DAIWIK
I witnessed Zehra sitting on the kitchen threshold when I entered the house, applying the drawing on Divya's hand, she looked up when I walked inside and without sparing a glance her way, I entered our bedroom.
Today was a hectic day, because of all the arrangements of partforthethat were going to take place tomorrow, also the Bakshi's being in town has urged us to be more alarmed.
I looked for clothes in the Almirah, when I heard someone behind me, striding so fast and ferried, I twisted to find Zehra standing at the door, her eyes met mine with so much flushed anger, her hands caught her dress,
She turned around and shut the door, as she stared at me once again, the same eyes, that beautiful ocean, the theme of brown, in a pure gradient, her word and her retorts, were audible to me.
But was I listening?
No, I wasn't, the ghagra she was wearing had gathered around her hips, so perfectly, that dupatta was not in its place, because of the force she strolled in the room with, showing so much cleavage, more than an average man can ignore with all his might.
That throbbing pulse in her neck, any man will be impotent if he doesn't want to bruise it with his bite. Her ghagra was so low on her waist, that her belly button was visible, the artificial line made on her waist, at where her ghagra's waistband lands.
I tried to straighten my mind, listen to what she had to say, and nothing she said would have bothered me, because all her accusations were true.
I did attack and pulled away from her. Not because I was playing with her, but the insanity, the dirty, filthy! Mind-numbing thoughts I get for her, every day, and every night? It can't be controlled if I don't steal those little moments from her.
I need to stop myself, and I do it by giving myself the bare minimum. I want to sleek her entire body with my tongue, but the most I can do to stop is touch her entire body with my fingertips. I want to taste her, taste that sweet mouth of hers, savour her insides.
Her revolting to me like this was maddening me, the thoughts I am getting are so unholy! That even the greatest holy books won't understand what kind of sin this will be!
But when she spoke, I use her?
I snapped, I never used her! I have never done it, how could she?
In these last days! I am manipulating my mind, into now breaking her bones like a maniac, because I don't just want her body. I want everything she has to offer, and she refuses to sell. She can't think I am just using her!
I snapped at her, taking my steps closer, but the more I moved forward on her, the more her eyes trembled not to scare her further, I opened the door, leaning in, and told her she can leave to watch me strip naked.
She did, as I had assumed.
The rest of the night was a complete haze, Sahiba came, Abhiraj came, but the whole time, everything was happening, and my mind was settled on only one thing, Zehra, the way her eyes looked at Sahiba, the way they travelled her move, the change in body language, her never meeting eyes with Sahiba, that awkward smile, her looking down so often.
She felt impaired, less, not enough, not sufficient. And the thought that she looked at herself as anything but the epitome of embodiment and perfection, enraged me.
She should know that it was not a question of who was better.
It was about the fact, that she was not less than anyone!
When Sahiba left, I looked at the couple walking away, I have known the core, the root of their relationship. Everything that started in them was a war, and how they still struggle to realize that they are not standing against each other anymore, but standing next to each other.
And me and Zehra? We are not either next to each other or against, for me? It's all here, both of us are here.
That's all.
I wasn't asleep when Zehra entered the room and weirdly turned off the lights and shut the door, as she went to sleep. And she was awake for a long time. She refused to sleep. Her breath was loud, and lost its rhythm often, her trying to manage to maintain it made it more uneven.
But eventually, she gave out, back to meet the darkness, I stood up, and as I walked towards her, she was sleeping straight today, her face turned to another side, as she so calmly slept, her clothes were so misplaced, her ghagra had climbed above till her knees, her dupatta had given out in all aspects and was covering nothing by the bed, sleeping so straight, the blouse that was already tight for her boobs, because it's not her clothes, was tired to hold them anymore, and her chest had half popped.
I smirked, walking by her feet, as I stood across her, and bent down, to meet her foot level on the bed, holding on to her feet, I brought my lips closer to her toenails, and kissed them, bringing my mouth down, I kept the same peck on her ankle, each both her legs, I sleeked her entire opened leg with my knees, as I climbed above on the bed, and hovered over her face, I went to her ear, "I own you Zehra," I spat trying to justify my heinous act.
But I knew doing when as much as kissing her leg was so wrong, I looked down at her body, trying to calm the growing erection I lay down next to her, "The rest, in the morning. When you know I am doing it." I told her, as I closed my eyes and drifted to sleep.
