Set in the pre-wedding phase. The wedding gets postponed for six months here and thus, everything that we saw Netra doing after Shashank and Apurva’s marriage in the show – she does it here before that. You’ll know the rest as you read.  

| Part Six |

She did not just say that. She did not. He gaped at her, spending a moment or two wondering if she was actually serious. When her determined face confirmed it, he couldn’t help but wish that his ankle wasn’t sprained so that he could find a wall to bang his head onto again. Apurva Vartak… ugh. 

“You do not mean that, do you?” he asked, sincerely hoping that he wouldn’t get to hear what he was dreading because a part of him knew that his fiancée was capable of doing all sorts of crazy things that he could not even think about in his sane state of mind. 

“Why do you think that I don’t, Mr. Kanitkar?” she said, emptying the medicine strips on the settee. “I’ll be back in a minute.” 

His dumbstruck self couldn’t even bring himself to react until she was out of the room.

Tula koni saangitla mi jaatey mhanun?

Why do you think that I don’t, Mr. Kanitkar?

Hichya dokyaat nakki chaal-lay tari kay? He could only hope against the hope that it wasn’t what he was thinking. 

He looked at the door when she got back with a water bottle. She filled the empty glass on the side table, covered it with a lid, and kept the bottle beside it. 

She asked him if he needed water but he denied. His mind was still stuck on what she had said. 

“Apurva,” he said, adjusting the pillow behind his back that had shifted out of the place, “what do you mean by you are not going?” 

“You know what I mean by that, Khadoos,” she confirmed. “Mi ithech thaambtey… aaj raatri aani udya pan. Sagle parat yeiparyant!” 

“Ugach kahitari murkhasarkha badbadu nako!” He yelled when she actually spoke it aloud. “Tu aani mi… raatrabhar wadyaat… te hi koni ghari nastana… he shakya nahiye! Ghari ja!” 

“Nahi jaanar. Je karaycha aahe te karun ghe!” She shrugged her shoulders, unfazed by his loud warning. 

He couldn’t fathom how she was even considering it. She clearly didn’t seem like she knew how the society worked. That thought would have never occurred to her otherwise. 

“Apurva, aik,” his voice softened, realizing that shouting wasn’t going to work, “mala far kahi laagla nahi aahe. Mi manage karu shakto. Aani kahi laagla tar mi karel na tula call, hmm? Hava tar tu udya sakali ye pan aata… tula jaayla laagel. Kaltay na mi kay boltoy te?”

“Divasbhar thaambu shakte pan raatri nahi… ka? Ah wait… hold on,” she paused and rushed to the wall where the calendar was hanging. 

What is she trying to figure out? Confused, he looked at her when she traced the calendar with her finger. 

“Now I get it!” She turned toward him with the joy of victory on her face. “Aaj pournima aahe. Khara khara saang, Khadoos… you think I am a werewolf who’ll turn into a wolf tonight and-“

Before she could complete her sentence, a pillow hit her shoulder and fell on the floor. She glared at the attacker who had grabbed another pillow by then and aimed it at her. 

“Stop it, Khadoos.” Defending herself, she turned only to have the pillow hit her back and she started questioning his profession. “Magchya janmaat sharpshooter hotas ki kay?” she yelled when his impeccable hits continued until she reached the bed and held his hands in her firm grip. 

“Kay chaal-lay tuza!” she asked, taking a moment to breathe after the exhaustion he had put her through. “Lahaan aahes ka tu pillow fight karayla?”

“Lahaan aahes ka tu asle faltu jokes marayla?” He threw a question back at her. “Kay tar te werewolf mhane! Kami baghat ja zara.”

“Kay?”

“Twilight aani vampire diaries!” 

She chuckled at his answer. The way a deep frown etched across his face gave away that she had truly annoyed him by then. “I know you don’t want me to stay but I don’t have it in me to leave you alone in this condition,” she mumbled. 

His furrowed brows relaxed almost instantly after she spoke. He had never admitted to even himself that her soft tone had a hypnotizing effect on his senses that he could never fight. 

