A/NSo here's a two shot. I'll advice the kids below 13 to skip it. The topic might be disturbing for you.
Oh and Guest, dear Mumbai:1970 is a co-written story with Luvcidduodosti. I've texted her about it. As soon as I get her reply, I'll update it. Don't worry, I'll update it. I'm really sorry for making you wait. I hope you understand :)
Now guys, Abhijeet's a year older to Daya.
That's it! Enjoy!
Helping hearts foundation
A nine year old boy alongwith many of his age-group and the cleaning-lady, was cleaning their dormitory. It was 4:45 in the evening and they had to complete it before the clock struck 5. A knock on the door startled everyone and their hands stopped for a moment, before they started working again seeing it was Rajeshwar, their peon. The peon examined the room and then pointed at that nine-year old kid in particular and said, "Daya, tumse milne voh ladka aaya hai. Niche aajana."
Hearing that, a huge smile appeared on Daya's face. His eyes shone in happiness. "Raju kaka, use rukne ko kehna. Mai yeh kaam khatam karke aata hun." He yelled back from his place. The peon nodded in smile and left.
One of his friends named Ishaan smiled at him. "Aur tujhe lag raha tha ki voh aaega nahi. Maine kaha tha na tujhse ki voh aaega?"
Daya grinned in happiness and started working faster than before.
...
Finishing his work, Daya ran towards the garden area. He saw his friend sitting on one of the benches, tapping his foot on the ground. Daya grinned mischievously and tip-toed behind the bench. He covered his friend's eyes with his hands, "Bolo kaun!"
His friend jumped, startled. But then clicked his tongue, unimpressed. "Daya, mai yahan tere siwa aur kisiko janta tak nahi hoon."
Daya frowned but walked around the bench and sat beside his friend. "Tum bahot bore ho, Abhi."
Abhijeet laughed at him. "Tujhe surprise karna hi nahi aata toh."
Daya pouted in anger. "Haan, haan rehne do. Huh!"
Abhijeet stuck out his tongue at him but, before Daya could hit him, he removed a chocolate from his backpack and said in one breath, "Maarna mat varna yeh chocolate meri!"
Daya gasped in happiness, snatching away the chocolate from him. "Nahi! Yeh meri hai! Ise mai hi khau-" he stopped abruptly noticing something. "Abhi, yeh chot?"
Those words made Abhijeet stop laughing too. He followed Daya's gaze and realised he was looking at the bruises over his arms. When he looked up at Daya, he saw that his friend was looking at him angrily. "Phirse kisise ladai ki na tumne?"
Abhijeet looked at him hesitantly but then smiled sheepishly. Daya shook his head at him, "Kitni baar kaha hai tumse ki ladai karna buri baat hai. Par tumhe toh maar khaane mein bahot maza aata hai." He gently touched a blue scar over Abhijeet's right arm, but he flinched away, hissing in pain.
Seeing that, Daya kept his hand over his waist and gave Abhijeet a burning gaze. Abhijeet looked at him and hid his eyes. "Daya, sorry na."
"Ek shart pe." Daya said, after thinking for a moment. "Tum ladai karna chhod doge?"
Abhijeet snapped his head up at him. He was going to protest but the intensity of Daya's gaze increased, making him slump in defeat. "Acha, theek hai. Nahi karunga."
Daya smiled at him, patting his head and saying, "Good boy." Just like he had seen Raghuvendra sir doing whenever he praised the boys.
Abhijeet smiled at him sweetly. At the same time, a strict voice called him and Abhijeet realised that his mother was back. He looked at her and then at Daya who said sadly, "Lagta hai kaki ka kaam ho gaya."
Abhijeet looked at his sad expressions and felt bad for leaving too. "Next weekend bhi aaunga na yaar. Pakka!"
Daya pointed a finger at him while his other hand rested on his own waist and stubbornly exclaimed. "Tum pichle hafte nahi aae the!"
Abhijeet gave him an apologetic look. "Yaar, mai na papa ke saath bahar gaya tha. Issliye nahi aa paya. Agle hafte pakka aaunga. Aur maa toh roz aati haina yahan? Khana banane? Agar koi message ho toh maa ko bata dena."
