||CHAPTER 44||
《¤》

Amidst the faint glows of blue, gold, red and white, my phone lit up, vibrating against the counter-top of the bar. It had been ringing for quite a while now, but I just couldn't pick it up.

Because I hadn't for the past week, whenever she called.

"I think you should pick it up," said my brother, glancing at the screen.

The buzzing stopped, and I sighed. "You know, I never told you how proud I was of you to... be able to say those words to her that day."

His thumb played with the edge of the bar; he was nervous, he was afraid. "I guess you didn't."

Hesitating, I replied. "Do you... do you regret speaking to her that way?"

He looked up, "I should."

I rested my chin on top of my palm on the counter. All of us were honest liars.

"Remember the time you said it's her life, she's got her own command on it?"

Shaking my head, I turned to him. That Art Gallery inauguration night wasn't something worth reminiscing, but it wasn't something easy to forget. She had acted indifferent towards us. "Hmm, I do."

"You were right. It is her life. But since when did we cease to be a part of it, Vika?"

His words had struck a chord. Arnav Deewan was hurt, and I had been the one who could reciprocate and retrospect his vulnerability.

"It must be something important," he nodded towards my phone, which was buzzing again. "You should pick it up."

I held the phone in my hand, and looked at him. "Do you... do you want to take the call instead?"

He was hesitating again, so I took his hand and shoved the mobile in his palm.

"I'm not ready yet... And you shouldn't be regretting your decisions."

I had not expected him to hug me, because we did not form the ideal sibling duo, but I let him have his way.

Because I was about to have mine.

The party in my honour, turned out to be something that lived upto its expectation. It was lavish, brushing us with strokes of dark hues of gold, and exhausting.

Ishita met me midway, her bubbly persona four times the natural. I groaned.

"Don't you strain your facial muscles by making such clown faces?" I asked her when she fell into step with me.

"With a grumpy person beside me, I honestly do not know anymore. I'm exhausted, but who cares? I'm supposed to be socialising and charming everyone for a better future!"

With their elder daughter joining the Bollywood industry, the Gupta's only shred of hope rested in Ishita's hands.

"Would it be ironic if I say that I'd be pitying you if I didn't want to be in your shoes? Nice ones by the way."

Ishita wasn't dumb; she wasn't stupid either. Hence, she smirked at me subtle change of topic. We were all aware what kind of lives we led.

"I'd let you borrow them," she shrugged as we sat on the couch, "when you tell me about your next date."

"Date?" I rose my eyebrow.

"Oh my god, you're still in the Denial Phase?"

And then I understood which river she was swimming in.

¿¤?

I froze when his hand shifted a few strands of my hair behind my ear.

"Do you want to get out of here?"

His breath was still lingering on the shell of my ear, but mine had stopped altogether. Slowly, I nodded my head before looking at him.

I cleared my throat, though my mind needed some spring cleaning too. "I don't think the star of the party is supposed to go missing."

But my smile gave my answer away, and I didn't stop him when he dragged me upstairs, climbing four flights of stairs until we reached the small door that led to the terrace.

"I had something that included four walls and a ceiling in mind," I told him truthfully, "but I guess this does some good too."

"Girls jump into conclusions," he chuckled, "but you want to jump into the bed, huh?"

He had caught the loophole, yet he didn't.

"Was that supposed to be another theory about me?" I asked, leaning against the railing.
"Probably, but that's not why I brought you here."

It wasn't pretence when my mood fell. "And I'm sensing it's something along the line of my dear Mickey?"

He wanted to say something, but he kept it to himself. I didn't probe him either, and for minutes, we kept battling silently.

He cleared his throat. "Did Mickey message or call you yet?"

"No. I'd be suprised if he did."

"Why him Vika? Whatever we are trying to dig out- he's going to know it too!"

"I won't argue on that."

His mouth fell open in frustration. "Then why him?"

"Because he doesn't give two shits about what we do with the information later on. Call it my instinct, but Mickey isn't an open book. He ain't a diary with a lock either- but you don't need locks for coded language."

¿¤?

On the ride back home, I realised it was the first time we didn't have to take two cars. For the first time in a few years, I felt like I was riding with my family.

