Swara and Sanskaar were living out their moment of joy, the overwhelming relief, holding the little angel in their arms. She was going to be fine. Absolutely fine.

The nurse let them stay in, more than the normal allotted time for visitors, as she noticed how happy the child was in the loving arms of her parents, as they all thought. She was not fidgety anymore.

Between them, Swara and Sanskaar walked the baby up and down the length of the room, and she slowly drifted off to sleep.

Gently, Swara lowered the baby to the bed, carefully untangled the tiny fingers from where they clutched at her dress. She kissed the little pearly nails once, rose. Sanskaar pressed a gossamer kiss to the tiny cheek and stepped back, one hand holding Swara's. Silently, they made for the door as the waiting nurse went to sit by the sleeping child. At the door, both turned for one more glance. Little Angel was sleeping, the peaceful sleep of the innocent.
Again they took their seats in the plastic chairs in the corridor to wait, the but this time with feeling of relief. Everything was going to be alright.

Sanskaar looked at his watch; it was almost 5 in the morning. He looked at her tired face.

"Swara...?"

"Hmmm...?"

"Main abhi aaya."

She nodded in silence and he went down the hall.

Time passed and Swara felt restless with his absence. She found herself glancing up every time there the sound of footsteps echoed up the hall, hoping it would be Sanskaar. Should she have called him? No. He had just stepped out. She couldn't expect him to stay with her all the time. He needed a break, especially after last night which was so tiring, emotionally and physically. For both of them. But thank God Angel was fine..

She decided to take a little break herself. She made her way towards wash room and splashed water on her face. Better, she thought looking at her reflection in mirror. She came back and settled down, looked at corridor once again, she leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes.

"Swara."

She opened her eyes listening to his voice. Sanskaar stood there holding two cups of coffee. Sanskaar looked at her, then at the coffee dispenser at the end of the corridor, back to her. Her gaze followed his, and back to him. He shrugged his shoulders with an easy smile, holding up the coffee. Swara couldn't help but smile back, she remembered how horrible that coffee was but at that moment nothing mattered to them other than Angel.

So he had stepped out to get coffee .Well that was a good start for the day, coffee with a good friend, with Sanskaar. She took one cup from him and they settled back.

Swara's phone flashed. It was a call from Little Flowers. "Must be Father Benedict," she told Sanskaar as she picked the call. Swara narrated the events to Father Benedict who was understandably worried. She assured him that things were fine now.

"Father aa rahe hain, he is back from village and will be here in some time ",she told Sanskaar.

She paused, then turned to him again, "Sankaar..ab Father aa rahe hain ..tum ghar kyu nahi chale jaate ..raat bhar teek se soye nahi tum ..you must be tired..."

"Tum bhi tho soye nahi thik se," he shook his head no. "Main tumhe chod kar kahi nahi jaane waala" he said firmly.

And that was the end of that discussion.

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Angel was shifted from ICU to ward by 8 in the morning...Swara took her into her arms, passed her on to Sanskaar when he held out his. Angel seemed more than happy to be greeted by her favorite people. Just then Father Benedict stepped in along with a nun. He sent a silent payer of gratitude to his Lord for sending these two Angel's to Little Flowers, as he walked up to the trio. Angel cooed happily as she recognized him, but was content in Swara's arms for the moment, playing with her hair.

Sanskaar fed him the details and Father thanked them for being there for the child in the hour of need. He insisted the youngsters go home and get some rest and they would be taking over from here. One of the nuns stepped up to take Angel, hands extended.

Swara felt an odd tightness in her chest as she moved forward to hand the child over. She couldn't quite comprehend the feeling. It felt like some bubble had burst, and suddenly it was not just her and baby Angel and Sanskaar. Other people existed there. Surely Angel belonged with them...it felt wrong somehow to give her up, like she was giving part of herself away, an odd sense of loss and confusion. But the nun was waiting- Sister Nancy, her tired mind registered the face finally- she was holding out her arms, waiting for Angel...She looked at Sanskaar with mixed emotions; his eyes mirrored exactly the same .

Slowly, she handed Angel over to Sister Nancy, kissed the top of her head and stepped back. Sanskaar was right there, one hand on her shoulder in silent support. Angel expressed her displeasure, fidgeting and reaching out to Swara.

