Heya lovely readers,
How have you all been?

Long time han?!
Well I might again disappear fr sometime.
But since I had some time I was able to write up a quick update.

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IF EYES COULD SPEAK.....IT WOULD SPEAK A THOUSAND WORDS THAT WITHER AWAY AT MY LIPS.

Draping a simple saree can be very laborious and tricky , especially if you are a novice like Avni. Precisely 16 YouTube videos later , she had managed to wrap the saree around herself.Looking back and forth from her phone's screen to the mirror infront ,she tried very hard to point out what went wrong.The saree looked twisted and convoluted and nothing similar to the girl on her screen.The frustrating fight between her and her saree that had taken up almost half an hour of her time ,had definitely ended in her defeat.How she wished to dial up Neela's no. and let her take over the role of her saviour. But calling Neela only meant spinning up more lies.She knew exactly how shocking it would be for her mother ,to hear that her daughter needed help with a saree ; saree being the element of shock here.

Since calling her mother was not an option ,she had to take the help of the next best person she knew. This trying and failing needed to come to a stop.Getting up from the bed , she walked towards the door . Partially opening the door, she looked around the corridor for Shweta. She looked to her left into the long corridor ,but her rescuer was nowhere in sight.

" Looking for someone " she heard his voice coming from the other end.

" Why God why?!! Why him ?" She squeezed her eye shut . Turning to his side she slowly opened one eye hoping against hope that his voice was an auditory hallucination. Apparently being declared official crazy seemed a better idea at the moment than being subjected to incessant sarcasms and laughter.

Her squinting met with his widely open eyes and arched brows .

" I was looking for Shweta aunty " she said getting her strong demeanor back.

" You were deliberately searching for trouble !!" he smirked , walking over to her in a few long strides.
" Why are you hiding behind the door ? "

" I need you to find Shweta aunty....as fast as you can " Her order sounded more like a request.

" What's wrong ? Let me see. Maybe I can help ." He suggested .

" I'm sure you can't.Just get your mom please" She retorted.

" I'm sure I can " he insisted

" Fine then" annoyed at his not letting go off the matter attitude ,she opened the door revealing herself trapped in 6 metres of pretty in pink traditional saree.

He looked her up and down, from her annoyed face to the mess of saree embodying her, covering her till her feet.It took him a moment to assess the situation and then he burst out into an uncontrollable stomach hurting laugh.

Her angry bird face on top of it ,only added to his amusement rather than diminishing it.

" Will you just stop laughing !!" She stomped angrily towards him.

"I'm trying to" and he laughed again.

"As if you know how to wear a saree" she fumed with sarcasm laced words.

" I don't " he coughed trying to swallow in his laughter " but I'm pretty sure that's not how to you do it " .He broke into another fit of uncontrollable laughter.

" Yeah me too alright .Now can you just stop laughing and get me some help?? We are getting late for the Puja."

" Yeah I'll go get Mom." He walked out to get the requested help but not before capturing her in his phone .

He found Shweta all the way down in the kitchen busy with arrangements.As soon as he conveyed to her that Avni needed help, she dropped whatever she was doing.
" Hey Bhagwan !! Main bhi bachi ko akele chod ke aa gyi.Usne mujhe ek baari kaha bhi tha ki usse Saree peheni nai aati. Main abhi jaati hoon ." Saying so she rushed out of the kitchen only after telling Neil that Prakash was waiting for him in his room to get some paperwork signed.
(Oh my God !!! I too left that girl alone even after promising to help.She had told me once earlier that she doesn't know how to wear a saree. I'll go and help her now)

15 minutes later ....

Shweta pinned up Avni's Saree and helped her readjust d fittings of her blouse. Done with the last of the pins she looked lovingly at Avni.
" Bahut pyaari lag rhi hai ." She adored her like her like a dotting mother ." Acha tu baki ka jaldi se ready hoke niche aaja.Bebe ke kangan pehen lena .Main niche jaati hoon Bebe ki daant sunne" she laughed at her own joke as Avni smiled .Leaving Avni with the jewellery she left for the Puja.
( You look lovely.You finish the rest and come downstairs.I'm going now to listen to Bebe's scoldings)

Shweta had set a few options for Avni on the dresser.Besides the set of golden bangles ,there were 3 sets of jewellery to choose from.She obviously picked out the simplest one ,which was also the least heavy one.

Neil who had been in his room all this while , walked passed her room ,only to retrace his steps to the wide open door. His eyes fell on Avni who was putting in her jhumka ( earrings) in her ears . Busy with the process , she didn't notice the uninvited guest who was mesmerized and stuck by the door. There wasn't one movement ,but as if she could feel him around, she turned to her side to see Neil standing by the door .

" What ?" She asked inquisitively.

" What !" he was thrown off guard by the unexpected question and his unexpected behaviour.
" You...you look....you look different !" He didn't know how else to describe that for the first time in days he was noticing her in a different way. What he couldn't tell her was that she looked beautiful in the Saree or perhaps the saree looked beautiful on her. Pink definitely was her colour. It enhanced her or she enhanced it with her bright smile ,it was difficult to say.

