Hello everyone...

I'm back with the next part...

I apologize for not updating earlier as I've been travelling since last week & wasn't feeling well too.

I'm compensating it with this long update.

And I will make sure to update all my stories regularly henceforth.

Do like & comment, if you like the story.

Ignore any mistakes.

With lots of love,

DIKU...❤

AN UNEXPECTED COFFEE DATE

CHAPTER 5

NAINA

When Sameer asked me to sit on his bike, I definitely got nervous. But I didn't let him see that. But nonetheless I sat behind him without any hesitance. I was scared as I had never ridden on a bike before. And that too with a guy. To prevent myself from falling, I slowly kept my hand on his shoulder. We both shuddered at the touch. I could see that this was not only new for me but for him too.

I didn't know where he was taking me. I had taken a leap of faith on him without any thought. I did trust him wholeheartedly since the first day we had met. I was enjoying my first ride with him on his bike. I had gripped his shoulder with my right hand & I had held my dupatta securely with my left hand.

Sameer kept looking at me from the rear-view mirror which made me blush all the time. I closed my eyes for a few seconds when the bike slowed down. He turned backwards towards me saying, "Ummmm... Woh Naina mujhe na thodi bhuk lagi hai toh thoda kuch kha le yahin? Maine subah thik se breakfast nahi kiya tha."

I noticed that we had stopped at a roadside Dhaba. I nodded & got down from his bike. We made our way towards the Dhaba together & settled down at the table which was a little far from the others. A young boy came & served us water. "Arey Sameer Bhaiya... Bohot dinon baad aaye aap. Aur Pandit bhaiya nahi aaye aaj? Yeh didi kaun hai?", he asked looking at me.

"Arey Chotu... Yeh Naina hai... Meri friend. Aaj pehli baar yahan aayi hai mere saath. Aur Pandit thode dinon ke liye Mumbai gaya hai, isliye nahi aa paya aaj.", replied Sameer smiling at him. "Naina didi aap pehli baar yahan aayi hai na. Pehle toh main aapka hamare chote se dhabe pe swagat karta hun aur batata hun ki hamari specialty kya hai.", Chotu said with his sweet charming smile. I smiled & spoke to him, "Thank you... Ab tum mujhe apna asli naam batao Chotu. Aur mujhe yeh bhi jaanna hai ki tum yahan kaam kyun kar rahe ho? Padhai nahi karte kya? College nahi jaate?", I shooted a lot of questions to him. "Mera naam Ramesh Patel hai, Naina didi. Aur main yahan mere babuji ki madad karta hun dophar tak. Fir fresh hokar yahin se VJN college jaata hun. First year mein padhta hun didi. Aur uska poora shrey Sameer Bhaiya ko jaata hai. Unki hi wajah se mujhe VJN college mein scholarship mila.", he said beaming at Sameer.

Sameer was surprising me with all his deeds today. I felt too proud of him. The respect I already had for him, increased incredulously. I never thought that Sameer was so kind until what I was seeing today. Sameer was continuously smiling looking at the young kid. I wished I could just get up & hug him tightly for his kindness. "Chotu, I'm proud of you. Tum apne papa ki madad bhi kar rahe ho kaam mein aur saath saath padhai bhi kar rahe ho. Bas aise hi mehnat karte rehna aur tumhe safalta zaroor milegi. Aur tumhe kabhi bhi kuch madad chahiye ho padhai mein toh mujhe bata dena, main tumhari help zaroor karungi.", I said feeling proud at the young boy's hard work.

He smiled & spoke softly, "Ji Naina didi. Thank you. Ab aap bataiye kya khayengi?" I shared a look with Sameer & spoke, "Jo bhi tumhare Sameer Bhaiya khaate hain, wohi mere liye bhi le aana." He smiled the widest & left.

Sameer was looking at me intently. Noo... he was staring at me. I spoke softly looking into his deep eyes, "Aise kya dekh rahe ho tum? Waise jo bhi tumne Chotu ke liye kiya, woh mujhe bohot achaa lagaa. Isse yeh toh pata chalaa ki tumhara dil kitna saaf hai. Kitni acchai hai tum mein. Warna aajkal ke ladkon ko khudke mauj masti se fursat nahi milti aur tum ho ki yahan sab ki kitni madad karte ho. I'm really proud of you Sameer. Mujhe yeh jaankar bhi accha laga ki tum Nanu ke saath har hafte Mandir jaate ho. Aur kitne surprises doge tum mujhe aaj ke din?", I raised my eyebrow smiling at him.

