Opposite Poles..Part 69

Part 69

“What do I do now?” Khushi clutched her head sitting on the chair with a thud.  Rekha had no solution.  She only gaped at Khushi.  Khushi lost all her energy.  “Rekha Madam…?” she looked hopeless.

“Khushi.. let it go.  He will come around and understand!” Rekha tried to console her.  Khushi felt doomed.  She came running out of the cafeteria, to her cubical.  He was nowhere to be seen.  She kept glancing up at his cabin, hoping to see him glaring at her.  He did not.  

“Khushi it is your mistake.. you are guilty this time..!” she reprimanded herself.  “I will go and say sorry!” she got up from her seat and moved towards his cabin.  He was not there.  She looked around. The plant basket had disappeared.  Her heart ached. 

“No!” she blurted with tears in her eyes.  “Where are you?” she was desperate.  He had disappeared with the plants.  

She waited for him for the rest of the day.  He didn’t turn up.  She asked everyone around.. Even Aman did not know where ASR was.  Lavanya had not turned up at all.  Khushi couldn’t stop her tears.  She badly needed to talk to him and say sorry! She waited even after office hours for him.  When the office boy approached her asking her about when she was planning to leave, she gave up.

She came home completely lost.  Her Buwaji was waiting for her.  She opened the topic.  Khushi blew her head off hearing about Sham, Sham and Sham from Buwaji.

“Please, Buwaji if you discuss this again… I will leave this house..!” she said rudely, against her nature.  Buwaji looked shocked and then her rage went over the edge.  She kept blaming Khushi for every bad thing happened in that house, since Khushi entered her brother’s house.  Khushi retorted back in rage not knowing what she was retaliating for.  

Amma babuji walked in from Mandir.  “Khushi…!” Amma tried to stop her from yelling. Buwaji went on ranting about Khushi and bad omen. 

“Stop it!” Khushi yelled at the top of her voice.  Everyone fell silent.  Payal was so shattered, she couldn’t speak a simgle word. 

“Khushi.. JABAAN  SAMBHALO! Mind your language, Khushi!” her babuji held her hand and Khushi broke down. 

“Babuji…!” she sobbed.  Her babuji held her tightly and said, “We will talk about it later!”

“Jiji..Please stop talking about it now!” he pleaded Buwaji.  She went out stomping and muttering.  Khushi sat on the chair with a thud clutching her head.

“Babuji, I don’t know, what wrong with me!” she was miserable.  Babuji too looked serious about Khushi’s outburst.   Khushi had never reacted in such a manner.  He didn’t say anything but requested Amma

“Garima ji.. Khana Lagaiye! Let us have dinner..!” Garima went in with Payal.  Buwaji was still ranting sitting outside, cursing Khushi for everything.  

Khushi came to her room completely exhausted.

“Khushi, KYA   HO   GAYA   HAIN   TUMHAIN? What’s wrong with you, Khushi?” Payal asked aghast.

“PATA   NAHAIN  JIJI… HUM PAGAL HO GAYE HAIN, SHAYAD..! I don’t know.. I think I have gone mad!” Khushi said all lost.  Payal took her head on her laps..

“I think its your work pressure..! I am sorry Khushi, I am not been much help!” Payal whispered apologetically. 

“No Jiji… Khushi held her hand.  Both of them couldn’t sleep for a long time.  In fact no one in the family slept that night.   

Amma was scared to the core looking at Buwaji’s outburst against Khushi.  She knew they had nowhere to go, if Buwaji drove them out of the house.

Babuji had a chest pain which he hid from everyone.  He had a threat call in the evening warning him about threat to Khushi’s life.  He had just disconnected the phone without responding to it.  But he grew anxious about Khushi. 

Buwaji had not seen this side of Khushi.  She desperately wanted Khushi to accept Sham’s proposal and wanted to free her brother from half of his responsibility.  Sham had promised her to look a good groom for Payal too.  She was happy with Sham and wanted him to be the son in law of this house.  She just was not bothered about any background check of Sham Manohar Zaa!  Sham was winning.

**********   ********  ********

ASR couldn’t close his eyes that night.  He was restlessly pacing his room.  He thought about his concern about Khushi when he heard about her fall and then she had busted it on his face.  He felt insulted, fooled .. !

“You have lost my trust, Khushi Kumari Gupta..! I am not bothered about you anymore..! you are nobody for me from now on!” he declared clenching his fists.  

*********  **********  *******

Khushi reached office in time, hoping he would be around.  She was stopped at the security.  She was given a letter.  She read it.  She was given the responsibility of inward – outward register and she was shifted to the security cabin for this work.  She couldn’t even go inside.  She felt a surge of pain.

