With a smile present on his lips, Abhijeet said, "Maine use manakar Rahul ko aur uski maa ko sab batane keliye raazi kar diya. Usne sabkuch chup-chap sunn liya phir bas ek shart rakh di. Ki iss sabmein mai uske saath majud rahu."

"Par tumhari flight?" Mr. Pradyuman asked him.

"Uski maa subah hi aarahi thi, toh maine dusre din ki flight book karli thi, sir." Abhijeet said. "Aur uss din, mai, Daya aur Rahul, aunty jee ko airport se pick up karne keliye gae the."

...

"Abhijeet?" Daya said, nervously. "Bhaiya ne meri baaton ka yakin nahi kiya toh?"

Abhijeet smiled. "Mom ki fiqar nahi hai tumhe?"

Daya's gaze immediately turned serious. "Unke paas meri baat manne ke siwa aur koi option nahi hai, Abhijeet."

Abhijeet furrowed his brows in confusion. "Mai kuch samjha nahi."

Daya gave him a sad smile. "Mere paas unhe batane keliye kuch hai. Jisse voh meri baaton par bharosa karengi. Magar bhaiya..pata nahi." He looked away and Abhijeet dismissed the subject for the time being.

Rahul had informed Daya days ago that they had to pick up Mrs. Gayatri, their mother, from the airport at 8am. Abhijeet knew about it beforehand too. Conviniently, he had booked his flight too.

The next day, they were up early and ready to leave for the airport. Abhijeet asked Rahul to not call for their driver as he himself was going to drive the car. Rahul was hesitant because it was early in the morning but Abhijeet's assuring nod made him agree. What really was of Abhijeet's concern, wasn't the early morning drive but Daya's unusual quietness.

When they reached airport, Mrs. Gayatri's flight was just minutes away from landing. As she walked out and Daya saw her, he took a step back while Rahul waved at her with big smile on his face. She waved back, chuckling as she reached them. Both of them took her blessings and immediately hugged her.

"We missed you, ma." Rahul said with a smile, while Daya just nodded silently.

When they parted from the hug, she ruffled both of their heads. "I missed you too." She laughed.

As her eyes fell on Abhijeet, he joined his hands and gave her a nod. "Namaste aunty jee."

"Abhijeet!" She exclaimed in surprise. "Beta tum yahan? Rahul ne mujhe bataya nahi ki tum Banglore aae hue ho."

Rahul looked at her and then at Abhijeet. He turned his head down silently, while guessing what must have happened, Abhijeet said, "Kaam ke chakkar mein bhul gaya hoga voh." He smiled at her. "Aur aap abhi abhi toh aai hai. Thak gai hongi na? Chaliye, gaadi mein baithiye. Aaj driving mai karunga!" He said, raising his collar making her snicker. She nodded, whereas Daya had already kept her luggage in the dicky.

They all sat inside, where Abhijeet was obviously on the driving seat, Rahul on the passenger seat beside him and Daya and Mrs. Gayatri on the backseat.

There was absolute silence in the car, broken by Mrs. Gayatri who after looking at both of her sons, asked Daya a bit strictly, "College attend kar rahe ho na tum?"

Daya gave her a smiley nod. She looked at Rahul for confirmation who bobbed his head in 'yes' too, making Abhijeet smile under his teeth. He knew Mrs. Gayatri was a caring, but at the same time a very strict mother. Rahul had told many stories about her to him in their college days.

"Good." She said, now smiling. Then she looked at Abhijeet and casually asked. "Aur Abhijeet, Banglore kis kaam se aae ho?

Abhijeet gave Rahul a hesitant look who understood it and answered, "Maa aap bhi kya aate hi sawal-jawab karne lage ho. Pehle ghar toh pohoch jae hum."

She gave him a suspicious look but didn't drag the topic. Daya, who observed all that, looked between his brother and his psychiatrist as he sighed.

Some moments later, Mrs. Gayatri started conversing with Rahul. Her asking questions and him answering, mostly. Business related talks. However, when they realised the car hadn't moved for a while now, they stopped and realised that they were stuck in a traffic. They could hear police sirens. Abhijeet looked at them and then got down from the car to check if he could see anything. When he sat back in, he answered the questioning gazes saying, "Shayad koi accident hua hai."

Both Rahul and Mrs. Gayatri frowned, whereas a few sweat drops had appeared on Daya's face. Abhijeet looked at him from the corner of his eye. Noticing his discomfort, he knew what he was upto.

Minutes passed by, no cars were moving. Feeling stuck, Mrs. Gayatri sighed in frustration. Daya, who was silent for a long time now, spoke hesitantly, "Mom?"

She looked at him. "Hmm?"

"Aap..aapne mujhse poocha tha na ki mai aise ajeeb bartav kyun karne laga hun?" He said, cautiously. "Mai.." he closed his eyes for a moment, "mai ab aapko jawab dene ke liye tayar hun."