I could see him blush at the praises I was singing of him. He just smiled & said, "Main aisa hi hun Naina bachpan se. Jab main last year yahan Pandit ke saath aaya tha, tab Chotu ko yahan kaam karte hue dekha. Humare bohot poochne par pata chala ki woh yahan apne papa ki madad karne ke liye kaam kar raha hai. Uske paas aage padhai karne ke liye paise nahi the. Toh maine Nanu ki help se usse VJN mein scholarship par admission dilwaya. Aur hamari yeh mehnat rang bhi laa rahi hai. Bohot mehnat karta hai Chotu. Bohot smart hai padayi mein. Khana toh bas bahana hai Naina, warna main aur Pandit sirf Chotu se milne ke liye aa jaate hai har hafte."

I now realized that why I had taken so much liking towards Sameer from the start. I never doubted his intentions towards me. But now I'm too happy & proud to say that I didn't trust the wrong person. We always had a connection from the start, which I could feel growing deeply now. He was slowly making his permanent place in my heart. And I knew I was in for a trouble.

I felt my heart thudding loudly at his constant stare. I lowered my eyes & spoke softly, "Bohot acche ho tum Sameer." He almost spoke that instant, "Sacchiiiii....?" I looked at his smiling face & nodded. Before Sameer could say anything, Chotu appeared at our table with our orders. He had brought two huge plates, each consisting of two Lachchha Parathas with Dhaba special Paneer & steaming hot jalebis. I already had breakfast that morning but looking at this plate, my mouth watered & I felt hungry too. He kept the plates in front of us & came back with two long glasses full of chaas.

I looked at Sameer & said, "Itna sab kaise khatam hoga. Waise main breakfast karke aayi hu. Par yeh sab itna shaandaar dikh raha hai ki mujhe bhi bhuk lag gayi. Par mujhse akele khatam nahi hoga Sameer yeh sab." Chotu laughed out & said, "Arey didi, aap bilkul fikar mat karo. Aap jitna kha sako utna kha lena, baaki toh aap khud hi aage dekh lena." And he went away to take orders from the other customers.

I didn't understand what he wanted to say but I just shrugged it off & started to eat. The food was too yummyyyy... too tasty... I had never eaten at the Dhaba before. I saw that Sameer hadn't started to eat & was looking at me continuously. I raised my eyebrows & asked him, "Kya hua Sameer? Tumhe toh bhuk lagi thi na, toh khana shuru karo. Aise kya ghurr rahe ho mujhe?"

He just nodded slightly muttering a "Kuch nahi. Aise hi." I didn't know what that meant but nonetheless we continued eating stealing glances of each other. I could only finish one Lachchha Paratha & some paneer along with some few sips of chaas. My stomach was too full to accommodate anything more. I looked at Sameer who had wiped out most of the contents of his plate. Just a few jalebis were left.

Chotu returned to take away Sameer's empty plate in the next few minutes. But my plate was half full yet. I looked at Sameer & said, "Bas ab mujhse aur nahi khaaya jayega. Yeh sab pack kardo parcel mein Chotu. Main kisi zarooratmand ko de dungi, raaste mein." But Sameer chimed in, "Chotu tu jaa. Mera wala parcel ready karde, main dekhta hun yahan." Chotu winked & left our table. I was confused. What did Sameer mean by 'Main dekhta hun yahan.' By the time I could ask him what he meant, he had pulled my plate towards him & had started eating.

I could just stare at him amused with my eyes wide open. I thought, "Ab samaj aaya, iske 'Main dekhta hun yahan' ka matlab. Isne subah nashta kiya bhi tha ya nahi? Ekdum Bhukkad hai. MERA BHUKKAD." Did I say Mera Bhukkad. I blushed at my own thoughts & kept looking at him.

When something crossed my mind, I instantly spoke, "Arey Sameer tum toh mera jhootha kha rahe ho." He just looked at me across the table & said, "Toh. Kya hua usme?" "Nahi.... Woh... Main... bas aise hi keh rahi thi. Waise tumhe pata hai ki log kya kehte hai jab koi kisika jhootha khana khaata hai tab?" He acted all innocent & asked, "Kya kehte hai log Naina. Mujhe toh pataa nahi. Tum hi bataa do."

I wasn't sure whether he knew or not. But how could I tell him that, "Jhootha khaane se pyaar badhta hai." That sounded a little filmy too. So I kept my mouth shut & just shrugged. He was eating, looking straight in my eyes. My stomach fluttered with his actions. What was that? What was that look for? I couldn't understand so I started observing the Dhaba around. It was not too big but it was still kept neat & clean. Apart from Chotu, there were two more helpers.

