PTHH 12
Her heart constricted on his words, she was putting him under strain, it was not in his nature to express all he was feeling and it was another thing she had to accept.
But this gesture was worth a reward, with that she turned and the longing in his eyes caught her off guard.
“i have lost enough people who loved me and now don’t want to lose another…” he spoke trying to get the glass of water from the side table of the hospital bed which was already empty or perhaps he was just trying to ease away the nervousness.
He was still weak but asking for help was still a question out of his league and with wobbly feet he had been leaning on the table to fill his glass
She stopped his actions and hugged him, the cotton shirt was unable to hide the bandage around his torso, she could feel it.
“one such time is nowhere in sight,” she mumbled finally able to hear his heartbeats. It was strange how she felt home whenever she heard his beats.
He completed the hug and though the home needed a revival, as soon as he closed every distance her every fear ran somewhere.
“get well soon, I don’t like you lying here in bed,” she told him as he inhaled her hairs.
“don’t ask me how boring it is but I don’t plan to stay here for a long time,” he said after a while.
“that’s like my Ghamandi Rao,” she replied smiling still not wanting to leave him but he needed to have something in his system and God knows when did he have his last meal.
“now let’s eat.” she declared trying to part.
“lets? tum Abhi Kuch khaya nahi…” he was concerned about her.
“i thought to have lunch with you… I think I would start taking appointments to have a meal with you.” commenting on his multiple dinner and lunch meetings lined up every time, she walked to serve their plates.
“sorry… it has always been like that, but I’ll try to have at least dinner with you from now on.” he sat on the bed till she served.
A knock made them turn to the gate and when she confirmed the person to enter, the doctor along with the elderly nurse who was in charge of Raghav entered smiling on them.
“Mr. Rao looks like you are healing well.” the doctor walked to the empty drip bottles and unclipped his chart from the side clamp.
“hmmm.” he answered without even looking at the doctor and Pallavi eyed him to be polite to the doctor.
“When can I go home, Doctor?” he asked without paying any heed to her unsaid scolding.
“well, your injury is the primary cause as long as you give it proper rest I have no issues discharging you this evening.” the doctor who was nearly in his 50s told him.
“But doctor, he had fainted last night… I thought he should be here for a” she could not believe he was getting discharged in just 24 hours to be precise not even 20.
“Mrs. Rao… he had fainted due to the weakness and enough has been injected into his body, he can rest well at home, you just have to follow the prescription and dress his injury.” the doctor smiled at her very well aware of the concern she had for her husband.
“the nurse would be coming to dress to take your blood pressure etc… but first have your meal.” with that the doctor left the room.
“come, let’s eat,” she said when she served their plate.
“i thought you were going to spoonfed me,” he asked innocently.
“well, I heard you are getting discharged in a few hours so you are fit enough to have your meals yourself.’ she gave him back but carried his plate to the bed anyway.
He knew it was not just caring, they were growing fond of each other and it was happening so fast he often got chills.
“just because you are sick.” she mouthed as she extended the first morsel to him and he caught her hand.
“if you do this every day, I am ready to work from home.”
“veda manush…” she blushed at his words.
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“ye sab kya hai Harish, Anna ko pata chala to pakka ye injection kahi aur lagega..” fed up of Harish’s tantrums Farhad told him.
“dekho Anna, dawa khila lo, vo namak pani pila lo par ye sui vui nahi… dard hota hai.” Harish told cutely.
“hamesha khane peene ki bat, abhi shukar mana Anna khud theek nahi hai varna beta tu to nahi bachta…Nurse, get done with the injection I am holding him,” Farhad told the male nurse and constricted Harish’s motion.
“Farhad Anna, aap fayda utha raho ho boss ke close hone ka…” Harish made a face.
“haan beta, abhi jo idhar baitha hai na meri vajah se hi hai aur ye phone, ye to us din hi dustbin me jane vala tha..yaad hai ya bhool gaya.” Farhad reminded him the day he has saved his fat ass from Raghav.
A small gasp left Harish as soon as the nurse pinched him the injection.
“you are worst than a ten-year-old.” the nurse commented.
“batau tujhe main,” Harish tried to pounce on the nurse when Farhad stopped him.
“achha, how come you were shot that day… it is not easy to con you,” Farhad asked him when he helped him lie down.
