suddenly niyati got a shock and repentance badly seized her...How she could do it? How could she behave such gruffly with that man who had provided her the much needed shelter? Yes, It can be a truth that she sometimes turns out to be a bad tempered girl, who has no logic at all...but ...it shouldn't mean that she would have to behave so discourteously with someone who had just cracked a friendly joke...but...at the same time it had been almost impossible for her to remain at the equillibrium as something happening inside her...With frequently batting eyelids she jabbered out,:'I'm...I'm so sorry ...I didn't intend to do it..' daya with a dolorous smile said again,:' It's all right ...shawad...main hi kuchh...galat keh diyaa...'

Stifling silence reigned in the room and the two kept sipping the tea with heaps of uneasiness and hesitation...What Niyati couldn't reveal out loud ,she murmured it beneath her breath,:'nahi ...galati aap se nahi...mujh se hi huya hai...shawad...shawad...main hi zada overcarried ho rahi hun...chahe gusse se ho...ya...' she flipped her hair and broke the silence thereafter,:' aap ke radio me koi news nahi deta hai?' daya answered, suavely,:' haa...kyu nahi?' He then switched it on and changing many station he reached at a station where news was broadcasting...Both sighed with relief,resorting to news as the silence was becoming unbearable... Niyati said after listening a bit of news,:' horrible...humara shahar me aisa kabhi ho sakta hai...hum sapno me bhi na socha tha...it's ridiculous...'

daya remarked, unemotionally, :'sochna chaiye tha hume ...pata bhi hona chaiye the ki aisa ho sakta hai...'

niyati frowned, involuntarily,:'kyu?'

daya replied, after sipping a little tea,:' jo log garbage ke bare me itna laparwa hain...un logo ko to ye bhugat na hi parega...pata hai...polly bags ki misuse ki wajah se humara drainage system kitna adversely affected huya hai? niyati slowly nodded, saying, :'hmmm...ye to hai...' then suddenly she as if threw the query to daya a little teasingly, :'to aap log kyu koi awareness campaign launch nahi karte hain? after all aap log police force ka hissa hain...aap logo ka baato ka weightage hain...aam insaan ki baat to koi sunte hi nahi...' her face broadened with a smile as she finished her words...Daya countered, though with a mincing voice this time,:'woh to aap log bhi kar sakte hain...doctors ka baato ka zada weightage hota hai ...'

niyati didn't expect it, and her face once again turned sombre in failing to bamboozle daya by her sudden query...News came to end and in the mean time songs of request were being played...

"tum ne mujhe dekha hokar meherbaa...ruk gayi hai zameen...jhuk gayaaaaaa asmaaaa...janemann...janejaaa...' niyati felt that her jaws were getting tightened with an uprush of anger while daya switched it off in a minute...After about a minute, niyati asked comically,:' band kyu kiya?'

daya sighed repressing a smile and replied,:'band nahi karne se musibat ho jata ...aap gussa ho jate aur is andhere me baith ke aap se jhagra karne ka koi shaukh nahi ho raha hai mujhe...'

