Hello everyone! Here's chapter ten, please let me know how you guys like it :)
Remember to participate in trends for IPZN S2, mail/call/spam- Stream the videos Sony uploads of IPZN almost everyday. Help maintain the hype!! After all these efforts maybe we'll get a season 2 💛
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(Fast Forward: Today is the day of SoRaj's sangeet, all the families are gathered at the Malhotra house for the function.)(Also, Rhea + Arun won't be attending the function cuz I'm tired of them making a fool out of themselves 😂)
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The deafening sound of the loud music filled the house, sounds of people laughing, talking and singing could be heard from a far. Ahaan and Kartik were fulling their duties as the brother's of the bride and running up and down the stairs, all around the house making sure everything was perfect.
The Malhotra's had left no stone unturned to make this event memorable, it was a blush themed event- Drapes and curtains in all shades of pastels hung from the ceiling and hooks while decorative pieces, lamps, cushions and lights could be seen all across.
The elders of the Verma, Malhotra, and Rathore families' attended the guests while the youngsters sorted everything. There was a huge list of dance performances lined up to make the musical event fun and entertaining.
Kartik and Ahaan approached Sonu who was sitting with Tara on one of the couches, Ahaan looked around restlessly, "Kisse dhoond rahe hain bhaiyya?" Sonu questioned him.
Ahaan: K-kisse? N-nahi mein kissi ko dhoond nahi raha, I was just checking if everything is proper yah kuch aur karna bhool toh nahi gaya, he lied-
"SONU! TARA!"- They heard DM and Dadi calling so they excused themselves and left-
Kartik smirked and whispered in his brother's ear, "Ishqi ka phone aya tha 30 minutes ago, she'll be here any second now"-
Ahaan glanced at his brother, "How does Kartik manage to always read my thoughts, especially Ishqi ke mamle mein? Like how?!"
Ahaan: Tu yeh mujhe kyun bata raha hai meine toh uss ladki ka naam bhi nahi liya! he said defensively
Kartik: Naam nahi liya but sooch toh "uss ladki" ke baare mein hi rahe the na, don't even lie bhai, aapke mann mein yah toh Ishqi ke liye feelings develop horahi hai yah aap uss se obsessed ho, har waqt yah Ishqi ke peeche bhaagte rehte ho, yah uss ke saath hote ho yah uss ke baare mein baat kar rahe hote ho, yah usske baare mein sooch rahe hote ho, aur-
Ahaan cut him off, "Shut Up Kartik! You make me sound like such a creep! Mujhe uss ladki mein zero percent interest hai, so aapna yeh "ishq wala love", feelings, and love doctor-giry baand karo"
Kartik was about to say something when he spotted Ishqi enter, "Woh dekho aagayi"
Ahaan: Kon? he asked annoyed-
Kartik: Wohi jisse mere triple "S" bhai obsessed hai-
Ahaan turned around and saw a sight that left him mesmerized- Ishqi stood by the door wearing a pink, colourful embroidery lengha with an elegant matching necklace & earring set, her hair was left open with a waterfall braid hairstyle. Her glowy and bright makeup look accentuated her facial features, she looked heavenly!
She sure looked amazing but the thing that attracted Ahaan the most was her smile and today that was missing....she had plastered a smile across her face but the twinkle in her eyes wasn't there today. He remembered what Sonu had said the previous night,"Ishqi seemed upset"-
He was about go to her when he saw someone else approaching her from his left side, he stopped in his tracks and looked at Ishqi who noticeably seemed a little shocked seeing the person, he saw Ishqi putting her hand forward for the guy to shake but instead he pulled Ishqi in for a hug.
Ahaan clenched his fists, "Who's this guy?!" he mumbled clearly jealous- He moved a little closer to hear their conversation without being noticed while Kartik signalled Raj and they both followed him.
Ahaan, Kartik, and Raj stood by the pillar, two of the trio tried to suppress their laughter while Ahaan had a very serious expression painted across his face. "Bhaiyya" Raj whispered to Ahaan-
"Hmm" Ahaan said-
Raj: Yaad hai meine aap saab ko bataya tha ke Ishqi ka ex bhi aaye ga sangeet mein, Aryan...
Ahaan: Haan yaad hai-
"Ishqi se related koi baat bhai kaise bhool sakte hai" Kartik muttered under his breath-
Raj: Yeh wohi hai, Aryan Kohli...Ishqi ka ex-
Ahaan's jealousy reached a different level when he heard Aryan say, "Yaad hai Ishqi, jaab hum saath mein beach gaye the...tumhe beaches and oceans bohot pasand hai na..We should go again.." - Ishqi just stood there nodding and smiling praying that someone would interrupt so she could leave before Aryan asked for a chance again.
