UE part 18

It had been a week since Arnav and Anjali's visit to her house...

both Arnav Khushi, despite being immensely buried in work the following week, could not help fleeting thoughts of their encounters..and both desperately brushed them away..

Khushi sat at her desk tossing her pen in her hands as she cross checked an article she had been working on..

"Khushi!" a collegue called..

"huh?" she raised her eyes

"Rishab sir wants you in his cabin"

"sir? ok..i am coming!"

Rishab, aka, editor in chief of the Indian Times, was a hard core journalist but not a very ethical one at that, and Khushi used to thank her stars she wasn't in the entertainment department of the newspaper or he would surely get her to climb into celebrity's houses some day..

"sir, you called? "

"oh yes! Ms Gupta..please take a seat.."

she drew out a chair and sat..

"well..you know AR has just bought Creveat company under it's wing"

"yeah..i read of it"

"and Arnav Singh Raizada holds the official announcement and disclosure of venture details to media tomorrow at AR eastwing auditorium"

"oh.."

"i want you to be there"

"WHAT?"

"what's so surprising about it?"

"can't you rope someone else in?"

"i think I asked YOU Ms Gupta, yes or no?"

"but it's also followed by a party"

"i know. And journalists of specific media groups have been invited. As have been ours"

"but-"

"great! I am glad you don't have a problem"

"actually.."

"it's tomorrow at 7:00"

silence..

"Fine..i'll be there.."

"good"

"Ms. Gupta!"

"yes sir?"

"that last article was very impressive"

"thank you sir"

that's how this man worked..she groaned in her mind..to get his job done..

oh hell..this meant another meeting with cement pile!

Khushi was in the perfect attire for the evening..wearing an elegant yet very muted outfit for the occasion ..

It was no doubt as boring as she had expected it to be..the party had just begun and Mr Arnav Singh Raizada was yet to give the formal speech on the venture details she had come for in the first place..

As she roamed about in the lawns outside the auditorium, Khushi's eyes fell on a baby toad hidden amidst the satiny grass..

Being just the opposite of the 'eeewww' category of people who would literally swoon if a bumble bee passed in front of their noses, Khushi bent down and picked the little creature in her hands after checking that no one was watching her...

"oh..helllooo..boring stuff isn't it here? You lucky one! Don't have to stick around like me..but you have to stay with me ok? I am getting dead bored in here" she kept talking to the creature in her palms..

a few minutes later,she checked her watch..Arnav Singh Raizada was due to make the announcement in 5 minutes now...

"okay, so time to say bye bye now dear, I should go inside...i WHOOOAAAHH!!"

She shouted as she collided head on with a fast pacing figure..

"WHAT THE!!"

Arnav exclaimed at the sudden impact, and their eyes met..

"YOU?"

"YOU?"

both exclaimed in unison

"AR happens to be my company" he said raising an eyebrow

"and I happen to be a business journalist" she said raising hers..

"look up when you walk, this is not a public park"

"why don't you try walking slower?"was her immediate retort

"do you realize your cheekiness can get you out of here in moments?"

"i-" she started but cut off mid sentence...

and then her eyes widened..

the toad which had so long been secured in her palms , during their collision had hopped from Khushi's palm to Arnav's silken scarf wrapped around his neck with it's lower end tucked underneath the shirt, on top of which he was wearing his impeccably spotless and perfect fitting, black coat..

it was a great relief to the poor creature to escape the evening chill and find refuge between the multiple pleats of silken white scarf of a man who hardly moved his neck

"Mr. Raizada!" she called as he made to go

"Later" was his curt response

"but-"

"i said later!"

and before she knew, he had made his way inside the auditorium..and the toad had found it's most comfortable spot..

The auditorium bore pin drop silence as Mr Arnav Singh Raizada ascended the stage..

then loud applauses surrounded the place..

Arnav held the mike and Khushi drew her breath...

this was so not going right...

Arnav's opening his mouth to speak happened to be in complete sync with the toad's

"CRRROAAKK"

the croak boomed on the mike and the entire hall drew in a breath..Arnav himself, was flabbergasted..no doubt, his throat had been feeling weird in the morning but no way he could have sounded that terrible..hell, he hadn't even spoken!

Khushi who had buried her face in her palms all the while peeped in through them..oh, this was so not going nice...she had to do something about it!

"Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen..I, Arnav Singh Raizada-"

she could hear that he had started his speech and was just keeping her fingers crossed regarding the next croak which would boom across the auditorium..

The eyes of the uniformed bodyguard widened as she rushed up to him..

