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The next few days were so exciting for Khushi Gupta that they passed in a blur. She was looking forward to working for AR Designs, well, for one particular person, Arnav Singh Raizada. She had received a copy of the contract from Arnav and as he had asked her to get it reviewed by a lawyer, she had asked for her dad's lawyer to look into it. Advocate Khanna was impressed by the level of detailing in it and praised Shyam Manohar Jha for the impeccable document. He suggested Khushi go forward with it as there were no hidden clauses whatsoever that could lead Khushi to trouble in the future in case she wanted to terminate the contract before it expired.
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Arnav Singh Raizada was anxious and excited at the same time. The prospect of working closely with the girl he was starting to fall for made him happy. His anxiety had to do with the fact that he had given her the contract three days back and Khushi had not reached out to him yet with a response. He had texted her once asking if she had gone through the contract. Khushi had told him that her lawyer was going through it and she would get back to him at the earliest. As he looped on his tie, in front of the mirror, he hoped today would be the day Khushi said that she was ready to sign the contract. He checked his phone again to check if he had missed a call or a text. Nothing. He was disappointed, but he decided to stay positive.
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Anjali and Shyam were also dressed and ready for office as Arnav joined them at the breakfast table. They had gotten over the 'Anjali, are you going to the office? Beta you need rest.' Over the previous days. Anjali had responded with a firm 'My husband and brother will be present in the same building the entire time. I only have to sit in a corner and read documents anyway. I will be happier and more motivated there.' and Ratna or Devyani had no response to that.
"Saale Saheb, I have been meaning to ask you, have you shared the contract I prepared with Khushi yet?" Shyam asked as he took a bit of his parantha.
"Yes jijaji. I sent it to her so that she can consult a lawyer and go through it. I am yet to hear back from her. Will let you know once I get a response."
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The trio soon left for work. They had decided to go to office together now that they were all staying at the Raizada Mansion. In case one of them needed to go out somewhere, they always had Mohan on standby with the other car at AR.
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Arnav missed lunch with the usual group as he was busy with a call with some suppliers. It was during his late lunch time that his phone flashed with the picture of Khushi indicating he was getting a call from her. Arnav was chewing the spoonful of rice he had put in his mouth when that happened. He chewed faster and answered the call.
"Hi Khushi." Arnav said before she could greet him.
"Hey."
"I was waiting for your call." Arnav said and his hand automatically went to his head. When it came to Khushi, he seemed to lose his senses.
"I mean..."
"I know what you mean. You need not give me a reason or any clarification." Khushi said with a smile. Of course, Arnav couldn't see the smile, but he could definitely figure out she was happy.
"So, have you gone through the document? Your lawyer I mean?"
"Oh yes. He was very impressed by the level of detailing. He asked me to go ahead with it."
"That is great news. And I will surely pass on the compliment to Jijaji."
"Great. So, when do I have to come in to sign this?" Khushi asked hoping for the earliest date.
"Will tomorrow work for you? You can come in around 10:30 if it is okay." He suggested.
"Tomorrow morning works." Khushi agreed. She wondered if she could drag the conversation further, but thankfully, he had something more to say.
"So, before you come in tomorrow to make things official, can we meet today?" He asked hoping for a positive response.
"Today? Why?" She was okay with meeting him, just a bit confused on the why part.
"I will tell you that in person. I know you have your gym session in a couple of hours." Arnav said checking his watch. Khushi smiled at the fact that he remembered and let him continue speaking.
"I can meet you at the same café at the same time as the last time, if it is okay with you."
Khushi moved to stand in front of her wardrobe looking for a better dress to change into after the gym session.
"Sure. We can do that." She said into the phone
The phone call ended after that and Khushi started throwing her clothes on the bed looking for one to wear to meet Arnav Singh Raizada.
Arnav had a huge smile plastered on his face after the call.
*******
He moved up the 5:00 PM meeting with his team by an hour. That thing could go on for an hour and he knew he needed to leave before 5:30 to make it to the café by 6:00.
Everyone was curious to why Arnav moved up the meeting, but no one asked anything to the mighty ASR. As Arnav expected, the meeting ended at 5:12 and he was running out of time.
"Let's go get some snacks. I am hungry after that long meeting." Aman said as soon as most of the employees left the conference hall. It was just him, Arnav, Anjali, Payal and Akash left. Shyam wasn't part of the creative meetings.
"I am hungry too." Payal said as she stood up from her seat. They saw Shyam waiting outside for them and headed out.
"Please go ahead with your plans. I have somewhere to be." Arnav announced to no one in particular.
"Where Chottey?" Anjali asked, wiggling one of her eyebrows.
"I'll tell you when I think it is time." Arnav said with a smirk.
"And yes, I'm taking the car. Mohan will drop you guys home."
Shyam just nodded at Arnav, giving him an encouraging smile.
"Well, I think I am kept out of the loop." Aman said and Payal nodded.
"It's not just you who is out of the loop." Akash said pointing to himself and Payal.
"Well, we intend to find out, don't we?" Aman asked looking at Akash and the latter nodded.
"Yes, we do."
Arnav did not bother responding to the group as he rushed to his car, the smile on his face intact.
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Khushi made the smarter choice this time. She knew she had to work with limited resources after her work out. She picked all the items she knew she would need to look presentable. She packed a dress for her date/ meeting with Arnav Singh Raizada. She couldn't call it a date until specifically mentioned so, right? Anyway, she did not want Rajesh pestering her for leaving early. So, she left for the gym an hour early so that she would have enough time for her work-out and then to get ready. She had informed her parents that she would be late after gym. Khushi already had plans with her friends to go clubbing after gym before Arnav had asked to meet. She would've come back after gym, gotten ready and gone out with her friends, but now, she had decided to go directly after Arnav's call. Garima probably did not ask because she already knew about Khushi's evening plans.
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Arnav encountered more traffic than the previous time he went to meet Khushi at the café. He was not a fan of being late to the meeting. The GPS showed her was seven minutes away and that would mean he would reach only by 5:58. He liked to be present at the venue five minutes early, whatever be the event. He always liked having the upper hand. Not that he was trying to have the upper hand in a conversation with Khushi.
He parked his car and rushed towards the café. He hoped he wasn't late. It was 5:59 and he was glad at least he made it before 6:00. He opened the door of the café to be greeted by the manager.
"Hello sir, welcome. Are you expecting company?"
Arnav was about to say 'Table for two', when he noticed the rest of his party waving at him from the corner table.
"I'm with her." Arnav told the manager as he took in the beauty of Khushi.
She looked beautiful in a dark blue fit and flare dress as she stood there waving for him to join her. He walked toward her and took the seat opposite as the two of them sat down, waving for the waiter to come over.
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Hi guys,
Let me know what are your thoughts about this chapter in your comments.
Will post next chapter real soon. Undergoing a lot of changes on the work front. Changing teams and having to actually go to the office.
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