" Different ?" her eyebrows arched ." Different how ? Good different or bad different ?"

" Good ...good different " he fumbled as he walked towards her.

" You are saying I don't look good on regular days ?"

" No no..I didn't mean that. I mean..." he struggled with words " I mean you are looking pretty...I guess''

" Now you are guessing !!??"

" No.No. You are looking pretty "

" Compliment de rhe ho? "
(Are you giving me a compliment)

A very flustered Neil nodded his head in affirmation.

" Toh ache se do na " she laughed relieving a tensed Neil.
( So do it nicely na)

" Your are looking good " he hesitated with the words.

" Good ?"

" Beautiful ??" The compliment seemed more like a posed question.

" That will do " she laughed at his struggle.
He smiled at his own efforts too .He moved next to the mirror facing her , as she continued her work with the jewellery.

" So Kiara han ? You never told me you had a girlfriend ." She asked as she tried putting her jhumka in her other earlobe .

" Who told you about her ? Mom ? Bebe ?"
Avni looked up for a fraction of second , met his eyes in the mirror infront and then went back to her jewellery. He knew it right away it was Bebe.
" You never asked me about college " he resumed. " She....Kiara was my classmate in law school. We were friends and then girlfriend & boyfriend for a sometime."

" Oh she was your girlfriend " She nodded to herself as if confirming her assumption.Bebe hadn't been very clear about their relationship. " You proposed ?"

" No " he smirked " She did....and I couldn't just turn her down ."

" Oh that's why you were saying girls propose too .Now I get that smirk on your face."

" Smart " he remarked.

" So what went wrong ? I heard you broke her heart ? Why did you break up with her ?" She turned to face him , her face lit up with curiosity.

" Wrong again. She broke up with me. "

" She did !!!??? Why ??? " Shock replaced the curious face.

" Hmm...I don't know exactly. She told me we are not meant to be. " He looked lost in the events of past as he tried to recollect the events . " We went out for a few months. I went wherever she wanted to. She loved holding hands in public and I let her do that. Even took her on a few dates like she wanted to. I did everything she wanted to. But ....." he paused . " But.... apparently I never complimented her the whole time we were dating. I apparently never initiated a date .She also said I never held her hands or wanted to be close to her. She said I never looked at her the way I should have. Still don't what she meant though. "

" You never complimented her ? Not even once ?" Her eyes went wide and her eyebrows made a stiff curve ,as if he had committed a grave crime.

'' That's what you took out of it. Apparently never. I don't recall exactly ."

" Was she beautiful ? Was she liked by others ?"

" What ?? I guess. Yeah . Yeah she was good looking. By others , you mean guys ?? Then yes many guys liked her ." He answered earnestly.

" Then what was the problem ? You could have told her that she was beautiful .Did she have good dressing sense ? Did she wear her hair nicely. Did her hair smell nice ? Did she have a pretty smile ? " She said it all in one breath , letting out her frustration on his naiveness.

" Why are asking all this.I don't know. May be ." He was confused.

"Because these are the things you could have told her in a nice way.....that's what a compliment is. It's that easy you dumbo. How did you even become a lawyer ? " She slapped her hand on her forehead dramatically frustrated.

" Oh. I don't know. It never occurred to me. I didn't realise till the day she told me and eventually broke up. "

" You are just weird. Anyways let's get going we are late already ." She said putting on the last of her bangles.

" Hold on. She ....I mean Kiara also told me that I was not in love with her , never was and never will be."

" Were you ? " She slowed down as the two words slowly made it out of her.

" I don't know. I never felt anything special while I was with her.We were good friends ,we still are. " After a thoughtful moment he spoke again " You are the book expert.You read so many stories. I'm sure a lot of them must be romantic ones. You tell me .So how do you know you are in love ? Like are there specific signs ? Like the guitars and violins in movies ?"

" Me ? Expert ?" She laughed it off.But his stare didn't let her off. " I haven't been in love. I'm no expert. But I'm pretty sure that violins and guitars don't play in background .No sudden gush of wind or unexpected rains either ."

Both laughed at the cliched scenes of romantic movies.

" See every person ....author ....has a different take on love. It's never the same. But .....what they have in common is the erractic nature of heartbeats ;slower or faster that depends. The feeling of warmth and happiness when that person is around. The unexplainable pleasantness ......and the flying of time when they are around.The insuppressible smiles.The longing.The need to see the other person happy." She stopped realising that she had gone long enough and now he was gazing at her.

" So next time you get any of those symptoms...... you are in love my friend....for sure " she tapped him on his chest with her finger .

" Okay madam" he smirked.

" Just make sure the compliments are ready by then ."

" Okay okay. Let's go now."

She stood up from her seat and started following Neil who was already moving towards the door.