I could still feel Sameer's gaze on me. Finally taking a deep breath, I looked at him. He had polished off my plate too. But there were still few jalebis left. I pointed towards them, when he said, "Mujhe meetha pasand hai, par itna bhi nahi kha sakta. Tumne toh ek bhi jalebi nahi khaayi. At least ek toh kha lo please. Bohot tasty hai." I nodded when he offered one jalebi towards my mouth. I could just stare. But I didn't feel uncomfortable with his gesture. It was very much natural. I too moved ahead so I could eat that jalebi. I took a bite & then he took the jalebi towards his mouth & finished it.

What was he doing? He repeated the same for the next few jalebis & we finished all the jalebis. I couldn't react. Till then Chotu returned to take the plate away & clean the table. We sat there quietly looking at each other, when Chotu interrupted, "Sameer Bhaiya... Yeh lijiye aapka parcel. Aur kuch chahiye kya aapko?" Sameer nodded in a noo & paid him the bill. Chotu continued, "Naina Didi...Kaisa laga yahan aakar? Aur khana kaisa laga?" I smiled widely at him & said in a happy tone, "Chotu khana toh bohot achha aur tasty tha. Aur yeh jagah bhi bohot saaf aur shaant hai. Main apni friends ko lekar yahan zaroor aaungi. Waise tum khaana home delivery dete ho kya?"

He exchanged a glance with Sameer & said happily, "Haan... Naina didi, hum home delivery bhi dete hai. Aur aap zaroor aayiyega apne friends ke saath. Hume bohot khushi hogi. Main abhi aaya menu lekar. Uspar contact details bhi hai. Toh aap kabhi bhi order kar lijiyega, hum aa jayenge order lekar." He hurried away to bring the menu.

We got up from the table & Chotu appeared handing me the menu. We waved him off & left towards the bike. When suddenly Sameer asked, "Naina... Jalebi kaisi lagi? Bohot sweet thi na?" I just looked at him & said, "Jalebi toh sweet hi hoti hai na Sameer." I didn't know where the conversation was headed. He came too close to me & spoke huskily in my ears, "Main jaanta hun log kya kehte hain jab koi kisika jhootha khaata hai. Jhootha khaane se pyaar badhta hai. Yahi kehna chahti thi na pehle? Par mujhe yeh nahi pata tha ki jhootha khane se khaana jyada sweet bhi ho jaata hai." He winked & went to start the bike. I stood there dumbfounded with his gestures.

He honked twice to bring me out of my trance. I shook my head & went & sat behind him. My right hand automatically went on his shoulder. He looked in the rear-view mirror & asked, "Chalein?" I said looking at him, "Parcel mujhe de do. Main pakadti hun." He nodded & gave me the parcel which was a little heavy. I thought for whom had he picked up the parcel for. Sameer drove the bike in not so fast not so slow pace.

I was shocked when the bike stopped at an entrance which read, "MOTHER TERESA ORPHANAGE".

SAMEER

I had finally brought her to the ultimate destination. This is what I do most of the time when I'm free from studies & work. I try to spend my maximum time at this orphanage. I've been visiting here since my childhood. Nanu brought me once when I had thrown a tantrum of not getting what I want. And when I came here, I saw the reality. I'm lucky enough to at least have Nanu by my side. But here when I saw these homeless & parentless children, I couldn't hold myself emotionally. Since then, I've been coming here every weekend either with Nanu or Pandit or even alone.

I remembered Nanu's words that said, do whatever u feel straight from your heart. So here I've brought Naina into my small world which definitely includes this orphanage. I wanted to see how she reacts & behaves after this. If she likes me, she has to accept this side of me too. Only Nanu & Pandit have known this side of me. Now it's Naina's turn.

I honked a few times when the entrance of the orphanage was opened. I parked my bike at the usual place. I saw Naina was still holding my shoulder & was observing the place with a serene smile. That smile took away my breath. She seemed happy to be here. I spoke slowly, "Naina... Mujhe woh parcel de do, main pakadta hun. Tum aaram se utar jao pehle." She nodded smiling at me handing over the parcel. She got down from the bike & took the parcel back so that I could park my bike properly.

Just when I got down from the bike, I saw few children running towards me with lots of excitement. I smiled wholeheartedly when I saw their smiling faces. I knew each & everyone with their names. All of them hugged me one after the other kissing me on my cheeks. Naina stood there watching the whole scene unfold with teary eyes.

The caretaker, Ramukaka, came forward to greet me & took the parcel away with him inside. All the children were quite ecstatic with my arrival. I introduced Naina to all of them, "Bacchon... yeh hai Naina. Meri friend jo aap sab se aaj milne aayi hai." They all looked at her. Naina came forward and introduced herself smiling all the time. All the children within no time had started hugging her. I could see Naina getting a little emotional with their affection.