She and Rahul shared a confused glance. She looked at him and said softly. "Haan, bolo."

Daya looked at her nervously. "Aage ek accident hua hai."

She raised her eyebrow, unimpressed. "Haan, jaanti hun. Abhi abhi toh Abhijeet ne yahi bataya na."

Daya pressed his lips tightly against each other, saying slowly, "Accident ek ladki ka hua hai maa. She is.. she is dead." He whispered the last part.

His mother looked at him in surprise. "Kya.. tumhe dikh raha hai?" She lowered her window and looked out but could only see some cars ahead of them. "Yahanse toh kuch nahi dikh raha." She glanced back at him. "Kahan hai voh Daya?"

Daya gulped as he looked firstly at his mother and then at Rahul. He bit his lip before answering, "Meri khidki ke bahar."

Both Rahul and Mrs. Gayatri's eyes widened in surprise. Rahul, who recovered first, said angrily, "Kya bakwas hai yeh, Daya?" He then looked at Abhijeet. "Jeet tum-"

Abhijeet signalled him to stay quiet by pressing his palm. Rahul looked down at his hand and was going to protest when Abhijeet gave him a stern look.

"Mai jhoot nahi bol raha bhaiya, maa." They heard Daya's frantic voice. "Mai sach keh raha hun. Mujhe sachmein mare hue log dikhte hai."

"Daya tum yeh kya mazak kar rahe ho?" His mother said, angrily. "Maine tumse pehle hi kaha tha that you should stop talking such nonsense."

Daya shook his head immediately. "Mai mazak nahi kar raha, mom, mai.."

He stopped abruptly. Looking at his mother for once, he turned his head to look outside the window. A long silence prevailed in the car. After sometime, Daya initiated in a low, heavy voice. "Nani-maa ne aapse 'hi' kaha hai."

Mrs. Gayatri was taken aback. Rahul was shocked too, but Abhijeet had tightened his grip over his friend's palm to avoid him from doing something stupid.

"Daya tum yeh-" Mrs. Gayatri uttered, surprised. She composed herself as she further added, "Tum jaante ho ki nani-maa ko jae hue chaar saal ho chuke hai. Phir bhi..yeh achi baat nahi hai, Daya." She said in a strict tone.

Daya turned towards her and held her hand. "Voh mujhse milne aati thi maa. Kai baar. Un..unhone mujhse aap dono ke ek jhagde ke baremein bhi bataya tha."

Mrs. Gayatri looked at him coldly. Daya knew how sensitive she was about her mother and then too he was talking about her. "Kiss jhagde ke baremein baat kar rahe ho tum?"

"Aapka dance competition tha na?" He asked her in a slightly wet voice. "Competition ke pehle aapka aur Nani-maa ka jhaga hua tha. Hai na?" She looked at him in shock. "Aapko laga ki voh aapka dance dekhne nahi aai."

She was in disbelief. "Daya tumhe-"

"Haan yah na maa?" He raised his voice a bit, desperately trying to make a point.

She bit her lower lip to hold back her tears as she nodded. He took a deep breath, looking at her with wet eyes. "Voh aai thi maa, voh aapka dance dekhne aai thi. Second wing ke last seat se voh aapko dekh rahi thi. Andhere mein aapne unhe dekha nahi." His mother gasped at that, while he continued. "Unhone kaha ki aap bahot acha naachi. Aap bilkul kisi pari ki tarah dikh rahi thi. Nani-maa ko bahot acha laga tha aapka performance."

Some tears slipped down her cheeks as she closed her eyes.

Daya looked at her and said in an extremely low tone. "Unhone mujhse aur ek baat kahi thi. Aapne unke photo ke paas jaakar unse ek sawal kiya tha. Uska jawab..unhone kaha ki 'har din'. Aapne..aapne unse kya poocha tha, mom?"

Mrs. Gayatri tried to speak but she was choking on her tears. Pressing a hand on her mouth, she replied with a heavy voice, "Ke k..kya unhe kabhi..kabhi mujhpe garv mehsus hua th..tha." Saying so, she broke down in tears. Daya's lips quivered too. He uttered, "Maa.." before swiftly embracing his mom.

Abhijeet removed his grip from over Rahul's hand, noticing his friend was blinking back some tears too. Rahul was constantly gazing at Daya. He didn't realise when his anger had turned to guilt. He looked for Abhijeet for confirmation whether what Daya was saying was true or not, and Abhijeet's silent nod just added to his guilt. He immediately turned around and kept a hand on Daya's head, bringing a smile on Abhijeet's face. After all, Daya didn't need to go through any extra trouble for Rahul to believe him now.

He looked at Daya, extremely proud of him. When Daya felt his gaze over him, he looked at him through tears and mouthed a small "Thanks" to him. Abhijeet blinked at him in assurance.

...

Abhijeet smiled in satisfaction. "Usne aakhir mein sabko apni taraf khich liya, sir. Use jinn logon ki zarurat thi, unn sabko usne khud par bharosa karne ke liye raazi kardiya. Bahot pyaara bacha hai voh, bahot strong."

