~ Part 20 ~
Heer is sitting on the bed, shy at being so close to Prem, her best friend, yet at the same time scared of their new relationship because she knows it is going to be awkward as she doesn't yet love him. Prem is pushed into the room by his cousin sisters, and Preet who loves teasing him any chance he gets. He locks the door and comes near Heer, sitting beside her on the bed. Prem opens her ghoongat.
Prem: Heer, mujhe tumse kuch kehna hai.
Heer: Haan, bolo Prem.
Prem: Heer, main tumse bohot pyar karta hoon. I Love You...
Heer: (interrupting him) Prem, I Love You too, but I am not in love with you. Mera matlab hai, I Love You as a friend, lekin us tarah pyar karna namumkin hai. Maine us tarah sirf Raj se pyar kiya, aur vaisa pyar main tumse ya kisi se bhi nahin kar sakti...
Prem: (his turn to interrupt Heer) Errrm.. Heer, main bhi yehi kehne vala tha.
Heer: Kya matlab?
Prem: Mera matlab hai ki, I Love You as a friend too. Tu meri sabse achchi dost hai, jaise ki Angad hai, aur main aisa koi bhi kaam nahin karoonga jisse tumhein dukh ya takleef pahunche. Main jaanta hoon ki tum Raj se bohot pyar karti thi, aur aaj bhi karti ho, toh main tumhare kareeb kabhi na aaoonga, jab tak tum na chaho. Humare beech jo dosti ka rishta hai, woh humesha rahega. Lekin ab hum shaadi shuda hai, toh humare parivaar ke liye jo koi bhi farz hai, woh nibhayenge. Chahe hum dono ek hi kamre mein rahe, lekin sirf dost bankar rahenge, best of friends. Tum mere kehne ka matlab samajh rahi ho na?
Heer: Haan, aur thanks for that Prem. Tum mujhe bohot achchi tarah jaante ho. I Love You, you are my best friend forever.
Heer smiles at Prem, and Prem smiles back. However much he puts up an acting front, Prem is not able to hide his feelings from himself. Inside his mind, his heart, he knows he will be really constraining himself to think of Heer as just a friend when he already loves her, likes her so much more than a friend, but he calms down his heart and mind telling them that for her sake, what he is doing is the best.
Prem and Heer continue smiling at each other, and Prem is almost as in a trance. But suddenly a loud clap of thunder breaks out and Prem comes out of his thoughts when Heer jumps into his arms.
Heer: Prem, mujhe toofaan se bohot darr lagta hai. Toofaan ke raat hi Raj mujhe humesha ke liye chod gaya. Tum toh mujhe kabhi nahin chodoge na?
Prem: Nahin Heer, ab so jaao. Chalo, enough jhappi, mujhe sofa par jaane do.
Heer: Sofa par kyun?
Prem: Vahaan sona hai mujhe. Tum yahaan bed par so sakti ho.
Heer: Nahin, Prem. Hum dono bed par soyenge. Main jaanti ho ki tum aisa vaisa kuch nahin karoge. Aur vaise bhi, mujhe na jaane kyun, aaj bohot darr lag raha hai.
Prem: Theek hai, Heer. Main yahin bed par sota hoon. Aur main toh kuch nahin karoonga, lekin tum bhi toh mera balatkar mat karna ok.
Heer: Prem...!!!!
Heer scolds Prem for making a silly joke, and starts laughing hard at his sad attempt. Prem also joins in the laughter. After some time both Prem and Heer go to sleep.
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The next day in the morning Prem and Heer wake up. Heer is surprised to find herself locked in an embrace in Prem's arms. She remembers how the previous night she got scared of the thunder, and how she asked Prem to sleep in the same bed. Heer looks at Prem, and blushes at being so close to him, because she was also never this close to even Raj before.
Heer feels something but dismisses her feelings and instead removes Prem's arms from around her. She goes into the bathroom to get ready for the day. As she comes out, fully properly dresses in a saree, with hair dripping wet, and puts on her mangalsootra which she had removed before bath, puts sindoor, wears jewellery, and also later dries her hair with a towel, she doesn't notice Prem staring at her dreamily.
Heer goes down to the kitchen and cooks breakfast for the family, along with something sweet as per tradition. Everyone is so pleased with her. Shashank especially is so happy that he got such a wonderful bahu, that he proudly declares her his favourite child. Prem beams at Heer, and she smiles back at him. Preet meanwhile, sulks that people are not paying that much attention to him, though he has nothing against "his sister" Heer, who has made his favourite sweet, and thus become his new favourite person in the house too.
The next day, Heer does back to her maayka for her pag-phere, returning in the evening when Prem picks her up again. The whole day that Heer is gone, the Juneja house is quiet, and everyone misses Heer. When she comes back, the house finally becomes a lively home again. Within a few days, or rather within a few moments itself, Heer had so much assimilated into the family that she was already starting to forget Raj.
A few months passed by. Heer has gotten over Raj, and has started to fall for Prem. She already loves him, but just hasn't realised it yet. On the other hand, Prem's love for Heer has been growing day by day. In the past few weeks, he had some weak moments with Heer, during which they had come seemingly closer, but he had backed away halfway because he knew that Heer hadn't completely realised that she loved him yet.
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One day, Prem decides to take Heer shopping. He is at office while Heer is at home, so he asks her to meet him directly at the shopping mall. Before going out, Heer is just cleaning up their bedroom, when she comes across Prem's diary, in which he has written all his feelings for Heer, and also has kept a few nice photographic shots of her.
Heer finally understands that Prem loves her, and is at first happy, but then gets sad and angry because firstly he has hidden this fact from her for so long, and secondly because he lied to her and loved her even when he knew she loved Raj.