Annie
was surprised to see Jai's business like tone early in the morning. And more
than that, she was interested to know why he needed Bani. "Ms. Dixit isn't
here. Is there something important?"
Jai
frowned upon hearing the news. "She didn't come yet?"
"I
don't think she is coming for the day…"
How did she
decide to take a leave when she has a party to plan? Yeh ladki bhi na…
"Kya hua Jai?" Annie asked, watching him
in thought. "You look worried."
Jai was
worried. It was the day of the party, and Bani was no where to be seen. She
never came home last night and he was informed by Krishna (his mother) that
Bani was going to spend the night at Lakshmi's. What was so urgent that she
chose not to come home, was something that baffled him.
Bidding Annie goodbye, he went into his
office and immediately dialed Bani's cell phone. But there was no answer. Frustrated,
he threw the phone on his desk. From the last twelve hours, it seemed as if
Bani disappeared from the face of this earth.
Or
she is just ignoring
you, his mind reasoned. Its not like you don't deserve it…
Maybe I should
call Lakshmi,
Jai thought, refusing to listen and see logic in this situation. However, her phone was unreachable too.
"I
swear," he muttered to himself. "Why the hell do they have phones if they don't
pick up?!"
"Kis
se baath kar rahe ho?" Ranveer asked, walking into the room to see a distressed
Jai.
"Bani
kahan hai?"
Ranveer
raised an eyebrow. "Myjhe kyun pooch rahe ho? Tumhe pata hona chahiye na!"
"Well
I don't," he snapped.
Ranveer
was taken back at the harsh tone. "Kya hua?"
Jai
took deep breath, feeling slightly guilty. Whatever his issues were, his brother was not responsible for it. "Bani disappeared," he explained. "She won't
pick up my calls."
"She
might be busy," Ranveer explained. "Afterall, she has to pull together the
party."
"Yeah, but she never
ignores me… and especially after yesterday…"
Ranveer
has no idea what was going on, but judging from Jai's anxiousness, he knew it
was not right. And if he had to guess, he would say that his brother was once
again in a fight with his wife. And this time, it got ugly.
"Agar
tumhe itni hi takleef hoti hai, then why do you hurt her so much that she
ignores you?"
Jai
looked up at the comment and stared blankly, his mind confused. Hurt her…?!
Upon
receiving no answer, Ranveer shook his head. Rano
teek kehthi hai, he thought. Yeh dono
ek dusre ke liye kitna tadap the hai, magar phir bhi apni zid se hatt the nahi!
"I
think she called Kaka today," Ranveer said. "She seemed fine."
A
slight relief spread over Jai's face, but the news that Bani was okay,was not
good enough to remove all of the worry.
"What
happened exactly? Did you guys fight?" Again?
Ranveer mentally added.
"I
don't know," Jai said, closing his eyes and leaning his head against the chair.
"I don't know anything anymore… maybe I should just give up trying so hard."
Pity
overtook Ranveer, when he saw his brother sitting dejected. No matter what
happened between the duo, he didn't
deserve this.
"Jai,"
he said. "Its okay… Bani aa jayegi."
Jai
nodded, but the look of misery was still evident on his face. Deciding it was
best not to interfere, Ranveer left the room.
Jai
let out a sigh as he recollected the events of yesterday, debating for the
first time ever, whether he did the right thing or not.
Watching
Neil hug Bani so casually, Jai was suddenly plunger into anger. It stemmed so
easily and quickly that he didn't even realize he was jealous until Bani
pointed it out. Yes, he cared. Of course
he cared. He found it pretty silly that she even asked that question!
But
yet, he was also confident that he knew his wife. He was confident that she
would never pick a guy like Neil… especially over him. But after watching her laugh with Neil, and how easily she
hugged him back, he began to feel his
firm belief shake.
And
so, he did what any husband would do in that situation – he fought back. He
purposefully made Bani in charge of the party, in the hopes that she would stay
away from Neil. You can call it insecurity, but with their divorce only days
away, Jai was getting desperate. What seemed really clear a month ago was now
hazy. He hoped that after spending so many days with him in this uneven truce,
she would atleast realize where her heart was… but everyday he got new signs, bad signs…
one day she would laugh, one day she would be angry. And in all these emotions,
he was completely lost.
It
was in this desperation that he couldn't help but stage a conversation with Annie
when he saw Bani walking to his cabin from the glass wall. And he said
something he was sure, would hurt the
most.
And
it apparently worked!
Except he got no relief. He was expecting
everything and anything from Bani; some reaction that proved that his month of
hardwork was paying off. That finally, maybe, admist all the mixed signals, there
was one thing for sure - she didn't want to leave. And if that was too muck to
ask, then he would settle for anger, tears… something.
But not silence.
Jai
began pacing his office, wishing he never said those words to his secretary. Yes
it killed him everyday not be able to reach out to his wife, and he was
definetly not wrong to want his
marriage to work. But atleast without all these jealous issues, she was in front
of him, and not like now, when he had no idea what was going on in her already
conflicted mind.
The
day passed by in these thoughts and by 5pm that evening, Jai was driving home
deciding to end this game. If it was costing him so much, maybe it wasn't worth
playing it.
However,
when he entered the Walia Mansion he was completely mesmerized. It was
transformed beautifully, with decorations of silver and blue adorning every
nook and corner. His staff was dressed to their best, every last wrinkle ironed
out of sight. It was a sight to behold!
"Tony,"
he called, stopping the passing butler. "Yeh saab kya hai?"
"Aaj
party hai na Sir," Tony answered. "Choti Madam wanted us to decorate."