"what is the way to get backstage?" she asked, panting..

"what?" he was understandably confused..

"i said what is the way to get backstage?? and can you please hurry? I don't have the time to repeat things right now"

The guard crossed his arms on his chest...

"mam you are NOT supposed to go backstage. We have been strictly instructed not to allow journalists back stage"

Khushi rolled her eyes at him..

"Look I will just tell you one thing. If you don't let me go RIGHT now, your boss, is going to kill you"

the guard raised an eyebrow..

"oh really? We'll see.."

"and what do you have to say about HER then?" she pointed to his left..

he turned his face to the left, Khushi ducked past him and with terrible speed rushed backstage before the poor guy could even react

Khushi had soon covered the entire back length and was in no time standing just right to Arnav hidden behind the walls so that she was not visible to the gathering below but was facing straight towards Arnav..

"It is with great pleasure and pride that AR-"

"PSSSTTT!!" she hissed at him..

Arnav thought he heard something from his right but continued...

"announces it's one of the greatest achievements of the year as it-"

"PSSSTT!! PSSSTTT!!!"

no, this time he was damn sure...slowly and steadily, speaking all the while he slightly glanced to his right..

at a Khushi, madly waving her arms in 'come over here' motion to him..

you can very well imagine the effect the sight had on Arnav and the whole crowd just nearly missed a full fledged "WHAT THE!!"..instead Arnav just said that mentally as he quickly looked straight again and continued..

"as it declares it's ownership of the Creveat company-" he went on...

he suddenly felt a slight movement within his scarf..then it halted and he chose to ignore it..

Khushi was now wildly waving at him..

moments later,he finished his extremely short speech saying "and now I hand over the mike to my brother and the assistant managing director of the AR group of companies, ladies and gentlemen, please put your hands together for Aakash Singh Raizada"

an Aakash Singh Raizada who had just entered backstage and stood flabbergasted at the announcement he could hear, like what?? he wasn't supposed to speak just yet! Bhai was supposed to be in charge for another half hour on furnishing the formal details of their new venture..

Arnav gave a nod to the crowd and slowly backed his way towards Khushi..

Holding her wrists in tight grasp he walked down, until they were totally invisible to the crowd below..

Aakash met them mid-way

"Aakash. Handle it" Arnav said as he kept storming forward with Khushi

"but bhai-"

"Just handle it dammit!!!" the impatience was evident..

"fine bhai"

Khushi eyed the retreating figure of Aakash as the poor guy moved to the stage..fire extinguisher indeed..

they were alone now, and Arnav, fuming, turned to Khushi..

the toad, meanwhile, due to all that speed walking by Arnav had lost his comfort and as soon as Arnav moved to speak, opening his mouth, there it was again

"CRRROAAKKK"

Now , Arnav Singh Raizada got seriously worried about his vocal passage..

"Stand still!!" Khushi commanded..

"what?"

"shhh..i said stand still"

Arnav froze in his place as Khushi extended a hand towards his neck scarf...

"wha-"

"shhh..."

Very carefully, Khushi removed the satin pleats of the scarf ,while Arnav stood looking at her as if she grown horns,and retrieved the terrified creature in her hands..

Arnav's reaction to the episode was very imaginable..people don't generally expect toads emerging from their neck scarfs right in the midst of corporate parties in company auditoriums..

"WHAT THE !!!!"

The terrified creature hopped from Khushi's hands onto the floor and made it's way out hopping..

Khushi had never been this envious of toads..

if only she could hop away in a similar manner..

Arnav clearly didn't have any intention of letting her hop away..

"what. The .hell"

"I tried to-"

"JUST SHUT UP!!" his voice boomed..

his raised voice made Khushi fume along with him..

"STOP SHOUTING Mr. RAIZADA! I WAS NOT THE TOAD IN YOUR SCARF!!"

Arnav had taken two more steps to her and shook her shoulder as he said

"How. Did. it. Get. There??"

"hands off" she looked straight into his eyes

"reply first"

"sure. But hands off first Mr. Raizada. You forget yourself.."

Suddenly the guard, who had been searching Khushi all the while barged in and then witnessing the scene before him immediately flustered..

"oh! Oh I am sorry sir!!"

Arnav realized their position and immediately removed his hands at the same time raising an inquiring eyebrow at the guard , regarding what he had assumed..

"i mean..no..i mean..yes..i mean.." the poor guy all the more flustered

so hard when you don't know whether you should leave or keep standing...

"out!" Arnav directed

and the guy scrambled out of the place...

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