"Neetu beta reached?" Rita shukla enquired as she answered the call of her daughter probably to say they as a family had landed in Mumbai and were probably making their way home now. " haan mummy, bas ab I think 40 mins we will be home, waiting to have dinner with you" she cooed into the phone and signed off on the call and excitedly turned to Preeti who had gone to receive them from the airport "Preeti now his health is ok?" Neetu enquired about her brother. Though she had so much she wanted to ask discuss, the fact tbat he was so poorly ill and none of them around rankled all of the family and they were still walking on egg shells about him continuing in the show even when he clearly was struggling with his health. "Your asking about his physical health or mental health?" Preeti chuckled, before continuing after noting the fact that her sister did not take too kindly to the joke "Arre baaba
Mazaak kar rahi hoon! He is mentally strong but he is being ridiculously stretched to the limits by the other contestants. He promised mummy that he will quit if he can't handle it and we are also monitoring his food and nutrition closely and hats off to the colors team and the rules
Laid down by endemol for such things very professionally handled. So given everything yes he is going through a tough time but nothing he cant manage for now I suppose."
Neetu was pensive for a bit, suddenly she felt a surge of maternal love for her brother and she wished she could hug him tight even if it was just for a flash. She sighed deeply and was shaken by preeti when she asked "kya soch rahi hai? Your tired after the journey, What's up kya hua suddenly sad kyu ho gayi?"
"Nahin yaar just was missing the monster of a monkey, everyone is tearing at him and I caught the last few episodes on the flight, Shehnaaz also was aloof from him, knowingly or unknowingly somehow I think I was confident ke voh hai andar, bohot khayal rakhi vo uska hai na?" Neetu tentatively said, they were all at a precarious place with regards to her. And they all could sense that they could no longer treat her presence in sidharth's life lightly. She glanced at Preeti and waited for her to share where she was regarding Shehnaaz but Preeti too just looked intently back at her so Neetu continued off loading what was in her mind and said " I watched him watching her in the secret room and preeti woh invested lag raha hai emotionally. Hai na?" She asked pointedly and knew Preeti too shared that opinion because she vigorously nodded her head and then responded to neetu's queries with words "yeah bola hai usnay mummy ko ke voh Shehnaaz ka clothes Ken ko bolay co/ordinate karnay ko, he is definitely emotionally invested and you saw how that girl was lost without him? But now I a m
Worried yaar Neetu! Because you know how he overthinks everything, I don't know if I am able to explain what I am worried about, mummy you know is so rock solid calm and is now though just so zen that it is frustrating, she refuses to discuss what is going on in her head!"
Neetu could not help chuckle that was typical mummy, rock solid and certain that life would iron itself out! "Ha ha ha ha ha as always mummy for the win, anyway now that I am also here we will outnumber, tu tension mat le and tell me na what's the latest gossip in the family! Kin kin ki jalee padi hai bol na, Rita ke betay ka kartootein dekh ke!!' And both the sisters dissolved j to easy laughter and banter.
And as they walked into the house they were met with their eager mother relieved to have both her daughters under one roof, yes they were not all together but for now this would suffice and she was grateful for a great many things and for today she was happy that all her kids were healthy and happy and honest. She hugged Neetu tight and got scrambling to settle them down and beyond the obvious there was a glint in her eyes that both the daughters did not miss so preeti could not help but ask "mummy Neetu ko dekhay toh aap khush her hain that is obvious lekin kuch toh hai watsup Matashreee little mischievous smile is very suspicious?"
Rita Shukla laughed and said "yes yes bataathee hoon baba usko bhi aanay de and together will gupshuo, tere liye nimbu paani le aaon? You also must be tired na beta driving around in this traffic" saying this she got busy in the kitchens setting dinner out and preparing refreshments for her daughters, every now and then she broke into a wide grin and she could not wait for them to see the latest episode. But for now she wanted to catch up with both her daughters serve then a good hot meal and they all did just that and finally after everything was settled Neetu and preeti settled into their mum's bed room and Neetu had her head resting on preeti's lap as she has against the head board and their mother on the arm chair next to the bed and Neetu finally asked "mummy yaar now cut the suspense and tell na what's got you all giggling like this????!!!"
