Na Jaane Kyon...

Tu itni khoobsurat hai fida deedar pe tere

Ready for surprise?
Well, it's a guest appearance...

Though he had hardly slept in the night, Sameer wasn't sleepy at all.

After the second cup of tea with Naina, he had gone down to hotel reception and got a duplicate key. Now, back in his room, he lovingly held the handkerchief. The drops from her hair, that had covered his face, now rested in the white hanky. It had dried up, owing to the weather, but he could still feel the subtle fragrance of her shampoo.

With a deep sigh, he placed the handkerchief on his heart and wrapped his arms around himself, "Tumhare aansuon ki wajah main jaan ke rahunga, Maina... and I promise you, tumhari muskurahat ki wajah main banunga."

His mind went back to what she had mentioned about the smell. The lift last night indeed reeked of alcohol. He had no idea how drunk those boys were, but they were quite a few glasses down. Sameer had never gone beyond Beer in his life, that too, only on rare occasions. But now, even that won't happen, he decided. He would never, ever touch any alcoholic drink in his life.

Half an hour later, he was ready to go for breakfast after his bath. It was a free day for them. Mr Kothari had finished all the required work yesterday, and asked them to keep this last day for exploring markets.

"Naina, din mein hum badi shops mein chalte hain, jisse dhoop mein na ghoomna pade. Shaam ko Nehru bazaar, Kishanpol bazaar aur Bapu bazaar chalenge. Woh yahan ki famous markets hai." He suggested at the breakfast table.

"Hum market jaa rahe hain?" Ayush turned to Naina, his eyes filled with excitement.

"Haan. Aisi market jahan lehenga, saree, jewellery jaisi cheezen milti hain. Bata tujhe kya leke dun?" Naina teased him.

"Main koi girl hun jo yeh sab lunga. Mujhe football wali market jaana hai. Parth ke paas new football hai, uski bua na leke di. Mujhe bhi chahiye." Ayush pouted, frowning.

Naina narrowed her eyes, tapping her temple as if thinking something, "Football... umm... achha woh wali ball jisse sab bachhe akele akele khelte hain?"

Ayush pressed his forehead, "Offo, akele kaise khelenge? Ek football se two teams khelti hain. TV pe nahi dekha kya?"

"Ek football toh Parth ke paas aa gayi. Usse tum sab khel sakte ho na? Teams banake." She said with a smile, having made her point.

Ayush thought about it for a few seconds, then beamed, "Arre haan. Poori team ko ek hi toh chahiye."

Sameer proudly smiled at her simple yet effective way of teaching him to share. He was also feeling lighter to see her back to her old self, calm and composed... in control.

While Naina and Ayush made a list of what he would buy from the market, Sameer opened his insta account, sipping coffee. The first post made his eyes widen. He put the cup down and started typing hastily. Within a second, the reply lit up his face.

"Naina, main abhi aata hun. There's a call I need to take." He pushed his chair back as the phone started to ring almost immediately.

She nodded with a smile, and got back to talking to Ayush.

"Tu Jaipur mein kya kar raha hai? Kab aaya? Bataya kyon nahi? Abhi kahan hai?" Sameer barraged the caller with questions without waiting for his answers.

Sanjay laughed at the other end, "Pagal ho gaya hai kya? Delhi nahi aaya hun jo bandook ki goliyon ki tarah sawal pe sawal daag raha hai. Bhai Jaipur mein hun... shooting ke liye."

"Abey main bhi yahin hun, Jaipur mein. Isliye puch raha hun." Sameer grinned.

It was Sanjay's turn to be pleasantly surprised, "Kya? Tu yahan hai? Pehle kyon nahi bataya?"