The past few days had gone by so fast that Neil hardly had any time for himself or family or friends . He had more conversations with Meera in the past three days than he had with Avni , although their talks always had Avni in it considering the fact that it was always in regards to party planning for her birthday. Meera had been tiptoeing around Avni to find names to fill up the guest list and by far she had been successful in getting 6 more names out of her. She had also been able to find out that Neela Maa wasn't keeping well and might not be able to travel for the birthday party. In spite of knowing that, Neil couldn't help but check in with her mom himself. But Neela Maa's answer remained the same . Other than the fact that she herself was unwell , she wished her daughter to have her first birthday away from home ; she called it growth. Neil knew her mother's presence would have been the ultimate gift for Avni ; if it were up to him he would have personally gone and brought her here but it felt too much intrusion into her personal space .

All the arrangements that were his responsibility were almost done .He just had one more thing to tick off the list , but before that he had to get to Mr Mehra's mansion for making the partnership official. He wanted the whole thing to be done at the office against his future partner's wishes to make a big spectacle of it by throwing another party ; the middle ground was found when both parties agreed to a small event at Mehra's lavish home with only his immediate family and employees from both the companies attending it. Neil was already getting late for the event , so he hurried out of his apartment wearing his usual office three piece . Call it coincidence or fate , Avni stepped out of her own apartment right that moment.

" Where are you headed ?" he asked amused at how often such pleasant coincidences happened with the two of them.

" Nowhere. I just wanted some ice-cream , so somewhere I can get that ." She locked her door while Neil made some quick thinking on his part .

" Would you mind going out with me ? We can get ice-cream wherever you want . I just have to make a quick stop first ." He looked expectantly at Avni. It was perhaps the very first time he had asked her out this casually , without any sort of obligations attached .

" Umm....okay I guess. Yeah why not ! I don't mind the company" she smiled . " But where do you have to stop first ?"

" Mr Mehra's house . You don't have to come inside , unless you want to .Although they would be more than happy to see you . In fact they did insist on bringing you but I already gave them a good excuse." Avni hadn't uttered a single word the entire time he explained his ordeal nor did her expressions change . " It's the official signing of papers, that is all . Once that's done we can get out of there. No dancing I promise ."

She was grinning by the time he ended explaining. " Relax !!! Okay ! Lets go."

"Okay ? That's all ? No questions , no arguments ?"

"Nah ! I am in a good mood and I trust you .Who knows I might even make a guest appearance " she winked taking him by surprise " Oh wait , don't you have a dress code today ?"

" Whatever you are wearing will do just fine. I just hope there aren't any pins this time !" he smirked remembering her anger over the pins .

" What pins ?"

" Nothing. Lets just go."

...........................................................................................................................

As expected Avni received more than a warm welcome when she decided to surprise everyone at the event by joining in. Mrs Mehra was so excited to have her than she gave her the most motherly hug Avni have had in a while.

" Avni we are so surprised to see you here . I had been nagging Neil so much to bring you here , on the insistence of my wife of course. But he said you had work commitments"said Mr Mehra with his ever so warm smile.

" I did. I did have have some commitments but it was his important day" she looked at Neil as she continued " I had to come." " Besides" she said looking away, towards the hostess " I thought why miss an opportunity to convince Mrs Mehra to let me see some of that poetry I have heard so much about."

" I love this girl !" Mr Mehra spoke looking at Neil " like I said she is a catch !" he patted on Neil's arm like a father figure.

" Mr Mehra , can we sign the papers now , if you don't mind?" he asked politely .

" Certainly !"

As soon as everything was set in order for the final sealing , Avni's phone beeped bringing everything to a pause . "Its from my boss . Have to take this .Excuse me ." Avni excused herself from the gathering and found her way into the front porch as she received the call from Aarav.

" Hey Avni . I was wondering if you are free tonight. I told you about my parents wanting to meet you , remember ?"

" Aarav I'm so sorry. I am stuck somewhere else with a friend. I cant make it today. Some other time maybe. Please apologize on my behalf to your parents. Sorry again." That was how the short call ended , with a disappointed Aarav on the other end. She on the other hand was profoundly confused on his eagerness to introduce her to his parents.

" Hello there beautiful !!"

Avni turned towards the voice that startled her. She felt some kind of Déjà vu; as if this had happened to her before too. Was it his rugged face or his creepy voice or was it both , she couldn't point her finger on it. He was hardly in his late 20s or early 30s and looked highly disoriented.