Ahaan: Yeh banda toh milte hi date ke liye pouch raha hai! he muttered in a jealous tone-
Kartik whispered, "Bhai, waise hum chup kyun rahe hai, aur aapko toh Ishqi mein "zero percent interest hai na", then why are you eavesdropping on her and her ex's conversation? Hmm"
Ahaan looked around awkwardly, "Waise keh toh yeh idiot sahi raha hai, mein Ishqi aur Aryan ki baatein chup chup ke kyun sunn raha houn...aur woh usse baat karey yah usske gaale laage- mujhe itna farak kyun padh raha hai?" he questioned himself-
Raj and Kartik grinned seeing their brother's confusion over his own actions, "Chaliye Ahaan bhaiyya, Kartik..mission Ishqi ko Aryan se dour rakhna start karna hai"
Kartik: Raj, Buss yeh idea dene ke liye I can guarantee ke tum iss moment mein bhaiyya ke favourite ho..he chuckled-
The trio advanced towards Ishqi and Aryan, Ishqi thanked god when they stood by them. Raj put his hand forward for Aryan to shake, "Hello Aryan" he greeted him-
Aryan: Hey Raj! Long time no see...also, congrats!!
Raj: Thanks! Waise tumhe kissi se introduce karwana hai- Yeh hai Ahaan aur Kartik, meri fiancee Sonu ke bhai-
Aryan: Hi, he said while shaking their hands' one by one-
Aryan then grabbed Ishqi hand, "Come Ishqi, mom se milte hai"- Before he could take Ishqi Ahaan intervened and pulled Ishqi's hand back.
Kartik (inner voice): Yeh Aryan toh bhai se aaj pitega..
"Yeh AVM kar kya rahe hai?! Office mein jhagarte hai aur ghar pe Mr. Sweet AVM baan jaate hai! Ajeeb insaan hai-" Ishqi mumbled-
"Ajeeb nahi jealous" Kartik whispered into her ear-
Ahaan held Ishqi's hand firmly in front of Aryan and said, "Tum jao Aryan, mujhe Ishqi se kuch kaam hai...phir baad mein Ishqi aur mein EK saath tumhari mom se mil leinge, Okay?"
Anger rose within Aryan, not Ahaan but he was the creep slash obsessed lover....he straight forwardly asked, "Tum Ishqi ke boyfriend ho?"
Kartik and Raj started laughing and went from there while Ishqi and Ahaan glanced at each other awkwardly, "Hashtag Love Triangle" Kartik said to Raj, "Triangle se kuch zyada hi hai, Rhea ko bhool gaye"- They both chuckled, "Villains aur third angles toh bohot hai Ishqi and bhai ki love story mein...Aab dekhna yeh hai ke how their story propels forward"-
Meanwhile Ahaan and Ishqi kept staring at each other, Aryan cleared his throat to get their attention, "Excuse me?", "Ahaan? Is Ishqi your girlfriend?"
Ahaan: N- Uh- I mean ke umm- he stuttered-
"No!" Ishqi blurted out-
Aryan: Thank god...
Ishqi: Huh?
Aryan: I meant ke if Ahaan and you aren't a couple then why do you have a problem with Ishqi coming with me? I used to her b-
Ahaan cut him off, "USED TO...matlab past, guzara hua waqt jo ke na hi wapis ata hai aur na hi future banta hai...Tumhare case mein toh bilkul nahi. Aur rahi baat mere aur Ishqi ki toh tumhe usski life mein interfere karne ka koi right nahi hai, aur zaroorat bhi nahi hai- Tum Ishqi ke PAST the aur woh tumhe like nahi karti...understand and respect her decision! And I swear if I see you making Ishqi uncomfortable I'll make sure you experience the worst day of your life then..I will NOT tolerate it agar tumne Ishqi ko pareshan kiya! Understood?"
Ishqi gazed at him with adoration, he'd stated everything straight up yet so respectfully.
While Aryan stood there a little stunned, he wasn't expecting this outburst of Ahaan. One thing that he clearly understood was he couldn't be with Ishqi with Ahaan around her. He put up an act and acted as if he was apologetic for his behaviour, "I'm sorry Ishqi, making you feel uncomfortable wasn't my intention"
Ishqi (inner voice): Wow! AVM really got through to him!
