54

Arnav's comeback was delayed and Khushi grew restless. The complete week went in Court Room facing more humiliation. She was on the verge of collapse. Her dreams drove her to the edge. There was not a single ray of happiness in her dreams too. She had no one to turn to on those dreams, expect for her diary. But her diary too was betraying her. Every time she opened the diary, she would forget what she saw recently and kept reading about the earlier dreams. 

"How beautiful my dreams were earlier!" she thought running her fingers on her diary.
"And now? The dreams haunt me like nightmare and I am afraid of sleeping now!" she muttered. "I think I should stop writing down my dreams!" She again hid her diary and came out of the bathroom. 

In this entire week, she had to go out twice with Lavanya as she couldn't say no to her. Twice Lavanya came home. All these four visits were torturous for Khushi. She heard everything about the relationship between Lavanya and ASR. She could gather from Lavanya's description that there was nothing left to be done between them. She started burning from within. She was doomed. She had no wish to meet Arnav anymore. 

That night she decided to sleep in her bedroom. Last week she slept either in Nani's room or Di's room. 

"I am not the same Khushi now. I know what went on between you and Lavanya ji, Arnavji! I cannot be the same!" she cried her heart out. She felt suffocated. 

****** ******** *********

She was taken inside a room where there was only darkness. 

"No! No! please... not in that room... Please!" she was crying. Shooting pains paralyzed her body. She was carried to the room. She could see few women standing around. She was placed on the mattress on the floor. One old lady bent down. The girl moaned in pain. The pains were unbearable. She screamed.

"No!... N....O! I cannot bear it. Let me go!" the girl screamed. Her pains increased. She was letting it go. She was passing out.

A very old Mali Kaka was sitting with his back resting at the wall outside her house. He hid his head in his knees gripping his hands over his knees. He was praying..! "Please... please, Take her to the Doctor! Please!" Tears streaming down he chocked. "Please... she is dying... please!" there was no one to listen to his pleas. He felt helpless. A surge of pain erupted in his chest and he collapsed on the ground in a heap. 

"No!.. Don't ...!" the old lady stared slapping on her cheeks. The other women pinned her down telling her to wake up. She was sweating... her pain never subsided. "No.. I can't bear it... No... Please...No...! Oh God, Where are you?" she was crying.

"SHHHH! EASY! EVERYTHING WILL BE FINE.... STAY ALIVE... FOR MY SAKE?" the gust of wind brought his fragrance back to her. She looked around. She smiled losing all her resistance.

"I know, you would come! I am happy!" She had passed out.

"No! hold her tight... Wake her up. Splash water on her face!" the old lady was issuing frantic instructions. The grip of the women on her tightened. She felt suffocated...
""SHHHH...SHHH...!" someone was stroking her head. Someone was releasing the pressure from her. The world around had vanished.... Her pains subsided... she could see smile on the face of the old lady... 

"That's like a good girl!" She said

**************

Khushi opened her eyes ... and was shocked to see Arnav there. He was stroking her head holding her to his heart. He was gently stroking her and wiping her sweat off. "Khushi... Khushi... Shhh... easy!" he was pacifying her.

She looked at him and started crying. "SHH! No! Don't worry.... I am here, Khushi! I am here!" Arnav held her closer. His heart beats pacified her. She lifted her face to see concern in his eyes. 

"Khushi!" he kissed her forehead. She pulled him closer and said "Arnav ji... she... i...i.... was on the point of death...!" she sobbed hard.

"Khushi.. No! Calm down! Khushi.. You are alive.. You are with me.. I am with you... we are together ... !" he soothed her pulling her in his arms and weeping with her silently. He felt her pain.. her anguish.. her misery.. her helplessness. 

He sat her up with a jerk. "Khushi.. let us go on a long drive!" he said getting down from the bed. She looked at the time. 

"Now? At this hour of time?" she asked shocked.

"Yes!" let us go. He didn't even bother to change. He dragged her down and they were on the deserted road within no time. He rolled down the windows and cool breeze calmed her down. She slid her hand around his arm and rested her head on his shoulder.

