16 Raise the Curtain

Basu's POV:

Once again I glanced at the wrist watch.

19:15.

They would arrive anytime now.

All my Watsapp messages remained unread which meant Madhav had no damn clue that he needed to delay the meeting. Or, he had full idea about everything yet he wanted a disaster.

And right now calling him was impossible.

Kiriti was sitting right opposite me, chattering non stop.

The party boy , because of some mysterious reason , chose not to enjoy this particular Saturday evening.

Of all the Saturdays.... Damn... Damn...

The worst possible weekend for his bromance to bloom.

I remembered my broken little brother the day Suraj told him that the intern had been fired on ground of dishonest behavior.

I remembered his madness.

I remembered him threatening the poor Manager that unless the chic was cleared and re recruited, he will not let any of the crew settle down.

I remembered his brooding and drinking and cursing .

I panicked, I feared .

The last last thing I wanted back then was the reappearance of the girl. Miraculously, Radha vanished altogether.

Kiriti was the last person who believed in giving up. But destiny took my side and Radharamanmati didn't resurface... well, till now.

After a month long mourning Kiriti finally accepted that the girl was gone for good and he must move on.

But in reality, he never moved on. He never showed that, but, what brother would I be if I couldn't read that?

He dated and had short relationships but none ended well until he met Maya, Madhav's little sister.

She anchored him and they formed some kind of bonding that helped him stabilize.They were besties but I was unsure if they have any probability of becoming a couple eventually. In the last three years I saw him growing responsible and acting more matured, but, he never really got over Radharamanmati.

And here I am, sitting like an idiot and counting the dreadful seconds while Madhav decided to ignore my pleading to postpone the meeting.

That damn Man... er... Damn whatever he is. But I am not ready to see my baby bro face her after all these years only to realize that she was staying under the same roof with the devil himself.

Surely they were exclusive and if not, Madhav had some plans with her. Five crores....

Damn....

That crazy lunatic Madhav.

I groaned internally.

I could feel the frustration rising.

Every possibly wrong thing was happening with me since I met her again.

The guilt.

The fear.

The truth.

I wanted to run away and hide. Living itself was becoming a threat right now.

I love my brother and he is my greatest strength. But the fear of losing him is my greatest weakness too. For the last few days my dreams are bugged with visions of Kiriti walking out in anger after revelation of the truth or Mother crying or Dad disowning me.

I don't trust Madhav when it comes to teaching things the hard way.

Yet, I am so helpless without him in my life.

The clock ticked and I absent mindedly nodded to Kiriti's blabbering while with all my heart I kept praying intensely that Kiriti must leave before Madhav arrived with Radha.

Earth to.... Dada.

His voice broke my trance.

Why don't you take leave and start preparing Babu?

I will follow suit.

May be you can set the bottles and order something while I quickly wrap this up.

My voice sounded dry and  treacherous to my own ears.

No chance Kiriti will be convinced.

Nope.

Today I leave with you.

And tomorrow we go riding.

Come on Dada.... Let it rest a day. Don't we already have enough money?

How much will we lose if you cut it short by an hour....

Pleeeeeease....

He was making baby faces and pouting which made my heart melt.

True, he is just four years younger to me, but he is like my child.

Anything he ever asked for, I got him.

Except one.

And the fear returned again.

Damn.

19:20.

I could feel the fear returning and right then the door of my cabin opened.

************************************

Radha's POV:

Madhav didn't try to speak since morning.

Neither did I.

For the first time we were in the back seat while the chauffer drove the car.

I laid back and closed my eyes, enjoying the beautiful sandlewood perfume of Madhav's. I badly wanted him to say something but he decided otherwise.

The bitter feeling was rising while I ran the morning conversation in my mind again.

What if I was over thinking?

What if I was wrong?

What if he actually likes me?

What if....

I could feel the sweat on my forehead and palm and I felt uncontrolably irritated.

Control Girl.....

Breathe....

It's okay.....

But nothing was working .

The proximity to Madhav was messing my emotions.

Damn this man.

The magician played his cards well....

Damn him.

And suddenly, I felt his index on my freely resting palm.

In an instant happiness overpowered my senses.

Yessssssss..... He cares.

I opened my eye a little bit to check on him. But he continued to look out of his window, so, I pretended to be asleep.

Butterflies were again fluttering in my heart and I wanted to smile.

But my ego was not that miniscule.

I smiled mentally and enjoyed the ride.

Finally we arrived and as we stepped out in front of the Sen's office, he decided to break the ice.

Radha. Babe. Look at me.

I tried not to.

But like always my body betrayed.

I found myself staring into those gorgeous deep eyes and hell, I wanted to take back every bad thing I said him earlier.

Baby, you may or may not like it. But I am so full of genuiness and I really don't say things that I don't mean.

Honey, let go of the anger.

And think.

I won't beg for your YES but I believe the universe wants us to be together.

And I believe you will reciprocate my belief soon.

Time will prove me but for now, take my hand. Okay?

Well, I know nothing makes sense to you right now. But whatever happens inside, please be civil.

Okay Babe?

Nothing made sense.

True.

But I found myself nodding like a fool.

This man was intoxicating and I hate this stupid me.

But as he snaked his arms with mine and lead the way, a sense of calm overpowered me.

I was afraid.

I was uncomfortable.

But with his touch I felt pacified and confident.

Truth, lie, past.... Everything seemed to be under control and I felt strong enough to take over the world.

Once we entered the elevator, he pressed 15 .

As the doors closed he leaned in dangerously close and smirked devilishly.Instinctively I backed a few steps only to get trapped between the gorgeous man and the wall of the elevator.

Damn Radharamanmati... Damn it.

You stupid girl.

I cursed myself mentally as Madhav kept that smirk intact and took a few steps forward , closing the gap.

I closed my eyes.

I knew what was coming.

A moment passed.

Then two.

And three.

I could hear my own heartbeat as my heart galloped in an unknown anticipation.

And then he touched me.

Nope.

Not the way I anticipated.

Instead I felt a finger between my eyebrows and a shiver ran down my spine. A sense of ecstacy filled by soul and I felt like being stuck by the lightening.

Something happened, something changed. But even before I registered what was happening, the elevator came to a halt and I heard his voice,

This way darling.

Let's raise the curtain.