CHAPTER 1
His surroundings were blurry to him as he opened his eyes, as it got clearer he found himself in a place that was new to him. The memory of last night had almost vanished for him at the moment, nothing hhe could recall much except he was taken care by...as the thought came across his mind he saw Khushi sleeping, a sleeping beauty, he thought. He didn't know if she was the same girl who was there to take care of him.
Few strands of her hair danced in her her face, more than Khushi's sleep it irritated him as if it was his sleep was being disturbed. He slowly sat up to move the strand of hair so that she could sleep peacefully, but he failed, his physical pain failed him, he winced as his arm hurt, this made Khushi open her eyes at the sudden grasp. When she saw Arnav, she immediately stood up to help him.
"Babu ji, please stay laid," she said and held him by his shoulders. Arnav's heart beat was beating more frequent than normal when he looked at the beautiful pair of Hazel eyes of the girl whom he didn't know much. Khushi too looked at his deep black eyes, too dark and mysterious. It was weird for them but they couldn't ignore the unknowingly instant connection that they felt deep down to their souls.
"You don't seem to be perfectly well yet, please lie down and do not put pressure on yourself!" she said in a low murmur and their gaze unbroken. "Ved ji, said injuries on your body will take some time to heal!" she added, still in a low but now with a hint of a nervous tone.
It happened rare to me that I felt this unknown man, being a rather foreigner to me was someone so close to me.
Arnav didn't lie down but sat up with the help of Khushi and rested his back against the pillows that Khushi tugged behind his back.
"Thank you!" he said.
"Mention not, babu ji, but how are you feeling now?" as she grabbed a seat on the chair, yet felt little uneasy in front of him. For her he was way too handsome, and one of a kind that she ever saw, or ever encountered, and talking to him was not just talking to any normal guy. Yes, Salman Khan failed here badly.
Arnav was mesmerised himself, he was delighted at the way her pink lips moved to speak. He loved how every word formed out of her mouth sounded so sweet and music to the ear. She was quite talkative and half of the words that she spoke in pure Hindi went over his head, but he found he wasn't even paying attention to what she was saying, the other moment. Her tone intoxicated his senses and he didn't mind listening to what she had to say all his life and himself without saying a word. He lost in the sea of her Hazel eyes that spoke more than a words and every emotion literally expressed through them.
Khushi snapped her finger in front of him to make him come out of his dreamland.
"Babu ji, are you okay?" she asked, wondering she had asked him so many things but he didn't answer even to the one.
Arnav looked at her. "Are you okay?" she repeated herself.
"Huh! Yes, I would like to meet the people who saved me!" he said, as he just made up the thing. Khushi wondered what he was saying, but she ignored it.
"Babu ji, you look tired to me, but please first tell me what is your name? How did you meet with an accident? And where are you from?"
"Hi, I am Arnav Singh Raizada!" he said and moved his hand forward for a shake. Khushi looked at his hand nervously and then at him as she didn't know what to do. She smiled shyly, mind it, Khushi and shy doesn't go well, but in front of Arnav she was. "Hi, Aurnav, babu ji!" The pain flourished in her stomach as she called him by his name, and her heart did the flip as she held his hand in hers. And Arnav felt the same. His hands must be rough in her soft hands, he thought, when she timidly gave her hand in his.
He didn't correct the pronunciation of his name.
"Are you Bengali?" he instead asked.
"No!" she immediately said. "Why?"
"Because my name is Ar-nav...not Aur-nav!" he said.
"I am sorry, babu ji!" she said, and bit her tongue.
"No, it's alright," he immediately said sensing she was bit embarrassed.
"Babu ji, tell me about yourself? Where you are from?"
"I have come here from Mumbai for some work. And I don't know how my car's brakes failed. Aman and Kaka?" he wondered. "Miss, did you find two other people? Aman and Kaka?"
Khushi shook her head. "No, not yet!"
"Please can you contact the local police and ask them to find my driver kaka and my manager, Aman?"
"Don't you worry about that, you leave that up to me. I have already sent people to help find Aman babu and driver kaka. But for now please rest. I get tea for you!"
She got up her chair, when Arnav suddenly asked, "by the way, what is your name?"
"I am Khushi Kumari Gupta!"
