Phir Ek Baar

Ek Ajnabee

The morning sun rays that were falling on Naina's eyes woke her up. She opened eyes slowly and saw the sun was peeking in from clouds but may not be able to warm the air just like her heart which has become cold after Rajveer. She sighed, straightened the neck and walked towards the washroom to freshen up. When she came out saw the room empty and then found everyone in the dining room except Huda and his father who were in the fields. The breakfast was served by the staff but was prepared by Huda's mother. The food included different types of stuffed parathas and tea. Her friends were eating the tasty parathas and thanking her for preparing it for them. After breakfast, Naina and her friends were sitting and trying not to doze off as the ghee filled food was making them sleepy. Huda's mother asked them to go for a walk rather than just sitting as lazy people. They were going outside but she stopped Naina. Her friends can guess why Naina was asked to stay, so, left her alone with Huda's mother. Naina surprisingly went back to sit on the sofa with his mother. 

Huda's mother (in low voice) : "Dekh Naina beta, mujhe pata hain tune bahut dukh jhele hain par uska muqabala bhi kiya hain. (Naina looked at her with moist eyes and she caressed her face) Tu kyu apne dard kae saath hi jeena chahti hain. Jo chale jaate hain woh nahi aate par unki kami humesha hum logo kae saath rahti hain. Tujhe ek saathi chaiye jo tujhe har dard aur khushi mae saath de aur tu uske. Mujhe tu humesha se hi pasand hain apne Amardeep kae liye kyuki tu hi use sahi rah dikhati hain mere baad. Woh mera beta hain isliye nahi kah rahi par woh ek acha jeewan saathi saabit hoga kyuki woh tujhse bahut pyaar karta hain. (Naina tried to speak but his mother didn't let her) Mujhe pata hain tu nahi karti usse pyaar par beta ek acha saathi jeewan mae khushiya la deta hain. Tere dil mae jo insaan hain woh usko bhi tere saath apna lega".

Huda's mother left after patting Naina's head affectionately and Naina was lost in her thoughts. She wanted to say no but was not able to as doesn't want to hurt her. But it's the only reason, Huda is her friend, who loves, helped and supported her and most importantly is aware about her feelings for Rajveer Sir. Naina knows that, if she says yes then he won't pressurise her and will let her take time to accept him but the main question is will she. What if she doesn't accept him and loses a good friend. What if, her parents force her to marry a stranger who doesn't understand her like Huda and may have to live an unhappy life. She thought it's better to be in a relationship with Huda who knew her well rather than a stranger with whom she may be suffocated and will be afraid to cry for Rajveer even in heart. But Naina's heart is not accepting what mind was telling her.

All of her friends were going towards fields to see Huda. They saw a car stopped near the main gate and a man got down, only his back covered in a big jacket was visible to them. He was also going towards Huda's direction and they were behind him from a distance. Yudi saw Huda who was talking to a labourer and his father was outside the field. The man was now standing next to Huda's father who called his son. Huda turned but was still talking with the labourer to finish the work quickly. He came near to his father and was shocked to see the man who was standing there.

Huda's father : "Amardeep, inse mil ye hain Mr. Sujal Grewal, jo humare fasal ko directly kharidna chaate hain" .

Huda didn't hear what his father was saying after his name and was just looking at him. Sujal was surprised to see his behaviour and even ignored his hand for the handshake.

Sujal : "Hi Amardeep, I am Sujal".

Huda's father patted Huda's shoulder to bring him back as was looking lost. Huda came out of shock and met his hand but was still not believing it. He was glancing at his face and looks exactly like Rajveer Sir still why he is not recognising him. He wants to hug him tightly and to ask where he was all these years. His friends came near to him and were also looking at Sujal with wide eyes. Huda was about to tell his name but Alekh hugged him tightly and then rest also wrapped their arms around him. Sujal was startled by their behaviour and tried to get out of their hold but they were not leaving him.