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"Flight 287 from Amsterdam, Netherlands to London, England: Now boarding." the robotic loudspeaker called out to anybody who listened in the hectic airport of AMS.

Aarush looked over at his plane ticket, his heart filled with rushing adrenaline. He had been waiting for over an hour now, but all he's been thinking of was what his reaction would be when he sees the Big Ben in person for the very first time. 

"Vikas...? Tum theek hi hai na? I don't want you to have some sort of culture shock, aacha? Iss liye tujhe 'Jab Harry Met Sejal' dekhna chahiye, traveling ki baare mein bahut kuch sikhate woh film. (Vikas...? You're good right? I don't want you to have some sort of culture shock, okay? That's why you should've watched 'Jab Harry Met Sejal', they teach you a lot about traveling in that film.)" he said, trying to take his mind off the upcoming flight.

"Wah wah, ladies and gentleman, introducing the new Ms. Anupama Chopra everyone! " Vikas replies to him sarcastically. 

Aarush grinned and hurried to the plane with Vikas in tow. He knew the next hours were not going to bliss but as long as he had pen and paper, Aarush was all set.

"Here we go..." Aarush muttered, under his breath. 

When the duo reached the plane, they rushed to grab their respective seats before the aircraft filled up with passengers. Securing their baggage, Vikas flopped down next to him Aarush with a sigh.

"Aacha Aarush, yeh baatao- tumhe saach mein kabhi kisi si pyaar nahin kiya hai? Like seriously? (Okay Aarush, tell me- In reality, you've never loved anyone? Like seriously?)" Vikas asked gently, not wanting to ignite Aarush's lecture mood. 

Aarush thought carefully before answering.

"Mera matlab hai ki India ki sabse talented ladka ko ladkiyan ki attention toh milna chahiye na? (I mean that India's most talented man should get girls' attention right?)" Vikas added more, in hopes of getting a response.

"Of course, iss liye Salman Khan ki itni saree fan clubs hai yaar! (Of course, that's why Salman Khan has so many fan clubs, man!)" he replied with his signature smirk.

"Salman Khan? Uski baare mein kaun baat kar rahe hai? (Salman Khan? Who was talking about him?)" Vikas asked, scrunching his nose.

"Arrey! Tumne toh kaha ki "India ki sabse talented ladka" hai na? I thought ki it was obvious, nobody is more talented than Salman Bhai! (What! You're the one who said "India's most talented man" right? I thought it was obvious that nobody is more talented than Salman brother)" Aarush responded, in a victorious tone.

"Ho gaya? Why do you even try yaar, I'll find her one day. Tu dekh na, when I meet her, everything will shine brightly bilkul uski aankhein ki tarah. (Are you done? Why do you even try man, I'll find her one day. Just you watch, when I meet her, everything will shine. Just like her eyes.) " Aarush finished.

Vikas stared at him in wonder.

This girl will be extremely lucky if she found him.

Veena's POV

I looked over at Neerav who was still busy on the phone. 

"Yeh saala, humesha phone pe busy rehte. Uski koi naya girlfriend hai kya? Nahin Anushka Sharma pe kabhi nahin cheat karegi yeh. Chal rehende, usse bhi toh shaadi kar li Virat ki saath.(This idiot, is always busy on the phone. Does he have a new girlfriend? No, he'd never cheat on Anushka Sharma. Nevermind, even she got married to Virat.) " I thought to myself. 

I glanced at the clock for a solid six minutes when I realized that Neerav was still on the phone. Except this time, I only heard his voice coming from the kitchen.

"Arrey yaar, abhi bhi baat kar rahe? Kis se ho rahe yeh "important meeting"? (Oh my gosh man, he's still talking? Who is he having this important meeting with?)"  I wondered aloud.

"Yes, I'll be there!" Neerav's excited tone rang out.

I hid behind the wall next to the kitchen.

"Yes, I'm already marking it on my calendar sir-

I scoffed. Neerav is the worst at remembering dates. Lost in my thoughts, I neglected to see that Neerav had already ended his conversation with whoever was on the other line and was standing in front of me with a confused expression.

"Kya hai? Nahin matlab, chakkar kya hai? Naya girlfriend hai kya? (What is it? No, I mean, what's actually happening? A new girlfriend or what?)" I asked, trying to cover up the fact that I had been eavesdropping.