Why he was glad how rarely it came in his share! The very reason he could continue and win most of their fights was because Apurva would be yelling at the top of her lungs and so could he.

But the moment her softened voice or tears entered the scene, he had to bow down in front of her in defeat. They were her sharpest weapons that she herself seemed oblivious to but he knew that he had absolutely nothing that could win against them. 

His eyes stilled on his hands which were still in a grip, making her step back after withdrawing her hold. 

He was quick to remind himself that he could not lose – particularly in that fight – because the consequences were going to be unpleasant for her. “Ja, Apurva!”

She gently shook her head, sitting in a chair near his study table. 

“Tula kalat kasa nahi? Goshti pasrayla vel laagat nahi, Apurva aani aapan kitihi mhanalo tari ajunahi… ajunahi bota mulinvarach uthtaat. Udya koni he nahi mhannar aahe ki lagnaaadhi aapan raatrabhar sobat hoto pan he ki tu raatrabhar ithe hoti. Tu raatrabhar mazyasobat hoti. Tu. Tu. Tu. Loka tuzyabaddal boltil aani mala… te nakoy!” He tried his best to make her see the tomorrow that her overnight stay at the Wada would bring.

Her expression remained calm despite the turbulent energy his words had created in the room.  

“Aikaychi savay aahe mala,” she said, earning a perplexed look from him. “Aamhi parat ikde shift zalyavar barach kahi aikayla milaycha mala. Prashna vicharlya jaayche. Jyanchi uttara nasaychi mazyakade  so… savay aahe mala. Mala nahi farak padat.” 

“Pan mala padto!” He took over the conversation, not making the slightest attempt to mask that a single derogatory word spoken about or for her would affect him. 

“I am not going. End of the discussion from my side!” She declared, too tired to go back and forth in the argument. “But you know what? Just for the sake of your comfort, I’ll ask Atti to come over and stay with us here.” She sighed, getting up to take her phone. 

“Kashla ugach tyanna traas-” 

By the time he could give her enough reasons not to trouble Sarika, Apurva had already dialed the number but the idea wasn’t bad. Better than Apurva and him alone for the night… Much better than Apurva and him alone for the night. 

“Nahi, thik aahe, Atti. Tu kalji ghe!” 

He heard her and smacked himself for zoning out. He had completely missed out on the conversation but he could tell from Apurva’s face that something was off. 

“Atti Kolhapur la aahe. Her friend’s husband… he passed away,” she informed, getting consumed by the pain of the loss for a bit. 

Sarika Aatya Kolhapur la aahe. Dr. Kaushik suddha ghari nahiye mhanje Apurva aaj ghari ekti asnaar aahe. He found himself utterly sad by the realization. He was blessed with a huge family and never quite had to experience what it was to not have anyone around him in the house. 

He had someone… always.  

This time was one of the few exceptions when he had to be without them upon having refused to join them owing to his work commitments. 

He couldn’t help the sudden anxiety that gripped him when he thought about Apurva’s childhood.  

Aamhi parat ikde shift zalyavar barach kahi aikayla milaycha mala.

Prashna vicharlya jaayche. 

Jyanchi uttara nasaychi mazyakade so… savay aahe mala. 

Mala nahi farak padat.

“Khadoos? KHADOOS?” Shaking him by his shoulder, she brought him back to reality. “Kuthe haravlas?”

He looked around for a second before wiping his face to steal a moment to recover from the heavy emotions. “Uhm… aata Sarika Aatya nahi yeu shakat so-“

“Ghari ja sodun kahihi bol!” She cleared beforehand. 

Ka nahi aikat hi? He silently asked himself, watching her unwavering determination. “Did you tell Satika Aatya that you are staying here?”

“Hmm hmm!” She nodded. 

“What did she say?” he asked. 

“Stay!”

His suspicious glare gave away that he didn’t believe her so he asked her again. “Really?”

“Tuza mazyavar ajibaat vishwas nahiye na?” She groaned, punching his arm. “I told her what happened here and how you might need help. She understood my decision.”