As he reached the door Neil halted his steps and turned around .
" I like the way you are wearing your hair now " he rushed the words to an astounded Avni

" What ??! But I ...I always let my hair down....just like today ."

'' I know. I like it that way on you ." He turned away fast and started moving towards the staircase leaving a stunned Avni behind.

As Avni climbed down the stairs carefully one step at a time ,her bangles clinged musically .Loving the way it sounded ,she shook her hands like a child to hear the clinging sound again. Neil who was by then at the bottom of the stairs smiled at her antics.

By the time they reached ,the Puja had already begun. Both of them quietly took their seats .

An hour and half later, the Puja was completed with all its rituals. Before anybody could progress to the dining table , Bebe called for a photo shoot. Everyone took their positions as the cook assumed the position of the photographer. Neil and Avni were made to stand in the centre initially.But as Bebe and Shweta started fighting to stand next to Neil , Avni intervened .She made Neil stand between the two ladies as she herself took the place between his parents.

An upward curve adorned Neil's lips as he saw Avni happily holding on to his parents.

After having an late lunch , Neil and Avni hurried to change back to their usual attires.

Avni returned minutes later with the saree and the jewellery box in her hands . She went to Shweta who was seated next to Bebe in the living room.
" Aunty ye .."
( Aunty this ...)

Shweta and Bebe exchanged a smile , and Shweta let her mother-in-law do the talking.

" Beta yeh tere liye humari taraf se gift hai. Ye chudiyaan aur yeh saree.Baki ka Shweta ka hai....usse lauta de."
(Dear it's a gift from us ,for you .The bangles and the Saree.Rest are Shweta's ....you can return it to her .)

" But....main....main yeh sab kaise rakh Sakti hoon .No ..No I can't.Please ." She requested even though it killed her turn them down .
( But ....I.....I can't accept this.)

" No please , nothing. You have to keep it. It's a gift. You can't return a gift. Nai toh hum tujhse baat nai karenge. " Bebe warned her.
(Or else we won't talk to you.)

" But..."

" No but shut. It's our love for you dear.Accept it ." Shweta intervened.

All her pleas fell on deaf ears. Both the ladies were so insistent that her refusal went unheard and eventually turned into an acceptance.

After taking the blessings of everyone present , Neil and Avni made their way back to their apartments.

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Evening 7.30 pm :

Neil opened the door to see Avni standing at his door.

" You have to take this.I can't keep it. " She hurried placed the paper bag in his hands.

" What's all this ?" He asked surprised.

" It's the gifts your family gave me.I can't keep it Neil. I'm cheating them. I'm lying to them. And they are showering me with love. I can't. It just makes me feel all the more guilty " she pleaded before him.

" Ok ok. But what am I supposed to do with this ? It was a gift .They gave it to you.Keep it. It's not like I have told them we are getting married or anything. So it's not like some pre-marriage gift or something.Relax "

'' No you don't understand. I can't keep it.You keep it with you. And when we fake the break up....you can return those .Please Neil. " Her eyes looked watery as she spoke.

" Okay fine. I'll keep it. Anything else ." He took it before any of those threatening water drops spilled from those glistening eyes.

"Nope." She went away as fast as she had come.

Closing the door behind her retracing steps ,Neil moved to his bedroom to put all the stuff in the cupboard.He removed the box of bangles to keep it separately.As he did so, the image of Avni being playful with the bangles came rushing back. The tracings of his face changed immediately.Smiling all alone ,he took the bangles out of the box.Holding them in his hands , he gave them a slight jiggle making the bangles oscillate, producing a melodious rhythm.

" Doesn't sound like her. Not the same ." He sighed disappointedly putting them back inside.

As he sat back on his bed with his laptop to complete his pending works , his phone buzzed . Keeping aside the laptop he checked the phone for messages.

KIARA : WHO'S THE GIRL IN THE PHOTO ??

Confused as to whom the question was pertaining to , he typed a quick reply.

NEIL : WHAT PHOTO ? WHICH GIRL?

KIARA : THE GIRL IN THE PROFILE PICTURE THAT SHWETA AUNTY HAS SET.

He immediately checked his mother's profile to see the group photo they had taken today as her display picture. As he looked at the picture , his eyes moved straight to the pretty lady in pink ; smiling her broadest smile , hands entangled in his parent's hand pulling them closer. Not even for a second could one say ,she wasn't a real part of the family.

His widening grin was disturbed by the phone's buzzing.

KIARA : GOT IT ? THE GIRL NEXT TO SHWETA AUNTY .THE ONE YOU ARE LOOKING AT ?

NEIL : LOOKING AT? I WAS JUST CHECKING THE PICTURE.

KIARA : IN THE PICTURE. YOU ARE LOOKING AT HER , NOT THE CAMERA.

He had missed himself in the picture all this while.There he was standing next to his grandmother ,eyes drawn and fixed on his girl next door .

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A/N :

So guys how was it?
Do let me know how it was.

Thank you so much for showering your love through votes and comments.

Love you.