Natasha quirked up her brows, then rubbed her ear, chuckling, 'Lagta hai aircraft ki awaaj se mere kaan hi crash ho gaye hain. You won't believe maine kya suna. Mujhse puchna bhi mat... warna tu mera murder kar degi.'

Naina pursed her lips hard before giving her a dense look, 'Tune sahi suna. Sameer ne aaj mujhe shaadi ke liye pucha... pucha nahi, kaha.'

Natasha's eyes widened to the max, 'Whatttt? Already?'

'What do you mean already?' Naina blinked, perplexed.

'Uh!' Natasha squeezed her eyes shut for a second, jerking her head, 'I mean, abhi toh girlfriend banaya tha abhi se shaadi? Isn't it too early?'

Naina frowned, 'Early ya late ki baat nahi hai idiot, shaadi hi kyon karni hai? Hamara contract sirf teen chaar mahine acting karne ka tha. Ab achanak uski mummy ne shaadi ki date nikalwa li. Kehta hai shaadi karne ke siva koi option nahi hai. Aise kaise shaadi kar sakti hu? This would be cheating Nutty. Uski family ko cheat kaise kar sakti hun?'

Natasha was puzzled too but she wasn't as perturbed as Naina. Her sixth sense had been telling her something for quite some time now. She was waiting for the right time to speak to Naina about it but this sudden proposal had shocked her, making her wonder if her earlier thoughts were taking the right direction. This wasn't how things were supposed to progress.

Naina's sharp smack on her arm pulled her out of her confusion, 'Ab tu kya sapne dekhne lagi. Samajh nahi aa raha yeh sab kitna galat hai?'

'Samajh gayi baba.' Natasha rubbed her arm, scrunching her nose, 'Ussi ke baare mein soch rahi hu. Sameer itna sudden decision lega maine socha nahi tha. He has surprised me.'

Naina looked at her, shocked, 'Tu pagal hai kya? Main itni badi baat bata rahi hun aur tu us Sameer Maheshwari ke baare mein soch rahi hai. Don't you understand my situation?'

Natasha crossed her legs and sat in front of Naina who was seated on the floor, hugging her knees. She placed a sympathetic hand on her clasped palms and asked in a soft voice, 'Mujhe poori baat bata fir sochte hain kya karna hai.'

For Naina, Natasha was her only pillar of support, the sole connection to all her highs and lows. Her eyes searched for some calmness in her friend's demeanor. Slowly, in a weary voice, she narrated everything, as it had occured. She also included what she had overheard in the afternoon.

As expected, Natasha's words were a soothing balm as she tapped her hand gently, 'Don't stress. Woh tujhe shaadi ke liye force nahi karega. Kar hi nahi sakta.'

Naina gazed at her with hopeful eyes, as if what she was saying had to be the ultimate truth.

Natasha smiled, 'Sabse pehle toh tu dopahar ki baat ko dimag se nikaal de. Sameer ne jo bhi Munna ke saamne kaha uske baad bhi woh shaadi ka proposal leke aaya na. Naina, jitna maine Sameer ko dekha hai mujhe lagta hai woh bohot impulsive hai. Bina soche kuch bhi bol deta hai. I'm sure he didn't mean a word of what he said in the afternoon.'

She waited for a while to let Naina assimilate what she was trying to convey, then carried on, 'Sameer ki sabse badi problem yehi hai ki woh khud nahi jaanta usey kya karna chahiye. Na kuch kehne se pehle uske outcome ke baare mein sochta hai na karne se pehle. He just reacts. Aur reaction dil se deta hai, dimag se nahi.'

Her words clouded Naina's dilemma. Her confounded look made Natasha realise she was giving too much information too early. Quickly, she corrected herself by taking the focus to his family.

'Sameer ke dil mein uski family ki bohot importance hai. Unke liye woh kuch bhi kar sakta hai. Same goes for his friends and people close to him. Tarun se ek din baat hui thi toh usne bataya tha Sameer ke baare mein. Yeh log school time se ek dusre ke friends hain isliye usey Sameer ka nature ache se pataa hai. Sameer apne kareebi logon ke liye kuch bhi kar sakta hai, kisi se bhi jhagda kar sakta hai, maar pitai kar leta hai, itna dara deta hai ki saamne wala uske kisi apne ko chot pohonchane ka soch bhi na sakey. He is very possessive.'

