That evening, Arjun sat in his cabin, leaning back on the chair with closed eyes. The events of last night were playing in his mind. Arni had offered to feed him and he....He was feeling guilty. He couldn't help but think of the past memory again and again.
6 years ago
Arjun was sitting on the dining table glaring at Arni who was defiantly glaring back at him. He was home today while Roshni had went to the court for some important proceedings. So naturally, he was looking after Arni today and the little brat was throwing all sorts of tantrums. Arjun was at his wit's end by now.
Arjun- "For the last time, Arni! Eat.your.porridge."
Arni shook her head- "Powige ewwy. Arni no eat."
Arjun narrowed his eyes and picked her up from her high chair. He gave her a stern look in hopes of scaring her into eating but no such luck. The little troublemaker knew ver well when she was in trouble and when she was not.
She blew a raspberry making Arjun chuckle at her antics. He kissed her cheek and sat her on his lap. "Papa ki princess papa ki baat manegi na? Come on. Open your mouth, mera baccha."
Arni opened her mouth and Arjun put a spoonful of porridge in it. "Mmm. Yum Yum!" Arni said while eating.
Arjun nodded. "Very yum yum. Abhi we'll finish it."
He again forwarded the spoon. But Arni reached out for the spoon. Arjun let her have it. Perhaps his baby was trying to be independent. But he was surprised when she forwarded the spoon towards him. "Your tun." she said cutely.
Arjun smiled at her and opened his mouth. Even though his daughter's taste buds seemed objectionable when he tasted it yet he smiled for her sake.
Arjun opened his eyes. What he had done was wrong on so many levels. Not only he had hurt her but he also bordered to verbal abuse with the way he reacted. This was not acceptable. He felt like a monster. He had barely slept last night. The fact that he had hurt his child so badly had taken a toll over him. His guilt over the situation did not allow him to even look at her. The sole reason why he left early in the morning.
But now his conscience was making its displeasure known. He knew he had to make amends for his behaviour. He needed to go home now. He got up and walked out of the his cabin.
Sameer- "Rawte! Kaha ja rahe ho?"
Arjun shortly- "Kaam kya hai, Rathod?"
Sameer- "IG sir aaye hue hai. Meri cabin me hai. Chalo, unhe tumse milna hai."
Arjun sighed. Arni wasn't going anywhere, was she? She can wait for a few more minutes.
IG- "Aao Arjun."
Arjun- "Jai Hind sir!"
The IG nodded and asked Arjun to sit. He forwarded a file to Arjun. As Arjun went through the contents of the file, his eyes flickered. Anger on his face and hope in his eyes.
It was the much awaited case of his life. The undercovers had gotten a lead on Sikandar. The case would be transferred to ETF within this very month once the source is confirmed.
Arjun- "Mujhe Panji Jana hoga sir. I'll myself verify this source."
IG shook his head- "Nahi Arjun. Maine tumhe ye isiliye bataya because I wanted you to be ready. Tum aisi koi impulsiveness nahi dikhaoge. Don't make this personal, Arjun."
Arjun- "This is personal, sir. Uss Sikandar ko maarna hi mere jeevan ka ek Matra lakshya hai. Aur Mai apna lakshya pura karke rahunga." With that he got up.
Sameer intervened- "Ruko Rawte! Isse pehle bhi ek baar tumhare issi gusse ki wajah se tumne Roshni ko khoya tha. Ab kya phir se apne gusse ki aag me sab jalana chahte ho?"
Arjun looked at him hurt. His hurts were a reminder of that brutal day. His once good friend never minced his words. He blamed him for Roshni's death till this day.
IG- "Arjun, a few weeks is all I am asking. Maine tumse wada Kiya tha ki ye case tumhare team ko hi milega and I will stand by it. ETF will need to maintain a low profile for the following few weeks. Restrict yourselves to desk jobs. Involve yourself in low profile cases."
Sameer- "Par sir--"
IG cutting him off- "I know Sameer. Par Kai baar badi machli ko pakadne ke liye choti machli ko chodna padta hai."
Sameer nodded and looked at Arjun who looked lost.
