It was quite visible to daya that niyati was more perturbed this morning than
yesterday and the way she left her breakfast it seemed that she had having severe
discomfort...perhaps she hadn't liked the taste of the food...or...might it be
possible that she was getting too much worried for her residence...But certainly
it was not very decent to interfere into her privacy or to peep into her personal
matter asking why she was getting so restive even not to have her breakfast
properly..Daya considered those facts before leaving the dining table but
resolved not to disturb her asking uncomfortable questions...
Wrapping up, when he was about to sit again with his diary, then the door was
tapped loud..As daya approached towards the main door,niyati unlocked the guest
room door, unable to be prisoned in the room with the curiosity that who could
come here! " kahi CID ka koi to nahi!...agar woh khadoos ACP aya to? ya Abhijeet?
aur agar un logo ko ye dikhai pare ki...main... ...yaha...inspector
daya ke ghar...!'A wave of scare started passing through her spine and
simultaneously her heart was pounding fast conjecturing the consequences of
it..She closed her eyes forcefully in order to get rid off the scare and only
then she could hear a female voice, most probably of an old aged one...but her
words were not audible enough...it was then when daya commented she sighed with
relief,:'nahi mausi ji...mera koi pareshani na hoga...'
the aged lady perhaps was saying something more when daya said,:'ye aap kya keh
rahe hain mausi ji? itni si baat ke liye aap aisa na kahiye...aur sach kahu to
mujhe hi poochhna chaiye tha aap logo ko...main hi bhul gaya...' the lady
jabbered a little more and then the door was closed...niyati too pretended to
close the door but startled as daya tapped it gently...Niyati tried to be
composed enough hiding her flummoxed mind and inexplicable emotion and then
opened the door with a gruff exterior but staggered to see daya's gentle face
saying very suavely,:'main thori der ke liye...bahar ja raha hun...koshish
karunga...jaldi wapas ane ka...' niyati stood riveted forgetting any reaction
while daya went passed her quickly with a gentle smile...
niyati kept ruminating about the words of daya and her mind was being crowded
with numerous questions...:'kya woh mausi ji...daya ke pas koi madad mangne aye
the? kaisa madad? kaun hai ye mausi ji? parosi? kya daya ke pas ye log aksar
madad mangte hain? aur kya...kya...daya...aise hi...hans hans
ke...madad...kar...dete ...hain..?' niyati dropped her head with a vigorous
shook as a mellifluous tune started playing inside her with a unbearable pressure
upon the centre of her heart...she tried to attack daya with vile comments, she
tried to belittle his every action, she tried to ignore his every kindness with a
sneer of disdain but...but...it only burgeoned a racking pain that was
strangling her since a long...Catapulted into the abyss of helplessness, she
screeched once to unburden herself of the pain...but it didn't help her
much...she punched over the wall, the bed and at every possible objects...and
then finally found herself shivering with a mixture of anger and pain drenched
with unexpected tears. Feeling dizzy she slung herself down on the bed and at that
moment her mind only could prompt her that she would have to nip the emotion
inside her in the bud and to do that she would have to slip out of this abode of
that enigmatical man!...Some more time elapsed until she decided to get back into
her residence at once, even without informing this guy named daya...Once
decided, she arranged her bag and hurried out of the guest room in a fit of
frenzy and strutted towards the main gate...Daya entered opening the door as she
was about to exit through it and they collided roughly which rose the anger of
niyati. There were some packets full of vegetables hanging from daya's hands. A
staggered expression written over his face as the sudden bustle made him
stupefied...niyati's glance too met with daya's but she averted glance quickly
with a hard face...daya asked her with a heap of astonishment,:'aap kkya...ja
rahi hai?'
niyati was as if waiting for this querry of daya and she replied trying to be as
ungrateful as one couldn't be in the whole world,:'yess...I'm going...please let
me go...' her jaws were bobbing up and down and crimson colour stole into her
cheeks...daya was astounded but tried to jabber,:'mmagar...raste me paani waisa
ka waisa hi...' niyati interrupted him vehemently,:' woh main samajh lungi
...aur many thanks for this shelter...' she went passed daya but stopped
suddenly, twirled back and with a venomous smirk, she remarked,:'I hope...ki ek
akeli ladki ki...majboori ka faida utha ke...us ko badnam nahi karenge aap...'
