Arshi FF: Entwined Souls

5. Moments of Serendipity!

Raizada Mansion,

Delhi

Shantivan is defining its name — peace. Everyone in the home was silent. Shyam Manohar Jha was on another trip. The bluish-orange sky outside of the Riazada Mansion with birds flying under the orange hue indicated it was Evening. Akash and Manohar had returned from the office early and were sitting beside each other reading a Magazine. Akash was nervous, not at all concentrating on the Magazine. Manorama, Anjali, and Devyani sat on the other sofa talking about random things. Devyani was knitting a sweater while Manorama was biting on an Apple, sitting in her usual pose.

Every one of them was lost in their own work when they heard the calling bell. HP who was cooking for his Boss's family inside the kitchen has come out to open the door. But before he could do that, he saw Akash already walking towards the door. So, HP had gone back to the kitchen knowing if they were guests, Anjali or Manorama would anyway scream at him, for pleasantries.

Akash on the other hand stood shocked, his eyes wide open and his spectacles did nothing to hide his surprise, replacing shock, his hands hanging in the air, and his mouth a little open, unable to believe the sight in front of him, "Payal?" he whispered.

"Can I come in?" Payal wasn't nervous and definitely not afraid when she asked him, standing in all her glory of a simple green Anarkali Dress, with a handbag hanging on one of her shoulders. It looked like she has come from her office.

Didn't she like the bouquet he sent to her? Akash wondered in silence.

"Sure." He invited her in, moving aside for her to enter. Is she here to accept his proposal? He could only stare at her back, lost in thoughts, following behind her when she suddenly stopped even before they enter the hall.

"I want to talk to your mother," she said, turning towards him with her hands on her handbag, looking into his eyes hovered over by spectacles.

He gasped at her words, why would she want to talk to his mother? "What? But Payal, why?" He took a few steps forward and Payal still stood, without taking any step back, quite confident about what she was saying.

"I just want to talk, nothing big!" Payal shrugs her shoulders, jutting her lips together and before Payal could say anything more, they heard Manorama.

"Hello Hi, Bye Bye, what is this Khoon Bhari Taang doing here?" Manorama was wondering why it took a few minutes for her son to come back. She decided to check on him and as she walked towards the entrance, she narrowed her gaze at the familiar back. She had to recognize her in seconds since she was someone she didn't like the most after Khushi aka Phatisari.

Those middle-class gold diggers! She could only scoff at their faces in her mind. What does the sister of phatisari doing here? She wondered if she was here to trap someone from the house.

Middle-class girls are only capable of that!

Payal released a breath, turned around, and smiled wide at the woman in front of her who always dressed weirdly, "Oh, hi, Mrs. Raizada. I was just asking about you from your son."

"Eeh? About me?" Manorama twisted her mouth in annoyance. Is she here to trap her in her web? Hmph! Manorama can never fall for a middle-class girl's trap. She mimicked a famous villain from the star plus Serials in her mind.

"Can you tell your son to stop proposing to me every now and then?" Payal was straight to the point. She had been proposed to by Akash even before Khushi went missing and from then, he always tried his best to impress her. And when she joined the office again, he'd been sending bouquets frequently. She could only whine and scoff at his actions. The thread of patience has been cut off today and she is here, deciding to show him the true colors.