“Suddenly there were too many men inside the shop and lights went off… I heard one of them saying he won’t spare Raghav Rao this time and next they were dragging Pallavi Vahini somewhere cause I could hear her whimper,” he told Farhad recalling every detail.
“i am clueless why Anna is not asking about them, although Swami has got them house-arrest in their own house till Anna’s next order,” Farhad said and his phone took the same moment to ring.
“Aiza.”
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Despite her firm words to the hospital staff, the hospital had presented his discharge papers and he himself signed them.
Now when he was settled on his bed that was already made by the house help for him along with the drips and bottle clamp standing in the side.
“see, if Amma or Keerti gets a single clue about me being hospitalized, it would be too hard to explain them,” he said arranging the pillows behind him as he tried to sit on the bed.
“hmmm.” not paying attention to his words, she walked to the windows and opened them all. The rains had got the city humid and caked up in high moisture. With no conditioned air in the room, it would be too hard to stay there, fresh air would help them both.
“ek to tum har bat pe nak lal kar leta hai.” he commented when she walked to the wardrobe to put away the fresh laundry.
“bilkul nahi…Naak koi lal nahi hai.” she answered still not paying him attention.
“achha, ye sab jhagde bad me kar lena…abhi to.” he took a pause.
“abhi to…” she waited for his words stopping the assembling of clothes.
“abhi to ..please pass me the laptop and those files Reddy had put on that table.” he requested with a playful smile on his smile.
“uhhhh.” wanting to pull her hairs she walked to him.
” Jayati jewels can wait for a day or two… abhi aaram karo aur no argument on that.” she ordered him and walked back to her work.
“but our kids can’t wait…” he spoke and her heart escaped one beat, she suddenly felt a cold rush of emotions.
“kya matlab.” she asked over her shoulder.
“the orphanage needs the monthly payment and I have to look into some new ventures… that’s why I needed the discharge as soon as possible.” his words were genuine and she mentally hit her head for thinking a whole too much.
“oh…sorry…one minute.” she fumbled pleasantly and he noticed how she avoided his eyes as she kept his laptop and other things in front of him.
“Ma’am, there is someone who wants to meet you.” one of the lady staff announced from the open door.
“is waqt kaun hoga…” she thought in her mind. “okay, I am coming.”
“Farhad kidhar hai?” he asked the staff.
“i don’t know Anna, after dropping you two he went somewhere.” She replied and left after he dismissed her.
” Go, the electrician is here,” Raghav commented.
“how do you k…” she was surprised and then recalled the cameras around the house.
“don’t move here and there…I am coming in a few minutes,” she warned him.
“mujhe ek do aur injury me koi interest nahi hai Saree ka dukan.” he mocked her as usual.
“Ghamandi Rao… he himself is a child and here I thought he was thinking about a child…huh” muttering to herself she walked downstairs.
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” See, I don’t know what has happened between your father and Anna but I don’t think this is the right time for you to meet Pallavi Vahini,” Farhad told the somewhat distressed woman sitting in front of him.
The coffee was untouched and it seemed she was not interested in that at all.
“but this suspense is killing me, my brother has left for his job and my father doesn’t want to talk about it,” she said trying not to look at his face.
“can I ask you something if you don’t mind…”
“if there is a possibility I can mind then please don’t ask…”
“oh..okay.” he was shut down in no moment.
She felt bad for shutting him like that but she was like that and she didn’t change herself for anyone. Suddenly she recalled how he saved her and how he came there on just one call of her though it was tough for him for sure seeing the tension between her father and his boss.
“i am sorry, see I am not in the right of my mind… you can ask.” she apologized to him taking the hold of the coffee mug in an attempt to hide her nervousness.
“its okay, I can understand… I just wanted to know, your mother is sick or something, that day I just sensed she was in some kind of shock… I m sorry if you don’t want to answer it.” he asked hesitatingly.
“oh… I don’t know what has happened there in my absence but sometimes she goes in this shock-like state after my sister’s disappearance,” she spoke still not looking up.
“How is she…after you are back. our men didn’t harm her.” He didn’t know why but he wanted to make it clear.
“i know…thank you.” finally she looked up and smiled.
“by the way you are so cute, I hope you know that.” the smile brightened and reached from her eyes to his heart.
“just a few days back my cheeks were pinched by…forget it,” he said and they both laughed at it.
