Tere Liye | ✔

Chapter Twenty-Five - An Allergic Reaction

NK peeped into the kitchen and looked at HP who was taking out the Khichdi from the pressure  cooker for Sheetal and then at Arnav who nodded at him. 

"HP! HP!" 

And the next second, Arnav's shout blared in the hall, almost making HP drop whatever he was holding. 

"Now what have I done?" He thought, his throat clogged with fear as he quickly covered the bowl of Khidchi before rushing out, lest he ends up infuriating his Arnav Bhaiyya more with his delay. 

"Ji..ji Arnav Bhaiya?" He stuttered as soon as he reached the bottom stairs and glanced at Arnav once, before looking down timidly.

Making sure that NK had already entered the kitchen, Arnav looked down at a trembling HP. He sighed, sending a silent apology to the poor soul before lifting his white shirt. 

"HP, what is this?" He feigned irritation as he pointed towards the huge red blotch on the otherwise white surface of his shirt.

"I told you to be careful with my clothes, right? Then how come this is on my shirt?"

HP looked at the shirt, then at Arnav baffled. He remembered being extra cautious with his clothes, knowing that he was a walking ticking bomb which will blow up at the slightest mistake. 

Then how come he ended up messing such big time?

HP brooded, scratching the back of his head as he fetched an explanation for the mysterious red stain. 

Meanwhile, NK entered the kitchen and took the lid off from the bowl. He stared at the dish, then at the packet of grounded peanut. 

"How much should I put?" He muttered to himself pensively then flared his hand in the air.

"Let me just empty the whole packet in it. She will keep on scratching her skin till she dies. At least then our work will lessened!" He concluded and emptied the entire packet of 100g of grinded peanuts in the bowl, grinning like the vamps he used to see in his Maasiji's daily soaps.

Stirring it a bit, he made sure the peanuts were not evident before covering the bowl again and rushing out of the kitchen. 

He showed a thumbs up to Arnav on his way out, who in turn gave him a brief nod before glancing down at a stammering HP.

"You know what?" 

He took the shirt from HP's hold. 

"It's okay. It might have been some mistake. Just don't do it next time." He said and strode up the stairs and into his room, his demeanor suddenly casual and calm. 

HP gaped at the direction he went, batting his eyes in sheer bewildered at how fast his mood changed. He stood like that for a few seconds before shaking his head and made his way back to the kitchen. 

"Anjali Didi was right. Without Khushi Bhabhi, Arnav Bhaiyya has definitely lost it." He murmured to himself as he placed the bowl on the tray along with a glass of water before walking towards the guest room where Sheetal was. 

He knocked the door and upon a curt nod from Sheetal, entered, kept the tray on the table then walked away silently. 

Sheetal sat upright on the bed still holding her aching stomach. She gulped down the water first to moisten her parched throat before taking the bowl of Khidchi. She placed a spoonful of it in her mouth and chewed it, taking her own sweet time.

"Why does it taste so much different?" She wondered as she chewed on the food, realizing the new flavor in it. 

"At least it still tastes good!" She thought and shrugged her thoughts. She leaned back comfortably on the headrest and enjoyed another spoonful of her food.