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"Saloni?" Asked Veer and Krish coming forward while Sidharth just frowned looking at Saloni and Shehnaaz gave a confused look.

"Sorry guys thoda late ho gayi. Woh Dad ke waha se aane ka mann nahi kar raha tha. Upar se I was heartbroken, heal hone mein thoda time lagta hai. But now I'm absolutely fine so I came back. Baatao concert kab hai? Hum sab milke khub practice karenge." Said Saloni smiling, being overexcited.

Veer and Krish looked at each other not being able to understand how to tell her the truth as they knew what her reaction would be and it would be difficult to calm her down.

"What happened? Say something. Shocked ho gaye kya mujhe dekh ke?"

Saloni's eyes suddenly fell on Shehnaaz and she asked curiously, "By the way who's she?"

Sidharth now came forward saying, "Meet Shehnaaz... She is the female lead singer of Rocking Rebels."

Saloni's face fell hearing that.

"What? Are you kidding me?" She asked with disbelief.

"Nahi Saloni. Tu band chhor ke chali gayi thi. Concert saamne hai isliye humein Shehnaaz ko rakhna padha." Said Veer.

"So you guys replaced me?.... Seriously? Itne saal maine iss band ko isliye diye taa ki tum log mujhe aise suddenly replace kar sako?" Said Saloni loudly, her anger was rising.

"Saloni tu khud band chhor ke gayi thi." Said Krish. "Tune kaha tha tu wapas nahi aayegi. That's why we started finding a new singer. Humne social media pe audition ka post bhi daala tha, woh dekha nahi tune?"

"Mujhe laga tha woh post mujhe dikhane ke liye tha. I never expected tum log sach mein meri jagah de doge kisi ko bhi."

"Not kisi ko bhi, she is an amazing singer." Said Sidharth correcting Saloni. "And the world doesn't revolve around you, Saloni, ki hum sab kuch tujhe dikhane ke liye kare. Tu band chhor ke gayi thi, that was your choice. Now don't interfere between us. Humara important event hai, humein practice karne de."

Saloni paused for a while controlling her frustration and then said, "Ok fine. Yeh concert kar lo, isme ab zyada time nahi bacha. Uske baad isko hata dena, main band join kar lungi phir se."

Shehnaaz looked down sadly when Sidharth declared, "Shehnaaz humare band mein permanent hai. She is not leaving. Aur waise bhi tera kabhi band mein interest tha nahi. I guess tujhe woh hi karna chahiye jis mein tujhe actually interest hai."

Saloni's expression changed as she felt insulted. She couldn't control herself anymore and glared at Sidharth.

"Tu ek baar phir se mujhe reject kar raha hai? Apni life ke saath saath iss band se bhi nikaal raha hai mujhe? Woh bhi iss behenji ke liye?" Her gaze shifted to Shehnaaz, her voice dripping arrogance.

"Ab mujhe yaad aaya, ek competition mein dekha tha maine isse. Classical singer hai na yeh? Ab Rocking Rebels ke itne bure din aa gaye ki ek classical singer ko band mein rakhna padha. Itni bhi kya majboori thi guys? I can understand tum log apni so called ego ki wajah se mujhe band mein nahi rakhna chahte but kam se kam iss behenji ko toh mat rakho, as a lead singer. She doesn't even fit here."

Shehnaaz's eyes became teary hearing Saloni's harsh words as she felt low of herself. Meanwhile Sidharth was just staring at Saloni angrily, fisting his palm to control his anger which was building inside him hearing nonsense about Shehnaaz.

"Saloni can you just shut up?" Asked Veer angrily. "You can't insult her like this."

"I think you should leave. Let us practise please." Said Krish being annoyed as well.

"No, she won't go anywhere." Declared Sidharth and looked at Saloni. "First say sorry to Shehnaaz."

Saloni looked at Sidharth with disbelief and said, "You think I will say sorry to her? Aisi behenji types ke na main muh bhi nahi lagti, sorry bolna toh dur ki baat hai. But it's sus... Tu kyu usse defend kar raha hai? Yeh sirf band ki lead singer hai isliye yaa koi aur reason hai? Waise maine suna hai aisi behenjiya ladke patane mein expert hoti hai, apni masoomiyat ka dhong karti hai aur ladke waheen pighal jaate hai. Tu bhi pighal gaya kya?"