~~~
After what I had done in the morning, this was the first time I was seeing her, there she stood, I froze, and for the next minute, I forgot that I am supposed to breathe,
They say, a man only likes his woman naked, am I an even bigger maniac than I believed I was to love her even more when she is clothed so well?
She sat next to me on the car passenger seat, has her eyes not on her neck, or has nobody noticed? I kept turning to look at her neck, again and again, looking at the mark, of my bite from the morning flagging on her neck, like my imprint on her.
She had a love bite and she or Divya, didn't even realise she did, has she been going around the whole house like that? Is she coming to the party with it?
Am I crazy that I want the world to see it?
I kept turning and kept questioning.
When I walked her into that party, she looked at Sahiba and once again her face fell on the ground, and I couldn't watch it,
I reached for her ears, as I spoke...
ZEHRA
"Aaj duniya ke saare sitare bhi tumse jal rahe hai Zehra, tumhari keher kisi samundar ke leher se bhi zyada katilana hai, inn ghatak bhari nasro ko dusro ki ruhaniyat dekh ke yuh jalne na do!" his words rang in my ears, and I choked, I instantly looked up at his face, covered with that smug smile,
His hands reached, at my back, supporting my lower spine, as his face came down to my neck and he kept at the same place he kissed me in the morning. As we entered, Sahiba was finally freed by Abhiraj as she walked up to me and Daiwik.
"You came?" She said so elegantly, as she caught both my hands and then hugged me along, "Thank you!" She said as I replied,
"Thank you for inviting me!" I tried to be agile, my mind still lingering over what he said and what he did. He was just forward before, but now? He does whatever he wants, he says he is asking me, but the only thing he hasn't done to me is kiss me and then enter into my core.
Abhiraj approached to take his wife again, but she caught him, "Greet him too! He is not your right-hand man today, he is our guest," She stopped him, both their eyes rested on her hand grip and then she took it off immediately.
"You won't tell him any work today. " She mandated and he nodded, "Fine. Welcome Daiwik and..." he trailed off,
"Zehra," I said and he nodded, "Yes, welcome Mr and Mrs Agnihotri," he called me Mrs Agnihotri, Daiwik is Agnihotri?
I don't even know his surname.
"I have to attend all his extremely boring guests, I will come around as soon! I'm so excited to spend time with you!" She said so kindly as she left with Abhiraj Agnivanshi.
So he is the right-hand man, that's like second in command? There were so many rich and lavish guests, but they were all far closer to the circle fountain area and we were rather backed and cornered,
"We sit in hierarchical order. The rich are ahead, and the poor are behind. The rich talk to riches and the guards and right-hand man, like me, talk to each other." He explained to me,
I looked at his face but his eyes were so red, as he carefully stared at everyone's faces, everyone's hands, and actions.
"You are working!" I complained he turned immediately to me,
"What?" He asked, confused, I was surprised that he felt his duty was more important. He looks like he loves his work, he is never angry or upset when he comes back from work, and is never refusing to go to work.
"Sahiba just said, you are not working, but you are evaluating the guests like it's your duty," I whined and grumbled when he smiled as he pushed me forward,
"Then, do you want me to only look at you? Zehra?" he said but not mean way, he did it with a smile. He was trying to make me uncomfortable, playing again.
"I wouldn't hate it," I said to playback, and he was surprised, but he chuckle and let it go.
A high-status man walked toward us, with a whiskey glass and amber liquid in it, "Agnihotri! Agnihotri! There you are!" he called out to Daiwik, as he approached to hug him but Daiwik did not even move.
"Twice salary! And a house, a car and whatever the deposit amount you want! To sign your loyalty to me," he did not even waste time, he tried to buy Daiwik's loyalty from Abhiraj.
But he just simply smiled, "It's my pleasure you feel I am capable of such a tempting offer! But loyalty is not a property you can give away for chump changes. It's a person's self-respect. And I am not interested to sell it Mr. Bakshi." he said so calmly, but with a different conceited smile, egotistical answer, and a completely different charm and aura.
One that made this party look so dull,
"He gives you thirty-six million per year, I will give you 90 million." he re-attacked but Daiwik just smirked, and stepped on his face, both of them giving each other, you are stupid to even speak again, look.
