Ok dearies! Finally, I found to type one these parts. I know I have been extremely delayed this time...apologies...I will try snd be regular. If you feel disconnected, please feel free to go back & reread...and hope y continue to love the story still! Enjoy reading...

Part 31

A few days had passed since after the peacock feather Sunday. Sameer was unaware that Nsina had seen him in a very different light. It was almost as if her dreams that she had never dared fantasise before Sameer had just culminated in his one boyish lopsided grin when he had revered something so special to her.

Naina was on her friend mode at best. She didn't oppose to anything he said or did. She replied quite straightforward as if he they were on some military mission to tackle every challenge thrown their way. She did what her topper brain was best at, analyze and resolve the issue. She replied to his every question, albeit curtly, did not discuss any other matter that was not related to class or competition work.

Previously, she was always concerned about him but since recent, she acted differently. He knew that she was well aware that Nanu had called only twice since he left and he sorely missed him. She always had her ears tuned in to listen to his convo without obvious eavesdropping, but she refuted from even a courteous enquiry.

He tried to get her to interact and socialise but he quickly realised that crowding her space wasn't helping, rather she distanced herself more & more. Once, he also had a strong urge to remind her that it was she who had extended the hand of friendship towards him and now acted indifferent. However, dreadful that such an approach might worsen the situation, he let her be, but never let her out of his sight except for few hours of slumber at night when he slept only the required minimum to rejuvenate and also checked several times on her.

Both he and the household had slipped into a comfortable routine. He would wake up early for his toutine exercise and match practice with or without Arjun, then get ready and help her with hair and bag before leaving for school. If it was a Monday, they would stop by the temple before the school. Preeti tried to give them as much alone time as she could but had to accompany them when out of excuses. However, Sameer never found her presence an invasion of privacy. He was just happy with Naina around and eventhough aloof, each time she willingly rode in the front seat with him.

The bet boys at school had also started keeping their distance; albeit they didn't miss a jibe or lecher comment occasionally, just to rile him up. It was Munna Pandit, who mostly kept the matters at school in check and never let anything blown put of proportion that Rakesh Sir would find any excuse to accuse him, especially since Nanaji wasn't around or easily available to fix any undue incidents.

Finally, it was the day of cricket selection. Sameer woke a little earlier than usual for his regular training but also to practice on some moves and shots that Arjun had advised from a professional angle. Sameer was confident about his game, but Arjun was being trained professionally, and he generously shared tips and tricks that he learnt at coaching. And like an ardent pupil, Sameer absorbed all that knowledge, some that he already knew and some that helped him hone his skills.

In order to not overexert but keep the body warm and agile, Sameer had a steady jog of 5 miles with an interim of brisk walk and intensive running. Arjun was accompanying him, focusing completely on his pupil as he understood how important it was for Sameer to be selected in the school team for the competitions.

After a while, as Sameer slowed the jog towards the end, Arjun caught up and proposed, "thodi der baithke saans le lete hai...fir walk karte hue ghar jaayenge!"

Sameer agreed and they sat down on the nearest bench to catch a breath and blot off the sweat with the wrist bandana as it was cooling off quickly in the morning dewy breeze. Both slugged a swig of the special electrolyte water from their bottles held in the pocket of their practice pants. Arjun had suggested that either he pack nimbu paani or Glucon D solution to carry for the daily practice, one of the professional tips; it helped in staying adequately hydrated even if the weather was humid.

Arjun had been waiting for such a right moment to speak with Sameer. Finally, he gathered some courage and decided now or never. "Tumse kuch baat karni thi Sameer".

"Haan bolo na Arjun, tumne kal jo jo tips diye the, sab yaad hai...match ke waqt khayal rakhunga. Aur bhi kuch hai kya?" Sameer asked as usually their conversations were limited to the match practice and exercises.