" Don't you remember me hot stuff ?" he said closing in the gap between them. It was probably a predator instinct that made Avni move back a few steps in response . " Remember you were drunk and I was about to ?"

Some scrambled images from the night came rushing back to her and that's when it hit her " You were the guy at the bar ! The one who was trying really hard !"

" Well you cant blame a guy for trying ; especially when" he moved closer again seeing Avni distracted " the girl in front of him was crazy hot !!"

" You are drunk !!!" Avni could smell the alcohol all over him.

" So were you !"

" I'm leaving." She tried to get past him but kept blocking her with his bulky frame and gigantic height. " What do you want ?" she fumed while trying to be patient.

" Exactly what I wanted that day ; you . I know you want me too ." Before Avni could react his finger had stroked her cheek making her flinch away in disgust.

" That is enough !! Don't you dare touch me again !" She pushed past him with all her might when he caught her by her wrist.

"Or what ? you will call that phony fiancee of yours ?" he laughed.

" He is the only reason you are still standing there .If it wasn't for his big day , I wouldn't have been tolerating you till now . Now leave my hand before I create a scene ." Avni struggled hard against his hand shackles with zero yield. She regretted leaving her bag in the car. Her harasser wasn't the least bit intimidated by her threats . Instead he reciprocated her threats by pulling her towards him with force. The more she struggled , the wider his grin became.

Neil in the meanwhile was growing impatient with Avni's prolonged absence. Something about her absence didn't feel right to him. Unable to keep calm any longer he walked out searching for her . He had just stepped outside the living room when he spotted her , struggling against a tightening grip ,just steps away from him. On the drop of a hat he was besides her freeing her from her harasser .Avni was equally shocked as she was relieved on seeing him , but the rage in his eyes scared her .

Though he didn't match in size to her perpetrator , his rage was enough to put him in his place. In a flash he had gotten Avni out of his hands and out his reach. With one hand still holding the arm of the drunk in a twisted manner he pulled him by his collar with other hand . " How dare you touch Avni ?!!!" Neil's voice thundered and echoed through the wall. Within seconds a crowd had gathered outside lead from the front by the Mehras who were shocked by the shocking turn of events. By now both of Neil's hands were on the man's collar , who went on giggling as Neil pulled him by his collars still shouting at him.

" Kanisk !!!" Mr and Mrs Mehra ran to the side of their youngest son. " Have you made some promise to ruin your family's reputation ?" Mr Mehra fumed , while Mrs Mehra was on the verge of tears .

" Neil please leave him. We are sorry on his behalf ." Mrs Mehra pleaded. But Neil wasn't listening, his eyes never left the person who had set his filthy hands on his Avni.

" Apologize to Avni right this second" he warned still burning with anger " or you wont walk out of here with your face intact."

"Neil please don't hurt him.... I beg of you . He is not in his senses right now "  Mrs Mehra pleaded to Neil whose fist was getting ready to make the impact.

Avni was scared not only for Neil's partnership but for his reputation in general. Seeing him unresponsive to what anyone else was saying , she stepped next to him and slowly placed her hand on his taut arms. " Neil , he is drunk. He was not in his senses. Its okay. Let it go . Let him go." Every word of it was slowly crafted and calmly told , so that it reached him. She could sense his muscles relaxing under her touch .

" Let him go ? Its okay ? have you lost your mind ,Avni ? I'm not letting anything go. I need him to beg for your forgiveness."

"Neil , just look at him smiling like a buffoon . He is disoriented ."

" If he was oriented enough to misbehave with you , he is oriented enough for a public apology."

Avni looked at Mehras whose heads were hung in shame and eyes filled with humiliation looking expectantly towards her . " Neil please. I beg of you. If you truly care for me , let go of him. Let this go, for my sake." It took a whole minute for her words to take effect but Neil's hands dropped, letting go the unruly son of the Mehra empire. Without looking at her or anyone else in the crowd Neil stormed out of there ,towards his car, with Avni in close pursuit.

" Neil" she called out as she reached him " did you sign the papers ?"

" I'm not signing anything anymore" he still wasn't looking at her and neither was he stopping. " You cant get me to do anything more than what you have already made me do. Don't you dare do that again !" He kept walking and stopped only when they reached their vehicle .

...........................................................................................................................

They sat in silence in the car without a single word being exchanged between the two of them. Neil had drove past the Mehra mansion but had pulled on the brakes after going a few blocks. He wouldn't speak or react. Avni could feel him shivering away his pent up rage and she dared not speak fearing he would burst out on her. She knew it was wrong of her to emotionally blackmail him but she also knew that it was the only thing that would make him stop ,at least she hoped that was.