Arnav smiled. "Your name perfectly matches with your personality!" he said.
"That's what all my friends and my family say!" she said excited, but calmed down almost immediately as she told herself to behave. There was no need to be so open and say something stupid in a hurry."
"I get something for you to drink and eat!" she said, and she ran out of the room.
Arnav smiled again at her tactics. "Sweet!" he said to himself. But thinking of the accident and Aman and Kaka he was worried. He was afraid all his belongings must be ruined.
***
"Listen, Khushi, where can I find a phone?"
"It is outside, but for now, drink this tea. And food will be coming from my house!"
As she passed him the glass of tea, their hands brushed, Khushi tried to ignore the feeling that she got at the simple contact of their skin.
***
"He is a prince!" Khushi's friend Savitri whispered in her ear as they both hid behind the wall outside Arnav's room, sneaking at Arnav, whom was now checked my ved ji. Khushi hit her shoulder.
"You better not eye him, okay? Remember that you have a fiance!"
"To get a man like this shehre babu (city guy), I can leave thousand such fiance. And by the way who is talking about me, I am talking about you. You swear on me and tell me that you have fallen for him the moment you saved him. And they say if you save the person his or her life becomes yours."
"What rubbish? It is nothing like that?" Khushi said, immediately, but blushed. And from inside she indeed was happy.
"Really? I will talk to shaloo, and of course she can marry him!"
"Dare to link him with anyone!" she warned her.
"Look who is getting jealous! And see your face in the mirror. You are blushing like a newly wed wife!"
"Shut up!" Khushi said, "it is nothing like..."
Savitri turned around and faced her, and kept her hand on her chest. "Khushi, your fast beating heart is the evidence that you are in love with him!"
"Savitri, I am a village girl, and where he? A city guy, looks highly educated and businessman to me. We are classes apart!"
Savitri shook her head as she clearly did not agree at Khushi's logic.
"Ms. Khushi Kumari Gupta, love doesn't care about these materialistic things. Admit that you are in love with him otherwise, a guy like Rudra will marry with you, with whom you will never be happy!"
"Savitri, don't show me dreams!"
Savitri looked at her in disbelief. "Are you saying that, Khushi? You? Who not only dreams with open eyes, but also keeps the courage to fulfil those dreams," she tried to give her the glimpse of real her. "Now I gotta go, have tonnes of house hold work. You take care of your shehre babu."
"Savitri, do not forget to find out Aman babu and Driver Kaka!" Khushi said.
"Don't worry, I have told all our friends!" she said as she ran away.
***
"Hi, Khushi!"
"Hi!" she said. "How are you feeling now?" Now after the talk between her and Savitri obviously the way she saw Arnav was completely different, even though she found him fascinating even before.
"Much better actually! Khushi, thank you!"
"Thank u? What for?" she asked, and his sudden asked question helped her to ask him this question in a much more normal tone. Even though her heart beat furiously in the chamber of her chests as it was doing its own dance step, as it had found a person whom it waited for to complete her.
"You not only saved me, but took care of me, ved ji said you stayed here whole night and took care of me, even today you were here making all those medicines for me!"
"It's my job, babu ji. You were in need and I helped you."
"Tell me, Khushi, what can I do for you in return?"
"I do not need anything, babu ji. And if I will need I will ask for it!"
"Okay, that sounds great. But you better ask for it before I leave!"
Khushi's face fell even knowing that he wasn't there anyways for forever.
"When you will leave?" she asked, in a normal tone but there was a pain inside her that she tried to conceal.
"As soon as my work will be finished. And yes, from work I remember, can you please tell me where is Thakur ji's house?"
"Why?" she asked, instantly.
"Uhhmm...I have some work with him!" he said.
"You want to meet him?"
"Yes. You know him?"
"Yes, he..." she told herself to not to tell he was her father, it wasn't they would be much in contact with each other. Did she have any reason to why not to tell him, she didn't know. Anyways, she thought she wasn't going to pay much attention. "When you will be perfectly fine I will take you to his house!" she instead said.
"Also, I have told the police to look for Aman babu, and your driver kaka! And please don't say thank you. In this village we always love to help doesn't matter if the person we know or not."