The maternal Sister Nancy smiled, bounced the baby as she cooed to her. "bye bolo, baby," she made the tiny hand wave. Angel grabbed for the rosary beads in her hand, fascinated. "Go home, dear," the nun turned to Swara, smiling reassuringly. "I'll take care of her."

Swara felt the shock of the previous evening beginning to wear out, and after giving the baby back...She nodded, feeling a little helpless, a little lost.

"I will drop you." he said quietly, taking her hand in his. He was feeling a little lost himself. They said their byes to the priest, walked out.

It was a silent drive home.

----------------------------------------------------

They reached Swara's apartment. She knew she was going to go back and see Angel. But would he want to come along? She had no idea what his plans were...the brief internal debate lasted till she stepped out; then she changed her mind.

She turned to him before she closed the car door. "Sanskaar, woh", she started to ask him.

"Aaj shyam ko college se pick kar lunga tumhe," he cut in. "4.30 pm?" She nodded affirmatively. "from there we will go to the hospital,"he continued as if he had read her thoughts. She looked at him, surprised . How could he..?

She opened her mouth to thank him, and he cut in again, smiling. "Thanks kehne ke baare main sochna bhi mat, I don't like breaking rules often." That earned him a blank stare. "Kya hua aise kya dekh rahe ho?"

She had forgotten her own rules, she realized. "Kuch nahi," she returned the smile. "See you, shyam ko...and have a nice day"

"You too," he raised a hand in farewell as he drove away.

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Annapurna was waiting for him when he got home, as she was for the past few hours since he called from the hospital.

"Hi, Ma." He called out a tired greeting as he dropped on to the couch, closed his eyes. He just needed one moment.

She sat down by him, brushed the wayward strands of hair from her son's tired face. "Thak gaye ho." She said softly. A sigh was his only answer to that. "Dost kaisi hai ab?"

Trust her to ask, and to know he was tired. He smiled, sat up straight. "Thik hai, Ma. Do teen din observation me rakhenge par. Rat ko thoda tension tha, ab thik hai lekin."

She nodded. "Kuch khaya tumne.. ya sedha ghar chale aa gaye..."

He smiled again. She knew him well. "Sedhe ghar aa gaya. Khana laga do Ma, thode der me nikalna hai muje."

"Beta itne thak gaye ho, chutti le lete ek din, ya thoda late jate ek din," she amended. She knew he wouldn't want to skip a work day if could avoid it.

"Ma zaruri kam hai thoda, office se calls bhi aye the ate waqt. Sham ko time par aa jaunga," he said as a peace offering.

She sighed, got up. "taiyyar hoke aa jao phir." She wished the boy didn't work as hard, but that was him.

He smiled brilliantly. "Thanks Ma. Love you," he dashed upstairs to change.

She went to get his food, shaking her head. The boy worked too hard...

He got through his meetings and conferences, answered all his emails and calls pending over the last 12 hours. Then placed his calls to their Legal department. He wanted the trust fund set up for Little Flowers, and a friend in Legal had agreed to do it for him. He wanted them to hasten it up.

He called Kunal in; they had another meeting to get through before he could go pick Swara to see Angel.

He instructed Kunal to get in touch with Payroll as soon as his friend in Legal sorted things out; they were to deduct a portion of his salary for the Trust fund.

There was so much to be done...and he had to grab lunch too, couldn't really skip the meal. He wasn't stupid or a martyr; whatever needed done he'd do, but he needed energy for it.

He was huddled with Kunal over last minute briefings, right outside his cabin door. Their discussions had eaten into the lunch hour, though the rest of the floor was deserted and blessedly peaceful to him. He just had to finish briefing Kunal, next item on his agenda was a quick lunch.

That's when they heard the smart click of heels on the tiled floor. It was smart, sharp, distinctly female. And he had a good idea who it was. Kunal caught him wincing, and opened his mouth to ask, then shut it. Everyone on this floor knew who it was. No one else had that killer gait. Killer was the right word for it.

"Hey, Sanskaar," came the customary greeting, in a voice that was equal parts sugar and steel. The expensive scent of Chanel drifted towards them in accompaniment to the greeting. Both men sighed inwardly as the click of heels drew closer. Sanskaar fixed his professional smile on, prepared to sacrifice fifteen minutes of his lunch break to basic office courtesy, and courtesy to his father's friendship with this female's father.

