Daya reached the cottage of Anila, just a little before of the right time. A servant ushered him into a small sitting room and asked him to wait there...But within five minutes, Mrs. Mathur appeared with a courteous smile,:' main Anila ko bulayi hai...aap uske sath baatein kijiyee...main thori der me hi wapas ati hun...' before she could leave Anila emerged sluggishly with lowered eyes...Mrs. Mathur loosely hugged her and suggested,:' are pichhe ka baag me ja ke baith na daya ko leke...main debon ko keh ke jaati hun...chay bagera ke liye...samjhi?' Anila nodded like a little child of Mrs. Mathur and Daya couldn't repress an affectionate smile...Mrs. Mathur disappeared with a nice smile and Anila spluttered in shaky voice,:'ssir...aap?'but what she couldn't reveal in words, reflected in her questioning eyes..Daya turned a little russet before muttering with an uneasy titter,:'woh...ek...bohut...jaroori..baat kehna tha..' Anila kept gazing at him with utter stupefaction for some seconds, until daya's darting uneasy gaze settled at her...

:'aaiye sir...' she then went into a beautiful garden while daya followed her..

:'baithiye naa..please,' her voice sounded like whisper..

daya took a seat and settling there he took a deep sigh perhaps getting weary with the battle he had been fighting with his own self...He looked at Anila then while Anila's gloomy face had been stooping down perhaps with the intention to conceal her natural shyness and bliss..Daya then kept his glance over the surrounding nature...far away some peaks were getting visible..and chinking resonance of the birds filled the whole atmosphere...but how could...he be able to burst it before her?

:'chhoti madam...chay nashta..' A servant entered abruptly and served tea and snacks for a couple...Anila with a faint smile received all and busied herself in preparing the tea while daya kept looking at her somewhat forlorn face and then just when he was about to part his lips to start, Anila said feebly,:'bina dudh aur shakkar...hai na sir?' Daya couldn't utter a single word, knowing the fact that Anila still remembered his habit after four long years..He sighed trying to prepare his heart for a difficult task...Anila mumbled hesitantly,:'ssir...thori kha lijiye...' Daya's face was grave as he found out the avenue to divulge,:'mmain...tum se kkuchh kehne aya tha Anila...' reddish hue spread all over his face...while Anila now, gazing steadily upon him, replied with suppressed pique,:'kahiye na ssir...'

daya endeavoured, and failed at the first attempt..Something akin to a mixture of discomfort and coyness, crossed his face while Anila too cringed her head down with a fearful apprehension...Throbbing pulse was getting visible in her neck..Daya on the other hand making himself emboldened enough to speak out as the words spoken by his own reflection banged on his ear...Sipping a little black tea he raised his glance further and then said, gently,:'kya...kkya...tum...' he stammered, stopped and came back,: tumhara faisla badla nahi ja sakta hai Anila?'

:'kaisa faisla sir?' asked she promptly, shooting a surprising glance..

Daya, after taking a deep breath, answered with poise, :'shaadi ka..'

Anila startled inside listening to the words of daya as it never visited in her mind that he could come back at her residence with the intention to discuss such a subject...A little brusquely, she replied back,:'nahi ssir...main kal to sab kuchh...sab kuch bata chuki hun aap ko...' Daya was as if prepared for such a reaction of Anila and he trying to be at the equillibrium,shook his head and then declared,:'nahi Anila...kal...tum...ye nahi kaha ke...agar...' Heaps of shyness further trying to attack him, but he succeeded to reveal out,:'agar...main ...khud...tumhare liye...I mean...'

Anila's brows drew together; a frisson of fear shot her thumping heart and when she was about to click her tongue, daya announced making her flabbergasted,:'khel khel ka shaadi...asli shaadi me badal lene se...kya...kkya..tum inquar karogi?'

