Rajiv knew his father was giving him pertinent advice. However, his mind was far away.

This job had been a mistake. He should not have succumbed to the pressure exerted by his family, especially his father. Rajyavardhan Singh was an awful human being, and it was demeaning to keep bowing to him and to be at his beck and call throughout the day. Even this dinner with his father had required the jerk's special permission.

The old man was too depressed at the moment to be his beastly self, but the good days weren't going to last, Rajiv pondered sullenly. He needed to leave this job and look for something better. The money might not be great, but at least his days wouldn't oscillate constantly between boredom and humiliation.

"Rajiv," his father said harshly.

"Yes, I'm listening," he grumbled, vacantly studying a puddle of water on the pavement.

"Look up, you idiot," Manohar hissed, shocked and terrified. "It's the prince. He's coming towards us. Keep your eyes lowered. Don't speak until you're spoken to. And be extremely respectful and cautious," he dictated.

Flabbergasted, Rajiv glanced up and saw the tall and well-built young man approaching them unsmilingly through the crowd...the youthful appearance in stark contrast to the icy severity of bearing...

He had seen photographs and heard many tales from his father and the palace guards. While he was confident that the anecdotes were largely fabricated, they had helped him construct an image of the prince. But nothing of what he'd seen and heard had prepared him for the experience of seeing Prithvi in person. The figure in his imagination was a shabby and puny imitation of the actual person, Rajiv thought with amazement bordering on fear.

From force of habit, he lifted the phone and began clicking photos.

"Stop it! Don't do that," Manohar chastised, barely moving his lips.

Rajiv looked at his father, alarmed by a suppressed emotion in the latter's voice. Only then did he realise that his dad was rooted to the spot in terror. He looked quickly at the fair visage of the fast nearing prince but didn't see anything that warranted such an extreme reaction.

Prithvi halted in front of the two men

Unembarrassed for once, Rajiv bowed along with his father.

"Your highness, I'm honoured to see you here," Manohar said shakily.

"Why? Do you live on this pavement?" Prithvi enquired.

As Manohar flailed about for an coherent answer, Prithvi glanced at Rajiv. "Can I have a look at the pictures?" he asked.

"What – oh – yes, yes, of course," Rajiv said zealously, his phone nearly falling out of his hands because of excitement.

Prithvi dropped the phone on the pavement and stomped on it with a casual brutality, drawing startled looks from passerby.

Dumbfounded, Rajiv looked at the wrecked instrument. "You broke it," he said blankly.

"My bad. I should have shoved it up your ass," Prithvi said nonchalantly. "And that is what I'll do next time."

It was the calmness of the threat that shook Rajiv. Under usual circumstances, he would have been hopping mad at the perpetrator. But he wasn't angry at all now...only thankful that it had not been worse.

"I'm sorry," Rajiv said hurriedly. "It won't happen again."

Grateful that his son had not received a thrashing, Manohar beseechingly said, "Please forgive him, your highness. This is my son – Rajiv."

"Couldn't let him live with self-respect and a spine eh?" Prithvi asked derisively. Then, with a small frown, he looked over his shoulder.

*************************

Nandini strode through noisy crowd as quickly as she could. Then she spotted the three men and her shoulders sagged with relief. Prithvi's back was to her, and he was speaking to the two men. The older male, who was looking at the ground, was unharmed. Her view of the other man was blocked by Prithvi.

His name...it began with R...Rohit? No, it was...Rajiv, she recalled.

She couldn't see his face, but it was reassuring that he wasn't sprawled on the ground. Nonetheless, situations tended to escalate in no time when Prithvi was around. It would be wise to keep a watch on the group from a distance.

Nandini slowed down, detachedly noting that restaurant-goers and pedestrians were looking at the group curiously but were not venturing too close. It was proof that the self-preservation instinct was present in everyone, she thought dourly.

Then Prithvi glanced around, and the angry glitter in his eyes made her stop in her tracks. 

Turning his back on the two men, he stalked to her and roughly said, "Don't interfere in this. Go sit in the car." 

*************************

Rajiv stared in fascination at the alluringly beautiful girl who was talking to Prithvi, scarcely aware that his pulse had accelerated and palms had grown damp.

Nandini...a beguilingly feminine name that suited her perfectly. Her hair was half open today, and the shining tresses extended to her hips. He had thought about her frequently after the encounter in the hospital, analysing their conversations and wondering what impression he had left behind. The contemplations unfailingly ended with him calling up his gorgeous girlfriend or buying small gifts for her...

And now Nandini was here, and his mind had gone topsy-turvy again. And her arrival had been even more confounding than that of Prithvi. Wasn't she supposed to have been in Shamli? She looked so comely and traditional. Was that a mask? Was she...living with the prince?

It was a harrowing thought.

*************************

Nandini had not intended to do anything besides maybe prevent him from going to jail. But her plan changed in a jiffy...

