Kiska Hai Tumko Intezaar

Wrong number pe wrong number

Anaya kicked off her sandals and rubbed her feet, 'Aaj toh Naina ne dance kara kara ke tel nikal diya.'

Sameer's attention turned to her immediately, 'Naina?'

'Hamari dance teacher.' Anaya elaborated, 'Itne different aur complicated moves karati hai.'

'Toh kyon jaati hai uske paas.' Sameer was now sure the girl he saw was Naina, 'Kisi dhang ki teacher ko dhoondna chahiye tha.'

Anaya gave him a peeved look, 'Aap rehne do bhai. Dance wance aapke bas ki baat nahi hai. Aur Naina ke liye toh kuch mat bolo, okay. Best teacher hai. Kya mast dance karti hai. Itni flexible hai. Mujhse toh uske moves try hi nahi ho rahe the.'

'Dance karti hai ya sabko zabardasti nachati hai, apne isharon pe?' Sameer mumbled.

Anaya burst out in laughter, 'So funny bhai. Meri class ki married ladies bhi yahi kehti hain ki Naina ki jab shaadi hogi woh apne husband ko bhi aise hi nachayegi.'

Sameer looked at her with a jerk, 'Naina ki shaadi nahi hui? Lekin tune toh kaha sabki ho rakhi hai sivay woh Ridhi Sidhi whatever ke.'

Rolling her eyes, Anaya explained, 'Maine kaha tha class mein hum chaaron ke alawa sab married hain. Lekin Naina toh teacher hai. Main uski baat thodi kar rahi thi.'

'Oh!' Sameer decided to keep his mouth shut, or rather his mind shut, if possible, to stop Naina's thoughts from invading it.

But his every thought was drifting in her direction. She seemed to be everywhere. How could she suddenly enter his orbit and occupy maximum space? Wasn't it too much of a coincidence? Should he ask his parents and Dadaji if they also know her by any chance. It won't surprise him anymore if they said they had met her somewhere in recent past. She probably had come with a single agenda in mind... take away everyone close to him. It was like there were two teams... Team Sameer and Team Naina. And now, one by one, his teammates were moving to her team. He could almost see a vicious smile of victory floating on her face.

*****

Naina reached home, tired after a long dance session. Since Dandiya night was in two days, everyone wanted individual attention to perfect their steps. Today, the class had decided to practice in their chaniya choli. She let out a weary but fond smile as she recalled how pretty they all looked in their vibrant outfits. Some of them had asked her also to don the dress of garba season but she didn't own any. So she had chosen the next best thing. Usually she wore simple kurti or tracks for the classes but she had specifically kept a few of such outfits for specific occasions when she had to teach traditional steps. The flair helped in showing the grace of movements.

Although now, she felt anything but graceful. In spite of the pleasant weather, she was sweating. The Anarkali suit felt too heavy and irksome. She needed a nice shower before she thought of dinner. Since Natasha would be coming tomorrow night, the house was still dark and quiet.

Flicking the light switch, she walked into the bedroom... only to let out a shriek when she noticed a covered form on the bed.

Natasha pulled down the quilt from her face, her eyes heavy but open, 'Main sone ki koshish kar rahi hun. Chillana zaruri tha kya?'

Naina placed a hand on her chest, breathing hard, 'Nutty ki bachhi, jaan nikal di meri. Tu yahan kya kar rahi hai?'

Pushing aside the light quilt, Natasha sat up, crossing her legs under her, 'Insaan apne ghar mein kya karta hai? Khaata hai, pita hai, sota hai, relax karta hai. Khana banane ki himmat nahi hai, akele pina pasand nahi, sone tu de nahi rahi, aur relax kaise karun jab tu vakil banke aise sawal puch rahi hai jaise maine ghar aake koi jurm kiya hai.'