Anila turned deaf and dumb temporarily...What she heard just now? Could it be truth? Or was it just a piece of her daring dream which would be as evanescent as a rainbow? Her palm grasped the handles of her chair, perhaps in assuaging the unbelievable shocking surprise inside her or might it be possible that she was trying to test whether she was wakeful or not...Anila's silence puzzled him more, but inspite of obvious discomfiture, he decided to carry on,:'Anila...ye...mera faisla hai...ab...tumhara faisla ke oopar...sab kuchh...' he stopped as something stabbed his heart, eyes moistened abruptly as he muttered inside him,:'maine socha nahi tha Shreya...ki...humare beech me...bas itni hi baato ka kami rahega..aur...bas itni si baat hi...deewar ban ke...humare beech khara reh jayega...ha shreya...aaj..aaj main ye baat keh raha hun...magar kisi aur ko...kyu kaha nahi tha ye baat? aaj kaise keh paya? shayad is liye kaha nahi tha...kyuki...tum se mujhe ye ummeed tha...ki main kahu ya na kahu...tum mujhe samajhti ho...mera pyar ko samajhne ke liye...tumhe...mera muh se kaha huya shabdo ka jaroorat parega...aisa...aisa soch nahi paya tha Shreya...aise laga tha ki...Shreya ko to...meri har jajbaat ka pata rehta hai...kya woh samajh nahi payegi...ki mere dil me uske liye kya hai? kya woh samajh nahi payegi ki uski ek chhoti si ghao bhi mujhe kyu itna parehshan karta hai? Aaj keh paya Shreya...kyuki chahu ya na chahu...aaj mujhe ye kehna hai...bohut sare jeevan ke liye...tumhare liye...mere liye...' A dreary smile pasted over his lips while Anila felt a hard lump in her throat, feeling breathless in a twinge of pain which was paralyzing her senses...In spite of feeling delighted she felt as if morbid glumness engulfed her from all side...The person who never once asked her in the past four years that how she had been living, now asking her to get married with him? but why? The truth could only be that she had placed herself in a piteous position and thus, out of mercy he agreed to do something which he thought would make her happy...but could he figure out the truth that it would be ten times more painful to bear the piteous glances of him; it would be a ghastly torment to bear the burden that she would be remaining the cause of throttling his happiness. Wouldn't it be insulting for her? How could she agree with such a queer proposal after knowing that his love lied somewhere else? She tried to be grave in holding back her emotions,:' aisi baat...na kahiye ssir...jo mujhe...taqleef pauchata hai...'

Daya, with a disconcerting titter, ventured to explain his stance,:'Aa...Anila...agar...aagr tumne...ye soch ke...dukhi ho rahi ho...ke...' A strangling pain was almost paralysing his throat, but he continued,:'kke...tum ko...daya karke...main...mmain...ye shaadi karna...chaha...to...to...tum sahi nahi..samajh rahi ho...' his eyelids were batted frequently before he added with discomfort,:'Ye...ye...ek socha samjha faisla hai...Aanila...'

a searing pain crossed Anila's face as she countered trying to maintain the much needed tranquility,:'maafi...chahti hun ssir...magar...jo insan...kal mujhe kaha...ke...ye jajbaat meri ek bachpana hai...aur...aise bachpana mujhe shobha nahi deta hai...' her eyes brimmed over, voice trailed away into feeble whisper,:' woh agar aaj...ake...mujhe...shaadi...' she gulped back the agony and carried on,:'shaadi karna chahe...to...is ko...karuna...bheekh ke elaba...aur kya samajh sakti hun?'

A pall of darkness hung upon Daya's face thought he tried to fight back desperately,:'aise ...aise kyu soch rahi ho Anila? ' his hands flung into different directions in his effort to persuade her,:'humare desh me...sacro log...arranged marriage karte hain...jaha pe...woh log...ek dusre ko thik se na jan ke hi...naye jeevan ka shuruyat karte hain...mmagr...hhum...' he stammered again, getting immensely astounded at his own actions,:'hhum to...ek dusre ko...jante hain...aur phir...' a fleeting smile once came into his face as he added,:' agar...jeevan ki...is morh pe ake...main ek family chahu...to...woh kya tumhe...bohut odd lagega?' Repentance seeped through Anila's guilty eyes as she hastened breathlessly,:'aisi baat nahi hai ssir...Aap...aap jaroor...family ka soch sakte hain...magar...mmagr ssir...us me...aap ka marzi hona chaiye...us faisle me...aap ka khushi jhalakna chaiye...woh insaan...jo...aap ki jeevan sathi banegi...woh aap ko pasand ana chaiye...koi dabav, koi jabardosti...koi majboori se nahi ssir...aap shaadi karenge...aap ka mann ki khushi se...aap ki chuni huyi us ladki se...jis ko...aap chaha hain...' her fervent words made him boggled at her, and his already pallid face turned a shade paler with a terrible contrition that how he had been concealing half truth and from someone who selflessly yearned to see him happy..

