Greetings all you lovely people! Thank you so much for all the love you’ve been showering the story with! Also, a special thank you to all those who always manage to brighten up my day like a hundred stars with your comments! You know which ones you are, the very best people ever! Happy reading!
Twinj: My Lifeline: Episode 83
A quick recap: Kunj reveals all about him and Krish, and their friendship to Twinkle. She manages to console him and they end up having a lighter conversation, making more spoken and unspoken promises of togetherness.
“Finally, a day just to ourselves!” Kunj exclaimed gladly as he and Twinkle returned to their room after breakfast. He grabbed her wrist quickly, worried that if he let her go, she would find something as boring as dusting and cleaning to do. She however, smirked to herself before turning to him in absolute shock. “Oh no.” She said, keeping her voice low and emotionless, making him snap his head in her direction and stare. “I forgot.” She added, watching him guiltily. “You forgot?” He asked, to ensure he had heard her right. He was quite positive she had been as excited as him about this when they made their plans. She gulped hard, watching him with hooded eyes. “I’m sorry! I really am! I have no idea how this slipped my mind!” she whispered, carefully observing his changing expressions so that she wouldn’t bother him beyond what he could take. She knew he was having a hard time sitting idle at home. But she also figured a healthy prank might cheer him up a little. Besides, hadn’t he been teasing her that she couldn’t come up with a good enough excuse? It was time for some fun.
“It’s alright if you forgot, Twinkle. We could still just postpone your plans and stick to this, if it’s ok?” He prodded thoughtfully and she was forced to bite back the laughter that was threatening to pour out. “I don’t think that will be possible, Kunj. I promised Yuvi I would come by today, and he’s taken the day off for my sake.” She lied, enjoying his face turn envious from sad at the mention of Yuvi. No matter what he might say, the thought of her handing over the time reserved for him to Yuvi was bound to annoy him. “Is Chinki coming too?” He asked curiously. Well, she hadn’t considered that he would ask this, but she knew how to deal with it. “No. Just me and Yuvi.” She said, making him look up from their entwined hands with a not so pleasant look evident on his face. “Oh.” He managed, letting go of her hand. “That’s okay, right?” She nudged and he nodded unwillingly. ‘Had I my own way, I wouldn’t let you out of my arms at all’, he thought. ‘Let alone spending an entire day with Yuvraj, when you were supposed to be with me!’
“I’ll get changed quickly then!” She chirped, giving him a quick side hug before disappearing into the closet. ‘Did she just give you a side hug, like you are her brother or something?’ His mind taunted. He gritted his teeth, breathing in and out repeatedly to keep calm and not burst out at her. He had just picked his phone up and made himself comfortable on the couch grudgingly when he heard the closet door slide open. ‘Awww! There she is! The love of your life!” He could literally feel his heart coo at the sight of her, a warm feeling spreading within him even though he hated the circumstances. ‘Oh look! She’s so excited to meet “Yuvi!” – why can’t she just call him Yuvraj! – that she’s all ready to leave in less than five minutes!” It was his mind’s observation. He had to actually shake his head to shrug off that thought. He was behaving like a jealous teenager all over again, and he hated it.
‘Hold on, is that your favourite colour?’ His mind was it again, and he quickly turned to look at her, almost spraining his neck in the process. ‘Yes, it is! And she looks so good in it!’ His heart prompted, returning the smile to his face, but his mind wouldn’t give in so easily. ‘… and the dress that you’ve openly proclaimed is your favourite on her! Wow. She’s wearing that to meet him! Kunj Sarna – 0, Yuvraj Luthra – 1.’ His mind was already making a table of points and he could no longer even register the comments on his latest post that he had been trying to read. “Shut up!” He muttered a little too loud, and Twinkle jumped up in her place in front of the dressing table. “What?” She asked him, feigning innocence. Poor Kunj had no idea she had been giggling softly at the rise and fall of his emotions that were evident on his face. “Nothing! I didn’t say anything!” He tried to cover up, but she was already walking towards him. She twirled half a circle to check if she had left anything behind right when she got to him, giving him a good enough look at the exposed skin at her waist through the high slits her Kurta had on the sides. He had to tear his eyes away so that he wouldn’t look like an absolute idiot, but his mind was almost drugged by jealousy and he knew no right from wrong. She was now having a hard time continuing with her act, having seen his eyes soften in admiration of her.
“I’ll see you later, then?” Her voice as pleasant as ever broke his reverie. ‘Kunj! Are you seriously thinking of letting her go? Don’t be a fool!’ His mind beseeched, his heart agreeing with that surprisingly – those two almost never agreed. He stood up just as she stepped away from him, feeling his heart thud wildly at the stupidity of what he was about to do. “Twinkle!” He called out, and thought he saw her heave a sigh of relief. ‘Looks like she doesn’t want to leave you here and go away, either!’ His heart was hopeful, almost celebrating with victorious thumping that threatened to leave him dizzy. ‘Whoa. Stop imagining things just because you’re desperate, Kunj! Also, calm down and save us some embarrassment! She’s your wife of over a year now, but look at your excitement!’ His mind lectured, while he stood blinking at Twinkle who had slowly turned around and was looking at him questioningly now.
