Chapter 73
Avyan was capable enough to have impressed Ankit and Baldev with his own good nature and behavior. Both the father and son wanted to choose Avyan for their girl Kriti.
Baldev told Ankit, "See, you've already made a big mistake by choosing a person like Mohit for your sister. Now we need to take careful steps before doing anything wrong again. What reasons do you have for choosing Avyan for Kriti?"
Ankit agreed. "You're right papa, I was wrong, totally wrong. You had given me the responsibility of my sister to me and I failed. But this time, I don't think I'm thinking wrong. Aditi knows Avyan and his family personally and he is her client. We'll get more details about him from her. Secondly, the way Avyan got the hell out of my friends and opponents, I am impressed. Also if we go by our family tradition, he is an illiterate and owns gambling centres. He'll be the perfect choice."
"I understood you have valid reasons. Now will you listen to my reasons?"
Ankit nodded and Baldev continued, "I did not know all these details about him and I'm hearing it from you for the first time. I've liked him for some other reason. When I was on the rounds to the thalassaemia Home in previous days, I experienced his good nature there. He has a very fascinating skill of music and a mesmerizing voice. His music was so impactful that he eventually changed the minds of the little children. Moreover, he undertook the project for building the hospital for a large sum of money. He did what we could not do in all these years."
Ankit gaped. "That's amazing. I think we should talk to him about it and let's see if he agrees to us."
"No, we can't do that. What if he's already married, then?" Baldev asked.
"It might be but we can always take a chance." Ankit agreed.
"So I'm giving you this responsibility of reaching his heart. Don't do any mistakes again," Baldev ordered and Ankit obeyed merrily.
*****
Raghav had heard the exciting news of the cancellation of Kriti's marriage and his joy knew no bounds. He was so excited that he was almost mentally dancing across the balcony of Jiyasha's house and collided with Ankit all of a sudden.
Raghav got little scared seeing Ankit but then realized that Ankit was a changed man. He uttered, "How are you, Mr. Ankit?"
Ankit smiled at him. "I'm good and how have you been?"
"As usual, very happy and relaxed."
"What for?" Ankit asked him doubtfully.
Raghav knew he was too quick in spilling beans and pursed his lips. Then he said softly, "My grandmother is coming to India in two days' time, that's why."
It was true, their grandmother was comparatively fitter than before and Amar was fetching her back to India in a couple of days.
"That's a good piece of news. Please tell her that I've invited her to our house. Why would she stay somewhere else when her grandsons are staying here?" Ankit said politely.
"I will, don't worry." Raghav was hurrying to move out of Ankit's way and meet Kriti as soon as possible.
Raghav turned to go when he heard Ankit's voice again. "Raghav, who all are there in your family? Your grandmother, you, Avyan and who else? Your family stays in abroad, right?"
Raghav was always quicker to respond. "We three have been together since ages. Our parents died long ago, I didn't find a proper girl to get married to and my brother never found the time to come out of his musical world."
"It basically means you both are unmarried. I mean your brother is also unmarried. Doesn't he even have a girlfriend?" Ankit was getting desperate.
Raghav nodded. "Why will he need a girlfriend when he has Ji..."
He pressed his lips together and thought to himself, "Oh no, what I was going to blabber! Until both brother and sister-in-law give me permission, I can't disclose their truth to him."
Ankit shook Raghav. "What are you thinking boy? You were saying something."
Raghav smiled sheepishly for he was again going to make a fool of himself. "Ankit, I mean my brother doesn't need a girlfriend when he has his love with him."
"Love? Does he really love someone?" Ankit felt cramps emerging in his stomach.
"Yes his guitar. He always keeps it with him." Raghav managed to deviate.
"Oh I see." Ankit smiled satisfactorily for he now knew that Kriti yet had a chance with Avyan.
Least did Raghav know that he had again made a big fool of himself. Without replying more, he took an exit quickly. Ankit smiled to himself thinking that half of his work was almost done.
*****
Raghav looked for Kriti in her room but she was not there. He walked out of the room and in a rush, he collided with Kriti again for the second time. And a second collision meant bonding forever.
"Are you in the habit of colliding with girls every now and then?" Kriti teased him.
Raghav chuckled. "What if I'm colliding with the same girl every now and then? Don't you think this is planned by God?"
"This is mere coincidence!"
Raghav took a step closer to her. "You mean to say our meeting is also a coincidence."
Kriti widened her eyes. "I didn't mean that."
"Then what do you mean? Why did we meet?" Raghav said with his affectionate eyes observing her intently.
Kriti narrowed her eyes to mutter softly, "I don't know."
Raghav was not late to pull her into his warm embrace for Avyan and Jiyasha had already informed him about their discussion with Kriti. He was confidence enough about the feelings of Kriti and hugging her to his bosom said, "You met me because you were made only for me. If I have permission, I will keep you with me for the rest of my life."
Kriti was easily dissolved to his advances of love and reciprocated to it. "You are permitted to some extent."
"Why? Don't you trust me at all?"
"I do because I've seen how you helped me when I needed you. You tried to make me laugh when I was upset with the marriage fiasco. And above all, you are Jiyasha's brother-in-law whose husband cured my brother's wrong thoughts. So you can't be as bad as Mohit was. I was ready to marry Mohit under brother's pressure but this time, no one pressurized me. I liked you willingly. I hope you don't fail to gain my full trust in the future."
Raghav chuckled satisfactorily and promised her. "I don't know what it may take to win your full trust but I'm betting on it. I'll marry you for life and let future alone decide what it holds for us."
Kriti joined in the promise and vowed to be beside him until their final breaths hitched, for it would mean till eternity!
