Thanks for all your inline comments guys ♥️ this update was ready two days back itself, but I was busy with something and could not post it 😒

Anyway, hope you have a happy Reading as we step into a "happy" new year ♥️😃

Special dedication to mumbaichic and ishqbaaziiii for the right guesses.. a partial dedication to jiya070 for the partial guess 😉

And oh yes, another special dedication to Karthisundar since her favourite character Is here 🥳

*************************************

"I am leaving now. Take care and yes take care of her too! She is very important!" Shivaay stated abruptly and left.

Annika sat down on the sofa with a thud and her eyes were automatically clouded. Involuntarily, little tears rolled down her cheeks.

She slightly composed herself wiping her eyes when her phone beeped and it was a text from Shivaay.

"Forgot to tell you. On the way home, I had taken her to a nearby clinic. The doctor had given an injection and said that she would feel drowsy for few hours. But, she fainted suddenly due to shock. Anyway, nothing to worry! Just take care and like I already said, she is very important!"

"Very important?! Then what about me? Atleast, he could have given me some more details right?! What was so urgent?!" she whined.

"Come on, Annika. This is peaks of immaturity! I mean, you are not ready to take your relationship forward. You are still confused if you have any feelings for him. You were even happy that he does not remember about his confession. But, at the same time, you are also upset that he forgot everything and now he cares for another girl.. Don't you think this is too much?!" it was her alter ego questioning her.

"Haa toh! So what if I am confused. All of a sudden, he will bring some random girl and say she is important, won't I feel bad?!" she thought.

"He says she is important since she is injured and unconscious! You know that he is very caring right?" her alter ego reasoned.

"Of course he is caring! He cares for me also so much! Huh.. no no no.. caring for me and others is not the same! What the hell is happening?!" she whimpered again.

"Come on Annika! You can't be both possessive and indecisive ok?!" it voiced.

"Wh.. what?? What possessive?! Aisa.. kuch bhi nahi hai.. It's just that.. just that I am a little huh.. ok sad! That's it!" she pouted. "But then, who is this girl?! I mean I am sure I have seen her somewhere" she thought.

She advanced closer to her who was still unconscious and looked at her face closely, and then began thinking.

"Where did I see her?! Rudra? Rudra showed me her pic?! Yes I guess so!! Let me go and check those albums. I maybe able to get some clue from there!" she faintly remembered something and walked towards the loft where she had placed that carton box which had arrived from Mumbai.

She placed a stool below and carefully climbed on top of it. As soon as she opened the carton box, her lips curled into a smile. The first album contained Shivaay's childhood photos and she began admiring them when suddenly realization struck her.

"Annika, you can check him out later, okay! Check that album which you were actually looking for!" her mind warned her and she gulped.

Then and there she found it, Shivaay's twenty fifth birthday's album. She remembered Rudy telling her that it was a surprise planned by the family. Shivaay had been away on a conference just before that and was arriving exactly that day, which made it easier for them to plan things.

As she flipped through the pages of the album, she identified the picture right there, with Shivaay, his brothers, Pinky aunty and the girl. As she further tried recollecting details, she got reminded of something.

"Rudra told me she is a good friend. Acchaa.. So, she is Shivaay's friend. And, this happened two years back. Whaaaat? Is it that girl by any chance?! What was her name? Sia? No No.. Tia. Yes Tia was her name. But, I remember pretty well he referred to this girl as a good friend. Haa, but she was also a good friend initially right?! Ho saktha hai. Anyway, she must be married now" she smiled and then realized "What? What nonsense am I thinking? Anyway... But then, Tia is a sophisticated girl. This girl seems to be nicely and fully dressed. Huh, whatever Annika!! What gives you such absurd thoughts?!" she facepalmed for her overthinking.

"Anyway, now I know she is a friend. And, probably, that is why Shivaay said she is important. But then, Pinky aunty was standing so close to her in that photo and smiling at her too. There is also another photo of just the two of them alone" she sniffed, placing the album back inside and getting down.

"Will you stop overthinking?!" she told herself, when she noticed the girl slightly wriggling.

Holding her head, she slowly sat up on the couch, rubbing her eyes. Annika quickly paced towards her.

