The whistle of the train signalled the arrival of Ahmedabad-Mumbai express as Naina trembled like a leaf, fearing what the next few days might bring for her. Sameer seemed nonchalant as he munched on some peanuts-

"Arre itna darr kyun rahi ho? Yeh lo..yeh khao" he said forwarding her the packet, which was almost empty

"Yahan meri jaan nikli Jaa rahi hai aur tum maze se mung fali khaa rahe ho. Aur de bhi rahe ho toh yeh khaali packet. Do..yahan lao" Naina snatched the packet, gobbling the remaining few nuts to ease her tension

"Arre. Yeh kya Naina saara kha liya. Not fair haan" Sameer said, shaking the packet upside down for any remnants

"Abhi mere papa aa rahe hai na. Woh hum dono ko toh aise mein hi kaccha chabane waale hai" Naina said, biting her nails

Sameer saw a middle-aged man who looked like Naina's father coming through the gate, a grumpy look on his face with a young man behind him tugging a lot of luggage

"Papa! Arjun bhaiyya!!" Naina waved at him while they stopped together, taken aback.

"Tu yahan! Kyun aayi hai itni subah-subah? Koi zaroorat nahi thi. Hum aise mein hi tere yahan aane waale the" Rakesh said as he signalled Arjun to move fast

"Nahin. Aise kaise nahin aati." Naina said in a low voice as she bent down to touch his feet as Sameer looked in astonishment at her changed demeanour

'Yahaan to mizaaz badle badle lag rahe hai. Sherni bhi bheegi billi bani fir rahi hai ab toh' he thought as he saw Rakesh looking at him with narrowed eyes, as if trying to place him from somewhere

"Aur tum kaun?"

"Papa yeh Sameer hai aur-"

"Toh main kya karun? Yahan tere saath kya kar raha hai?" Her father clenched his teeth, about to burst anytime

"Poori baat toh sunn lijiye. Yeh mere dost ka bhai hai aur unhe laga aap ko help chahiye hogi, isiliye-" Naina tried to placate the situation. She had wanted to introduce them to Sameer first before dropping hints later.

"Ohh. Tab theek hai. Apni behen ko humari taraf se thanks keh dena humari bacchi ko apne saath rakhne le liye bure waqt mein. Par abb hum aa gaye hain. Ab meri beti ka khayal main khud rakh sakta hun" Rakesh said arrogantly.

"Aur tu. Bade sheher mein rehne lagi toh aise khule-aam kisi gair ladke ke saath station tak aa gayi? Sab samajh raha hun main. Ab main aa gaya hun na. Dekhta hun kab tak yeh sab chalta hai" he said in a threatening, low voice to Naina, ensuring that Sameer heard it though

'Aap aaye hi kyun?' Sameer thought, not feeling good about the situation, especially after seeing Arjun look at him suspiciously as they boarded the transport to go to his new quarters
_____________________________________________

*4 days later*

Sameer looked at his half-empty wardrobe which was void of Naina's things, she being gone to her brother's quarters. He opened his locked wardrobe to take out his beloved diary, to pour all his frustrating thoughts of not seeing his most cherished person due to the situation at her home where she couldn't even be seen with a male friend.

"Yeh aadmi hai ya Hitler? Jab bhi phone karo yeh nahi toh uska champu beta hi phone uthate hain. Jail bana ke rakh diya hai ghar ko. Abb meri diary bhi nahin mil rahi" he ranted as he couldn't find the diary anywhere

He dialed her number again, hoping the right person picks it up this time but it was her father again-

"Dekho yahan kisise baat nahin nahi karni hoti hai toh blank calls karke apne paise kyun barbaad karte ho?-"

Sameer disconnected, muttering curses as he sat down-

"Naina, yeh mera kya haal kar diya hai tumne? Teen din bhi nahi hue tumhe gaye aur tum soch bhi nahi sakti kitna miss kar raha hun main tumhe" he brought out her photo from his wallet, stroking it lovingly as he fell asleep on the mattress occupied by her before.
_____________________________________________

Naina flinched as her father shouted at the blank-caller. She knew Sameer must be calling her and she couldn't wait to get away from there, to her safe haven- Sameer

"Main na bahar taazi hawa khaa ke aati hun" she said, putting on her sandals hurriedly. Coincidentally, Sameer's apartment was in the neighborhood and she couldn't stay one minute away from him any longer

"Taazi hawa toh kahin bhaag ke nahi jaa raha. Itni jaldi kya hai? Aur dekha hai time kya ho raha hai?" Her father raised one eyebrow

"Woh kya hai na meri nayi saree tailor ko de aati hun. Yeh kuch der mein hi dukaan band kar dega.Main aa jaungi jaldi" she said, putting a saree into a hamper, to avoid more suspicion

"Mere saath toh koi 2 minute bhi rehna nahi chahta" Rakesh muttered as he saw his daughter running as if the house had caught fire
_____________________________________________

"Sameer!" Naina hit on the door with a force as Sameer got up with a jerk on hearing her voice

He opened the door, not believing his ears as he was immediately engulfed in a bone-crushing hug.

"Kahan chali gayi thi tum? Miss nahi kiya kya tumne mujhe? Ek phone toh kar hi sakti thi na" he said, lifting her up from the floor as he kicked the door shut.

"Miss toh bohot kiya. Isiliye toh tumhare phone ke baad bhagti hui yahan aayi hun..tumhare paas" she said, looking at him fondly, as if capturing all the contours of his face, imprinting it in her memory

He saw that she'd no problem in him lifting her off her feet as earlier and he didn't want to put her down so soon

"Yeh tumhara baap. Aur tumhara bhai. Inko koi aur kaam nahi hai kya? Jab dekho phone ke paas hi dera jama ke baith jaate hai" he complained once they were settled on the sofa

"Unhe shayad shaq ho gaya hai" she said, leaning on his shoulder, tired of everything

"Chalo tab unke shaq ko yaqeen mein badal dete hai. Kaho toh main tumhare ghar aake sab sach bol deta hun?"

"Abhi nahi. Mahaul bohot garam hai. Hume saiyyam aur dhairye se kaam lena hoga. Chachaji bhi yehi kehte hai"

"Kya- saiyyan aur- side se Sanskrit bhi parhane lagi ho kya?" Sameer said, scratching his head

"Ji nahi. Iska matlab patience- hume jald baazi nahi karni-"

"Ohh. Aisa bolo na" he said, wrapping his arms around her, kissing her cheek

"Tum na yeh sab mat kiya karo"

"Ohh. Tumhe bura laga. Tab yeh karta hun
Promise isse jyada accha tumhe kabhi nahi lagega-" he said, aiming towards her lips

Naina closed her eyes in anticipation and Sameer taking the hint, gently placed his lips on hers. He deepened the kiss, never wanting to separate from her, even in his dreams

"Bas bas romance ka quota itna hi rakho. Ab baaki jab hum phir se mile" Naina said, breaking away from him, creating a distance by placing her palms on his chest

"Kab milenge phir?" Sameer said, holding her tight

"Sapnon mein toh roz milte hi rahenge. Baaki ka dekha jaayega" she said as she listened to his heartbeats, the uncertainty of their relationship looming in their hearts

I think many have left this space☹️. Koi na. Anyways I won't do so😄. Do vote if you like it🤗🤗