NUMB. That is what Sameer felt. It was like he was reliving those dreadful days when he was 16 years old. There was no one to hold his hand, embrace him, or console him at that time except for that one person who was his topmost priority. But today, he lost that person.

Who would pat his head now to give blessings? Who would embrace him when he would feel low? Who would watch movies with him and argue upon each character's performance? Who would show tantrums on having boiled food? Who would do the morning prayers which served all the house with positive vibes? Who would encourage him to do the best for the company? Who would listen to his random talks without judging him?

He knew that Nanu wasn't going to come back but refused to accept it. This is human nature. Denial is a defense mechanism we often use when we want to avoid confronting a personal problem or reality by denying its existence. This is what Sameer intended to do but was miserably failing in it. Nanu's memories, the photo frame hanging on the wall with a garland and the lull inside the house were, again and again, reminding him that he was gone.

It had been ten days since they attended the funeral. Everyone had come to give their condolences. They all mourned the death of a great personality. Sameer was too blank to even respond to anyone. Munna and Pandit had taken care of all the chores. Naina had also helped by doing her part. It was the toughest day of their lives.

In these 10 days, Munna and Pandit never left Sameer alone even for a minute. He had begun living like a robot whose battery had been left uncharged. The food used to be left untouched. Munna-Pandit somehow used to manage to feed him a few morsels. They were feeling hurt for not able to do anything to improve their best friend's state. He used to sit idle for hours staring at nothing in particular with an ashen face. It was a heart-wrenching sight.

Naina's condition too was nowhere better. She was missing her idol, her only friend, her mentor, someone whom she could address as her own. Three days after Nanu's demise, she had shifted in Sameer's house since they were married now. Though this relationship had no meaning for both of them, still, she had approved of this decision since she didn't want to disrespect Nanu's wish. Munna and Pandit had helped her to shift her essential stuff in his house. Side by side, they had taken care of Sameer too.

It wasn't easy for Naina to leave her house. Nanu's untimely demise was already taking a toll on her mind. Though she was living alone, still, she was content. She had Shaila Chachi too as a companion. They used to talk about numerous things. Whenever Chachi had some trouble using electrical gadgets, Naina used to help her. Similarly, whenever Naina had some trouble in correcting the ratio of spices in a new dish, Chachi would help her. That type of bond they had developed. After an emotional goodbye, she had finally left her home to start a new journey.

When she had entered his house, she was amazed as she watched the big white mansion with admiration. Nanaji used to tell her about Sameer's hard work and his efforts due to which they were living a peaceful life. She felt pity for him for seeing him in that state. She somewhere wanted to do something, to console him, to assure him that it's gonna be okay, but she couldn't. She knew she didn't have any right to do all that. Their marriage was only on papers.

She had been staying in the room in front of his since she had come, while Munna-Pandit stayed in Sameer's room.

Ramdhari too was very depressed. He was missing those morning-tea chit chats with Nanaji. He had always regarded him since he had done so much for him in tough times. He wasn't able to watch Sameer's gloomy state. When he had met Naina for the first time, he could see why Nanaji had chosen her for Sameer. Her polite and kind attitude had answered all his doubts about Nanaji's opinion.

Since they had been busy with their miseries, no one had visited the company. Munna and Pandit had taken care of the work by instructing the employees. Much to their satisfaction, they did the work sincerely. They didn't know how much time they would be working for without the CEO. This too was a problem. Any misstep would cause their entire accomplishments to fly out of the window.

This is why Naina decided to handle the financial department so they won't face any major loss. She worked on the budget and other accounting transactions to maintain the equilibrium. Both Munna and Pandit were quite impressed by her job since it had brushed off half of the burden from their shoulders.

Sameer was unaware of Naina's presence in his house. The previous night only had he come to know that she had shifted in his house a few days ago. He hadn't reacted much to this.

After ten days of drowning in agony, Sameer finally stepped out of his room. Nothing felt positive. There was silence except for the clattering of utensils in the kitchen. Munna and Pandit had dozed off due to exhaustion after getting back from work. Naina was still outside. The marriage had been kept a secret which was safe among the four of them. Ramdhari was working in the kitchen. He saw Sameer descending the stairs and was glad to see him out of his room after so many days, but he could see the darkness on his face. He observed him silently without disturbing his space.

Sameer stood still in the living room staring at the furniture. His mind went to reminisce about the old memories, those precious memories with his Nanu in this house. He walked mindlessly towards Nanu's room and opened the door with a heavy heart. He entered the room and examined it. His spectacles lied on the bedside table. The bedsheet stretched on the bed without any creases. His gaze fell on the old tape recorder which they had gotten repaired recently due to his fondness for cassettes and tapes. Some cassettes lying on the table, a few untouched and new ones. He observed the chair he used to sit on, sometimes reading a book or talking to him or listening to those old melodies which never felt old. He observed the photo frames with his and Nanu's pictures kept on the table and others hanging on the wall. He picked one of them and recalled the days when he had started going to the office. He reminisced one such morning's conversation-

Sameer came down the stairs dressed in a plain white shirt and matching blue trousers. Nanu saw him with admiration and pride in his eyes. Sameer bent down touching his feet to take his blessings.