Daya pouted sadly. "Sir jaane kaha dete hai. Yah toh padhai karo, yah phir kaam. Bas! Huh! Sirf weekend ko hi khelne milta hai. Voh bhi issliye kyunki Raghuvendra sir yahan weekend ko hi aate hai." He saw Abhijeet lowering his head. So, left the topic to cheer him up. "Acha chodo. Tum bas agle hafta pakka aajana. Okay?"
Abhijeet looked up and gave him a nod in smile. "Haan. Tennis ball bhi leke aaunga. Hum catch-catch khelenge. Done?"
Daya excitedly exclaimed, "Done!" A big smile was playing on his face. However, Abhijeet's mother called him once again. So, Abhijeet hurriedly bid Daya a goodbye and ran to her.
...
Few days later, when the lights were out and the caretaker had already checked if the kids were sleeping or not, Daya had gotten down from his bed to stand near the window. He was looking at the night sky with wistful eyes. Suddenly, a voice startled him. "Kyun Daya? Sona nahi hai?"
Daya turned around in panic but took a sigh of relief, seeing it wasn't the caretaker. He yelped in surprise, "Kaushik bhaiya?! Aapne toh mujhe dara hi diya. Mujhe laga Bipin sir aagae."
Kaushik chuckled softly, patting his head. "Bipin sir ek baar chakkar lagane ke baad kabhi dobara wapas aae hai kya yahan?"
The small realisation made Daya smile and he shook his head in a big 'no'. Kaushik leaned against the windowpane. Both of them were gazing the sky silently.
Minutes passed by. After a long time, Kaushik said, "Daya?"
"Jee bhaiya?"
"Iss semister ke baad mai orphanage chodkar jaane vala hun."
Daya looked at him in surprise. "Kyun bhaiya? Aap bade ho gae kya?" He asked in confusion.
Kaushik chuckled on Daya's innocent 'aap bade hogae kya?', because the younger kids were often told that they have to leave once they're adults, when they are capable of taking care of themselves.
"Haan." Kaushik said. "Mai athra saal ka hogaya hun." He said, sadly.
Daya asked him in his innocent confusion, "Par bhaiya, aap jaenge kahan?"
Kaushik gave him a brief look before turning away to wipe away the single tear fallen on his cheek. Then he turned at him and wore a smile saying, "Raghuvendra sir hai na? Voh madat karenge meri. Tum chinta mat karo. Aur chalo ab, so jao. Varna kal time pe nahi jaag paoge. Chalo, chalo."
Daya shook his head negatively, lowering his head. "Nahi bhaiya. Mai nahi jaunga vahan. Mere baju vaale bed pe na Varun sota hai. Ek mahine pehle hi aaya hai. Magar na voh kuch dino se har raat rota rehta hai. Uska rona sunkar mujhe neend nahi aati, bhaiya."
Kaushik looked at him in rue and knelt down infront of him. He held his by his shoulders and said, "Tum kal Varun se baat karlena, okay?"
Daya again shook his head with teary eyes. "Voh kisi se baat hi nahi karta bhaiya. Pehle karta tha. Par ab nahi karta."
Kaushik sighed, knowing what that kid Varun must be going through. He patted Daya's cheeks and walked away from there, saying, "Jaldi sojana Daya. Kal uthoge nahi toh pata hai na kya hoga?"
Obviously Daya knew. Bipin sir would punish the kids waking up late by confiscating their warm clothes, including the blankets, for days! This would leave them trembling in the cold of the night unless he decided to return them.
Even the thought of it made a shiver run down Daya's spine. He hurriedly climbed over his bed and pulled the blanket up, trying to sleep. However, he could still hear Varun's crying voice. He gave a sad look to his friend. He wondered how the kid on the other side of Varun was sleeping so soundly. Unable to bear the voice, he took the pillow from underneath his head and covered his ears, trying to block it out. Varun kept crying every night after that and Daya somehow managed to sleep with the pillow covering his ears.
...
Finally, it was weekend, the day Daya always looks forward to. As promised, Abhijeet had come to meet him. He saw Abhijeet at their usual bench and flopped down beside him. The only difference was, both of them were exceptionally quite today.
Both of them were sitting beside each other in silence. After a long time though, Abhijeet asked, "Kya hua?"
Daya looked at him and then lowered his gaze. "Tum bahot lucky ho, Abhijeet. Tumhare paas tumhare parents hai."