Saloni gave an evil smirk while Shehnaaz couldn't take it anymore. Before Sidharth could say anything, Shehnaaz took her bag and left from there wiping her tears.

"Shehnaaz listen to me.... Shehnaaz...."

Sidharth sighed and looked at Saloni angrily who was giving victorious smile.

Later in the evening...

Shehnaaz was wiping the dust from her veena and harmonium while her mind was still stuck on those harsh words said by Saloni. She knew she shouldn't have let it affect her as that person didn't even matter to her. But sometimes small incidents triggers our emotions in such a way that we start doubting ourselves.

Shehnaaz was lost in her thoughts when suddenly she heard the sound of her doorbell. She went and opened the door only to find Sidharth and his friends standing there.

Before she could say anything, Sidharth entered saying, "Paata hai tumhari Mummy ghar pe nahi hai, meri Mom ne hi unko aur baki auntiyon ko kitty party mein bulaya hai aur tumhare Papa office se late ghar aayenge. That's the reason we are here."

"Tum log jamming ke liye aaye ho na?" Asked Shehnaaz looking at them. "I know subah mujhe aise jaana nahi chahiye tha...."

"Woh toh thik hai par hum jamming karne nahi aaye hai. We already had enough practice, concert se pehle iss se zyada practice ki zaroorat bhi nahi hai. Hum toh yaaha party karne aaye hai." Said Sidharth making Shehnaaz confused.

"Party ka khana...." Said Veer entering the house with packets of food.

"And music..." Said Krish entering as well, with his music system.

"Party? Achanak se? Mujhe kuch samajh nahi aa raha." Said Shehnaaz being puzzled.

"Humare Rocking Rebels ka ek rule hai. Agar concert se pehle humara koi bhi band member upset hota hai, toh hum sab party kar ke uska mood thik karte rahe, jis se humare concert pe koi asar na padhe. You know me, I'm very serious when it comes to music." Said Sidharth to which Veer and Krish nodded.

Shehnaaz smiled realising that her friends were there just to cheer her up.

"Guys let's start the party. Humare paas zyada time nahi hai. Iski Mummy wapas aa gayi toh gadbad ho jayegi."

Saying that, Krish switched on the music system.

As the music played, Sidharth, Veer, and Krish started dancing, trying to get Shehnaaz to join in. At first, she hesitated, still looking a bit down. But as the guys continued to dance and make silly faces, Shehnaaz couldn't help but crack a smile.

Sidharth, noticing her smile, grabbed her hand and pulled her into the dance circle. Shehnaaz laughed as the guys spun her around, singing along to the music. Veer and Krish did a particularly ridiculous dance move, making Shehnaaz giggle.

As the song ended, the group collapsed onto the couch, laughing and out of breath. Shehnaaz grinned at them, looking more like her usual self. She felt grateful to have such good friends.

Veer held up the bag of food. "Now who's hungry?"

The group dug in, eating the pizzas, brownies with a bottle of coke, as they chatted and joked. After a while, Krish suggested to put on a movie, and they spent the next hour laughing and quoting lines from their favorite film.

As the movie continued, Shehnaaz got up to wash the dishes. Sidharth followed her into the kitchen, offering to help.

"Tum jaa ke movie dekho na. Main yeh kar lungi." Said Shehnaaz but Sidharth didn't listen to her and started doing the dishes with her.

"Feeling better?" Asked Sidharth, to which Shehnaaz gave a slight smile and nodded in yes looking at him.

They finished the work silently. After that Sidharth said, "Tumse kuch baat karni thi...."

"Tumhe lagta hai iss shor ke bich baat ho sakti hai?" She asked pointing towards Veer and Krish who were laughing loudly while watching the movie.

Sidharth huffed and asked, "Kahi aur chal ke baat kare?"

"Aur koi option nahi hai... Let's go."

Shehnaaz guided him towards the balcony and they both stood holding the railings.

"Main Saloni ki taraf se maafi maangta hoon tumse. Woh pehle humare band ki lead singer thi. She is like this only, stubborn, impulsive and humesha overreact karti hai. Par humne expect nahi kiya tha ki woh itna neeche gir jayegi. Sorry uss waqt humein usse itna bolne ka mauka hi nahi dena chahiye tha. We should have thought that you might get hurt." Said Sidharth looking at her with guilt.

