Hola Everyone

It's Sunday and I am back with the next update😀😀😀!!! Apologies for the delay as I was caught up with my work

Thank you everyone for the votes & comments, Thank you for encouraging me, really means a lot.🙂🙂🙂

Without further ado here's the next part, Hope you like it.

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"DEV"

As soon as Sonakshi saw the caller id. she was left shocked beyond her wits, for a moment she wondered it was her DEV but then her logical mind chided her for thinking so, it might be someone else for there were so many people with the same name in the world but then who could make her heart understand the same, why did it feel that it might be the person she was yearning for all these days, what if it indeed was her Dev, she needed to find it out for her own peace. All these days slowly her hope of finding Dev was dwindling but right now she felt this was the light she was searching at the end of the dark tunnel, the oasis in the middle of the desert or that needle that she was trying to find in the haystack, so lost was she in her thoughts that she did not see Gayatri approaching her, she was surprised to see her phone in Sonakshi's hand which had stopped ringing by now.

"Excuse me Dr. Bose Can I have my phone please" she said but Sonakshi seemed to have not heard it as she was still lost in her thoughts.

"Excuse me Dr. Bose" said Gayatri this time a bit louder which seemed to have to broken Sonakshi's trance "Huh, Sorry" she said as Gayatri gestured at her hand which was holding her phone as Sonakshi realized what she was alluding to "I am sorry, Actually the phone was ringing" said Sonakshi as Gayatri nodded and said "It's alright" though her voice was a bit cold which Sonakshi did not miss as she wondered why it was so while Gayatri saw at the missed calls and was left shocked that it was Dev who had called her, she hoped that Sonakshi did not ask any questions about the caller.

"It was nice meeting you Dr. Bose, I need to get going" she said as she turned to leave, she wanted to leave before Sonakshi could any question.

"Same here" said Sonakshi but the very next moment something stuck her "But how did you know that I am a Doctor?" she asked as Gayatri stopped in her track, she knew she had to answer carefully else Sonakshi could start asking her some uncomfortable questions.

"Wo...I had seen your name on the invitation" she said as Sonakshi smiled at her and asked, "By the way who is Dev?" she asked as Gayatri was left tongue-tied but composing herself she calmly answered "He is my son" she said as Sonakshi's face fell a little, though it was not the truth it was not far away from it either, all these years had indeed made Gayatri's and Dev's relationship similar to that of a mother and son.

"By the way I need to get going, It was nice meeting you Dr.Sonakshi" she said as Sonakshi reciprocated with the same as Gayatri quickly left the venue so as to avoid Sonakshi, but Sonakshi felt something was amiss, she needed to know more about Gayatri as she quickly dialled a number.

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The constant buzz of the phone broke Sonakshi's slumber, as she looked at the caller id. she immediately picked up the call and said "Yes Avinash, did you find something?" she asked. Last night after her meeting with Gayatri at the Conference Sonakshi had called Avinash, Dev's friend in the police department who had helped them solve Ayan's and Khatri's case. Being a close friend of Dev, he had put all his efforts to find out about his friend.

"Yes Bhaabi, I have sent you a couple of photos" he said as Sonakshi quickly opened his message and was left shocked seeing the photos, it was the photos of Dev and Gayatri. One taken 4 yrs. ago at the conference where they met for the first time and the next photo seemed to be a recent one.

"Yes Bhabhi, Gaytri Saxena knows Dev" said as Sonakshi was left speechless, she thanked him as he informed her more about their relationship and told her the hotel where she was staying, thanking him once again Sonakshi quickly freshened up and left for the place where Gayatri was put up so that she could find more about Dev.

Half an hour later Sonakshi entered the hotel where Gayatri was staying, she quickly moved towards the reception when she saw a familiar figure standing there, she was quick to realize it was none other than Gayatri Saxena, she moved towards her.

"How do you know Dev?" asked Sonakshi as Gayatri turned at the person and was left shocked to see Sonakshi early in the morning.

"Oh, Good morning Dr. Sonakshi, And I already told you that Dev is my son" she replied calmly but the next moment Sonakshi burst out "No he is not your son, He is Dev, Dev Dixit. Ishwari Dixit's son, owner of Ishwari Group of Communications and my husband. Please tell me the truth" she said

"I am sorry, I do not know what you are talking about" said Gayatri and picking up her luggage moved forward but was stopped by Sonakshi who blocked her path as tears glistened her eyes, she folded her hands before her and said.