Furrowing her eyes, Naina muttered, 'Yeh toh gundagardi jaisa sound kar raha hai.'

Natasha poked her forehead, 'Tune usey galat samajhne mein PhD kar rakhi hai kya? Gunda nahi hai caring hai woh banda. Yaad hai, jab hum eleventh mein the toh ek baar cricket match ke liye dusre school ki team aayi thi? Jab us team ke kuch ladke hamare peeche pad gaye the toh tune Anuj bhaiya ka naam lekar unhe darane ki koshish ki thi, yeh kehkar ki tere bhaiya unki aisi dhulai karenge ki mudkar kabhi hamare school ki taraf ayenge bhi nahi.'

Naina nodded sadly, 'Lekin jab maine bhaiya ko complain karne ki koshish ki toh unhone poori baat suni bhi nahi. Bas keh diya ki agar koi problem hai toh Principal ko bolo.'

Natasha patted her hand, 'Haina? Tab tu chahti thi na ki bhaiya aakar unhe do chaar ghoonse maare aur unko dara kar wahan se bhaga dein? Maan le agar woh aisa kar dete toh kya tu unhe gunda kehti?'

Without a word, Naina swallowed the rising pain of emotions. This was just one of the incidents when her elder brother had failed to be the support she craved for. Later, she and Natasha had tackled with that group of boys with the help of their own classmates, who had bashed them outside the school when they started to follow the two girls.

Natasha smiled, 'Sameer thoda bewakoof hai, par gunda nahi hai. Tere saath bhi toh kitna protective hai bhool gayi kya? Jab Nakul tere peeche aaya tha toh Sameer ne hi help ki thi. Us raat tune nahi bulaya tha usey, woh khud tere office aaya tha. Because he was worried. Because he cares. Warna usey kya padi thi itni sardi ki baarish mein raat ko tujhe dhoondne aane ki?'

'I know Nutty. Us din ke liye usey jitna bhi thanks bolun kam hai. Maine kaha bhi tha. Sirf us raat hi nahi usne kayi baar meri help ki hai, par usne kai baar yeh bhi bataya hai ki woh mere baare mein kya sochta hai, mujhe kya samajhta hai. Honesty, uske dimag mein meri kya image hai isse mujhe koi fark nahi padta. Lekin mujhe is type ki ladki samajhne ke baad bhi woh shaadi ke liye kaise bol sakta hai? Woh bhi itna serious hoke? Agar apni family ke liye itna protective aur possessive hai toh unhe pyar bhi karta hoga, fir unhe itna bada dhoka kyon de raha hai?' Naina was unable to understand him.

With a knowing smile, Natasha shook her head, 'Uska proposal dhoke ki koi planning nahi hai, balki ek impulsive decision hai. Uska dimag agar yeh faisla leta toh aage tak ka sochta lekin shaadi ki baat uske dil se nikli hai.'

'Nutty, tu kehna kya chahti hai? Saaf saaf bol.' Naina eyed her with even more confusion.

Natasha clutched both her hands, her voice soft and empathetic, 'Meri jaan, yeh shaadi bhale hi jhoothe rishte se shuru ho rahi hai par nakli nahi hogi. It would be a proper marriage. Tu kisi ko cheat nahi kar rahi. Tu khud ko blame mat kar. Jab arranged marriage hoti hai tab bhi toh do unknown log saath mein bandh jaate hain. Tum dono toh fir bhi ek dusre ko jaante ho. Agar tu shaadi kar legi toh isme kuch galat nahi hoga. Haan, aage jaake tum dono agar is rishte ko continue na karna chaho toh tab dekhenge. Abhi se uske baare mein kyon soch rahi hai?'

'Matlab tu chahti hai main Sameer Maheshwari se shaadi kar lun?' Naina's eyes widened in bewilderment, 'Pike aayi hai kya? Main tujhe problem bata rahi hun aur tu usey aur complicate kar rahi hai. Of course I can't marry him. Cheating hai nahi hai, jhooth hai nahi hai, dhoka woh de raha hai apni family ko ya main de rahi hun un pyare se logon ko... yeh sab baad ki baatein hain. Most important is that I won't get married to him.'

