"Titaliya...you forgot your oldie after marriage?" said Madhumati in mock anger...
"No Oldie....how can I forget you? You are my Jaaneman (Sweetheart)..."
"Don't fool me...well where is your real Jaaneman?" asked Madhumati pinching her chubby cheeks...Khushi blushed at the remark...
"He said he will come...you know he don't like to come here..." said Khushi sadly but she was cut by Ratna...
"Khushi the puja is going to start come..."
Ratna dragged her towards the living room where everyone were settled for the puja...Khushi bowed down to take blessings from Subhadra and Rubina...
"How are you khushu?" asked Subhadra...
"I am good Dadi..." both Subhadra and Rubina smiled...
"Khushi come sit with us..." said Anjali pointing the vacant place beside her...she happily went and sat beside her where she was welcomed by a sweet kiss on her cheek...
"Mami...when will Mamu come?" asked the princess of Malik's, Gupta's and Raizada's... Pari Mathur, 5 year old daughter of Anjali and Karan Mathur...loves her Arnav Mamu the most...their bond was unique and also surprising for all as most of the adults feel awkward by his scar but this little princess accepted him from the first day of her birth...she had wrapped him around her little fingers...
"Very soon..." said Khushi taking Pari in her lap...
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Arnav hurriedly climbed the stairs of Malik Mansion...he was sure to receive a long lecture from his wife for his late arrival but he was stopped by the scene infront...his wife clad in a red saree, eyes closed, lips murmuring nonstop...little Pari sitting on her lap mimicking her... his eyes roamed all over Khushi's face...she was praying for him his heart recited over and over...a small smile adorned his face...Khushi with little Pari suddenly gave him a vision of a beautiful future...their daughter...his and hers...beautiful like her...also with her crazy antics...a small smile adorned his face...but his trance was broken...
"Arnav Singh Raizada..." he looked back to find the person he least wanted to meet...
"I never thought you will be here...so what do you think you are doing here?" She had already witnessed Arnav seeing Khushi from the window...
"Stop daydreaming Arnav...she will never be yours..."Arnav looked at her surprised...
"Why are you so surprised? Just see how happy she is...with.out.you...don't forget you are just a substitute...as soon as he comes back she will throw you out...and why not?
Just look at her...she is flawless, an epitome beauty...and you an ugly, heartless beast, lost in past...How you can think she will choose an imperfect man like you?" Rubina smirked eyeing the hurt look on his face...
"Don't forget Rubina...she is Sashi Gupta's daughter...Who is he? Maybe he earned some money but this society still wants identity...who is he? What is his history? Most importantly...Who is his father? The day she gets to know the truth she will hate him...she will not think twice before leaving him...
Don't ever think you can get anything from her because you don't deserve her..." left Subhadra with Rubina spitting venom...
He was long back from his job...a part time job in a library...he loves books...and there he got ample of...
As it was raining so he skipped his evening classes...he started reading some files his Mama gave him to note down his opinion about the quotations and data...he used to help him in free time as his Mama claimed that he have some unique skills and talent...he is a born businessman...he sighed as today he can't concentrate on a single line...
"Can't it rain some other time?" he chided eyeing the closed window of a certain room of Gupta Nivas...
Shantivan and Gupta Nivas was only divided by a beautiful garden in between just like Shantivan and Malik Mansion...and surprisingly Khushi's room faces his room...and he can easily have his dose of her view, as most of the time her window is open and so his...it was so soothing to see her reading after a long tiring day...he knew she loves books too as she was an active member of the library he works for... but today is a different story...from morning he had not seen her due to the cloudy weather and now it started raining...
"Lavanya...where is Khushi?"
"Terrace..." shouted Lavanya from the balcony to her mother...also clear to his ears...his face lit up at once...
Slowly he opened the terrace door of Shantivan and witnessed the most beautiful scene... his hazel eyed angel clad in blue, was dancing welcoming the first drops of the year...his lips curved up...her every move, the soothing sound of her ghungroos (used for Indian classical dance) striking his heart ...he can never get enough of her dancing...the raindrops enhancing her beauty more and more...her face adorned with the brightest smile...
"I love you..." the words rolled in a whisper
"But she will never be yours..." his soul narrated sadly...
His lips curved once again in a heart wreathing smile "Still...I am only hers...and will be...forever..." he responded back and continued watching her till her mother came and dragged her inside...he stood there for hours staring at the same place where she was present some time before...tears rolled down his eyes mixing with the rain...he can never forget the disgusted looks he gets from everyone he meets...
"I don't deserve her...you are beyond my reach Khushi..." came his painful confession...
"She will never be mine..." cried Arnav lifting the second bottle to gulp down the pain all in once...alas if that could work...
Thank you for your votes and comments....