“No! I must meet him…!” she took her notebook and went inside against the advice of the security officer.  Her cubical was cleared, empty with no computer, no files! She looked up to his cabin.  She saw him talking to Aman.

“Sir?” she was at the entrance.  Aman looked at her gravely and glancing at ASR, left the cabin.  She could sense a change in him.  His muscles flexed, body stiffened, his eyes spat hatred.  Khushi couldn’t withstand.

“Sir..!” she said in a small voice looking at him with some hope.  He didn’t answer.

“Umm.. I…I..!” she didn’t know from where to start.  “I… am sorry!” she spoke with quivering voice. 

“You are transferred, Ms Gupta!” he spoke like a stranger without even glancing at her.  She felt miserable.

“Sir!” she had tears in her eyes. 

“No use, Ms Gupta! There is no place for liars in this office!” he said with a straight face.

“Sir.. Please…!” she opened her mouth to speak and apologize.  She had no justification for her deeds this time.  She was at fault.

“You have proved yourself untrustworthy..!” he said.  She clutched the back of the chair in despair. 

“What should I do to win your trust back?” she asked hopefully.  He looked at her for the first time.  She had locked her fingers in front.  His heart ached; his eyes flickered for a moment.

“Nothing!” he shattered her hope.  A faint sob left her.  She came back to the security cabin.  

“Khushi… what are you doing here?” Regi asked loudly.  She gave him a fake smile.

“Duty change!” she said.  Regi stared at her piercingly.  She rummaged in her big bag.

“Umm Regi Sir! This is for Khushi… I won it!” she took out the pink teddy she won in balloon busting..! Regi smiled.  “You are just a kid..!” he left the security cabin.

Within fifteen minutes, Rekha paid a visit.  “Khushi, my gift?” she asked holding out her palm.  Khushi smiled and gave her the earrings she had bought for Rekha.  She felt better.  She couldn’t go in, but her friends could come out to meet her.  She smiled.

“Chamakili..?? What is this?” Lavanya barged in the security cabin to everybody’s shock.

“Chalo.. UTHO..I have some urgent work!” she said pulling Khushi’s hand.

“No, Lavanya ji.. I have a duty here! I will meet you in the evening..!” she said faintly smiling.  She felt a bulk in her throat.  Lavanya left muttering.. “I go and ask ASR!”

She barged into ASR’s cabin. Regi was already there.  He frowned looking at Lavanya.  “She will add fuel to the fire!” his past experience spoke in his mind.

“ASR, she is my assistant.  I need her help now!” Lavanya said to Regi’s surprise.

“Lavanya, Simran is your new assistant..!” ASR said plainly.  He had made all the arrangements. 

“But ASR, I need Khushi… not SIM!” she was furious. Regi looked surprised at Lavanya’s changed attitude towards Khushi.

“Can’t help!” he shrugged.  “ASR.. it was just in innocent lie!” Regi pleaded.  ASR refrained from reacting.  Regi left without a word looking at ASR’s stone face. 

Lavanya stood there folding her arms.  She wanted Khushi badly.  ASR remained unmoved.

In the afternoon Khushi was sent to her old office with the files.  She was happy to visit her colleagues.  But didn’t stay there for long and came back to her duty in the security cabin.

********   *******  ********

Khushi came home late in the evening.  “Babuji..!” she came to his room after dinner.  She talked to him for a long time telling him how she overacted and faked her pain to avoid work.  Babuji was serious.

“Babuji, what should I do to win his trust? I can’t stay like this” she sobbed.  Her babuji kept stroking her head for a long time lost in thoughts.  

“What you did was wrong..! You tried to avoid your duty..!” he encapsulated.  She nodded in acceptance. 

“Khusi betiya… keep doing your duty honestly! You will be provided with an opportunity to prove yourself.  Till then you have to endure! That is your penance..! It’s a sin to avoid duty!” he said gravely.

Her endurance began.  Her friends used to visit her.  Lavanya was furious.  Every now and then she used to be with Khushi to the annoyance of ASR.  

“Chamakili… I talked to Naniji.  You know, she was happy when I told her that you are ready to teach me the basics!” she said excitedly.  Khushi shuddered thinking about ASR.  She had not seen him for a couple of days.  She couldn’t ask anyone about him.  

“Chamakili… don’t worry.  Nani will talk to ASR and manage everything.  She promised me!” Lavanya gave her a ray of hope.  Khushi smiled.  “Is this he opportunity for which I waited?” she thought to herself.  A pleasant smile appeared on her face after a long time…!