"Bachelors, single man room is available for rent/Rs 5000
in Surveyor Colony, NCR (Delhi).
For further details, contact
Kali Thakur"

Omkara read the ad again in the newspaper to confirm the address. Wiping his sweaty forehead with his sleeve, he saw the shabby building.

Omkara Singh, an artist by profession, had landed to Delhi a week ago, for his new job. An orphan from Mumbai, he was raised by Tej Pandu, a Hanuman bhakta, who had also taught him to be away from any female company as much as possible.

So at the age of 28 he was still single, running away from the opposite sex as per the instructions of his Baba. But his search of a decent accommodation, according to those rules had really exhausted him.

Of all the places he had gone through, either rates were too high, or the area was too far from his workplace, until he saw this one, charging only 5000 per month, which was the lowest till now.

'I wish this room is as per my taste!' He prayed to his favourite diety.

But as soon as he entered the gate, a soft human body dashed him back with full force, resulting, both of them falling on the floor. It was a short teen boy with large specs, baggy clothes and a cap, clutching him tightly, fear of getting hurt evident on his face.

"You are safe!" Om chuckled to bring the boy out of reverie, whose all weight was endured by his strong masculine body easily.

The boy straightened up himself, dusting his clothes, as he glared at Omkara.

"Watch before you walk!" He admonished in return, before running away in the same speed, along with an incoherent mumbling of, 'Paglait Chirota'.

Shrugging the matter, Omkara stood up taking his bag from the floor, as he saw a bulky heavy man sitting at the entrance of building, "I need a room on rent!" He asked politely.

"Which room?" The man replied without paying any attention, too busy in his mobile video, chewing the betel leaf.

"The one, you had given the advertisement for!" Om reasoned, rather loudly.

"O yes yes the room!" He finally said, coming into senses. Keeping the mobile back, he spat at one corner while Om made a face. 'He seem to be Kali Thakur!'

"Have you made any registration?" He asked, to which Om nodded, giving his token no.

'The place is not that posh, but I have no other choice, until I get a salary increment!' Om thought, observing the place.

"There is no room available on ground floor!" Kali explained, "But there is one on the upper storey!"

Om nodded following Kali on upper floor, looking around the surroundings.

Opening the old rusty lock, Kali led Om inside, "For now there is no furniture here but I will provide you that in two days."

"But where would I sleep for two days!" Om looked at the barely 12×12 feet room.

"Manage it somehow, or come after two days!"

"No fine, I'll handle!" There was not much option for Omkara.

"There is only one washroom here so you'll be sharing it with your neighbor!" Kali showed the washroom.

Om had no problem with it. In fact in his hometown Mumbai, whole chawl used to share the same washroom.

"Who lives on the other side?" Om asked seeing a window on his wall, which might open in the room of his neighbor.

"It's Chulbul, a young boy. Don't try to open this window. He is very temperamental." Kali explained, but Om had already opened it, the adjacent room fully in view.

"Oho close it, that boy will eat my head!" Kali pushed the window close. "He is very particular about his privacy!"

"Ok!" Om sulked looking at the closed window. 'Why such hesitation, when we would be neighbors now!'

"So?" Kali asked his final decision.

"Yes, I am taking it!" Except a few things, the room was perfect for him. 'There would not be even a shadow of woman!' He was happy, securing his status of Brahmchari.

"Come then, fulfill the formalities now!" Kali beckoned him down.

._._._.

'Pizza in dinner tonight!' She mumbled as she took the packet of fresh bake. 'I won't share it with anyone!' She sighed remembering her old days.

Gauri Sharma, a bubbly chirpy girl from Bareilly was all happy at her home three years ago, even though her Chachi was always there to trouble her. Suddenly her life had changed when she got this job offer. It was for a seamstress in a popular boutique of traditional clothes.

Taking it as a blessing from the Goddess, she had left her home-place and came here to Delhi.

But within a month of breathing Delhi air, she had realized that it is not a path of roses.

'Aasman se gire, khajur me atke!' (Got rid of big trouble to get caught in small problem)

It was almost impossible for a lonely girl in Delhi to get a cheap and secure accommodation. The women's hostel didn't suit her working hours and the rental rooms were either not safe or too expensive.

That's why she got this jugaadu idea of living like a man among men, concealing her identity and getting a place both cheap and safe.

'That's how Gauri Sharma became Chulbul Singh.' She thought, securing the food box after a tiring day of work, moving inside the building.

"Hey Chulbul! Is that pizza in your hand?" Ajay asked with a teasing glance while Gauri increased her pace, running towards her room.

'Only I know how difficult it is to live, disguised as a boy amid such spoilt men!' She huffed, not liking her life even a little bit.

Gauri unlocked her door securely as she looked at her well-organized room unlike other rooms in the same building. She had requested Kali to get this room which gave her a little privacy from all those annoying men from ground floor.

'What will happen when they would come to know about my real identity?' Gauri shuddered even by the thought but ignoring it she decided to cherish her fresh pizza before getting a shower.

But when she turned towards the mirror, a strong male cologne hit her nostrils, followed by the reflection of a naked man in towel, whistling around, without any worry.

"Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!"

._._._.

After making the advance payment and other formalities, Omkara had finally reached his room.

Settling his things in a corner, and sweeping away all the dust, he took a shower, although being surprised at the feminine scent of flowers and sandal in the washroom.