Nanu lovingly patted his head, "Khush raho humesha. Ready to go?"

Sameer smiled, "Yes Nanu..."

Nanu said, "Kuch din ho gaye hai ab toh office jaate hue. Kaisa lag rha hai environment? And how's the work going? Koi problem toh nahi hai na?"

Sameer replied, "Office environment toh bahut achha hai Nanu. Sab bohot sincerely kaam karte hai...and baki kaam bhi achha chal raha hai. Main roz kuchh na kuchh naya seekh raha hu. Kafi enjoy karta hu apne kaam ko."

Nanu caressed his head, "Yeh toh bohot achhi baat hai. Agar tum apne kaam ko enjoy kar rahe ho toh isse achhi koi aur baat ho hi nahi sakti. Main humesha se kehta aaya hun, jo bhi kaam karo, mann lagake karo aur dil se karo. This is the only key to success. Agar kaam mehnat se aur mann lagake nahi karoge, toh kuchh haasil nahi hoga..."

Sameer said, "Jee Nanu. I promise main roz mann laga ke kaam karunga. Maheshwari Industries ko uss mukaam par laake khada kar dunga jaha koi bhi na pohonch paaye. Aapki tabiyat bhi thodi thik nahi rehti hai ab...but don't worry, main dheere dheere sab sambhal lunga. Aap ho na mera sath dene ki liye aur mujhe sikhane ke liye..."

Nanu's heart swelled up with pride, "I am very proud of you mere bacche." He held his shoulders and continued, "Main jaanta hun tu mujhe kabhi disappoint nahi karega...humesha mann lagake kaam karega. Aur dekhna woh din dur nahi jab duniya tujhe 'Sameer Jaiprakash Maheshwari' bante hue dekhegi. Abhi bohot kaam baaki hai, par yaad rakhna, humesha himmat se kaam lena aur khub mehnat karna. Aage bohot si mushkilen aayengi, aisa bhi hoga jb tera kaam mein mann nahi lagega, kabhi hausla tutega, himmat tutegi, par tujhe khud ko sambhalna hoga aur aaram se kaam lena hoga. Aise hi dekhte dekhte har mushkil aaram se paar ho jayegi."

Sameer hugged him and promised, "I promise Nanu, I'll never disappoint you. Main ek din aapko 'Sameer Jaiprakash Maheshwari' zaroor banke dikhaunga."

He remembered his promise. Till now, Nanu had always been there when it came to official decisions. There wasn't a single contract that had been signed without his approval. Sameer often used to take his suggestion to make the company's functioning smoother.

Though he wasn't a topper in his school or college days, he had managed to get more than average scores. Being nurtured in a business environment, he had got an instant liking in this field. When he was young, he used to watch Nanu working for hours in the study room with utmost dedication. He used to observe him talking on the phone about various marketing strategies, profits, and losses of the company, shares, and various other business-related stuff. By then, he knew his field of interest and had chalked out his career plan in this field. In his second year only, he had begun to visit the office to get familiar with the working environment.

Sameer realized that he had gotten a huge responsibility on his shoulders. He didn't want years of Nanu's hard work to go in vain. With these thoughts in his mind, he kept the photo frame back to its place and wiped his tears which had probably come out after thinking about him. Keeping a firm resolve to fulfill his promise, he glimpsed once around the room and stepped out.

He asked Ramdhari to bring a cup of black coffee for him. Ramdhari's eyes became warm with tears as he saw his Sameer baba getting back to his usual self.
He asked, "Aap thik hai na ab?"
Sameer gave him a warm smile, "Haan... main thik hu ab."
Ramdhari got busied in his work after giving him a nod accompanied by a smile.

Sameer glanced around once to catch her sight but couldn't see her anywhere. 'She might be in her room', he thought. He wanted to have a word with her to clear certain things out.

He was inspecting the contents of one of the office files while sipping through his black coffee when Munna trudged down the stairs with weary eyes. His gaze fell on Sameer sitting on the sofa and was surprised to see him.

Munna sat beside him, "Sameer...tu yahan...tu thik toh hai na?"

Sameer calmly replied, "Haan...Main bilkul thik hun. Tum log upar so rahe the toh isliye maine socha niche kaam kar lun. Kafi thakan ho gayi hogi tumhe bhi. Itna kaam kiya hai."

Munna said, "Isme thakan ki kya baat hai yaar." He paused for a moment before continuing, "Tu aaj...aise achanak...yeh file leke kyu baitha hai?"

"Nothing much. Bas yeh monthly report ek baar check kar raha tha. Kafi time se office nahi gaye na." Sameer replied.

Munna was befuddled, "Tu sach mein thik hai na?"

