A/N - This Chapter is for those who didn't like the previous ending. Read and Review.
Chapter 7
Shreya and Aditi were waiting for him to answer.
'Riingggg!'
Daya's phone rang.
'Always at wrong timing!' thought Shreya.
'Haan Sachin bolo. Kya? Kaha ho tum log? Thik hai main abhi aata hu!' said Daya and hung up.
'Kya hua?' asked Aditi.
'Abhijeet uss Rajiv ka picha kar raha tha. Lekin wo haath se nikal gaya. Abhijeet ko goli lagi hai. Main City Hospital jaa raha hu', said Daya.
'Hum bhi chalte hai', said Shreya.
Three of them left in a hurry.
City Hospital, Mumbai -
When Shreya, Daya and Aditi arrived at the hospital, everyone was looking tensed. Tarika was almost on verge of tears.
'Sir ye sab kaise hua? Abhijeet kaisa hai? Doctor ne kuch kaha?' asked Daya.
At that momemt the doctor came out. Everyone was on their feet. 'Kya hua?' ACP Pradyuman asked the doctor.
'I am sorry. Filhaal kuch keh nahi sakte. Unhe agle 2 ghante me hosh nahi aaya to kuch keh nahi sakte' said the doctor.
Now Daya lost his temper.
'Kya kaha aapne doctor? Hosh nahi aaya matlab? To phir aap kab kaam aayenge? Agar Abhijeet ko kuch ho gaya na toh main kisiko nahi chodunga', he said in a raised voice.
'Daya please. Shaanth ho jao', ACP scolded him.
'Aap hame inform karte rehna doctor', he said.
'Jee. Aur aap log fikr mat kariye. Hum puri koshish karenge unhe bachane ki.' assured the doctor and left.
'Ab hame bureau jana hoga. Mujhe pata hai hame abhi yaha hona chahiye par aaj uss Rajiv ko main chodunga nahi. Mere bete par hamla karke bohot badi galati ki hai usne. Daya, Aditi, Shreya aur Nikhil tum log yahi ruko. Aur hame inform karte rehna. Aaj to main uss Rajiv ka encounter karke hi rahunga', said ACP.
The team dispersed.
Daya sat down on the chair dejected. Shreya forwarded her hand to console him but -
'Daya please chinta mat karo. Mujhe vishwaas hai Abhijeet thik ho jayega. Main tumhe itna pareshan nahi dekh sakti. Please sambhalo apne aap ko.' said Aditi.
Daya caught both her hands. 'Thanks Aditi. Pata nahi tumhare bagair main kya karta. Pareshaani kam nahi hua par dil ko sukoon milta hai tumhari baatein sunkar. I hope tum jo keh rahi ho wohi sach hoga', said Daya.
'Bilkul waisa hi hoga Daya', said Aditi smiling at him.
Shreya turmed away to hide her tears.
'Aise kya kami hai mere pyar me ki Daya aaj mujhe chodkar Aditi ko pasand karte hai? Main ye nahi bardaasht kar sakti ki aaj Daya mere saath nahi. Main ab yaha nahi ruk sakti. Kisi ko bina bataye hi mujhe yaha se jaana hoga. Bohot dur. Kyuki ab mujhe pata chal gaya hai Daya kabhi mere nahi ho sakte. Woh Aditi ke saath jyada khush rahenge', she thought.
She wiped her tears and saw Aditi looking at her. She excused herself on pretence of making a call and went out.
Shreya wanted to leave right then but she was worried for Abhijeet. 'Ek baar Abhijeet sir ko hosh aajaye phir main chali jaungi', she thought.
She came back inside the hospital and sat next to Nikhil in silence.
After an hour, the doctor came rushing towards Daya. 'Good news hai. Abhijeet ko hosh aagaya hai. It's a miracle really. Shayad aap sabki duaon ki wajah se ye hua hai. Aur shayad aaj raat tak unhe discharge bhi mil jayega', said the doctor.
Daya's joy knew no bounds.
He rushed inside Abhijeet's room.
Shreya let out a sigh of relief. 'Thank god Abhijeet sir safe hai', she thought.
Nikhil went out to call and inform others.
Aditi approached Shreya.
'Shreya ye sab kehne ki ye sahi jagah nahi par bhi kuch kehna chahti hu tumse.'
'Main sun rahi hu', said Shreya in a rather rude voice.
'Mujhe lagta hai tumhe Daya se baat karni chahiye. Pata nahi tumhare baare me itha confused kyu hai wo.' said Aditi.
'Dekho tum hamari problem me dakhal mat do please.' said Shreya.
