Vinay drops Ruhana to her home. Tarika and Abhijeet are surprised to find them early. Vinay teases Ruhana that she wanted to come home early to which Ruhana retorts back.
“Acha ji! Aapko meeting mein jana hain toh aap keh rahe hain main jaldi aana chahti thi! Not fair, Vinay.” Ruhana says.
“Aapne hi toh kaha tha ki jaldi jana hai. Uncle ka phone nahi lag raha tha.” Vinay shrugs his shoulders.
“Excuse me! Papa ko aapne phone kiya tha. Ab zyada baatein na banaiye.” Ruhana glares at him.
“ Ab main baatein nahi banaunga toh aap bolengi bhi toh nahi.” Vinay says cheekily.
“Aap bhi na, Vinay! Ab jaiye! Nai toh aapke clients bolenge ki jab boss hi late hain toh employees kaise time pe kaam finish karenge!” Ruhana chides him.
“Okay! Just kidding! Main chalta hoon.” He bids goodbye to Ruhana and her parents and turns to leave.
Ruhana accompanies him to the main gate and thanks him for his gesture. He has been very kind to her and despite her being a little indifferent, he’s still close to her. And he always tries to cheer her up. There’s no doubt that Vinay is a perfect partner for Ruhana and she knows it. She wishes him luck and they part their ways.
*****
Vinay leaves Ruhana’s home and drives to his home where someone is already waiting for him. He greets the person and though his mom looks annoyed, Vinay takes the person to his room. Making the person comfortable, he sits on the couch opposite him.
“So, what is the progress?” He asks.
“It is almost ready. Aap dekh lijiye.” The person passes a file to Vinay.
“Sab kuch vaisa hi hai na jaise maine kaha tha?” Vinay asks he opens the file to read it.
“Yes Sir! Sab waisa hi hain. Mujhe nahi lagta is kaam mein koi dikkat aayegi.” The man looks at Vinay who is reading the file and nods his head in affirmation.
“Thik hain. I just hope it goes out smoothly. Aap iski final copy taiyar kijiye. Kal main aapse office mein miloonga and ye file le lunga.” Vinay says softly.
The man nods and takes his leave. As the man leaves, Vinay’s mother enters his room and scolds him.
“Tumhe pata hai na tum kya kar rahe ho?” She asks.
“Haan Maa! Main ache se jaanta hoon aur maine jo bhi faisla liya hain bahut soch samajh ke liya hain.” Vinay replies calmly.
“Lekin beta….” his mom says but he shushes her with his hand.
“Maa, aap meri khushi chahti hain, right? Aur main Ruhana ki khushi chahta hoon. Aur jahan tak main unhe jaan paya hoon, main jaanta hoon wo galat nahi thi. Haan, galti toh sabse hoti hain. Shayad aapse, dad se aur shayad mujhse bhi hoti rehti hain. Toh jo main kar raha hoon usse sach toh nahi badlega lekin kisi ko parivar aur kisi ke dil ko sukoon aur khushi milegi. Toh please aap chinta mat kijiye aur shadi ki taiyari kijiye.” Saying so, he moves into his washroom to change his dress while his mom stands spellbound by her son’s words.
*****
Aggarwal House
Vineet makes Bulbul sleep and covers her with a duvet.
He kisses her forehead and turns to leave the room when he feels that Bulbul has tugged her hand. He smiles at her and then sits beside her, resting his head on the backrest while the girl is still holding his hand.
Bulbul reminded him of Ruhana. He knows that this girl is very close to Ruhana because of which Ruhana is hesitant in believing to him. Well, why would she believe him? In the very first meet, he took her as an informer and even tried to give her some money. He didn’t try to hear her and behaved rashly with her. Then, how can she believe him?
Though, seeing her with Vinay sends a pang in his heart. He doesn’t know why but he feels a pang in his heart. There’s some connection that he feels with Ruhana, but he doesn’t know how to win her confidence. He is lost in his thoughts and soonish, sleep overtakes him.
*****
Next day, it is Sunday. Ruhana wakes up at her usual time but chooses to lounge around. She moves to her parents’ room and finds them having their morning tea. She sits close to her mom, keeping her head on her shoulder.
“Toh kya plan hai aaj ka?” Tarika asks.
“Nothing much, mumma! Bulbul ne itne pyaar se invite kiya hain toh main soch rahi hun usse mil loon.” Ruhana says.
“Jaana bhi chahiye na. Wo bechari wahan akeli hain.” Abhijeet says.
