"An Unconventional Commitment"

Haseena

◍⁠•𝐇𝐀𝐒𝐄𝐄𝐍𝐀'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐕•⁠◍

In the middle of my conversation with Daimaa, we heard a knock at the door. Daimaa's eyes flickered towards the sound. "Jaa haseena dekhkar aa kon hai," she instructed, gesturing with her chin.

I nodded, reluctantly removing my head from her comforting lap. I wiped away any stray tears from my face with the soft pallu of her saree and got up, padding across the room to open the door. To my surprise, it was Anubhav standing there, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

"Aap is waqt yaha kya kar rahe hai?" I asked, furrowing my brows in puzzlement.

"Woh...woh..." He stammered, averting his gaze momentarily. "Woh, kamre mein bahut machar hai toh mai...."

Before he could finish explaining, I slapped my forehead, eyes widening as I realized my oversight. "Aap do min yahi rukiye mai aayi," I told him, holding up a finger. I rushed back inside to Daimaa, who was watching me with an arched brow.

"Daimaa, machardani kidhar hai?" I asked, scanning the modest room.
"Woh dekh table ke upar to rakha hai," she replied, nodding towards it. "Aur tu Mr Anubhav ko ye Dena bhul kaise sakti hai haseena?" Her tone was gently chiding.

I grabbed the net, sheepishly holding my ears between my palms. "Sorry Daimaa,pata nahi kaise bhul gayi. Mai unke kamre mein lagakar aati hoon."

"Acha thik hai aur agar unhe koi takleef ho to woh bhi puch lena," she instructed, giving me a meaningful look.
"Ji, Daimaa."

I scurried back to where Anubhav waited, leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed. Without a word, I ushered him into the guest room and deftly tied up the mosquito net around the bed, also lighting some pungent mosquito repellent incense sticks.

"Ye kya hai?" He asked, grimacing slightly as the smoke wafted towards him.
"Machar agarbatti. Isse machar door bhagte hai," I explained simply, waving a hand to clear the air.

He made a slight "Oh" sound in understanding, his expression clearing. "Thik hai to ab aap so jaiye mai chalti hoon, kuch problem hui to mujhe bataiyega," I told him, turning to leave.

But as I reached the door, his mumbled words stopped me. "Neend nahi aa rahi."
I half-turned, arching an eyebrow. "Aapne kuch kaha abhi?"

"Nahi toh," he replied quickly, but his eyes betrayed him, holding a sort of wistful loneliness that I recognized.

So I casually suggested, "Agar neend nahi aa rahi to chaliye bahar thodi hawa kha kar aate hai." I gave him a small, reassuring smile.
He seemed to consider it briefly before nodding once. "Thik hai."

With Aarush finally asleep and the mosquito net in place, we headed outside into the tranquil night. We walked in companiable silence for a while, the only sounds were crickets singing their nighttime melodies and the peaceful rustle of trees in the gentle breeze.

I stole a glance at Anubhav from the corner of my eye, taking in the faint crease between his brows as he gazed ahead unseeingly, seemingly lost in thought.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Singh," I said softly after a while, breaking the stillness between us.
He turned to me, his expression puzzled as he was pulled from his reverie. "Thank you kis liye?"

"Aap mujhe yaha lekar aaye isliye," I replied with a small smile. "Mujhe sach mein yaha ki bahut yaad aa rahi thi." My eyes drifted over our humble surroundings with unabashed fondness.