**************************************

Shivaay was completely tensed with the recent happenings in his company. Though they had begun the construction of the hotel building very well on time, in the last two weeks, four to five workers had stopped reporting to work. The building contractor had informed him that they had fallen sick due to the fluctuating weather and would definitely come back soon. This had however hampered the work and things had become slower thereby getting Shivaay anxious.

On normal days, Shivaay would still have managed everything. But, this being a Japanese client and with their affinity towards perfection, he would not be able to give any excuses for long, which got him all the more worried. Additionally, the morning's meeting was to discuss the progress and Shivaay had to cover up for the time being until he found a concrete solution.

Just when he sat wondering what he could actually do to work out the whole thing, someone knocked on his cabin door.

"Yes, Come in" he answered. It was the building contractor himself, along with one of Shivaay's employees Dhruv.

"Sir I have some good news for you" the contractor said happily.

"Yes please?" Shivaay asked curiously.

"Sir, I managed to arrange seven people for the work. Don't worry Sir. They are trustworthy too. And, we can soon get back on track and finish things very well on time" he assured.

"That's great. Thank you, thank you so much" Shivaay was genuinely happy. He was so disturbed in the morning that he could not even say a proper bye to Annika, which still bothered him.

"It is my responsibility Sir. Sorry for the confusion during the last few days, I will make sure it does not happen again" he promised.

"No problem. Thanks for the timely help" Shivaay smiled and heartily thanked him after which the guy left.

"Dhruv, inform Mehra about this. He was also quite worried, in fact more than me. He will be happy now" Shivaay suggested to receive no response from Dhruv.

"Dhruv. Hey Dhruv" he called twice bringing him back to normalcy.

"Sss.. sorry Sir. You said something?" he asked.

"I asked you to inform the good news to Mehra. What happened, huh?" he asked.

"Haa Ok sir. Will do it right now" he replied walking out. All that Shivaay could make out from his behaviour was that he was disturbed!

*****************************************

"Hi.. you okay? Feeling better?" Annika asked her as she got up, extending a glass of water towards her.

The girl looked around the house. Annika assumed that she was looking for Shivaay.

"This is Shivaay Singh Oberoi's place. Don't worry. You are safe here" she assured.

"Of course I know it is Shivaay Singh Oberoi's place. How would I not know the place where I belong?" she gave a subtle smile and Annika's eyes widened in shock at that.

"You feel better now?" she questioned when the girl got reminded of the event that occurred sometime back and started sweating profusely.

"Hey what happened. You okay?" Annika gasped looking at her panic-stricken face.

"Haa.. Haa. I am okay" she stuttered and Annika offered her another glass of water.

"What happened?" Annika asked again looking into her eyes and holding her hand supportively, understanding that something was definitely wrong.

"Woh actually. Actually I came here for a training programme. I... I had booked a cab. But, looks like the address was wrong. The driver dropped me in the next street saying he can't proceed any further and I had no option, so began walking towards this place using the map when a gang of street guys followed me and tried to.. tried to make fun of me.. I nearly began running and was almost about to get hit by a car when he.. he correctly saved me" she stammered.

"Who, Shivaay?" Annika asked and she nodded.

"He is always a saviour. He is there right on time when people land in trouble" she said and Annika did not know how to react. She was both happy and confused. She simply nodded in agreement.

"Don't worry. You are safe now. Just forget about it" Annika tried convincing her and she agreed hesitantly.

"Where is he?" she asked innocently.

"Huh, Shivaay is at office. He is busy. Will be back soon" Annika replied bluntly.

"Oh.. But, you know. Whenever I come, he makes sure to stay back at home just to spend time with me" she said and Annika gasped.

"Huh? What? Don't worry. He will come soon" Annika sighed. "Did you eat anything? Wait, let me bring something for you to eat" she added not knowing what to speak further.

"Wow.. beautiful photo!!" Annika heard her say as she walked out of the kitchen. She was standing near one of Shivaay's large photos that had been hanging near the staircase.

"He looks so handsome, right?" she added as Annika looked on with widened eyes. "I mean all the three brothers look very handsome, but one is of course extra smart" she winked and Annika was completely taken aback at the statement.

"What is this? This is going overboard now" Annika thought to herself.

"Waise. He looks smarter than before. Is this latest photo? It has been almost two years since I saw him" she expressed sadly.