We all went inside the orphanage & moved towards the small garden at the backside. Naina sat there between them & started telling them some stories when Ramukaka came out with plates full of jalebis. All children ran towards him & took the plates. They again sat with Naina listening to her stories & eating the delicacy. I too sat down near the children, getting mesmerised by the beauty in front of me.

When she finished the story, all the children clapped & started debating as to what game to be played next. After debating for a while everyone settled on playing ANTAKSHRI. Being my favourite game too, I decided to play along. The teams were split as always... BOYS vs GIRLS. We all settled down with our teams opposite each other.

It was decided that the girl's team would start with any song & then the antakshri would continue. Naina started singing,

Tumse milke aisa laga tumse milke...

Armaan huye poore dil ke...

Aye meri jaan-e-wafa....

Teri meri meri teri ik jaan hai...

Saath tere rahenge sada...

Tumse na honge juda...

I was just mesmerised with her voice... Ummmm... Actually, I was mesmerised by all of her. The girls started shouting, 'da" se gao... which broke my trance & I began singing,

Dilbar mere kab tak mujhe,

Aise hi tadpaaoge...

Main aag dil mein lagaa dunga woh,

Ki pal mein pighal jaaoge...

Ek din aayega,

Pyaar ho jaayega...

Main aag dil mein lagaa dunga woh,

Ki pal mein pighal jaaoge...

I sang the song looking deeply into her eyes. I saw her blushing for the entire time. The girls nudged her to sing a song which started from 'ga'. Without breaking the eye contact, she sang,

Gori hai kalaaiyan,

Tu laade mujhe hari hari chudiyan...

Gori hai kalaaiyan,

Tu laade mujhe hari hari chudiyan...

Apna banaa le mujhe baalama...

Gori hai kalaaiyan,

Tu laade mujhe hari hari chudiyan...

I couldn't look away. Hari chudiyan. I would bring her all different colours of bangles if she wanted. She was just a word away. The boy sitting next to me shouted, "Arey Sameer bhaiya... Kahan kho gaye aap. Jaldi se 'ya' se gaana gaa dijiye na." I blinked twice & tried to recollect some song. When I remembered & started singing,

Yeh haseen waadiyan, yeh khula aasmaan,

Aa gaye hum kahan, aye mere saajna,

In baharon mein dil ki kali khil gayi,

Mujhko tum jo mile har Khushi mil gayi...

Tere hothon pe hain husn ki bijliyaan,

Tere gaalon pe hain zulf ki badliyaan,

Tere baalon ki Khushboo se mehke chaman,

Sangmarmar ke jaisa ye tera badan...

Yeh haseen waadiyan, yeh khula aasmaan,

Aa gaye hum kahan, aye mere saajna...

Everyone sat there listening to my song quietly and on the other hand, I was imagining us romancing somewhere in the snowy mountains. All clapped & I came out of my lala land. I saw Naina was watching me intently.

She sang the next song,

Na jaane mere dil ko kya ho gaya,

Abhi toh yahin tha abhi kho gaya...

Ho gaya hai tujhko to pyaar sajna,

Laakh kar le tu inkaar sajna,

Dildar sajna, hai yeh pyaar sajna...

Na jaane mere dil ko kya ho gaya,

Abhi toh yahin tha abhi kho gaya...

I couldn't look away even if I wanted to. She was a singing so well & taking away breath all the time. It was already lunch time. So everyone got up & gathered in the dining hall. I & Naina had already eaten in the dhaba so we weren't hungry. We sat there besides each other listening to everyone sharing some funny jokes & stories.

I was happy seeing Naina happy. The glow on her face was enough for me to sense her happiness. I was glad that I brought her here. We spent the rest of the day with the children singing, playing & dancing around us. We left the orphanage bidding our sweet goodbyes to all & promising to come back again soon.

When we sat on our bike, I asked her if she wanted to go to Law Garden. She nodded shyly & we took off towards the Law Garden. We reached there in the next twenty minutes. The Garden wasn't much crowded at that hour. We settled down at the farthest bench which was below a huge shaded tree.

I sat there quietly for few moments reminiscing all the great memories I made with Naina today. The day was coming to an end. I was feeling sad about it. I saw the same sadness on her face too. I asked in a soft voice, "Naina... Icecream khaaogi?" She nodded & I continued, "Dekho wahan icecream ka stall hai. Main abhi lekar aata hun. Konsa flavour khaogi tum?" She replied softly, "Jo tumhe pasand hai wohi le aao mere liye bhi."

