Episode# 5 (part-b): - Jab we met (in the jungle)

Before starting the episode, there's one thing that needs to be clarified. Many of you are getting confused about Rishi and RV being the same person. People, Rishi is the pet name of Rishab, the father and husband of Atharv and Swathi; he is the eldest one. Meanwhile, RV is the pet name of Rithvik, "the 2nd eldest" among the gang.

Let's start: -

Sanskar slipped from the cliff, but since the cliff wasn't very steep or dangerous, he didn't suffer any major or serious injuries. After calming his spinning head, he stood up and began dusting off his hands when he suddenly remembered the girl (Swara).

Worried, he started searching for her, but the whole area was covered in a thick layer of dried leaves, making it difficult to see anything. He looked around but couldn't find her. Taking a few steps forward, his foot caught on something, and he tripped, falling forward. Luckily, he managed to catch himself in a push-up position, saving his face from hitting the ground.

He had closed his eyes during the fall, but when he opened them, he realized he had landed on something—or rather, someone. He looked down and found an unconscious girl beneath him (it was Swara), but he couldn't see her face because her hair was covering it. He sighed in relief, thinking, "Thank God I didn't fall fully on her, or else her body would have been crushed under the force of my fall."

He realized that she was the same girl from earlier, and he immediately got up and sat beside her. Gently shaking her while uncovering her face, he noticed a small but not too deep wound on her forehead.

Concerned, he tried to wake her up. After about 10 minutes, Swara stirred slightly and slowly opened her eyes, holding her head in pain. Sanskar sighed in relief when he saw that she was awake. He helped her sit up as she tried to move her head, but she hissed in pain from a sudden wave of discomfort.

As she blinked her eyes a few times to clear her vision, she looked around, trying to make sense of her surroundings. When her gaze finally settled on Sanskar, she was first confused. But then, as the memories of what happened flooded back, she panicked at the sight of a man sitting so close to her.

Swara crawled back a little, clearly scared. Sanskar frowned slightly but quickly realized that she might be frightened.

"Hey, relax. I'm not going to hurt you," he said gently. "You fell from the cliff, and when I stepped forward to see if you were okay, I ended up falling after you."

Swara looked around and then tried to communicate with him using sign language. Sanskar's frown deepened as he watched her gestures, confusion evident on his face. But then, a sudden realization hit him, and his eyes widened.

"Are you mute?" Sanskar asked, his voice softening. Swara nodded her head slightly in response. Sanskar felt a pinch in his heart at her response, but he quickly pushed the feeling aside. He looked at Swara, who was pressing her head with one hand, clearly in pain.

Sanskar stood up and reached for his cell phone in his back pocket, only to realize it wasn't there. He suddenly remembered that he had left it in the car. He cursed under his breath and glanced back at Swara, who was watching him with tears welling up in her eyes. He could tell she was in pain.

Sanskar looked around, trying to find something—anything—that might help, but the dense foliage and unfamiliar surroundings offered no clues, nor could he spot an exit.

"Umm, I think we have to walk to find our way out," Sanskar said hesitantly. Swara nodded in agreement and tried to stand up, struggling a bit as her head was still spinning. As she rose, she remembered that she had her shoulder bag before falling. She looked around frantically but couldn't see it anywhere.

Sanskar noticed her distress and asked, "What's wrong?" Swara, using sign language, indicated that she was looking for her bag.

Sanskar, after a brief moment of trying to understand Swara's gestures, realized what she meant and started looking around, thinking she might have a mobile phone in her bag. As he scanned the area, he spotted her bag a little distance away.

"There it is," Sanskar said, walking toward the bag. Swara followed closely behind. Sanskar picked up the bag and handed it to her, asking, "Do you have a mobile phone?"

Swara checked inside her bag but shook her head, indicating "no." She had handed her cell phone to Priya before getting off the bus, something she only just remembered.

"Damn," Sanskar muttered in frustration, then looked at Swara, who appeared nervous and scared. He took a deep breath, composed himself, and said, "Let's go."

As they started walking, Sanskar suddenly stopped and glanced at Swara, noticing the wound on her forehead. Realizing he didn't have a handkerchief with him, he asked Swara if she had a napkin or tissue in her bag.

Swara looked into her bag and, luckily, she found a hanky. Sanskar took the hanky from her hand and softly tied it around her head. Swara was shocked by Sanskar's sudden act but soon composed herself.

"Sorry, but I don't have anything else to clean or wrap around your wound," Sanskar said to Swara, who in return showed him a thumbs-up sign, meaning "it's fine."

Both were walking silently, as they didn't know each other, and the major thing was that Swara couldn't speak. Sanskar was trying to find a way out of the jungle, while Swara was just following him.

Suddenly, a butterfly came in front of Swara. She grinned upon seeing the butterfly and started trying to catch it. Sanskar, who was walking ahead, heard some noise from behind. He turned and saw Swara jumping to catch the butterfly.

Swara was trying to catch the butterfly with both hands, and they were making a clapping sound. The butterfly, while flying, came near Sanskar. Sanskar, who had a small smile on his face after seeing her play like a child, suddenly became shocked because...

Swara, in her excitement to catch the butterfly, didn't realize that she had come close to Sanskar. When she saw the butterfly just a little nearer, she jumped to catch it, and her hands made a loud clapping sound.

But the thing that shocked her was that her hands landed around Sanskar's cheeks. In her excitement, as she tried to catch the butterfly, her hands accidentally made a clapping sound on Sanskar's face—in simple words, she had unintentionally slapped Sanskar on both cheeks.

She didn't slap hard, but it wasn't very soft either. Swara stood with a shocked expression, gazing at Sanskar with her mouth open. Her hands remained on Sanskar's cheeks.