"Please, please tell me where is Dev? What do you know about him? I beg you, please tell me the truth" she said and slumped down on the floor as Gayatri's heart wrenched seeing her breakdown. All these days she had seen even Dev breaking down multiple times and she knew the pain she was going through as she had seen the same with Dev as well. And at that moment she decided to tell about Dev to Sonakshi, she knew Dev would be very angry with her but right now all her heart was seeing the pain the two were going through and decided to help them even if Dev would get angry with her.

"Alright Sonakshi, I will tell you about Dev and where he is" she said holding Sonakshi who looked up as she smiled through her tears.

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"The fair was going on in full flow as the young 8-year old boy looked around with starry eyes holding on to his mother's hand tightly. On one side he could see the kids lining up for their turn to get on the various swings and rides while on the other side there was a line of shops selling various articles where people were haggling with the shopkeepers about the prices, a little far away he could see a crowd looking on to the stage where a magician was showcasing his tricks while people thundered in applause as a smile formed on his face, he turned to look on the other side he could see a man selling cotton candies (Candy Floss, Budhiya ke baal) as a smile formed on his face, he looked up towards his mother who seemed to looking around searching for something, just as he was about to call out his mother when suddenly there was an explosion as the crowd scattered running wildly to save themselves as the boy was separated from his mother, he shouted out for his mother but it seemed like she could not hear him. On the other hand, the woman panicked seeing her son move away from her, she tried to reach him but the more she tried to reach him the more she was thrown back. She could see the panicked face of her son which was slowly fading away in the crowd as the sun was setting in the background and after a few moments his face completely faded away from her vision......"

"Deeevvv..." screamed Ishwari as she woke up with a startle, even though the air conditioner of the room was working seamlessly she was perspiring heavily as just then she heard a voice.

"Badi Dadi" said Golu as he entered the room with DK alongside him carrying a tray while he continued "Uth Gayi aap, lijiye Breakfast kar lijiye" he said as DK place the food in front of her as Ishwari looked lovingly at Golu, he was a mini version of Dev and just like Dev had grown mature beyond his years in the last eight months, wordlessly she started having the food as she knew how adamant Golu could get, after finishing the food Golu made her have her medicines, a routine he followed diligently right from the time Dev had gone away, just then she heard another voice.

"Golu, Tuney phir se apna Milk finish nahi kiya" said an 8-yr old Suhana entering the room, though she was just a couple of months older than Golu she was the perfect elder sister taking care of her little brother.

"Arey Wo main Badi dadi ko breakfast dene aaya tha" he said as Suhana handed him the glass which he took and finished his milk in a go, a habit which he had developed in the last eight months, he did not throw tantrums like before, it seemed that both the kids had grown mature way beyond their age, as Ishwari looked at both her grandkids who reminded her of Dev, tears glistened her eyes.

"Dadi, Aap ro kyun rahi hai?" asked Suhana as she replied "Kuch nahi Suhana bas tum dono ka pyar dekh kar aankhon main paani aa gaya" she said as the kids smiled. She turned towards the SHIVA idol kept in her room and started praying as the kids joined her, each of them having only one wish in their heart which they wanted to be fulfilled and that was the return of DEV.

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On the other side far away at DRISHTI Dev was feeling uneasy since last evening, he did not know why but he felt something was to happen as his thought went back to the kids, he had no idea how they were coping up with his absence and even he yearned to be with them but controlled himself but his heart was not ready to accept it, at once he decided to go to Delhi and have a glimpse of the kids and make sure that they were fine, though he knew there was the risk of someone finding out about him he was ready to take that for the sake of the kids, informing the caretaker of NGO he left though he was warned about the inclement weather.

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Sonakshi got up with a jerk, it was the same dream again. It was becoming a nightmare for her and she knew that unless she found Dev these dreams would never cease. It was then she realized that they were not moving as she looked around, she was greeted by the cacophony of the birds and the thunder of the clouds, it was not raining but there were big black clouds indicating an upcoming storm. The trees were swaying vigorously because of the heavy winds as she got down from the car and moved towards the small roadside DHABA where Badi Maa (Gayatri Saxena) and Misha were seated.