“Haan papa! Halanki, main ACP Vineet se milna nai chahti lekin apni guriya ki baat taal bhi nahi sakti.” Ruhana says thinking about Vineet.
“Beta, tum wahan Bulbul ke liye jaa rahi ho. Do not forget it. Abhi wahi tumhare liye important hain.” Tarika explains assuming her situation.
Ruhana just nods her head in agreement. She will do everything for the girl who means a lot to her. Tarika asks her to get ready while Ruhana calls Vinay and asks him to join for lunch at Vineet’s home. He agrees to join them for lunch after which Ruhana gets ready and leaves for Vineet’s home.
*****
Vineet’s home
Bulbul is quite excited that Ruhana is going to visit her today. She gets ready for the day and runs into the living room where she finds Vineet talking on the phone and to her surprise, he’s in his uniform. She waits for him to finish his call, keeping her hands on her waist. He finishes his call and finds Bulbul staring at him.
“Aap kahan jaa rahe ho? Aapko pata hai na aaj Ruu di aayengi?” Bulbul asks staring at him.
“Beta, wo zaroori kaam hai.” He tries to convince her.
“But this is not fair. Aapne hi kaha ki Di ko bula loon. Lekin aap nahi rahoge toh aapki aur Di ki dosti hogi kaise?” Bulbul asks him.
“Umm…koi baat nahi. Main thodi derr mein kaam nipta ke wapas aa jaunga.” Vineet tries to reason with her.
“Par this is not fair. Di bolengi ki maine zabardasti unko bulaya kyunki aap busy ho. Aur maine unhe lunch pe invite kiya hai.” Bulbul says making a crying face.
“Arey aisa nahi hoga. Ruhana ji toh waise bhi tumse milne aayengi na. Aur lunch time tak main laut aaunga. I promise. “ Vineet says tweaking Bulbul’s nose.
“Promise?” Bulbul looks at him with keen eyes.
“Han baba! Pakka promise. Ab main jitni jaldi jaunga utni jaldi free hokar wapas aa paunga na.” He reasons.
Bulbul agrees and lets him go. She knows he will abide by his words. He pats Bulbul’s head and asks her to take care after which he leaves for his work.
*****
An hour later, the doorbell rings Bulbul rushes to open the door and is happy to find Ruhana. She pulls her inside and hugs her tightly.
“I missed you, Di.” Bulbul says.
“I missed you too. Kaisi hai tu? Sab thik hai na?” Ruhana enquires while looking around.
“Kaisi dikh rahi hoon? Thik na!! Don’t worry, Di” Bulbul says.
“Haan han! Tu toh thik hi rehti hai. Bas mujhe hi teri chinta lagi rehti hain. Ab kya karun, instinct hi aisa hain” Ruhana says.
“Isliye kehti hoon kam pyaar karo. Lekin aap sunti kahan ho!” Bulbul chuckles.
“Acha! Bol kaun raha hain? Tu kaunsa meri har baat sunti hain. Anyway, kahan hai tere ACP uncle? Dikhai nai de rahe?” Ruhana asks.
“Unko kuch kaam tha toh wo bahar gaye hain. Par unhone kaha ki wo lunch time tak aa jayenge.” Bulbul says.
“Hmm! Fir thik hain. Acha dekh main tere liye kya laayi hoon?” Ruhana says and forwards a packet towards Bulbul.
She almost snatches the box and unwraps it. It’s a box of chocolates and in the meanwhile, Ruhana forwards another box, which opened into a teddy bear. Bulbul chuckles with happiness getting the gifts from her sister. She hugs her tightly.
“You’re the best, Di.” She says.
“ Only for you! Tu toh meri jaan hain. Isliye ye bhi laayi hoon main tere liye.” Ruhana says and forwards a photoframe towards her.
Bulbul takes a look at it. It’s her picture with Ruhana where the latter is kissing her head. At the bottom, there’s written “I love you, Guriya!”
Bulbul looks at her and finds Ruhana adoring her. She hugs her again, keeping her head on her chest.
“This is cute. Isey main hamesha apne paas rakhungi. Thank youu, Di.” She says.
“Anything for you, meri jaan! Acha ab batao kya plan hain?” Ruhana says, assuming that Bulbul must have made some plan.
“Han hain na! Par pehle main aapse ek baat puchun?” Bulbul asks.
Ruhana nods her head in agreement while Bulbul’s question leaves her astonished.
To Be Continued.
What did Bulbul ask?
Will Vineet and Ruhana get along?
Stay tuned.