"Not a chance," she smiled. "And if you think I've been interfering in the past, you're in for a surprise."

"This part of my life is off limits," he said grimly.

"You trample over my whole existence whenever you want," Nandini said acidly. "So you don't get to tell me that some part of your life is 'off limits'. And don't you think it's time you found out how it feels when the person who should be respecting your feelings the most gives them the least importance."

Prithvi's gaze hardened ominously, then he said, "Fine, put the final nail."

Snubbing the voice of caution, she kept pace with him as he walked back to his grandfather's men.

*************************

"Rajiv, stop staring at Nandini," Manohar admonished his son.

"Sorry, dad," Rajiv said, dragging his eyes away.

"Take care not to gawk at her again," Manohar instructed sternly. "And don't speak to her unless absolutely necessary."

He could understand his son's fascination. Almost every man in the vicinity was sneaking glances at the girl. But if there was one female who needed to be treated with utmost caution and respect, it was Nandini. He was especially grateful to the girl at this moment. It didn't matter how she'd arrived at the scene. Her appearance was a life-saving miracle, Manohar thought fervidly as the couple drew nearer.

Prithvi glanced at him, blistering cynicism on his aristocratic features. And with a spasm of anxiety, Manohar realised the prince knew exactly what he was hoping for...

Nandini, however, smiled courteously at him and Rajiv.

"What is he doing here?" Prithvi asked Manohar tersely.

In the disorientation induced by a sweet smile, Rajiv confusedly asked, "Me, your highness?"

Prithvi looked at him irritably. "I don't give a flying **** about you. And keep your trap shut unless I ask you a question."

Rajiv blanched with humiliation.

"Don't mind him," Nandini told Rajiv kindly. "He exhausted twenty years worth of politeness some time ago. If you wait for another two decades, you might just catch him being civil again."

Speechless with disbelief, Manohar looked at her. No one could display such effrontery in Prithvi's presence and live to tell the tale. However, apart from shooting a deadly glance at Nandini, the prince didn't react.

"Answer my question," Prithvi snapped at Manohar.

Manohar fearfully replied, "Your highness, the king arrived in Daheer two days back. He is staying at the Hotel Rajhans...in Suite 331. He had intended to visit Aadyabhoomi on your birthday to meet you but changed his plans at the last minute. We will be returning to Devgarh tomorrow evening."

"That was extraordinarily sensible of him," Prithvi retorted. "Tell him to maintain the lucky streak and never show his revolting face to me again."

"He doesn't mean it," Nandini said vibrantly. "He will drop by the hotel tomorrow to meet him."

Baffled, Manohar looked at her, and then at Prithvi.

The prince gazed back at him impassively and said, "You can convey her message to the scum in the hotel. But keep in mind that I couldn't care less about what she says and wants. So, if you take her seriously, you're doing it at your own risk."

"He doesn't mean that either," Nandini rebutted cheerfully. "He has the greatest respect for my opinions and wouldn't dream of disappointing me."

Manohar's incredulous eyes swung from her and Prithvi.

The prince looked at Nandini again, but this time, there was a trace of amusement on his face. "Are you done?" he asked her.

Appearing disconcerted for once, she stared at him, and then stiffly said, "Yes."

Prithvi strode away without another word. Nandini offered them an uneasy smile and scurried in his wake, oblivious to the hungry eyes glued to her back.

Despite the crowd, she managed to walk alongside him. An undercurrent of disquiet was swirling inside her, but it was only when they reached the car that the enormity of her brash actions penetrated her mind.

Nandini came to a standstill.

If those men communicated her words to Rajyavardhan Singh, his hopes might rise. And when his grandson wouldn't arrive the next day, he would be shattered. And the two gentlemen who would have conveyed her message could also face some consequences. All because she had sought a second of vindictive pleasure.

Wracked with crippling guilt, Nandini whirled to look for the men, but they were gone.

"Just realised you're the reason an old man is going to be heartbroken tomorrow?"

She swung back to glare hatefully at a conceited face.

"Oh I'm not complaining," Prithvi drawled, studying her ironically. "I think it's a good deed. The universe will reward you."

Nandini stepped around him and opened the car door. She climbed into the vehicle, and wrapped her arms around her body unconsciously. He grimly walked to the opposite side and settled into the driver's seat, and they were on their way shortly.

The traffic congestion eased after about ten minutes, and the car was beginning to gather speed when Nandini abruptly said, "I want to go back to Janki aunty's house."

"Too late," Prithvi said nonchalantly, overtaking two trucks.

"Let me get down then," she said urgently. "I'll catch a rickshaw and -"

"Drop you in a town you know zilch about and let you figure out the route to her house. Yeah, that sounds like something I would do," Prithvi mocked, genuine anger in his tone.

"I'll call her up and she can give me directions," she countered tartly.

"This discussion is pointless," he dismissed. "You're going to Shamli tomorrow and we might not see each other again for a very long time. So we need to spend quality time together before you leave."

