Ruhana is lying on the bed, reading a book. It's been her habit since childhood, which has not changed yet. There are days when she is super busy, but she takes out time for reading. The beeping sound of her phone breaks her trance. She checks the watch; it's close to 12 a.m., and she wonders who it could be at this hour. In the next instant, she chides herself, saying that it must be any of her friends sending messages on the WhatsApp group. She finishes reading the chapter and as she turns a little, Aarna grunts at the moment.
"Di, book subah padh lena, abhi so jaao na please." Aarna says so sleepily and puts her hand around her waist.
"Tu so ja, main lights band kar rahi hoon." Ruhana says, smearing her hair.
She keeps the book in the drawer and picks up her mobile to have a glance when she finds Vineet's name flashing on the screen. She immediately checks the message and is thoughtful for a moment. She types a reply and sends it to him. Her lips curve into a small smile as she recalls his message and she drifts into sleep, her thoughts pondering over Vineet only.
*****
Ruhana wakes up in the morning and is surprised to see that Aarna is already awake. She calls for her sister, who enters the room with a tray holding two cups, one for herself and one for Ruhana. She sets the tray on the side table and jumps on the bed beside her sister. Aarna begins to speak before her sister can ask any questions.
"Aaj tour registration ka last day hai na, toh mujhe college jaldi jaana hai. Aur phir kuch assignments bhi submit karni hai. Aaj Taara mujhe pick karegi, toh aap aaram se apna kaam kar sakte ho." Aarna speaks, answering all the questions in one go; at least she hopes so.
"Tu har kaam last minute pe kyun karti hai?" Ruhana glances at her.
"It's fun, Didu. - Kal mauka nahi mila naa, toh nahi de paayi. Taara ko bhi aap jaanti ho naa!" Aarna says, putting the blame on her friend.
"Haan haan, Taara ko kaise nahi jaanungi, din bhar uski hi baatein karti hai tu! Aur uske chakkar mein tum sab kaam mein late lateeef hoti jaa rahi ho." Ruhana replies teasingly.
"She's my best friend. Jab aap Buddy ki koi baat nahi taalti, toh main Taara ki baat kaise taalun?" Aarna raises her eyebrows, leaving Ruhana surprised.
"Ab Vineet kyun aaya hai beech mein?" Ruhana peers at her sister while sipping her coffee.
"You know it better, Didu." Aarna winks at her.
Ruhana shakes her head. Yeah, she's right; there are times when Ruhana has abided by Vineet's words. Of course, he's the one to make decisions, but when he pushed her ahead, she took the decisions on her own and they proved to be profitable. That's how things go between the two.
"Okay, main ready hone jaa rahi hoon, aap please nashta bana do." Aarna breaks her trance and rushes into her room.
Ruhana nods; she takes her sweet time to finish her tea. She trails back to the message that Vineet sent her last night. She pushes the thought to the back of her head, freshens up, and heads into the kitchen to prepare breakfast for her sister.
******
Vineet wakes up in the morning as his alarm buzzes. He switches off the alarm and his eyes twinkle with joy as he finds Ruhana's message.
"We will talk about it in the office," she says.
She wanted to talk in person, while he thought she might be comfortable in chat. Well, things are better when they are talked about in person.
He hops out of bed and after freshening up, he makes his way onto the balcony, where he has made some space for his exercise. He can afford to create a gym for himself, but he chooses otherwise.
Today, he's excited to meet Ruhana. They also have a meeting in the morning, so, after that, these two can talk. He finishes his workout and at the same time, his mother knocks on the door. He opens the door and his mom enters the room holding a mug of steaming coffee in her hand. Vineet smiles and greets her for the day when the lady smiles at her son. The mother and son share some time together before he gets ready and leaves for work.
*****
Ruhana reached the office on time today. Since Aarna went off with her best friend, Ruhana took her own time to get ready for the day. All through, she's thinking about Vineet and the message he sent last night.
He has proposed an idea to her and wants her to accompany him with it. His only purpose is to spend time with her. Ruhana still thinks about the same thing when the peon informs her that Vineet is calling her into his cabin. She agrees and heads into his cabin with a file.
