yun hi tu mere saath rehna

Chapter Thirty Seven

“Do you want to be there?” Armaan asked Krish, as they went over last minute preparation to ensure that everything was in place.

“No,” Krish said. “Main iss waqt bohot gusse mein hoon. Kahin kuch aisa na ho jaaye ki baat aur bigad jaaye.”

Manish Goenka had finally reached out after weeks of radio silence. He had agreed to sign over the academy to Abhira, and everyone was glad that they wouldn't have to drag the whole thing to court. Everyone, but Krish Singhania. Krish had been practically salivating at the idea of publicly humiliating Manish Goenka. As days bled into weeks without any response to Abhira's notice, and the mandated period drew to a dangerous close, Krish had started working on building an airtight case against Manish, with Armaan as his trusty right hand man in the entire operation.

The two of them had poured over countless texts together in Armaan's swanky new office, trading barbs over their preferred drinks of choice - coffee for Armaan, masala chai for Krish - as they drafted arguments for various curveballs they thought that Sanjay Bansal would throw at them in court, Abhira joining them more often than not. It had been an exceedingly fun activity and while Krish would not think it was in vain because he had enjoyed spending time with Armaan & Abhira, it still irked him that it had been all for naught. 

But, he was immensely ecstatic for Abhira. The little girl had been through so much at such a young age. She deserved this. Well, she deserved much more. She deserved every happiness in the world. But, they would start with this. 

“Mamu, aap itni tension mat lijiye,” Armaan assured him. “Sab theek se ho jaayega. I'll be there with Abhira at every step.”

“I thought Abhira nahi chaahti tum inn sab mein involve ho. Isliye Bua ne mujhe bulaya tha na?” Krish asked, confused.

“Uske keh dene se main peeche nahi hat jaunga,” Armaan replied. “Uski tasalli ke liye aapko bula toh liya but woh kaise expect kar sakti hai ki itna sab ho jaayega aur main haath pe haath rakh ke baitha rahunga? Aur waise bhi, ab toh main firm mein kaam bhi nahi karta. I can represent her. And I will.”

“How is she handling it?” Krish questioned. “Fufu told me about the police report.”

Armaan smiled at that, touched by Krish's concern. Everyone in this family was so loving. They really cared about each other and it always showed. “She's handling it better than I expected, honestly. Lekin, aap toh jaante haina Badi Maa aur Bade Papa kaise hain. Usse ek minute akela nahi chodte. Koi na koi har waqt uske saath hi rehta hai, usse distract karne.

But, I think dheere-dheere uska gussa bhi shaant ho gaya hai. After all, Akshara Maa ne jo bhi kiya, she thought she was doing the best for everyone. Woh nahi chaahti thi ki jis tarah unhone apni saari life khudko Sirat Aunty ki death ke liye blame kiya, Ruhi bhi waise badi ho. She wanted to break that cycle of trauma.

Aur phir, ek tarah se toh achcha haina. Ira uss ghar se door badi hui woh uske liye hi better raha, warna kya pata woh bhi Ruhi ki tarah hoti? Ya shayad Akshara Maa ki tarah self sacrificial bann jaati aur uss family pe apni saari zindagi luta deti.”

“That's good,” Krish murmured. “Achcha hai ki woh akeli nahi hai. Tum sab ho uske saath.”

Armaan concurred. It healed parts of him he didn't even know to have so many people to fall back on. He was so used to shouldering responsibility on his own that he had never realized how freeing it could be to have someone to rely on. He suspected that it was the same for Abhira. 

He was extremely gladdened by the fact that Abhira trusted her family enough to seek their support. He remembered how hesitant she had been in the beginning, unsure when she would step one toe out of line and her new-found family would also abandon her. He remembered how wary he had been too, unsure if the people who claimed to love Abhira so deeply actually did.