After the soothing bath, wrapping the towel around his body, when he came back to his room, it was already night and the room was engulfed in darkness.

'Kali didn't provide the light bulb!' He realized. Determined to acquire it after getting dressed, he opened the side window for some light from the neighborhood room.

'I'll close it once I got my work done!' He thought, taking the clothes from his luggage.

But what he didn't know that his neighbor had already returned, and was now looking at him, while he undid his towel.

"Aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!"

The shrill scream took the hell out of him, as he grabbed the pants, wearing it hurriedly.

"Hey, stop screaming like girls!" Om tried to shush the boy, but he was not ready to listen, shouting at the top of his voice.

Gauri was total in defense mode finding a visibly naked stranger, on the other side of window, feeling more vulnerable as he moved towards her.

Before she could take any weapon to attack him, he jumped this side from the window, coming dangerously close, clamping her mouth shut, using his palm.

"Why are you shouting, buddy?" He admonished Gauri, "I was just using the light of your room to locate my things!"

Gauri glared at him, behind the specs as she pushed him behind, to get free from his hold

"Who permitted you to open the window?" Gauri asked in her masculine voice, when Om removed his hand from her mouth, explaining it with an apology.

"Look bro. I had just moved in here. Please cooperate!"

"I am not your bro!" Gauri mumbled, although she had cooled down a bit listening to his problem, "We even have to share the washroom?" Gauri was worried with a cute frown making him smile at this innocent boy.

'My privacy is now at stake due to this man!' Her secret could disclose in no time.

That's when Gauri observed that he had a well-sculpted sexy body, matching that of Salman Khan and he was dangerously close to her. Being shirtless, he was heating up her cheeks with the woody smell oozing from him.

"Wasn't it you who had fallen on me in the morning!" Om tried to make a conversation, which brought her out of her lala land.

Before she could tell him to go back they heard a knock, "What happened Chulbul?" It was Ajay. She realized that there were multiple voices outside her room, who might have heard her scream.

Not waiting for Gauri anymore, Om opened the door wide and the audience looked at the masculine man appearing from the room of the tiny-whiny Chulbul.

"Chulbul?" It was Shivaay, from Room No 06, the most mature of them.

When Gauri explained what happened, Shivaay sighed.

"See Omkara, Chulbul is like my little brother. So no bully or something!" Rudra the occupant of Room No. 08 made Om frown.

"I am fine Rudy Bhaiyya!" Gauri cleared it, "Sorry for disturbing you!" She sent all 15 men back downstairs, while she slumped her shoulders.

._._._.

"Thanks for sharing you dinner with me!" Om gave a forceful hug to Gauri who was irritated by the friendly nature of her new neighbor.

Although she didn't like to share her pizza with everyone, her soft heart reached out to Omkara, and she ended up offering it to him.

"Mention not!" She answered, "But there is something I want to clear about the room now!"

"Oh don't worry about that! I neither eat non-veg, no drug or alcohol." Om uttered the same things Kaali had asked him, "and I am a brahmachaari, so no girls at all!" He smiled.

Gauri looked at him in bewilderment, before recovering, "That's fine but I want to clear things between US, ok!" She explained, "First this window! It would never be opened!" Gauri wanted to live fearlessly in her room, not at all like Chulbul.

"What do you mean by 'never'? I would be bored without any company. Let's open it sometimes,like in emergency!" He said with a puppy face.

"Fine." She grudged, "But you would take my permission before doing so!" She saw Omkara nodding, "and second rule is that I need two hours to bath in the morning. So you won't disturb me!"

"Two hours?? Are you a girl to take this much time? See, I have such long hair but still I am done in 15 minutes only!" Om said in an obvious tone.

"Just shut up Omkara!" She was annoyed now.

"Ok fine, take two hours! But I need to leave for office at 9. So you try to get over before 8."

"Yeah yeah!" She grumbled, "And please stay away from me! Keep social distancing!"

"Oh yes. That's fine." Om shrugged it, sitting on her bed while Gauri waited so that he could go back to his room.

'Now why isn't he going back!' Om was still sitting there, scrolling his mobile phone.

"Uhm...uhm!" She cleared her thought, "I need to rest!"

"Oh ok!" Om got the message finally, as he went away but not before borrowing an extra bulb from Gauri.

"Finally some rest!" She removed her cap and wig throwing it on the bed.

Since last three years she was the only occupant of floor, having peace and tranquility. Well those dumbass boys on the down floor sometimes used to come and disturb her, but she had learned to adapt.

But now a fully grown man would be living in her neighborhood and also share the joint bathroom. She had to be more careful now-on.

Sighing, she opened her hair bun, removing clothes from the cupboard, to get a shower. But the bathroom door was opposite to the door of Om's room.

'I hope he doesn't come out when I was going in!'

She peeked outside, and finding the path safe she got herself locked in the washroom, enjoying the bath for the time being.

'I just hope my secret remained a secret forever!'

._._._.

Om had no bed or cupboard for two more days. So spreading a bedsheet on floor, he laid on it. His random thoughts got disturbed suddenly by a scent of jasmine and coconut. 'How feminine!' He made a face, now fearing if any woman was around him.

'I just hope no woman crosses my path ever!' He prayed with a wish to sleep peacefully.

._._._.

But unknown to both of them, they were already destined to be the soulmates, having a drastic change in their lives soon.

._._._.

That's it for today😁.
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