A few more minutes of complete stillness passed before she mustered enough courage to speak .

" Can we go get that ice-cream now ?'' she pouted hoping to get his attention.

He opened his eyes as if he was awoken from a trance. He didn't utter a word but nodded in response and keyed in the engine. Sensing that he was still not in the right frame of mind she guided him through the twists and turns till they reached their destination. It was then that he uttered his very first word "that's....that's the beach !!!" he looked at her baffled.

" Yep ! See there's an ice cream parlor facing the beach. Win win" she smiled sheepishly . " Come on lets go ." She unfastened her seat belt and jumped right out , followed by Neil who trailed behind her to the ice-cream shop.

" What flavor do you want Neil ? I will have mint chocolate please" she instructed the boy at the counter.

" I don't want anything. Get whatever you want , we are going home ."

" As if" she coughed away " he will have a Belgian chocolate and we are going to the beach ."

The boy had disappeared behind the curtain before Neil could tell him no. He reappeared with the ice-creams and she grabbed them both , leaving Neil to pay . By the time Neil settled the bill Avni was already half way in the sand , he had to run behind her to catch up. She settled down on the sand , a few steps away from where the waves were giving up. Neil settled down besides her when he finally caught up .

" Have it" she said handing him over his cup of deliciousness " you will feel better." He reluctantly took it after she kept holding it in the air in front of his face.

" You can talk too , or not , whatever you wish. But if you do , I guarantee you will feel better."

He still wouldn't speak . They enjoyed their ice-creams in silence watching the rhythm of the waves .There was something deeply calming about the waves ; watching them form and reform under the moon had something magical about it. " I was the reason you were there . I was the one who had dragged you there" he spoke many a waves later ,still watching the sea. Avni looked at his face with something more than care in her eyes ; she kept looking at him as he spoke his heart out .

" I feel responsible Avni . I should have been responsible for you. I could feel it in my heart something wasn't right but I didn't act upon it that second. I can't share the feeling of disgust you must have felt .But I could see how trapped you felt. I cannot erase that moment from your life or memory. But I could have punished him .You wouldn't even let me punish the person who had dared to set his vile intentions on you ." There was no more anger in his voice, it was calm and sad.

She waited for him to speak again but he didn't. Knowing that he wouldn't say more , she stood up, removed her shoes and ran towards the waves. A startled Neil followed her footsteps into the water. They walked in a shared solitude as the waves washed upon them back and forth. He walked behind her watching her long blue dress run with the wind and flow with the water. Then, after a while she turned , to face him.

Still walking along the shore , this time facing each other she spoke "Neil it wasn't your fault. You didn't do anything."

" No it .."

" Shhh ! My turn to speak ." She was walking backwards facing a forward walking Neil as she continued speaking " Nothing happened. Nothing would have happened . You don't have to take care of me Neil..."

" But I want to..." he didn't intend to say it loud , he didn't even know from where that came. But as soon as the words left his lips , he let them hang there without adding or subtracting from them.

" I know.....I know you care for me . I know Neil. I know you will always be there when I need you. I know that and you should know that I know that. Don't beat yourself up for something that didn't even happen. I am here , standing in front of you , unscathed. Let it go."

" How are you so calm , still ? " 

" You didn't take me for the weak type , did you ? Kidding. Neil ,I prefer living in the present and look around you , the present is so breathtaking. I am here , with you , without a scratch on me , physically or emotionally . Your fiancee is a strong girl , Mr Khanna!!" 

"Hmm" was the only response she got to her attempt at cheering him up.

" I got you to the beach , made you have chilled ice-cream and made you stand in chilled waters and you are still angry. Oh God ! What more should I do ?"

" You should have let me punch that piece of shit in the face" he remarked .

" Point taken.Next time I will. But for now do you think you can catch me ?" she ran backwards challenging him to chase her . But he wouldn't do it , making her give up.

" Fine . Spoilsport ! lets go home" . She walked back towards him frustrated , only to be caught in the length of her own dress and tumbling over , to be caught in time by Neil. She looked at him mesmerized as he held her steady by gripping on tight to her right arm . There was no expression on his face but his eyes were on her ; steady not moving away even for a second. It was just him and her , basked in silvery moonlight , touched by the mysterious sparkling waves ,holding on to each other , never letting go. She didn't know if picture perfect moments in life really existed , but if they did ...this was definitely hers. 

Seeing that she had no intention of getting back up, he pulled her straight with a jerk making her collide with him.

" I knew you would catch me" she beamed as he straightened her up.

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