*****
Jiyasha was sitting outside their house on a bright evening pondering over her old promise to Kasturi. She received a call from her senior doctor at the hospital and he informed her that there wasn't any possibility of finding any heart donor very soon. Jiyasha insisted him on her urgent need for a heart transplant into her ailing mother. Her mother Kasturi was surviving on pacemaker and further delay on the operation might be more fatal for her.
With a heavy heart, she disconnected the phone. Tears encircled her eyes when she felt a soft thumb against her skin, wiping the liquid off her. "Ankit bro," she muttered and he took a seat beside her.
"Why are you crying? I know I haven't been able to take care of you the way I was supposed to but as I promised, the case won't be the same again," Ankit assured her.
Jiyasha cried in his embrace disclosing her pain before him. "I'm not able to find a heart donor for maa. What am I supposed to do?"
Ankit brushed her unarranged hair aside as he spoke, "You'll get some way out or the other. Don't lose hope so soon. We have even looked after our mother for the past few years without losing hope."
Jiyasha nodded feeling a little better after sharing her pain with her brother. Ankit continued, "I'm here to speak about something else with you. I've got two of my unmarried sisters and from now, I'll only do according to their happiness. May I ask you for something and you should not refuse I hope."
Jiyasha knitted her eyebrows before responding, "You may ask anything bro. I'll be happy to do something for you."
"There isn't anything perilous that you won't be able to do. I want you to speak to Kriti once regarding her feelings for the boy in our house."
"What does that mean?"
"I mean father and I, we both are thinking to get Kriti married to Aditi's client. We really liked him as a person and I'm sure he'll keep her ever happy. But before that, it is necessary to know what she feels about him. She is the closest to you and I don't think she'll hide her feelings from you."
Jiyasha felt her limbs tremble upon hearing Ankit's words. Words were taking time to escape her mouth as she asked, "Which one of the clients? They are two brothers, I suppose."
"Oh no, the younger one is a bit too crazy. He's not much suited for Kriti so much as the elder one. I'm talking about Avyan, the elder and better one," Ankit said plainly and Jiyasha stood up in a haste.
She was unable to blurt anything and Ankit saw her perturbed face. "What happened, Jiyu? Don't you also think that he's fit for Kriti? Won't you do this little task for your brother?"
Jiyasha nodded coldly. "I will," and she left the place hurriedly without uttering anything.
Ankit misinterpreted her cold behavior. "She must be worried about the heart transplant thing. I shouldn't have pressurized her to talk to Kriti. Let's see if she does anything or else I'll talk to Kriti myself."
*****
Jiyasha was busy searching for Avyan all around the house but there was no trace of him. She even looked for Raghav but he was missing too. At last, she stood against the balcony and cried bitterly on her own fate. "I lost and found my brother in such a time where I'll have to choose between my husband and brother. If I refused, I would hurt my brother again. He has requested something from me for the first time in life and it's becoming very difficult to deny him. What am I supposed to do?"
Jiyasha rubbed the little tears draining her cheeks and muttered again, "I can't afford to lose any of them, neither Avyan nor my brother. How to deal with this crisis now?"
Not an hour passed since Jiyasha had been standing against the railing of the balcony when she heard giggles downstairs. From the distant view, she could see Avyan and Raghav approaching through the entrance along with their grandmother. Upon seeing the sight of her, Jiyasha felt relieved since her entrusted relationship shipper had finally returned to India.
Now she had only one thing to be done, to talk to Avyan about everything and calm her disturbed mind. She was sure Avyan would find a way out for her.
*****
Jiyasha was getting nervous since it was already late night and she hadn't got a chance to talk to her husband yet. Both the brothers were very engrossed with their grandmother, including Jiyasha's family. The formal introduction and other discussions were going on and it continued tensing Jiyasha's nerves.
Jiyasha hadn't even moved downstairs to meet with the grandmother. She was extremely tensed of Ankit's words and any how needed to discuss with Avyan. The people in the family were getting ready for dinner and Avyan went searching for Jiyasha to call her for the dinner. He found her in the balcony and hugged her from behind.
Jiyasha flinched at him and stood apart. "Please Avyan, I don't want anyone to see us like this."
Avyan shrugged his shoulder and stepped ahead. "Jiyasha, the problems are already solved. Your brother is also changed and my grandmother has also approached. I think now we can easily talk to your family about us."
Jiyasha fidgeted in her position. "No Avyan, we can't."
She narrated everything to him.
Avyan laughed quite hard upon hearing what Ankit had told her. "So you're tensed for this. Do you really think I'll marry anyone else except you? No one in the world can force me to marry someone else."
Jiyasha gulped. "No Avyan, it's no more easy now. My father and brother have chosen you for Kriti. My brother has just mended his relationship with me. Do you think I can hurt him again?"
Avyan caught hold of her shoulders. "So what do you want me to do?"
"I don't know."
Avyan hugged her all of a sudden. "I only love you and you should know that."
Before Jiyasha could respond, Ankit had witnessed their closeness. He was also there to bring Jiyasha for the dinner.
"Jiyasha!!! I requested a little thing from you but instead, you're trying to woo him for you. How could you betray me?" Ankit scoffed and glided downstairs in a very angry mood.
Jiyasha abruptly moved out of Avyan's grip. "You spoilt everything for me, he saw us together. We could have thought something else later but no... I lost my brother again. Now he'll create a fuss of everything and everyone will hate me in the house."
Jiyasha ran downstairs as fast as she could for she could not afford to lose her newly found family. Avyan stood gaping behind, rooted in his place!
To be continued...
A/N: The first anniversary of my first general fiction "His Destiny Her Love" is approaching this month. I'll be posting something (surprises) in that book very soon. Please make sure that you have the book in your library so that you get updated with the notification!!
***Please vote, comment and share***