"Well, I would say I am in love with this village and its people!" he said looking at her, and first thought came into her mind was he meant to say it to her. He made it very clear to her. Before she could show sign of how shy and nervous she was, she excused herself and ran out of the room and leaned against the wall, as she tried to get hold of herself and her breath, and her furiously beating heart.
***
"Arnav, babu, it will sting little bit, but you will feel better!" Khushi said as she was going to apply herbal medicinal paste on his wounds.
"It's okay, you go on!" he said, without thinking. More than he should, Khushi was scared to hurt him. When Arnav saw her hand trembled he held her wrist and pressed her fingers with the medicinal paste on her his chest. She was right, it stung his wounds, he clenched his eyes and his hold on her wrist. Khushi looked at his hold on her wrist, but she found herself smiling, but then seeing his pain, she said, "Babu ji, I said it will sting!"
Arnav relaxed and opened his eyes and saw the pain that was his bit in her eyes. He moved his hand away from her wrist.
"I am sorry, Khushi!" he said let go of her wrist.
Khushi blinked her tears away. "In few days your wounds will start to heal!" she said, and applied the paste on the rest of his body. On his arms, chest, and forehead.
"Khushi, what do you do?"
Khushi didn't realise how beautiful her name sounded from his mouth. That she wouldn't have minded hearing it again and again from him. His dialect was smooth, that added cherry on a cake. She even forgot that he had asked her something.
"I...I do so many things, will tell you some other time," she answered him as she excused herself from her own thoughts.
"But where are you going now?" he asked, when she got up and took her hand bag.
"My first work you know I look after sick people here in a dispensary when me and ved ji can be helpful. Second work of me is of detectives, I have sent all of my people around and they must be looking for two people who got missing that were with you. No, you don't need a police for that."
Arnav laughed and Khushi found herself lost in it. "Khushi, you are funny."
"Babu ji, do not underestimate me!" she said.
"No, I am not. What is your police team saying? When those two person can be found?" he said more seriously, to make her believe he wasn't underestimating.
"It could take sometime but I promise before 5:00 PM in the afternoon your friends will be here. If not, then we will inform the real police!"
"Okay, I trust you!" he said.
"So, you please take some rest."
"Khushi, when you will be back?" Arnav couldn't believe he asked. But he couldn't stop himself either. Khushi's heart again went wild at the anticipation.
"I will be back with your friends," she said and ran out of there.
"Nani will be so happy if she will meet her!" he said.
"I am waiting for you, Khushi!"
"Babu ji, please stay laid," she said and held him by his shoulders. Arnav's heart beat was beating more frequent than normal when he looked at the beautiful pair of Hazel eyes of the girl whom he didn't know much. Khushi too looked at his deep black eyes, too dark and mysterious. It was weird for them but they couldn't ignore the unknowingly instant connection that they felt deep down to their souls.
"You don't seem to be perfectly well yet, please lie down and do not put pressure on yourself!" she said in a low murmur and their gaze unbroken. "Ved ji, said injuries on your body will take some time to heal!" she added, still in a low but now with a hint of a nervous tone.
It happened rare to me that I felt this unknown man, being a rather foreigner to me was someone so close to me.
Arnav didn't lie down but sat up with the help of Khushi and rested his back against the pillows that Khushi tugged behind his back.
"Thank you!" he said.
"Mention not, babu ji, but how are you feeling now?" as she grabbed a seat on the chair, yet felt little uneasy in front of him. For her he was way too handsome, and one of a kind that she ever saw, or ever encountered, and talking to him was not just talking to any normal guy. Yes, Salman Khan failed here badly.
Arnav was mesmerised himself, he was delighted at the way her pink lips moved to speak. He loved how every word formed out of her mouth sounded so sweet and music to the ear. She was quite talkative and half of the words that she spoke in pure Hindi went over his head, but he found he wasn't even paying attention to what she was saying, the other moment. Her tone intoxicated his senses and he didn't mind listening to what she had to say all his life and himself without saying a word. He lost in the sea of her Hazel eyes that spoke more than a words and every emotion literally expressed through them.
Khushi snapped her finger in front of him to make him come out of his dreamland.
"Babu ji, are you okay?" she asked, wondering she had asked him so many things but he didn't answer even to the one.
