December 2019

Udaipur

It was the second week of December, precisely 12th of the month and obviously with the winters on their peak, the chillness in the air could not be missed. It is the time when people can happily skip baths stating that the weather is too cold; have delicious Gajar ka Halwa, stay snuggled inside the warmth of the blankets, and roam overdressed with some warm woollen clothes. Possibly one of the best season one could experience. And when it's Rajasthan, it's altogether a different vibe.

In the same low temperature, there was a get together organised for the ex army officers who were posted in Longewala from the year 1996-2000, or in those years. Why this reunion? It is to celebrate the glory of those brave hearts who were proudly serving their nation on the border. It was to reminisce those good old days of their stay in the place which was their home for more or less atleast 4 years. It was to meet the people who once were in their youth and worked together to safeguard their country and now to finally meet those disciplined soldiers as a proper family man with their salt and peppery hair or no hair, wrinkled face, spectacled eyes, some having a paunch belly and more importantly, with their families.

The day which made both our Indian Cricket Team captain and Squadron Leader a little nervous and a lot more anxious was finally here. They both knew that it is something which cannot be escaped and to face it, was a big challenge. But what they didn't know was that this meeting will bind them with each other for their very last breath and that too happily, for they will find their other half of the soul in this very meeting.

Both the families were there in the banquet hall, talking with their friends and their families. It was not like both the fathers wanted to jump directly onto the topic. So, they were socializing with the people they were meeting, either whom they saw first or vice versa.

Karan was dressed in a black shirt, paired with the dark gray pants, with a Rolex watch clasped on his wrist and black formal shoes. His hair were settled well with a bang or a two occassionally gracing it's presence on his forehead. It won't be wrong to say that he was looking like one hell of a gentleman, a very handsome one at that.

The Shergill's made a move further when they or to be specific Atul noticed Mahajan's also approaching the same table as them, since it was the table which could easily accommodate 10 people. Atul and Deepak shared an expression of greeting each other in a nod and moved towards the table.

When all the members sans Monami reached the table, Deepak said with a slight formal and slightly known smile and said, "Hello Shergill Sir."

"Arrey ab toh Sir bolna chhodo Mahajan. Hum ab junior senior nahi hain, itni baar bol Chuka hoon. Aur agar maamla jam gaya toh apne samdhi ko sir kehke bulaoge kya? Gale milo bhai." Atul said with a smile.

(At least now stop addressing me as sir Mahajan. We're no longer senior and junior, I've said you so many times. As it is, if everything gets fixed then will you call your daughter's father in law as sir? C'mon give me a hug.)

Deepak greeted him with a hug and the other members of both the families didn't took much to recognise each other as the family members of the prospective bride and groom, well the term which will be used in future for sure.

Atul pulled back and gestured to his family. "Baccho, Yeh hain Deepak Mahajan, unki wife Juhi, unka beta Vedant aur arrey Mahajan, yeh Monami kahan hai?" He said the last words when he didn't saw Monami there.

(Children, this is Deepak Mahajan, his wife Juhi, his son Vedant and, Oh, Mahajan where is Monami?)

"Arrey bas ek call aagaya tha usey, aa he rahi hai. Tab tak hum sab baith tey hain." Deepak told him about the whereabouts of his daughter.

(Oh she just got a call; she will be here in a few minutes, till then let us sit.)

"Haan haan bilkul. Vaise Mahajan, Juhi ji, yeh hain mere pariwaar waale. Yeh Param hai, mera bada beta, yeh Barkha humari badi bahu, yeh Saumya hai humari gudiya aur Yeh hai Karan, mera chota beta." Atul introduced his family.

(Yes yes sure. By the way Mahajan, Juhi, they are my family members. He is Param, my elder son. She is Barkha, our elder daughter in law. She is Saumya, my doll. And this is Karan.)

In the meantime while all the others were having a small talk and a brief introduction, Mr Shergill was waiting to meet the lady whose name had kind of stolen his sleep.

While they all were busy talking, a girl wearing sea green salwaar kamiz with some flowers embroidered on the kurti with a semi net dupatta having tassles on its end, barely having any make up apart from the lipstick and liner, with open hair which covered her one ear where small pearls were settled in, with a bracelet on her wrist, with her feet cladded in two inch white heels, was seen coming towards the table where her parents were seated.

Monami faltered in her steps when she acknowledged the presence of the new faces. It was the time, she knew. She just took a deep breath and moved her feet towards the table.

Monami kept a hand on her father's shoulder making the people aware about her presence. "Papa." She said softly.

"Arrey Monami, come beta have a seat. We were waiting for you." Deepak Sai, turning to his daughter.

Monami sat in between her father and brother.

"All good? It took you long." Juhi asked.

Monam8 nodded. "Yes Mumma. All well."

All this while the side of her face was slightly covered with few tendrils that escaped from the behind of the ear and when she softly tucked them behind, then Karan and everyone got the chance to look at the subtly dressed enchantress.

