Swara opened her eyes wide and found herself being carried by Don who turned to give an angry look at Karan
Karan:I’m very sorry
He said sincerely but Don wasn’t placated. He had woken up Swara, shutting the car door too loudly
Swara:It’s ok
Swara mumbled trying to distract Don, but failed, of course. He didn’t even say good night to karan as he quickly entered her building and called the elevator
Swara:You can put me down now, I’m awake
she smiled Don didn’t put her down but instead sighed angrily
Don:It’s ok
she giggled
Swara:How long have I been asleep, anyway? Feels like ages
Don:About 5 hours. Not nearly enough
he said as he stepped into the elevator and used the heel of the same nude pumps she had put on that morning to press the button to her floor.
Swara:Now you see why I wanted to wear high heels
she giggled and finally he smiled down at her
Swara:What’s on your mind?
she could tell something was distracting him
Don:I guess I had gotten used to our being away from all this … hiding, and what not.
Surprisingly Don managed to unlock the door to her apartment while still holding her, then kicked the door shut behind them and placed Swara on her feet finally
Swara;Hey!
she said cupping his face
Swara:It’ll all be over soon, na?
she then hugged him and he placed his eyes around her too, protectively
Don:Yes
She parted and said
Swara:We should probably order something in. I’m too exhausted to cook anything.
Don: I’m too exhausted to eat.
he pointed out
Swara:Oh! Of course youare, you copiloted for so many hours…
Swara:But you should eat
and without giving her a chance to complain he dialed Karan and told him to have some food ordered to Swara’s apartment
Swara:I could have donethat myself, you know
Don:You don’t need to.
he gave her a peck then unbuttoned his shirt and took it off as he went towards the bathroom
Don:Don’t answer the door until I get out of the shower.
She rolled her eyes and went to change into something more comfortable, finally. She hated to admit but Don had been right, she hadn’t been very confortable during the flight, although she did manage to fall asleep and that too, rather quickly.
She wasn’t finding the lecture that interesting, somehow issues such as communist regimes had made their way into the seemingly love story between… she couldn’t even remember. And it didn’t really seem like a love story come to think of it,as the protagonists so far all had mistresses. The mere thought of it made her yawn.
She opened her eyes and quickly turned her head to the side as she felt a drop of water on her face. Don wiped it from her forehead and ran his fingers through his damp hair to keep it in place as he leaned over her
Don:Sorry to wake you again, sweetheart, but you really should grab a bite to eat. You missed lunch on the plane already.
She mumbled something and turned to her side, which made Don smile. He eventually decided to let her rest and removed the covers from underneath her gently, then got in bed next to her and covered both of them
Swara:It’s so hot here
she mumbled he lowered the covers so that it only covered her legs now
She suddenly pulled him closer
Swara:That’s not what I meant.
she said giggling
Don:No no no, none of that. If you’re too tired to eat, you’re definitely too tired for this.
Swara:I like my desert first
she smiled cheekily and that was enough for Don to growl smilingly, throwing the covers aside completely The next morning she woke up feeling
“like a million bucks”
as Ragini would put it. She made a mental note to call her cousin and let her know she was safe in London. Suddenly she realized why she had woken up, apart from the unreasonable late hour, and that was the fact that Don was playing the guitar. Which she found awfully weird since she didn’t remember him packing one nor having any luggage when they entered the apartment.
Quickly she scanned the room and noticed Louis Vuitton bags which certainly didn’t belong to her. Again she felt the urge to go through them and maybe discover something new about him (his cologne perhaps- finally!) but he was obviously in her living room, playing a beautiful tune on the guitar.
She recognized the song and got out of the room singing the lyrics
As I turn up the collar on
My favorite winter coat
This wind is blowing my mindI see the kids in the streets
With not enough to eat
Who am I to be blind?
Pretending not to see their needs.
Don went on playing and even started singing along with her
A summer’s disregard, a broken bottle top
And one man’s soul
They follow each other on the wind ya
know’Cause they got nowhere to go
That’s why I want you to know
I’m starting with the man in the mirror
I’m asking him to change his ways
Swara broke into laughter as Don was really playing out his part, even imitating some of Michael Jackson’s moves
Swara:I’m sure glad to see you look so jolly early in the morning
she stated
Don:Early in the morning? This is London Standard Time darling.
he chuckled
Swara:Whatever
she grimaced playfully and sat in his lap as he placed the guitar aside
Swara:So I see you brought some of your stuff along
Don:Does it bother you?
he furrowed his brows
Swara:Of course not! Where is that food you ordered last night? I’m starving
Don:Finally she wants to eat.
he said as he made her standup and followed as he playfully spanked her behind rushing her into the open space kitchen.
swara:So where is it?
she said anxious to eat, as she sat at the kitchen table
Don:On its way. Don’t know what’s taking so long.
he checked his watch
Swara:Matlab? I thought it arrived last night
Don:It did, I had to throw it away
Swara:Why???
Don:Because it got cold.
She raised an eyebrow
Swara:Ever heard of reheating?
He grimaced wrinkling his nose
Don:I hate reheated food
She rolled her eyes and just then the doorbell rang, and Don paced his way towards the door. When he opened the door they both froze, as they hadn’t at all expected to see the person that was standing in the doorway.
Don stared at the person standing in the door frame then looked at Swara
Don:Darling, you have a visitor. he said in a rather implying matter.
Swara:Kiran ji
Swara smiled as she approached the door, next to Don
Swara:Kaise hain aap?