"Take that 90 million and your daughter, and run back to the country you came from, the way you think you can hide under a rug and not be seen? It's a matter of time before I find the bump and stump on you." He said and pulled back with a bright smile, as he shook hands with this Bakshi and taking me walked away.
"Why were you so rude to him?" I asked when he finally rested, as we approached the centre of the party, with more people,
"You saw the market we went to? He is trying to pressure the people from there and buy the land to build the first casino in Rajasthan. He wants Abhiraj's cooperation and he refuses to give his political approval for building a gambling sector here. And he knows my influence on people, so he wants me to join him and vacate the place, so he can carry out the work, and wants to do dirty on Abhiraj." he explained to me.
And I nodded, understanding what he meant. It was very cynical for me to get through the information but I managed. My eyes roamed around the party when some of the women kept staring at me,
More people, the same status as us approached, "Daiwik! Long time! Last time we met at the election?" A tall man, the same height as Daiwik, looking almost thirty-thirty-five but his wife stood next to him, looking even younger than me, she looked like she was just eighteen or twenty.
Is she her daughter?
She was fumbling, looked new to all of this herself, "Vidyut!" Daiwik said as he shook his hand, and turned to the woman, joining his hand, as he greeted with a Namaste to her, "Sarisha," He said, she politely smiled. His friend turned to me,
Vidyut's eyes reached me, "She is my wife, Zehra," Daiwik recalled me as his wife, Vidyut's eyes narrowed down, but he pulled his hand out,
But mine went to say Adab, his mouth open, so he just joined his hand, in a namaste himself.
"I didn't know you were married?" he asked him when he just didn't reply. "Let's get a drink?" he asked when Daiwik's eyes went to me,
"Let the ladies get along," he said, but he did not leave until he got approval from my eyes, I nodded. When he left. His wife, Sarisha stared at my neck, for such a long time.
"I'm Zehra," I introduced myself again, and she smiled, "Sarisha," She said, she looked so young I was tempted to ask her age. And her relationship with that man.
She turned to look at him, "First time at the party?" I asked her, and she nodded. "Yes, first party here, so I don't know anyone!"
"Me, too!" I reassured her, and her face calmed down, with an Oh.
Vidyut and Daiwik were now surrounded by more men, as some ladies circled and approached us, "Daiwik's wife? Right?" she asked me, do they know everyone here?
How can she just know it? I just came to the party, I nodded yes, and she extended her hand, "Murnali! And Yanvi and Ruhika!" She so brightly introduced I repeated the same way,
"Zehra and this is Sarisha," I shake my hands with her.
"Those rich wives! Things that are just completely different from us? What is such a huge attitude? I said, hi and she just smiled and crossed me like I am less?" Yanvi talked, to all of us.
"Well, they have real diamonds on them. They deserve it! I mean do you know, that silk saree Taara is wearing? The golden colour is gold foil!"
I turned to look at her, still feeling out of space with the bunch of people she was talking to, who didn't look like rich people. Well, she even approached me, she must not believe in the hierarchy.
"That is just Abhiraj, he couches her real diamond lehenga, during their wedding!" They talked and talked, but I slowly came to realize they were just looking down on everyone.
I and Sarisha both met eyes and told each other we did not like them and just walked away, saying we need to rush to the bathroom.
As we entered, at the corner of the party finding ourselves alone, she breathed out, "That was more bitching than people at my college did! When I got married." She said so loudly, and I was surprised but glad she felt comfortable around me.
Did I just gain a friend?
Married? So that is her husband! "To Vidyut you mean?" I asked just to confirm and she nodded, "Yes," she smiled so shaky, "I know it's weird! He is thirteen years older than me, but it was an arranged marriage, that happened because of a deal between the families." She said as I shook my head.
"It's not weird I am married to a man twenty years older than me," I said lost in the trial when she blinked, "Daiwik looks only year a and two older than you!" she said, as I shook my head realizing.
"I was, before Daiwik," I forgot and she nodded. I turned embarrassed to say I am married twice!
She nodded both the men came back to us, as Vidyut pulled his wife to his side, by her waist, as he took his leave saying his farewell to us, watching them walk away, "Do you think he hurts her?" I asked Daiwik, as he handed me a glass of some pink drink, I don't see what is.
Relieving my past, I only had this one question from her, before I could ask her and tell her to confide in me she was taken away like a possession.
