Namaskaram 🙏

Date of Update: 06.02.2023

****

Two days later.

These two days Sanskar's thoughts were all about Ragini and Rudra. The comfort she had with Rudra. His jealousy just kept increasing every time Ragini spoke about how Rudra got her chocolates and some other things when he went out. She even told him how he has brought a dish made by his mom and how delicious was that.

These two days they were working together for the project and in between she had to get Rudra's topic for atleast thrice in the whole day. Though it is just thrice she got his topic but Sanskar felt like she has been getting his topic too much. He has decided something. He has to do this. Only then he would be back to peace.

"Umm... Ragini!" he called her while she is seriously going through the pictures of decorations to short list them according to the specifications Rudra has given.

"Hmm!" she responded still drowned in her work.

"I actually have some work. Would you mind continuing it?" he askes.

"Okay!" she said still not looking at him.

He stood up from the chair and just left from there. They were working in his cabin. She is sitting beside him pulling a chair near to his' chair. She has started getting comfortable around him though she gets hesitated sometimes but Sanskar hadn't left a stone to stay around her as he knows he needs to be around her to make her trust him back again.

He dialled a number and waited for the person to take the call impatiently.

"Hello Mr. Sanskar!" the person spoke as he received the call.

"Mr. Rudra! Actually I need to meet you. Are you busy now?" Sanskar asked.

"Not even a bit. We can meet. Would you mind coming to my place as I am in no mood to move out of my place for today!" Rudra said.

"Great! Send me the location!" Sanskar said before cutting the call.

Sanskar waited impatiently for Rudra to send the location. As soon as he received the text he checked the location to find him in the apartment where Ragini lives. He just drove his bike towards the apartments. He parked the bike and looked around for watchman. Watchman recognising him and moved towards him.

"Sanskar sir! Ragini madam must be at office only." Watchman spoke as soon as he moved near Sanskar.

"I came here to meet Mr. Rudra. What's his flat number?" asked Sanskar.

"303!" watchman said.

Sanskar nodded and went from there looking for the flat taking the lift. As he reached the flat he knocked controlling his impatience. Rudra opened the door and smiled.

"Hi Mr. Sanskar. Come in!" he gave way for Sanskar to move inside.

Sanskar least bothered to reply for his 'hi' and just moved inside. Rudra ignored the fact that he didn't reply his 'hi' and moved inside closing the door. Sanskar looked around the house.

"Please have a seat Mr. Sanskar!" Rudra said guiding him towards the couch.

"It's okay! I want to speak something." Sanskar spoke.

"Yeah! Do you have any queries regarding the functions?" Rudra asked.

"It's not about that." Sanskar spoke annoyed.

Seeing him annoyed Rudra got confused.

"Okay! Tell me!" Rudra said seeing his annoyed face.

"STAY AWAY FROM RAGINI!" Sanskar spoke straight with a straight strict face.

"Huh?" Rudra thought he heard wrong but seeing the way Sanskar is glaring him he could understand.

He couldn't help but laugh at the warning Sanskar has given him. Sanskar is fuming seeing his laugh.

"Why the hell are you laughing?" Sanskar asked annoyed and angry.

Rudra controlled his laughter.

"Come with me!" He said moving towards the entrance of a room which is visible from the hall they are standing.

Sanskar fisted his hand tight and moved to see what that person has to show instead of taking his warning seriously.

"You see that girl sleeping on the bed under the comforter?" Rudra asked pointing at Aarvi who is sleeping peacefully on his bed.

Rudra and Sanskar stood at the entrance of the room while Rudra opened the door ajar just to make sure he shows Aarvi to Sanskar. Sanskar nodded with straight face still. He could lightly understand what that mean. But he still needed the clarification.

"She is my girlfriend. And I am saying not definitely in this life I want to replace her even though she is adorably annoying yet times." Rudra said smiling at Sanskar while remembering his cute moments with Aarvi.

Sanskar just sat Thud on the couch present there. Rudra got worried seeing the way Sanskar looked at that point of time. He looked very much relived yet tensed. He looked lost yet present.

"Hey!" Rudra kept his hand on Sanskar's shoulder as he sat beside him.

"I.... I am really very sorry for my behaviour. I am really sorry! I was..." Sanskar was interrupted.

"Jealous!" Rudra spoke smiling.

Sanskar looked at him for a moment.

"Damn! I hate to admit it but Yes!" Sanskar said sighing.

Rudra just smiled.

"From when do you know Ragini? From the time she came to Mumbai right?" Rudra asked just to get clarified as he felt that his love for Ragini doesn't look like a new found love.