Her eyes narrowed. "Quality time? What does that mean?"

"It means we are going to create some beautiful memories tonight," he clarified indolently.

"I don't want to create any memories," she fumed.

"Why not? There couldn't be a better time or place. I think we should make the most of it."

"Just what are you threatening me with," she burst.

"No threat. I simply intend to be my Neanderthal self," he said scathingly.

Simmering, Nandini turned her face to the window. If he thought she was going to be frightened so easily, he had another thing coming.

*************************

Sumer Singh was in a meditative mood as he strolled to the entrance of the palace. He couldn't understand what was going on with Uday Singh. The elderly man had been markedly composed yesterday about Prithvi's disappearance, and now he had not shown any astonishment on learning that Nandini was returning to the palace. He'd been pleased, even a little gleeful, but not surprised...or disgruntled with Prithvi's actions.

And that meant the young prince would not be reproached by anyone else, Sumer Singh mulled pensively while stepping out the main doors.

Three women were standing on the stairs, and he frowned at the shortest one. He had put a lid on his temper during the return trip, and was still certain that it would be futile to argue with the dense woman. But the smugness on her face was grating on his nerves...

The female dictator was busily conferring with two of the original palace maids. One of them was holding a silver plate containing items such as red chillies, salt and mustard seeds. To complete the peculiarity of the picture, a small fire was burning near the shrubs that marked the beginning of the grounds

"What is all this?" Sumer Singh asked, advancing towards them.

Kadambari gave him an irritated look, then motioned to the maids to stand in the yard. Once the women were out of earshot, she regarded him disdainfully. "Is it so difficult to understand? I'm going to remove the evil eye from Prithvi. Yesterday, his great-uncle forced him to go to the balcony and greet those people. Many of them must have felt jealous of him. That is why ill-luck followed. First, he was stranded on those hills, and then Nandini -

"That is nonsense," Sumer Singh derided. "But if you're doing this, you have to remove the evil eye from Nandini too."

Kadambari was taken aback by the stipulation, and appeared ready to offer an argument. But then she grumbled, "Alright."

She would divide the contents of the plate and conduct the ritual for both. But not as a couple, Kadambari decided, gazing at the road that led to the gates. Her view on their relationship had changed to some extent, but somehow, she couldn't accord it much importance. Nandini did have an unusual influence on Prithvi, and her presence seemed to bring out the most lovable aspects of his nature. Yet, the glaring differences in the backgrounds could not be disregarded. And both were very young at present. Who knew if and when the bond would culminate in marriage...

"You think you've done a great deed, don't you?"

Stiffening, she looked at Sumer Singh. "I did what was best for both of them."

"You didn't....you considered only Prithvi's feelings," Sumer Singh denounced. "Did you think about Nandini? If she wanted to -"

"I didn't force her," Kadambari flared. "She herself said she wanted to return."

"Naturally she did. You did not leave her with any option," Sumer Singh said irately. "And Nandini is not the kind of girl who would hurt anyone's sentiments."

"Neither is Prithvi. Don't you care about his happiness?"

"Prithvi is my pride and joy," Sumer Singh replied haughtily. "But unlike you, I know he has his share of flaws, and -"

Interrupted by the noise of a vehicle, he looked at the road.

Kadambari shelved plans to haul Sumer Singh over the coals, and hurried off to check the plate again. She usually considered the long-term repercussions of every act, big and small. But in this matter, she didn't want to fuss about the future since Nandini's value system seemed as immaculate as that of Prithvi's. So nothing would go wrong...

Sumer Singh walked into the enormous yard, and when the car stopped, he opened the door for Nandini. When she alighted, he instantly unburdened his heart.

"Nandini, I'm sorry for what happened," he said contritely. "I wanted to help but couldn't."

Nandini forced a smile. "Please don't feel bad, uncle. None of this is your fault. And it's okay...I'm fine."

But it was not okay, and she was not fine. Courage had held her in good stead till the palace had come into view minutes ago. Then it had collapsed in a heap, laying down arms when confronted with the forbidding appearance of the gigantic structure.

Time had stopped within those solid walls, and she couldn't help feel that the rules of the outside world waited deferentially outside the palace doors.

Nandini felt tiny and powerless. She wanted to stop the guard who was taking her bag from the car, and beg Sumer Singh to drop her back to Mrs Bhargava's house, if not Shamli.

"What's all this, Choti maa?"

Prithvi's wary question stole her attention before she could act on the impulse.

Holding the brat's elbow, Kadambari was tugging him to an evidently pre-determined spot, saying, "I'm going to remove the evil eye from you."

Nandini surveyed the two maids with curiosity. One lady was standing near Kadambari with a plate in her hands, and the other was tending to a small wooden fire.

An irritated crease formed on Prithvi's brow, and a testy response was about to escape him. Then he thought better of it, and humbly said, "Thank you, I've been feeling the evil eye on me since evening."

