This account is under me for the coming month and I am not your whistling thrush. For further details don't forget to read the E/N (not A/N) at the end

Happy Reading

Files filled with A4 sheets in her hand, oil in her hair, a pencil tucked behind her ear and her extra large spectacles resting on her nose. Sonakshi banged her door's house. After her first meeting with the rest of the creative team she was tired. Her knocks screamed desperate need for rest.

Brainstorming.

She would have never known the depth of this word had she not taken up this project. She was right. There was no way she could connect to that decade nor did she have a taste for the songs which she and her team were going to use.

Think about your pay cheque Sonakshi.

That's how she kept her dying spirits up.
After an exceptionally tiring day at work all she needed was the comfort of her bed.

"Mubarak ho Sona di! Tinde bane hai" Preeti, one of her three paying guests welcomed her with a broad, fake smile on her bubbly face.

"Tinde? Firse?" Sona kept a hand on her head and tried to act dramatic.

"Yaha to ye roz roz ka hai" Swati who was sitting in the living area added her opinion and then she took her nose out of her textbook and tapped the table "Dunia me hum aaye hai to jeena hi padega zindagi agar zeher... Sorry tinde... hai to khana hi padega"

Preeti clenched her hand in a fist and made a mike out of it. She dived on the seat near Naina (the third and last paying guest) and asked her "Kaise mehsoos ho raha hai aapko?"

"Padhne de na Preeti" came back an annoyed response from Naina's side.

Naina, Swati and Preeti live on the 1st floor of Sonakshi house. The Boses were running short of money so her mom turned the first floor into a well furnished PG. This trio of girls are more like the sisters Sona never had. In her family, she had just her maa, Asha Bose who is a school teacher and also gives tuition to the needy. Even Sona used to help in the tuitions at times. The walls of their house are damp and the paint is coming off at places. The walls are boring white. This project could make them rich!

"Baccha party jaldi jaldi dining table par aa jao" Asha called everyone for dinner

"Aaye Asha Aunty" The girls sang-cum-spoke in unison

"Bhagwan jhoot na bulaye! Ladkiyon jaldi aao" Bela Chachi, Asha's younger sister-in-law called them again and they walked with lazy feet upto the table. Asha and her husband got divorced long back but Bela used to pay Asha frequent visits because of the bond they had harboured and also because of her other taunting jethani. Who could kill anyone with her O bhais!

"Naina" Sona shook the girl's arm. She was still neck deep buried in her text book "Naina chal na khana khane"

Naina gave Sona a reluctant expression and got up after casting a look full of longing to her book.

They took their places at the dining table with zero excitement as Preeti had already dissolved the suspense about tinde for dinner.

"Ye tindo se itna pyar kyu hai aapko?" Swati asked Bela Chachi "Mujhe dunia me do cheezein samajh nahi aati! Ek aapka aur tindo ka pyar aur dusro ye Naina ka kitabo ke saath AMAR PREM"

"Kabhi kitab khol ke dekhi hogi tab pata hoga na tujhe" Naina taunted "Chal hat ab hawa aane de"

She filled her plate with the dish and then continued speaking "Waise bhi tujhe Sameer Maheshwari ke alawa dikhta kya hai dunia me?"

Swati began giggling foolishly while Bela Chachi and Asha exchanged amused expressions.

"Itna kya blush kar rahi hai? Actor hai wo. Paise milte hai usko accha dikhne ke" Naina tried knocking some sense in her head but Swati had already become a puddle of mush.

"Ahem Ahem" Preeti cleared her throat "Arz kiya hai"

"Irshad Irshad"

"Arz kia hai ...
Phool hai gulab ka
Tinda na samjhna"

"Waah waah waah waah"

"Phool hai gulab ka
Tinda na samjhna

Phool hai gulab ka
Tinda na samjhna,
Mar rahi hu teri yaad me
zinda na samjhna"

"Gaaliyan!" Sona screamed and they all got into a laughter spree

"Sona di aapke naye show me kaun kaun hai?" Swati asked with excitement

"Elena D'Souza, Jatin Roy, Shefali Sharma, Dev Dixit and..."