"No! I know her since like more than a year and half!" Sanskar spoke.

"Woah! From Kolkata?" Rudra asked.

"Yeah! And then there was a lot of mess happened due to which I came here again. But didn't expect her to come here. I was very much surprised when I saw her at the place I work and trust me it was the most happiest moment of my life. I didn't expect for this chance definitely." Sanskar spoke his heart but smiled at the end.

"And she loves you back?" Rudra asked.

"She is not in a state to love someone for now!" Sanskar sighed.

"I think I understood the situation. Just give her sometime. I am sure she will identify your love!" Rudra patted his back.

Sanskar smiled at him.

"I am sorry once again Mr. Rudra." Sanskar apologised before getting up from the couch.

"Rudra! You can address me Rudra!" Rudra said smiling as he also stood up.

"Thanks Rudra!" Sanskar thanked him for the small yet good hearty conversation he had with him.

"All pleasures! Anyways your this secret is safe with me whole life. Ragini will never know that you actually warned me to stay away from her." Rudra chuckled.

Sanskar smiled being embarrassed suddenly. He moved towards the door to go.

"Bye!" Rudra said.

Sanskar nodded and left from there. He is embarrassed like hell but he is also happy for the clarification he got. He needed it. He was definitely jealous to an extent that he even imagined Ragini and Rudra getting married and he had planned her wedding sacrificing his love for her happiness once again. Today he made a firm decision that he is not going to that stupid act once again even if he has to force Ragini into the marriage this time. Yes it might become like another forceful marriage for her but he is also sure that one day he would definitely make Ragini fall for him and he will not give up till he does that.

****

She kept staring at the phone. But there was no use. There was no phone or message from him after that day. Why will he even think of her now? He has her, the one he loves, near him now. Same office. He must definitely be very happy for that. She sighed sadly. That's when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She looked at the side to see her friend Sahil.

"Sahil!" she said his name.

"What are you doing alone here Swara?" he asked.

"Nothing!" she said.

"He didn't call?" he asked.

"He has her now!" she said sighing.

Sahil looked away for a moment and then turned to her again.

"Everybody have moved on Sahil! But me! Do I deserve to be like this?" she spoke still looking at her phone.

Sahil forwarded his hand. She looked at him confused. He signed her to give her phone. She gave him without a second thought.

"This contact is going to archive now. You have to promise yourself that you will not remove it from archive unless you know that his presence make no effect in your life. Or it gets removed from archive due to his text." Sahil spoke giving back her phone after archiving the contact.

Swara looked at the phone for few moments she then sighed before nodding yes taking a deep breathe. He forwarded his hand once again. She looked confused once again and he signed her to hold it. She held it.

"Until you ask me to leave from your life I am not going to leave you!" he said staring straight into her eyes.

Swara's eyes turned teary. She knows what those words means. She has decided what she has to do. She nodded with small smile with teary eyes making him smile wide.

*****

"Bhoo!" he screamed from behind her while she was so much engrossed in her work.

She got scared and screamed a bit in fear. She glared him realising it was him. He laughed loud seeing her scared and angry face. The clarification from Rudra has helped him to relieve from the discomfort he had all these days. He is at peace and had also decided that he is not going to stay calm or silent any longer. He is going to make ways by himself to show her that he loves her or at least to make her realise that she is actually being loved by him. He knows she is not ready for now but he also knows she has to move on and this way it would be easy for her too for moving on.

"Get Lost! You idiot!" she screamed back.

He laughed more and sat at his place.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I was thinking how it would be if I cook this laptop and have it for lunch!" she spoke sarcastically.

"Oh yeah! I forgot to say, yes it's lunch time. And my tummy is screaming to feed him. So are you coming for lunch?" he asked.

"Five minutes Sanskar. This will be done!" she said staring back at the screen again.

"Let's postpone these five minutes to post lunch!" he said closing off the laptop.

She glared him while he held her hand and just pulled her.

"Let me get my lunch box!" she said shaking her head.

"Yeah!" he said and left her hand.

He moved towards the canteen where everybody has their food. He looked at Zoya and Aditya who are already having their lunch.

"Oh here he is." Zoya spoke looking at him.

"You got my lunch?" he asked.

"No. This is for the invisible person sitting on that chair next to us." Zoya countered pointing at the box placed for him.

