Ruhana, Vineet and Viren are having their breakfast. Viren is busy eating his breakfast. The cute, little idli’s that are served to him are colourful and he’s certainly enjoying it. Ruhana and Vineet are talking slowly wherein the latter tells his wife that he has asked someone to find out about Sahni’s company. Ruhana is thoughtful and it didn’t go unnoticed by Vineet.

“Kya hua? Tum kya sochne lagi?” He asks her.

“Vineet, directly unke baare mein pata lagane se acha hai hum unpe research kare. Let’s find out some articles about their business and stuff. I mean, koi bhi directly kyun batayega kisi ko! I mean, hum dono bhi ek dusre ko apna idea batane se pehle 10 baar sochte hain. Kyunki obviously, it should benefit us, hai na?” Ruhana looks at her hubby who’s turned thoughtful.

“Tum thik keh rahi ho, Ruu. Lekin ye sab pata kaise chalega?” Vineet asks his query.

“Newspapers aur online articles se, Vinu. Actually, jab maine kaam shuru kiya tha tab Sahni’s ka bhi bahut naam tha na. Maine kayi businesses ko study kiya hai. Isliye main chahti hoon ki hum kuch bhi karne se pehle unhe ache se jaane.” Ruhana keeps her point.

“You’re right. Waise bhi wo kuch bhi kar sakte hain. Ab na toh main tumhe kuch hone de sakta hoon aur na hi Viren ko.” Vineet says looking at his brother who’s busy eating his breakfast.

“Han, Vineet. Tum office sambhalo, meri Shanaya Mehra se meeting hain. Main wo karke ghar laut aaungi. Agar tumhe kuch help chahiye toh mujhe bula lena.” Ruhana says and Vineet tends to agree with the plan.

They finish their breakfast and are talking when Viren suddenly jumps towards them, looking at them keenly.

“Viren, kya hua?” Ruhana asks lovingly.

“Hum—-hum aaj park mein jayenge naa?” He asks them, dodging his gaze between the two.

“Han jayenge. Par sham ko. Abhi hum ghar pe rahenge.” Ruhana smiles at him.

“Aap office nahi jaogi? Bhaiya akele jayenge?” He chuckles, getting happy that his brother won’t have a helping hand.

“Nai, lekin mujhe ek ghante ka kaam hai, phir main wapas aa jaungi. Uske baad hum khelenge, okay?” Ruhana looks at him affectionately.

“Hum…sc….scrabble khelenge.” Viren looks at her and she agrees.

Viren gives a quick hug to Ruhana and she pats his cheek asking him to rest and not to trouble Savita Kaaki. He agrees and runs to his room only to get his new video game.  Vineet is watching them and there’s a smile on his face. Ruhana catches him smiling and asks the reason. He holds her hands in his and kisses her forehead. She’s surprised by the sweet treat given to her.

“Ruhana, tumne kya kiya hai? Ye Viren toh saari baatein maan raha hai. Meri toh kabhi nahi maanta.” He says, and Ruhana giggles.

“Haha, don’t be jealous, Mr Husband. Wo kya hai na, mera devar mujhse bahut pyaar karta hai.” She winks at him.

“Pyaar toh main bhi karta hoon na –tumse bhi aur usse bhi. Par mujhe toh har baat pe satata hai.” Vineet makes a face.

Ruhana smiles at his antics. It’s nothing but his way to converse with her. All he wants to say is that she’s handling his brother even better. But the thing is other way round. She cups his face.

“Vineet! Aisa kuch nahi hai. Infact, mujhse zyada ache se tum usey sambhalte ho. Maine sirf kuch cheezon mein change kiya hai, tumhari jagah nahi li hai. Aur wo bacha hai abhi, shayad kabhi tumne danta ho ya kuch kaha ho, isliye katrata hai. Akele sab sambhalna bahut mushkil hota hai, Vinu. And I am proud of you ki tumne ye sab kia.” Ruhana says and kisses his forehead.

“Jaanta hoon, Ruu. Mujhe bas dukh iss baat ka hai ki maine tumse jhooth kaha. Agar pehle hi bataya hota toh shayad abhi haalat kuch thik hote.” Vineet says, he really means his words.

He’s seen how easily things have changed after Ruhana’s arrival. She’s fulfilling the motherly void in Viren’s life and that is why he’s listening to her. And yes, she’s handling him patiently, though, most things are done by Vineet, yet he can feel the difference. He knows he needed help yet he didn’t tell her anything, despite knowing that she’ll be there always.

“Vineet, please, itna guilty feel karne ki zaroorat nahi hai. To be honest, mujhe aisa laga tha ki tum mujhe trust nahi karte. Lekin Vineet, shayad ye sahi tha. Han, main jaanti hoon farak kyun hai, kyunki ab hum 2 log hain na Viren ko sambhalne ke liye. Isliye cheezein aasan hai. Lekin iska matlab ye nahi hai ki main kuch zyada kar rahi hoon aur tum kam. Aur tum thik soch rahe ho, shayad wo abhi Maa ko miss kar raha hai, isliye shayad wo meri saari baatein maanta hai.” Ruhana says convincing him.

