Avneil FF

Chapter 37

Aman had moved to his new flat that he was sharing with one of avni's 123 gang friends. It was a small room but Aman was glad he was living independently. He had also been attending interviews for jobs. Neil and Avni had also already shortlisted some options for him. Aman was a bit reluctant to see Avni pay for his deposit, rent and utilities. But then again he had no savings and until he got a job he needed to survive. But he didn't want to live with neelama because he was afraid that would put him in a comfort zone. He felt like the only way to get a move on was if he was thrown into the thick of things to face the harsh realities of life...jail had prepared him to handle it and he didn't want to go back to the lifestyle of a rich, spoilt brat. Aman was surprised by how easily Avni understood his unsaid emotions. She had even sensed his mild discomfort with her bearing the expenditure to set him up and she had sat him down and showed him the investments she had already made in his name when she was younger. Since the time she was 18, she had put aside all her savings, whatever Ayesha ma had left etc into fixed deposits, shares, etc. She showed him the details of all these investments and had informed him that this was all HIS money. She was not spending any additional money but only what was already set aside by her for him. Aman was shocked at her planning, foresight. He felt incredibly blessed to have a sister like her who was such an amazing role model. Her practicality, her approach to life was something he looked upto and he really wanted to make sure that he would live up to her expectations. He knew that he had put her through a lot and his life's purpose was to ensure that he could fix those wrongs. Avni wasn't able to express her love for him with the same ease as with Neil or neelama but he could see just how much she had always thought about him in all her actions. It took a month given his criminal record but after much struggle Aman finally did get a job...he was hired at a call center. He also did part time work of accounting for a small firm to manage his expenditure. He had been using public transport to commute and had to share the housekeeping and cooking responsibilities with his roommate. But Avni and Neela ma would often come by to leave some food so that the fridge was always stocked. And thanks to jail term he was used to doing chores and so he was actually managing quite well.Avni too was quite proud of the maturity she was seeing in her brother. He was now soft spoken, responsible and very sorted. And she was happy to see that he was on the path to being the best version of himself.Neil had also watched with quiet admiration and pride how Avni was helping Aman settle. Things seemed to be going great. All her hardwork had paid off and despite her khadooa boss and frustrating colleague, Avni did manage to get a promotion. When she found out about it, Avni immediately called Neil.Avni- Neil, guess what? She said with no preamble whatsoeverNeil- Avni, baby how many times do I tell you...phone par pahle hi, hello bolo, phir baat karo- he teased herAvni- hi hello Ko maaro Goli, I have good news!Neil- bolo. Avni- I just got promoted! Senior Marketing manager! Neil- that's amazing news baby! I'm so so proud of you! Congratulations. Aaj Raat Ko celebrate karte hain okAvni- done. Ghar jaldi aana ok. Accha bye, I got to go now. Have a meeting. Will talk later. She hung up saying everything in a rushNeil could only shake his head and grin at his wife's amazing telephone etiquette which was exclusively reserved for him. At all times except when talking to him Avni was exquisite in her telephone etiquette. She had an overly polite and formal work voice which Neil had overheard a few times and used to tease her about. But honestly he felt happy that she had no filter with him and took the liberties which she didn't do with anyone else.Unfortunately for Neil though, he got swamped with work and was sent on an emergency assignment to Lonavala. He tried calling Avni but it didn't go through so he dropped a message. Avni wrapped up her work as soon as she could excited to go home to celebrate with her husband.when she finally looked at her phone during her lunch break she saw his message about having to go to Lonavala and she was disappointed....it looked like Neil may not make it home or come home super late. She called him to check on what his day was looking like but his phone was not unreachable. Avni disappointedly carried on with her work. She decided to work longer until Neil called and was in office till 830. She fished out her phone but there was still no message from Neil. She made her way back home dejectedly.Bebe- puttar, kya hua bahut tired lag Rahi hai. Aaj bahut late bhi hogayaAvni - haan bebe, just a very long day.Bebe- koi na, tu fresh hoke