“Pan mazya gharchyancha kay?” He wasn’t going to stop finding reasons to send her back.

“Tyaat kay evdha? Mi aata Suva Aai la vicharte!”

“Apurva, nahi!” He snatched the phone from her hand. “Aapla bolna zala hota na tyanna mazya accident baddal kahi sangaycha nahi mhanun? Aatach parat yetil te sagle. Kiti divsa nantar sagle sobat kuthe firayla gele aahe. Let them enjoy!” 

She forced a smile before taking her phone back from his hand. “I’m going to tell her that I need your help with the assignments that I have to submit tomorrow. Happy? But listen to me, Khadoos,” she said, placing the phone to her ear after she made the call, “if Suva Aai is okay with me staying here then that’ll be it. No more discussion!”

“Done!” He was in; confident enough that his mother knew how things worked in a society. He knew that she wouldn’t be okay with what was going on in Apurva’s head. 

Five minutes into the conversation and Apurva’s face beamed. “E-ek minute haan, Suva-Aai, mi phone speaker var taktey,” she said, putting the phone on the speaker as she walked to the bed, “ekda parat bol na!”

Shashank looked at Apurva once and then at the mobile. There was no way with which Apurva could have possibly convinced his mother. What was that joy of victory on her face all about then? 

“Shashank, Apurva la havi ti sagli madat kar. Tichyashi ajibaat bhaandu nako aani… na jevta konich zopaycha nahi!”

Shashank’s widened eyes gave away that he hadn’t seen it coming. He pulled the phone from Apurva’s hand, turned off the speaker, and put the phone to his ear. “Aai? Tula kaltaty tu kay bolteyes te? Wadyaat tumchyapaiki konich nastana Apurva ne ithe raatrabhar thaambna… yogya watata tula?”

“Kay harkat aahe? Garaj aahe mhanunach thaambtey na ti?” Suvarna spoke.

“Pan Aai-“

“Mi mhantey na? Far vichar karu nako! Aani aik… tila hava nako te baghshil!”

Shashank was utterly speechless by the time his mother disconnected the call. 

*

“Appu aaj wadyaat thaambtey?” 

Suvarna turned around hearing Aparna’s voice and caught Vinayak and Vikas with her. She nodded, walking toward them.

“Appu la Shashank chi madat havi aahe tichya kahi assignments madhe aani tila udya submit karaychi aahet mhanun…” Suvarna paused, looking at Vinayak, “barobar kela na, Dada?”

“Colony madhle sagle-“

“Sod na, Panna,” Suvarna cut Aparna off in the middle, “lokannbadal aapan far vichar karayla nako. Aani tasahi lagna tharlay tyancha. Jar thoda vel tyanna sobat milto aahe tar chaanglach aahe na?”

“Pan he asa raatri…” Vikas’s voice trailed off and everyone knew what he was referring to.

“Shashank aapla mulga aahe, Kukki Bhaauji! He can be anywhere, anytime with anyone and we can still trust him on knowing his limits.” Suvarna ended the conversation after Vinayank nodded, backing Suvarna’s decision. 

*

Sticking her tongue out, Apurva teased her fiancé on his defeat, celebrating her victory. She gave him that told-you expression before flicking her hair. 

Shashank could only sigh and lean back, resting his head against the headboard. 

“Bara aik, mi ek thoda vel ghari jaaun yete,” she informed. 

“Tu ghari jaateyes?” he asked, his face beaming with sudden relief. 

“Mi jaaun… yetey,” she said, visibly annoyed, “conveniently aaplyala hava te aiku naye mansane!”

He would have laughed at her taunt had she not added some more lines from her end. His heart sank when he heard her go back to the same lanes that he had started to despise visiting. 

“Itki kay waait aahe re mi ki tula mi tuzya nazresamor hi maanya nahi?”

He hated how far she was from the context that his every word was in. He had to remind himself that Apurva was just 21 and someone who grew up in an extremely sheltered environment for her to grasp the gravity of the matter. 