Abhijeet was taken aback by that statement but Daya went on to tell him about Varun and the whole thing made sense. He took Daya's hand and said strongly, "Tum chinta mat karo Daya, bas uske saath rehna. Haan? Usse dosti karlena."
Daya nodded, tearfully. "Kabhi kabhi mujhe bhi bahot rona aata hai Abhi. Par Varun toh har raat rota rehta hai. Mujhe acha nahi lagta."
Abhijeet listened to him quietly, then said, "Use abhi yahan aae ek hi mahina hua hai na, Daya? Thoda ghul mil jaaega toh theek ho jaega. Tum na ek kaam karna. Raghuvendra sir hai na tumhare? Tum unse Varun ke baremein keh dena. Sir uski help karenge."
Daya instantly shook his head. "Nahi Abhi, agar sir ne Bipin sir ko daant diya toh?"
"Voh unhe kyun daatenge?" Abhijeet asked, confused.
Daya made him understand saying, "Isliye kyunki bache raat ko theek se so rahe hai yah nahi yeh dekhna Bipin sir ki duty hai."
"Oh." Abhijeet said. Then gave another suggestion with a smile, "Theek hai. Phir tum Bipin sir se keh dena."
Daya looked at him hesitantly. He looked here and there and whispered into Abhijeet's ears, "Kisise kehna nahi, par Bipin sir bahot strict hai. Unhe yeh pata chal gaya toh voh Varun ko punish kar denge. Use raat ko alag kamre mein daal denge sone keliye. Jahan na light hogi na hi palang. Varun dar jaega."
Abhijeet grunted in anger. "Yeh tumhare Bipin sir ki problem kya hai? Bache khush rahe isse unhe kya takleef hai?"
Daya in fear shushed him. "Abhi dheere bolo! Sir ne sun liya toh.."
"Sunne do! Unhe sunna hi chahiye." Abhijeet said, in stubborn anger. "Voh ladka har roz rota hai aur kisi ko uski fiqar nahi hai."
Daya covered his friend's mouth with his hands, pleading him to stop. "Acha mere bhai ab chup raho. Mai bata dunga sir ko. Khush?"
Abhijeet narrowed his eyes at him. "Pakka?"
Daya nodded, "Promise."
Abhijeet looked away. "Phir theek hai."
Daya shook his head in disappointment. "Acha ab gussa chhodo. Aur khelne chalo. Ball lae ho na? Tumne wada kiya tha?"
Abhijeet smiled at him and jumped from the seat in excitement. "Haan laya hun na. Yeh dekho!" He removed the tennis ball from his pocket.
Daya stood up too, enthusiastic and as usual, they started playing. Watching them, some kids of Daya's age-group too came around. One of them had a bat with him. The bat had some cracks at its lower end and wasn't in a great condition, but it was enough. Daya looked hesitantly at Abhijeet who gave him a smile and they both invited the others to play too. A small game of "catch-catch", turned into a lively game of cricket.
Before leaving, Abhijeet had turned to Daya and said. "Sir ko Varun ke baremein bata dena. Bhulna mat."
Daya had gave him a tensed smile and said, "Nahi bhulunga, jao ab tum. Kaki bula rahi hai."
Abhijeet nodded turning anxious and ran off. However, though Daya never forgot to tell Raghuvendra sir about Varun, he certainly never told him about it either. And as the time passed by, they all got used to the kid's crying. Though, time also made Varun get used to his new environment. It took many days, but he also learned to stop crying.
...
Two weeks later, when Daya met Abhijeet, they were discussing about Kaushik. Daya was telling Abhijeet that his bhaiya was leaving the Orphanage the next week.
"Voh kaha jaaenge Daya?" Abhijeet asked him curiously.
Daya shrugged, sadly. "Pata nahi. Unhone kaha tha ki Raghuvendra sir unkk madat karenge par unhone aage kuch bataya nahi."
"Oh." Abhijeet said, deep in thoughts.
Daya leaned back in his seat and said in a tensed tone, "Jab mai athra (18) saal ka hojaunga, toh mujhe bhi yeh ghar chhodkar jaana padega na? Mai kaha jaunga, Abhi? Mera toh koi dusra ghar nahi hai." He was referring to the orphanage as his home.