"Arnav ji, when did you come?" she asked gathering herself up. "When you were strangled!" he said placing his hand on her cheek. He stopped the car at a secluded place. She looked at him.
"Khushi.... Stop seeing those dreams!" he was serious, so was she. "I can't stop them coming.. however I try... I .. I try hard not to see... I try hard not to sleep...!" she was crying again.
"SHH, Khushi... stop crying! I am with you, Khushi ... we will fight those dreams together!" he said pulling her closer.

"How?" she was puzzled. He looked at her wanting to tell her about his dreams.
"How?" she again asked him. "um.. I don't know! But I will handle it, Khushi... leave it to me!" he showed confidence. She still looked puzzled.

"umm... May be we will go to a psychiatrist!" he came up with the solution!
"What? Do you think I am going mad?" she asked him angrily.

"No.. I mean Yes!... I mean you are not going mad Khushi, you are driving me mad!" he said smirking.

"What?" she was enraged. "In that case, you need a treatment!" she retorted.
"Yes, Yes... I need help..!" he said surrendering. "But for now, Khushi... I will take you to the Doctor!" he said with determination.

"No Way! She protested!" he pulled her and kissing her said "Ok, Fine! No Doctor! But no dreams too!" 

She nodded and smiled. "Shall we go back?" she asked him lifting her face.
"Whats so hurry?" he changed his mood and started snogging her passionately.

"Ar...Arnav ji.. we are in the car!" she said resisting his advancement. He reluctantly pulled himself away and they drove back home.

"ummm.. Khushi... I know what happened in the Court... I mean I ...!" Aranv opened the topic.
"Please, Arnav ji... I don't want to talk about it!" Khushi interrupted. They had reached the threshold of their room. She froze..

"Khushi.. I mean..!" he started off apologetically.
"No, Arnav ji, Please!" she stopped him. "Anyway, its of no use telling anything to you" she muttered. He heard it.

"What? What did you say?" he asked her in a harsh voice.

"I said its of no use talking to you about it. You can hear about it. You can't be there with me when I actually endure the humiliation!" she retorted back. He grabbed her enraged.

"Khushi, do you think I fought with HIM on purpose, to stay away from Court?" he asked her with anger. She stared straight into his eyes. He pushed her away and said "You really need medical help, Khushi!" his voice had a shade of disdain. That's what Khushi thought and retorted back.

"and so do you, Mr. Raizada! And you need sleep too! so go in and have some sleep!".
She turned back to leave and said "Anyway, I should be getting up at 5.30! its almost four! So I think I should start my day early!" She ran down the stairs to the kitchen. Arnav kept gaping at her vanishing figure.

********** ******** ********

Arnav came to the office early to find Lavanya already at work.
"ASR, this document needs your signature"... Lavanya barged in. She looked at his face. He was deep in thoughts. 

"Are you ok?" she asked him concerned.

"Yes" he said looking down at the papers. She came nearer and bending down asked him, holding his hand "ASR, is there a problem at home? I mean, Khushi...Is she alright?... she looked upset!" Lavanya was talking to Arnav in a bear whisper. He looked up at her and said.
"No! its nothing.. I mean.. she is alright.. I mean she is not!" he said it to her.

"Oh! Poor Baby!" she cupped his face sympathetically and said looking into his eyes..
"ASR, I know what you are going through. She is also suffering.. you know ... I see there is a rift between you two..!" she in fact was widening the rift.

"I don't know, she is keeping herself away from me!" ASR succumbed to the tactics.
"Oh! Poor baby! ASR, I am there with you always!" she hugged him bending down further.
He removed her hands and getting up with a jerk said "If you have finished with the work, Lavanya, go back to your work!" Lavanya looked upset at the sudden change.

"Khushi can't do this to me! I have to go back to her! She needs me!" he picked up his laptop and turned to leave.

He stopped in the middle. "Khushi must have been in the Court!" he thought coming back again and placing the laptop on the table again.

"ASR, I am going out for some time!" Lavanya was back in his cabin. He nodded. Lavanya went out and Aman walked in. He stood before ASR staring at him.

"What?" ASR looked up.

"Sir! I want to talk to you!" Aman said gravely.
"Go ahead!" ASR gave him the permission.

"Umm.. I don't know, it might mean nothing... but ...!" Aman did not know how to start.
ASR just stared at Aman.

"Sir... I saw.. I mean I had been to the market... !" he was adjoining preamble.
"Speak up the damn thing Aman!" Arnav screamed.