'Mujhe lagta hai ki woh tumse bohot pyar karta hai. Lekin problem ye hai ki tum dono me age gap bohot jyada hai. Isliye tum use samajh nahi paa rahi. Daya bohot hi sensitive aur thoda shy type ka hai. Use samajhna utna aasan nahi. Matlab main tumhe dosh nahi de rahi. Bas keh rehi hu.' said Aditi.
'Bas bohot ho gaya. Tumhari baatein sunne ke liye mere paas time nahi. Bohot kaam hai mujhe. Aur tum kya bata rahi ho mujhe Daya ke baare me. Tum aaj aayi ho. Thode din hi kyu sahi par hamne ek saath waqt bitaya hai. Mujhe pata hai wo kaise hai', said Shreya in a hurt voice.
Aditi wanted to speak something but Daya came out so she kept quiet.
'Thank god Aditi Abhijeet thik hai. Shreya tumne bureau me inform kiya sabko?' he asked.
'Nikhil bata raha hai.' she said.
'Kya hua tum itni shaanth kyu ho?' asked Daya.
'Kiise baat karu phir in deewaro se? Aap ko toh shayad ab pata chala ki main yaha par hoon.' she said.
'Ab ye kya naya aa gaya hai tumhare dimag me? Khair chodo abhi mujhe tumse jagda karne me koi interest nahi hai. Main hospital ki formalities poori karke aata hu. Doctor se bhi milna hai mujhe', said Daya and went away.
Without another word, Shreya went into Abhijeet's room.
He smiled at her.
'Sir kaise hai aap? Jyada dard to nahi ho raha na aapko?' she asked.
'Nahi main bilkul thik hu. Par tumhe kya hua hai? Aakhein dekho tumhari... Tum ro rahi thi kya?' asked Abhijeet.
'Nahi to sir! Kuch nahi bas aise hi... Aap thik ho jayiye phir baat karenge kabhi. Main sabko bohot miss karungi sir' she said.
'Miss karogi? Jaa kaha rahi ho?' he asked.
Shreya realised what she had said.
'Nahi. Kahi nahi. Bas aise hi. Sir mai abhi aayi.' sahe said and left hurriedly.
She went out a quickly scribbled a note and wrapped it in an envelope.
She went back to Abhijeet.
'Sir kya aap mera ek chota sa kaam karenge? Ye chitthi Daya ko de dena. Mujhe abhi kahi jaana hai. Bohot der hojayegi. Par jab wo akele ho tab hi de dena please. Aur apna khayal rakiega', she said.
'Shreya mujhd aisa kyu lag raha hai tum mujhse luch chupa rahi ho?' said Abhijeet.
'Nahi sir aisi koi baat nahi. Chalti hu sir', she said and left immediately.
Daya arrived almost an hour later after completing all formalities. At that instant he got a call from ACP. 'Daya tum turant bureau chale aao. Jaroori kaam hai. Nikhil aur Aditi se kehna Abhijeet ke saath rukne ke liye. Aur Shreya kaha hai? Uska phone switched off aa raha hai', he said.
'Thik hai sir main aata hoon. Shreya toh yahi par thi abhi. Main dekhta hu', said Daya and hung up.
He went to Abhijeet's room.
'Mujhe bureau jaana hai Abhijeet. Aur Shreya kaha hai? Uska phone nahi lag raha.' said Daya.
'Pata nahi mujhse kaha kahi jana hai. Bohot jaroori kaam hai. Aur haan tumhare liye ye chitthi chod di hai usne. Jab tum akele hoge tab dene ko kaha tha', said Abhijeet.
'Chitthi? Mujhe pata hai. Jaroor mere bare me koi complaints likhi hogi hamesha ki tarah. Ab ye tarika dhoond liya usne mujhe tang karne ka', said Daya exasperatedly.
'Daya kya yaar kyu gussa karte ho itna. Ye sab wo sirf tumhare pyar ki khatir kar rahi hai.' said Abhijeet.
'Khair jo bhi hai. Baad me padh lunga ye chitthi. Abhi mujhe bureau jana hai urgently. Uss Rajiv ko pakadna hai' said Daya.
'Sambhalkar jaan Daya. Aur haan thoda off track jaa raha hu par Shreya se baat kab kar rahe ho. Aaj mujhe kuch thik nahi lagi wo. Bohot pareshan lag rahi thi. Waise tumne kya socha hai?' asked Abhijeet.
'Socha to hai. Main sab baad me bataunga. Chalta hu. ACP sir intejar kar rahe hai. Raat ko ghar aa jaunga', said Daya.
Capturing Rajiv consumed almost two hours. Everybody was happy that he was behind bars.
Daya suddenly realised that Shreya was still missing. He tried calling her but her cell was switched off. It was almost 9 pm. He now grew really worried. Kaha gayi hogi?
