The shark and the saint

8. Dhadkan

Finally the day of the party arrived. Kukki was happy and excited, especially since it was her first birthday with her new mom. Everyone in the family wore matching outfits: Kukki had a white dress; Prerna had a red sari; and Rishabh wore a white suit with a red tie.

Slowly guests filled the mansion; kids and adults of all sizes. Kukki was excited about friends and gifts and Rishabh was doing business. Prerna however, was waiting for her own friends.

She saw her mom and little brother come in, and apparently Rishabh did too as he came beside her. He took her arm and escorted her to greet her family at the door. As they got closer, they noticed Anurag coming up the steps. Prerna tightened her grip on Rishabh's arm, and he placed his hand on hers as they went up.

"Welcome. Nice to see ke aap log aa sake. Kukki aapko dekh ke nice feel karegi. Aane mein koi trouble to nahi hui ho gi, I hope?" He knew there was tension at the Sharma house because of what he had done.

Mahesh opened his mouth to talk, but Veena elbowed him. "Koi taqleef nahi hui. Hum Anurag ke saath aaye hai," she told him of the ease of travel to come here.

Finally Anurag came up behind them.

"Mr. Basu. Aap yahaan?"

"Aap ke liye nahi aaya yahaan. Aunty ko lift chahiye thi, aur suna..."

Before Anurag could finish, Kukki ran up to them and hugged Anurag. Anurag smiled and kneeled in front of her, handing her a gift and wishing her a happy birthday. Kukki then hugged Veena and dragged her off to the party.

Rishabh sighed. "Since you're here, enjoy the party. But please, try not to create any drama on my daughter's birthday."

He sternly welcomed Anurag and took Prerna with him to see some guests. Anurag too absently decided to talk to some of the people, hoping to make connections.

After some time, Prerna left Mr. Bajaj to hang out with Kukki and her friends. At one point, Kukki's hair got messed up and she took her aside to fix it. Prerna managed to fix the hair, but one of the bands broke as Kukki ran away, hitting Prerna in the eye. She winced and covered her eye, leaning over the nearest table to rest.

Rishabh had been watching from afar and got worried when Prerna hunched over the table. He quickly excused himself and went to her. "Are you alright?" He asked, unsure whether he should put a hand on her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Woh bus, rubber band aankh mein lag gaya tha," Prerna immediately twisted back and stepped away a bit, still blinking her eye.

"Let me see."

Anurag was chilling with Mahesh, having been unable to make any business connections yet. He grabbed a drink from a passing waiter and swung it back. He saw Mr. Bajaj speaking with people and decided now would be a good time to sneak upstairs. He was almost at the top when he noticed Mr. Bajaj had moved. He quickly scanned the floor, and found his rival standing in front of his love. From his angle, Anurag could see them tilted towards each other, his hands on her face. Anurag firmly grasped the railing in anger, and ran faster towards Mr. Bajaj's room.

Being there didn't really help. He saw her robe lying on the bed, and music started playing in his head. Anurag shook it off and began checking cabinets. He saved the big one for last, and opened it to find his and hers closet. Seeing Prerna's clothes hanging right next to Mr. Bajaj's, Anurag got annoyed and whipped away, now facing her dresser. Now his head started imagining visions.

Prerna was sitting at her dresser in her sleeping gown, getting ready.

"Dil ne yeh kaha hai dil se.." Rishabh sang as he came up behind her. He pulled her hair behind her neck, revealing a mangalsutra and kissed the side of her neck. "Muhabbat ho gayi hai tumse."

In anger, Anurag left the room, heading downstairs where the Bajaj family had began their "tour". Their first stop was in Switzerland apparently. They were dressed in winter apparel, and drinking hot chocolate. Kukki had laughed and looked at Prerna. Prerna looked at Rishabh over her mug.

"Mere hothon pe teray hothon ki pyaas aisi jagi," Prerna sang, leaning on Bajaj's shoulder as they walked. "Mann mein meray bhi tan mein teray bhi aag jalne lagi."

Anurag followed the family in real life as they sat at a bench by a waterfall. The family was enjoying a picnic, but there was a different scene in front of his eyes.

"Meri jaan keh rahi hai," Bajaj leaned on the table, in Anurag's face. "Mujhpe jaan nisar karlo." Right then Prerna followed, cozying over her husband's shoulder. "Jitna beqarar hu main, khud ko beqarar karlo. Meri dhadkano ko samjho," Rishabh turned and smiled at Prerna, "tum bhi mujhse pyaar karlo."

The family had moved on to a lot of places by the time Anurag snapped out of it. Everyone had followed them to Paris, where they were having pastries under the Eiffel Tower in a night sky.

"Hoo, raat aadhi hai baat aadhi hai," Rishabh sang as they walked down the street of Paris hand in hand, "behkay behkay qadam," Rishabh tripped, making Prerna fall on him. "Aik duje ko lekay baahon mein aa lipat jaye hum," the couple snuggled and rubbed noses.

Prerna playfully pushed him away and walked away, holding Kukki's hand. "Hoo, kaisi masti hai kitni madhooshi hosh khone laga," she looked back at Rishabh, who was smiling at her. Prerna blushed and looked away. "Tune dekha jo aisi nazroon se kuch to hone laga."

Rishabh shook his head and went after his girls, lifting them both in each arm. "Abh to hai yahi tamanna, chaahat beshumaar karlo," they sang together, "jitna beqaraar hai dil, khud ko beqaraar karlo. Meri dhadkano ko samjho..."

"Tum bhi mujhse pyaar karlo!" Kukki added and her parents laughed, the three of them putting their heads together.

Anurag couldn't stay a minute longer and stormed out of the mansion. Prerna watched him leave, her expressions confused.