"Two years? Then is this really that girl, Tia? Come on, Annika. How would she come here? But, what if she came? But then her dressing?! Argghh.. Why am I getting back to that point itself?! Waise, over two years, people may change also right? No no no. What is this happening with me?!" she wondered.

"This is not going to work out! Let me change the topic for a while" she decided.

"Huh, you came here for a training? What kind of training?" Annika asked eagerly.

"A fashion designing course, like a short internship programme. For a few days!" she smiled taking a bite of the sandwich Annika had offered. Annika recollected how once upon a time she also wanted to do a fashion designing course, but now loved organizing events. That seemed like a long time ago!

"Hmm yummy. I am having homemade food after like you know, so long" she smiled.

"It is just sandwich" Annika chuckled.

"Haa still it is homemade right?" she said chirpily and Annika simply grinned.

"What all do you cook? You are also good in cooking? I know that the Oberoi brothers are" she stated.

"She thought I am a cook or what?!" Annika blinked.

"You know they cook? How come?" Annika asked curiously.

"When I was in Mumbai, I used to be mostly at the Oberoi Mansion. There is nothing that these Obros have not made for me. They know anything and everything about me, specially one person" she blushed looking at the photo across the wall and Annika gulped harder.

"Looks like you are very close to them?" Annika asked.

"Hmm very.. we have roamed out a lot together" she squealed. "Specially with one person" she winked and Annika was yet again shocked.

"Does she even know that Shivaay is married and you are his wife?! Maybe not. Tell that soon, Annika! And, this Shivaay, let him come in the night. Roamed out and all huh?! He has nicely from me tonight" she thought.

"You were in Mumbai for long?" Annika was more curious now.

"I am in Mumbai only, right from the time of my high school. And I know these guys since then. That is why we are so close" she confessed, going on and on with her funny adventurous experiences in Mumbai and the quality time she got to spend with the Oberois. As much as Annika wanted to get irked with her, she could also see a miniature version of herself in the girl. She was quite chirpy as well, when something she said suddenly caught her attention.

"Wait a minute.. you said high school right?! so you were Shivaay's classmate?" she questioned.

"No... Omkara's" she clarified casually.

"Om? So, all this while, she has been talking about Om. And, like an idiot, I thought it was Shivaay?! Or, is it like, she used to come to Oberoi Mansion and then got close to Shivaay? Annika, no no.. no more overthinking ok" her mind warned her.

"Oh.. you are Om's friend. And, you were talking about Om so long?" Annika asked happily.

"Haa Bhabhi. I mean I was talking about others as well. But, yes. About the long haired guy too" she winked.

"Bhabhi?" Annika asked.

"Haa. You are Shivaay Bhaiyaa's wife, na. So, you are Bhabhi right" she chuckled.

"You know?" Annika was baffled.

"Of course, Bhabhi. What kind of question is that? Accha, you are asking because I was not present at your wedding. Unfortunately, I was busy with my exams in Pune then" she pouted and went on explaining to her how busy she had been in the last two years.

"I am Bhaiyaa's favourite after OmRuPri. Was he too worried, Bhabhi?" she asked a little while later.

"Hmm.. He was.. But, he was in a hurry. Had some meeting I guess" she smiled. "By the way, we have been talking for so long. But, I never asked for your name only" she facepalmed.

"Hahaha.. I am Gauri. Gauri Sharma" she said with a sense of pride.

****************************************

Since Mehra had received a personal call, he had asked Shivaay and Dhruv to proceed for lunch and that he would join them in sometime. They had also readily agreed and walked to the pantry.

"Dhruv, pass me that water bottle" Shivaay asked as they began eating and what he got in return left him bewildered.

"Dhruv.. I had asked for water bottle. This is sauce bottle" he said raising his brows and Dhruv was taken aback.

"Sorry.. sorry Sir.. here you go" he handed over the water bottle, however still seemed absent-minded. Shivaay noticed this but chose to remain quiet.

"That is Palak Paneer, right? Can you push that this side?" he asked again sometime later.

"Dhruv. This is Daal. I asked for that Palak Paneer" Shivaay sighed and Dhruv blinked.

"I am sorry, Sir. Really sorry. Here" he passed over the right container.

"What is wrong?" Shivaay asked and Dhruv simply shook his head.

"Come on, Dhruv. We are much more than just boss and employee here. You can share your problem with me. You very well know I wont judge you, right?" Shivaay stressed.