aaja, main khana lagati hoon.Avni- bebe, actually mujhe bilkul bhook nahi hai. Bus thodi juice ya chai Bana dijiye. Main freshen up karti hoonBebe- kya hua puttar, tabiyat thik hai? she saidAvni- haan bebe, bas khaane ka man nahi hai aaj.She made her way to the room. And took a long warm shower. About an hour later, she trudged back downstairs to help herself to some adrak Vaali chai that bebe made her and headed up to the terrace. She settled down on the comfy loveseat there sipping her chai, looking up at the skies. She moved her seat close to the telescope that Neil had fixed and located their star Avneil. she adjusted the telescope to find their star and as she located it and saw it through the lens she finally cracked a smile. There it was, their star shining up bright in the sky. She gazed at it for a long time and continued to sit there on the terrace trying to enjoy the ambience. But she was desperately waiting for Neil to get back home. She looked at her phone several times waiting for a call or message but there was nothing yet. It was already nearing midnight and her eyelids were getting heavy and slowly dozed off.Neil finally got home at around 2am and when he went to his room he was shocked to see it empty. He checked in the garden, study for her and finally went up to the terrace and breathed a sigh of relief as he saw her silhouette from the entrance. He rushed towards her but stopped short as he took in the sight of her sleeping uncomfortably on the loveseat, her neck at an awkward angle, a small frown on her face. Neil felt very guilty looking at her because he guessed that she must have been waiting for him .He moved closer to her face to brush away a few strands of hair on her face but in the process he mistakenly knocked against her teacup which was on the ledge and it fell down with a loud enough crack to wake Avni up with a startle. Neil- sorry, galti Sai gira diyaAvni- subah hogayi? She asked in a confused tone? Neil just chuckled at her.Avni rubbed her eyes slowly and looked around, taking in her surroundings.Neil- tum neeche chalke sojao.Avni- hmm...she was still very sleepy and tripped as she attempted to walk ahead.Neil immediately reached out to hold her securely. Looking at her he decided it would be easier to just carry her downstairs. So in a swift move he picked her upAvni just wrapped her hands around his neck as he headed downstairs.Neil carefully made his way to their room and carefully placed her on the bed and pulled the covers over her.A few minutes later he also snuggled into bed next to her pulling her closer to him.The next morning when Avni woke up, Neil had already left. She vaguely remembered him carrying her down to bed last night but she was upset to see he had left. She picked up her phone to see a quick message from Neil which read - hey, had to head out early for some urgent work. Will call you later when I have time.Avni looked at the message sadly and got ready to get to work herself.All day she had glanced at her phone waiting for a message. Finally in the evening her phone beeped and she saw a message from DD- bhaabi, Neil sir kuch important kaam se Gaye hai. Kaha hai ki shaayad 2-3 din bhi lag sakte hai. He won't have network or access to his personal phone.Avni acknowledged the message from DD but she was extremely upset now. Itna kya busy ki Voh khud ek phone ya message nahi karsakta hai...2 min lagtte! - she thought!She was in a sour mood all day.And this continued for 2 more days. Avni was trying really hard to calm herself down. She was repeating to herself that Neil was busy with work and he wasn't doing anything on purpose but she couldn't shake away her disappointment at his utter lack of communication. And it was the worst timing. She had just been promoted, she wanted to share her success and joy with him but he was off the radar....she couldn't help but compare it to the time Neil had been promoted and how excited she had been for him and here she was...sulking away, just waiting to see a glimpse of him or atleast hear his voice. Finally after 2 days Neil finally came home that night at dinner time. Avni was happy to see him but she stayed quiet. They all ate in silence apart from shwetajis occasional fussing over her tillu. Avni was feeling a bit slighted but she calmed herself down. After dinner, Neil was so exhausted he headed up to his room and hopped into bed.When Avni went up after clearing the dishes she saw him already fast asleep. She just sighed unhappily.Next morning, Avni was going about her daily routine. Neil was still sleeping in, evidently exhausted after returning from his latest assignment. He finally got up at around 10. Avni was busy cleaning and rearranging things in the study. He took in her stiff demeanour and blank face and he knew he was in for major making up. He had to come up with a wifey manao mission soon.