Kiska Hai Tumko Intezaar

Gayi bhains paani mein twist aa gaya kahani mein

'Umm Natasha, ek baat puch sakta hun?' The absence of sarcasm or anger in her voice encouraged Sameer to seek some answers to what was playing in his mind since he had seen Naina with those unknown people.

'Puch sakte ho par main jawab dungi ya nahi iski koi guarantee nahi hai.' Natasha keep her voice plain but her eyes were filled with amusement.

Sameer hesitated for a few moments, but the inquisitiveness gnawing at the back of his mind for so long prompted him to try, 'Naina ne un logon se koi loan wagerah le rakha hai kya? I mean, kya woh usey paison ke liye pareshan kar rahe hain? Ya fir... kisi baat ko lekar blackmail... tumne hi kaha tha tum Naina ke baare mein sab jaanti ho toh yeh baat bhi zarur pata hogi.'

When he did not hear a response from Natasha immediately, he quickly added to clarify, 'Main sirf isliye puch raha hun kyonki woh log rudely baat kar rahe the. Aur Naina ne unhe kuch nahi kaha, balki mujhe wahan se chalne ko bola... aur mujhe unke saamne apna boyfriend bhi bola. Naina kyon aisa karegi? Woh toh mujhpe bhadak jaati hai jab main kisi ko aisa kehta hun.'

Natasha took a deep breath, 'Dekho Sameer, Naina ki life mein kuch complications hain lekin usey unke baare mein baat karna pasand nahi hai. Woh sirf bohot close logon se apne issues share karti hai. I'm sorry, main tumhe kuch nahi bata sakti. Agar tumhe yeh sab janna hai toh... toh Naina se hi jaan sakte ho, jab who khud batana chahe.'

She heard the click of the bathroom door. Hurriedly, she whispered into the phone, 'Naina aa agyi. Usey pata nahi chalna chahiye ki maine tumse baat ki thi. Okay bye.'

Sameer still had the phone stuck to his ear, his mind in even more confusion now as he wondered, 'Ladki hai ya koi puzzle? Aise kya issues hain jinke liye itni secrecy chahiye? Kahin chori wori ki thi kya, jisey un logon ne pakad liya aur ab blackmail kar rahe hain? Waise dekhne se blackmailer type toh nahi lag rahe the, ache khaase the.'

Natasha grinned at Naina, 'Hey, dinner ready. Aaj maine tere liye Nutty special pav bhaji banayi hai. Tere jitni achhi nahi hai par...' she fluttered her eyed dramatically, '...pyaar ko pehchano jaani, taste pe mat jao.'

Naina couldn't hold back a smile at her antics, 'Nautanki kahin ki.'

Natasha placed a hand on her heart, letting out a sigh, 'Hayee, sundar ladkiyan pyar ko nautanki samajhna kab band karengi? Jaaneman, yeh mera pyar hai tere liye, sachha wala. Isey nautanki keh kar mere pyar ki value ko kisi plane ki tarah crash mat kar.'

Naina could see that her friend was trying to make things normal, and bring a smile to her face. She took a step ahead and wrapped her arms tight around Natasha, 'I love you Nutty. Pata nahi tere bina mera kya hota. Tu meri life ka North star hai. Jab bhi main kho jaati hun tu hi mujhe raasta dikhati hai.'

Natasha hugged her even tighter, feeling relieved that Naina sounded better, 'Babydoll, hamara bachpan ka pyar hai, hum paida hi ek dusre ke liye hue hain.'

When she stepped back after a while, Naina's gaze fell on the phone in Natasha's hand, 'Tu call pe thi kya? Kisse baat kar rahi thi?'

It was then that Natasha realised that she had forgotten to end the call. Quickly pressing the button, she silently cursed Sameer, wondering why he did not disconnect, before giving a sheepish smile to Naina, 'Woh... Rahul ka call aaya tha. Is week ka schedule banana hai na, uske liye puch raha tha. Nothing important.'

At the other end, Sameer stood with open mouth. The exchange between two girls had left him dumbfounded.

'Hain kya yeh dono? Aise kaun baat karta hai apne dost se? Naina usey Nutty bulati hai wahan tak toh fir bhi theek hai lekin woh Nutty... mera matlab Natasha, kya kya bolti hai... jaan, sweetheart, babydoll! Chee! In dono ko sharm nahi aati? Sunkar aisa lagta hai jaise...' He put a brake on his thoughts. They were taking a direction that he strongly did not want to believe.