What no one noticed uh maybe except for Barkha was the fact that the moment Monami was in the close vicinity of Karan's eyes, for the first few seconds his eyes refused to look anywhere else, but the gorgeous beauty in front of him. And man, no doubt he had met and looked at lot of girls but did he stare at them? Or found him lost for a few minutes within the moment the he saw a girl? The answer is no. It was the very first time and that's the reason he was flustered when Barkha whispered to him, "Karan. Kitna ghoorega? Aise toh na sirf usey balki sabhi ko pata chal jayega ki teri nazre he nahi hat rahi hai us sey."

(Karan, how much more will you stare her? This way not only her but everybody will come to know that how your eyes are unable to look somewhere else.)

"It's...Uhm. It's nothing like that." No doubt his stuttering and body language betrayed him. But when he took account of his own actions he frowned at his own behaviour, he definitely didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable. This was so not him.

Deepak's voice broke him out of his reverie. "Monami beta tu inko toh jaanti he hai, Shergill sir hain yeh." The moment he said while pointing in his direction, Monami nodded with a smile and greeted him. Oh and did I tell you? Our officer here very discreetly and consciously took a glance at Karan, when right at that fraction of second Karan's eyes again moved towards her, thus capturing them in their very first eye lock although which did not lasted for more than 2 seconds, because Monami had divert her attention towards Atul.

But that moment was enough to give a speed to their heartbeats for a few seconds.

(Monami you know him, he is Mr Shergill.)

Monami greeted Atul, "Namaste uncle,kaise hain aap?"

(Hello Uncle, How are you?)

"I'm doing very well bacche. And I knew that you would make this great someday." Atul said with pride in his voice

Monami smiled and said, "Your last moment help was much needed, Uncle."

Atul smiled and said, "Okay as you humbly say. Now let me introduce you to my family members..." And the introductions lasted for good 2 minutes before baby said something that let the red tint settle on Monami's cheeks bashfully and Karan choked on the water he was drinking.

"Kya aap meri chachi banoge?" Baby asked innocently.

(Are you going to be my Aunty?)

"Uh...uhm." Monam8 was flustered.

Barkha interrupted in between, "Baby rukk jao tum. Abhi bade baat kar rahe hain na."

(Baby, calm your horses down, elders are talking right now.)

"Baccho we know that it is not possible to decide whether the person is right for you or not in just one meeting. And knowing about your busy schedules we very well know that the compatibility will play a very crucial role. Hence we thought that you guys should spend as much time as you can with each other, while you are here on your leave from work. That way you'll be able to know each other and the families in a better way." Deepak said.

"Exactly. This is the reason Karan, you and Monami will leave from here in next 15 minutes that is by 9 to the Jheel's cafe, away from family intervention and have a talk." Atul took forward what Deepak said.

Karan and Monami both were stupefied with the recent events that were unfolding in their life. But this was not a forced or unpleasant feeling.

"Papa but public appearance, I don't want to be mobbed by the media, especially when Ms Mahajan will be with me too." Karan questioned.

"Chhotey don't worry, I have personally made the arrangements, and you both won't be bothered. Also, I along Barkha and Baby and Vedant too, will be there with you, although far away from your table. So don't worry." Param came in his younger brother's relief.

"Also this way neither of you will feel uncomfortable nor under any radar." Vedant remarked.

"Bilkul perfect hai. Tum log niklo ab. And Monami, Karan ask whatever you want to ask to each other." Juhi nodded and then told both the people in concern.

Monami and Karan nodded with a small smile. And with this the younger clan left for the Cafe. Since the arrangement was made to be such, Atul will go home with Deepak and Juhi in their car and rest all in car in which Shergill's drove to the place.

Param settled on the seat behind the wheels, Karan on passenger seat with baby on her Chachu's lap. In the back seat, Monami was seated in between Vedant and Barkha. They were having small talks here and there, when Karan asked Barkha, "Um bhabhi, yeh papa kya baat kar rahe thhey about spending time together till we are on our leave?" He sneaked a glance at Monami from the mirror.

"Sir mai bata ta hoon, actually Di ke best friend ki shaadi hai on the 5th day from now. Your family has been invited keeping in mind your limited time, and that you both need to spend some with each other. That is if this first meet ends up on a good note." Vedant explained.

(Sir, let me tell you. Actually, its Di's best friend's wedding the 5th day from now.)

"Haan aur phir dono families ikatthey 5 dino ke liye Coorg jaayenge. Like vacation bhi ho jayega sabhi ka saath mei and if all goes well, then next year tumhari he shaadi mei dance karenge hum." Barkha continues from where Vedant stopped.

(Yes and then both the families will go for a mini holiday of 5 days at Coorg. It'll be like a vacation for all of us together and if all goes well then we'll be dancing on your wedding.)

Hearing Barkha, a soft blush settled on the cheeks of Monami and Karan's ear tips were turning red too, and at the same time they both looked in the mirror, this locking their eyes together.