Nandini glowered at the back of his head.

"This ritual will take care of it," Kadambari promised him industriously, collecting a handful of content from the plate held by the maid. She turned to face Prithvi and swung her fist thrice in a sweeping clock-wise motion before him. Then she rushed to the fire and threw the contents into the flames.

There were loud crackling sounds. Grimly satisfied, Kadambari walked back to him.

Nandini felt cross with herself. She did not need to feel relieved at the procedure's success...

"I hope you're doing this for Nandini too, Choti maa," Prithvi said piously.

Nandini suppressed an infuriated reply, but Kadambari beamed at him. "Yes, I am. Don't you worry about it."

Nandini felt self-conscious as Kadambari plodded over to her. She unsurely said, "Aunty, you don't have to -"

"Call me Choti maa," Kadambari smiled, stopping near her and clasping her arm.

Astounded and touched, Nandini complied with instructions automatically and didn't object when she was made to stand near Prithvi. Kadambari conducted the same ritual for her and lumbered to the fire.

Prithvi murmured, "You can ask her if she'll sleep in your room or vice versa. I won't judge you for the cowardice."

"I can look after myself, I don't need help," Nandini told him frostily over spluttering noises, internally cursing his abnormal ability to read her mind.

"Help for what, Nandini?"

Nandini started to see Sumer Singh by her side.

"To find her room," Prithvi supplied adroitly. "I was telling her to take a maid along."

"I know the way, uncle," Nandini said staunchly, turning her back on Prithvi.

"I'm sure you do," Sumer Singh supported, and harshly said, "Prithvi, don't undermine her confidence."

"As you say," Prithvi said, ostensibly abashed.

"Both of you will be fine now," Kadambari proclaimed happily, returning to them. "Go to your rooms and freshen up. Dinner will be ready in an hour. Nandini, this woman will take you -"

"She says she doesn't need help," Prithvi said, aggrieved.

"I can find my room on my own, Choti maa," Nandini said quickly.

Kadambari looked doubtful, then unwillingly said, "Alright...if you're certain..."

*************************

Once she was confident of having covered some distance, Nandini reduced her speed and gradually ambled to a stop to catch her breath.

After securing Kadambari's consent, she had sauntered into the palace without looking at Prithvi. There had been a brief uncertainty at the start. But then, to her amazement, the anxiety caused by the exterior of the palace had disappeared as soon as she had crossed the threshold. The ancient passageways had been pleasingly familiar, and as she proceeded deeper into the building, her self-belief had grown again bit by bit...

Prithvi was going to have to seek his sadistic joys elsewhere.

He had inflicted abundant damage today. She would not give him the extra satisfaction of seeing fear in her eyes, Nandini resolved stalwartly. And tomorrow, she would tell the elders that she wanted to go back to Shamli at the earliest.

What would they make of the request...how would they react...

Would the brat create more problems...

No, it didn't matter. Irrespective of what happened, she had to go back home. The thought of resuming the despicable routine of cheating her family and fibbing shamelessly was unendurable.

Her naive and jovial grandfather who loved and pampered her wholeheartedly. Her guileless mother, always loving...always anxious about her safety and wellbeing. Her mischievous but adorable brother who couldn't watch her cry without dissolving into tears himself.

God wouldn't pardon her for deceiving them...and she wouldn't forgive herself...

And if that wasn't enough, she was going to be the reason for an aged man's grief tomorrow. A man who hadn't played any role in her existing predicament. And those two other men...

Prithvi had targeted only her. But she had allowed her anger towards him to harm many people.

Feeling nauseated, Nandini veered to a side and placed a clammy hand on the stone wall for support. The queasiness subsided in a couple of minutes but the sense of pressure building in her head didn't abate. Perhaps she would feel better once she reached her room.

Nandini resumed the walk to her room on unsteady legs, and felt increasingly relieved on spotting familiar landmarks that assured her that her destination was very close now. Then the familiar foyer came into view, and she began to hurry to the suite.

But why was her skin tingling...

Nandini paused outside the door to her room and worriedly scanned the area. It was empty. Asking herself to calm down, she opened the suite's door and walked into the well-lit suite. She closed the door and trudged into the sitting room, and then froze.

Prithvi was lounged in a cushy armchair adjacent to the couch.

"Why are you here?" she asked in a faintly high-pitched tone, startled out of her wits. And how had he reached before her...

"I thought I'll spend some time here with you before dinner," he drawled. "And you already know our exciting after-dinner plans..."

She stalked back to the door but he moved rapidly to obstruct her path. She retreated and felt her back dash against the wall. Her heart was pounding because of her eagerness to fight, not because of anxiety. Yes, that was it...

Extremely rattled but maintaining poise, Nandini tautly said, "You've taken this joke far enough. Now please leave."

Cold black eyes drilled into her frightened ones.

