A/N
Thank you for your votes and comments on last chapter. Means a lot to me. ☺️🤍
Enjoy the next chapter!
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Arjun was sitting on the bed leaning against the headrest. The slow ticking of the clock against the backdrop of his solemn life was calming yet nerve-wrecking. The pause between each tick was torturous yet the sound was illustrious. The periodicity of the sound held its own melody.
Beginning from square one and ending at the beginning was the circle of life. With each passing second, he was reminded of the purpose of his life and at the end , the purpose lingered. But he knew, that one day the purpose will edge away. And that distinction would mark the point of closure of this circle.
His seamless musings were interrupted by a loud "Papaaaaaa"
He stood up straight and his instincts stiffened his body. Before he could get up, the door burst open and a panting Arni walked in.
Arjun scanned her from head to toe and asked concerned-
"What's wrong?'
Arni- "Everything!" She huffed.
Arjun raised his eyebrow- "Elaborate."
Arni- "Kal Tuesday hai."
Arjun with a pensive look- "Har hafte aata hai. What's new?"
Arni roller her eyes. Her father's sarcasm surfaced at the most torturous moments. But then her inner voice reminded her that if that was true then her entire life would be the literal definition of torture. Her self- introspecting thoughts were broken by a deep voice and an even bigger urge for action.
Arjun- "I am waiting, Arnika."
Arni- "Kal English project submit karna hai and I don't have the materials!" And there goes nothing!
She glanced at Arjun who had an annoyed look on his face once he glanced at the clock that much to her dismay was displaying a large 9 in the night. Perhaps, she should replace that nothing with everything?
Arjun sternly- "When were you informed about that?"
Arni chewing on her bottom lip-
"Last Saturday" Liar! Last Monday!
Silence. A weapon so powerful that it could terrorize an entire city. That was all she got. For the next 3 minutes. She didn't dare utter a syllable while her father was practically drilling her body with his eyes.
Arjun- "Will it add on to your final result?"
Arni nodded wordlessly.
Arjun snapped- "Words!"
Arni flinched. She had successfully managed to piss him off for what felt like the 900th time in her 9 year long life.
Arni- "Yes."
Arjun- "Go out of the house--"
Arni cutting him off- "Aap..aap itni choti si baat ke liye mujhe Ghar se nahi nikal sakte!" She gasped, "Are you disowning me?"
Arjun snapped- "Don't interrupt me! Go out and wait for me! I'll get the car keys."
Arni let out a small sigh of relief and turned to go but then stopped. She turned to him.
Arni- "How about your bike keys? I mean...you can always give me a ride on your bike, you know."
Testing her luck was her favourite pass time. An activity that successfully managed to land her in trouble. Every single time. Because much to her rotten luck, her luck was ROTTEN.
Arjun's jaws tightened as he held onto the thin thread of restrain. H reminded himself that standing in front of him was his own 9 year old and not some annoying criminal who was destined to bear his wrath.
Arjun in a controlled voice- "Go Arnika. Before I lose my patience. Just go."
Arnika took that as a sign to not annoy him further. She hurried out as soon as she could.
The tension in the car could be cut through a knife. Arni was gazing out of the window silently cursing herself for forgetting about the project. She would have still not remembered if Arjun hadn't insisted her to put her time table right after dinner. One look at her daily log and she knew that she was dead.
Arjun was normal. As normal as a mad person could be. He wanted to lecture her about being so irresponsible. About remembering things at the last moment. About being so laid back but deep down, he felt.... different. For the first time in years, he felt like a 'parent' and that feeling was unsettling yet special for him. A sudden thought crossed his mind.
Arjun- "Agar mai ghar pe nahi hota toh kya karti?"
Arni- "Chachu ko bolti." She said it like it was the most natural thing on this earth.
Arjun got quiet at that. That hurt! The conversation with Kabir last evening came floating to his mind. But what affected him more was the feeling of failure. He never took failure well....he never had and he never will. The past had made him feel like a failure and in present, one statement from his daughter had yet again made him feel so. What had he done?
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A man was sitting in the dark room surrounded by the echoes of his own devils. The man sitting adjacent to him passed him the tab in his hands.
The man let out an evil laugh. "Tum soch bhi nahi sakte, ACP! Mai tumhare aur tumhari beti ke kitne karib hu. Tumhari zindagi ke har ek pehlu se rubaroo hu. Jee lo! Yeh kuch hafte aur jee lo iss jhuthi ummeed me ki tum mujh Tak pahuch sakte. Kyunki Sikandar jab khud tum tak pahuchega, tab tumhe ummeed ki koi Kiran nahi milegi."
He focussed on the photos in front of him. It was the pic of Arjun and Arnika buying some coloured papers from a stationary shop.
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Arnika annoyed- "This is not fair! Khade khade Mai kaise cut karungi sheets?"
Her father wasn't letting her sit while doing her project as a punishment for forgetting about it in the first place! Such a ridiculous idea!
Arjun glared at her, making her pout dramatically.
"No one asked you to use the scissors! I'll do the cutting part. You'll only paste it. No more arguments,now."
Arni rolled her eyes- "Whatever!"
Arjun gave her a look- "Was that attitude,miss?"
That tone sobered her up and she quickly shook her head. "Nahi papa. I am a good girl." she flashed a cheesy smile, making Arjun shake his head.
Arjun- "Make yourself useful and fetch those sketch pens."