Sanskar nodded with tight lipped smile and took the box. He moved towards the place where he has been sitting since Ragini and he has become friends again. Ragini used to sit alone earlier as she used to call her family at that time and talk to them while having lunch. But from the time two of them became friends again, Ragini has shifted her family call time to evening and both RagSan are gossiping during their lunch. One of her colleagues has directly tried insulting Ragini about trapping one of the partners of the company to which Ragini smiled. This happened even before RagSan became friends. For few moments Ragini thought she need not answer or reply to her taunt but then Ragini thought it's good if she clears the things before they make up new stories and then she has to look for a character certificate to justify everybody around in the office. It's not for one day she is going to stay there. She needs to work there. She came here for peace but not for any other mess. So she had decided to clarify to her. She told her that Sanskar and she were friends even before she knows that he is one of the partners here or she has got the offer letter from the company. And currently not really in good terms while Sanskar is just trying to mend their relation. The colleague asked sorry and left from there while Ragini just smiled. From that day everybody in the office knew that RagSan were friends and nobody had dared to get any wrong thoughts regarding Ragini.

RagSan are having food while gossiping about some random series and movies when Sanskar's phone rang.

"It's from mom. I need to take!" he said before taking the call.

Ragini nodded.

"Hello!" He said as he took the call.

"Bhai!" he heard his sister from other side.

He sighed. It's been one and half months he spoke to her. He had been avoiding talking to anybody except to his mother occasionally to his father. He always ignored everybody's call except his mother's and father's .

"Uttu! How are you my bacha?" he asked.

"You will take only mom's call right!" she spoke sadly.

"It's not like that bacha. It's just that I am busy!" he lied.

"I can catch your lie. I don't know why you left all of us and went. Now don't say that you didn't leave and go but just enjoying with your friends. I am not a kid to believe. I know something is wrong. That's why you left all of us. Atleast take my call no bhai. I miss you. I miss talking to you. I miss complaining to you about mom." She said with teary eyes.

Sujatha caressed Uttara's hair from behind. Uttara was sitting low missing him so much and Sujatha couldn't see her daughter like that. She just dialled his number and gave the phone to her as she knows he would take Sujatha's call as he promised her.

"I miss you too my bacha. I am sorry. You are very understanding that you understood me so well. Give me just some time. I will be back. I promise." He explained.

"Will you just answer my calls? Please?" she pleaded.

He sighed.

"I will!" he said.

He is hurting everybody.

"So now bhai you have to help me!" she said coming back to her cheerful mood.

Sanskar smiled a little.

"Tell me!" he said.

"Bhai ask mom to send me to movie along with my friends pleaseeeee!" she dragged the word please.

"Is mom with you?" he asked smiling.

"Yeah!" she replied giving a look to her mother who is glaring her.

"Put phone on speaker." He said.

Uttara immediately changed the phone to speaker mode.

"Mom!" he called her.

"No I am not sending her." She said strictly.

"Why?" he asked.

"Because she does not want only girls to go to a theatre. I said to her that there are few boys too. Then she said then she will not send with boys only. I even promised her that I won't choose a partner for myself and will let her only choose. So she need not to worry. But still she is not accepting only." Uttara spoke before her mother could reply.

"But mom what's wrong if she chooses someone for herself. It has to be her who has to live with him. And beyond all these why does the topic of partner come when the topic is about going to a movie in a theatre with friends? Just because she has male friends that doesn't mean she is being unsafe or going with just with female friends she is being safe. Mom come on it's her college life. Let her enjoy. She is asking just for a movie." Sanskar explained his mom.

"You both just make me villain. Do whatever you want to." Sujatha said irritated and left from there.

Uttara giggled. Sanskar smiled at his sister.

"And you Miss. Uttara Maheshwari... Life doesn't go as you planned. You have to always be ready to deal with whatever you face. If at all you really find someone for you, tell me. Please don't do any thing in haste. Your bhai is always with you." Sanskar explained.

"I know bhai. You are the best. I Love You!" Uttara said happily smiling.

"I Love You too my Uttu. Now I need to go. Will talk to you later." Sanskar spoke.

"Bye Bhai!" Uttara cut the call.

Ragini is just listening to silently. She could hear few words from other side too. Though not completely she had understood atleast to some extent that he is away from his family due to something but not just for his work. Till now she thought that he came there just to take care of the business along with AdiYa but today she understood that he had his personal reasons too which she didn't know. She thought for a while thinking what those can be but she couldn't figure out anything.

"Sanskar!" she called him.

He looked at her.

"Why did you leave Maheshwari office and house and come here?" she asked.

Sanskar gulped. He did not expect her to ask this. He was about to speak an excuse when his phone rang again. This time he excused and went from there to answer the call. Ragini looked on. And the question went answered.

*****

Thank You for reading.

With Love

Dharani (Dhaరणि)