Kiran:Good, good, beti. I was just worried about you
Swara furrowed her brows
Swara:Kyon? Why would you be worried
Kiaran:Well… a certain detectiv Ram came over the other day, he asked me if I knew where you went. He didn’t say much but I thought he may be your boss…
Swara:Yes, he is. That’s odd. Why would he do that? I told him I was going to the UK to visit my family there
Kiran:Well he seemed pretty worried and asked me if I had noticed anything unusual before you left.
Swara raised an eyebrow and her neighbor continued
Kiran:And I told him about the vase incident and that that was it. I asked him why he was asking me all this but he just smiled and thanked me for my time, then left. So that’s why I was worried. I heard some music earlier so I figured you must be back home
Kiran added and then scanned Don head to toe reluctantly and he responded by placing his hand around Swara’s waist Swara smiled
Swara:I’m alright, Kiran ji. I was just feeling a bit unwell before I left and I didn’t really tell my boss that I was leaving because I needed a break. I’m a workaholic, so naturally he worried. Us officers tent to get suspicious over nothing
she giggled
Swara:But thank you for your concern!
Kiran:Koi baat nahin haibeti… I’m just glad you’re alright
she again scanned Don and folded her hands, as did SWara, then left.she sighed as she closed the door behind her
Swata:What is up with Ram saab… first Ragini, now my neighbors… wonder who else has he been talking to.
Don raised an eyebrow immediately
Don:Ragini?
She blinked several times
Swara:Haan… that day when you smashed my phone, she called to tell me Ram saab had contacted her-
Don:And?
Don was stiffening and she could sense his whole mood shifting
Swara:He wanted to know if I were alright and that I hadn’t contacted him since I got in the UK. She assured him I was fine…
Don:And why didn’t you tell me earlier?!
he was down right furiousnow swara opened her mouth but couldn’t utter a word. She just leaned against the kitchen table helpless.
Don:Darling,I think you are missing the point here!
he added in his cold Donnish voice and after a few seconds rushed towards her and cupped her cheeks so rapidly that she let out a scream.
He was about to say something but he stopped seeing how frightened she was
Don:Swara…….Sears
he whispered as he pulled her into an embrace
Don:You’re trembling, calm down,please.
She tightened her grip on his shoulder blades and uttered
Swara:You calm down too
He sighed and took a deep breath
Don:I’m sorry. I just can’t believe you could leave out something as important as that
Swara:Why is it important?
she slowly looked up at him
Don:That’s why!
he pointed towards the entrance
Don: Ram is suspicious of something, which is exactly what we don’t need right now!
She lowered her gaze again
Swara:I’m sorry. I didn’t realize…
Don:He’s on to something, ,Swara…
Swara:No, he’s not. He’s just being overprotective of me
He clicked his teeth
Don:No, something is up… I can feel it
Just then the doorbell rang again, making she flinch Don paced his way towards the door and this time actually checked through the peep hole. It was the food of course, but by now she had definitely lost her appetite. But she knew better than to protest as Don was irritated enough as it was. So she sat down at the table and waited for him to serve the food, in a calm fashion, but she could tell he was tensed.
She realized she was eating ratatouille just halfway through, that’s how absent minded she was. Don ate his food frowningly and they both remained silent.She finally broke the silence
Swara:I need to go down at the headquarters.
Don raised an eyebrow questioningly
Swara:I need to act all natural and make sure ran saab doesn’t suspect a thing
Don:You can’t do that
Swara:…Kyon?
Don:Because it doesn’t fit with the plan
Swara:Matlab?
Don lowered his cutlery calmly and wiped his mouth gently with the cloth. Swara couldn’t believe the manners this man had even in such situations when all she wanted was for him to speak up and let her in on the plan already. She was boiling in anticipation
Don:You can’t act all natural because you are going to resign.
Swara again opened her mouth but couldn’t utter a single word. Eventually she stuttered
Swara:I…Of course I knew it would come down to that, eventually,but…
Don studied her changing expressions carefully and eventually came and crutched next to her chair and turned her to her side holding her hands into his
Don:swara… you realize of course you can’t be working with the Interpol while eloping with the world’s most wanted.
She sighed and shook her head
Swara:I know… but… it’s still difficult.
Don furrowed his eyebrows worriedly and lowered his gaze as if in deep thought
Don:I don’t want to push you into doing anything you don’t want to
ButI dowant to
She squeezed his hands with hers
Swara:It’s just all really sudden… I’m changing my life completely and irrevocably.
Don sighed as he stood up and opened the cupboard taking a saucer out to use instead of an actual ashtray, then lit a cigar leaning over the counter opposite to her
Don:That’s something I know a thing or two about.
He was right, she thought. Don had to change his life completely, and his shift was far more difficult than hers. And he did it for her. How could she even be so selfish to think twice about it
Swara:Don. I’m not backing out on this
she pointed out on a serious tone
Don:I knew what I was getting myself into. If you could do it then so can I
she stood up crossing her arms over her chest and approached him
Swara:Just tell me exactly what I have to do, let me in on the whole plan. I need to be completely aware of what I’m doing so that I don’t do any more mistakes.
Don smoked his cigarette calmly as he listened to what she said
Don:My junglee billi…
he eventually smiled as he exhaled the smoke
Don:You’ll want to be seated for this
he added as he was preparing to let her in on what the actual plan was.
_________________________________
Done with this chapter how is this. So what will happen next. What is Don’s plane? Will they succeed or Ram has it’s own plane?