The car's radio was belching out old Kishore Kumar songs, because my father and grandmother weren't very big fans of music that didn't belong to their generations. Every now and then, Arnav and I shared secret smiles and glances at our father's failed attempt at matching the notes. Daadi was tapping to the rhythm on my shoulder as I leant against her, eyes droopy with sleep. My brother's mocking smile, as his gaze battled between the window and me, to silently laugh at what our father was trying to do, the apathy of the driver.

This was the world I was fighting for. The calm, serene and the world called home.

But I was with a world full of cheats for that. The world that taught me that honesty was the best policy, as long as you were being an honest liar.

Time and again, my mind drifted to my mother, and Naani. People I disliked, but not strongly enough to not love them either.

Did my mother know yet that one third of her company was with the Deewans because of me? She wasn't that blinded in love for her children to not know.

"Udaipur ke hotels ka kya hua, Papa?" I asked with honest curiosity.

He turned to look at me from the passenger seat beside the driver, "I thought you'd never ask!"

I smiled to let him continue.

"Since we are new to this hotel business, I've set a new team on it. Udaipur me waise bhi ye business achha hai, with tourists coming from all over the world. We had a conclave as well as a conference, and kal ke newspapers me press release hoga. I'm thinking about changing the name though, what do you think?"

I was thinking about the recording of Naani ji spilling out the secrets. "Hmm? Name change? Papa, Yatis Hotels have a name all over India. A sudden name change... don't you think might make the business lose the game? I don't think a name change will be helpful at the moment."

I don't think I would be able to do that to Naaniji and my mother.

He smiled appreciatively at me from the rear-view mirror. "A very good point. We won't change the name."

But when my eyes locked with my brother, I knew he sensed something was wrong.

¿¤?

Daadi was suprised to see me in the kitchen at one, Monday morning. So was I, at the effort I was putting into studying Chemistry, for the half yearly examination the following day.

"Sab theek tho hai na puttar?" Her voice was laced with concern, eyes blinking at my form.

The milk was boiling on the stove. "Ho jaega, Daadi, agar main theen aur chapters ratta maar saku."

She shook her head. "Pehele kyoo nahi padhte ho tum log? Arnav ke kamre ki batti bhi nahi bujhi hai ab taq. Dono ullu ki tarah jagoge kya ab?"

"Kaash Daadi, kaash mere paas woh superpower hota!"

Laughing at me, she drank some water and left with a nightly goodnight.

Inside the fridge, was a variety of different coffees that Dad had bought from all over the world. Picking out a random one, I grabbed a mug from the rack and spooned out some crushed coffee beans into it.

Almost as an afterthought, I grabbed another mug and repeated my steps.

When the aroma of some freshly brewed coffee hit my nose, I managed my fat textbook under my arm, both hands nursing two mugs of coffee as I made my way to Arnav's room. Daadi was right, he was still awake.

As and when I pushed open the door with my hips, he swirled in his chair, dark circles greeting me. "You, my sister, are a life saviour."

"Haan haan, mere darshan ke liye log pagal hote hai, pata hai," I taunted.

He rose from the chair, a reference book in his hand, guiding me towards his bed. When we both settled under the covers with books over our lap, we took a sip together.

"You forgot the sugar," his face crimpled in an expression that could only bring me amusement.

Sipping on my mug, I smirked to myself, recalling Vansh's theory about me being the only one who drank Black coffee in this house. "Nope, I didn't."

With eyes narrowed at me, he drank the whole coffee in one sip. "Next time, please Chai hi banana tu. Coffee tujhse nahi banne wali."

I grinned. He loved giving out orders, I loved not following them. It was a two way street indeed.

_____

Namoshtaii!!

I was supposed to have a field trip today, which oh so suprisingly got postponed to Monday, and on Monday, our coaching class oh so suprisingly scheduled a major test. I am seriously planning a killing spree, THIS FIELD TRIP WAS SUPPOSED TO BE OUR LAST TRIP OF OUR ENTIRE SCHOOL LIFE.

Offcourse they don't care.

Anyways, i kinda made a few character aesthetics, and they are still work in progress. But here's the one for Arnav, Arvika (tho m thinking of changing it a bit), Ishita and Ritwik:

I have another major test tomorrow, i swear everyone is trying to kill my durga poojo spirits. Anyways, how r ur dandiya/garba nights going? I was in Vadodara, Gujarat for six years, and I still don't know how to dance Garba. And to say I used to go to dance classes when i was young...

Lmao, anyways, read, vote, comment and promote!

~emcee.