He suddenly remembered the envelope which Abhijeet had given him. He tore open the envelope and drew out the letter.
It read -
"Daya mujhe maaf kar dena main bina bataye jaa rahi hu. Par mujhe ehsaas hua hai ki main aapke pyar ke layak nahi hu. Aaj tak maine aapko sirf takleef di hai. Hamesha meri wajah se saare ladai jhaghe hue hai. Mujhe pata hai Aditi aapko chahti hai. Aur jab aap dono ko saath dekhti hu tab lagta hai ki aap uske saath jyada khush hote hai. Main aapke beech kabhi nahi aayungi. Aditi aapko mujhse behtar samajh payegi. Apna khayal rakhiyega. Bohot miss karungi aap sab ko. Aaj flight se main Ahmedabad jaa rahi hu hamesha ke liya jaa rahi hu. Bohot dur. I am sorry sir. Par ek baat kehna chahti hu. Maine saccha pyar kiya hai aapse aur marte dum tak karti rahungi."
Shreya.
He was shocked by reading her letter. 'No! No! No! This wasn't how he wanted his relationship with Shreya to be. He would die without her. Howsoever they quarrelled, he couldn't think of living with anybody else. He had to stop her. He enquired the departure of flights to Ahmedabad.
There was only one flight tonight departing sharp at 10 pm.
He glanced at his watch. He had exactly 50 minutes in hand. 'Sir main aata hu. Zaroori kaam hai', he said and ran outside.
He sat in his car and drove off at full speed.'Vroooommmmm!' his car gave an angry roar as he accelerated and shot forwards leaving a puff of smoke behind.
It felt as if he was in Brazil. He remembered in his very first week he had raced the car on the dangerous road. He was jittery as well as thrilled. He looked ahead and was almost about to bump into another car. He took a dangerous swerve and those at the behind honked loudly apparently cursing him.
He was still far from the airport. Why was time moving so fast?
'Oh fuck!' he swore loudly looking at the scene ahead.
An accident had taken place and a heated argument was in progress. The onlookers had crowded the street watching them abusing. No one was ready to move.
How the hell can they be so relaxed? Damn! He needed to reach the airport. Only half an hour to go!
He saw a broken divider on the right. He was ready to break all the rules. He drove past the broken divider and shot up straight ahead. Yes! He was driving on the wrong side. People flashed headlights or honked at him. A few metres ahead, he heard a siren. It was growing louder and louder. He glanced through the mirror and swore again. A police car was following him for obvious reasons. 'Shit!' he muttered and put down his foot on the accelerator.
He was relieved to see the airport entrance. The police were still on his trail.
He halted the car in the parking and shot out without looking back. He ran inside but was stopped by the security guard.
'Sahab, boarding paas dikhaiye aapka.' he said.
'Dekhiye mere kahi jaa nahi raha. Mujhe kisi ko rokna hai. Jaane dijiye mujhe.' said Daya.
'Aise kaise jaane de? Bina boarding pass ke koi andar nahi jaa sakta' said the guard.
'Dekhiye aap mujhe rok nahi sakte. Main CID officer Daya hu', said Daya showing him his ID.
'Sahab, aap jo koi bhi hai koi fayda nahi. VIP logon ko bhi entry nahi hai andar. Abhi security bohot tight kardi hai', said the guard.
'Samjhne ki koshish karo... Main yaha kisiko rokne aaya hu. Wo chali gayi toh problem ho jayega. Uska phone bhi nahi lag raha. Pyar ka mamla hai boss!' said Daya in an urgent voice.
The guard started laughing.
'Sahab ye film ki story lagti hai kya aapko? Woh scene tha na ek film me. Ladke ko police ne pakad ke rakha tha airport pe aur ladki ko bhi aur phir dono chillate hai aur phir gale lag jate hai. Amir Khan ne banaya tha picture. Dekha hai apan ne. Waise karna chahte hai kya aap? Aur mujhe to aap CID ke lagte hi nahi. Criminal ko chodke pyar ko bachane airport pe? Hahahaha... Kya majak karte hai sahab. Lekin accha laga apan ko. Najane kaha kaha se aate hai.' he said laughing.
Daya was getting restless now. What the hell was this dumb guy talking about? Daya realised there was no use reasoning with him. Time was slipping away. He noticed a mic slung over the shoulder of the guard. He knew it was connected to the central announcement speaker inside the airport. He looked around. Nobody was watching. The guard was still murmuring to himself.
Daya seized the opportunity and gave the mic a tug. It came off easily.