niyati answered after half smile and half smirk,:'aap ko kya laga ki main bas gussa hi kar sakti hun?' just after saying it, niyati felt that she had done a blunder to let those words out...but the spoken words couldn't be retracted back...Daya perhaps sensing the discomfiture of niyati didn't answer but just flashed a faint smile...Daya got to his feet and went to the kitchen while niyati lied back on the couch...closing her eyes she was taking rest or rather passing idle time...but suddenly she trembled as something flickering before her eyes...It was a blurry picture and very slowly when it turned vivid then she clearly saw the adorable smile of daya...Her eyes were flung open with a scare...the scare which was so haunting that she hesitated to close her eyes further...but why she was getting scared? why she would have to be scared and that too seeing a smiling face of a man? Inside her own self it was not difficult to admit that daya was a gentleman so far she had watched him... He was sensible and sensitive too caring about other's need; he was apologetic too and he was courageous and earnest about confessing his fault...The person who fearlessly becomes ready at any time to admit about his own fault, he couldn't be called an egoistic man after all...Then why should one be scared to see his smile? Is it because there had been hidden something mystic within his inexplicable smile? is it because his precious smile could only be compared with the pure innocence of a child? is it because she had been grossly frightened whether the barrier she made with all her effort would remain intact or not? All her analysis prompted her easily that she was not scared because of this man...but she was scared about herself; she was scared not to crumble the veneer of a practical woman whom no one could deceive..The stark darkness was seeming unbearable for her and she continued to be perspired thinking about the reaction she had having inside her...She slowly came beside a window and opened it, though rain in torrents were pattering against the glass of the window..She sniffed the wet air into her lungs and some drops of rain kept drenching her unknowingly. She had been feeling strange-as if an uprush of delight drifting from somewhere filled her heart. Very suddenly the life seemed to be beautiful and precious...The life in which one would be drenched like this...by soft care and ...and...love of someone...she startled and trembled again and unknowingly tears stood in her eyes...She riveted there, being destitute of the passing time and any coherent thoughts until daya's voice was calling her from the dining space,:' ...candle leke dining table pe aaiye...please...' niyati as if slumped down roughly on the earthly surface from the floating clouds; dabbing her teary eyes carefully she grasped the candle and slowly stepped towards the dining space...Smell of something delicious was wafting along the place and as she reached there, daya said with a courteous smile,:'please baithiye...isse achcha kuchh banana mujh se...ata nahi...' his face adorned with a shy smile and niyati felt as if she was getting numbed...A searing pain was disturbing her badly...the pain which made it difficult for her to sniff normally...She sat silently while daya was serving hot steamy veg pulav into her plate...Seeing her silent daya tried to provide her a congenial atmosphere,:'waise...mujhe pata hai...ki aap..is ameature cook ka khana jaroor kha lenge...thori mushkil se hi sahi...' an inexplicable ache was bubbling within niyati as she felt at that moment that it was much easier to have a squabble with this guy rather bearing the gentle and humble words of him...supporting her stooping head with her hand, she kept ruminating,:'why is he behaving with so much modesty...why is he so much gentle? it's much eaiser to face an egoistic furious guy than handling ...' her thoughts were interrupted as daya muttered again,:' ...'

niyati jolted and answered in reflex,:'haa...'

daya stated with a genial smile,:'khana...kha lijiye...'

candle was flickering dangerously in between them, making the whole atmosphere magical yet embarrassing...Had two lover sitting in such an atmosphere dined, then it could have been called a romantic atmosphere what the lovers yearned for...but here, though the atmosphere was apt for romance but the people who had been precipitated into such an atmosphere, weren't related romantically so far...and this very thought kept invading in both their minds making them thoughtful,and to some extent embarrassed...The choking pain was intensified as niyati started eating and the silence was hard to bear..She suggested finally,:'aap chahe...to radio chala sakte hain...' daya looked at her with surprise while niyati said after a pause,:'main gussa nahi karungi...promise...' she forced a smile perhaps to hide the discomfort she had having...

daya asked smilingly,:'are you sure?'

niyati too nodded with candour...daya switched the radio on..

The announcer whispered in undertone, perhaps trying to create a magical atmosphere,:' hi friends...it is me Ravi, entertaining you with beautiful melody...the night is wet and lets enjoy the soft and heart touching melody of the international music...' before stopping is speech he started playing mltr's someday someway...' daya now served her hot veg manchurion, saying,:' bohut dar dar ke banaya hai ye...zada bura ho to na khana...' an uneasy titter was hovering at his lips...niyati felt that as if someone gnawed her heart tightly and to get rid of that she tried to finish her plate without any further word...But on the other hand...the silence was making daya a little befuddled and he too was eating noiselessly...An unknown tension springing up, formed a concrete barrier between them...niyati finishing her share of food hurried back into the couch and laid down burying her face into her arms...but for half an hour she kept listening to the chinking noise of the utensils and kept burning with a guilt that she had been behaving so discourteously, so selfishly with a person who had been trying hard to entertain his guest...She couldn't understand from where a very soft tender feeling sprang inside her and pressurizing her heart, brought tears in her eyes...She clung to the side of the couch tightly, trying to bury her every discomfort over there...Though she was lying there pretending to be in sleep...but in truth, she hadn't felt sleepy at all and it was rather a very surprising fact that after spending such a hectic day she still wasn't feeling sleepy at all. after another half an hour, she felt the presence of someone as the dark room was poorly illuminated by the candle light...niyati raised herself to be seated from the lying position while daya said,:'are...aap abhi bhi jag rahi hai...chaliye ye achcha huyaa...'