A pall of cloud descended over the face of daya while niyati rushed towards the
stair...Daya for a moment stood riveted perhaps with astonishment or shock but
then he advanced towards the stair...niyati tried to fly down the stair as tears
squirting out of her eyes but...she groaned with pain as she misjudged the
steps in the stair and slipped through it horribly..A noisy thud came from the
small landing where she landed getting a strain in her feet..
:'oooohhhhh goshhhhh...' she screamed in pain...
:' " rushed daya there with a worried face,:'kaise huya ye?' he
sighed with despair and the next moment he raised his hand towards her,:'please
aaiye...' niyati tried to get up but couldn't as she couldn't use her waist and
legs those had been numbed temporarily with the effect of the pain..she slumped
down again with a grunt..:'I can't...' daya was helpless and a little irresolute
as a little embarrassment engulfed him at that moment while niyati repeatedly
screaming,:'I can't...daya I can't...' daya without wasting further moment,
lifted her into his two strong arms murmuring a little uneasily,:'excuse my
helplessness.." he went up through the stairs staring elsewhere while niyati
gazed at his face which seemed to be paradoxical at the very moment-a
combination of soft sensitivity and hard exterior...A warrior who could not only
fight with the negativity with his stout exterior but also with his gentle and
sensitive heart... The idea of being carried by a man was abominable for niyati
a little ago...but now...as this man was doing it having been devoid of any kind
of superciliousness and manly ego , it seemed she was in heaven even if for a little time..Entering into
the sitting room daya placed her upon the couch and said panting, :'aap...sach
me...bohut ziddi hai...kya jaroorat tha aise harbarahath me ...jane ka?'
suddenly niyati's pride sprang up once again listening to the reproaching words
of daya and she retorted back abrasively, :'dekhiye ...main kaha se kab
jaungi...ye decide main hi karungi...aur agar aap ye samajh rahe hain...ki kyuki
aap ne mujhe madad kiya hai...is liye mere personal affair me aap dakhal andazi
karenge...to...' she paused for couple of second and then,:'to...aap ne galat
socha hai...'
daya sighed with despair once more; the words those seemed utmost venomous and
insulting once upon a time, didn't seem to be that much viled now...perhaps he
had been used to with the conceited nature of this woman...
he shrugged and went inside for a few minutes...
niyati, as daya disappeared felt a burning guilt inside her...The ungrateful
words those she had spoken couldn't be retracted back now...If daya launched an
angry protest or if he started a wrangle for the purpose of self justification,
then perhaps she wouldn't repent so much...But his calm acceptance was something
that she had been uncomfortable with...
daya returned back with a first aid box which contained a crape bandage..niyati
hastened with an unknown scare,:'main kar sakti hun...mujh ko dijiye...'
daya,with a bantering smile,asked her,:'you are...genious...laiye...main bandh
deta hun..'
niyati disagreed fiercely,:'jee nahhiiiii...meri kaam main khud kar sakti
hun...'her glance turned a little beady. Daya with a puckish smile respired and
then said further,:'mujhe pata hai doctor...ki aap khud kar sakti hai...magar
abhi aap ko chot paucha hai aur phir...' before he could finish niyati
interfered,:'abhi bhi..main...kar sakti hun...will you please hand over the
bandage to me?' there was a sharp taunt within her eyes and daya finally handed
over the bandage to her and she snorted with disgust...Daya, sensing that his
presence was uncomfortable for niyati, disappeared hastily...while niyati, gazing
on the way he pranced out, flashed a smile of a mixture of pain and sagacity
murmuring beneath her breath,:'it's just not possible for me daya...I can't
belittle you that much...I simply wouldn't afford to be mollycoddled by your
care anymore...I know...it is your duty sense for which you are doing all
these...but for me...it is hard to accept any more from you...because if I...I
shatter this outer shell of mine...then...perhaps...I would be ...the
biggest trouble in your life...because ...you are
suave...sober...gentle...sensitive...sympathetic...patient...but...I am
not...I wouldn't be patient then...and...' her darker thoughts came to an
end as her toe ached severely reminding her the bandage should be wrapped as soon
as possible...She endeavoured to do it but the pain was disturbing much forcing
her to almost repent for sending daya away..but in the next moment she gritted
her teeth for her weakness,:'come on come on niyati...itni si baat ke
liye...tumhe kyu kisi ka madad ka jaroorat parega? come on , you can do it by
yourself...you have to do it...' her eyes filled with tears as her lower back
pain was getting increased everytime she was hunching to wrap the bandage over
her toe...but she kept muttering,:'come on...come on niyati...you can do it...'