"There you are," Veronica crooned, threading her arm through his. "Have you had lunch? I was hoping you hadn't, so we could have some together." She patted the arm she held, smiling sweetly. She wore black pearls today, making a statement with the latest Tom Ford creation in her collection.

"Hi Kunal," she added as she glanced at the young secretary; a smile loaded with charm, lasting two seconds before she turned all her attention back to Sanskaar.

He saw Kunal's reaction. Shock at the summary dismissal, shock at being at the receiving end of that stunning smile. He wondered idly if she practiced it in front of a mirror, or if she was born with it. He suppressed another sigh. "Hi, Veronica."

"Call me Ronnie," she tapped one lethal, manicured, red tipped nail to his nose. "I keep telling you..."

He couldn't quite suppress the sigh this time. "Veronica. I'm in the middle of something right now."

She smiled again. "Finish it, then. We can talk over lunch. It's about the fundraiser for your new project, the NGO one."

The fundraiser gala was important.

As their Media Relations manager, she always had the right card to play, he thought ruefully. She was definitely their most elegant steamroller. "All right then," he nodded. "Order our lunch. I'll be there in ten."

She gave him another smile as she drew back, then walked into his cabin.

Sanskaar turned back to Kunal to finish this discussion.

Not many people were tolerated by Sanskaar for their arrogance, but Kunal thought he understood. Veronica Verma was their Media Relations Manager, daughter of their GM, Finance, family friend of Sanskaar Maheswari. She didn't get where she was because of nepotism; she reached there on her own merit, her own worth. And Sanskaar Maheswari was way too professional to overlook her skills and worth over mild annoyances.

But she had real sharp claws. Considering himself fortunate, Kunal left his boss to deal with the lethal Ms.Verma and went to get his own lunch.

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The next few days went by in a haze of meetings and hospital visits... Every day he'd finish his work early, go pick Swara, and they'd go see Angel in the hospital. That was his routine for the week.

He didn't think of going alone to see the baby. It didn't occur to him to go alone. The way he saw it, he needed to see Angel, Swara did too. And it was something they did together... besides, he wanted to be sure she was home safe; she tended to stay back late, playing with the baby and taking care of her, no matter how many other people were there in attendance. He couldn't fault her for it. Even he felt Angel belonged to him. Somehow. After that night, he felt they both belonged to him. So it was his responsibility to see they were both happy and safe. He didn't question any of these convictions. He would see to Angel by ensuring she got all the best possible medical care and all her favourite people around her, and Swara by taking her to see Angel and bringing her home..

When they brought Angel back, they had a little celebration at Little Flowers. The kids were overjoyed to have the baby back, and life returned to normal. Friday evening cricket sessions, weekend visits, wish list shopping.

It was a new kind of normal, though. After that night at the hospital, there was a slight shift in the way things were. The electric currents and lightning bolts still struck them at times, but they were able to see past it...neither snatched their hands away at an occasional, accidental brush. They were...comfortable in each other's presence, Sanskaar decided. It was a nice rhythm. And a period of discovery too, in a way. He knew she was a student, social worker, beloved sister to 25 children in an orphanage. She was pretty and sweet and charming, generous to a fault, would carry all the burdens of the world on her slim shoulders if she could. He knew most of this, underscored the rest in the weeks to follow. One Sunday morning as he joined the morning mass at Kunal's insistence, he found there was one more item for his list...she was a singer too. As he walked in he thought he saw her in the choir group, craned his neck around for a better view as people filed into the pew...and there she was, right in front of the mike, smiling, chatting with the other choir members. She sent him a smile and wave when she saw him among the attendees...a little surprised, he returned both. It was a beautiful mass that morning, and he discovered she had the voice of an angel...

She told him she played guitar. She kept an acoustic, a much loved one at her apartment. She brought it along on one of their picnics with the kids, and since then she did sometimes on weekends, in an attempt to teach one of the kids who had expressed interest. The kid lacked technique, but made up for it in enthusiasm. Swara didn't seem to mind a bit...in fact she looked like she enjoyed her sessions with her little friend. She even bought a toy guitar for the child. She was patient, insightful and thoughtful, and none of it surprised Sanskaar anymore. She was absolutely unique.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

She found out he had an equivalent to her guitar...a Nikon DSLR that he brought to Little Flowers one evening. He didn't look like an amateur as he walked up the steps holding it, the strap secure around his neck. He looked like he knew how to use it, the way he held it. But since it was a new accessory he wore to Little Flowers, Swara felt duty bound to tease him.

