At Shivan's
As the call came to an abrupt end, Shivani was left in a state of disbelief. She couldn't believe what she had just heard. Karishma is alive! Shivani found herself pacing around her home, trying to wrap her head around the incredible news she had just heard.
"K-karishma???"
"Zinda hai?"
"Lekin??"
"Kahi mai khwab tho nai dekh rahi hu??"
"Am i seeing things now??"
""Okay, Shivani, you gotta eat," she said to herself. "No matter how big a doctor you are, you need to put food in your stomach. Otherwise, you're gonna start hallucinating from all the hunger.
"or maybe i gotta sleep??? "
She kept talking to herself,
She wasn't sure how it was even possible, but the voice was clear and distinct. It was definitely Karishma, her best friend karishma she thought she had lost. And she was coming here, right now! Shivani's heart began to pound as she waited in anticipation for Karishma to arrive.
"Ekk minute, Ka--kahi ...... Oo...k-karishma ka bhooth tho nahi??
of course Karishma being a ghost did cross Shivani's mind for a moment,
As it was too much for her to take in at the moment.
"Bhooth mobile phone thodi use karti hai, haina??..ye..ye mai kya bol rahi hu!"
Shivani's heart jumped with sudden hope and anxiety as she heard the doorbell ring.
Shivani took a deep breath and gathered her strength, she went to the door and from the other side shivani asked
"K-on???"
"Ama kon kya kon abhi toh phn kiya tha ki milne aa rahi hoon"
"Kya tum K-karishma ka bhooth ho??"
shivani couldn't believe what she had just asked, her voice trembling with nerves. it was one thing to think about the possibility, but quite another to actually say it aloud.
karishma couldn't contain her surprise and laughter either, seeming almost caught off guard by the question.
"Kyaaa??"
she asked, seemingly not sure whether she had heard correctly.
"did you just ask if i was a ghost?" karishma said again, unable to hide her amusement.
"Haan" shivani said
"Ama bhooth kabse doorbell use karne lage andar aane ke liye"
Karishma couldn't help but find the whole situation amusing. Shivani had just jumped straight to ghost, which was the most extreme possibility of all. Her amusement was tempered with a bit of compassion for her best friend who was clearly struggling with the shock of their reunion.
"No," Karishma replied with a hint of a smile. "I'm definitely not a ghost."
"Are u s...sure" Shivani asked one last time to confirm
"I'm very sure, i can promise you, khud door khol ke dekhlo....aur mai bahut thaki hui hoon shivani, aur tumari baaton se tho lag raha hai...agar mai andar aa bhi gayi tho Mujhe ek lakh sawal ke jawab dene padenge, isse toh accha hai ki ab mai jaau yaha se, isiliye mai akri baar puch rahi hoon ya toh tum mujhe andar ane do, yaa mai jaa rahi hoon" karishma said
With mixed emotions swirling through her mind, Shivani took a deep breath and gathered her strength. This moment meant everything to her, and she couldn't afford to let her fear get in the way. Finally taking that final step forward, she grabbed the door handle and twisted it, pulling the door open with a rush.
"Seee???? I'm not a ghost, No ghost powers or anything like that" to empathize her point, she waved her hand in front of shivani.
"So you're really here?" Shivani asked with tears in her eyes, She rushed forward and fell into a tear-filled hug with her best friend. It was a moment filled with so much emotion that neither one could contain their tears. All the uncertainty and anxiety faded away as they held each other in a tight embrace, their friendship stronger than ever.
She couldn't believe that she was actually standing here in front of Karishma, who she thought she would never meet again.
"Miss me"
Karishma's sudden question broke the emotional moment for a moment, but only for a moment. It also broke their tears as they burst into a laugh. The moment of lightheartedness was much needed after all the emotions they had been through. Karishma's question was unexpected but not entirely surprising. It was her way of making light of the situation and relieving the tension between them. Karishma was known for her sassy humor, and this was just another instance of it.
"You have no idea how much I missed you," Karishma continued with a smile broking the hug.
"Mujhe abhi bhi yakin nai roha hi tum ho mere samne" Shivani said still not able to take the reality in
"Mujhe pata tha yahi reaction hoga tera... Toh bol kya karu??? Fir ek baar mar ke dikhau?? Tab manegi" karishma asked raising her eye brows
"I missed u Idiot," Shivani said and hugged her again "lekin.....Ye injury kaise??? this looks like a fresh wound. aur tu zinda kaise.. us din...." shivani was about to ask....
"Haa meri ma sab kuch batha thi hoon lekin pehle kuch khane ko milega???, I'm very hungry"
"wait, I'll order something " shivani said and went from there to order food.
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At Hasena's
Santu was thinking about all that happened in the last few minutes, the strange event that interrupted her evening. She closed her eyes, letting her mind wander, as she felt the cool breeze brush against her skin.
"Santu" she heard haseena call her from behind..
"Tune toh kabhi bhi zikar tak nahi kia tha apne ex ka??, What happened, why are you guys not together anymore?" Haseena was Asking while walking towards santu
"Haseena tujhe toh pata h....woo..haseena i mean it was before i met you toh i guess move on ho chuki thi Main, isliye nahi bathaya kabhi" santu said not making eye contact
"Lag toh aisa nahi raha ke move on ho chuki ho tum"
"Aisi baat nahi hai haseena....main..."
Santu saw haseena glaring at her with one raised eye brow.
“aise kyu dekh rahi ho?” Santu said and was searching for the right words. "Okay fine, she cheated on me."
“And I wasn’t willing to forgive her. We had been together for almost two years, and she broke my trust.” she looked away again. Haseena knew she was avoiding eye contact on purpose, trying not to show the emotional pain she was in. She reached out for his hand and squeezed gently, trying to offer some comfort.