After Badi Maa had revealed about Dev, Sonakshi did not want to waste anytime in leaving for DRISHTI as soon as possible, she had informed Misha about the same as 15 minutes later she arrived at the hotel. After meeting both Sonakshi and Gayatri Saxena the trio decided to leave for meeting Dev, they wanted to take either Jatin or Ranveer along with them but Jatin was out of Delhi on a business meet while Ranveer was with Tina at her hometown since Tina's father was unwell. Sonakshi called up Asha and without giving too much information just told her that she was leaving for a couple of days and would be back soon. She informed Elena as well and asking her to take care of the kids the Trio left for DRISHTI.

On the way Gayatri told the duo about how she met Dev and how their relationship grew over the years to be as close as that of a mother-son relation. She also informed about the past 8 months where in Dev had closed himself down from the world hiding his emotions with in him, it was only with the Kids at the NGO that he would be his normal self. After Gayatri finished, Sonakshi leaned her head against the back of the seat as her thoughts went back to the day eight years ago. She wondered at the game destiny played with them, it was eight years ago that she was treading on exactly the same path with Dev on her way to Shimla to spend the most blissful time of their lives, it was the place which had given them the memory of lifetime, given them their daughter Suhana. And now eight years down the line she was once again on the same path, though the irony was that this time she was alone but there was hope, hope that this path would once again lead her to the same person with whom she wanted to make memories again and again, the same path on which they had made promises of never letting go of each other but ended up breaking those would once again witness them and this time hopefully for a lifetime of togetherness as sleep crept on to Sonakshi.

As Sonakshi reached the duo both Badi Maa and Misha looked at her with a smile, they could observed the glow on Sonakshi's face and they knew the reason for it as well, they handed over the cup of tea and informed her that they were just on the outskirts of Shimla on the highway that leads to it and had stopped over for a small break as after this they would drive non-stop to DRISHTI so that they could reach their quickly before it became too late in the night or the weather worsened.

Sonakshi nodded and moved away taking in the surroundings, she could make out that there was an impending storm, but she just hoped it would not stop them from reaching Mandli. She moved towards the highway as it started drizzling, she saw a small tea Stall on the opposite side of the road near which she could see a few people seated and discussing something while a truck was parked a few meters away from them. Suddenly a guy got up, by the looks of it Sonakshi could make out that he was a tall person, maybe around six-feet or a little more just as the person turned revealing his face for the first time and as Sonakshi got the glimpse of it she was left stunned. Even from a distance she could make who it was. IT WAS HIM, IT WAS HER DEV.

The bearded look was replaced by a clean shaven one, the bomber jacket, Tee and ripped jeans were replaced by a simple Khadi kurta and a pajama, the long-ruffled hair were trimmed down just enough that they could be combed, the once beefy body was now a lean one with no unnecessary muscles anywhere, the look was completed by the half-rimmed spectacles to go along with the rubber slippers. It seemed that the past eight months had made him younger which added to his charm as inevitably like a magnet Sonakshi's feet made her way towards him.

On the other hand, as Dev looked at the person on the opposite side of the road he was left flabbergasted, IT WAS HER, IT WAS SONAKSHI. For a moment he thought he was dreaming but then the drops of rain on his face made him realize that it was not a dream, it was indeed real, but the irony was he was not ready rather he did not want to face this reality. He wanted to move away but it seemed like his feet had turned into stone as he was unable to move. As he closely observed her he realized that she had gotten leaner than the last time he saw her before leaving.

While Sonakshi was continuously looking at Dev from the opposite side as she moved towards him Dev stood freezed at his place, their eyes never leaving each other, the rain intensified as the cacophony of the birds increased indicating something untoward that was about to happen. Suddenly a sound caught Dev's ears, he turned to look at the source of the sound he was left shocked.

He could see a speeding truck honking continuously but Sonakshi who had just made her way on to the road and moving towards the centre of it was so lost in Dev that she did not listen to it nor to the screams of Badi Maa or Misha who were screaming at the top of their voice asking her to move away. The next moment she saw Dev running towards her as a smile made way on her lips seeing him run towards her but the moment he reached her he pushed her aside with all his strength as Sonakshi was thrown on to the side of the road as she turned back to look at Dev, but the scene unfolding in front of her left her thunderstruck.

Dev was hurled up in the air and the very next moment HE CRASHED ON TO THE GROUND and WITH IT HER WORLD CAME CRASHING DOWN AS WELL and at that moment the only word that escaped her mouth was,

"DEEEEVVVV"

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Done, How was it??. As always, awaiting your votes/thoughts/feedback & comments on this part as the future updates of this story would depend on that. So please do vote, makes the writer happy🙂🙂🙂.

PRECAP :

Please ignore the grammatical mistakes.