"Aur?" Naina spoke while munching on her food.

"Sameer Maheshwari" Sona completed her list. She tried to keep a straight face but Swati's wide eyes threatened to pop out of her sockets and Sona had a hard time controlling her goofy smile. Fangirling! It's one concept she never understood

"Aap Sameer ke saath kaam karoge?" Naina asked. She wasn't excited. Her voice seemed oddly low unlike her usual indifference to Swati's flight of fancies.

"Di mujhe usse milna hai. Ek baar usse dekhna hai. Kya style hai! Kya smile hai! Kya swag hai!! Hayeeee!! Di mujhe mila do" Swati began shaking Sonakshi by her shoulders.

"Theek hai theek hai" Sona struggled to free herself of the tight hold "Shoot shuru hone de fir kisi din mila dungi"

"Ek problem hai" Sona thought it was the best time to confess "Mujh... Mujhse ye characters nahi ban rahe. I can't relate to that era aur itne logo ke saath ideas share karna ... Alag hai, ajeeb hai... Pehle toh writing ke saath mera love triangle set tha. Mai mera room aur mera writing pad. Writing was always personal and fun for me.... Aur mujhse ab character sketches bhi nahi ban rahe"

"Lai! Itni si problem. Ye to yun hi solve ho jaayegi" Preeti clicked her fingers. "Aap apne jaisi female lead bana do and male lead dekh lo koi aapke khayalo ka ladka types. Sochne ka masla hi nahi rahega"

"Bahut bekar idea hai" Naina said with a straight face

"Infact...." Sona chewed harder on her morsel. She pondered over this short cut for a while "I like the idea. Zyaada mehnat bhi nahi karni hogi"

"Dekha" Preeti gave a broad smile to Naina and she laughed at her expressions.

"Humari Preeti kitni samjhdar ho gayi hai, nahi?" Bela Chachi told Asha

"Haa itni samajhdar ki ab tak khana chua bhi nahi hai" Asha pointed

"Asha Aunty ... Wo ... mera ho gaya" Preeti ran from the table leaving her food untouched and Asha ran behind her with a belan.

11:30 pm

"Aai?" Munna smiled a shy one. His best friend Pandit leaned over the balcony's rails and peeped into Sonakshi's house-cum-PG

"Aai hai to jaa na" Pandit made a disgusted face.

"Abe! Ponga Pandit pagal hai kya tu?" Munna joined his friend in the balcony. "Mai frock wale pandat ki baat kar raa"

"Chenu ye tere pyar ke chakkar me na mai isi balcony me buddha ho jaaunga mai bata raha hu tujhe" Pandit warned him

"Bhai ke liye itna bhi nahi karega tu" Munna hit his head

"Humesha blackmail kar ke fasa leta hai" Pandit sat down with his legs crossed.

Suddenly, as if acting like the rain to Munna's drought-stricken heart his first and last love, the girl of his dreams, his padosan appeared in the balcony... Swati. She was dressed in a plain white night suit and yet Munna screamed his favourite line "Pandat aaj bada sundar lag raa hai tu"

Munna hadn't directed the line directly to Swati but she knew this udta teer was meant for her.

"Bandar kahi ke" Swati replied and stormed back into her room with a proud smile on her face.

Munna's family were Sonakshi's neighbours but since the day the girl trio had shifted into their PG, Munna had religiously settled in his balcony waiting for the saamne wali khidki ka chand ka tukda. The cupid had hit him hard. Swati wasn't a random crush for him. She was it, the end game. Pandit being Munna's best friend since child hood would help Munna in his Swati- gazing sessions.

"Chal Ponga Pandit aaj ka quota toh poora ho gaya" Munna vibrated happily. He tapped Pandit's shoulder who was still sitting, cross legged, in the balcony

"Chenu tu chal mai aaya" Pandit kept staring in the girls' balcony

"Aaj kal dekh raha hu tere lakshan kuch theek nahi lag rahe mujhe" Munna stopped his happy vibrations and gave him an oddly suspicious look.