"Kya hua? Jealous? (What happened? Are you jealous?)" he instantly mocked her.

"Woh? Jis se tum badi angrezi se baat kar rahi thi? Kyun? (That? The person you were talking all mighty in English?)" I shot back.

"Aacha baba chill, don't worry about it. Main tumhe sab kuch kahega, sirf aaj nahin. Toh, tum bata- naya boyfriend hai kya? (Okay [pet name] chill, don't worry about it. I will tell you everything. But you tell me- do you have a new boyfriend?)" Neerav tried his best, shifting the spotlight off of him.

I studied his expression for a few seconds, but let it go. After all, he will tell me whenever the time is right but for now I'll just go with the flow.

"Kyun?Jealous? (Why? Jealous?)" I replied, mocking his previous answer.

"No. Kyun ki mujhse zyaada aacha ladka tumhe kahin nahin milne wala. 100% guaranteed! (No. Because you won't find a guy that's better than me anywhere. 100% guaranteed!)" he said rather proudly.

"Seriously? Tumne kabhi apne aap ko dekha hai? Bandar ki tarah lag rahi hai, shakal toh dekhne like hi nahin hai! (Seriously? Have you ever seen yourself. You look like a monkey, your face is not even viewable!)" I responded, sticking my tongue at him.

"Well news flash Veena- agar mein bandar hai toh tu bhi toh hai! Human evolution ki baare mein kabhi suna hai? Obviously not, tum toh history se pyaar hi nahin karte! Bechari. (Well news flash Veena- If I'm a monkey then so are you! Have you ever heard of human evolution? Obviously not, you don't have any love for history! Poor girl.)" Neerav declared, ending his speech with a victory dance.

"Idiot!" I said, not being able to say anything in retaliation. 

"Aacha? Hum toh sirf do hai- theen kaun banegi? (Really? We're just two-who will be the third?)" he jokes, making a reference to my favorite film, 3 Idiots. 

"Shut up!" I laugh, and chase him around the house. 

After what seemed of running, we decided to watcha movie to end the day. However, before I put in the CD, a big news headline appeared on the screen.

"India ki popular dilwaala Aarush Singhana, London ki stages pe rock karenge par woh iss vact, airport ki security ki cutsoms mein hi hai. Lagta ki uski zyaada female fan following uski peeche padha hai, aur iski wajah se woh airport ki bahar jaa hi nahin sakti, (India's popular heartthrob Aarush SInghania, is all set to rock London's stages but right now, he's entangled with airport security customs. It looks like his big female fan following is after him and for this reason, he cannot step outside the airport.)"  it read.

I got up from the kneeling position, to see a better picture of his face, only to see that the screen was replaced with a commercial about Kurkure . After silently cursing myself, I put the CD in and the bright colors of Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge  appeared on the screen. 

"DDLJ again?" I hear Neerav groan behind me.

"Do you have a better idea then sir?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania-hands down"

"Are you kidding me? That's basically the same thing, except more trashier!" I call out, ready to defend Simran and Raj. 

"Simran and Raj over Humpty and Kavya any day, anytime, anywhere." I glare, as he makes the same statement in reverse. 

After an intimate stare down, I saw his lips twitching, knowing that he was going to give in any time. Neerav let out a laugh and put his hands up in surrender. 

"Aacha fine- Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge  it is." he groans again.

"Good. Ab tu idhar aa aur dekho film. (Good. Now come here and watch the film)" I say, gesturing him to sit next to me.

Halfway through the film, I'm on the edge of my seat as usual and Neerav is sleeping...as usual. 

His head is leaning on the right crook of my neck as I watch Raj getting thrashed by Simran's family for the sixth time. 

After a while the screen went blank, indicating that the movie was over. Not having the energy to eject the DVD, I also shut my eyes, leaning on Neerav. 

...............................................................

And that was the chapter yoooo! Firstly, I'd like to thank my pyaari Aisha for creating the pretty banner up there yoooooo! @itsme_nithi 💕

But yesssss did anyone get chills about reading the part of Veena watching the news? Yes, everything is such a big mystery right now, but I promise everything will get interesting soon ;)

Sooooo please do comment, I love hearing everyone's thoughts! And don't forget to vote while you're at it :P 

Thank you for the wonderful responses towards this book and stay tuned for the next chapter, as the story unfolds!

                         With much pyaar, 

                                                     rani ✨