Abhijeet frowned, thinking about it. "Tujhe bhi yeh ghar chhodkar jaana padega, Daya?"
Daya looked at him and nodded. "Haan." He paused, then said, "Tumhe pata hai, yahan na aae din log aate rehte hai. Bachon ko god lene. Hum sab ke paas na aise dinon keliye ache kapde hote hai, hum unn kapdon ko dusre dinon par nahi pehente. Rishi sir kehte hai ki agar voh kapde kharab ho gae, toh koi hume god nahi lega. Hum gande ho jaenge na, isliye."
Abhijeet looked at him, half in sorrow, half in anger. Whereas, Daya continued. "Jinko parents mil jaate hai, voh kitne khush hojate hai, pata hai? Par aajtak kabhi kisine mujhe nahi chuna, Abhi." He turned to look at Abhijeet with tears in his eyes, "Mujhe bhi parents chahiye, Abhi. Maa, baba..mujhe bhi kisi ka acha beta banna hai. Mujhe bhi ek pariwar chahiye. Bhagwan ne humare saath hi aisa kyun kiya?"
He started weeping. Not knowing what to do, Abhijeet hugged him. "Tu acha hai Daya. Mera acha bhai." He whispered to him as he caressed his hair. But that just made Daya cry harder, so Abhijeet started patting his back too. "Shh. Mai hun na yaar? Tum roo mat. Shant hoja...Daya?"
Daya parted from the hug and rubbed at his tears, sniffling loudly.
Abhijeet looked at him and said lightly, "Ab rotlu jaisi shakal mat banao. Bade hone ke baad tumhe ghar nahi mila na, toh mai tumhare liye hotel mein intezam kar dunga."
Daya looked at him in shock, his eyes were still glistening. "..Tum mujhe ghar nahi bulaoge Abhi?"
Abhijeet snorted sarcastically and clicked his tongue. "Kabhi nahi."
...
A year later
The Helping Hearts had a new child with them. A seven year old boy named Mihir was a new inmate to Daya and the others. It had been two days since his arrival. Om, one of the boys living there, was talking to Mihir. As Daya was studying, he heard their conversation loud and clear. Om was just on the opposite bed.
"Aap yahan kaise aae?" Was what Om had asked the kid.
Mihir kept quiet for a long time before saying, "Maine khelte waqt mummy ka vase tod diya na, issliye mummy mujhse naraz ho gai. Unhone mujhe yahan chhod diya. Punishment keliye."
His breaking voice broke something in Daya too. Obviously, that must not have been the case. But the child won't think otherwise ever in future.
Om chuckled. "Aapko aisa lagta hai?
He looked at Om in pain and said, "Omi..jaane de na yaar."
Om looked at Daya and started laughing. "Tu ispe taras mat kha mote. Yeh jitni jaldi samaj jae utna acha hai."
"Voh abhi chota hai." Daya said angrily.
"Nahi bhaiya." Mihir said in a very low tone. He glanced between Daya and Om with tear-filled eyes. "Mai jaanta hun. Mumma mujhe wapas lene nahi aaengi. Unhone mujhe bataya tha." He gave Om a burning gaze. "Aapko mujhe samjhane ki zarurat nahi hai. Mai sab samajhta hun."
Om looked at him silently then left to study. Daya glanced at him and felt bad. He knew Om acted weird sometimes but his intentions weren't bad.
Daya came towards Mihir and patted his head. "Aap humare saath rehna aur iss jagah ko apna ghar samajhna. Okay?"
Mihir gloomily replied, "Mera koi ghar nahi hai, bhaiya, mai akela hi theek hun." He removed Daya's hand from over his head and laid down face first on the bed. Daya sighed, and went away to resume his studies.
...
This time Abhijeet came by after two weeks. However, there was another change in him. He looked dull and withdrawn. Daya knew about the short temper of his friend. But this time when Daya approached him from behind and covered his eyes, Abhijeet jerked loudly and violently pushed away his hands. Daya for a moment saw scare in his eyes but when Abhijeet realised it was Daya, he again started breathing normally. He gave Daya an apologetic look before turning his face to the other side.
"Baat kya hai?" Daya asked, strictly. "Tum aise dar kyun gae?"