'Kyon?' Natasha shot the question, unperturbed.

'Arey? Kya tujhe nahi pata kyon?' Naina glared at her, 'Mujhe shaadi karni hi nahi hai, kisi se bhi nahi. Aur yeh ladka, jo mujhe duniya ki sabse bekaar ladki samajhta hai, isse toh saat janmon mein bhi nahi.'

'Oh! Toh teri problem yeh hai ki woh tere baare mein kya opinion form karta hai. Aisa hai toh jaake clearly baat kar le. Bataa de usey ki tu kaisi hai, kya karti hai, kyon karti hai... yeh bhi bata de ki paise kyon chahiye jisse woh tujhe fir se koi taane na maare.' Natasha shrugged, offering the solution in simple voice.

'Not needed.' Naina pulled back her hands from Natasha's grip and stood up, 'Usey explanation dene ka koi fayda nahi. Jo hona hi nahi hai uske liye itna time waste kyon karna. Mera hi dimag kharab tha jo kaam karne ki jagah yahan baith ke faaltu ki baatein soch rahe thi. Bhool hi gayi mujhe kal ki meeting se pehle kaam poora karna hai.'

Natasha got up too, her smile intact, 'Hota hai. Jab hum kisi baat se bohot zyada affect hote hain toh baaki sabkuch bhool jaate hain.'

In her head, Naina had already gone back to the work she was engrossed in before Sameer arrived. She hummed in response and walked to the room. Natasha took a deep breath, then took out her phone and typed a message.

Next morning, she woke up to the sound of sneezing. Opening her eyes lazily, she said, 'Temperature check kiya? Pakka fever aaya hoga. Bas baal sundar kar le tel laga laga ke. Aise cold cough or bukhar hota raha toh tere baalon se zyada sabko tera bimar chehra nazar ayega. Kitni baar bola hai ki zyada sardi mein oiling mat kiya kar. Lekin is ladki ko sunna hi kahan hai, isey toh bas wohi karna hai jo iske hisab se sahi ho. Na apni health ka khyal rakhti hai na khane ka. Immunity hai nahi par pange lene hain. Baarish mein bheegne se bimar nahi hui toh madam ko lagne laga lady James Bond ban gayi, kuch bhi kar sakti hai. Naina devi, tu abhi bhi school wali delicate darling hai. Koshish bhi kyon...'

'Bas meri maa.' Naina joined her hands with a loud bang, trying to halt her friend's barrage of criticism, 'Tu soyi hui thi ya charge ho rahi thi? Uthte hi itna lamba lecture kaun deta hai yaar.' She paused, to sneeze again, then continued when Natasha's expression hardened, 'Achha theek hai. Maanti hun tu right hai par tujhe pata hai na Nutty iss project ka kitna pressure hai. Upar se kal Sam...'

She fell silent, not keen to start the topic. She had managed to complete her work in early hours of the morning, then washed her hair. It was a sleepless night, mainly because her thoughts kept going back to the earlier conversation with Natasha. Also, she wasn't able to wipe out Sameer's proposal from her mind. The way he had stressed over the fact that he would marry her, it had taken her not just by surprise but had brought a sense of panic too. And Natasha's blunt reprimand was not helping.

Natasha sat up in bed, gathering the thick quilt around herself, her voice softer as she roughly wound her hair into a knot, 'Baby, teri fikr hoti hai mujhe isliye bolti hun. Achha yeh bataa kitne ghante soyi? Beauty sleep poori hui ya nahi?'

Naina blinked, shifting her gaze to her laptop, 'Umm... dekha nahi par... main tired nahi hun. All good.'

Natasha threw a knowing glance at her, 'Aankhen churana, pause dena, indirect reply... matlab jhooth bol rahi hai. Oh God Naina, tera kya karun.'

Quickly getting up after shutting her laptop, Naina brought a steaming cup from the kitchen in a few minutes, and held it out to her friend, a broad smile on her face, 'Garma garam coffee. Isey pi aur dimag thanda kar. Maine tere liye upma bana ke rakha hai. Kha lena. Aur haan, aaj dinner banane ki meri turn hai. Tujhe kuch karne ki zarurat nahi hai. Enjoy your day. Bye jaani.'

The moment Naina was gone, Natasha grabbed her phone from the side table and checked. A smile played on her lips. She made the call.

