Ishq-e-Watan

Chapter 74- Reflections

CHAPTER 74

REFLECTIONS

"You seem better", Koel said, leaning against the desk.

Faizi glanced up, a small smile appearing on his face. He moved closer to her, snaking his arms around her waist. She smiled back, her arms hooking around his neck. "Aap hoti hain, mahutarma, toh sab waise hi behtar hota hai", he muttered, leaning forward and pressing his lips to hers.

"Faizi", she muttered between kisses, but he cut her off with another kiss. She broke the kiss, leaning back slightly. "You are okay, na?"

"Of course", he muttered. She gave him a look. He sighed. "I am okay, Koel. Kal kaafi der hum range par the. It helped."

"That's good." She gently pushed him away, and he took the hint, taking a step back. "Faizi... do you think you should talk to a therapist?" He paused at the unexpected question. "Shayad tumhe better feel ho."

"Hume therapist se baat karne ki zaroorat nahi hai", he dismissed, turning away.

"Faizi..."

"Koel", he said firmly, shaking his head. "Hum theek hain. Hume bas thoda waqt chahiye." She sighed, nodding.

"But promise me, if it gets too much, tum therapist ke paas jaoge. I don't want you to keep things in. It's not good. Promise?" He nodded and she smiled, nodding back.

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Karan glanced over to his brother, who stared at the screen. He wasn't sure what he was doing and at the moment, he wasn't particularly interested either.

"Bhaiya... mujhe aapse kuchh puchhna hai", he blurted out. Param looked at him, his eyebrows furrowing. He nodded. "Aap... Aap Bhabhi ke baare mein... kya feel karte ho?"

"Kya?" He stared at him incredulously. "Tu peekar aaya hai? Ya sar par chot lag gayi tere? Kya behki behki baatein kar raha hai? Main usse pyaar karta hoon. I love her."

"I know but how do you feel that? How do you... How do you know? How do you know yeh pyaar hai? And... jo aap mere liye feel karte ho, ya apne doston ke liye feel karte ho... how is it different? Bhabhi ke saath aisa kya alag hai? I know it's... it's not like jo woh movies mein dikhaate hain. Sab kuchh udh raha hai- baal, dupatta, dimaag. But... actually mein kaisa feel hota hai?"

Param turned his entire attention to him, staring at him. "Yeh achaanak tujhe romantic feelings mein itna interest kyun aa raha hai? Tujhe toh shaadi, relationships, romance, in sab mein koi interest nahi tha. Kya badla?"

He shook his head. "Kuchh nahi. I am just... curious."

"Yeh curiosity kahan se aa rahi hai?"

Karan rolled his eyes. "Arey, aa gayi kahin se bhi. Mujhe kya pata? Aa gaya dimaag mein. Mat batao. Itna bhaav kha rahe ho. Aur log bhi hain jinko pyaar hua. Kisi aur se puchh leta hoon."

"Agar kutta do pairon par chalne lage, toh hairaani toh hogi hi, na?"

"Aap mujhe kutta bol rahe ho?"

Param rolled his eyes. "Itna touchy mat ho", he snapped. "Kya jaanna hai tujhe?"

"How does it feel to be in love? How do you know you're in love?"

He paused, tilting his head. "Depend karta hai. Things are different from the start aur baad mein cheezen badal jaati hain, evolve karti hain. Maturity ki wajah se, aapke circumstances ki wajah se, comfort ki wajah se. But... when you're in love, all you really want is the best for that person. You want to be with them, you want to share things with them, you want to support them and for them to support you. You feel... like tu apne jaisa behave kar sakta hai unke saath. No pretenses, no judgments. Aisa nahi ki unke bina you are incomplete or something but you find somebody who fits in your edges. Tujhe samajh aa raha hai kuchh?"