Abhijeet looked at him and reasoned as, "Ab tum aise achanak aaoge toh-"
Daya interrupted him in anger knowing that was a lie, "Pehle tum bas chauk jaate the. Iss baar tum dar gae, Abhi."
Abhijeet stood up in irritation. "Mujhe nahi pata yaar tum kya baat kar rahe ho. Humesha baal ki khal nikalna zaruri nahi hai."
"Mai baal ki khal nahi nikal raha." Daya replied calmly. "Tum ajeeb bartav karne lage ho."
Abhijeet jerked his head away in anger. "Mai koi ajeeb bartav nahi karna. Tum mujhe pareshan mat karo."
"Abhi." Daya said, keeping a hand on his shoulder. "Yaar koi problem hai toh mujhe batao na. Milke solve karenge."
Abhijeet looked at him and jerked his hand away. "Mujhe yahan aana hi nahi chahiye tha. Mai ghar jaa raha hun."
Daya uttered in surprise, "Akele?!"
Abhijeet gave him another fierce look before turning away. "Bacha nahi hun mai!"
Daya watched him go and sighed. "Mihir ki aur iski khoob jamegi."
...
Three weeks had gone by. Daya hadn't seen Abhijeet. He didn't come to visit the orphanage. By the end of the third week, Daya decided to ask Abhijeet's mother about the matter. She used to come twice. Once in the morning and once in the evening. He decided to ask her in the morning if Abhijeet was going to come with her in the evening or not. But when he confronted her, she told him, "Beta tum usse lagav na hi rakho toh behtar hai." It would've hurt Daya, but the sadness in her voice told him something else was the case.
He asked her in a low tone, "Kaki, sab theek hai na? Kya usne phirse kisise ladai-jhagda kiya hai?"
She looked at him in shock. "Ladai..jhagda?"
"Haan." Daya said, confused.
She looked at him with moist eyes and turned away. "Mujhe abhi tum sabke liye khana banana hai. Tum jao yahanse."
That strict tone made him think that he might have said something wrong. Maybe they didn't like about him knowing Abhijeet's behaviour. Uttering a 'sorry', he went back to his room, disappointed. Trying to forget about Abhijeet and hoping he would come by later or ateast the next week, he sat down to study with a sad expression on his face.
He didn't have to wait till the next week though. Because as the kids were fighting over the donated clothes, Raju kaka had come to inform Daya about Abhijeet. Forgetting about the clothes as he had already picked up one, Daya ran down to meet his friend. He in anger was going to berate Abhijeet for not visiting him for past two week, when he saw little bruises over Abhijeet's cheeks. They only added oil to the fire.
"Phirse?" He said angrily, pointing at them. "Phirse!"
Abhijeet shook his head in 'no' trying to say something but Daya stopped him by his hand. "Kuch mat bolo tum. Zarur phir ladai karke aae hoge, hai na?"
Abhijeet lowered his head and Daya's anger increased. "Samajte kyun nahi ho tum? Kaki ko dekha? Kitni dukhi thi voh. Tumhare liye na? Aur tum yeh sab karte phirte ho. Kab sudroge tum Abhi? Kitni baar kaha hai ki ladai, jhagda achi baat nahi hai. Phir bhi!"
Abhijeet gave him a sad smile. "I'm sorry na Daya. Unlogone mujhe pehle maara na. Mai kya karta? Sirf dekhta rehta?"
"Kyu?" Daya said, mocking him. "Uss din bade keh rahe the. Sir ko batao, sir ko batao. Tum kisi bade ko nahi bata sakte iss baremein?"
Abhijeet looked away. Daya irritatedly said, "Hai kaun voh jo tumhe itna pareshan karta rehta hai? Tum batao mujhe. Mai kaki ko bata dunga. Voh phir uss bad-guy ko bahot dategi. Kaki se toh mujhe bhi dar lagta hai. Uss bad-guy ko bhi zarur lagega."
Abhijeet kept listening to him quietly with a down head as Daya kept scolding him. The only time he looked up was when he heard his mother calling him. Daya's ranting also stopped at that point. Not because of hearing Abhijeet's mother's voice, but because of seeing the tears in his best friend's eyes.
...
Three Years Later
"Maine faisla karliya hai!" Abhijeet told Daya in a low but firm tone. "Mai bada hokar police mein jaunga."