'Main kabse wait kar raha tha tumhari call ki. Kya yeh baat sach hai? Sameer ne khud kaha? Naina ne kya jawab diya?' Munna picked up on the first ring, and started to fire the questions breathlessly.

Natasha chuckled, 'Good morning to you too, Munna.'

'Oh haan good morning.' Munna replied sheepishly, but his curiosity wasn't dampened, 'Subah message dekhke mera toh dimag hi ghum gaya. Jaldi batao kya hua?'

Natasha conveyed to him all that had been discussed the previous night between Sameer and Naina.

Munna was as shocked as her, 'Agle mahine? Lekin Sameer ne bataya tha abhi chaar mahine hain uske paas.'

Natasha shrugged, 'Mujhe nahi pata. Raat ko usne yehi kaha ki shaadi ki date February ki hai. Aur kaha ki Naina ko usse shaadi karni hi padegi.'

Munna sighed at the other end, 'Isko samjha samjha ke thak gaya hun lekin isko kab kya bolna hai yeh samajh hi nahi aata. Achha khasa lover boy tha, ab angry young man ban gaya hai. Anyway, Naina ka kya reaction tha?'

Natasha did not tell him the entire conversation but told him that Naina was not ready to go ahead with a fake marriage.

Munna let out a weary swoosh of breath, 'Kar diya kabaada. Aise ekdum se aake bomb phodega toh na hi bolegi. Ek baar baat tak nahi ki humse. Pata nahi seedhe Naina ke paas kyon pohonch gaya. Pandit ko bhi kuch nahi bataya. Tumhara message dekh ke uska bhi phone aaya tha.'

'Haan maine usey bhi raat ko hi text kar diya tha.' Natasha acknowledged.

Munna was aware of that as he had spoken to Pandit early morning, 'Usney bataya. Meri tarah woh bhi curious tha. Abhi toh flight mein hoga. Aaj wapas aa raha hai. Usey bhi shock laga kyonki Sameer hamesha sabse pehle humse baat karta hai. Lekin yeh February ki shaadi wali baat usne abhi tak nahi batayi. Isliye hum dono ko laga Sameer ne apne aap Naina ko propose kar diya.'

Natasha rolled her eyes, 'Tum apne dost ko jaante ho na, seedhe se zyada ulte kaam karta hai.'

Munna countered in an accusing voice, 'Main toh tumhara text dekhke kya kya sochne lag gaya tha. Sahi se likh nahi sakti thi kya?'

Natasha scoffed, 'Mujhe kya tumne reporter appoint kar rakha hai jo poora account text pe dun? Ab de diya na detailed version.'

'Next time aisa kiya toh text dekhte hi call kar dunga. Fir mat kehna subah subah utha diya.' His voice sounded more like pleading than the threat he wanted to convey.

Natasha shot back, 'Main bhi news milte hi call kar dungi. Kal ki tarah sochungi nahi ki itna late ho gaya hai bichare Munna ki neend kyon kharab karun. Theek hai?'

There was silence for a few seconds, then Munna soft voice echoed, 'Hum dono kyon lad rahe hain? Humein toh Sameer aur Naina ki ladai khatm karni hai aur hum unki tarah aapas mein hi ulajh gaye.'

When she realised that they were actually bickering like their respective friends, Natasha started to laugh, 'You're so right. Hum pe unka asar ho gaya hai.'

Munna smiled too, 'Chalo main baad mein baat karta hun. Kuch hua toh batana.'

'Ab toh jo hoga tumhare saamne hi hoga. Naina chali gayi hai. Tum hi mujhe report bhejna. Lekin abhi main wapas sone lagi hun isliye call mat karna.' Natasha yawned.

Munna replied with an understanding nod, 'Okay. Disturb nahi karunga. Agar Sameer se koi baat hoti hai toh message kar dunga. Bye.'

Natasha placed the phone back and slipped under the quilt, murmuring, 'Sorry Naina, tujhse chupke Munna Pandit se haath milaya hai lekin yeh karna zaruri tha. Tum dono ne aankhon pe jo gusse ki patti bandh rakhi hai usey hata ke ek dusre ka asli chehra dikhane ke liye hi hum teeno ek team mein ho gaye hain.'

Next update on Thursday