HEARTSTRINGS (Completed)

42 Question arrows

"Whaaat?"

"I'm sorry for forcing you but please, drink this" she again extended the glass.

Arnav looked at her for a few seconds penetratingly.

"Don't you think you are so demanding?" he asked folding his hands across his chest.

"But, is not it justified too...?" she questioned him back instead of answering him.

"Why would I listen to you? Are you my WIFE?"

No doubt, Khushi was surely shocked. She looked somewhere suffocating. What would she say, 'yes, I'm your wife?' what will happen then? She knew Arnav was watching her.

"Why are you talking like this, Arnavji?"

"It's because you are behaving like an adamant wife"

"Is it a crime to bring you juice or what?" she asked getting courage.

Arnav chuckled.

"Nope... not at all... but forcing me is" he stood up from the bed and stood close to her.

"This juice won't harm you but heal you. Then what's the problem?"

"Will you accept anything if it is forced on you?" he asked observing her keenly.

"Force...?" she sulked.

"Imagine that your mother and father... or brother and sister force you to marry someone who you don't like... what will you do? Will you marry the person?"

She looked at him with an odd gaze.

"Are the juice and the marriage equal?"

"It depends on the person and their attitude"

It seemed she could not stand his questions anymore. Khushi sighed and about to go, he blocked her way, extending his hand.

"That's all...?"

She looked at him plainly.

"I thought you won't back off easily..."

"When you think, I'm forcing you, I don't want to do it"

"Will you give up so soon?"

"I tried... I can do nothing if it doesn't work... and it is all about the person and his attitude..." she repeated what he said.

He took the glass from her hand, meeting her eyes, and sipped, making her smile. Taking a few steps back, he drank the juice studying her tip to toe. HIS WIFE... Of course, Khushi sensed his eyes on her that were wandering toward her. She felt a thousand watts' of the current pass in her body. Her milky white cheek turned all red within a few seconds. Arnav wondered, seeing that. Could anyone turn all red just by his one look? He saw her trying hard to hide all her nervousness from him. He never thought he would get such a fragile wife who preferred saree. Though he never had any expectations about his wife he never thought he will get a gorgeous, brainy, and cultured girl as his wife. He remembered the Taj Mahal man's words. 'I don't want mother but only you.' Now, he felt like 'he didn't want anyone but only Khushi'

Arnav lowered his eyes to her neck. Where was her Mangal Sutra? Did she remove it? His look sharpened. He saw a slightly RAISED-UP LINE running down inside her blouse. She must be hiding her mangal sutra inside her blouse. He supposed.

"You take care of me... I mean, take care of us a lot... don't you?"

Khushi said nothing as she didn't know what to say.

"Are you always like this?"

"I just do what I can do to others"

"Nice..." he sipped the juice.

Khushi wondered seeing him sipping the juice slowly instead of drinking it in a go.

"You stayed in my room once right?" he asked an unexpected question.

Khushi widened her eyes with shock and gulped down as she was not prepared for that question.

"Oh... I... just..." she fiddled with her shawl.

"Relax... Hari Prakash said the guest room had a drainage block that day... so, Di made you stay in my room"

Khushi sighed in relief. Arnav smirked, seeing her.

"But, instead of staying in Lavanya's room, why did you prefer to be in my room alone?" he threw another bombarded question at her.

"Oh... Lavanya would like to be alone..."

"But, I heard her pleading you to stay with her in her room yesterday. You too stayed in her room. Am I right?"

Khushi was thunderstruck. Did he hear their talks?

"That day, I didn't know she would like me to be staying with her" she handled him well.

Arnav nodded yes slowly.

"Your hair oil's smell is something... very nice"

Khushi's hand automatically touched her hair.

"My pillow still has the smell of your hair oil..."

Khushi looked at him getting stuck. He looked at the pillow. Khushi extended her hand and touched the pillow. Before she took it in her hand, Arnav clutched her hand. Khushi looked at his hand and then at him with shock.

"What are you doing?" he asked even though he guessed what she was supposed to do.

"I... think I should remove it"

"Did I ask you to do so?"

She nodded no.

"I said it's nice. If I said, it's nice, that means, I liked the smell. Will you remove it, if it gives me a good feeling?"

She again nodded no hurriedly. His slight smile churned her stomach.

"Why were you sitting in the GRILL-GATED room last night?"

Khushi was suffocating like hell. What happened to her Arnavji that he was pricking her with question arrows?

"I didn't get sleep... I came to the room to think about the GYM."

Cutting her,

"Do you think that room suits to be a gym? Doesn't it look like a JAIL? Don't know why, I'm not getting good feelings in the room. It makes me feel something horrible... I don't like that room" he said observing her through the corner of his eyes.

Definitely, Khushi became horrible hearing that. Did he really feel so? He flicked his fingers and Khushi looked at him.

"Where were you lost?"

She nodded no.

"You know what... your voice sounds like, I have heard it before..."

Khushi looked at him like, REALLY? Arnav nodded yes pressing his lips.

"By the way, where are you from, Khushi? What's your native?" he asked while drinking the last sip of the juice, reading her expression.

Khushi suffocated to answer. What would she say, 'my house is in Laxmi Nagar just a few kilometers away from RM?' Won't he ask her, 'then why are you staying in RM if your house is in Delhi?' She stood clutching her shawl.

That was when she got a call. Arnav saw an abnormal expression on Khushi's face. He could not say whether she was nervous or happy. The call was from Swamiji. Arnav shrank his eyes, like whose call was that?

"Excuse me..." she said, looking at her phone and rushing out to attend the call.

Arnav looked at her retreating figure thoughtfully. Why did she panic seeing the number? Don't know how many secrets these guys were holding in their hearts. It seemed he had to find mny things. He thought.

To be continued...