Touch Her And... (Completed)

Chapter 23

“And you think this small thing is somehow responsible for that? This is insane brother!” The lady shouted on her brother, her eyes were filled with tears. She was middle aged, her hair was tied up in a clumsy bun. Her saree seemed expensive and decent. She was holding a small child in her arms who seemed to be no more than 5 years. “You cannot convince me Savitri. This child is a total bad luck in our family. First he took my wife from me and now my mother!? I can't believe this. How could this bundle of bad luck be my son!?” The man was really tall, even in that age he looked quite handsome. “Brother!” The woman exclaimed! “You are blaming this small innocent kid, your son for something that is in no one's hand. And to my utter surprise you actually think he pushed our mother from the stairs just because you found him standing behind her. You are making me sick.” The man snapped his head towards his sister and with gritted teeth he said, “ then what should I do? Should I worship this snake that ruined everything, took away every good thing from my life? Listen Savitri, if you don't want him dead, accept what I have decided.” The woman was standing there like a wooden statue. “Let them move him to the mansion. He would stay out of my sight and also out of my luck. I'll talk to Purohit about all the arrangements, I can't tolerate him anymore.” The man was about to leave when Savitri said, “he will not go there alone. Ask your men to pack my things too.” She turned around and left.

Back to the contemporary

Triss:

“Pratima ji, take her upstair and see if she needs anything and make sure that she sleeps well. Oh, and she hasn't had food yet. Make her eat something first.” The man continued mesmerizing me. His concern for me seemed so genuine, so other worldly.
“Uhm, as far as I could remember I had half of a sub and you had nothing. So if I eat, you eat too.” I said looking at his chest but I could sense him smirking. “Hmm, do as she said, set two plates then.”
I looked at Pratima ji, who was smiling in a weird manner and then I glanced over the man who stood by the wall beside the huge door with his arms crossed over his chest and one leg folded and placed on the wall,  giving me an amused stare. I didn't know why but my cheeks were heating up.

“You are not eating Teressa.” I looked up from the plate to the man sitting just across me over the table. I was not feeling hungry anymore. So many worries were clouding my mind. Tears welled up in my eyes. Thoughts like “what will happen if anythin bad happens to aunt, if she can't make it? Who will be left in my life. Why would I even survive then?” Suddenly my legs started tickling as a warm lubricating feeling brought me back to the earth. I got out of the chair kneeled down and took the small thing in my arms. “O Bruno..” I held him close to my chest and sobbed “she will be fine.. she will come back to us..” till I didn't realize that another person was just looking at everything standing right beside me with a pair of genuinely worried eyes and saying nothing. I put Bruno down and stood up straightening my dress (the same dress I was wearing from the beginning of the day,gross). “ Uhm.. I am.. s-sorry.” He was hesitating, blinking his eyes too frequently then finally he lifted the plate from the table and took some of the rice on the spoon and then brought that in front of my mouth. I froze. He was looking  at everywhere but me. But when he had to hold that spoon for almost an eternity he realised that I didn't eat the food, he looked at me and said, “Pratima ji cooks really well, trust me.” Oh God.. this man was thinking that I was picky? I shook my head, smiled and ate that.
“You can give me the plate now. She does cook really well, I'll eat the lot.” He handed me the plate and put his hands inside his pocket.
“Umm,I-I'm going upstairs then. I hope your bed will be ready by now. Good night Teressa.” He turned around hesitantly and my phone gave a notification alert.

I picked that up from the table and my face lit up to an extent I can't even describe. I was happy, I was relieved and deeply engrossed in my phone when the obvious someone cleared his throat. “And may I know who made you smile this big?” I looked up at him, startled. My smile was impossible to control. “ It has to be Manik. Who else can make me smile like this?”
And my phone was snatched out of my hand. “What!? Why..?” I cried out. He was clenching his jaw and looking down at the phone screen in a manner as if he was about to cut someone into pieces with his eyes only. “Your phone's battery is draining and yours too. I am switching it off, go upstairs and charge it up.” I rolled my eyes and took the phone from his hand, this man and his mood swings. “I could do that myself Mr. Nag..” and the way he immediately snapped his face up and looked at me with that narrowed pair of eyes I understoot what he want. “ Dev..” I uttered lowering my eyes because the way he smirked suddenly and looked directly at my lips that was weird, although in a good way.

I was tired, I knew that. My legs were aching and the severe headache was killing me. After freshening up I was in my grey PJ and and black tank top. The bed was comfortable enough but the house always made me restless for some unknown reasons. I suddenly remembered how Dev was crying in his sleep, how he was having some sort of a terrific nightmare. “Should I check how he is doing? I hope he is okay. I don't know why everyone says he is cruel he seems to be the most caring person I have ever seen. Yes he is unpredictable but does that make him a coldhearted Devil? No matter how hard I try,I don't think I can ever call him that. Although his rage is something that scares me. He almost choked Arjun to death. God I don't know how he is doing. Should I call him now? No it's too late. Let's wait till morning.” I was totally talking to myself when a light music entered my ears. “He is still awake? But why?” I pulled myself out of the bed and started walking towards his room.

To my surprise this time it was open but the whole room was filled with smoke and smelt like cigarettes. I was standing outside thinking hardly about whether I should get inside or go back to my bed.
“Do you plan to stand there the whole night?” And this voice, this husky voice made me go weak in my knees. I entered into the territory of smoke and said, “Hi”. He was standing by the window looking at me with a cigarette held in between his right hand fingers and to my discomfort he was wearing no t-shirt. His muscles were too chiseled and I was feeling too awkward so I decided to change the topic. The song that was going on in background was, “I love you dangerously” by Charlie Puth. “You like Puth?” He continued staring at me making me feel some unknown things. “Yes I do, sometimes. Do you?” I was now looking at the pictures hanging on the wall, “hmm, he is good.” I stopped in front of a painting that seemed way too appealing to me. It was a shiv linga and in front of that sitting was a girl in a saffron saree with her back towards me. Her hair was brown and curly and she had two Rudraksha bands on both of her upper arms. I was so mesmerized by the painting that I failed to realize that the man was standing right behind me, looking at me with a new found curiosity.