Arnav looked at her. "Are you okay?" she repeated herself.
"Huh! Yes, I would like to meet the people who saved me!" he said, as he just made up the thing. Khushi wondered what he was saying, but she ignored it.
"Babu ji, you look tired to me, but please first tell me what is your name? How did you meet with an accident? And where are you from?"
"Hi, I am Arnav Singh Raizada!" he said and moved his hand forward for a shake. Khushi looked at his hand nervously and then at him as she didn't know what to do. She smiled shyly, mind it, Khushi and shy doesn't go well, but in front of Arnav she was. "Hi, Aurnav, babu ji!" The pain flourished in her stomach as she called him by his name, and her heart did the flip as she held his hand in hers. And Arnav felt the same. His hands must be rough in her soft hands, he thought, when she timidly gave her hand in his.
He didn't correct the pronunciation of his name.
"Are you Bengali?" he instead asked.
"No!" she immediately said. "Why?"
"Because my name is Ar-nav...not Aur-nav!" he said.
"I am sorry, babu ji!" she said, and bit her tongue.
"No, it's alright," he immediately said sensing she was bit embarrassed.
"Babu ji, tell me about yourself? Where you are from?"
"I have come here from Mumbai for some work. And I don't know how my car's brakes failed. Aman and Kaka?" he wondered. "Miss, did you find two other people? Aman and Kaka?"
Khushi shook her head. "No, not yet!"
"Please can you contact the local police and ask them to find my driver kaka and my manager, Aman?"
"Don't you worry about that, you leave that up to me. I have already sent people to help find Aman babu and driver kaka. But for now please rest. I get tea for you!"
She got up her chair, when Arnav suddenly asked, "by the way, what is your name?"
"I am Khushi Kumari Gupta!"
Arnav smiled. "Your name perfectly matches with your personality!" he said.
"That's what all my friends and my family say!" she said excited, but calmed down almost immediately as she told herself to behave. There was no need to be so open and say something stupid in a hurry."
"I get something for you to drink and eat!" she said, and she ran out of the room.
Arnav smiled again at her tactics. "Sweet!" he said to himself. But thinking of the accident and Aman and Kaka he was worried. He was afraid all his belongings must be ruined.
***
"Listen, Khushi, where can I find a phone?"
"It is outside, but for now, drink this tea. And food will be coming from my house!"
As she passed him the glass of tea, their hands brushed, Khushi tried to ignore the feeling that she got at the simple contact of their skin.
***
"He is a prince!" Khushi's friend Savitri whispered in her ear as they both hid behind the wall outside Arnav's room, sneaking at Arnav, whom was now checked my ved ji. Khushi hit her shoulder.
"You better not eye him, okay? Remember that you have a fiance!"
"To get a man like this shehre babu (city guy), I can leave thousand such fiance. And by the way who is talking about me, I am talking about you. You swear on me and tell me that you have fallen for him the moment you saved him. And they say if you save the person his or her life becomes yours."
"What rubbish? It is nothing like that?" Khushi said, immediately, but blushed. And from inside she indeed was happy.
"Really? I will talk to shaloo, and of course she can marry him!"
"Dare to link him with anyone!" she warned her.
"Look who is getting jealous! And see your face in the mirror. You are blushing like a newly wed wife!"
"Shut up!" Khushi said, "it is nothing like..."
Savitri turned around and faced her, and kept her hand on her chest. "Khushi, your fast beating heart is the evidence that you are in love with him!"
"Savitri, I am a village girl, and where he? A city guy, looks highly educated and businessman to me. We are classes apart!"
Savitri shook her head as she clearly did not agree at Khushi's logic.
"Ms. Khushi Kumari Gupta, love doesn't care about these materialistic things. Admit that you are in love with him otherwise, a guy like Rudra will marry with you, with whom you will never be happy!"
"Savitri, don't show me dreams!"
Savitri looked at her in disbelief. "Are you saying that, Khushi? You? Who not only dreams with open eyes, but also keeps the courage to fulfil those dreams," she tried to give her the glimpse of real her. "Now I gotta go, have tonnes of house hold work. You take care of your shehre babu."
"Savitri, do not forget to find out Aman babu and Driver Kaka!" Khushi said.