Before the guard could understand what was happening, Daya ran outside with the mic. The guard ran after him blowing his whistle loudly. He found a deserted area. He stopped there panting. It was ten minutes to 10. His stomach lurched. Shreya was probably inside the plane. It felt as if he had already lost her. Still it was worth trying. He spoke into the mic in a loud voice.
'Shreya! I hope tum mera awaj sun sakti ho. Tum soch bhi kaise sakti ho mujhe chod kar chale jaane ki. Baat karne ka mauka bhi nahi diya. I love you damn it! Tumhe wapas aana hi hoga mere paas. Main airport ke bahar intejar kar raha hu tumhara!'
He quickly made his way towards the exit avoiding people. The security guard was still looking for his stolen mic.
Shreya stood up with a shocked expression on her face. People around her were staring at her smiling. Her flight to Ahmedabad had been delayed. But how was it possible? Daya had come back to stop her from leaving. He had just confessed his love to her. Oh what was she waiting for? She quickly made her way towards exit. She scanned the crowd hoping to see him. Other people had got back to their own work now totally forgetting about the unusual announcement.
Shreya came out. She made her way towards the car parking. Suddenly two pairs of hands grabbed her and pulled her behind a bush. She looked at the person and a smile appeared on her lips.
'Daya!' she exclaimed.
He pulled her into his arms and his lips were on hers. She responded passionately. His hands tangled into her hair.
He left her lips. 'Kaise kar sakti ho tum ye? Mujhe chod kar kaise jaa sakti ho? Ek bar bata to diya hota!' he said.
'Par main hamesha ladti rehti thi aapke saath. Aur Aditi ke saath aap kitne khush the', she said.
'Shreya Aditi meri dost hai. Lekin tumhare bina main kaise jee sakta hu? Aur sach kahu to hamare ye ladai zhagde main bohot miss kar raha tha. Tum kitne pyar se manati ho mujhe. Bohot accha lagta hai. Aur kabhi kabhi main tumhe jealous feel karane ke liye Aditi ke jyada kareeb jata tha', he confessed smiling.
She kissed him fully on lips.
'I love you Daya and I am sorry. Par ab ye galati kabhi nahi karungi. Chaliye nikalte hai!' she said.
She started leaving but she felt his warm hand clutch her hand again. 'Ruko Shreya itni bhi kya jaldi hai', he said. He slowly started kissing the side of her neck. She closed her eyes in pleasure enjoying his gentle touch. He nibbled her ear lobe softly. He then came back again to her lips and delved in deeper. They broke finally after almost ten minutes breathing hard.
He gave her a warm smile and she turned away blushing. 'Daya bohot ho gaya chaliye ab', she said.
He agreed reluctantly. They approached his car and Daya saw the police Inspector who was following him and the security guard waiting for him. 'Yahi hai wo chor. Arrest karlo ise saab. Jhootha CID ka badge bhi hai iske paas', said the security guard.
The police Inspector however kept quiet.
'Sir aap! Kya aap kisi criminal ka picha kar rahe the?' he asked.
'Tum jaante ho ise? Ye sach me CID officer hai?' asked the security guard.
Everybody ignored him.
'Nahi. Galati meri hi thi. Maine traffic rules tode hai. Mujhe tum jo saza doge wo manjur hai', said Daya.
'Sir Kya aap bhi! Mera majak kar rahe hai. Chalta hu. Aur haan ye sach me CID ke senior officer hai ', he said to the security guard.
Daya handed him his mic.
'Sorry tumhe takleef dene ke liye. Par main chori nahi karna chahta tha. Mera kaam ho gaya', he said smiling.
The guard glanced sideways at Shreya. 'Namaste madam ji', he said.
'Namaste', said Shreya smiling.
'Saab galti ho gayi. Maaf kar dijiye. Par saab, jara ek minute side me aayenge?' he asked.
He and Daya went aside. Shreya stared supiciously at them. 'Saab aap sach bol rahe the. Wo pyar ka matter hai wo?' he asked.
'Haan! Majak thodi na kar raha hu. Aur aise kyu puch rahe ho koi problem hai kya?' asked Daya.
'Kuch nai sahab aisa sirf filmo me hi dekha tha aaj tak! Asal zindagi me pehli baar dekh raha hu!' he said.
'Aaj tak mera bhi vishvas nahi tha par ab mera opnion kuch badal gaya hai. Khair chodo chalta hu!' said Daya.
'Saab agli baar koi aisa aashiq aaya na to mana nahi karunga use andar jane ke liye!' he said.
Daya laughed and walked back to Shreya.
'Kya baatein ho rahi thi uske saath?' she asked.
'Kuch nahi use bata raha tha ki ab mujhe yakeen ho gaya hai ki hamari zindagi ki kahani bilkul ek story book ki tarah hoti hai -
'Happily Ever After!'
*** THE END ***