Arjun walked out of the ETF branch, still lost in thoughts. A phone call brought him out of his musings.
OTP
Neelu tensed- "Arjun Sir, woh kahi nhi mil Rahi."
Arjun frowned- "Calm down, Neelu. Ab shaanti se batao kya hua hai?"
Neelu- "Arjun sir, woh woh Arni baby kahi nahi mil Rahi. Pura Ghar dekh liya."
Arjun tensed at that- "Kya!? Tumne terrace pe dekha? Ho sakta hai park me khel Rahi ho? Did you check properly?"
Neelu- "Ha sir. Maine har jagah dekh liya par woh kahi nahi mile.
Arjun- "Mai raaste me hi hu. Aata hu." He hanged up.
His heart was racing. All the possible scenarios were running in his mind. Perhaps he scared her enough to run away from the house. In that case, she must be somewhere roaming on the streets. He felt scared for his daughter.
Arni wasn't going anywhere, was she?
The thought replayed in his mind. He banged his hand on the steering wheel. As he drove madly towards the house, sweat beads formed on his head. No matter how much he tried, he couldn't calm himself.
He walked in the house only to be greeted by a worried looking Neelu. She came running to him.
Neelu- "Sir maine pados me sabke Ghar pe jaake puch liya. Kisi ke yaha bhi nahi hai, baby."
Arjun walked towards Arnika's room. It was as expected empty. There were no traces of Arnika. He opened her closet. Her clothes were neatly organised. Her bag was at its place.
That could mean only two things: either she didn't think over the running away sensibly or she had not ran away at all.
His mind started racing. He searched her room for her phone. He didn't find it anywhere.
He took out his own phone and called her. It was switched off. Arjun felt like smashing his own phone on the wall. Perhaps, she had switched it off intently?
An idea clicked his mind. He immediately called Shree.
OTP
Arjun- "Shree tumhe ek number send kar raha hu. It's currently switched off. Trace it's last location and let me know."
Shree- "Yes sir."
Once Arjun was done, he got out of the house. He could not sit at home while his princess could possibly be roaming in the unsafe streets of the city at this hour. It was already dark and all the horrible scenarios were continuously playing in his mind.
He came out and marched towards the guard.
Arjun- "Why the hell do I pay you!? Tumhare hote hue ek 9 saal ki bacchi Bina kisi ke Nazar me aaye kaise bahar nikal gayi."
Guard- "S-Sir woh Mai aaj apni shift ke liye thoda late ho gaya aur din ki shift wala guard pehle hi nikal gaya, isiliye."
Arjun saw red- "You are FIRED. Use bhi bata dena ab aane ki zarurat nahi hai!"
His heart constricted thinking about all the times his house has been left unprotected due to the unprofessional attitude of those morons. The irony struck him. While he had been working towards protecting the entire city from the clutches of crime, his own house was surrounded by chains of danger. His own daughter was at risk.
He sent a photo of Arnika to his junior and asked him to put the police on high alert. He wanted to find her at all costs. The effect was immediate. All the cars on signals and highways were subjected to thorough searches.
He took out his bike from the garage. He zoomed away on it. All his horrible words and actions came running to his mind. Her innocent, smiling face and the way she cried last night played parallel to each other. He regretted not only his actions of last night but all his actions from the past six years.
The thought of losing her was predominantly occupying his mind. He could not think of anything other than Arnika.
His phone beeped. He parked his bike in a corner and picked up the call.
Shree- "Sir last location track ho gayi hai. Around adhe ghante pehle, the phone was on Sion street."
Arjun frowned. The area was around two hours away from here on foot. He doubted that Arni could go that far without a specific destination in her mind. His mind again raced. Perhaps she had been kidnapped by someone.
He increased the speed and zoomed away towards the area. Once he reached there, he found no traces of Arnika. He called the officer.
"Koi information mili?"
"No sir. But we are trying our best."
Arjun got down the bike dejected. After losing Roshni, this was the first time he felt like a loser.
He could not protect his girls.
His phone rang again. He looked at the caller ID. It was Tanu's number.
OTP
Tanu- "Hello. Arjun Bhai. Kaha hai aap?"