"Don't worry, I have told all our friends!" she said as she ran away.
***
"Hi, Khushi!"
"Hi!" she said. "How are you feeling now?" Now after the talk between her and Savitri obviously the way she saw Arnav was completely different, even though she found him fascinating even before.
"Much better actually! Khushi, thank you!"
"Thank u? What for?" she asked, and his sudden asked question helped her to ask him this question in a much more normal tone. Even though her heart beat furiously in the chamber of her chests as it was doing its own dance step, as it had found a person whom it waited for to complete her.
"You not only saved me, but took care of me, ved ji said you stayed here whole night and took care of me, even today you were here making all those medicines for me!"
"It's my job, babu ji. You were in need and I helped you."
"Tell me, Khushi, what can I do for you in return?"
"I do not need anything, babu ji. And if I will need I will ask for it!"
"Okay, that sounds great. But you better ask for it before I leave!"
Khushi's face fell even knowing that he wasn't there anyways for forever.
"When you will leave?" she asked, in a normal tone but there was a pain inside her that she tried to conceal.
"As soon as my work will be finished. And yes, from work I remember, can you please tell me where is Thakur ji's house?"
"Why?" she asked, instantly.
"Uhhmm...I have some work with him!" he said.
"You want to meet him?"
"Yes. You know him?"
"Yes, he..." she told herself to not to tell he was her father, it wasn't they would be much in contact with each other. Did she have any reason to why not to tell him, she didn't know. Anyways, she thought she wasn't going to pay much attention. "When you will be perfectly fine I will take you to his house!" she instead said.
"Also, I have told the police to look for Aman babu, and your driver kaka! And please don't say thank you. In this village we always love to help doesn't matter if the person we know or not."
"Well, I would say I am in love with this village and its people!" he said looking at her, and first thought came into her mind was he meant to say it to her. He made it very clear to her. Before she could show sign of how shy and nervous she was, she excused herself and ran out of the room and leaned against the wall, as she tried to get hold of herself and her breath, and her furiously beating heart.
***
"Arnav, babu, it will sting little bit, but you will feel better!" Khushi said as she was going to apply herbal medicinal paste on his wounds.
"It's okay, you go on!" he said, without thinking. More than he should, Khushi was scared to hurt him. When Arnav saw her hand trembled he held her wrist and pressed her fingers with the medicinal paste on her his chest. She was right, it stung his wounds, he clenched his eyes and his hold on her wrist. Khushi looked at his hold on her wrist, but she found herself smiling, but then seeing his pain, she said, "Babu ji, I said it will sting!"
Arnav relaxed and opened his eyes and saw the pain that was his bit in her eyes. He moved his hand away from her wrist.
"I am sorry, Khushi!" he said let go of her wrist.
Khushi blinked her tears away. "In few days your wounds will start to heal!" she said, and applied the paste on the rest of his body. On his arms, chest, and forehead.
"Khushi, what do you do?"
Khushi didn't realise how beautiful her name sounded from his mouth. That she wouldn't have minded hearing it again and again from him. His dialect was smooth, that added cherry on a cake. She even forgot that he had asked her something.
"I...I do so many things, will tell you some other time," she answered him as she excused herself from her own thoughts.
"But where are you going now?" he asked, when she got up and took her hand bag.
"My first work you know I look after sick people here in a dispensary when me and ved ji can be helpful. Second work of me is of detectives, I have sent all of my people around and they must be looking for two people who got missing that were with you. No, you don't need a police for that."
Arnav laughed and Khushi found herself lost in it. "Khushi, you are funny."
"Babu ji, do not underestimate me!" she said.
"No, I am not. What is your police team saying? When those two person can be found?" he said more seriously, to make her believe he wasn't underestimating.
"It could take sometime but I promise before 5:00 PM in the afternoon your friends will be here. If not, then we will inform the real police!"
"Okay, I trust you!" he said.
"So, you please take some rest."
"Khushi, when you will be back?" Arnav couldn't believe he asked. But he couldn't stop himself either. Khushi's heart again went wild at the anticipation.
"I will be back with your friends," she said and ran out of there.
"Nani will be so happy if she will meet her!" he said.
"I am waiting for you, Khushi!"
No comments:
Post a Comment