Ishqi: It's okay- she smiled-
Ahaan tightly clasped Ishqi's hand, even though Aryan had apologized Ahaan still sensed something off about him. He didn't feel right leaving Ishqi with him.
"Let's go Ishqi" Ahaan said and took Ishqi with him while Aryan rolled his eyes at them.
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Ahaan took Ishqi with him to his room, they needed a moment of privacy- Ahaan thanked god Rhea wasn't present at this event to interrupt their moment once again.
Their hands tightly interlocked Ahaan led Ishqi to his room without being noticed by anyone except Tara and our godfather Kartik. "Wah! Kissne soocha hoga ke Ishqi ke ex ke aane ke baad itna progression hojaiga" he muttered with a smirk on his face.
Ishqi couldn't stop herself from glancing at him every 2 seconds nor could she convince herself to release her hand from his hold.
Once they'd reached Ahaan's room he pushed the door open and both of them walked in, then he locked the door. Ishqi trusted him so she didn't care.
Ahaan gestured her to take a seat, once they were seated, "Ishqi" he said in a soft voice- "Tell me what's bothering you and don't say nothing because I know there is something.."
Ishqi looked away, "It's nothing" she uttered in a low tone. "Ishqi!" he said-
Ishqi: AVM, waqai mein kuch nahi hua- Aur aapko kyun lagta hai ke mein kissi baat se upset houn? hmm?
Ahaan: Mujhe pata hai because tum ek bohot friendly aur positive attitude wali ladki ho....Tum smile karti rehti ho but aaj na tumne smile ki aur Sonu ne kal bataya ke it seemed that something was bothering you...so aab baaton ko ghoomao nahi- seedha seedha baatao-
Ishqi was touched by his concern for her, he could read her like a book and see beyond the smile she'd plastered across her face, it'd only been around 4 days since they'd met...how did he know her so well?
Although Ishqi was moved by his worry for her she still managed to channel her inner sassy self and said, "Aapko kahin multiple personality disorder toh nahi hai! Kal tak mere se jhagrah kar rahe the aur aab itne sweet baan rahe hai?! Chakkar kya hai?!"
Ahaan: Come on Ishqi, don't change the topic-
Ishqi: Kuch nahi hai AVM aur rehne dijiye na- Abhi aapki girlfriend raid marne aajaigi
Ahaan: Girlfriend? Kon?
Ishqi: Aapko aaj ho kya rhea hai...Aapni girlfriend ko hi bhool gaye...Rhea?! Mere se toh aap kehte hai ke "tum har waqt girti kyun rehti ho?!" Aur kal khud Rhea ke upar gir gaye!
As Ahaan saw Ishqi getting a little agitated while talking about Rhea it clicked in his head what Ishqi was referring to, "she's probably seen the "rhea falling on top of me" accident" he thought- If Ahaan thought logically there was no need to clear Ishqi's misunderstandings but his feelings took over and he decided it was time to clear some things up, "Tumhe kyun lagta hai ke Rhea meri girlfriend hai?!"
Ishqi: Lagta? Mujhe yakeen hai ke aapke aur usske beech kuch chal raha hai-
Ahaan: But why?!
Ishqi: Why kya? Har jagah woh tapak parti hai, aapko lekar itni possessive hai aur-
Ahaan cut her off, "Tumhe burah lagta hai?" he asked with a weird sense of hope in his eyes-
Although Ishqi was a taken a little a back by this remark she still managed to say, "B-burah, m-mujhe kyun burah laage ga?"- Ishqi diverted her gaze away from him and got up to leave but Ahaan caught her arm and pulled her back.
Ishqi's foot twisted and she tripped over her lengha and fell on top of Ahaan while he fell backwards on the bed.
They gazed at each other intensely, Ahaan tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and she clutched his shirt tightly, "Rhea aur mera kuch nahi chal raha, I swear" he softly muttered to Ishqi and a faint smile appeared on her lips.
They weren't in their senses in that moment, each other's proximity was numbing their logics and minds. Instead of questioning on why Ahaan had to clear his relationship status to Ishqi and why Ishqi was upset with Rhea's possessiveness over Ahaan, they were both lost in the moment.
....what was going to happen next would bring tons of confusion and a bucket load of awkwardness but would it be the first step towards the realization of their feelings?
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That's all for today guys, hope y'all enjoyed it! { Word Count: 2248 } Next part'll be updated soon! 💜
Suggestions are always welcome 💫
Pls ignore any mistakes 😙
Lots of love and stay safeeee ❤️
~ Vera 🌸