"Beta, I thought you came home because you were missing me. All you do is either you lock yourself in your bedroom and practise music or sulk alone. What is the matter beta?" asked daadi gently patting Shivay's head.
"Just being around you calms my nerves daadi." He said with eyes shut, clearly enjoying her maternal caress.
"So your nerves weren't calm till you came here I assume beta? What is it that is bugging my grandson so, you know you can tell me" she replied lovingly.
She was right Shivay thought, even in the past daadi had always been a source of comfort and wise advice he thought. "Daadi it's my friend, I am protective of her - but she doesn't trust me. She trusts Om - you remember him right? And he is playing with her feelings - I don't like it - but as I said, she doesn't trust me" he finished, already feeling lighter after sharing this.
Daadi looked thoughtfully at him, the only person her grandson was attached to, was her granddaughter Soumya - if Shivay was protective of this girl, did it mean he had developed a soft corner for her? Daadi wondered quietly as started asking innocent questions about Anika to Shivay - to daadi's amazement, no more was Shivay the gloomy morose child sulking in the corner - the way he relayed her stories to daadi and laughed remembering the fun times, daadi was sure where this was heading - Shivay told daadi how Anika helped him academically, as a friend and also with his music - this girl seems right thought daadi - and smiled.
"Beta, if she is your best friend and you care for her - then you have done your job of telling her of the reality and by trying to protect her from hurt - now it's her call. You really shouldn't worry anymore - it's her life, she gets to decide." She said wisely and as she anticipated, Shivay's shoulder dropped in morose again.
But daadi continued, "However, if your Anika friend is special and you cannot see her hurt at any cost and you have decided you will be there to protect her from such people all your life - as her partner, and love and cherish her - then I must say coming home to sulk is a wrong decision son." she smiled.
Shivay looked up at her face in surprise, daadi too understood this? Then why couldn't Anika understand? He dropped all pretence before daadi and told her, "I love her daadi. I really do"
Daadi looked annoyed, "God beta, you are such a disgrace to the honourable name of Punjabi's! You love her and because she doesn't trust you, you came back running to daadi? Go back there beta and fight for her - fight for your love and win her back for me. Go now." She said with charge. Shivay didn't need to be told twice, his goofy grin was back and he gave daadi a rib-cracking hug, before running off to pack his bags - he was coming back, to claim Anika and make him rightfully his.
***
When Shivay rang Anika's doorbell, a surprised Somu greeted him, "Bhai, I thought you were returning by the end of week right?" she asked surprised.
"Yes, but I am back, and I need to meet Anika. Is she home? She isn't reachable by phone" he replied breatheless.
"Err..bhai..I don't know what happened that night after the movie, but by the time Rudra dropped me, Anika had gone leaving behind a note that she will be gone for some time. And ever since then she isn't reachable over phone." She replied eyeing Shivay nervously. Shivay stared at her - gone? For some time? Where? He thought, but judging by Somu's expression, he knew he wouldn't find his answers here. He dashed off from there before entering the house and leaving a surprised Somu behind. Only one man could tell.
When he knocked his door, he was anxious. The last time he met him two weeks back, he had beaten him down to pulp, and today only he could help him. As the door opened, Om peeped out.
"Yes?" he asked politely feigning to not recognize him.
"Om, not now - this is serious"Shivay replied quietly. Om considered it for a moment and allowed him inside - to say the least, Om was MAD at Shivay. Shivay enetered his house and before anything else first looked around, half hoping to find Anika there - but the house was empty except Om - in fact he seemed to be packing his bags.
"You're going somewhere?" Shivay asked, trying to break the ice.
"Yes, Delhi." He replied.
"Why? Random or.." asked Shivay curiously.
"To attend my girl-friend's sister's roka" he replied.
Shivay was surprised, Mallika's conversation regarding Daksh postponing there roka came to his mind. Didn't she succeed in warding off Daksh? She had agreed for the roka? Did that mean Anika didn't belief him at all? Did she not choose to leave Om even for Mallika's sake? Why was she doing this? Not only was she destroying Mallika's happiness, but also her own future and Shivay's - and as much as he hated Om now - in a way she was destroying his life too, by allowing him to cheat on her and live with the guilt. No he had to stop this madness.