Daya looked at him with a huge smile and wide eyes. "Sachmein?!"
Abhijeet nodded. His face was straight, hands resting on his knees as he kept gazing the grass. On the other hand, Daya jumped out of his seat. Suddenly, excited. "Abhi, mai bhi police mein hi jaana chahta hun. Mai cop banunga aur," he made a hand-gun gesture as if he was firing in the air, "bure logonko marunga. Dhishkyao, dhishkyao."
Abhijeet looked at him in shock. "Tum bhi police mein jaoge?"
Daya grinned. "Kuch mahino pehle Jidu bhaiya ko bhi orphanage chhodna pada. Maine unse poocha tha ki voh kahan jaenge. Voh auron ki tarah sad nahi hue. Balki ek badi si smile ke saath kaha ki voh ek cop banenge. Bas, maine bhi tair karliya ki mai bhi cop banunga."
Abhijeet looked at him and burst out into laughter. "Tu..tu cop banega?" He slapped Daya's tummy and said, "Pehle apna pet toh kam kar bachu."
Daya looked at him in anger. "Mera pet theek hai, samjhe? Tum apni fiqar karo. Skeleton!" Saying so, he hit him lightly on his shoulder but Abhijeet yelped in pain and flinched back.
Daya immediately held his arm in concern. "Kya hua Abhi? Maine tumhe itni zor se bhi nahi mara yaar."
Abhijeet tried to smile but the pain was clear on his face. "Arey kuch nahi yaar. Kal mai cycle chalate waqt gir gaya tha na. Isliye chot laggai hai."
Daya looked at him, puzzled. "Chot laggai hai? Tumne kaki ko bataya na?"
Abhijeet gave him a brief look before nodding silently and turning away.
"Acha sun," he said after sometime, "summer vacations shuru ho rahe hai. Toh mai agle hafte aa nahi paunga. Mai nani ke ghar jaa raha hun, humare gaav. Ek-do mahine keliye vahi rahunga. Tum mujhe miss mat karna, okay?"
It was then that Daya noticed Abhijeet's clothes were covering his whole body though it was sweating hot. He ignored that though. Because Abhijeet would always wear a sweatshirt or a hoodie, whatever the season maybe. Intead, he looked at his friend sternly. "Huh! Tumhe bhala kaun miss karega?" But Daya knew that like every year's summer vacation, he was going to feel lonely this time too.
...
As the summer vacations began, more people started visiting the Helping Hearts foundation, either for volunteering or for adoption. The kids were taught many different skills that might be useful in their life later. Three new kids were enrolled in the orphanage too.
Some of Daya's friends were getting adopted. Even Varun was leaving. Ishaan, a close friend of Daya, was also taken in by a wealthy family. Daya was happy for all of them, but he obviously felt empty too.
One big thing their teachers in the orphanage taught them was to not make close friends in the house. They would leave one day, and you would be left alone once again. It was hard to follow since you live, eat, play, study with the same bunch of kids everyday. They become your family. At first they didn't listen to their teachers, but Daya had come to understand what they taught the hard way. It was a few years ago that some of his really close friends got adopted into different families. Ever since, Daya had refrained from creating deep bonds within the faculty.
Unfortunately, not a single family had picked Daya up. Sometimes, he thought about it positively. He wanted a family but he also didn't want to leave Abhijeet and obviously this place that he considered his home. He had a dream now, though. And he would do anything to make it come true. Not a family, but at least he had a goal and a few precious people to stand by him.
...
The summer vacations came to an end and so did Daya's wait. Abhijeet was back, but he was different. More quiet, less attentive, jumpy..it made Daya confused. He asked Abhijeet about it, but got a reply that said it was all his imagination. Daya knew it wasn't. Because after that Sunday, Daya didn't see Abhijeet for two whole months. He was both confused and worried. He tried to talk to Abhijeet's mother but as usual, she drove him away. Abhijeet's absence didn't go unnoticed by the other boys of the orphanage too.
"Daya," Hiten, one of Daya's friends said, "tu tension mat le. Koi problem hogi issliye nahi ata hoga voh. Kaki toh aati hai na? Voh bhi ek do hafte mein aa hi jaega."