Sameer understood what he meant to say, "Mujhe pata hai tujhe bohot hairani ho rahi hogi. Nanu ko gaye srf 10 din hue hain, aur main yahan abhi se kaam leke baith gaya." He inhaled deeply and then continued, "Tu jaanta hai na mere liye Maheshwari Industries srf ek company nahi rahi hai aur ab toh yeh ek virasat bann chuki hai jise Nanu humare liye chhod ke gaye hain. Unhone apne hard work aur dedication se iss company ko khada kiya. Ab tak humesha Nanu humare sath the par Ab hume unke nakshe kadamo par chalke isey aur bhi bada banana hoga. Maheshwari Industries ko srf Mumbai ki No.1 nahi balki pure state ki No.1 textile company banana hai. I had promised him ki hum woh position zaroor haasil karenge aur ab waqt aa gaya hai iss promise ko pura karne ka. 'Sameer Jaiprakash Maheshwari' banke dikhane ka."

Munna was proud of his best friend for being so strong. He knew that Sameer was broken inside, but his love for Nanu had suppressed all the grief of losing him.

He hugged him tightly, "Bilkul bhai...tu chinta mat kar. Hum tere sath humesha the, hain aur aage bhi rahenge."

Till then Pandit also came down and saw them hugging each other. Without asking for the reason, he joined in hugged them tightly.
Sameer's eyes brimmed with tears to have these two precious gems in his life.

While having dinner, Sameer asked both of them about Naina's whereabouts, "Uhh...Naina kahan hai?"

Pandit replied, "Jab hum office se nikal rahe the tab toh wahin thi. Wese manna padega, usne kafi achhe se saara kaam sambhal rakha hai kuch dinon se."

Munna agreed with him, "I agree. Humare liye thoda mushkil ho raha tha sab kuch handle karna. But usne help kardi."

Sameer pondered over this. Nanu used to tell him about her considerate nature. No wonder he chose her for him.

It was a bit late when Naina had returned. Ramdhari had already kept her dinner prepared. She assumed the boys would have slept after having dinner, therefore, without msking any noise, she ate her food and went back to her room.

She was sitting on the bed with her laptop when a knock on the door caught her attention. She wondered who might be there at this hour and carefully opened the door.
She was surprised to see Sameer as he was the last person she had expected to be there.

"A-aap? Iss waqt?" She asked hesitantly.
Sameer replied, "Umm...Kuch baat karni thi tumse... Balcony mein chale?"

Naina nodded and followed him to the balcony. They both settled down in the chairs. For a minute or two, none of them spoke a word to ease the awkwardness hanging around them.

Finally, Naina decided to break the ice, "Aap kaise hain ab...?"

Sameer replied, "Main theek hun."
Naina nodded. The air around them became awkward again.

Sameer cleared his throat to again catch her attention, "Mujhe tumse kuch zaroori baat karni thi."
Naina gestured him to go on.

He said, "I know jo bhi circumstances the, tumne bhi aisa kuch expect nahi kiya hoga" He sighed, "Naina, main nahi jaanta tha Nanu aisa kuch soch rahe hain. Woh mujhe tumhare baare mein kabhi kabhi batate the par yeh kabhi nahi bataya ki woh tum hi ho. Sach kahu toh main toh kabhi shaadi hi nhi karna chahta tha. Mere liye iss change ko accept karna bohot mushkil hai mere liye. Mera kaam hi humesha se meri priority raha hai aur ab bhi hai. Par main Nanu ke decision ki disrespect bhi nahi kar sakta. Unki har ek baat maani hai maine. I hope you understand what I mean..."

Naina wasn't surprised since she had expected it. She herself wasn't ready to accept this relationship soon, not when they knew nothing about each other. Their interaction was limited to their office, and it was a different thing. They had never talked or got involved in a conversation other than work, so how anyone could expect them to accept each other as husband and wife.

She slowly nodded at his words and replied, "Main samajh sakti hun. Nanu humesha batate the ki aapke liye aapka kaam kitna important hai. Hum dono hi iss relationship ko abhi accept nahi kar sakte hain..."

Sameer sighed, "I don't know about our future. Kya hoga, kaise hoga...but abhi ke liye main bas yahi keh sakta hun, that don't expect anything from this relationship. Jaisa abhi tak chal raha tha, waisa hi chalne do."

Naina didn't say anything further cuz' there wasn't anything left to say. She just replied with an okay.

Sameer silently nodded and got up to return to his room. Naina watched him leaving and took a deep breath. 'This isn't going to be easy', she thought.

She shifted her gaze towards the sky full of shimmering stars.

"Main aane wale kal ke baare mein kuch nahi jaanti, par main apna waada pura karne ki koshish zaroor karungi Nanaji."

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To be honest, I am not quite satisfied with the update. But still, I have tried to give my best.
Anyways, do give your reviews & votes if you liked it.

Also, What do you think Naina would have promised Nanu?
Drop your guesses in the comment section.

Lots of Love, Sim❣