“Aur waise bhi main sirf suggestion dungi, faisla tumhara hi rahega.” Ruhana says and he smiles.

He is surprised about how well she understood him and he understands the depth of her words and embraces her in his arms, hiding his face in the crook of her neck. Ruhana is surprised but she pats his back and tries to help him calm down. It’s been very overwhelming for him to see Viren doing things on his own and that he’s not being cranky at all.

A few minutes later, Vineet leaves for the office and Ruhana also leaves for her meeting. She promises Viren that they will play scrabble once she gets back home and they’ll also play in the park. He seems satisfied and happy.

A big day has just begun in the Singhania Household.

*****

In the other corner of the city, there stands another bungalow —-Khanna Villa. The house is chirpy as a little girl is running around the hall of the house giving a tough time to her dearest mommy. The little one seems to have a holiday and her mom is having a hard time convincing her. A lady is sitting on the couch, she’s breathing heavily. She’s in her early thirties and she’s a doctor by profession. She calls the little girl by her name.

“Ana! Baby! Please Mumma ki baat suno.” Bulbul says while looking at her girl who turns away her face.

“Noo Mumma! Aap hamesha aisha hi karte ho.” Ana aka Anamika responds to her mother.

“Betu, Mumma ko zaroori kaam hai na. Aap chahte ho Mumma ko Ishika Maasi se dant pade?” Bulbul looks at her mentioning about her senior who’s her daughter’s favourite.

“Wo nahi dantegi aapko. Aapki holiday hai na ? Fir aap kyun jaa rahi ho?” Anamika asks her babyishly.

Bulbul sighs. Yep! She’s been on a holiday for a week. Her daughter is not keeping well on the health front, so she took leaves, as she herself wanted to take a break which her head Ishika Mehra gladly gave her.

Today is her holiday too, but there’s a case and Ishika wants Bulbul to handle it personally. Now, she can’t deny it. It’s her job. While the little girl is not in the mood to understand. She’s small though, and right now, she wants her mother near her.

Bulbul is in a trance when her phone rings. It’s her friend and colleague, Riya, who’s calling her to ask about her whereabouts. The former tells that her daughter is not letting her come at which Riya suggests her to bring Anamika to the hospital.

“Are you out of your mind, Rio? Ana ko kaise leke aaun wahan? You know usko infections jaldi hote hain.” Bulbul lashes out at her best friend.

“Arey! Itna hyper kyun ho rahi hai? Hospital ke pas ek naya game zone khula hai. Main Ana ko wahan le jaungi. Tu patient ko check karlena.” Riya says from the other side,putting much sense in her friend’s mind.

“Arey han! Wo toh main bhul hi gayi thi. Par teri duty bhi toh hogi na!” Bulbul asks, concerned for her friend.

“Madam, meri shift dopahar ko khatm ho jayegi. Main almost free hi hun. Tum aa jao jaldi. Ishika ma’am was asking about you.” Riya says and disconnects the call.

Bulbul looks up and finds Anamika staring at her. Bulbul asks her if she’d like to come with her and play with her Riya maasi. Anamika tends to think but agrees at which Bulbul sighs deeply. She makes her ready and the mother-daughter duo leave for the hospital. Also, she promises her daughter that they will go to the park in the evening. 

*****
Bulbul is a single mother. She loves her daughter a lot as she’s the last memory of her late husband —Dev Khanna. An unfortunate accident led to Dev’s death and here, Bulbul is left alone with their daughter Anamika.

The lady has turned silent and is happy only for her daughter. She’s very serious and dedicated when comes to work. And she’s shielded her heart with glass walls. There’s no place for anyone except of her late husband, Dev.

The mommy-daughter duo is happy being with each other.

*****
Singhania House

Ruhana returns home after two hours and finds Viren walking into the hall room. She looks for Savita Kaki who’s nowhere to be seen. She calls for Viren whose face lights up to see Ruhana.

“Aap  aa gayi? Main kabse wait kar raha hoon.” He jogs towards her.

“Han lekin tum itne pareshan kyu ho?” Ruhana asks, sensing that he’s again hurt by someone.

“Wo kaaki! Kaaki ko bukhaar hai.” He tells her and it worries Ruhana.

“Kahan hai wo?” she asks.

“Wo apne kamre mein hai. Maine unko bheja udhar. Wo nahi ja rahi thi.” he fills her with the information.

“Acha relax! Tum apne room mein jao, main kaaki ko dawai deti hun.” She says lovingly.

“Nai main aata hoon.” He follows her inside the lady’s room.

The lady is having a severe fever. Ruhana gives her the medicine and then keeps wet towels on her head. All the time, Viren is sitting near her. Meanwhile, her phone rings and she needs to attend to it. She takes the call and after a few minutes, she turns around and is pleased with the sight she is offered.

To Be Continued.

What did Ruhana see?

Stay tuned.