Rita Shukla chuckled and reached for the remote and said "ok ok better than me saying you guys watch the latest episode, Sidharth aur Shehnaaz ka patch up gaya na but Dekho tumhaaray bhai ka haal! Watch the episode and then we will chat" and so the three of them went on to watch the episode of the Mars captaincy task and great many questions about why their mum was amused willed. Both the sisters now along with their mum
Laughed out at glee at the way Shehnaaz seemed to think that Sidharth was supporting arti at the task and threw a tantrum and both the sisters sat gob smacked when they realised that instead of getting irritated with Shehnaaz for throwing her mug away and misunderstanding him, he actually went behind her to clarify things with her, albeit with his clenched teeth and low growl and then immediately switching to his usual wit and then watching her cling on to him and him actually relenting to it. Several times during this interlude the Shukla women paused and laughed incredulously at each other. In their laughter was satisfaction, though unvoiced, satisfaction nevertheless that their boy had found a match and found someone who drove him absolutely crazy and yet grounded him in ways their love never could.
Rita shukla watched, she watched with great contentment, she watched her daughters cheer their brother in every which way, cheer hai submission also, his submission to this girl who still remained an absolute stranger yet she managed to nestle into corners of their hearts and this home because of how she reached them through him. She watched her daughters slap each other in absolute glee when they saw how this unknown yet now familiar girl hugged their stubborn boy and demanded that he from now on explain things to him and rationalise her irrationality, where he previously avoided all things silly, they laughed in glee because he was now celebrating the silly and playing host to it. Preeti's voice broke through her thoughts "mummmy this is gold na? Kaisay yeh ladki iska yeh roop nikalwati hai yaar. She is really something." Then she turned to Neetu and said "tujhay pata hai that girl literally pulses with positive vibes, her stage presence was phenomenal yet something very earthy and personal about her." Then she again laughed out loud "ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha bolta hai tere man ke aagay peechay dolta rahoon, bechaara unknowingly confess kar gaya ha ha ha ha ha ha ha" at this all three dissolved into laughter and Rita Shukla quickly gather her wits and said "Arre you guys are missing out the best part, watch ahead!" And she played the episode.
"Gasp!!!! What!!!! Nooooo he did not! Mummy tell me what I saw did not just happen???!!!! Did he go all possessive on her? Preeti replay kar Yaar! Kya bolta hai voh!" She turned around to look at Preeti who hilariously just had her jaw dropped and frozen and just her eyes were blinking as semblance of life! "Preeti don't freeze on me woman replay kar and increase the volume what does he say! Mummy yaar why does your son mumble so much uff! Impossible idiot he is! Always has to make things extra difficult." Saying this she grabbed the remote and replayed the scene where Sidharth goes postal at Vishal hugging and kissing Shehnaaz after both of them were announced as contenders to the captaincy task!
Rita Shukla now was openly laughing and was enjoying the amazement and joy this moment brought into her room! For now it was Preeti squeaking" chummi lee? Is that what he says? Yeh bhool Gaya kya he is on television? Has typhoid messed with his faculties. Super private sey super public ho gaya launda! Mummy he is going to kick himself for this! I am now excited to watch him watch this ha ha ha ah ha ha ha kya kehthi hai shehnaaz?" And all three of them instinctively screamed "JULOOOS" and just laughed. Each hoping that their boy Sidharth who had upto now guarded his heart from pain would allow love to overshadow every disappointment and setback and give himself a chance. Easier said than done they knew but for the first time in his adult life they saw a sure shot at life their brother had, life in all its fullness.
Meanwhile back in the BB house after they moment of abject and mad posessiveness had reared its ugly head, Sidharth had without giving away too much walked into the house in a huff to get a drink of water and try and make sense of what just happened within him. But before he could start unraveling his thoughts to himself, he heard her familiar whine "sidhaaaaaarrrrth pls gussa mat karo, meko bohot time lagta hai yaar teko manaanay mein. Pls na jaldi niptalay, dekh mein daavaydaar hoon! Tunay meko theekh sey shabaashi bhi nahi di! Unh hunh!" Saying this she snaked her arms around his waist and hugged him from behind as he gulped the water. He breathed a deep sigh, gently turned around, held her face with both his hands and made sure she met his eyes and he softly said "Jaan meri, just ten mins meko space degi, promise uskay baadh mein khud tere paas aunga aur we will talk.hmm? Ok? Pls baby?" And he looked at intently at her and just could not help then look at her pout and also at the same time resist the urge to peck those lips of hers. Why was she so exasperating and yet so undeniably cute. He really wanted to fast forward this to the finale and get on with life!