She was standing like a statue when Sanskar cleared his throat. Swara snapped back to her senses and quickly removed her hands from his face. Sanskar was at a loss for words, unsure of how to respond.

Swara's color turned pale as she looked down in embarrassment. Sanskar didn't say anything further and simply told her to keep walking.

Sanskar's POV: -

For the first time in my life, I was at a loss for words. This girl—I'm not sure what to make of her. In this difficult situation, stuck in the jungle, she was playing like a child. Her accidental slaps weren't hard, but they stung a little.

I couldn't bring myself to say anything harsh to her because I knew she didn't do it intentionally. Her innocent face prevented me from reacting negatively. Maybe I'm starting to feel something for her. But just forget it; I don't want to pursue any relationship with her. If I am developing feelings, I need to let them die because a tainted beast like me can never be with someone as beautiful as her. But why do I feel like I've seen her somewhere before? (Swasan doesn't remember their first meeting in the mall's parking lot.)

Sanskar's thoughts were interrupted when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked in that direction and saw Swara pointing towards her feet with a sad face, indicating that she might be tired. Sanskar realized they had been walking for quite a while; it was almost evening.

He scanned the area to find a place where they could rest for a while. He told Swara to walk a bit more so they could find a suitable spot. She nodded and followed him. Within five minutes, they discovered a relatively presentable place where they could take a break.

Swara sat down near a tree and took a deep breath. Sanskar, who was about to sit beside her, had a sense that someone was watching them.

His sixth sense told him that something was off, but he didn't want to alarm Swara. He glanced around but didn't spot anyone. For the time being, he decided to ignore his concerns and sat down attentively.

After some time, Swara pointed towards him with some signs. Sanskar initially looked confused but then, with a hint of doubt, asked, "Are you asking about my name?" Swara nodded her head vigorously.

"Oh, my name is Sanskar. By the way, what's your name?" Sanskar asked, revealing his name.

Swara looked around and found a small stick. Using the stick, she wrote her name one letter at a time. Sanskar read the letters aloud, "S...W...A...R...A, swa...raa, Swara?" He looked at her, and she gave him a wide grin. Sanskar chuckled at her smile.

"Nice name. By the way, what were you doing there before you fell?" Sanskar asked. Swara made a corn sign and pretended to take a bite. Sanskar guessed incorrectly a few times, but eventually, he figured it out.

"Bhutta? You were eating bhutta while standing there?" Sanskar asked. Swara gave him a thumbs-up sign.

"Moreover, why did you give me a shower?" Sanskar inquired, causing Swara's face to turn red with embarrassment.

Swara scratched her head, placed her hand on the tree, and made a crawling sign upward, showing her fingers to make some sign.

"Umm, snake?" Sanskar guessed, but Swara shook her head. "Umm, cockroach?" Swara made a disgusted face and shook her head again.

"Then...ummmm," Sanskar pondered, while Swara eagerly waited for him to figure it out.

Sanskar looked at her, then at the tree, and after a few more guesses, he suddenly said, "Lizard!"

Swara clapped her hands in excitement, relieved that he finally guessed correctly. She then signed to him that she had been trying to throw water on the lizard, not on him.

Sanskar understood that and said, "It's okay." Both communicated like this, with Swara asking him questions using signs and sometimes writing on the ground with a stick. During their conversation, Swara rubbed her stomach and made a sad pout while looking at him.

"Hungry?" Sanskar asked, to which Swara nodded in affirmation. Sanskar felt a pang of sympathy for her, knowing she was fragile and probably not used to handling such situations. As a man and leader of a gang, such scenarios were common for him.

Suddenly, Swara held up her finger, indicating for him to "wait a minute." She dug into her bag and searched for something. After a moment, she pulled out a normal-sized chocolate. She grinned widely upon finding it and gave Sanskar a bright smile. Sanskar, in return, chuckled at her.

Swara gave half of the chocolate to Sanskar and ate the other half herself. They sat there, talking occasionally and sometimes sitting in comfortable silence. Sanskar managed to light a small fire by rubbing two pieces of wood together.

As the evening wore on, Swara's eyes began to droop with sleep. Before she could fully process anything, her head fell onto Sanskar's shoulder. Sanskar, initially hesitant, looked down and saw her sleeping peacefully. After a moment's pause, he gently wrapped his arms around her waist and drew her closer, taking comfort in the warmth of her presence. He settled back against the tree, feeling a sense of peace he hadn't expected.

For now, he chose not to dwell on the uncertainties of the future, finding solace in the quiet moment with Swara.

Next morning: -

Sanskar woke up to the sound of chirping birds, rubbing his eyes as he felt some movement on his chest. Looking down, he saw Swara sleeping peacefully with her head resting on him. A small smile formed on his lips, and he gently patted her head.

Carefully, he lowered her onto the ground, not wanting her to feel awkward or embarrassed upon waking. He sat silently beside her, and after a few minutes, Swara stirred and woke up.

Without saying much, Sanskar suggested they continue searching for a way out of the jungle. Swara nodded and stood up with him. However, as they took a few steps, Swara's expression turned to one of fear, and Sanskar's face went blank.

In front of them stood 4 to 5 goons or local mafia types, their faces twisted into creepy expressions and guns in their hands. It was clear they were locals of the area. Two of the men eyed Swara with predatory gazes, making her instinctively hide behind Sanskar.

Sanskar's fists clenched in anger, his eyes burning with rage. Swara, frightened, clung to his shirt from behind, her grip tight.

The scene freezes on Sanskar's furious face and Swara's terrified expression.

To be continued...

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