"This is the last night before a long separation. Why is it funny that I want to spend it with you," Prithvi asked conversationally

"Stop scaring me," she said, half angry...half pleading. Fights with him were consistently nerve-wracking. And tonight, she was not in the physical or mental state to have a showdown with anyone...let alone a man with greater unyielding strength and coldness than the stone wall behind her...

"I'm not trying to," he said in mock surprise, a bitter chill in his gaze. "Everything I'm saying fits right in with your opinion of me."

The sneering jibe riled Nandini, kindling a spark of defiance. "Don't wait for an apology because I meant every word. Now get out of my room," she snapped.

Prithvi advanced with a coolness that frightened her. He paused in front of her, standing so close that they were toe to toe.

Nandini compelled her body to remain immobile, feeling loath to display the panic brimming within her. But the effort was consuming whatever little inner strength she had currently.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Prithvi asked softly. "We're not in Shamli. And this is not your slum of a house. I can stop you from leaving this palace and do whatever I want....or I could throw you to the streets tonight. You won't be able to do anything in either case. So think carefully before picking this particular battle."

Back pressed against the wall, she stared at him mutely. Then tears sprung to her eyes and her lips wobbled.

Nandini burst into tears.

Turning pale, he drew back instantly and stared at her in stunned dismay. This was not the reaction he'd expected... 

"I didn't mean it. I was joking," Prithvi spluttered, aghast. He had come to terms with the ever-present nuisance of the tears long back, but he had not seen her weep so.... heartbreakingly before...

He grasped her face and brushed away the rivulets cascading down her cheeks. Sobbing, Nandini hit the unsteady fingers away.

"You evil boy...," a female voice shrieked.

The screech from the doorstep attracted only a fleeting, unfocused glance from Prithvi.

Nandini looked at Kadambari, and the outrage on the plump face shattered the little bit of restraint she had won. She covered her face with trembling hands and cried harder.

Prithvi stared at her in spiralling despair and repentance. Tears were gushing out of the beautiful eyes and the anguished sounds that were lacerating his heart wouldn't stop.

"Don't – don't cry," he said desperately, stepping forward to embrace her.

"Don't touch her," Kadambari shouted, dashing forward to stand between him and Nandini.

She had followed Nandini out of an intuitive concern, and had been some feet from the door when the sound of weeping had broken the silence. Assailed by terrible doubts, she had opened the door to see Prithvi standing threateningly close to a helplessly crying Nandini who was pushing at him. She had instantaneously known what was going on...

"Let me talk to her, Choti maa," Prithvi requested agitatedly.

"I won't let you be in the same room as her," Kadambari barked, pummelling his arm and striving to push him out of the room.

"Stop it," Prithvi said angrily.

The blows ceased, but Kadambari continued to stare at him in enraged horror. "So this is why you wanted Nandini back in the palace. I was so foolish....praising you to the heavens in that lady's house, and you...you were planning to spoil this innocent girl's life."

"I wasn't – ," Prithvi paused with an effort, controlling his temper and an offensive response. "Choti maa, I -"

"My hair didn't turn grey overnight," Kadambari said ferociously. "I know what you were planning to do. If I'm wrong, swear on me that you didn't say or do anything inappropriate. Do it, and I'll let you talk to her."

He looked at her, and then at Nandini with angst-ridden eyes. She was staring at the floor, and though her body wasn't shuddering with sobs anymore, her face was shining with tears.

Kadambari stared at him in distress. The wrenching guilt on his face as he'd gazed at Nandini had confirmed her suspicions.

"Prithvi, if you have a shred of conscience, leave this room," she ordered.

Turbulence raged in his gaze again, but then he silently turned and walked out of the room. The door banged shut behind him. He stood unmoving for a minute, feeling sick to his stomach with self-hate. Then with his heart encased in a thick coat of ice, he walked away.

*************************

Nandini felt Kadambari wipe her face compassionately with the edge of her saree, just as her mother would have done.

In a bleary haze, she accepted a glass of water given by Kadambari and took a few gulps, then it was taken from her hands. When Kadambari gently asked her to freshen up, she complied obediently.

In the bathroom, Nandini splashed water on her face repeatedly and then looked at the large sparkly mirror above the gleaming white basin. The girl in the mirror had a blotchy face and puffy red eyes.

She took a fluffy white towel from the ring beside the basin and dried her face.

Then Nandini moseyed to the unused sunken marble bathtub and perched on a wide corner. Her eyes and throat felt sore and inflamed, and her body felt weak.

However, she was also experiencing a strange lightness. The insufferable weight that had been building up in her chest for long had lifted with those few minutes of pathetic bawling. Even more puzzlingly, the anger and frustration that had accumulated within her over days – or was it weeks? – had almost vanished. As if they had seeped out along with the tears...

And with a surreal flash of clarity, she could see each factor that had pushed her towards the breakdown. And also that Prithvi's insensitivity had merely been the final straw. Those moments were a blur in her mind, but she could recall his alarm when she'd gone to pieces. He had tried to placate her, and then Kadambari had arrived...