“You know… I have been trying to figure out for years now… mi asa kay karte ki saglyanna bas mala swatapasun laamb karaycha asta! Dr. Anjali Vartak didn’t want me. Netra Tai hates me and now you… Shashank Kanitkar-” 

“Wants to protect you!” 

She had stilled in her place after he held her wrist. His unfiltered confession was a bit too sudden and unexpected for her to process as it came. 

“Shashank Kanitkar wants to protect Apurva Vartak that she doesn’t seem to understand,” he said, shifting his head to catch a glimpse of her, “she thinks that she knows everything but Shashank Kanitkar wants to tell her that she doesn’t. Shashank Kanitkar doesn’t know about others but as far as he is concerned… he likes having Apurva Vartak around. He is not making excuses to get her out of his sight. He is going against his heart because he doesn’t want to hear any defamatory comments against her… the heart whose only wish at this moment is… to have her around. He is going against that heart…” 

Giving a little squeeze to her hand, he urged her to turn to him. She obliged but kept her gaze on his hand instead of his face. 

His hand slid down from her wrist to her palm and as he intertwined their fingers together, he hoped to win her gaze. “Not because he doesn’t like her as she just claimed but because… he really likes her!”

He had felt something twisting in his heart hearing about how she felt unwanted. Unwanted. Undesired. Unloved. Keeping the twinge of misery aside had come naturally to him though. 

He had never imagined himself saying those three words to her. He liked her. He had never even though they were more true than Apurva could believe them. 

It had been hardly three months for him to have known her. Not enough time to unravel the ajab rasayan named Apurva Vartak but just enough for him to fall for the subtleties of her being. The ones that demanded absolute undivided interest and attention to be visible and understood! 

How it was never about chocolates but the gesture of attention that someone showed by remembering that she liked them and bringing them for her to see her smile!

How it was never about the unwillingness to learn to use her own hands to eat but the yearning to be pampered and fed by someone who deeply cared for her!

How it was never about the random, nonsensical, and silly fights but the assurance of being important and irreplaceable to someone that they would choose to lovingly convince her and not abandon her!

He hadn’t quite thought that he would ever let it come over his lips, knowing that she was in his life for just a year. He couldn’t make things awkward but having her expressing her distress again and again had led him to be courageous. 

Aapan… parat kadhich na bhetlela aawdel tula?

I asked something. Am I not important to you?

                                                            You are. More than you’ll ever know. More than I can ever let you know. More than I can ever let anyone know.

Aayushyabhar mazyasathi swayampak karayla tu aayushyabhar mazyasobat asnaar kuthe aahe! Ek varsha. That’s it. That’s it

Abhyas… aawadto mala. Karshil? Milavshil first class?

                                                             Aani jaashil mala sodun? Mhanaycha basically hech hota na?

Thank you, Khadoos but asu de. Tula mi jaayla havi aahe na? Mag jaau de mala.

And you think… mala aata traas nahi hot aahe?

Itki kay waait aahe re mi ki tula mi tuzya nazresamor hi maanya nahi?

For a moment, he almost regretted letting that confession find his voice when her downcast eyes refused to allow him to look into them to figure out the impact of his words but his heart… his heart was certain that it was the best thing he had done that day. The absolute best. 

For a change, he decided to believe his heart. “Does Apurva Vartak understand?” he asked, their hands still securely clasped together. 

“Hmm.” 

“What does she understand?”

“Shashank Kanitkar…” She began to slowly pull her hand back to herself. “Likes Apurva Vartak!” And with that, she ran out of the room. 

Her blush brought a shy smile to his lips, leaving him ruffling his hair. 

I was supposed to write a note but running short of time so will do it later. I hope you enjoyed reading this part.

Do share your feedback in the comment section. What you liked. What you didn’t. Anything and everything. It keeps me going. Ignore typos, if any ( no matter how many times I proofread, kahi na kahi rahunach jate… sigh ) or let me know so that I can quickly edit.
Much love.

I N D E X

Part One

Part Two  

Part Three

Part Four

Part Five

Part Six

Part Seven

Part Eight

Part Nine

Part Ten

Part Eleven

Part Twelve