"Par Hiten", Daya said in a tensed tone, "agar use kuch hua hoga toh? Bimar yah phir..Do mahine ho gae. Isse pehle toh usne aisa kabhi nahi kiya tha."
Another friend of his made a snide remark, "Summer vacations mein chhutiya manane gaya tha na voh? Bhul gaya hoga tumhe. Ab nahi aaega wapas. Vaise bhi hum jaise logonko poochta kaun hai?"
"Gautam!" Daya said in a dangerous voice, "Mere dost ke baremein ulta sidha mat bolo. Voh aisa nahi hai."
Gautam jerked his head away, while a child who looked older than Daya said, "Tum Raghuvendra sir se baat karo. Unke paas kaki ka contact number toh hoga hi. Abhijeet ko phone karlena."
Gautam scoffed. "Haan, haan, dekho voh phone uthata hai yah nahi." Om listened that and started laughing.
Daya gave them a fierce look but then turned towards the older kid and said, "Jee Prakash bhaiya. Raghuvendra sir ke aane par mai unse request karunga."
...
When Raghuvendra sir came to the Helping Hearts foundation that Sunday, Daya went up to him to ask about Abhijeet.
Raghuvendra sir chuckled at his concern and replied, "Beta ab voh dasvi kaksha mein hai. Padhai ki chakkar mein nahi aaya hoga."
As the realisation dawned upon Daya he started looking at his feet in sadness. Raghuvendra sir noticing his sadness, patted his back. "Acha chalo, mai aapko usse phone pe baat karat hun."
Daya gaped at him in surprise. "Sachmein sir?"
His sir smiled at him and nodded in assurance. "Haan, ek minute bas." Raghuvendra sir removed a file and searched for Abhijeet's telephone number. They had registered the telephone numbers of their helpers and employees.
After finding the number, he dialled it. The phone rung thrice before he heard a kid's voice. "Hello?"
Raghuvendra sir asked. "Abhijeet beta?"
"Ji bol raha hun."
Raghuvendra sir smiled and handed the phone to Daya. "Lo baat karlo."
Daya gave him a big smile and took the phone in his hand. "Abhi? Kaise ho?"
There was a long pause on the line.
"Abhi?" Daya called him again, worried.
He took a sigh of relief when finally heard his friend say, "Tu kaisa hai, Daya?"
Daya smiled. "Mai theek hun boss, tum kaise ho? Itne dino se aae kyun nahi?"
"Yaar voh 10th ki padhai shuru hai." Abhijeet said. "Agle hi hafta exams bhi hai. Mai exams ho jane ke baad aajaunga."
"Pakka?"
"Promise." Abhijeet chuckled.
Daya laughed too. But then again asked in concern, "Tum theek ho na, Abhi?"
He heard Abhijeet's carefree voice, "Ab tu nahi hai yahan mera sar khane toh mai toh theek hi rahunga na yaar?"
Daya who was first in shock then turned angry. "Abhi tum-Hello? Hello? Abhi!" He removed the phone from his ears to look at the screen and saw that Abhijeet had cut the phone. "Huh! Samne aana tum mere, phir dikhata hun." He said, irritated.
Then his eyes fell on his sir who was smiling continuously and he straightened his posture. He handed back the cell phone and said, "Thank you sir."
Raghuvendra sir nodded and said softly, "Tum bhi apni padhai pe dhyan de rahe ho na, Daya?"
Daya grinned at him. "Yes sir! Aap dekhna, iss baar bhi mai hi class mein first aaunga."
Raghuvendra sir laughed finding him so full of spirit. "Good, good. Dil lagake padhai karna. Tabhi toh forces mein jaa paoge."
Daya looked at him, surprised. "Aapko yaad hai sir?"
His sir smiled at him and patted his head. "Ab mere bache mujhse apne sapne share kare aur mai bhul jau? Yeh toh badi nainsafi hogi."
Daya smiled shyly, remembering how he had once told his sir about his goal. "Mai puri mehnat karunga sir."
A/N It was long. I hope maine aapko bore nahi kiya. Kiya ho toh bada vala sorry. Another part and the last chapter will be coming soon. Also, I think you guys have already guessed the obvious. Even so, mai continue karungi hehe :p
Please drop your reviews. Tell me what you feel about the story.
Take care,
Janhvi.