"Nahi nahi...woh sab toh bilkul theek hai. Actually tum sach mein bahut achche khiladi ho. Agar professionally kheloge toh mujhse toh bahut behtar karoge". Arjun praised him openly, which surprised Sameer. Though since their sessions together, Arjun had treated him like a student or a coplayer with cordiality, he had never gone all out and praised him as such.

"Itna chaunkon mat. Sach keh raha hoon!"

Sameer chuckled at being caught. "Maine kabhi cricket ko profession banane ke baare mein nahi socha. Buss hamesha shaukiya hi khela hai. Iss baar school ko represent karna mere liye bahut badi baat hai aur jeetna bhi important hai". But having said too much, he cast his gaze downward in little embarrassment.

"Jaanta hoon...tum Naina ke liye kuch bhi kar sakte ho!" Arjun's statement caught Sameer off-guard and his surprised gaze met Arjun's who gave him a lopsided grin.

Getting the expected reaction, Arjun continued, "tumhe kya lagta hai....school mein aur khaas kar ki ghar mein jo ho raha hai woh mujhe pataa nahi hai. Main bhale hi baju wale ghar mein rehta hoon par andha behra nahi hoon".

Sameer didn't know what to say or what was expected off him. Was he supposed to defend himself or deny anything that Arjun might be implicating...wait what was he even insinuating? Was he aware of his feelings for Naina or was he aware about the whole bet incident? Definitely he wouldn't know the details coz then he would have ripped him apart limb-to-limb....it was afterall his sister who was hurt. He had already experienced one Agrawal sisters's hostility and knew how the siblings were protective of each other. They were united by love rather than blood.

So he stammered trying to form a coherent response. "mmm...woh...hmmm...woh main...."

"Bakri ki tarah mimiyana bandh karo. Agar tum mere Papa se mahi darte toh mujhse kaisa darr?" Arjun had a condescending tone but he used it to indirectly praise Sameer's bravado to stand up against Rakesh Agrawal.

"Sach batana Sameer...Maine school mein kayi baatein suni hai. Naina se puch nahi sakta par tumse jaanna chahta hoon. Tum Naina ko pasand karte ho na?" Arjun's point blank question again startled Sameer but he didn't back out and decided to take his stand for his love.

"Nahi...main Naina ko pasand nahi karta...." Sameer waited a beat and confessed "pyaar karta hoon. Main Naina se bahut pyaar karta hoon".

"Par tumse galatiyan hui aur tum unhe sudharna chahte ho." Sameer was stunned as to how easily Arjun had caught the "but" at the end of the sentence and completed his remaining thought. "Itna chaunko mat. Maine kaha na maine kayi baatein suni hai. Usmein se ek yeh hai ki tumne shart lagayi thi ki Naina tumse pyaar karegi. Tum shart jeet gaye aur Naina ka dil tut gaya tha". He stated the facts.

Now Sameer was at a loss of words coz he was sure Arjun would harbor ill-feelings for the guy who wronged his sister. He started rambling. "Main maanta hoon mujhse bahut badi galati hui hai. Galati nahi gunaah hua hai. Par jab Rakesh dir ne mujhe bina kasoor ke thappad maare, mere Nanu aur Mummy ki insult ki, Naina ne baar baar meri complain ki toh maine gusse mein aake shart lagali. Mujhe apni galati ka ehsaas hai aur main pachtaave ke liye jo bhi karna pade karunga. Naina jaisi ladki ko jaanne ke baad koi bhi usse pyaar kiye bina kaise reh sakta hai. Mein uske chehre ki handi wapas laane ke liye kuch bhi karunga".

Arjun processed it for a moment, and then, smiled. "Jaanta hoon. Jab tum pehle din ghar par aaye, toh dil mein aag jal rahi thi. Mann kar raha tha tumhe collar se pakadkar bahar fenk doon". Sameer was amused at the explicit picture he painted of his former intentions.