But before anyone could do anything, because of a sudden brake, all were jerked forward, especially those who were seated in back and since Monami was sitting in the middle, before she could hold any of the seats she was lunged forward too, when Karan extended his right hand holding the driver's seat in an attempt to not hurt Monami. And as a reflex she held Karan's forearm with her hands. But what no one else besides these two knew about that slight pleasant shivers that ran down their spine because of the sudden touch of each other, giving a way for yet another eye lock and quick removal of hands from each other.

"Aap theek hain?" Karan asked concerned.

(Are you fine?)

Monami nodded.

Vedant too asked the same and Monami squeezed his hand.

"I'm so sorry, aage 2-3 puppies bhaag rahe they break nahi lagat toh gaadi ke nechye aa jaate. Monami lagi toh nahi na?" Param said apologetically.

(I'm so sorry, there were two puppies in front of the car and had I not put brakes they would have died. Monami, you're not hurt right?)

"I'm absolutely fine bhaiya." And somewhere Karan felt good hearing Monami address Param as Bhaiya.

And with this the short journey till the cafe came to an end. All the people came out of the car and entered in the cafe. The Jheel's cafe is a popular place in Udaipur for its location because it is near Pichola Lake that provides the people to enjoy the breeze and calmness that the water holds and moreover it provides with a lip smacking food. It has a rich homely vibe that uplifts the mood of its customers just right.

Param walked in first towards the reception and asked the manager to escort Karan and Monami towards their reserved seats, near the lake side view. And the rest all moved to their place which was facing the lake too, but from the other side.

"I hope di aur Karan sir khul ke baat kar payein. Kyuki din a kaafi reserved nature ki hain." Vedant said, hoping for the best

(I hope Di and Karan sir will be able to talk freely.)

"I hope the same too. Karan jitna cool dikhta hai na, at times utna he introvert ban jaata hai." Barkha nodded at Vedant.

(As much as Karan seems cool, he can be the introvert at times.)

"Don't worry, they both will manage. We should focus on our food." Param said.

And this trio along with baby, interacted amongst one another.

Meanwhile at place where Karan and Monami were settled in, the silence was also having a free pass to sit there. They were seated opposite to each other on comfortable sofa with the the constant gust of gentle wind stroking their well settled hair.

Although the silence was comfortable but since they were there for a reason and considering the time as a factor, it was Monami who decided to break the silence. "Hi. Monami Mahajan. I know that you know my name, but I couldn't find any other thing as the ice breaking sentence."

Karan passed her a comforting smile and nodded. "Karan Shergill. Before we proceed onto anything further, I just want to say that this is my first meeting of this sort and I might mess up." He said in a breath.

"Don't worry Mr Shergill, I generally don't bite. It is my first time as well so there are no standards set for us, you see. Also we can speak a bit slowly too." She said the last words cheekily.

And this was so not Monami, she didn't know why but this came out so naturally in front of Karan, because this side was restricted to her parents and friends.

"Uhm yeah." Karan rubbed his hair on his neck.

"Okay, anyways, tell me about yourself Mr Shergill, as in how you are as Karan and not Karan Shergill?" Monami quickly changed the topic, sensing Karan's embarrassment.

Karan too noticed this and appreciated her for this gesture in his mind. "This is so weird, that you have to introduce yourself, I feel like we've been transported back to the school/ college days." He laughed and Monami chuckled too. "But I guess this is the only way you can tell someone about yourself so yeah. And for matter of fact, you want to know Karan so let me tell you. Well I'm like any other guy, who is still making peace with the fact that he has achieved what all he thought and didn't. When I'm not on ground, the only thing I love to do is spend time with my family, especially my niece. I might be the guy who seems like he is totally what you see on your face. But it's not actually that. I'm rather a calm soul when off ground."

"Although your fans say the otherwise, Mr Shergill. And I know this is the fact, because Vedant is huge fan of your skills." Monami added.

"I'm glad and the fact that appreciates my skills over anything else." Karan smiled. "Please address me as Karan only, Ms Mahajan. Also please tell me about yourself too?"

"So firstly, it's Monami for you as well. Okay, so about me. Well like you said, I too, like every other girl had a dream and I'm living the same so I consider myself as a fortunate one. Since I'm hardly off the field, I have a very limited time so I generally spend it with my family and best friends, whenever I'm home. And kind of similar to you, my aggression is limited too, on the field. Once, in the comfort of my place, I'm a calm bird too. I'm a very simple girl and like my things in the same way.l, without anything to add on with pretence or complexity." Monami felt as if she has spoken more than what she has spoken in the last few days.

Well this is just the beginning; let's see where this conversation will further lead our main leads. This place will be the witness of the onset of a new love story of two completely different yet similar people.

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How did you like this one? I tried it for the first time.

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Signing off here.
The response on the last chapter was great, I really hope that you like this one! As promised, this is the third update of the week. From the next one, the cycle will be same as earlier, updates on Wednesday and Saturday but after the target is achieved though.

This time it is 20 votes and 8 comments. Please, write what you feel about the chapter and the story so far.

Thank you for reading.

Please vote and comment.

Much love,
Nehal.