Shehnaaz smiled and said, "Sach kahu toh iss mein tumhari galti nahi hai. Even galti Saloni ki bhi nahi hai. Main hi uss waqt apne emotions ko control nahi kar paayi thi. Koi kuch bole toh uska jawab dena mujhe bhi aata hai. Lekin Saloni ne jo kaha.... Woh main pehle bhi sun chuki hoon. Mere piche meri kayi classmates kaha karti thi ki main behenji types hoon, abhi bhi kehti hai. Zyada tar toh main ignore kar deti hoon par kabhi kabhi bura lag jaata hai. I know main aaj kal ki modern ladkiyon ki tarah nahi hoon, outdated hoon, fashion sense bhi behenjiyo wali hai, ab kya karu, aisi hi hoon main. Inn sab ke bawajood tum logo ne mujhe apne rock band ka hissa banaya, pata nahi main yeh deserve bhi karti hoon ya....."

"Of course karti ho!" Said Sidharth loudly before she could finish. "Dekho tum na aaj yaaha sirf apne talent ki wajah se ho. Aur log toh peeche bolenge hi, kyu ki unke paas tumhare jitna talent nahi hai, so they all are jealous of you. Unki wajah se khud pe doubt mat karo. Iss duniya mein har koi ek jaisa nahi hota. You are perfect in your own way. Isliye kabhi bhi kisi ke liye bhi khud ko mat badalna. Tum jaisi ho waisi hi mujhe pasand do."

Saying that, Sidharth looked away while Shehnaaz looked at him with wide eyes hearing his words. Her cheeks heated up while Sidharth realised what he just said.

"Main singing ki baat kar raha tha. As a singer, tum mujhe... Sirf mujhe hi nahi hum sabko bohut pasand ho. That's what I was saying." Said Sidharth and gave a sigh of relief thinking that he was successful to make an excuse.

Shehnaaz's lips curled up to a smile but she tried to hide it and said, "Hmm samjhi. Waise Saloni ke baare mein kya khayal hai? Woh tumhe pasand nahi hai? Aur main as a singer nahi bol rahi hoon."

"Kya matlab?" Asked Sidharth frowning.

"Matlab tumne Saloni ko reject kyu kiya tha? Woh aaj jaise tumhe dekh rahi thi, pata chal raha tha uska dil tuta hai.  Usne mujhe jo kuch bhi bola woh isliye bola, kyu ki woh hurt thi. Actually woh itni bhi buri nahi hai."

Sidharth nodded in disbelief and said, "Wah. Jisne tumhe itna sunaya tum uski side le rahi ho. Anyway that's your personal choice. Mujhe uss type ki ladki bilkool acchi nahi lagti."

"Of course, you are very choosy I know. Toh tumhe kis type ki ladki acchi lagti hai?" She asked teasingly.

"Umm.... Mujhe...." Sidharth thought for a while and then said with a mischievous smile, "Pammi Aunty ke type ki ladkiya pasand hai. Haste haste aisi teekhi baatein keh jayengi phir main bhi palat ke kuch bolunga, pura din ghar mein kalesh hoga. Life kabhi boring nahi hogi."

"What?" Shehnaaz slapped his biceps while laughing. "Papa ko pata chala toh maar maar ke keema bana denge tumhara."

"You know I'm always daring." Said Sidharth with attitude making Shehnaaz nod in disbelief.

They both stood there for sometime, doing small talks while laughing and giggling together.

After that they walked towards the living room while Sidharth said, "Abhi main jaa ke Veer aur Krish ko bolta hoon ki woh bhi aa ke tumhe sorry bole. Dono movie dekhne mein kuch zyada hi busy hogaye. Galti akele meri nahi thi."

"Sidharth tum aisa kuch nahi bologe. Unki koi galti nahi thi, mujhe nahi chahiye koi sorry." Whispered Shehnaaz eyeing him.

They came to the living area, seeing them Veer and Krish went towards them.

"Shehnaaz... Woh humein na kuch kehna hai tumse..." Said Veer hesitating.

Shehnaaz and Sidharth looked at each other thinking that they were going to say sorry.

"Arrey ab tum log kyu...."

"Nahi Shehnaaz humein bolne do. Bohut zaroori baat hai." Said Krish without letting Shehnaaz finish.

"Yeah let them speak. Bolo zaldi kya kehna hai." Said Sidharth and Shehnaaz sighed.

"Woh humein kehna tha ki...."

"Yeh hi ki hum...."