"Par fir maine tumhari lagan dekhi. Itni takleefon ke bawajood tum abhi bhi puri shiddat se lage hue ho...har kaam mein har pal meri behen ka saath de rahe ho. Main saga bada bhai hokar bhi jo uske liye nahi kar paata woh tum karte ho. Uski saari zimmedari bina kisi shikayat ke utha li. Itne bade parivaar se hote hue bhi hamare ghar mein bina uff ke reh rahe ho. Lekin sabse zaroori Naina ke dil ki baat hai. Aur jitna nain apni behen ko jaanta hoon...woh tumse naaraaz ho sakti hai par nafrat nahi kar sakti. Bachpan se dekh raha hoon...hum sab mein se Naina sabse saaf mann ki hai. Jhooth aur nafrat ka ek katra bhi nahi hai usmein. Tumne uske saath bura kiya bhi hai tab bhi shayad woh tumhe dil se nikal nahi paayi. Maine dekha hai tum aas paas hote ho toh uske chehre pe ek sukoon hota hai. Tum khayal rakhte ho toh woh ekdum comfortable hoti hai."

While Sameer smiled, Arjun chuckled and teased, "maine dekha tha tum donon ko uss din class mein, woh apna kaam kar rahi thi aur tum apna kaam karte hue use kitne pyaar se khana khila rahe the". Sameer blushed as the top of his ear turned dark scarlet. He hadn't noticed that someone was watching them & now he would have to explain himself all over again that he didn't mean any ill.

"Arre...itna ghabrao mat. Mujhe yeh dekhkar achcha laga ki tumhe uski sach mein itni fikr hai". That put Sameer's nerves at ease.

Warming up to Sameer, Arjun mustered up the courage to own up the fault line that triggered the cascade of dominoes.

"Woh Sameer...ab jab hum thode dost hai aur main jaan gaya hoon ki tum Naina ke liye kya mehsoos karte ho, mera farz hai ki main tumhe ek sach batau".

Sameer squinted for a short moment as to what truth would the cricketer be hiding before the light struck and he interjected, not allowing him to continue. He placed his hand firmly on his shoulder, "Kuch kehne ki zaroorat nahi hai Arjun...jo beet gayi so baat gayi". He said nothing and yet Arjun became fully aware that Sameer knew exactly what he was trying to confess.

Arjun fumbled coz now it was his turn to be astounded. "Par tum..mmm...matlab...hmmm...tumhe kaise pataa chala?"

"Kya aur kaise pataa chala woh zaroori nahi hai. Important yeh hai ki hum beeti baatein bhoolakar aage badhe aur apni apni galatiyon se seekhe". Sameer didn't see a point in discussing the buried matter to be excavated for further dissection and make him feel as if his sister didn't keep her promise to him. Although the brother-sister shared a strong bond, it might be riding on high stakes when matters of heart interfered.

Arjun was awestruck with Sameer's forgiving nature despite all that he had endured coz of it. Even if he had done that coz of his love for Naina, he still had a large and pure heart. "Tum sach mein bahut achche ho Sameer". He sighed, "Kaash Papa bhi samajh paate ki tumhara dil sone ka hai".

Sameer shied with so much praise. Arjun clapped his shoulder, "mujhe sach mein lagne laga hai ki tum Naina ke liye bilkul sahi ho". That brought a gleam in Sameer's eyes as he was one more person closer to her family becoming his too. "Par aiy...agar fir se meri behen ka dil dukhaya ya uski aakhon mein tumhari wajah se aansoon aaye toh yeh bhai apne dost par bhaari pad jaayega". Arjun warned him teasingly but Sameer was smart enough to understand the underlying meaning. He would be roasted if he hurt Naina  again, which he had full intention of accomplishing just the opposite.

"Ab chale...der ho rahi hai...school ke liye taiyyar bhi hona hai. Aur selection ke pradarshan mein sabki chutti kar deni hai". Arjun boosted his confidence further by putting out his hand. Sameer clutched the open palm, thereby beginning a new friendly brotherly relationship.