Arjun got up and went to his room to fetch a cutter to cut out a piece of Circle from the cardboard. He was thankful that he was home for such a 'tedious' project. He couldn't ever trust the clumsy bean with a pair of scissors, forget a blade or even a knife.
Once they were back, a new war started.
Arni- "I can do it!"
Arjun- "No you can't."
Arni further insisted- "Yes I can! I am a big girl, now."
Arjun- "Certainly! A big girl who is not responsible enough to remember the last date of her project submission."
Arni offended- "You are being mean!"
Arjun defensively- "You are being naughty. Do you want to sit on the naughty stool?"
Arni's face got red at that. He made her feel like a 2 year old! The exhaustion of the last two days was finally taking a toll on her. She had wanted to sleep it off and but this so called project had landed on her head! Tears sprang in her amber eyes making Arjun sigh.
Arjun- "No need for the waterworks now, Arnika. Come on! Wipe your tears and sit down." He relented. The exhaustion was clearly visible on her face now. He kicked himself for not noticing it earlier. Arni obeyed and sat down with a sniff.
Arjun- "You'll only be holding my hand. But before that notice how I am holding the blade. Just this plastic part. Do not put your fingers or thumb near the edge. Clear?"
Arni nodded. This looked exciting. Only if she could get her hands on the object when he was not around!
Arjun in a promising tone- "You dare use this without supervision and you'll solely regret it."
Arni gulped and nodded while Arjun made a mental note to hide it somewhere out of her reach.
She held his hand and noticed how he traced the semi circle. He then paused.
"Alright now, you hold it directly. Remember the instructions."
Arni nodded excitedly and held it with utmost caution. Arjun held her hand and helped her trace the other half of the circle. Once they were done, she held out the perfect circle and looked at it proudly.
Arjun couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm. At this age, even small things could satisfy you. He hoped that her life always remained this simple and full of joy.
That night, Arjun laid on his bed thinking about something that was a clear deviation from his regular thoughts. He was thinking about Arnika. Being a parent was tedious. It included responsibilities,exhaustion, tears, tantrums and what not! But it also included chatters, laughs, satisfaction and...Love. Being a parent was worth it,indeed. That night,Arjun slept with a smile on his face after 6 long years.
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The next morning when Arjun came out with the breakfast, he found Arnika sitting on the chair doing something ON his phone. He put down the dishes on the table with a small thud. Arnika gave him an irritated look and looked back in his phone.
He took in a sharp breath. She was so ready to annoy him in the morning itself! He snatched the phone from her hand.
Arni gave him a sarcastic smile- "Isi baat pe isse bhi phek do aap. Jaise meri cutie ko pheka tha!"
Arjun ignored the sarcasm dripping off her voice and asked, "Cutie?"
Arni rolled her eyes- "My phone."
Arjun raised his eyebrow. Who gives names to their phone now? Whatever...he had more pressing matters to deal with!
"Don't roll your eyes at me!"
All he got was yet another eye roll. He calmed down his nerves and sat on the chair. May God grant him patience in her teenage years.
Arjun- "What were you doing on my phone?"
Arni sarcastically-"Checking the news."
Arjun sternly- "It seems like you woke up on the wrong side of the bed today. Whatever it is Arnika, just cut it! This is your last warning."
Arni gulped. The fear of that tone was deeply instilled in her.
"Now answer my question."
Arni- "You took...threw my phone! It had important contacts. You won't even give me my tab so that I could retrieve them so I was just jotting down a few important phone number..."
Arjun mentally scoofed. Of course, a 9 year old had important contacts! "Namely?" he inquired.
Arni- "Chachu ka number toh yaad hai! Aur friends ka number isme hai nahi. So masi and my good for nothing class teacher."
Arjun's heart filled with jealousy at that. He hated himself for being jealous of his friend whom he had himself trusted with his daughter. But now when his own daughter trusts him over him, he couldn't help but feel envious. His heart dropped when he realised that it was his own fault. A feeling sprang up in his conscience. A feeling to make everything right. A feeling to make amends. He looked at his daughter who was going on and on about how his class teacher lived up to the title of 'good for nothing'.
Arjun whacked her head- "You don't call her names. She is your teacher!"
Arni rubbed her head- "Sorry." Of course these parents won't ever agree with them on these matters!
Arjun cleared his throat- "What's my phone number?"
Arni looked at him shocked. "Oops yeh toh socha hi nahi! Sorry. Aapka number hi likhna bhul gayi."
He clenched his fists tightly. He exhaled deeply and reached out for the piece of paper and pencil kept on the table. He jotted down his number and forwarded it to Arni.
Arjun- "Shaam tak yeh number yaad hona chahiye. Mai sununga."
Arni huffed. "Nahi na papa. Already itna saara pending work hoga! Upar se yeh ek aur drama...Mai nahi kar..." but she trailed off when she saw the look her father was giving her. She immediately changed her track.
"I- I mean parents ka phone number yaad hona is a must thing for everyone! It's for our own safety. I'll surely learn it, papa. Promise!" She gave him a big smile at the end.
Arjun gave her a critical look- "Eat."
She nodded and started having her breakfast. Somewhere deep down, she was happy over it. Kabir had made Kashvi and Kavin memorise his phone number when they were six! She felt left out when they were reciting the number to their father in the car. Kabir had looked at her through the rear view mirror and asked her to do the same. She happily complied. Kashvi and Kavin had helped her learn their father's number. Now she'll memorise her father's number.