Hello Everyone😀 Sorry for the delay in posting up this chapter. It took me quite some time to write this part. Also Wattpad has been acting up for some strange reason, due to which the chapter took long to get uploaded.😕 It was supposed to be published in the morning, but I was not able to. Anyone else facing the same issue? Or is it only me? Anyhow, Hope you enjoy this part😁

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The next morning Neil walked towards the dining table, anticipating breakfast to be already served. It was Avni's turn to cook and he was surprised to find the table empty. She wasn't around either. "This lazy girl. I'm sure she is still dozing away to glory and wants me to do all the cooking for today. Time to wake her up in my style. Let me just douse this tumbler of water on her pretty face and madam will be up in a jiffy!" he said to himself with his trademark evil smirk. He filled a glass of water and slowly walked towards her room. As he approached her room, the sight before him distressed him. She was curled up under her bed-sheet in a cocoon position. She was rubbing her arms with the quilt and it seemed to him like she was shivering. He placed the glass of water down on the table beside her bed. He thought that maybe the running AC might have resulted in her feeling cold, so he proceeded forward to switch it off. He came near her bed and stretched out his hands closer to her face. He wanted to touch and feel her to know if she was alright, but was in a dilemma if that would be the right thing to do. After finally giving into his inner turmoil, he placed his hand softly on her forehead to check if she was fine, and to his horror realized that it was burning hot. She seemed to be running a high fever and now things became clearer to him. He held her hands in between his palms and rubbed them vigorously, in an attempt to make her feel warm. "Avni...Avni" he called out to her softly. She tossed around in her bed and muttered a "Hmmm" in response. "Avni are you alright? You seem to be running a temperature and you look uneasy too" he asked in a tone laced with concern. "I'm very tired Neil and I'm feeling extremely cold" she replied back in a feeble voice. Immediately Neil pulled out his phone and reached out to DD. "Hi Neil. I hope you are doing fine. How is everything at your end?" asked DD, on picking the call. "DD I'm absolutely fine but I really need your help urgently. Avni seems to have fallen sick and she is running a high temperature. Doesn't seem like she is in a state to get out of bed. Do you happen to know any doctor who could come home and have a look at her? I don't know anyone here as I'm new to this place" said Neil worried. 'Relax Neil. Do not worry. I happen to know a family doctor. His name is Dr. Amit. I shall call and request him to drop by your house to have a look at Avni. Expect a call anytime from him soon." replied DD. "Thank You so much DD. That really means a lot to me." said Neil. "Come on Neil. Quit being so formal with me.' said DD. He then walked closer to Avni, gently stroked her hair and said "The doctor will be here soon to have a look at you. Don't worry Avni. You will be fine soon." As he was comforting her patting her, his phone rang. Seeing the unknown number, he figured it might be the doctor and immediately picked up the call. "Hello Dr. Amit, this is Neil here. I hope DD briefed you about the situation. I shall text you my address. Could you please come over here as soon as possible?" he asked anxiously. "Yes Mr. Neil. DD just contacted me a few minutes ago. I hear you are his friend. I will reach there shortly.", replied Dr. Amit. Few minutes later the doctor arrived at their house. He checked on her with his equipment. "Is she alright doctor? ", asked Neil in a very concerned tone. "She is running a high temperature. Must be a viral infection. I have given her a shot and she should feel better in a few hours. In case the temperature does not come down by evening, reach out to me again. Here's the prescription of the medicines that she requires.", said Dr. Amit handing out a sheet to him after having signed it. "Thank You so much doctor. There is nothing to worry right? Will she be alright soon?" he asked again after handing the fees to him, still being apprehensive. "Mr. Neil this is the third time you have asked me this from the time I have arrived here. She will be perfectly alright soon. I must say you indeed love her a lot- your wife is very lucky to have such a caring husband.", he replied smiling. "Also please try to avoid a hot water bath as the temperature is yet to come down. Instead you can maybe give her a sponge bath with some lukewarm water once she feels better.", he added and left from the house. The words wife and sponge bath had befuddled him for a minute. Even before he could clear the misconception, the doctor had walked out of his sight. He gulped down a breath that he had been struggling to take for some time now. He walked out to get her some food along with the prescribed medicines.