"That's a serious camera," she said as she greeted him, two kids hanging on to each hand.

He nodded, smiled at the kids when they greeted him. "hello bacho."

"Bhaiyya ye aapka hai?" one of the kids tugged at his jacket.

"ha, mera hai. Aur aj aap sab ke photo kheechenge hum. Bada maza ayega," he winked at the boy.

"me sabko batake ata hu," kid jumped in excitement as he ran out to get his friends. The other child ran after him, deserting the grown ups.

Swara remembered mentioning to him how nice it would be to capture those cute little moments with kids and if they could get them framed, they would make great memories and some day maybe when kids would revisit Little Flowers... and today he turned up with his camera. Sanskaar told her how photography was his passion especially during college days but later after joining business he couldn't find time so...

"Waise tumhe sach main photo lena aata hain ya phir aise hi camera lekar" she teased as he framed a wide shot of the altar.

Sanskaar caught her teasing tone and lowered the camera. He noticed the gleam in her eyes, shot her a look in mock anger. Trying to hold in the laugh, she looked away.

He debated giving her a lecture on apertures and exposure as he adjusted the lens. Instead he shouted "SWARA!" so quickly she turned in surprise- he lifted the camera, framed and shot.

She gasped, hit him on the arm. "Not fair, Sanskaar. Kitni kharab pic ayi hogi."

He laughed. "tumhari ankhe itni badi thi," he held up two fingers to demonstrate a big O, then laughed again when she pouted. "achi pic ayegi. You have beautiful eyes." He winked.

She hit him again, though without malice. She found she liked the offhand compliment very much, even though it was half in jest. "Chalo ab."

He nodded, all innocence.

Smiling, she looked away.

"Swara?" he called again softly, as they began to walk out.

She turned, with a half smile on her face- and she was facing the lens again.

He framed, shot again, then smiled. "ye wali bahot achi hogi," he said half to himself as he looked at the camera, then up at her. "Chale?"

She felt a blush warm her cheek as she nodded and they continued walking.

They took scores of pictures that day...and Sanskaar seemed to enjoy it as much as the children did. They deemed him official photographer of Little Flowers- he loved it.

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And then he had an unexpected item for the list of things they both enjoyed...Pani Puri.

It was one crazy Friday afternoon that led to this discovery.

When he got home that day, he was revved despite having had a very long day. Too much sugar in his system and his time with Swara and the kids, he decided as he chucked the blazer over a convenient chair. He smiled thinking of how he had started off the evening with a high-minded lecture for Swara and the kids when they pulled him out for Pani Puri. One street vendor had pulled up by their cricket ground, conveniently after their weekly cricket session. The side effects of eating street food , unhealthy unhygienic, etc etc. They had looked at him as if he was ET the alien. He smiled again recollecting the moments...

"Hogaya ..?" she asked after listening to his lecture. "ab aa karo." She said matter-of-factly.

Miffed, he asked, "Kya?"

"Hmm .Ye bhi chalega," she said, tossing a pani puri into his mouth.

He tried to protest but the minute that crunchy taste of puri and that tangy and sweet taste of pani melted together in his mouth, he couldn't help but recollect his child hood days..where golgappa use to be his fav and what the heck ,even now..

"Ek aur mere liye," he said looking at kids and Swara who were looking at him like look who lectured only few minutes ago. Swara had a wise-ass smirk on her face.

"what ?" He said, "I still stand by it, its unhealthy, OK. but kabhi kabhi ..its okay na," he said tossing one more into his mouth, winking at them and then one more and somehow it ended up as a competition between him and Swarawho would eat more...game for anything, the kids teamed up behind them and egged them both on, cheering and clapping and laughing.

So much fun it was...he felt it offset whatever shock it was to his system to have had that much junk food. He thought of his own lecture and sighed. His stomach could take it, he decided as he set the room to rights. He was way too pleased with the fact that he took the trophy in the gol-gappa-eating-championship. Feeling a little smug at that, reminiscing about the taste, and the excitement - he was worse than the children there - he opened the cupboard for his pajamas.