Mr. Pradyuman nodded, smiling himself. "Kabhi bula lena use yahan, Abhijeet. Usse milne ka bahot man kar raha hai mera."

Abhijeet chuckled. "Kyun nahi? Aap kahe toh abhi phone karu?"

Mr. Pradyuman shook his head in disappointment. He patted Abhijeet's cheek lovingly as he said, "He's a fighter, Abhijeet. Just like you."

The 'just like you' made Abhijeet's smile vanish as he looked at his sir, silently. "Aapko sachmein aisa lagta hai na, sir?"

Mr. Pradyuman nodded with a genuine smile. "Haan. Bachpan se jo janta hun tumhe." Abhijeet laughed at that, causing Mr. Pradyuman's smile to widen.

"Chalo ab." His sir said. "Raat bahot ho gai hai. Sona nahi hai?"

Abhijeet smiled at him, giving him space. "Chaliye sir."

Mr. Pradyuman shook his head, the smile still playing on his face as he left for his room. Abhijeet followed him in. He locked the terrace door and was going towards his own room when his feet automatically stopped at the hall. Flashes of that fateful day came running to his mind. He remembered how Mr. Pradyuman and him were returning from an evening shift, and when they were home, someone was already waiting for them inside. The person none other than Yug..

...

"Yug..dekho, gun niche rakho. Hum haina? Hum tumhari madat karenge. Par please tum pehle shaant ho jao." Abhijeet said, panic clear in his voice.

Yug shook his head violently, tears were streaming down his face. "Koi meri madat nahi kar sakta, sir, koi nahi... Magar aapne..", he suddenly turned red in anger, shouting loudly, "Aapne toh mujhse vaada kiya tha na? Aap mujhe theek karne vaale the na?! Phir kya hua? Kyun mujhe ab bhi.." his voice lowered as he looked somewhere in the air behind Abhijeet, "ab bhi yeh nazar aate hai mujhe..ab bhi.." he wept, taking a step back in scare.

Abhijeet shook his head negatively, trying to calm him, "Yug, nahi. Sab theek ho jaega. Please mujhe ek mauka do. Yug.." He stepped ahead but Yug backed away, threatening him with the gun.

"Dur!" Yug yelled. "Dur rahiye aap! Nahi toh," he waved his gun, "goli maar dunga mai.."

Abhijeet shared an extremely worried glance with Mr. Pradyuman, who was just as baffled. Mr. Pradyuman tried to step up saying, "Yug, dekho beta, hum baithke.."

But Yug had already pointed the gun at his temple. "Nahi, sahab, nahi. Har roz marne se acha hai ki mai ek hi jhatke mein mar jau."

Abhijeet gave him a pleading look, trying to get close to him. "Yeh galti mat karo, Yug, meri baat suno-"

"Piche!" He screamed. "Piche hato!" Suddenly, he started shivering. "Aapko..aapko pata hai sir, andhere mein hume dar kyun lagta hai?" His voice cracked, "Mujhe pata hai sir..mujhe pata hai!" He shouted

Abhijeet felt his eyes burning too. "Yug.." he managed to utter.

He looked at Abhijeet with hateful eyes. "Aap mujhe nahi bacha sake sir. Meri halat ke zimmedar sirf aap hai, sirf aap!"

Abhijeet shook his head, a pained look on his face.

"Yug," Mr. Pradyuman said, "Kuch nahi hoga, tum please-"

"Vahi toh mai keh raha hun sir", Yug cried, voice breaking, "kuch nahi ho sakta sir..kuch bhi nahi..bas, yeh," he looked at him gun and removed the lock.

Abhijeet shook his head, shouting, "Yug.. Yug nahi.."

But there was nothing he could do now. "Sorry sir." Yug uttered miserably as he shot himself dead then and there..some of his blood splashing over Abhijeet's skin, who stilled at his place in horror.

...

Abhijeet closed his eyes in pain, reminiscing that incident. He jerked his head away, taking out his phone and switching it on. A sweet smile appeared on his face seeing that he had received numerous messages from Daya. He opened them and saw that Daya had sent him many happy pictures of his day spent outdoors with Rahul and his mother. When he reached the end of them, there was a two words text from Daya with a smiley, 'Thank you :)'.

Abhijeet let out a happy sigh. He looked at the hall area in satisfaction. "Maine iss baar apna vaada nahi toda, Yug."

He shook his head with a small, pleasant smile on his face as he walked towards his room.

THE END

A/N So the story has ended, my friends.

A really, really, really big thanks to all the reviews! I hope you all will review for the last time too! Please guys, last chapter hai. Review kar dena :)

Some new projects and obviously the updates of my other stories coming soon. I'm working on all of them simultaneously ;)

Do tell me if y'all liked the ending and the whole story too. I love you all.

Take care,

Janhvi.