Yuhn Hota Toh Kya Hota- Rikara FF

Chapter 67

Om was looking at Gauri's face, as she dozed off. How old was she anyways? Probably around Rudra's age, maybe younger. She should have been in college studying or maybe getting a job. Oh wait, she had a job, the shop he mercilessly trampled with his car. And she had work in Mumbai too, from where she was abducted by Kali Thakur. 

They were presently sitting, rather flying, in an Oberoi private jet, back to Mumbai. Om observed her face. She had fallen asleep a little while after the plane took off. She looked so innocent, so young as if she wasn't capable of stabbing someone with a bloody scimitar. Om remembered how ferocious she looked with that weapon in her hand, when she raised it to attack him, only to realize that he wasn't her enemy. 

But he wasn't her friend either. She had said as much back in the haveli when she made it clear that she took up the Chulbul persona only to pay back the debt of life she owed him. There was no friendship from her side ever. Om couldn't believe that he actually compromised his principles around truth, and went to her aid, when she clearly didn't want it, or need it. She was competent enough to manage Kali alone. But he didn't regret coming here, he just regretted ever trusting a person again.

It was his fault that he was hurt by Gauri's lie. Now that the danger to Gauri's life was averted, all the pain and bitterness he felt towards her for the facade of Chulbul came rushing back. When he left Mumbai, he thought he would first save her from Kali, and then rage at her for betraying him. But after the set-down she gave him back in the haveli, he just wanted to be done with her. He could never tell when Gauri was lying, whether all of it was a lie, or there was some truth mixed in it, but Om wanted none of it. His life was complicated as it is. He would drop Gauri back in Mumbai, and that was it. End of story. 

The flight started losing altitude. It woke up Gauri, who shut her ears, and scrunched up her face. Probably, she was one of those people who felt pain in their ears due to air pressure, whenever a flight took off or landed. Omkara took out a pair of earbuds, and gestured towards them and his ears. Gauri understood and took the earbuds and put it in her ears. 

She looked a child who was being irritated by a fly. Even after they walked out of the air field, Gauri kept shaking her head and wriggling her ears to get rid of that feeling. Omkara found that really amusing to watch for some reason, and then immediately felt ashamed as he reminded himself that she had played up this innocence as Chulbul before. 

Once they were in the car, Omkara gave directions to the driver to drive them to the chawl, but Gauri cut him off and requested him to drive her to a mandir. It was the same mandir where the Jagraata girl worked. Omkara's brain seemed to be telling him something, putting a hazy image  before his eyes, but he dismissed it as headache from the events of the past three days. 

It was almost evening, when they reached the temple. It was strange, thought Omkara, that whenever he went to Bareilly so much seemed to transpire in such a short span of time. As they neared the temple compound he could see an Oberoi car, his mother's in fact, parked outside the temple. Was his mother here? 

His car halted. Gauri got down from the car and looked behind him to see Omkara getting down as well.

"You don't have to get down here. You've done enough." said Gauri, looking at the ground.

"I wasn't getting down to see you off, my mother's car is parked here. She's probably here too." said Omkara, much more rudely than he had intended to.

"Oh, anyways, thank you for everything. For everything you've have done today...." Gauri was about to say more, but Omkara put up his right hand, gesturing her to stop.