He turned to greet Annapurna who had just walked in.

"Beta itne late aye ho aaj."

"Hi Ma," he gave her a quick hug and went to hang the blazer up.

She noticed he looked all keyed up. "Khana laga du tumhare liye?"

"Nai, Ma bhook nai hai." He said as he turned for a quick survey of the room. Everything was neat and in its place. Satisfied, he went to put the phone on the charging dock.

"Bhook nai hai?" now she was worried. "tabiyat tho thik haina tumhari?"

"Hm?" he looked up from the phone, saw the concern and hurried to explain. "Arey Ma tension mat lo sab thik hai. Bas bahot sare gol gappe ho gaye the tho-"

"Gol gappe?" he always had food from home unless it was a business dinner or party. Street food? So much that he was full?

"Wo bache aur Swara zid kar rahe tho tho...zabardasti khila diya, aur phir bachpan ki yad me...aur phir competition- kuch zyada hi kha gaya," he recounted, half to himself. Should have called mom and told her, she wouldn't have waited up with dinner...

"Beta Swara kaun hai, aur wo bache?"

"Ma wo ek orphanage hai, waha ke bache, aur Swara meri...dost hai." He began to explain.

She noticed the slight hesitation. "ye wahi dost hai jo hospital me thi?" she asked slowly. What was going on here?

"Haan, Ma wo Swara ke liye hi gaya tha par Angel admit hui thi uss rat."

Annapurna couldn't make sense of any of it. "Ab Angel kaun hai beta..."

Oh, he was deep in it now. He wondered why anything about Swara always tied him up in knots, him or his tongue. He couldn't explain a simple incident to his mom properly...

Sighing he sat down, pulled his mother down next to him.

"Ma, Angel ek choti si bachi hai. Little Flowers orphanage ki." He decided to start at the beginning. His NGO project, wanting to do something for himself and separate from the company agenda, how Little Flowers happened, and he met Swara and the kids...he laughed a little as he told her how they-no, Swara- had knocked him to the ground that first day. The things he had started doing for those children with Swara, how it made him feel...

Annapurna noticed a softening in him every time he took the girl's name, and the happiness that radiated from him as he spoke of those children and Swara. She was so happy that her old Sanskaar, who had gotten buried somehow under layers of successful businessman, was finally found again. But the light in his eyes when he spoke of this girl...

"Bahot sweet hai Ma wo. Aur bacho se bhi zyada shararti aur mastikhor," he said fondly. "She's very special..." he said with this soft smile, staring into space a moment; she was alerted to this tenor in his voice, this tenderness she had never heard when he spoke of his friends.

"Aap miloge usse ek bar tho apko bhi aisa hi lagega," he said with conviction as he looked up at her. "And she's...genuine. Unlike so many other girls I know. Wo jo bhi karti hai in bacho ke liye...She's incredible." he finished with a brilliant smile.

Alarm bells rang dimly, somewhere in her mind. He cared for this girl, more than he did for his friends normally, and he admired her. She made him happy. That much she gathered. But if this girl was anything more than a friend...she was aware her husband had plans for the boy. Big plans.

"Mom, kya hua?" he broke from his reverie seeing her frown.

"Kuch nai beta. Ye-." His phone vibrated, interrupting her question. He reached out, smiled at the readout.

There. It was one of those smiles of his, that reached the eyes. She could tell it was the girl, before he confirmed it.

"Swara." He spoke out loud, without thinking about it. He wasn't aware of the way his lips had curved up in a smile; his mom was.

She nodded, got up. "Bat kar lo. Aur thak gaye hoge na tum, jaldi so jana thik hai," she patted his cheek gently. He smiled, nodded as he rose to kiss her good night. "Ok, Ma. Good night."

Another pat on the cheek, and she left.

As soon as she turned, his phone rang again. "Hi, Swara," he spoke into the phone.

At the door, Annapurna turned to see him laughing, joking about with his "dost" Swara. He looked so happy and relaxed...

She walked away, a little worried for him if he had fallen for the girl. His father would never approve...and that would ..She just wished her instinct was wrong.

As she descended the stairs the sound of his quiet laughter followed her

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Thanks a lot for taking out time and reading . hope u liked it ..Like always do please let me know your views on the same .