And everything that took place after that...had it really happened...

Had Kadambari actually screamed at Prithvi....struck him...forced him to leave...

Nandini shut her eyes. It had happened in front of her, and yet, she'd felt disconnected from the scene at the time. The fight to get a grip over herself and not dissolve into another gale of tears had consumed her entire focus and strength.

Disturbing thoughts prodded Nandini out of her torpor, and she stood up listlessly. She was still finding it hard to think properly, but it would be unpardonable to let Kadambari misunderstand Prithvi for a second longer.

When Nandini opened the bathroom's door, she got a split-second glimpse of Kadambari sitting on the bed with her head in her hands. Then the plump woman hastened to her feet. Her face was devoid of colour, and she looked anguished and crushed.

Wringing her hands, Kadambari repentantly said, "Please forgive me, Nandini. If I'd known Prithvi's intentions, I wouldn't have compelled you to return."

Nandini traipsed forward, hoarsely saying, "Choti maa, what you saw...it wasn't what you think. Prithvi wasn't going to do anything. He just wanted to....scare me a little," she muttered.

Kadambari's eyes turned moist. "You're trying to defend him in spite of what he..."

"I'm not defending him," Nandini said earnestly. "He would never do anything to -"

"Nandini, I know we should talk about what happened," Kadambari said unsteadily. "But I don't know if and when I'll be able to do it. I need some time to – But I promise you...you're safe. I'll sleep in this suite tonight...on this side," she clarified, pointing to the side of the bed that was closer to the arched entrance. "You can sleep on the other side. And I'll take you back to Mrs Bhargava's house tomorrow."

"Choti maa, please -"

"You can change into your nightdress now," Kadambari said determinedly, making clear her aversion to any further discussion of the issue. "Don't worry about going to the hall for dinner. The maids will bring your meal here."

Her pleas were not going to be effective, Nandini gauged in consternation. And right now, she didn't have the strength to continue appealing. She would make another attempt later...

"I don't want to eat anything tonight," she implored.

"Okay...you can have a bowl of soup," Kadambari permitted grudgingly.

"But I really don't -"

Kadambari eyed her soberly. "Nandini, when I gave you the right to call me Choti maa, I took away your right to disobey me. Now where have they kept your bag..."

*************************

Nandini tried to develop some interest in the happenings in the Hindi potboiler on television while Kadambari combed her hair. The comforting light of the bedside lamps and the strokes of the hairbrush were creating a restful ambience, and ordinarily, she would have been drowsy by now. Nothing was helping her today though. She felt worn out physically, but the commotion in her mind was not subsiding.

However, she had to put on a calm facade for Kadambari, who had been wonderfully affectionate in the past two hours. The older woman had persuaded her to have hot soup, and had insisted that she watch television for a while. It had made her feel like a pampered five-year old...

But Kadambari was still refusing to listen to a word about Prithvi, and had also confiscated her phone after asking her to make the day's final calls to her family and Mrs Bhargava. Then the phone had been switched off and locked up in the wardrobe's drawer.

A soft knock disturbed the quietness in the room.

Kadambari stopped her work on a tangle in Nandini's hair. "Wait here, I'll be right back," she said with a suspicious frown.

Nandini stayed put on the bed as instructed, but then Kadambari called out to her after some moments. When she walked into the sitting room, Kadambari was standing near the door with a maid.

"Some of the servants have gotten into a fight," Kadambari said speedily, "I'll have to deal with the problem. It should not take me long."

"Okay, Choti maa," Nandini murmured.

Kadambari stepped out of the room and scrutinised the outside arena distrustfully, then she looked at Nandini. "Lock the door behind me. And don't open it again unless you hear my voice."

Nandini nodded.

Kadambari shut the door and waited till she heard the faint noise of the bolt. Then she set out for the servant quarters with the maid.

Nandini waited irresolutely for a minute, then pulled back the bolt. Tying her hair into a bun, she strolled to the bedroom and turned off the television. Then she got into bed and adjusted the duvet. It was going to be difficult to fall asleep, but she didn't have the energy to do anything else.

So she would close her eyes and wonder if Prithvi was okay...and what he was doing right now...

*************************

Prithvi let out a deep breath and glanced upwards in gratitude as the door opened. If it had been locked, he would have stood outside and called out to her for as long as he could.

Dressed in the same clothes in which he had left it two hours ago, he entered the room penitently. He was invading her privacy for the second time in two days. But she wouldn't have answered his knock. And if he didn't see her tonight and ask for forgiveness, he would probably secure the distinction of being the first person in the family to go insane over the course of a night.

In his mind, he could still hear her sobs and see her ravaged face and shivering figure...

It had devastated him, and he would face anything for a chance to apologise.

He stopped a few feet from the archway. If she reacted with fear, he wouldn't be able to endure it.