"Tab hi maine realise kiya hai ki, once you are broken that means you are broken for life and nothing can be same again, Not even if you swear everything will be different next time. You’ve just broken something that can’t be fixed.”
Haseena just went and hugged her
Santu let out a tense exhale, then wrapped her arms around her. For a long moment, she just let herself lean into the hug,
“And I never talked to her again. I’ve tried my best to move on. I know I haven’t been open about it, but I wanted to let you know because you deserve to know.”
Finally, she pulled away slightly and looked into her eyes
"I'm done with her, i am really done with her"
"Ye tum mujhe samjha ne ki koshish kar rahi ho ya khud ko??" Haseena asked little did she know santosh had still not moved on completely
"Theek hai, theek hai, let's not talk about this now" haseena sensed that sontosh was slightly uncomfortable discussing this topic now, She changed the topic as well and to make her feel more comfortable.
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Haseena laid in her bed in a quiet darkness, eyes open, thoughts of sleep far from her mind. She contemplated sending a message to karishma about injury.
She let out a sigh and reached for her phone to message her.Haseena's fingers hovered over the keyboard as she decided to message.
"Hey there! this is haseena,
Hope you made it home alright.
Just texted to check on your injury,
how's your injury doing??"
Her finger hovered above the send button for a moment before she pressed it and set her phone down.
At Shivani's
Karishma completed dinner at Shivani's house. They were settled on the couch
Karishma faced Shivani and spoke up. "Were you just about to go on a date with Haseena ??? And what about Santu?, Tu cheat kar rahi hai mere behen ko??"
Shivani was caught off guard by Karishma's sudden question, and she started to feel a little guilty. "Oh, um... yes, I was." she spoke up. "I was, but I swear I didn't know that it was Haseena until you called."
"Aur mai kyu jana chahungi date pe kisi aur ke saath jabki main pyar tho santosh se karti hoon" she continued
"Wo toh bas papa ke kehne par gai thi mai, aur i just went to say that I'm not interested... And I didn't know it was haseena" Shivani said with atmost sincerity in her eyes looking straight at karishma
"Aur tere jaane ke kuch hi din baad mera aur santu ka break up hogaya tha."
Seeing Shivani's face change into a dull and unhappy expression upon hearing Santosh's name, Karishma figured that she had hit a nerve.
"Okay, what???? Why on earth did you break up with her?"
Karishma was clearly not done yet, and she wanted a proper explanation.
"Maine nahi usne ki thi breakup mere saath, usko miss understanding ho gayi thi, no Matter how hard i try she's not willing to listen to me or to understand the situation properly."
"but I'm not gonna give up on her" shivani said with pain-filled eyes.
"Koi nai ab mai aagayi hu naa, let's work on it and let's fix this mess" karishma hugged her with a genuine smile and she continued
" Yaar!! Look at how badly I got hurt, just because I thought haseena was going on a date with someone . All that anger and frustration... for nothing."
Karishma showed Shivani her injured hand with genuine guilt and regret.
"Whattt???" Shivani was shocked at this new remake "you did this to yourself??"
Karishma's reply was one of embarrassment as she looked up at Shivani with guilt. "Uh... yeah, it was done by me. When I thought Haseena was going on a date, I was so full of anger and frustration that I started hitting one of the flower vases and it broke, aur karti to kya karti ?? Jane deti haseena ko kisi aur ke saath date pe?"
Shivani was about to say something......
Then all of a sudden, Karishma's phone buzzed with a new message. She pulled out her phone, curious to see who it was. When she saw it was from Haseena, her heart warmed.
"Ek minute ek minute, haseena ji ka msg aaya hai, let's save your lecture for some other time " karishma said showing the message to shivani
Hey there! this is haseena,
Hope you made it home alright.
Just texted to check on your injury,
how's your injury doing??"
-haseena
Hum theek hai haseena ji,
Aap ab tak jaag rahi hai?
-karishma
Haan wo neend nahi aa rahi
thi toh socha massage karleti hu
apko, why are u not sleeping
-haseena
Kahi aap hamare bare
me toh nahi soch rahi thi ki
apki neend hi ud gayi
-karishma
Haha!very funny, hame neend
aa rahi hai good night, take care
-haseena
Good night haseena ji
Kal milte hai coffee pe
-karishma
Ji theek hi bye!
-haseena
Karishma smiled, a bright look of excitement in her face.
Shivani noticed the glow on Karishma's face after the message and realized how much the text meant to her "so you are going to meet haseena tomorrow"
"Yes, once again for the first time" Karishma Said with the determination in her voice.
"Lekin karishma, haseena tho sab kuch....." Shivani was about to say something but karishma interrupted her saying..
"Until today, after all these struggles and hardships from the past 14 months, do you know what is the largest form of agony in my heart is?"
"What is it ??" Shivani asked as she can feel the weight of every word that comes straight out of karishma's heart.
"This distance between me and her" she continued "Not being able to see her,Touch her or feel her" her voice was raw and painful
"Despite the odds, I'm gonna make her mine again and again" karishma said looking straight into Shivani's eyes.
Shivani didn't doubt Karishma's ability to charm and persuade Haseena. If anyone could pull it off, it was her.
"Suna hai wo bole tho baaton se phul jhad te hai, ye baat hai toh chalo baat karke dekhte hai"
karishma whispered to herself looking at the messages haseena has sent
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Hello readers,
"Thank you for reading this chapter! I hope you found it insightful and enjoyable. Your feedback is important to me, so please let me know if there's anything specific you liked or didn't like.
I'll look forward to seeing you again in the next chapter!"