She dejectedly recognized that he needed space so she relented but not before saying "theekh hai lekin meko kissie de phir chalaa jaa" saying this she cheekily tapped her lips and he let out a short groan and a chuckle and said "paagal hai tu, sach mein tera dimaag mars pohonch Gaya kya. Chal hath abhi pakka mat!" Saying this he quickly pecked her on the forehead as a truce and midway and unpeeled her gently and walked away for a smoke! He blinked hard and shut his eyes firmly because the onslaught of the feelings of jealousy and insecurity pricked at him and had caught him entirely unawares. When Shehnaaz went overboard with the Paras narrative he knew for certain it was all game. He did warn her from time to time that she was dabbling with Paras could prove detrimental but he knew enough of her core ethics and sensibilities to know that she would never really vibe with Paras and his attitude towards life relationships and money. Vishal was a curve ball! He did not expect to feel vulnerable towards Vishal! From the recent chai fight and general demeanour he recognized that Vishal would employ all tactics to gain the upper hand at the game...he would do it with the shrewdness that would
Swing between ethical and slightly unethical. And Shehnaaz was a weak spot for Sidharth and Vishal could possibly exploit that and yet it also remained an unvoiced fear for Sidharth that Vishal possessed wit and age and was more unentangled than he was and he did not know yet if that sort of thing would sway Shehnaaz away from him. The thing with insecurities was that they found a way to make anything and everything possible and right now it seemed a distinct possibility to Sidharth. He shuddered and yet composed himself and took the last drag of his cigarette and walked out. He went directly to the washroom, washed his hands and rinsed his mouth with freshener and walked out purposefully to set things right with Shehnaaz. He found her chatting with Vikas and Bagga around the dining table and she was standing there, he sauntered to them and without stopping he held her hair by the pony tail and continued walking towards the door to the garden area and watched in the mirror how she unflinchingly complied and cutely allowed him to drag her away.
Things like this filled his soul, how she matched to his every expression of belongingness, she matched it and then raised it up a notch, if he was tactile and demanding, she was compliant and compelling with how she expressed her stake over him. They both were crazy and he could sense that things just got a whole level more entrenched and intertwined because now their feelings were left more expressed than unexpressed and that the burden of the unvoiced was drowning out the voice of body language and touch. They had unwittingly worked them into a corner where what they showed needed to be confirmed with words and that was one thing he did not want to do within the walls of this make believe.
He noted with relief that there was no one outside and they settled on the floor against the pale blue couch, he sat first and pulled her in between his legs and she leaned into him with her arms locked on either of his bent knees . He held her tight by the waist and dipped his face into the crook of her neck and loved how fresh she smelled all the time..." baby captain banaygeee? Hmm" he purred into her neck and she squirmed in delight at what his lips and wisps of warm breath was doing to her. But she perked up and knew he was deflecting so she put both her arms out and drew his face further into her and said "pehlay bol teko itna gussa kyun aaya? Usnay just congratulations bola aur casual hug kiya aur meko yaad bhi nahi ki chummi lee ha nahi! Bebu aisay gussa nahi hotay!" Saying this she puckered her lips Abe patted his cheeks with both her arms.