"Mai ...mai to bas iss ..." Pandit picked up the Aloe Vera plant kept in the balcony "Iss... Paudhe ke saath waqt guzarna chahta hu... Ye bechara din bhar hume oxygen deta hai .. Iska bhi kuch khayal rakhna chahiye. Hai na?"

Pandit hugged the pot and swayed left and right.

"Meri Maiyaaaa!!! Pandit bawra ho raha hai" Munna hit his head with his hand and went back to his room.

As soon as Munna was out of sight Pandit kept the flower pot aside. His hands were sticky with Aloe Vera Juice he rubbed his hands vigourously on his pants to get rid of it. He was busy in his Swacch Pandit mission when he heard a familiar giggle.

The sound that could brighten any dull day. He looked up and standing in the balcony opposite to him, his Preeti was laughing at his condition and was waving merrily. He showed his sticky hands to her and she continued laughing at his unique cuteness.

She swiped and tapped her phone's screen. An old melody filled the already romantic air.

Kitne gehre halke, shaam ke rang hai chalke
Parvat se yun utre badal jaise aanchal dhal ke (*2)
Aur iss pal me koi nahi hai
Bas ek mai hu, bas ek tum ho

Kuch na kaho
Kuch bhi na kaho
Kya kehna hai ?
Kya sunna hai?
Mujhko pata hai
Tumko pata hai
Samay ka ye pal, tham sa gaya hai
Aur iss pal me
Koi nahi hai
Bas ek mai hu
Bas ek tum ho.

And as the song unfolded, the two of them sat in their respective balconies, lost in each other and kept smiling vaguely at the lyrics. Not a word was said but the innocent love and emotions were effortlessly exchanged between them.

4:20 am

Sonakshi sat with a pen in her hand and kept fidgeting. That's all she did. She kept reminding herself of the money; her motivation but it did not work. She had been trying Preeti's idea of making the character her replica, making her like herself but the character's behavior was giving away this secret. The FL was so much like her that anyone could read a single dialogue of hers and it would give away the secret short cut.

And here goes the latest rough draft into the bin....

What do I do? What do I do?

It was 4:33 am. Sona's Baba used to say that if you have a problem get up at 4 and sit, just sit, to get an idea and she had been sitting straight for half an hour now and all she had been doing was getting occasional jhapkis.
...

Sonakshi was in a messed state. She looked here and there absent mindedly, picked up her phone, unlocked it and began playing Temple Run for a while. When it didn't help she walked down to the kitchen. Maybe food could trigger her mind and clear the writer's block. With a little hope in her eyes, she kept her phone aside and walked down the stairs.

The light of the living area was on.

"Ye ladkiyan bhi na. Total irresponsible che! Aise kaun light on chodta hai. Bijli ka bill kaun bharega? Rent to deti nahi hai time se" Sonakshi cursed loudly.

"Oh hi Sonakshi di" Naina popped out from the kichen

"Aaaa" Sona screamed due to her sudden appearance.

"Chila kyu rahe ho Ms. Bose?"

"Kyuki Ms. Agarwal aise achanak se aadhi raat ko kaun prakat hota hai?"

"4 baj rahe hai" Naina showed her the clock

"Oh yaa" Sona strecthed her arms casually and yawned. "Tum abhi tak kyu jagi ho?"

Naina simply pointed to the pile of books on the dining table.

"Abhi tak jag kar padh rahi ho?" Sonakshi was shocked. She was never a great student.

"Abhi se jag kar padh rahi hu" Naina chimed "Wo Bela Chachi kehti hai na raat ki padhai pital aur subah subah ki sona hoti hai ... and my mom used to say that if you are in a dilemma get up at 4, just sit straight - you'll get your answer"

"Oh yaa?" Sonakshi lied down on the sofa and closed her eyes. Naina turned to her books.

