company years before. Why was he holding a meeting suddenly!

"Meeting? Kis liye?" I questioned.
"Shayad CEO elections ke baare me. All the directors have to be there, aur is baar Mishti bhi hogi. And she might be a candidate for the position." That caught my attention.
"Appa, aapne bola ki aap uske financial matters ko handle kar rahe hai. Have you noticed anything different in her accounts?" I could hear his sigh.
"Kyu puch rahe ho, Abir? Wo confidential information hai, tujhe bhi pata haina. I can't disclose my client's details." I rolled my eyes.

"Seriously Appa, mai usko defame karne ke liye nahi puch raha hu. Wo to khud karti hai apni beizzati. Par I don't get this Dev being in the picture. Wo ek travel agency run kar raha tha, and he was a hacker upon that. Wo kaise Bose group ka acting CEO bangaya? And, how did the directors agree upon this? Aap bhi to the na, when he was appointed." I pointed out.
"Pata nahi putta, agar tu sach keh raha hai, to sirf ek hi answer hai is confusion ke liye. Dev has something over Vijay and the others." My ears perked up.

"Isiliye Vijay uncle wants an election. Warna Dev aramse CEO banjata. Kuch to chal raha hai." Appa started laughing again.
"Tu CID phirse dekh raha hai? Enjoy karo putta. This retreat is important for both of you. Ye sab mere liye chord do. Mai handle karunga. And when you're back, we'll solve the case." He offered.
"Haa, ek aur baat. Sanvi aarahi hai India. Tumse milne ke liye." I groaned loudly.
"Kyuuuuu! Please do me a favour aur Amma ko uska phone uthane mat dijiye. Aur yaha ka address galti se bhi usko milgaya to mai isi forest me jangli suar ke saath reh lunga." Appa chuckled again and cut the call.

And then my stomach grumbled. I knew I didn't have anything because she hadn't eaten, but now that opportunity was gone too, since Maanav had kidnapped her to somewhere. So I made myself comfortable in the dining hall, with a chai and snacks as it wasn't breakfast time yet. And then this beautiful smell surrounded everywhere. It was coming from the kitchen. So I went to see what was happening, surprised that Mishti and Maanav were preparing breakfast, while Geet was watching them.

"Nashta khaane ke liye banana padta hai madam." Mishti rolled her eyes.
"Tujhe kyu farak padta hai? Tu to sirf dimaag khata hai." Geet laughed but became silent as Maanav glared at her.
"Haa haa ganji chudail. Tu bol rahi hai dimaag khaane ke baare me." And they both started fighting with each other. I cleared my throat loudly, grabbing their attention.
"Buddha marjayega bhook ke wajah se. Jaldi kuch banao." Maanav laughed as the ladies threw a look at me.

"Ahahaha, bada aaya complain karne wala. Tum banao to phir. Sirf order dena aata hai janab ko." Mishti commented.
"Oh hello! Australia me iska baap aake khaana nahi banata tha mere liye." I pointed at Maanav.
"Are baap ko kaha aata hai itna sab kuch? Maa kaise sehti hai us admi ko, mujhe to samajh me nahi aata." He stated dramatically.
"Geet! Uncle ka number haina tumhare paas? Whatsapp kardo ye sab." Mishti laughed as Maanav started to chase Geet. And we were alone again.

"Waise, kya bana rahi ho?" I leaned over the counter to look at the pan.
"Baigan." She chuckled.
"Accha, zyada spice chahiye ya kam?" Mishti asked again.
"Kyu? Tum ho na." I smiled and winked, walking away. I chuckled as she was still silent.
"Har baar ye sab work nahi karega okay! I just woke up on the wrong side today." She yelled loudly.
"Yeah yeah. Baigan ke baate." I shook my head, smiling.

And I decided to flirt with her, to see her getting flustered every single time because that's what I'd describe, if anyone ever asked what was my favourite thing to do.

To make Mishti Bose, blush.

To be continued