I nodded & left towards the ice cream stall. I brought two chocolate icecream scoops for us. She had a satisfied look on her face after watching the chocolate scoop. I knew she loves chocolate. I was just going to start eating when I saw a small boy crying loudly. His mother was trying to placate the boy to stop crying but he wasn't listening. I asked the lady what the matter was. She told me that the icecream that she brought for him had fallen down & she didn't have any extra money to buy another one for her boy but the kid wasn't listening & wailing continuously.

I smiled at the boy & offered him my icecream. His mother denied it but I still gave it to that boy who was much happier to receive the big chocolate icecream. When I came back, I saw that Naina hadn't eaten the icecream yet. I asked her if she didn't like the icecream. But she nodded in a noo & said in a soft voice, "Mujhse yeh icecream akele nahi khaya jayega, toh kya tum mere saath isse share karoge?" I couldn't ask anything more than this from God at this moment & I nodded with a smile. Her smiled widened & we sat there sharing our first icecream together.

She asked me how did I start going to the orphanage. I told her about how Nanu took me there one day after I threw tantrums. After seeing those children, something melted inside me & then I started to visit regularly. Her eyes were the mirror of her beautiful heart. I could clearly see her happiness in her eyes.

It was already five in the evening & our time together had come to an end. I asked her if I could drop her home. But she denied politely & I asked if we could take a walk of the garden before we departed. She accepted & we started walking. After taking few steps, I felt her hand coming around mine. I exhaled slowly & looked at her who was blushing to the roots. I smiled & held her hand a little tightly promising myself that I won't leave her hand ever.

We walked silently feeling each other's presence. We exited the garden with heavy hearts. We stood there outside holding each other's hand possessively when I asked, "Kaisa raha aaj ka din Naina? I hope tum bore nahi hui mere saath?" She smiled & replied in a very sweet voice, "Sameer... Aaj ka din bohot special tha mere liye. Aur tumne bilkul bhi bore nahi kiya. Infact mujhe tumhe thanks bolna chahiye. Mera din itna special banana ke liye. Aaj ka din main kabhi nahi bhoolungi Sameer. Pehle mandir, fir dhaba, fir orphanage aur fir yeh icecream. Aur sabse special toh bike ride thi. Waise tumhe pata nahi hoga, ki main pehli baar kisi ladke ke sath bike pe baithi hun. Thank you so much Sameer... Mera aaj ka din itna yaadgaar banana ke liye."

Her eyes were moist. I could no longer hold myself & I tugged her hand gently towards me. She was in my arms finally. We both hugged each other a little more tightly feeling each other's heartbeats. Our first hug that too at the entrance of the garden. I had never imagined that.

I spoke huskily in her ear, "Friendship ka rule bhool gayi Ms Naina Agarwal, 'Dosti mein no sorry & no thank you'. Naina... Tum bhi pehli ladki ho jo meri bike pe mere saath baithi hai. Aakhir tum meri special friend jo ho. Aaj ka din mere life ka sabse best din hai."

We heard a loud honk which broke our hug. We left each other unwillingly. But had a shy smile on our faces. I asked if we could take a selfie together. She agreed immediately. I took some selfies on my phone & promised her that I will send them immediately. I hailed an auto rickshaw for Naina & she sat inside bidding me a goodbye.

I kept waving till the rickshaw was out of my vicinity. I too left towards home on my bike. The ultimate & much awaited Saturday came to an end.

THE PRESENT DAY AT THE CAFÉ COFFEE DAY

Yeh haseen waadiyan, yeh khula aasmaan,

Aa gaye hum kahan, aye mere saajna,

In baharon mein dil ki kali khil gayi,

Mujhko tum jo mile har Khushi mil gayi...

Tere hothon pe hain husn ki bijliyaan,

Tere gaalon pe hain zulf ki badliyaan,

Tere baalon ki Khushboo se mehke chaman,

Sangmarmar ke jaisa ye tera badan...

Yeh haseen waadiyan, yeh khula aasmaan,

Aa gaye hum kahan, aye mere saajna...

The song echoed softly in the café & I looked at Naina. She had definitely remembered the song that I had sung for her. "Bolo Naina... Pandit kuch pooch raha hai? Kya hum ek dusre ko pehle se jaante hai?"

She looked at me intensely for a moment & then her eyes moved towards Preeti & Pandit. She replied in a calm tone, "Haannn... Main aur Sameer ek dusre ko peechle teen saal se jaante hai."

How was the update?

Do like & comment, if you like the story.

With lots of love,

DIKU...❤