Both were hesitating to speak. Finally Krish said, "Kya tum humare saath... Babli tero mobile, wah bhai teri ismile pe ek reel banaogi?"

As soon as he said this, both Sidharth and Shehnaaz gave them wtf look.

"Humara bohut mann hai Shehnaaz. Please maana mat karna." Said Veer making puppy eyes.

"Guys don't you think tum logo ko pehle isko sorry bolna chahiye aaj subah ke liye?" Asked Sidharth with a tight smile while glaring them.

"Arrey sorry vorry ki kya zaroorat? Hum friends hai. Humare bich aisi formalities nahi hoti. Isko pata hai hum aage se aisa kabhi nahi hone denge iske saath. Filhaal reel pe focus karte hai na?"

Sidharth couldn't understand what to say while Shehnaaz chuckled seeing these cartoons.

"Yeh reel aaj kal bohut viral ho rahi hai. Aur iss mein ek ladki aur teen ladke hi chahiye. Chalo na banate hai."

Veer and Krish started insisting leaving no option in front of Shehnaaz.

"Ok bana lenge...."

As soon as she said this, Veer and Krish became happy and said, "Very good, come."

They took Shehnaaz with them leaving a puzzled Sidharth behind.

"Arrey aisi reel viral hogayi toh T-Series ka contract milne se raha. Famous hone se pehle hi jokers ban jayenge hum sab. Koi meri baat sunta kyu nahi yaar?"

Sidharth went behind them and the rest of the time passed like this, with their fun banters.

Two days later...

It was the day of the concert. The greenroom was abuzz with excitement as Shehnaaz, Krish, and Veer waited for their cue to take the stage. But as the minutes ticked by, their enthusiasm began to wane. Sidharth was nowhere to be found.

"Sidharth abhi tak kyu nahi aaya?" Shehnaaz asked, her brow furrowed with concern. "We don't have much time."

"I know, I'm getting worried too," Krish replied, checking his watch for what felt like the hundredth time.

Veer suddenly came to the green room and said, "I talked to the host, woh humara concert kuch der baad rakhne ke liye maan gaye hai. But we can't keep them waiting for too long. Samajh nahi aa raha itne important din pe Sidharth late kaise ho sakta hai. He is not that irresponsible."

Shehnaaz nodded, her eyes scanning the room as if hoping Sidharth would appear. "Usko call kiya?"

Veer nodded. "Yeah, but it didn't connect. His phone must be dead or something."

The three of them exchanged worried glances. This was not like Sidharth, who was usually punctual and serious about this kind of occasions.

Just as they were starting to get really anxious, the door burst open, and Sidharth walked in, looking serious. But what caught their attention was the person walking beside him, Saloni.

"What the...?" Krish trailed off, his eyes wide with surprise.

Shehnaaz's eyes narrowed, her mind racing with questions. What was Saloni doing here?

Veer's face became curious, his voice low and even. "Sidharth, bhai tu kaha tha? And what's going on?"

Sidharth's expression was stern as he turned to Saloni. "Apologize to Shehnaaz," he said, his voice firm.

Saloni's eyes flashed with defiance, but Sidharth's unwavering gaze made her hesitate.

"Sidharth please. It was not a big deal. Why are you making me do all this?" she muttered.

Sidharth's jaw clenched, his eyes blazing with intensity. "Because you hurt her feelings and disrespected her. Now say sorry."

Saloni's face twisted in a scowl, but she seemed to shrink under Sidharth's unyielding stare. Finally, she muttered a half-hearted "Sorry" before turning on her heel and storming out of the greenroom.

As the door closed behind Saloni, Shehnaaz let out a soft breath, feeling a mix of relief and gratitude. She turned to Sidharth, her eyes shining with admiration.

"Main kal se try kar raha tha par yeh maan nahi rahi thi. End moment pe isko convince kar ke le aana padha. Sorry for getting late. But concert se pehle yeh zaroori tha. Everyone should know that nobody has right to disrespect our band member." Said Sidharth to which Veer and Krish nodded agreeing.

"Thank you, Sidharth," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "That meant a lot to me."

Sidharth's expression softened, and he smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners. "You deserve respect, Shehnaaz. And I won't let anyone disrespect you, especially not someone like Saloni."

Shehnaaz's heart swelled with emotion as she gazed at Sidharth, feeling a deep connection to him. She knew that she could always count on him to stand up for her, and that realization filled her with a sense of security and trust.
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