"Om, Mallika loves you! I promised her not to tell you - but truth is she sacrificed her love for you because---"but he couldn't complete, as Om spoke again.
"Because she wanted Anika to have a chance to be with the man she loved. I know. Had you told me this earlier, a lot of madness could be stopped - but now this news fails to make any impact"he replied coldly.
Shivay was shocked, why was Om acting thus? "Om, you love Mallika and she loves you - her intentions weren't wrong - then why do you want to avenge her by wronging Anika? Om she doesn't believe me - so you stop it please - you don't even have a motive anymore - instead stop Mallika and Daksh's roka!!" Shivay tried explaining in vain, to a visibly unperturbed Om.
"Shivay, who told you Mallika and Daksh are having a roka? They are not together anymore." He replied calmly.
"You said your girlfriend sister's roka nah?" asked Shivay agitated.
"And Mallika isn't my girlfriend sister" he replied.
"Oh, so Anika broke up with you?" he asked relief draining him from inside, he had not a worry in the world now.
"Yes, we broke up"he replied curtly.
"Oh. But where is she? I tried calling her all day, her phone isn't reachable" he mumbled, in fact he didn't hate Om anymore - the deep-seated anger he felt for Om seemed to sublime the moment he knew Anika wasn't with him anymore.
"In Delhi" he replied looking at Shivay with pure hate in his eyes.
"Why is Anika in Delhi?" Shivay asked confused.
"Because the roka is happening in her home-town" he replied.
"Whose roka? Wait what is happening? Om please explain!" he gave in.
"Anika's roka. My girlfriend Mallika's sister Anika." He finished through gritted teeth.
Shivay's world collapsed. Anika's roka? If not Om then whom? He wondered aloud.
"Dev. Dev Suri" replied Om, "he is her mother's friend's son. It's an arranged marriage."
"Om but why did Anika agree?? She loved you right?" asked Shivay aghast.
Om looked at him in the eye and took a deep breathe, "As much as I don't care enough to explain this to you Shivay, I still want you to know - so that in future when you repent, you know exactly how big a loser you are."
"Om, just tell me" Shivay pleaded.
"When you told Anika the truth about Mallika that night, she had confronted her and demanded to know why Mallika did such a thing - why she assumed Anika loved me when she never said such a thing to Mallika - turned out Tia had told her about Anika liking me - and Mallika already knew Anika hopelessly loved someone, so she wrongly assumed that was me - but on clarification, Mallika and Anika hugged each other and cried till they made peace - then Mallika and I got back together." he finished.
"So Anika never loved you? And she does love someone hopelessly? Who is it? And Mallika took you back just like that? Didn't she have a problem with the fact that you used her di?" asked Shivay, the revelation had left him more confused than ever.
"So the thing is, Anika and I were never together - it was an arrangement we made - I wanted to make the man who she loves, feel jealous seeing her with me - so that he realized that he loves her too - but I told her that my girl broke up with me, and we were doing this to make her jealous - that's why she agreed to be a part of the charade." He replied, and continued packing his bag.
"What?" that was all he could gasp, he felt weak and crashed on Om's couch.
"But wait, if she loved someone and you did so much to get them together, then why is she marrying this Dev guy? Isn't it an arranged marriage?" he asked.
"Yes, it is - because the fool she loved, doesn't seem to know the difference between diamond and coal. He doesn't love her. I truly pity him and I hate him from the core."he said with venom spitting from his mouth and choler in his eyes.
"Who did Anika love so dearly Om?"he asked, he was feeling revolted from inside, guess he never stood a chance anyway - she loved this unlucky bas***d who never saw her for who she really was - and now she was marrying a stranger - he had managed to be in her wrong books anyway - so he still didn't stand a chance - he was feeling sorry to be disappointing daadi too.
"How does it matter who that loser is" asked Om.
"I want to know" he said dejected.
"You" Om replied quietly, as Shivay's head shot up in shock.