All these years after joining Anna he didn’t need a family but now seeing this woman who was of course not meant for him, his heart wanted to find his safe haven in her.
“cold coffees sound good but a cold coffee is a yuck.’ she pointed towards his mug and he smiled turning the handle to his side.
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“what was he saying by the way,” he asked her after waiting for an hour and when she still didn’t hint anything.
“not something you should be concerned about…” she said engrossed in the new designs Nikhil has sent her.
“so again it was his proposal for Keerti, apna ye nakli bhai ko bolo vo aur keerti mere ko nakko.” he told her closing the lid.
“aur kya burai hai mere nakli bhai me,?” she crossed him closing her screen as well.
“tum pagal hai kya..” his voice turned softer the way it did when he wanted to sugar coat something.
“see, Keerti, jewelry shop owner ka behan hai aur vo kya hai…” he searched for a suitable word. “ek chhota sa bulb vala.”
“Raghav…” she eyed him.
“achha theek hai, electrician.”
“Raghav…” her voice was stern this time.
“kya… Shadi aur reception me light hi to lagata hai, dekho Pallavi ispe no lecture but you also know it is not a match.” he tried to make her understand the point.
“but Amma and Keerti have always lived like a normal middle-class family, right,” she said the words and winced when he touched her arms rather forcibly.
“gussa hone se bat nahi badal jayegi… vo Keerti me genuinely interested hai aur Keerti bhi…” she was cut midway.
“keerti tumko kuchh bola… is se to mai.” he was about to make his sister a call when Pallavi stopped him.
” kya hai ye… hamesha gussa nak pe.” she repeated his words to him. “and she is not a small girl, she is an independent woman and she can take her decisions… if you force her to take any wrong direction then it would all be your fault.”
She didn’t know how much effect her words were on him but his features relaxed a bit.
“now, you have worked enough… have your medicines and lie down,” she told him.
The room was dark and the winds had turned cold announcing the arrival of another storm in a few hours.
“you are definitely going to hurt yourself.” she jerked away when he tried to pull her to him.
“keep silent and come here… its hard to get sleep alone,” he said grumpily and his tensed body relaxed when he scooted closer to him.
“you are like a baby.” she huffed and tried to put some distance between their bodies keeping her head close to his.
“we will have at least four children..” he said suddenly and again her breathe got hitched.
“Are they giving you sedatives or you are showing side effects of the drugs?” she asked him.
“no I m serious,” he told her as he pulled her to him and kept her head around his heart.
“what are you doing, you will hurt yourself.” she tried to wriggle out of his arms but he stopped her.
“After my brother, I missed him a lot… and I am sure Keerti missed both of us.”
It surprised her at times how his personality changed in moments, one moment he would tease her like hell and in the next, she would want to comfort him like no one.
“It was not your fault…” she told him looking up and searching for his hand to cover with her.
He touched her hands and intertwined their fingers.
“Family is important and promises me you are not going to hate any of our kids even after they make the biggest mistakes of their life,” he asked her and his words surprised her.
” you know Amma loves you as well as Keerti.” she tried to comfort him.
“Promise me, please.” he insisted and she made the promise.
“The feeling of having everything and everyone but not able to have them is worst of all,” he spoke and his pain didn’t need anything to be justified.
Taking a lead was tough for her but she came out of his hug and his hands tried to stop him but she stopped him and leaned on him.
He understood her next action but it was still amazing when she kissed him, she kissed him as if her life depended on him.
The emotions created the dialogue, the dialogue made the peace, and peace ultimately provided him his safe haven.
“you are never alone…” she whispered turning back to his hug and keeping her palm on his heart, closing her eyes.
“That was hot…” he commented after a while.
“well, Mr. Rao is definitely irresistible even when he is sick.” she didn’t hesitate to reply this time and that’s how they completed each other.
“and by the way, I don’t get the point of four kids…” she asked when she knew the atmosphere was light enough to have it.
“you don’t have to know everything.” he teased her and before she could say anything his lips captured hers.
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Hey everyone! they are so adorable, it’s hard to choose from the different ideas I get for them and come with a chapter…
i hope you enjoyed the chapter.
stay safe and healthy
with love
Morusya.
NOTE – I Have started two ff on Raghvi and they are available on Wattpad as they won’t be getting fast updates, if you guys are there you can enjoy them. sorry, for not updating it here but when updates take weeks to come it is hard here to find them.