:'kyuu?' snapped niyati a little brusquely...

daya,smiling at her impatience, answered with poise,:' aap guest room me ja ke so jaiye...main sab kuch thik karke rakha hai...'

niyati protested once,:'jee nahi...main...yaha pe hi...thik hun...'

daya, flashing an affectionate smile, said further,:' please...zid maat kijiyee...yaha pe...aap thik se so nahi payenge...kamre me ja ke aram se so jaiyee...'

:'main yaha pe aram karne nahi ayi ,' feigned impertinence was seeping through her voice, but daya knew now how to be at the equillibrium,:' I know it ...magar mera to ye hi jee karega na ki main meri guest ko achcha atmosphere de saku...'

niyati now rapped out a little loud,:' khud ko mahan sabeet karne ka bada shauk hai na aap ko?'

daya smiled a little ruefully and then replied back,:' nahi...mahan main nahi hun...kisi ke pas kuchh sabeet karna bhi nahi chahta hun...bas...khud ko thori si tasalli dena chahta hun...'

niyati felt that her every restrains were getting weak and it was better not to argue with this man in such a weird atmosphere...she finally got to her feet and followed daya to enter into the guest room...daya left niyati in the guest room and after his departure niyati sighed perhaps with relief and locked the door...Coming to the bed, she slumped herself down there...but still she couldn't sleep...She kept fidgeting inside and gradually felt a horrible thirst inside her...A clock was ticking relentlessly and it was indicating almost 2 A.m. she slipped out of the bed and unlocking the room with a little hesitation went slowly towards the dining space... There was a jug filled with drinking water and a glass; niyati chuckled softly, thinking that it was perhaps daya who had kept these for her convenience...her eyes turned blurry without her knowledge...She seized her emotion soon and drank a full glass of water and perhaps she would drink more but the faint light from the window of a room caught her glance and a little irresolutely she tiptoed towards it..

'Is daya still up?'she kept conjecturing with puckered brows.. she once scolded her curious self as it was not decent at all to be curious about an almost unknown man in the dead of the night...but she felt as if an invisible force was tugging her towards the window...she fought with her decency sense but failed and finally peeped carefully through the window... Daya, wrapping a shawl,was sitting in the table and probably writing something on a opened notepad...It was the faint light of a candle that came into dining space and...as a result brought her there...She could only watch his side face illuminated by the magical beams of the candle and instantly felt the urge to watch him more...He was looking like a man of unfathomable sensitivity who perhaps absorbed with some happy and delightful thoughts which made his face blissful...sometimes he was chuckling with shyness and then he was again concentrating on his writings...A mesmerising delight passed through her stomach seeing the serene face of the man within which there wasn't a tint of aggression or fatuous ego...but a purity of a child was reflecting through it...niyati forced to distant herself from that place with the fear that daya might be aware about her presence and then he naturally would not like it...She retracted back being destitute of any other thought except that gleaming face of the man with whom she had fought a lot...and when she was just thinking that she had escaped , then the glass hit the floor and splintered into pieces immediately as she nudged it unmindfully...