A faded,lame smile came to his lips, as he tried to cover up the embarrassment that was fastened with this whole issue and and then spluttered, :'shayaad Anila...yehi sach hai...ki...tumse zada achcha...mere liye...aur koi hai nahi...' he said with many pauses trying to alleviate the cyclonic agony inside him and then resurrected,with a dolorous smile,:'kkaun...kkaun si ladki...aj tak...tumhare jaise mehsus kiya hai mere liye?' Deep peevishness imprinted over his face as shreya's disparaging words throbbed into his ears,:'kya kahu Siddharth ko sir? us rishte ke bare me...jo ban ne se pehle hi khatam ho gaya...ya phir khatam kar diya gaya?' Who did shatter this bond Shreya? Would you ever afford to ask this question to yourself? Excruciating pain almost strangled him until he heard the trembled words of Anila,:'mmagar Ssir...jaha tak...main janti hun...us me mujhe to...yehi...yehi pata hai ki...' she paused indecisively, reconsidering that whether it would be sage and decent to reveal out something which he hadn't spoken by himself...

:'kkya? kkya pata hai tumhe?' asked daya with a worried face with the apprehension that Anila might have known about Shreya...but how could she? :'batao na Anila...kya pata hai tumhe?'

Anila being bereft of speech tried to grip her embarrassment in discussing something with which she was not very comfortable though she finally decided and came back weakly,:'kkuchh nahi ssir...bas...bas...yehi...ki...aap...' her mumble couldn't be finished...and her voice trailed away abruptly...

Daya now with a weary smile and in plaintive voice, divulged,:' agar mera ateet ke bare me soch ke...tum pareshan ho to...' he paused and unknowingly his face turned saturnine which giving Anila a spasmodic pain...Daya resurrected within a minute,:' main tum ko ye keh sakta hun...ki...mera ateet...ateet ...ban ke...hi...rahega...' crimson colour rushed into his cheeks as he tried to repress the agony inside...Anila, with much turmoil, spluttered then,:'aisi baat nahi ssir...aap ka ateet ...chahe jaisa hi ho...Anila ko...itna phark...nahi parta hai...magar jis me...phark parta hai ssir...woh hai...aap ka khushi ssir...' Daya was staggered himself noticing his own action, as he leaned towards her and murmured,:'kkya tumhe lag raha hai Anila...ki main tumhare sath...khush...nahi reh paunga?'Tears spilled down Anila's cheeks as a wave of pain contracted her heart and she had to remain silent..

Daya stared at her with anticipation and after about a minute perhaps inferring something from her morbid silence he took a long sigh of despair and then leaned back in the chair...Both muffled in uncomfortable silence until daya with a lugubrious smile, endeavoured to conclude,:' mere baatein...agar...tum ko...taqleef diya hai...to phir...maafi chahta hun Anila...aur...' his words were interrupted by the sudden outburst of Anila who sobbing pathetically,muttered,:'please ssir...aisa na kahiye...mujhe bas bataiye...kab aap karna chahte hain shaadi...main taiyar hun ssir...'

daya looked at her with overawed astonishment while she divulged, defenselessly,:'jo aap ke liye...char saal se taiyar baithi hain...woh...aaj...nayi tarike se...kaise taiyar hogi sir...?'

daya with a gentle smile, whispered,:'ssir nahi...bas Dayaa...'

Anila raised her eyes to meet his with a febrile glance...while daya nodded affectionately...Anila averted her glance with a shy chuckle and said thereafter,:'mmagr...bhaiya...bhabi...'

Daya now with a much relieved and confident smile, announced,:'mmain...bhabi se hi...tumhara hath mangunga Anila...' Anila's face scrunched in coyness and crimson colour spread all over her cheeks..