"Sir, it is kind of silly sir. I am sure if you will laugh" he replied softly.

"Silly? Why what happened?" Shivaay asked curiously.

"Sir. My wife is pregnant right. There is a small problem" he said hesitantly.

"Problem? What problem, Dhruv? Any complication?" Shivaay asked anxiously.

"No no, Sir.. Not medical. Huh, we can say psychological" he stammered.

"What do you mean?" Shivaay glared at him.

"Sir, you know right. Both her parents and my parents are not with us. They will be joining us a little later only. Since we live in a gated community, there are a lot of our neighbours who help her when I am not around." He briefed.

"But, that is a good thing right?" Shivaay wondered.

"Sir, that is not the matter. On their compulsion, we had a simple baby shower function during this weekend. Since she had invited her college friends, I had invited mine too. Did not know that will cause a problem" he expressed sadly.

"What happened?" Shivaay asked with uncertainty.

"My close friend, Rupa. She lives in the UK. And, she has come down to India. So, she wanted to come for the function. Tell me, Sir. What's wrong in that?" he whined.

"I don't know" he replied, unsure of where this was leading. "Huh, your wife did not know that she is coming?" he asked suddenly.

"She very well knew about it. In fact, she was happy also. But, that was not her problem. Her problem was.. " he paused and Shivaay looked on. "that I held her hand and brought her inside the house" he said innocently and Shivaay was taken aback.

"Held her hand meaning? I mean, I did not quite understand that" he scratched his forehead.

"That is the problem. She also did not understand. And, I have been trying to explain this for last two days" he confessed and Shivaay blinked at the answer. "Sir, Rupa had worn a saree and she was finding it difficult to handle walking with that, since she was doing this after long. That is why I helped her. I had no bad intentions" he clarified and that was when Shivaay connected the dots.

"Oh.. so she had a misunderstanding. She mistook both of your behaviour, is it?" Shivaay questioned and Dhruv nodded.

"Mmmm.. She is pregnant, right? So, she has a lot of mood swings. Other days were still manageable, Sir. But, this time.. She has not even given me the opportunity to explain it to her. What do I do? That is why I am so lost" he explained.

"Oh my God! I did not even think twice and I simply dropped Gauri home and came here quickly. Did not even explain anything. Mood swings? Oh no. Annika as such has a lot of mood swings! What if she is angry now? What will I do? Huh, how is that I am doing some real stupid things for the last two or three days" he cursed himself mentally.

"I will get her favourite icecream today. That is the only way I think I can convince her for now. She has been asking me for over a week and I kept denying. Now, this is a good opportunity" Dhruv stated confidently.

"So, should I also surprise Annika today?" Shivaay thought when an idea struck his mind.

***************************************

"Idiot! Idiot! Such an idiot you are!" Shivaay bashed himself as he drove the car.

"What the hell did you do?! What would she think now?! Did you even think once?" he continued.

"It would have taken hardly few seconds to tell her who the girl is. She is Gauri, Omkara's friend! See, just four seconds! Idiot, Idiot" he shouted.

"And, on top of all that, you said she is very important! Very good, very good! Now, Annika must be wondering 'so, if she is important, what am I?' Great, just great! How do you so wonderfully manage to go back to square one in a jiffy? Next time, you will be pushed out of that square also. Awesome, Great going!" he kept cursing himself as he drove.

"She is going to throw this gift on your face itself, mostly" he thought looking at his side seat gloomily. "If you go in this range, when will you profess your love to her, when will she accept it and then when are you going to start living with her? Next decade? Idiot! Your dreams are going to remain dreams now!" his banters did not seem to end even after he reached home.

He sighed heavily and walked towards the door slightly composing himself.

"Angry? Grumpy? Normal? Moody? How would she be?" he thought pressing the calling bell, but the sight in front of him left him astounded.

*****************************************

A very very very Happy new year 2020 to all of you guys ❤️🎉

Wish all your dreams come true and you all get all the happiness this year can give you 🥳

By the way, your views on this chapter?!

And yes, what are you expecting Billuji's gift to be??

Is Annika madam going to be grumpy or moody as he expected or is he in for some other shock??!

And, is this "girl" who has come really genuine??😉

Guess and comment in the box below 😉

Do not forget to press the vote button if you liked the chapter 😁