"Waise Sona di? Aaj aapko apni team ke saath baith kar show ke initial episodes finalize karne hai na? Kuch prepare kia aapne?" Naina munched on an apple kept on the dining area

"Nahi yaar" Sona picked up a cushion and covered her face with it. She, then, looked at the mirror kept at the other end of the room. "Preeti ka short cut accha hai par... pata nahi ... Its not working well"

Sona got up and began tracing her reflection's outline.

"That is not the mirror of erised" Naina laughed slightly

"I know, fellow potterhead" Sonakshi sat near it and looked into the mirror

"Maybe ... Maybe" She began thinking "Maybe, if not me, she can do wonders for the story, she always had the depth"

Sonakshi went inside the kitchen. She opened a small drawer. It had a lunch box and an old school-girl water bottle in it.

"My dad doesn't live with us Naina" Sona blankly stated

Naina stared blankly in her direction.

"Just don't say anything kiddo" Sona looked back "He is going to act in this serial. Bijoy Bose? Have you seen him in that Yeh Pavitra Rishta Kya Kehta Hai?"

Naina nodded her head in negative.

"I guess in promos ... " Naina added later

"He was the FL's dad... A very caring dad" Sona's grip on the lunch box increased slightly "We were drowning in debt. It was difficult to make ends meet. I was in 9th grade. One morning, I wake up and Maa says - he's gone. He left"

Naina looked at her with teary eyes. Sonakshi's pain was resonating from every corner of the room. The walls, the furniture, the potraits had seen it all.

"... He took her with him too" Sonakshi looked into nothingness

"Who?" Naina's voice cracked

"Me... My hope and faith in life" A tear trickled down her eyes. "... Uhhh....Excuse me"

Sonakshi ran towards the stairs.

"Sona di" Naina called her and she stopped "Di. I am glad you told me this. I am glad you chose me to share your pain and I am ready to hear everything, if it helps. I know how it feels to love with all your might only to get a part of you broken someday. You can share anything with me ..."

Sonakshi turned around and smiled brightly.

"Someday..." She said " ... But I guess I know what to do now"

She ran back to her room and opened her laptop. She deleted all the earlier drafts. She even removed them from the recycle bin and began drafting afresh in MS Word.

"Chahat" She started typing "The story is about Chahat and her Sahil..."

The birds chirped outside as the sun made its appearance, breaking shades of orange and blue in the dark. Sonakshi looked outside her room's window.

Dawn had given way to a fully blossomed morning. She re-re-re-read her draft for the umpteenth time. She made a few changes here and there and finally gave a satisfactory smile.

She wanted to sleep but then, as if in a fit, she picked up her Sonali- her diary.

"Sonali,

She is back. I gave birth to her. The me, who was killed by circumstances, the traits I had buried to help in our finances. She has resurfaced. My FL is Chahat now. A girl in the 90s blah blah blah but she is just like the older me. The old, innocent me, is breathing now, in this new character. I named her Chahat and I will stick up to it even if anyone opposses . Chahat means desire. She potrays my desires too. I want to be my innocent self again (only if time permits) and Sahil;Sahil means destination. Chahat is vulnerable. Chahat isn't immune to the ways of the world. He will guide her, Her knight in a shining armour. My female lead isn't weak but all of us need an anchor and a sail, don't we?He'll also be her final manzil, her sahil.

Precap - Dairy Milk Shots and Knock knocks ;)

E/N - Hi! I am the editor here :p. I have promised to help my dear damsel in distress writer friend so that you guys don't miss on updates. The problem is that she has scripted only a few chapters till today and she is not gonna be regular atleast till 3rd next month. So I'll be giving you precaps, E/N (Editor's note) and updates in appropriate intervals. I am not as fun as she is, I am wittier than her :p and her account is under my surveillance now. In any case if you wanna talk to her leave a message in the comment section (if possible) because I have strict orders to not peep into the pms.

See you guys soon

Votes and comments please

Till then do whatever you wanna do women ('cause I heard there ain't no men here)