Titaliya

Chapter 12

Akash and Arnav walked outside. The entire day Payal had been furious at him. Arnav was surprised she hadn't told him to get lost outright. Akash, meanwhile, was stuck between his brother and his wife. Seeing Arnav's state, he couldn't tell him to leave Veda. Seeing Payal... telling her to calm down would not end well.

Sharda, Aditi and Ayush left in the afternoon at a later flight. Payal stayed silent until she sent them off. She stormed back into the house with purpose.

"Didn't you learn from anything that happened?" she asked. "What did you do to her yesterday night?"

"Nothing, Payal," he answered. "I just told her-"

"I don't want to know!" Payal yelled. "If you hurt her again, Arnavji.. I'll forget you're Akash's brother. I'll-"

"I told your sister I loved her," Arnav said. "I think I said twice or thrice, actually."

"You told her what?" Payal screamed. Arnav was grateful they were in the parlor and not the kitchen. Payal and sharp things would not have made a great combination at that time.

"Bhai, what is this? Do you know much I convinced Payal to forget everything from the past? She forgave you because her sister is happy. And you've just ruined it all, now. She was supposed to stay another five days. She promised to visit us every summer that we're here. Now, she left without even telling anyone."

"Akash is right, Arnav bitwa. That Phati Saadi is happy now. She doesn't even remember anything you did," Mami chimed in. "Let's let her live her life, now."

Arnav didn't expect even Mami to be against him. He was in love with Veda, just as he'd been in love with Khushi before. He lost her once, through his own stupidity. He couldn't let it happen again. He didn't believe in destiny, fate, or kismet. But he believed they belonged with each other. Things felt right when he was with her. The second he heard of her departure, the entire city of Paris suddenly felt bereft.

"I can't do that," Arnav said. "I can promise you I'll make her happy. I can promise you that I'll try my best to make up for what I did. But I can't live without her. Even if she never remembers the past, or even if she does.. I'm going to spend the rest of my life with her."

"You're not going to hurt her again?" Payal asked.

"No, I promise."

"No more putting her in danger? Accusing her of things without asking her side of the story? No more terrifying her?"

Arnav sighed. "I promise, Payal."

Payal nodded to herself.

"Okay. You're not going to leave her no matter what we say. So... Akash and I will help you. And we'll be watching too, to make sure you don't hurt her again."

"Akash. Give him Khushi's address and phone number in Bangalore," Payal ordered. Turning to Arnav, "And you! Call me every few days and tell me what's going on. Anything happens with my sister, call and tell me."

***

The last of her boxes was unpacked. The three bedroom apartment was too big for her alone. Even with one bedroom converted into a study, she still had a guest room that would never see any guests. She felt alone in the apartment, but sleeping alone quickly became a habit. There were four apartments on her floor, and two of the other flats were occupied by friendly families. The apartment opposite hers, however, was empty.

Studying only occupied so much of her time. The rest of the day, she had to spend with her thoughts. She took to inviting the neighbors' children over and making them snacks.

Jalebis. Finally, she could make them, and eat them, in peace. Movers and packers came around in the afternoon to the apartment opposite hers. The minimalist furniture and the reclining chair they carried in were familiar. Then again, a lot of people had similar taste. She would go mad if she started associating everything and everyone with Arnav. She shook her head and closed the front door, sending the children back to their parents.

Her tutors came and went. By the time it was evening, she was free again. She decided to introduce herself to her new neighbor. She was still in her pajamas, but she doubted a person that just moved in would look much better. She could offer to help with the unpacking.

She knocked on the door and looked around as she waited. She turned around after a minute and started to head back towards her house when the door opened.

"Hi, Veda," Arnav said. "Nice to see you again."

Veda turned around. Thank god she left the jalebis at home. He was standing in front of her, with the audacity to smile at her shock.

"What the hell are you doing here?" she asked.

"Is that how you greet family?"

She didn't respond and only grimaced. He was her neighbor. And he wasn't surprised to see her. It finally dawned on her that he took the apartment on purpose. She folded her arms and tapped her foot. His question didn't require a response. He, however, definitely had to answer as to why he moved into the apartment. Instead of opening his mouth, he only mimicked her actions and winked at her.

She kept her hands to her sides again and let out an irritated sigh.

"Mr. Raizada, why are you here?"

"I'm starting a branch of AR in Bangalore..." he explained. "And I couldn't stay away from you. Mainly you."

He flustered her. He kept saying things she once would have loved to hear. Now, she wasn't so sure. She took a breath and stepped back. She was tempted to retreat to her house and lock the doors. But that would be Khushi. She was Vedanshi Bharadwaj, and she didn't run away. She ignored the voice in her head that lying about amnesia was basically a form of running away.

She looked over his appearance. He was wearing a polo shirt and jeans. Granted, he always looked more handsome to her in his casual wear to her than in his suits. But damned if she was going to let it show. She stepped towards him until they almost touched. Slowly, she played with the top button of his shirt while looking into his eyes.

"So what, Mr. Raizada? Am I supposed to wrap my arms around you and whisper 'Take me now' into your ear?"

She stepped back and grinned like a Cheshire cat at his frozen form.

"Sorry. That's not going to happen. Also, stop stalking me."

She walked back to her front door. She may have swayed her hips a bit more than usual, but it felt good to have the last word. After stepping into her apartment and closing the door, she sat down against the door and put a hand against her chest. Her heart was pounding again. On the kitchen counter, jalebis beckoned.

Writer's Note

The story now is set in Bangalore. I've only ever been in Bangalore twice in my life, and that too for a few days. I'm not familiar with the city, so used Google search. If there's any inaccuracies about the city, let me know.

I'm gonna maybe look up a few Kannada words later to include the story.