*************************

Nandini turned onto her back and looked at the arched doorway. She sat up, causing the duvet to slump around her waist, and waited to see a specific figure walk into the room. But minutes ticked on and the wait did not end....

Feeling foolish and confused, she uncertainly asked, "Are you there?"

The quiet question startled Prithvi, and it also permitted a tiny ray of light to enter the oppressive darkness in his mind.

He strode ahead swiftly but paused underneath the archway to look at the girl sitting up on the bed. She looked so defenceless and woebegone that acrid self-hate blazed up in him again.

Nandini studied him apprehensively. Then she shuffled towards the centre of the bed, offering him space to sit.

Just for a split-second...for the first time in the relationship...he felt wholly unworthy of her...

Prithvi walked into the room slowly and halted by her side. After wavering for a second, he sat down on the edge of the bed, careful not to brush against her legs, and compelled himself to meet her tentative gaze.

"I'm sorry about what happened. I didn't mean it," he muttered

"I know...I didn't cry only because of what you -" her voice faltered.

The discovery that he wasn't exclusively responsible didn't lift his mood. "Then why?" he asked hesitantly.

"Too many reasons," Nandini said wearily. "I'd already been feeling very low when you... but how could you say those things," she whispered.

There was a childlike hurt in her voice that was more unbearable than the biggest outburst. And his resolution to avoid touching her went out the window.

He closed the distance between them and clasped her beautiful face with both hands.

"I'm sorry," he repeated huskily, and kissed a soft cheek with incredible tenderness. His lips pressed against the same spot once more.

And then, murmuring words of apology and love, he began sprinkling the gentlest little kisses on both cheeks...forehead... delicate eyelids...showering affection on each part of her face barring her lips...

She caught his forearms gently. The stubble on his face was pricking her skin, but the sting was only accentuating the softness of the kisses. Each touch of his mouth was burning her skin but soothing her soul. And he had never spoken to her in that bewitchingly soft tone before...it was hypnotising her into an unearthly peacefulness...

Overcome by a beautiful langour, she luxuriated in the poignantly tender adoration being showered upon her.

Then he released her face and pulled her into a cosy embrace. She coiled her arms around him and clung feverishly.

They held each other with an impassioned fervour, thoughts entwining and merging seamlessly with each other....and the harsh words and reckless actions that had caused so much anger and pain in the past suddenly seemed bewilderingly trivial and senseless...

With her chin resting on a hard shoulder, Nandini mumbled, "I told Choti maa you were not...but she didn't believe me."

"Well, she had to see my true nature someday," he quipped sheepishly.

"You really have to stop deceiving yourself," she smiled, snuggling to be closer to him. Then a snide voice in her mind observed, He isn't the only one who did things he shouldn't have...

Nipped by remorse, Nandini ashamedly said, "Those men we met...I shouldn't have said anything."

"I'll meet him tomorrow morning."

Astonishment made her draw back slightly to gape at him, and she was overwhelmed by the sincerity in his gaze.

"You don't have to do that for me," she said huskily.

"It's not for you. When the old man finds out I'm wrapped around your little finger, it might kill him," Prithvi said optimistically.

"Don't say that," she protested with a tremulous laugh.

He grinned, and then casually said, "Before I go to meet him, I'll drop you to Mrs Bhargava's house."

Thrown yet again, Nandini stared at him mutely. Then she lowered her gaze and unhappily explained, "I don't want to go, but I hate lying to them."

"I understand," he said calmingly. "If you want to go to Shamli, that's okay too. Sumer Baba will accompany you."

"No, not Shamli. I'll go to Vishranti Nagar," she mumbled. "But I can stay here for another day. We'll go to Mrs Bhargava's house day after tomorrow," she added nervously, glancing up.

He wanted to tell her she didn't need to do that for him, and that he would be okay with parting from her tomorrow itself. However, those impulses were shamefully fragile in the face of an unquenchable greed.

"Okay, if that's what you want," he said softly.

Nandini buried her face in his shoulder, besieged by emotion. Innumerable memories and thoughts floated in her mind, some uplifting...some painful.

"When you left Shamli without telling me, I was so angry...I cursed you every day," she whispered, her voice faltering. "And one day, I had to go to your room, and there I – I opened one of your journals. There was a sketch you'd made of me... I – I tore it up," she confessed, almost in tears.

"Did it help?"

Her face tilted up to look at him confusedly.

"Did you feel better after that?" Prithvi asked keenly.

"Not at all," she said hurriedly.

"So you did," he interpreted thoughtfully, and then disengaged from her embrace.

Heart plummeting, she looked at him wretchedly. But then her gloom turned to uncertainty as he pulled open the topmost drawer of the bedside stand.

"What are you looking for?" she asked, bewildered.

Prithvi rose from the bed and walked to the stand on the other side of the bed.

Nandini swung her feet to the floor and was about to get up when he took a large writing pad and pen from the drawer.

