Malhotra weds Murthy Revisit to GolMal

Chapter 6 -"McDonald's treat..."

McDonald's Connaught Place: New Delhi: 6:00 pm:

Dhruv is sitting at a corner table, restlessly tapping his fingertips on the table. Manik was supposed to come by 5 but maintaining his perennial procrastinator habit, he is as usual one hour late.

Dhruv: (Annoyingly mumbles) "Come what may, I won't let you go without having this treat, Bhai. Be it a burger or finger chips. Pinchpenny Malhotra."

He thinks for a while. Malhotra covers the entire family. But he doesn't consider himself as a miser. Last week only he gifted a face scrub to his mother. Last month he bought a book for his Dadi. Now, these are enough to prove that he is not a pinchpenny. He changes his words.

Dhruv: "Pinchpenny Manik Malhotra. Today I will have all the burgers of this place."

Maybe this time he was a bit louder. A man nears the table and occupies the opposite chair. Dhruv meets his smiling face with a deep frown.

Manik: (Teasingly) "You are allowed if that can remove my stigma of being a pinchpenny. But remember we have only two bathrooms in our house. Ha..ha.. By the way, I am late because of your friend. She was supposed to wait for me at the college gate but I waited for one hour and she didn't come. I called her and she didn't pick it up. Sometimes she really tests my patience. On the way here, I got her message that she is going outside with her family. Dhruv why these families always play the third wheel between lovers?"

Dhruv: (Narrowing his eyes) "I am your family too, Bhai and I am not playing gooseberry between you both. Anyway, order something. I am really hungry."

Manik shrugs and gets up to head the order counter.

Manik: "I guess you have fasted since the morning to make a hole in my pocket. Glutton Malhotra."

With a winking smile, he leaves. Only then, a family enters the sitting area. Dhruv casually turns his head to look at them and his heart hitches for a nanosecond. He immediately covers his face with the flyer kept on the table. He knows every member of this family. All are there only that dangerous dog and Nandini are missing. The famous Murthy family. Couldn't they find any other place to enjoy? He curses his fate. On the other side, Murthys make them comfortable on a table. Dhruv peeps through the corner of the flyer.

Vimesh: "Where is Nandini?"

He looks around to search for his daughter and Dhruv immediately hides his face.

Harshad: "She went to the order counter. I am just going there. Anything should be added? Ritumaa, Amms?"

He raises his brows to be sure.

Kishori: (Squints) "They don't put nonveg in between, right? You doubly check it."

Harshad: (Smilingly) "Ha..ha...No Amms..they make veg and nonveg separately. Nandu knows. She will order accordingly."

He leaves and goes downstairs to join Nandini. Kishori looks around to measure the ambience. Only then, her eyes fall on Dhruv. She tries to see his face but due to the flyer, she can't. With sceptical eyes, she elbows Rituja.

Kishori: (In a suspicious tone) "Ritu...Ritu..look at that boy. Doesn't he look like that weird boy who came to our house to meet Nandu?"

Rituja follows her eyes and releases a sign.

Rituja: "Amma, how can you recognise him so easily? His face is covered. We can't even see his face. Now don't tell me you recognised him by his height and physique. Because he is not standing too."

Kishori: "That is exactly my point. Since we have come, I have been observing him. He is constantly covering his face with the paper. What is he reading in it?"

She takes the same flyer from the table and turns and flips to find out anything special which can attract a person so much. Rituja rolls her eyes and looks at her husband with a helpless face. Getting nothing speciality in the flyer Kishori keeps it in its previous place and gets up from the chair.

Rituja and Vimesh: (Surprised) "Where are you going? Amma!"

In reply, they get only a suspicious hum. Kishori walks to the table where Dhruv is sitting. Dhruv has already seen the danger coming. He lifts all the leaflets from the table and barricades his face from almost every side. Now, most of the people around are quizzically observing his peculiar behaviour. But it true said, self-preservation is the first law of nature. He hardly can think about his image when the danger herself is standing in front of him. Kishori tries to peep through the paper fence and Dhruv starts behaving like a new bride.

Kishori: "Excuse me...hey..are you that boy who came to our house? Hey, listen!"

She comes to the side in a hope that she may get a glimpse of his beautiful face. 🤭🤭 However, this time Dhruv doesn't take any risk and turns his body so that Kishori won't get any chance to even peek through his side profile. Kishori comes to his left and Dhruv again turns to that side. At a point the scene becomes like this – Kishori is taking circles of him like a devotee and Dhruv is spinning on his chair, desperately trying to hide his face. Meanwhile, Kishori is continuously ranting,

Kishori: "Hey....show me your face...I know it's you..."

Vimesh and Rituja are looking at this circus with baffled eyes. They forget to even react. Suddenly a virile voice startles Dhruv and unmindfully a flyer drops from his hand, making his face partially visible.

Manik: (Annoyed) "What the hell is going on? Hey you, Granny! Why are you bullying my brother?"

Kishori: (With flared nose) "I knew it!"

...................................................

McDonald's Connaught Place: New Delhi: Order counter: Some time ago:

Manik: "Two McSpicy Chicken, two BigSpicy Chicken wrap one medium French Fries and two large coke, one...Nandini.."

Suddenly his eyes get fixed on a figure entering from the door.

The order taker boy: "Sorry, Sir..we have no food item called Nandini."

Manik rolls his eyes at him.

Manik: (With a plastic smile) "I know...because she is not any food item. You add some extra ketchup packets in the place of Nandini. I am just coming. How long will it take?"

Order taker: "10 to 15 minutes, Sir. Take away or dine-in?"

Manik: "Dine-in."

He rushes towards the door where he has seen his ultimate happiness. On the other hand, Nandini was entering with her family. When she sees Manik approaching her she immediately addresses Harshad.

Nandini: "Harshad, you make all sit upstairs. I am going to order the food."

Harshad: "Okay, I will come back to carry the trays. Don't worry."

In reply, Nandini only curves her lips in a formality as her entire concentration is on Manik. She is just praying that Manik won't yell with her name. Harshad get all others upstairs without any chaos and Nandini rushes towards Manik.

Manik: (Surprised) "You are here? This is your family outing? In McDonald's! How convenient and cliché!"

Nandini: (In a sarcastic tone) "Better than you. Giving a treat to your beloved brother out of burger is more convenient and cliché, Mr Malhotra. Anyway, my family is here, so, no talk no acknowledgement. As we will go upstairs, we don't know each other. Clear?"

Manik makes a picked face and shrugs. Only then, a call is heard from the order counter.

"Mr Malhotra...your order."

Both approach the counter.

Author's note: More drama and funny chaos will be there in the next. So, stay tuned. 😉😉