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Neil returned home after a while, to find her awake. She was looking around everywhere and trying to sit up straight on her bed by herself. He immediately thrust the bags on the table beside the bed and ran to help her out. He placed a soft pillow behind her back and helped her sit up comfortably. As she reclined against the headrest, she muttered a "Thank You" to him. He smiled in response, nodding his head and then poured the contents of the food onto a plate. He placed a small wooden fold-able table in front of her and placed the plate on it, making it easier for her to eat. "I was thinking khichdi would be something suitable for you to eat as you're not feeling too good now. I have also specially requested the hotel folks to make it less spicy so that you can have it. Once you finish having this food, I shall give you the medicines that you need to take." he said. She frowned on hearing about the medicines, but her face lit up in a small smile seeing his concern for her. "Thank You Neil. Thank You so much.", she said overwhelmed. "You actually don't need to thank me. I did this for myself. If you have a fever, then there's a very high possibility that I may catch it too. So, I'm only just saving myself from going through all that trouble" he scoffed at her. "How rude are you Neil?" replied Avni with an irritated expression, laced with a tinge of disappointment as she got to know about the actual intention behind his concern. In return, he flashed his 'I'm so awesome' smirk at her and walked out on hearing his phone ring. It was DD calling him. He thanked him and after having ended the conversation with him, he walked back into the room to check on her. She had finished with her food. He removed the plate and table, and handed her a glass of water to take along with the medicines. After she had taken her pills, she sat back against the head-rest looking into thin air, as he seated himself beside her. "How are you feeling now Avni?" he asked concern still being evident in his voice, no matter how much he tried to hide it. "I am feeling much better now, but how does it matter to you? Why do you even care?" she said, still being irked with his earlier words. He held her hand in his, while she continued to look away from him. He brought his face closer to her, his lips now softly grazing her ears. "Since you are feeling much better now, I think we should give you a nice warm bath" he whispered softly in her ears, moving his head away as he winked naughtily at her. Her eyes and mouth widened in horror on hearing his words. She instantly pulled up her blanket all the way up to her neck, in an attempt to cover herself from his eyes which were now gleaming with a naughty smirk. "Just what do you mean? I do..do..don't need a bath. Especially not one from you.", she stuttered unable to come out of the sudden shock that he had just sprung upon her. What the hell did he mean by "we should"? - the words kept incessantly reeling in her mind, while all possible thoughts of him scrutinizing her in her bare form flit across her mind. Her brain was on overdrive. Her cheeks had turned a deep red coupled with a horrified expression in her eyes. "Oh hello Madam..How many times do I have to remind you that you are nothing close to Cleopatra? Also, why do you always tend to misunderstand me? The landlady Mrs. Chopra will be here in a few minutes to help you out. As per the doctor's instructions, you aren't supposed to take a hot water bath till your body temperature comes down fully. Oh, and just for the record, what makes you think that I haven't already seen whatever you are trying to hide from me? Remember the night you were drunk..it was I who had changed your clothes.", he said winking at her patting her cheeks softly. Her mouth went in a perfect round. Annoyed, she threw a pillow at him yelling "Youuuu...". He dodged it right on time and walked away towards the kitchen, while she covered her face with her the blanket. She lowered her head down and lay on the bed and her heart was pounding unusually faster than usual.

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Neil gave the required instructions to Mrs. Chopra and then walked out of the house. He then walked towards the temple with the intent to pay his dues and at the same time offered a small prayer for the hot-headed chick back at home. The minute he thought about her a small, his lips curved in a slight smile. He headed down the temple stairs and walked onto the street, when he caught sight of a guy with a monkey. As the monkey indulged in its tricks, there was a small crowd gathered around. He was now completely focused on the monkey's act and it seemed like now the devil in him had awakened. His evil mind was plotting a scheme towards his first step of revenge. After the act was completed, he walked across the street to meet the guy who was the owner of the monkey. "Hi there! I just happened to watch the act of your monkey from across the street. I must say, I am rather impressed with the way you have trained him. He is one talented monkey.", said Neil as he showered praises at the man. The man was extremely elated to hear someone finally compliment him. His face broke into a wide grin and he muttered a "Thank You, Sir" to Neil. "So roughly on an average, how much money would you make by doing this every day?", inquired Neil faking interest. "On an average I would probably make around Rs.150 Sir, but it also depends upon the time, the place and the number of people. Sometimes the rain Gods are not merciful and, on those days, I don't even make a single penny.", he said with a dejected look on his face. "Okay so how about you and I make a deal? You do something for me and in return I shall pay you around say Rs. 600? That's almost around four times the daily amount that you earn!" said Neil carefully weighing his words, trying to lure him into the deal. The guy's face lit up in a wide smile on understanding what a lucrative offer this was for him. "Certainly Sir. What is it that you exactly want me to do?" he said, almost already daydreaming about the treasure of money that he would be getting in return. "Meet me at around 4:30 PM in the evening near my house along with your monkey.", said Neil, giving him required instructions to reach close to his house. The man beamed in response and said "Definitely Sir. I will reach there by then." Neil made his way back towards home, not before stopping twice, once at the grocery store and next at a cosmetic shop. As soon as he entered the cosmetic shop, the ladies gathered around him stared at him with a weird look on their faces. It occurred to him he was the 'only man' in that store. That explained the unusual gazes. Feeling extremely uncomfortable, he felt the absolute need to clarify before anyone could jump to any weird conclusions or make any judgements about him. "Does a man not have the freedom to buy stuff for his girlfriend these days?" he shouted loud enough to be audible to the women in the store. The ladies who heard him, then reverted back to their shopping. He stuffed the items that he had purchased into his backpack and walked back home to check on Avni.

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I will be posting Part 2 of Chapter 11 shortly. It went too long to be put as one part, so I had to split into two. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Do leave your comments😀 I noticed the ranking moved upto #3 in #AdiZa. Just want to say a big Thank You for all the love and support you are showering on this story😘❤