When he hadn’t mustered enough courage to ask her not to go even after a couple of minutes, Twinkle raised her eyebrows impatiently at him, and he quickly shook his head in a ‘Nothing!’, disappointing them both. It wasn’t his intention to do so, he had just reacted on impulse and began to regret it the minute he realized what he had done. She shrugged her shoulders as in ‘Fine then.’ and turned away. He smacked his head at the sight, but she turned back immediately. “Come on now, ask me not to go! Don’t be shy!” She prompted, confusing him. He had to strain his mind to ensure that this wasn’t another of his heart’s ridiculous ideas. However, she giggled at him right then, confirming that it was her. “You are actually asking me to stop you?” He spoke; it was something between a question and a slow sinking realization, which only made her laugh. “Yes. I’ll leave if you don’t!” She replied nonchalantly, giving in when she saw the innocent confusion still on his face. She jumped at him, hugging him tight as she whispered, “Was this a good enough excuse to escape your hold? Also, a teensy-weensy prank.” His eyes widened as he recollected his challenge, stunning him so much that it left him incapable to even hug her back.
“God, I hate you!” He mumbled a few minutes later, now putting his hands around her. ‘Naah, you don’t!’ His heart elicited, and this time, his mind didn’t oppose it either. “Naah, you don’t!” She echoed his heart, making him grin wide. “Yeah, I don’t. Doesn’t mean I’ll let you get away with this!” He mock threatened, while she pretended to gasp. “We could get to that part later, Kunj! Let’s get going with our plans already, we’ve wasted a lot of time!” She quipped in, pulling away as she spotted the wall clock. “I’m sorry, ‘we’ have wasted time?” He retorted, and she threw her hands up in an ‘I give up! You win!’ He smirked at her, picking up the car key from the coffee table. “Can I drive?” She asked cheerfully. He looked at her, eyes wide in surprise. He had never thought over the fact that she could drive too. “Sure!” He smiled encouragingly, forwarding his hand to give her the key, but withdrew his hand as quickly as he had stretched it. “What?” She asked, sounding annoyed, her smile giving away to a disappointed pout. “How come you never asked to drive before?” He asked in a suspecting tone, confusing her. “What else do you want to do to your unsuspecting husband today?” He teased, a hint of mischief in his voice. She gave him a bored look, making him laugh as he handed her the key.
“Wait!” His voice had a sense of urgency as she headed for the door, and she turned around worriedly to look at him. “Should we just stay indoors instead? Given how great you’re looking?” He suggested, trapping her between himself and the door with arms on either side of her. She narrowed her eyes at him and was about to comment about how he only had silly thoughts in his head, but grinned as she was struck by a better idea. “How about I actually call up Yuvi and make plans with him then?” She deadpanned, to which he returned a challenging glance. She nodded, picking out her phone from her purse and waving it in front of him. “Fine!!” He relented easily, not wanting to embarrass himself ‘in front of Yuvraj of all people!’ as his mind pointed out.
Kunj watched in adoration as Twinkle, whom he had always seen sitting on the passenger seat and not even looking at the steering, shifted the gears expertly and smoothly drove out of their gates, not at all bothered by the traffic on the main roads. “Kunj?” She called out suddenly, and he quickly hummed in response, ever ready to switch places if she wished. “You can stop staring now, and trust me with your precious car. I am a good driver.” She said smugly instead. Her smile only widened when she heard him laugh at that. “Then you must know, Twinkle, that a good driver keeps their eyes on the road, not on someone sitting beside them. Even if that someone is gawking at them.” He mentioned, sneakily placing his hand on hers that was on the gear. She shot him a look over the corner of her eyes, but he returned an innocent glance, adding, “Also, I’m only admiring my wife proudly. That has nothing to do with you!” She smiled at him now, shuffling a little in her seat before she shifted to the top gear and sped up, just for the fun of the flickering alarm in his eyes that she knew he wouldn’t be able to hide. She knew they were only going for a long drive, but with him, even that felt like the best thing in the world. There was absolutely nowhere else either of them could wish to be. And with each other, they would deal with the grey clouds of uncertainty about his career lining their horizon too.
That’s it for now, guys. This episode, was completely dedicated to you all, since according to my initial plans, this wasn’t included at all. But then a few of you seemed to be keen to find out what Twinkle’s creative excuses would be like, so here goes! I hope you all enjoyed this, it was almost like a bonus episode. Do tell me what you thought about it! Much love!!