Destiny's Play!!

Chapter - 14

Avni was in her room and had just taken a medicine as a precautionary measure against her headache. She had migraines and one attack had the capacity to put her out for at least a few days. Someone knocked on her door and she went to open it. It was Nilakshi. She had changed too from her formal attire to a casual kurta pajama.

"I saw the lights under your door so I thought maybe you weren't asleep yet," she said hesitantly.

"Is something wrong aunty?" Avni asked.

"No, everything is fine dear," Nilakshi replied then smiled, "can I come in?" she asked.

"Of course," Avni said and opened the door wide for the older lady to enter.

"Thank you Avni," Nilakshi said and entered going up to her bed and sitting down, "actually I was meaning to apologize to you Avni," she said as she looked at Avni.

"You really don't have to aunty," Avni said horrified at the idea of Nilakshi apologizing to her.

"But I do bachche," Nilakshi said and smiled, "what happened at the dinner table today," she said and paused, "should not have taken place," she said slowly and looked away. "Tej should have had more control," she said, "for you to witness our family squabbles like that, I am really sorry Avni and you didn't even eat your dinner properly," she said.

"Aunty please," Avni said and went to sit next to the older lady on the bed, "don't apologize. I understand. Every family has some issues and it is okay. Since I will be staying here for some time I will witness some of these things so don't worry about me. I am fine and I did eat my dinner too," she said honestly, "you know I am not a big eater anyway," she told her and smiled to assure the other lady she was fine.

"Thanks Avni," Nilakshi said as she held Avni's hand in her warm one then sighed, "I don't know when Tej and Karan will put away their differences and at least attempt to be civil to each other. Their attitudes worry me so much," she said trying to get Avni to understand. "Tej is so particular about certain things and so is Karan and together they see everything differently," she said.

"But aunty I thought uncle was angry with Uday for coming late," Avni said confused. Why was Nilakshi aunty talking about Karan wasn't it because of Uday?

"Avni, you are new to our household and I don't know if Shalini told you anything but Tej was already upset when he saw Karan in the dining room," she said as she took a deep breath in, "and Uday being late only added fuel to fire. It is my fault too I should have told Tej to expect Karan at dinner today but he came home so late and then he was on the phone the entire time, more so it slipped my mind with getting things ready for dinner. Though we have servants but someone needs to monitor them too," she said and smiled sadly.

"Aunty, if you don't think it odd may I ask you a question," Avni asked hesitantly. She wasn't sure if Nilakshi would find her asking questions as meddling.

"Of course, bachche," Nilakshi said with a warm smile.

"Aunty why does Karan live there all by himself," Avni asked, "I mean it is none of my business but I found it a bit odd," she murmured.

"It is odd, and you are not the only one who thinks that," Nilakshi said, "but he has been living away from us since he was seventeen," she told her, "first he was at the hostel when he was studying, then he was in Delhi when he started his own firm then when we bought this property he bought the property right next door," she explained, "however while we built this house five years ago Karan built his house two years ago and moved in," she said, "so he likes his own space and does things his own way which is actually good in a way considering how short wired Tej is around him," she told Avni.

Avni wasn't sure if she should ask further or refrain. All of the above Nilakshi had mentioned was all okay but why didn't the father son duo get along? There was no reasoning Avni could find in Nilakshi's explanation. Maybe Karan was just as undisciplined. But from the looks of what she had seen that seemed the most unlikely case. Why was she so bothered? It wasn't as if Tej uncle had found fault with her in fact he had done the exact opposite, he had praised her. She just hoped nobody took it in any other way because she had never been a rebel she had always been a follower. For her following things came easy. Maybe that was why her life had become such a complete mess. And that worried her. She was not here to make friends but she was not here to make enemies either. She just wanted to be left alone from whatever problems this family had but it was becoming much clearer that sooner or later she will find herself deeply entangled in their affairs and that thought scared her the most.

"It is alright aunty," Avni said hoping she sounded right, "please don't worry too much about this and I sincerely hope things will work out for the better," she said and smiled.

Nilakshi smiled too.

"Thanks, bachche," she said then rose to leave. She was almost at the door when she suddenly remembered something and so she turned, "by the way why did you apologize to Karan?" she asked with a frown.

Avni had totally forgotten that Nilakshi knew about it. Why had Karan told her that?

"Aunty it was my fault too and I felt bad that he was scolded by you," she said in a small voice, "I should not have run in the face of dogs but...but I am petrified of them and at that moment it never occurred to me to stay put," she said sounding so lame it was pathetic.

"Oh, Avni," Nilakshi said shaking her head, "you are such a softie. There was no need. Had Karan kept them on leash they wouldn't have run like that," she said, "so most of it was Karan's fault and don't worry this isn't the first time I have scolded him because of his dogs. It was only you fainted and I was worried. Anyway, take it easy and sleep well dear," she said with a wide smile, "good night," she said and walked out the door closing it behind her.

Avni said 'good night' too. Then she sat there for a while thinking of all that had happened today. She was amazed at the control Karan had exerted during Tej uncle's outburst. And she was perplexed at how calm he had sounded when he had said he was leaving. But some part of her knew he was not calm from within. How she knew that she had no idea. She was not even an instinctual person to say that about him. And why was he in her thoughts so much? She decided to close the lights and lie down to sleep though she knew sleep was going to play elusive again tonight. But she needed to sleep if she had to keep her headache at bay. With that decision made she lay down and switched off the lights. She kept blinking for several minutes before finally drifting off to a stage where she was almost asleep.

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