:'kaaun?' it was an urgent sound from daya...and within five second, he came out of his room and as he headed towards the table niyati screamed in reflex and with a scare,:'dayaa...yaha maat aao...' daya was immensely astounded while niyati came back further with a hesitation this time,:'ye glass...tut gaayaa...'

daya sighed perhaps with relief because niyati's scary face puzzled him much more and he said with a friendly smile,:'koi baat nahi...main saaf kar deta hun...' he put on his slipper and said further,:'aap room me chale jaiye...main saaf kar leta hun...' niyati stood riveted there with a penitance over her whole face and managed to jabber out an earnest apology,:'woh...pata nahi...kaise...gir gayaa...'

daya, trying to dispel the guilt of niyati, said,:' it's okay ...is andhere me aisa ho hi sakta hai...' kneeling over the floor, picking up the scattered pieces of glasses he added further,:'mujhe hi...aap ke ghar me pani rakh dena chaiye tha...' niyati felt that the lump that had been disturbing her since the late evening was coming back threateningly...she felt like scarpering from there into her room but this time she chose to face it...if tears spilled down her cheeks, then let it be...but if she would escape, leaving him alone here, within an ordeal, then it would be difficult for her to forgive herself... she abruptly stooped down trying to hide the discomfort inside her,:'main bhi karti hun aap ke sath...' daya tried to prevent him with all possible efforts,:' are? aap kyu? nahi nahi ...aap chali jaiye...pata nahi andhere me kanch ka kaun sa tukra hath me ghus jaaye...chaliye...jaiye...' niyati didn't bother to listen to his words and concentrating on picking up the pieces, she stated,:' woh to aap ke sath bhi ho sakta hai...' daya took a deep breath, failing to convince niyati and then looking at the floor, he said finally,:'aap bari ziddi hai...'...niyati promptly looked at him, only to find his luminous face, trying to concentrate on a difficult task...she kept contemplating at him until daya said,:' bara tukre ko utha leta hun...baki sara main jharu laga ke saaf kar dunga...aap please ja ke aram kar lijiye...' a faint smile hovered at her lips as she countered,:'ziddi aap bhi kam nahi...' daya flashed a coy smile and then leapt to his feet, he stated with care,:'aap hath dho lijiye...idhar aaiye...basin me...'

niyati cleaning her hands, couldn't restrain, but revealed a little jauntily,:' aap ki koi beti rehti...to aap bohut pamper karte use...' Daya's eyebrows raised with amusement as he continued doing the task...Daya mopped the floor and it was half past two at night...niyati still sitting in a chair waiting for daya to finish...Daya had having discomfort and he unknowingly divulged it,:' aap aram kar lete...kyu itna taqleef utha rahi hai abhi bhi...?' niyati flashed a meaningful smile and answered back:' bas...khud ko...tasalli...dena chahti hun...' mischeif was glinting in her eyes...Daya quickly turned his face towards niyati and after noticing her sparkling eyes and jocose smile, he relieved a little and flashing again a demure and coy smile he poured some water into another glass and handed it over to niyati,:'lijiye...' niyati this time couldn't refuse and at the same time couldn't say that she had drank some water just before breaking the glass...She accepted and drank it...and then got to her feet feeling that if she kept sitting here, then perhaps this man would try to give her company induced by his duty sense and it would be a real torture to him if he had to be up whole night just for listening to her supercilious comments...Niyati smirked with an indulging thought and then said,:' good night daya...thanks for the water...' these formal words she said just to guard herself or rather more clearly to guard her emotional self that was craving to come out...those formal words might be unnecessary for daya...and might be a little awkward too after so much...but for niyati, for her helpless self who was strongly determined to keep the barrier intact between herself and any man of this world, it was immensely necessary...daya too slipped into his room...Niyati, coming back into her bed felt more helpless than before because what she wanted to efface from her memory cells, her brain couldn't delete that...The illuminated face of daya kept flickering before her eyes those were burning with lack of sleep...she closed her eyes forcefully and the tattered pieces of conversation with daya, continued to come before her eyes like a slide show...she smirked feeling her helplessness as in the past six seven years she hadn't the need to endeavour to have sleep. After a hectic day whenever she hit the bed, slumber automatically had seized her and thus this sudden insomnia not only flummoxed her but also impelled her to think about the causes behind that...But the problem was whenever she started analysing the causes, she shivered with an unknown scare...Could that man be every cause of her inconvenience? Could his manner and behaviour which was quite unexpected be her problem? she hurriedly buried her face into the pillow to escape from those query and then again... fidgeting with sheer restlessness.