"Vidyut?" he asked, and I nodded, looking at him talking to others, as Sarisha, back to being uncomfortable. "I don't think so, Vidyut is a buoyant guy, he doesn't look like an abuser." He said in a wild guess, I tried to shrug them.
As my eyes found this woman, dressed in a yellow Indian western dress, revealing, very revealing. Apart from the bottom drape of her saree, almost nothing was covering her upper region.
But god, she had this such magnetic force apart from her extremely standing-out dress, that made half the people stare at her at the party.
"Who is that?" I asked when Daiwik followed by eyes, saw her, and instantly took it away. Leaving me to wonder had I not been here, would he have stared at her naked body?
"That woman is a maniac! Don't talk to her," He said, so aggressively. I was surprised, I have never seen him so mad.
"Why?" I asked him when he shook his head, sipping the drink he brought along with himself, "That is Inara Bakshi, you met her father." he said with such hatred in his tone.
"If you meet her, you would feel her father is sane to open a gambling shop."
"What do you mean?" I asked when he shook his head again, sipping once again his eyes went on her when she started approaching us.
"She has studied at Harvard University, of of the biggest institution in America. And came to India, to start her business here, she wants to restart Chandravani Haveli, she wants to open a whorehouse again." And I was left with my mouth open.
"What?" I screamed, some people turned but they went back to their conversation, "But she is a woman? She of all people should understand another woman's pain?" I asked, confused but when she got closer I watch Daiwik staring at her with dead eyes.
"You are one of the girls!" She said so cheerfully, I raised my brow, as she approached and hugged me.
"Zehra right? You were responsible for old guests?" She recalled my past from the brothel. How does she know?
"I appreciate your approach, Ms Bakshi, but my wife is not interested in your offer. I have already informed you!" Daiwik said with pure hatred, when she smiled with wide eyes, so enthusiastic,
"Wife?" She asked as she turned to me again, but then back at Daiwik, and I hate how her silver eyes travels up to down on Daiwik and awkwardly stops on his crotch area, before coming back to me.
"I must say you have got yourself quite a nice package Zehra," She said as I opened my eyes, shocked. Did I hear that right?
"Huh?"
"Thank you for your time," Daiwik said as he took my hand and started to walk away, but she again said,
"So aggressive! Is he like that in bed? That's so macho!" She said further on, and I couldn't stand still,
"Excuse me! That's my husband," this was the first time admitted and played a part. I felt Daiwik's eyes instantly run to my face, he stepped back, and let me fight this woman who was coming on my man.
"Oh come on! A friendly flirt, doesn't harm anyone?" She dared to say something like that,
"It harms me?" I said, when she smiled and nodded, "Alright. No husband joke when you are around. I will just make it when I am alone!" he sighed so angrily.
Now I get why he hates her so much!
"So, Zehra! Do you want to work at the brothel again? Your pay is going to be graciously compensated!" She said surprisingly again!
"She is my wife!" Daiwik turned mad when she just shrugged,
"So, being a prostitute is a profession and doing prostitution is an occupation. She can do it if she wants, no law says you can't be a prostitute and wife?" The more I heard her, the more shocked I was left.
She was taken away by someone else as Taara forcefully brought Abhiraj to us, "How are you liking the party so far?" She asked when I smiled in response.
Abhiraj took Daiwik away with him, Taara approached me, and started to talk, about here and there, as I asked her, "Do you like the parties?" I asked her when she looked at me aghast but then shook her head.
"Because I know that everyone knows who I was. And they all are just looking at me and thinking ahh, she is just a whore who got lucky!" She said, so sadly.
I felt her,
Women surrounded us, and I was left with awkward silence standing aside as they all talked with her and me, and I did not have many opinions.
Daiwik once again came to my rescue, and he took me away from them. "I am tired, I want to go home!" I said when he didn't even spare a turnaround and just took me away from the party.
We sat back in the car, and as he started to drive, a message popped up on his phone as he picked up the cell, looking at the notification.
"Dev took Divya and Maa to his house for a week," he notified me.
Wait, does that mean we are going to be alone?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This chapter is two chapters long because I didn't want to stop.
Also, How did you like Inara?
AND,
Do you want to see short story of Vidyut and Sarisha?
Early update for a loyal reader 💕 who knows exactly who it is.😉