Endless Nights

Akash Joins Anuja

Akash Mukherjee is thinking hard while sitting straight on the car's back seat and rubbing his chin. He is not very convinced by whatever he saw just before. He is never very fond of Saransh. But he knows his type quite well. Akash has seen Ansh (Saransh's petname) to grow up before his own eyes. Ansh never seemed to him as a hot tempered or irascible type of boy at all. He seemed to have cool, sharp and calculative brain like his uncle, even he got a proper training in cunningness and ruthlessness from him. Ansh is not gentle, soft hearted or compassionate like his own father. He is actually a spitting image of his uncle, Satyam Singh Raijada. Hence such kind of foolishness, to draw a gun on his own Principal and to threat her openly infront of a crowd, is totally unbelievable. There must be something secret behind his such action. He is a mastermind of some other foul thing going on in his mind and to suppress that he puposefully did this foolishness. May be he wants to prove himself exact opposite of his own nature, hot-head, dumb, naive yet angry young man to his Principal.

Akash sighs hard. If Ansh is given so much importance on her, then she could be useful in his own fight. Today at breakfast table he practically spied on Satyam and Damayanti's personal conversations. They both praised this woman highly. Anuja or not, whoever she is, if Akash can make friend with her, may be she can help him in bringing justice to his family. Not every day Satyam praise any woman and Damayanti look so jelous of it. Even his boss, Shivam, seems to know her. Then why Akash could recollect any memory regarding her? At the time of Anuja or Shivangi incidents, he was out of town to complete his studies in Mumbai's popular St. Xaviers College. So he never got the proper opportunity to meet any of them. Hence he is not at all a valid eye witness who could differentiate between them both.

Akash sighs once more. This time more hard. He has made his decision. He himself has to take a test before believing in her. Even though he is well known to the Doshi family, he never meet Anuja before. This is the proper time to do so.

With a determined face he knocks softly on the door of the Principal's cabin.

Knock. Knock.

"Come in" A confident yet polite voice rings in his ears.

He enters into the room with slight hesitation in mind. He does not know what to say or to do. When he pushes the door open by twisting the door knob he notices a dignified lady is sitting straight in her chair at the far end of the room just straight to him. She is looking at him straight in his eyes as if examining him carefully. He also examines her. She is ravishingly beautiful with fair complexion, oval face, sea green eyes with a tinge of blue in the pearl of her eyes, thin trimmed eyebrows, long eyelashes, strong cheekbones, pinkish cheeks, straight nose, red full lips curled in a gentle yet know-everything kind of smile. Her hands are long with long artistic fingers. He does not notice what she is wearing. He is looking straight in her eyes without paying any attention to her clothings or jewelaries. His intelligence screams aloud inside his little brain -

"Trust her. Trust her, you idiot. She is a lady with power. She is no nonsense type whom even Satyam Singh Raijada is afraid of. She is your pal. She will help you. She must."

For a few minutes they both stare at each other like this. They both seem to examine in silence both of theirs own respective potentialites while deciding whether to be friend or foe of each other.

Anuja breaks the ice by addressing softly to Akash - "Hello. I know you will defintely come to me, Mr. Mukherjee."

Akash looks at her in awe. He does not know what to say to her.

Anuja indicates to the door by her right hand and instructs him -

"Meet me in my home within one hour. It is not safe to discuss further more here."

At the evening time Akash Mukherjee joins the Doshis on their bigger lawn area, just before their lavishly decorated modern cottage, on the tea. Two security guards are standing tall in the gate. While sipping Darjeeling tea from their respective cups, both Akash and Anuja narrate their own perspectives about the incident at the college. Anuja's head is still bandaged and a small blood strain to be seen there. She must feel severe headache, Akash thinks, but she seems to ignore it with a brave face. Akash admires that in mind. He is always very fond of brave girls. They remind him of his own sister, Akanksha. She was a born fighter. After his mother's untimely death at childbirth, she took every responsibility of her younger brother in her own hands and performed it beautifully till her own demise. In Anuja, he clearly sees her image. The same fierce strength of character with razor sharp inteeligence and never say die attitude. Akash seems to be ready to help her at any cost now onwards. This battle is his personal battle too and he is also another unfortunate victim in the bloody hands of the notorious Raijada family. He has to avenge his sister's and father's murders and in his mind he knows that only by joining with the Doshis he can achieve his goal.

Gunjan is furious after hearing everything. "How could you do such foolishness, Anu? She asks in agitated voice, while Sashank in complete silence is just watching them like a hawk.

Anuja completely ingnores her sister-in-law's blubberings and leans forward to Akash's chair by asking -

"Will you decide to join in our battle, Mr. Mukherjee?"

Akash looks sharply on Sashank's face. As a commander of this ongoing battle between justice and injustice, he accepted Sashank's dominance. So he decides to look at him at this very moment. Sashank now, while looking at Akash, gently nods his head. This is the desired sign that Akash is waiting for so long.

"I accept your invitation, Madam. I am joining." He replies promptly.

"Good" - Anuja also nods her head in satisfaction and with a naughty glint of mischief in her eyes claims in fake grumpy voice -

"But first of all you have to call me Di (elder sister), instead of Madam."

Even Gunjan, by stopping her endless banters, looks at them straight with wide eyed for some minutes. Then all of them burst into a hearty and cheerful roar of laughter together.