Arjun- "Kya hua Tanu. Mai..Mai Arni ko dhund Raha hu. I can't find her anywhere."
Tanu audibly relaxed at that.
"Arni humare Ghar pe hai, Bhai. Kabir me sakht mana Kiya tha aapko batane se par I thought aap pareshan honge isiliye.."
Arjun- "What!? Why didn't you call me earlier Tanu?"
Tanu- "Woh Kabir..."
Arjun- "I am coming there."
Arjun's racing heart calmed down considerably. His little girl was safe and sound. But that was not all the reassurance his heart needed. He needed to get her back to her place. He needed to held her close for just once. He needed to apologise to his princess for last night.
He parked his bike outside the Goinka House and went in.
__________________________________
Kabir- "Really Tanu? Why did you tell him?"
Tanu- "Mai aur kya karti Kabir? He's her father. He has the right to know about his daughter's whereabouts."
Kabir scofed- "Right! The same father who has made her life hell!"
Tanu calmly- "Aap abhi bohot gusse me hai, Kabir. Thande dimaag se sochiye. Agar Arni ki jagah Kashu and Kavu hote toh aapka kya haal ho jaata?"
Kabir- "Arni ki jagah woh dono kabhi nahi ho sakte, Tanu. You know why? Because I make sure of that!"
Tanu closed her eyes. "He sounded so tensed, Kabir. Almost vulnerable on call."
Kabir- "Good. He deserves it."
A few hours back, Kashvi had urged him to call Arni and why she wasn't at school today. Kabir denied at first but his kids teamed up against him and made him call Arni. Arni's voice sounded so hoarse on the call that it worried Kabir. He asked her the reason for her absence. She made up an excuse about sleeping in late but the girl couldn't lie on her life. He had caught the lie at once and asked her the real reason.
She broke down on the call and recited the last night's events. His blood boiled listening to her. He had immediately driven to her place and asked her to come down. Arni hugged him and cried in his arms. The girl looked so weak and vulnerable that his heart broke. At that moment, he didn't care about calling Arjun and informing him once. All he cared about was comforting the broken angel.
Arjun- "KABIR!" His voice boomed throughout the house. "How could you be so careless? Why the hell did you not inform me that Arni was with you?"
Kabir- "It was intentional, Arjun Rawte! You know what? We need to talk!"
Arjun closed his eyes in a bid to control his growing frustation over the situation.
"Where is Arnika? Mujhe milna hai usse."
Kabir- "Tanu, Arni se puch ke aao ki usse iss aadmi se milna hai ya nahi."
Tanu looked at Arjun and Kabir. These two friends were at each-other's throat today.
Arjun- "Mujhe apni beti se milna hai Tanu. Ke chalo mujhe uske paas."
Kabir- "Oh wow! Toh ise finally yaad aa gaya ki woh uski beti hai. Mujhe laga ki ab toh yeh baat acknowledge karne me bhi sharam aati hogi."
Arjun gasped at that. "Dimaag thikane pe hai tumhara?"
Kabir- "Dimaag toh tumhara thikane pe nahi hai! Ek choti si bacchi pe aise kon chillata hai, Arjun Rawte. Apne ACP Wale tevar criminals Tak hi limited rakho! Samjhe tum?"
Tanu- "Stop it both of you! Baccho jaise lad rahe ho aap dono! Arjun Bhai, aap aaiye. Ek baar Arni se mil lijiye."
Both Kabir and Tanu have always wanted the father-daughter duo to get back to their normal selves. They wanted Arjun to shower his love on Arni just like before. Kabir had lost his patience that day. Arni's distress had always impacted him worse than her. He had considered her his goddaughter and had always stood by his commitment. Tanu had more patience than Arjun. She was still willing to give Arjun a chance to make everything right.
However, the bigger question was would Arni still want to give her father that last chance?
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That was a quick update! Wasn't it? All thanks to your response on last chapter and a dear reader's special request ❤️
How was the chapter?
Baby Arni's a sweetheart, isn't she?
Did you like Arjun-Arni relationship in the past?
Who is feeling sympathetic towards Arjun in this chapter?
Your views on Kabir in this chapter?
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Lemme know!
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Regards.