Kiska Hai Tumko Intezaar

Meri saat pushten bhi pyar nahi karengi

As Natasha sashayed around showing her new dresses one by one, Naina received a notification. She glanced at her phone.

'Nutty pause. Manoj ka reply.' She screamed, making Natasha forget her catwalk and rush to join head with her, their eyes glued to the screen.

In silence they read the message, then checked the job opening on his company portal. It was similar to the work Naina was doing in her first job, and she had loved it. With her brows raised up, she slowly turned her face towards Natasha

And they both hollered in unison, 'Yayyyy!'

Natasha beamed at her, 'Dekha maine kaha tha na. This is great. Better profile, better salary aur teri choice ki company.'

Naina swatted her arm, 'Suggestion hai, confirmation nahi hai job ka. Tune toh hawai mahal bana liye.'

'Aaj offer aaya hai kal interview call ayegi aur phir teri flight Thakkar ka runway chod ke seedhe Astro Advertising ke airpost pe land hogi.' Natasha pinched her cheek cheerfully.

The option filled Naina with excitement. She quickly prepared a cover letter but decided to mail it to the concerned team next day, after rechecking all details in her resume.

Folding her new outfits, Natasha exclaimed, 'Ab toh tujhe shopping karni hi padegi. Yahan tere murjhaye hue colours ke kurte pehenne ki zarurat nahi hogi. Smart corporate dressing pe wapas aane ka time aa gaya.'

Putting the laptop away, Naina yawned, 'Jab time ayega tab sochenge. Kal toh inhi murjhaye hue kapdon mein us sade hue office jaana hai. Thak gayi yaar main. Agar is Manoj ke reference se yeh wali job mil gayi na, use pakka achhi si party dungi.'

Natasha raised an inquisitive brow, 'Hmm. Party. Lagta hai yeh Manoj teri life mein special role nibhane wala hai. Kya irada hai meri jaan? Kuch kuch hota hai kya? Hota hai toh bata de, main samajh jaungi.'

Rolling her eyes, Naina laid down on bed, 'Behen banaya tha usne mujhe. Bhool gayi kya? Aayi badi...' she mimicked Natasha, '...kuch kuch hota hai. Hawa aane de. Yeh kuch kuch hone wali bimari tujhe hi mubarak. Main kya meri toh saat pushten bhi is kuch kuch ke chakkar mein nahi padne wali.'

Natasha chuckled, 'Bina is chakkar ke pushten ayengi kahan se meri jaan. Pushten paida karne ke liye pyar bhi karna padega aur shaadi bhi.'

'Pyar karegi meri jooti.' Naina mumbled, pulling the cover over her head angrily.

After switching off the light, Natasha took the other side of bed and shifted closer to Naina, whispering, 'Naye office mein apne in third class khyalon ki churi talwar leke mat jaana. Open minded rehkar aankhen bhi khuli rakhna. Manoj bhaiya nahi toh koi aur hoga... jo saiyaan banne layak ho.'

'Good Night Nutty. No sweet dreams for you... just horrifying nightmares.' Naina mumbled and turned her back to her friend, closing her eyes.

Coming week became a whirlwind of events for Naina. After she applied to Astro Advertising, next day itself she was asked to sit for the first round of interview which was online. Once it was cleared, she had to go for next round, in their office. Taking a couple of hours off from work, Naina quickly changed in the washroom of a café, and reached on time. She did not see Munna anywhere but the interviewing team mentioned him once and expressed that they were glad at his recommendation. Suddenly, she felt quite positive about this development and kept her fingers crossed. But when she received a mail from them, asking her to come to office again after two days, her heart fluttered with fear of rejection. She need not have worried though. The HR team was prepared to make the offer and asked her about expected salary. Without hesitation, Naina asked for the salary to be matched to her previous job, not the present one.