"Fuck man Shehnaaz jab cheezein mere pe aa jaati hain kitna suljhi hui baatein karti hai bey! Sach bol agar, arti mere upar aisi chad jaati toh? Now don't give me some bull shit. Sachi sachi bol?" Saying this he slightly lifted her pj top and pinched her bare waist and also nipped her ear lobe. She took a deep breath of satisfaction in and let it out. She loved how she could never know where he would touch her bite her nip her. She loved how layered his every action was. There was always the element of the unknown with him. He felt like the free air and he also felt like he knocked the air out of her. He made her gasp for breath and he also made her feel wildly alive. She felt beautiful she felt like a wanton woman, she felt replete. She chose not to say anything simply because she did not have an answer for what he was asking so she said " neeyat bhi dekhna padtha hai Sidharth! Vishal mere peechay pada hai kya? Saala voh madhu ke chakkar mein itna fasaa hua, haan aaj tak meko ussay koi gandhay vibes nahi aaye...lekin Teri arti, bechaari pyaar mein hai Teri. Tu ja toh jaan bhujkar usko ignore kar raha hai ja phir teko pata nahi hai...aur jitna tera dimaag chalta hai na! Voh toh impossible hai ki teko yeh na pata ho!hmmmm ab bol. Arti aur Vishal ko compare kar saktay hai kha??!!! Bol Sidharth bol!" She said this with clenched teeth and pulled his face forward by his hair and kissed his cheek firmly! He laughed and nuzzled his face into her neck and growled " meri maa galti ho gayi lekin I did not like the way he took that chance on you! Lekin Teri koi galti nahin hai! Next time thoda distance Rakhna pls? Chal bhook laggi hai dinner kartey hain?" Saying this they both got up . Shehnaaz laced her fingers through his and just stood there looking at him and a sudden sadness washed over her, watching her changed expression he asked her "kya hua moti? Overthinking mera kaam hai na? Hmm" he fixed her bangs while he waited for her to respond. "Nahi soch rahi thi ke itna sab kuch hum dono ke beech mein feelings badh rahe hai. Sidharth tu show ke baadh bhool jayega meko ya Thoda struggle karega apnay duniya mein settle karne ke liye. Tu hamesha bolta hai na Teri duniy alag meri duniya alag, lekin idhar toh sab Ek hee lag raha hai...." before she could
Continue this conversation he interjected her as he knew this was premature and too intimate so he quickly and yet firmly told her " Shehnaaz I don't like discussing things again and again. Ek baar bola hai na to not discuss anything now. Alag duniya hai toh hai! Teko abhi back off karna hai to tu kar sakti hai, Jaa apnay Vishal ke paas, udhar yeh duniya, feelings attachment ka locha kuch hai nahi shaayad!" He tried to take his hand away from her grip because he was frustrated at what he said and yet could not say, before she could say anything Shefali Z came upto them and asked Sidharth for his light and asked him if he wanted to share a cigarette with her! This was yet another thing that frustrated Shehnaaz, it was getting crowded, he was not as easy accessible these days.
" yes love, you go ahead will be there in a bit" he sweetly said to her just so that she would not pick up on anything, he knew she was not the well wisher she portrayed to be! But ofcourse Shehnaaz was not privy to the fact that the man she so badly wanted to be hers was already firmly and devotedly hers. She huffed and said " tere paas idhar hee itnay options hai meko bahar ki padi hai aur dekhtay dekhtay idhar hee patang cut gaya. My love, sweetheart, darling sab samjhthi hoon mein. Lekin terese jo sukoon milta hai na, bas uski vajah sey mein back off nahi karoongi...laggi samajh, ab jaa maaa apnee ke paas , jaldi kar dinner ke liye wait kar rahi hoon! Bada aaya back off ka offer le ke! Tu naa kabhi kabhi itna nonsense baatein karta hai! Chal jaldi kar abhi!" Saying this she pushed him and tried to walk away but he held her wrist and drew her into a bone crushing hug and whispered into her ear "Shehnaaz I don't work on options in my life alright. Don't mess with me and don't mess me up. Mainay bola don't discuss now, agar akal hai to samajh lena theek hai, now go wait for me, wait for dinner and wait for the rest of it also!" And with this intimate drawl he walked away leaving Shehnaaz even more confused! What did the man mean half of the time! If she only knew. She was getting tired with all the mixed signals. She just hoped they were not going to spoil each other's games over the game of life that had started between themselves! She sighed and went inside wondering and dreading the ugliness that usually came with the captaincy task!
Thank you guys for the patience! Hope you enjoy this update! I will try to make them quicker the
Updates! TRY! Thank you for sticking with it though!