She knocks on the door and he lets her enter the cabin. She greets her smilingly and takes her seat opposite him. He is eager to talk to her about his message but at the moment, he drops the idea. They need to talk business right now. It's not the time to do the personal talks, he knows.
Ruhana is explaining something when she feels that he's gazing at her. She blinks her eyes, asking him the reason but he denies it. She shakes her head.
"Vineet, the meeting is important. Can you concentrate, please? Tumhe jo jawab chahiye wo meeting ke baad milega, samjhe!" She says that, and with that, he comes out of his trance.
"Iska matlab tumne decide kar liya hai ki tumhe kya karna hai, right?" He asks cheerfully.
"Haan, socha toh hai. Lekin tum zameen pe raho. Pehle meeting kar lete hai, aur phir hum uss baare mein baat karenge." She says.
He agrees, after all, that work is important. And she's working for him, and he won't make any mistakes. Vineet pushes his thoughts aside and the two get engaged in discussing the project.
It's going to be a long day for the two of them.
*****
A few hours elapse, and finally, the meeting ends. After seeing off the clients, Ruhana and Vineet return to the latter's cabin. The former looks happy and she turns to her partner.
"Finally, I am relieved! And yeah, next time, keep all these tricky things to yourself. Mujhe na bulaya karo." She says this, rolling her eyes at her friend.
"Why not? Dekho tumne itne achche se sab sambhal liya." Vineet says that he knows that she will manage things better than he could.
"I had to! I couldn't let you down, after all. Lekin next time se main aisa kuch nahi karungi. Samajh lo achche se." She says.
"Ye toh galat hai, Ruhana. Na tumne mere sawaal ka jawab diya aur ab tum kaam ke liye bhi mana kar rahi ho, not fair,han!" He makes a face.
"Main thik kar rahi hoon, Vineet. Aur tumhara sawal! Vo jo conference hai, usme tum jaane wale they naa, main kyun jaun?" She asks, remembering the message that he sent.
"Hum dono jayenge, Ruhana. It's a nice place, kaam bhi ho jaayega aur vacation bhi."
"Aur vaise bhi, Saturday ko Aarna bhi toh tour pe jaa rahi ho, toh tum bore ho jaogi akele, isliye tum mere sath chalo." He explained, answering her questions.
'Tumhe kaise pata wo tour pe jaa rahi hai?" She asks, rolling her eyes at him while he laughs.
"Aarna he hi kaha tha mujhse. Aur phir vo thodi technical training hai aur main chahta hoon, hum dono vo attend karein. It's for our good." He explains.
"Hmm, thik hai. Main aaungi tumhare sath. Lekin tumhe mujhse promise karna hoga ki mujhe bina bataye tum mera naam kahin recommend nahi karoge. Tum bol dete ho aur dikkat mujhe hoti hai." Ruhana says.
"Acha thik hai, tumse puch ke tumhara naam recommend karunga, kyunki mere liye toh tum na sirf mere office ki responsible employee ho, meri zindagi mein bhi khas ho." He says, though, he murmurs the last part, but Ruhana hears him.
"Zindagi mein kya? What do you keep murmuring, Vineet?" She asks.
"Kuch nahi, main keh raha tha, ki tum meri khas dost ho, toh sabko pata hona chahiye na." He smiles, making up a story.
Ruhana glances at him and then agrees. He further tells her that they'll leave on Sunday morning. Ruhana agrees and then takes her leave. Vineet watches her go and sighs deeply.
"Iss baar toh main tumse baat karke rahunga, Ruhana. This outing will help me with it. Tumhare dil ki baat toh mujhe jaanni hi hai. Just two more days."
He's determined to talk to her and know her feelings. He knows her sister is her priority but there's something that makes him believe that Ruhana holds the same feelings for him as he does for her.
Well, this is just another chance, and he hopes for a positive outcome.
To Be Continued.
What is on Vineet's mind?
Next chapter: Sisters part ways. RuVi visiting the venue of the conference. A glimpse of Aarna's tour and how the two sisters enjoy their own time.
Stay tuned