Na Jaane Kyon...

Darmiyaan hain baatein ankahi

Sameer narrated the entire phone conversation of Vikas with his friend, that Naina had told him, to his family later in the evening.

Nanu was shocked, "Yeh toh bohot serious allegation hai, Sameer. Naina ko koi dhoka toh nahi hua na?"

"Naina ko kaise dhoka ho sakta hai, nanu! Usne kaha hai toh yeh sach hai. Usne khud bataya mujhe." Sameer instantly defended her.

Rohan gave a slow, understanding nod, "Bhai theek keh rahe hain, nanu. Naina bohot sincere hai, woh aise hi kisi ka naam nahi le sakti... usse pakka yakeen hai tabhi usne bola hai."

Vivek narrowed his eyes, "Arre bhai yeh Naina kaun hai? Security mein new appointment ki hai kya, papaji?"

Before anyone could answer, Rohan's excited voice boomed, "Naina meri assistant hai. Last week join kiya tha. Papa, she's so good... efficient hai, punctual hai, honest hai... ekdum no nonsense type. She's perfect. Nanu, aapne kamaal kar diya Naina ko dhoond ke."

It took a great effort for Sameer to not maul the food in his plate with the fork he had in hand. Without looking up at anyone, lest they notice his blazing eyes, he uttered in an edgy voice, "Hum Vikas pe concentrate karein? Uska kya karna hai yeh sabse important baat hai iss waqt."

Nanu nodded, "Sameer sahi keh raha hai. Jhoot bolna ek baat hai lekin fraud karna... ek saath do jagah naukri kar raha hai woh aadmi aur humein aisi kahaniya suna ke bewakoof bana raha hai."

Vishakha, who had been quiet till now, looked at her father, "Aap kisi ke bhi aansu dekh ke pighal jaate hain, papa. Yeh Vikas dangerous hai, isse kal hi terminate kar dena chahiye."

Nanu gave her a knowing smile, "Tum chinta mat karo. Iska kya karna hai main dekhta hun."

Back in his room, Sameer paced in the balcony. The few minutes that Naina had spent in his car were playing repeatedly in his mind. He couldn't think of anything else. The proximity of a closed car had given him a chance to look into her brown, melting eyes again... and he was mesmerised at his own face reflecting in them. If only he could see the same sight everyday... if only Naina could sit with him, in his car everyday... if only her perfume could envelope him in the same manner everyday... he had remained seated in the car for a long time after she was gone, engulfed in her gentle perfume. However hard he tried, Sameer couldn't bring himself to accept the fact that she already had someone in her life.

"Kyon? Naina ko kisi aur se kyon milne diya... kyon mujhe pehle uske paas nahi bheja... kyon uske dil mein mujhse pehle kisi ne dastak di!" He complained to the moon, who had now become a witness of his sleepless nights and a listener to his daily rants.

Ever since she had come to Delhi, Naina was able to sleep well. But tonight, she was disturbed. Though she had told Sameer about Vikas, she was still worried. Vedika's claim that such people could be dangerous was playing on her mind. She kept wondering if she had done the right thing by telling Sameer and not Mr Maheshwari.

"Sameer sir gusse wale lagte hain. Agar unhone Vikas ko confront kiya toh... ya phir aisa kuch kiya jisse woh alert ho jaaye. Kahin Vikas ne unko harm karne ki koshish ki toh." Naina shuddered at the thought... last thing she wanted was anyone getting hurt because of her.

Next day, she reached office with a headache. A hectic schedule added to the heaviness, making her go without lunch. She told her friends she was preparing an urgent report and would eat later... the report part was true though. Around four in the afternoon, when her head was about to split open because of throbbing, she picked up her laptop and went down to the cafe, for a strong cup of coffee.

Sameer had skipped lunch too, for different reasons. He checked everything about Vikas. All the information that was provided seemed correct. The degrees, the certificates, the recommendations all were from well known, existing institutions. On the surface, he seemed to be a perfectly legitimate employee. But then, he seemed too perfect. When the confusion made Sameer's head spin, he decided to go down for coffee, secure with the knowledge that lunch hour for all floors was over. He was seated at his corner table, beside the pillar when he saw Naina walk in. Her tensed face and laptop in hand unnerved him, making him wonder if he should go to her. She placed the laptop on a table a little away from him. Sameer had noticed several times that Naina never looked around, as was the general tendency of any person whenever entering a new place. Be it the lift, or cafe, or even when he had seen her coming to nanu's room for a meeting, her eyes remained fixed. She didn't seem to notice people present around her. This was a very uncommon trait. Today also, she straight went to the empty table, without looking at the few people seated in the cafe at this hour.