"I saw Lavanya with Sham!" he dropped the bomb.
"What?" Arnav got up from the chair with a jerk completely shocked.

"Yes! It may not mean anything... but I couldn't keep it from you!" Aman went ahead.
"Lavanya is acting strange off late. She keeps meeting Khushi bhabi. I somehow ... I mean I am not comfortable..!" Aman did not like Lavanya meeting Khushi. He felt something wrong would happen to Khushi. He decided to speak it up with Arnav.

Arnav remembered Nani, papaji, Mummiji telling him to stay away from Lavanya. But he never was near to her. She was just a colleague to him. He was puzzled. Mulling over the situation, he decided to talk to Lavanya directly.

"Aman, I want to talk to Lavanya! Call her here!" he ordered Aman.
"She went out just now!" Aman gave him the information.

"Call her back!" roared Arnav.
Aman tried her cell which was switched off. He looked at Arnav. Arnav tried in vain.
"Aman, send her to me as soon as she comes back and you be there with her!" he ordered Aman.

"What was she doing with HIM?" Arnav's anger mounting he paced the room like a trapped tiger. 

*********** ********** **********

Khushi and Aakash were in the car to go to the Court. Shams chief examination was to be continued. Khushi's phone rang.

"Mrs. Raizada, this is Dasgupta!" came a deep hoarse voice of Das uncle.

"Uncle?" she was surprised to hear him calling her Khushi. He sounded like a stranger.
"Who Uncle?" he asked her. She was confused. "Uncle ...you ?" she again called out.
"Mrs. Raizada, you have an appointment with me tomorrow evening at six, at hotel Deep!" Dasgupta told her in a strange tone.

"Uncle? Are you coming to Delhi?" she asked surprised.
"I will be coming, Mrs. Raizada!" he said indifferently.

"Uncle, what is this Mrs. Raizada?" she began to get annoyed at his tone.
"Mrs Raizada, I am very particular about time. Be there exactly at six!" he ordered her.
"Uncle, what is this?" she almost screamed.

"Khooki, just joking!" Dasgupta uncle was back as her uncle again.
"haa, you gave me a shock!" Khushi took a sigh of relief.

"I will be there uncle" she assured him. Aakash got a knot in his throat. He still kept calculating his fees. The typical charge of Dasgupta's table practice was around lack rupees a day. He looked at Khushi in apprehension. Khushi winked at him.

"Nothing... Aakash jijaji, he was just joking. I know. I have to meet him at six" she said grinning at Aakash's aghast face.
,,,,,,

Dasgupta disconnected the phone and looked at Balwindar. Mummiji smiled and said "Thank you!" 

"I am doing this only for you, not for him!" Dasgupta still was in a fighting mood. Balwindar ignore him and turned to his biwi.

"Biwi, ask him to go now!" he said angrily.
"But I thought you invited me for lunch!" Dasgupta winked at her. Mummiji smiled sweetly and said

"Yes, you are staying for lunch and Balwindar, if you don't want to have lunch with him, you can go!" she said sternly smiling at Dasgupta.

"Yeah!" he added fuel. "Fine! I am going out!" Balwindar stormed out.
"Dasupta bhai, I am worried!" Mummiji was serious. Dasgupta sat on the chair and said, "That's why I have decided to handle this. I know how important she is to you two!" he too was serious.

"You know, he is an intelligent criminal minded lawyer! That makes the things more complicated! But don't you worry!" he assured her.

"I am relieved now. You are there to take care! She is just a child, going through the ordeal!" Mummiji had tears in her eyes. "I want to see her back as my Khushi puttar!" came a voice from behind. Papaji came in. He too looked very serious. 

"Take it easy, Balwindar, I promise, I will handle it!" Dasgupta got up. Papaji kept his hand around Dasgupta's shoulder. "Something is haunting her. She is not the same Khushi!" papaji's voice quivered. There was a silence for a while and then Dasgupta said,
"Balwinder, I will not rest until I am done with him!" said Dasgupta in a deep deadly voice. Papaji looked at him and hugged him. 

"Laurel and Hardy!" Mummiji muttered looking fondly at the tall figure of papaji and short, stout, fatty figure of Dasgupta hugging each other. 

"Shut up!" they both shouted at her.