Jai
was seriously impressed. She did all this in a day? "Bani kahan hai?"
"She
just left Sir," Tony replied. "She was saying about picking something up."
Jai
nodded and dismissed the butler.
If she managed
to pull together this much, maybe its not that bad… maybe, she isn't ignoring
me,
he thought hopefully. But somehow, even with the new prospect, the dull ache in
his heart didn't subside.
"Jai?"
Krishna called, watching her son standing rooted to the floor. And when he
turned to look at her, she immediately began worrying. "What happened?"
Jai
tried to put on a smile, but even before he succeeded, Krishna pulled him into
a hug.
"Im
sorry," he whispered, hugging his mother back. She brought him some comfort he
couldn't explain.
"For
what?"
"For
being an idiot," he said.
Krishna
looked into Jai's face. She cupped his cheek and said, "If its about Bani…"
She
trailed off, not knowing what to say or how to console her son.
"Do
you think she will ever forgive me?"
"I
don't know," she answered truthfully. "But will that change how much you love
her?"
He
shook his head.
"Then
does it matter?"
For
first time that day, Jai cracked a smile. Only his mother could say things like
that!
Krishna
patted her son, before leaving to take care of the rest of the arrangements.
Satisfied,
he made his way to his room, to find it completely rustled. Papers were strewn
across the floor, sticky-notes pinned everywhere and files lining up the bed.
Amused, he carefully walked in, when his eyes fell on Bani's sketchpad.
Curious,
he picked it up and gasped at what he found inside. Staring back at him from page to page was his face! The book seemed to contain
only him – sad, angry, happy…
Greedily,
he flipped through the pages, admiring the handiwork. The contours of his face
were perfectly captured. Every line, every scar, every curve… He was awestruck.
Finally, he flipped to the last one, dated exactly a week ago. And at that
moment, he understood. All his securities were just that – worries without a
base.
Despite
the mixed and somewhat messed up things that happened in the last couple of
days, he still managed to convince her
to find her heart, which belonged with him. Why else would she print his face over and over again?
And
grinning, he went to take a shower without a care in the world. Well maybe just
one…
*
* *
By
seven o'clock that evening, the Walia Mansion was filled with guests. Jai stood
amongst his family, welcoming and greeting everyone like a perfect gentlemen. While
Krishna was glad to see the smile back on her son's face, Ranveer was surprised.
"Jai
ko kyun dekh rahe ho?" Rano asked her husband. "Kya main achi nahi lag rahi
hoon?"
Ranveer
laughed and pressed his lips to Rano's forehead. "You always look pretty. Infact, you look exceptional today, because my
gudiya is here too."
"It's
a boy!"
Ranveer
patted Rano's huge tummy. "Bilkul nahi!"
"Kitni
baar samjaoon tumhe?" Rano said, shaking her head. "Anyway, tumse argue karna
bekar hai. Jai ko kyun baar baar dekh rahe ho?"
"I
am just shocked at how quickly he went from being sad to happy!" When Rano
remained confused, he explained his conversation with Jai from that morning.
Rano
nodded, understandingly. "Poor guy… I wish Bani would just open her eyes and
see whats going on!"
"She
is!" Lakshmi defended, joining the conversation. "But this stupid Jai gives her
all the wrong signals!"
"Oh
please," Rano said. "Anyone can tell
how much he is crazy for her, with just one
look!"
"Accha?
Toh phir woh Annie ke saath kya kar raha tha?"
"Kuch
nahi! Im sure Bani heard it wrong!"
"Of
course she didn't. It was absolutely Jai's fault!"
Ranveer
was puzzled to hear the argument. "You know," he said, cutting the two off. "I
never thought I would see the day when you
two will disagree on something."
It
was a common fact that Rano and Lakshmi, along with Bani were three best friends,
and never till date fought about anything.
"And
funny enough," he continued. "You are disagreeing about the third musketeer,
who seems to be missing in action."
Rano
and Lakshmi began to grin at that comment.
"Kya
hua?" Ranveer asked, quick to notice the change in expressions. "Why are you
both smiling?"
"Kuch
nahi," Lakshmi said, cryptically.
"Thodi
dher mein tum khud dekh lena, theesri musketeer kahan hai!" Rano said, winking
at Lakshmi.
Ranveer
didn't have to wait long to see what Rano and Lakshmi meant. A few minutes
later, many heads suddenly turned to the doorway, from where whispers quickly
followed. Jai, who was busy with some clients, was one of the last people to
notice the stir in the audience. However, when he did turn to find the source of disturbance, he was dumbstruck.
Walking
into the hall was the lean figure of Bani. Dressed in a pink gown, with diamond
crusted straps, she looked breathtaking in the dimmed lights. A high cut rode
up till her thigh, exposing her long leg as she moved through the crowd. As Jai
was struck with sudden desire, his eyes fell on her hands, where resting on her
finger was her engagement ring – the ring she discarded as soon as she heard
the truth about Pia.
At
the moment, it felt as if the past two months didn't happen at all. As if his
worry and confusion from the previous night didn't exist. As if there was never
anything to doubt about her – she was always his and he was always hers.
And
it was with a gasp that Jai realized that the ache in his heart vanished. Just
setting his eyes on her, on what was his,
made all the pain go away. Watching her long hair fly to the slight breeze from
the windows and her hips sway as she walked (definitely a sign of three inch
heels!), he understood that she was unquestionably
worth fighting for. Hell, she was
worth more than he could ask for!
After
posing for the press, Bani turned and made her way to Rano and Lakshmi, causing
many (especially men!) to swoon. Jai's mouth, however, dropped open.
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