Was he going to...no, he couldn't be doing that...he couldn't...

With growing confusion, she watched him stride back to her. Her heart missed a beat as he knelt before her and placed the notepad on her lap. The pen in his hand started gliding elegantly over the paper.

As heat rushed to her face, Nandini forgot to worry about his purpose for some minutes and gazed at him ardently. His face was so close that if she leaned ahead by an inch her lips would graze his brow. Her legs were pressed against his hard torso, and then there was the warm weight on her thighs...

She needed to speak to him but her consciousness had been hijacked by acutely pleasurable sensations. He, on the other hand, was absorbed in his work, and the look of concentration on his features was so endearing that she wanted to -

Prithvi stopped drawing and looked at her without warning. "Sorry, I didn't realise you were uncomfortable," he said ruefully.

Nervously wondering what she'd done to give him that impression, she grasped his shoulders quickly to deter him from moving away.

"I'm not...what are you drawing?" she enquired hastily.

"It's nearly done. Look for yourself," he said drolly.

She dragged her attention to the image at last, and her eyes widened.

It was a fantastic and hilarious portrait of a caveman clad in fur. A club in one hand...long and bulky arms... protruding forehead...a gaping mouth with some teeth missing...and a comically dim-witted and quizzical look...

"What is this?" Nandini laughed in surprise.

"The essence of my spirit," Prithvi smiled mischievously, putting the finishing touches. "Not my actual face, or you'd accuse me of knowing how handsome and hot I am. And I didn't want to make your portrait, because I didn't want to see it being torn," he muttered, subdued momentarily, and then enthusiastically said, "Go crazy. Rip it up. Or you could keep it for the next time I behave like a colossal *******," he said thoughtfully, setting to work on the next portrait to create a reserve for her. She'd seen just one sketch of the scores he had made. But he felt strangely reluctant to divulge that fact...

A slender hand pulled the pen out of his hand.

He glanced up at her questioningly as she kept the pen as well as the notepad to a side. Then she put her arms around him and gathered him against her breast.

Prithvi remained motionless for a moment. Then he wound his hands around her midriff, cheek pillowed on lush and unimaginably soft flesh

Nandini's eyes were wet as she cradled him lovingly, one hand draped across his shoulder, and the other stroking his hair. She'd been aware of his anguish at her tears but hadn't grasped the intensity of his despair until now. Her woes felt transient and superficial in comparison with his sadness...

"Don't cry like that again," he said quietly.

"And you will never be mean again?" she asked lightly.

"Don't cry like that again even if you have reason to," Prithvi modified.

She chuckled. "Please enlighten me on acceptable reactions then."

"Sure. You can push me into a pond full of sharks, empty a cauldron of boiling oil on me, and force me to listen to your grandfather's stories," he listed mulishly.

Nandini thumped his shoulder lightly, then cuddled him again. "I love you too much for my own good," she sighed, caressing his head.

"Perhaps," he conceded. "But if there was a Nobel Prize for that, I'd be the winner."

"Because you're a man and you're doing me a huge favour by even admitting that you love me?" she asked wryly.

"Those are the secondary reasons."

"And what is your main achievement?" she asked, amused.

"Self-restraint," he revealed in a pained voice. "Do you have any idea how hard I'm trying not to take advantage of this position."

Gasping, Nandini thrust him away. Then she wriggled sideways and jumped up. "You should go."

He hastily clarified, "It was a joke."

"I know but errr...Choti maa may return any time now," Nandini said diffidently. And that was true, she realised with a jolt. The scary likelihood had slipped her mind completely.

Not for another half hour minimum, he thought.

Prithvi sighed and rose. "I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked cautiously.

She nodded shyly.

He strolled out of the room, and she followed him closely. When they were at the door, she touched his arm.

"Don't worry about Choti maa...I'll talk to her again," Nandini reassured.

A fresh bout of guilt attacked Prithvi.

He wasn't too concerned about Kadambari's outburst, and also, she had merely continued a trend that had begun that morning, and had hopefully ended. But Uday Singh's views had been pure hogwash. Sumer Singh, on the other hand, had told him what he had known but had not wanted to acknowledge...

"I hadn't planned to bring you back...today," Prithvi said awkwardly. "And I know I shouldn't have done it. But when I returned in the evening, I couldn't – I didn't want to go inside knowing you weren't there," he mumbled self-consciously, then despondently added, "I'm sorry for creating that mess."

Holding his arm, Nandini raised herself on tiptoe and kissed him on the lips tenderly. Then she softly said, "I love you."

"I – yeah – okay," Prithvi said, clearly dazed.

She released his hand and opened the door, bashfully muttering, "Good night."

He gave a confused nod and left the suite.

Nandini closed the door and bolted it. Her tiredness had reduced mysteriously, and now she could wait for Kadambari to return.

She sank into an armchair, engrossed in thought.

A day would vanish in the blink of an eye. Two days...she could quash her reservations for two more days...

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