Khushi sat on the chair waiting for the Doctor to come in to start her scan, all her other tests had been okay. They just wanted to check the progress of the baby and the heartbeat. Khushi was waiting eagerly and Arnav stood next to her, he was excited too but as usual he didn't want to show it, in-case it ruined his "image".
"Kohi moody hona toh aapse seekhe." Khushi commented and Arnav turned to her confused. "Main yahaan itne excited hoon ki meri heartbeat toh 120 se barkaar hogi. Aur tum wahaan gum sum se khaare hoon." Khushi complained and Arnav sighed.
"What do you want me to do, dance? We're not all as open as you. We're in a hospital, its not very fitting." He said ridgidly and Khushi grimaced. The father's like this, god only knows what the child will be like. Arnav looked at his wife's now anxious face and began to regret what he said. He raised his hand and took Khushi's in his and smiled.
"I'm very happy and excited Khushi. Just because I don't say it 100 times a day doesn't mean its not true." He said and Khushi looked up at him with a smile that she wished she didn't have. He always knew how to make it up to her. He leaned in and put his forehead against hers and they both closed their eyes, trying to put this feeling they had here to memory. It was only when the Doctor cleared her throat that they broke away, Arnav still held onto her hand. The Doctor got the equipment ready for the ultrasound.
"This may be cold Mrs. Raizada." She said as she put the gel agent on Khushi for the scan. Khushi let out a slight gasp and Arnav smiled at her. She looked up at him with a frown, she was on the verge of picking another fight with him when the Doctor interrupted.
"Mr and Mrs. Raizada, would you like to see your baby?" Doctor Malhotra asked and they both turned to face her with an eagerness clear on their faces. She smiled and turned the screen to them. "That there, that's your baby." She said pointing it out for them. Khushi was in awe, that was her baby, so small and fragile, it was growing inside of her at this moment. It was amazing. Arnav was experiencing similar feelings, he felt instinctivly protective of this foetus, even though it was so small, even though it hadn't been born yet, Arnav realised his responsibilities to his child immediately. He placed another hand over his and Khushi's already interlocked hands and that turned Khushi's attention to him. They looked at each other with pure love in their eyes and nothing else. They both were thinking the same thing, they did that, they made that small life and they were both in awe over how much of an impact this little jaan had on them.
Khushi got dressed and the Doctor gave Khushi a copy of the ultrasound, one on DVD and the other was a photograph. Khushi smiled.
"Yeh toh hum apne tazveer ke saath lagadonge." She said proudly and then she looked at Arnav who looked slightly sombre. It wasn't that he was unhappy, he was extremely happy, its just that now Khushi would go back to her house and he his. He'd just felt a strong attatchment to their unborn child and now he was being distanced from it already, this whole situation was turning Arnav into a half-ass Father before he'd even gotten the chance. Khushi walked up to him.
"Kya hua?" She asked with genuine concern, he'd been so happy only a little while ago.
"Kuch nahi. Chale?" He asked and Khushi nodded. Arnav snaked his arm around Khushi's waist, craving to be closer to her, if only for a little while and he led her out to the car. The drive to Khushi's Bua's home wasn't long and Arnav hadn't gotten a chance to get out of this horrible mood and Khushi wasn't so blind, she did notice this. She unbuckled her seat belt as he stopped the car and she leant over towards him.
"Kya hua?" She asked once more but Arnav shook his head, Khushi pursed her lips and then raised her hands, cupping his face, turning it lightly so that he would face her. She looked at him again questioningly and Arnav placed his hands on hers.
"Khushi its nothing I promise." He said, it was nothing, it wasn't a matter of life and death, she needn't get stressed over this.
"Pukka?" She asked and he nodded."Undaar aogein?" She asked and he shook his head. "Kyun?" She asked offended.
"Khushi, its late. Di will be worried. I'll see you another time." He said and Khushi understood but didn't like it. She hadn't seen Arnav all day until now, she wanted to have more time with him, what happened to him going above and beyond to make it up to her?
"Ucha, tik hai. Oh you take this though." She said handing him the ultrasound DVD. "Humare paas toh DVD shevd hain nahin toh phir tum lejao aur saab ko dikhao. I have this picture, main issi se kham chaloenge." Khushi said with a smile and Arnav took the disc from her hand.
"You know Khushi we wouldn't need to be splitting this stuff up if you'd just come home, that way we could spend more time together too." He said with that half-smile that always made her heartbeat Dhak Dhak to the max. Now she saw what he was doing, he was trying to guilt trip her into coming home.
"Nahi, main assi itne asaani se pathne-wali nahi! Main jaaree hoon, aur hah phone karna maat bhulna. Aaj ek bhi call nahi ayi thi!" Khushi complained and Arnav shook his head.
"No." He said simply and Khushi opened her mouth from shock.
"Kya?!" She asked in shock.
"N. O. No." He said and Khushi looked, shocked to her core, back at him. "I've done a lot of bhag dhor for you Mrs. Raizada abh baas. I'm not doing anything until you come home." He said, adamant.
"Nahi, dekhiye aap aise nahi kaarsakte." Khushi warned and he smiled accepting the challenge she posed.
"I can and I will, I'm Arnav Singh Raizada." He said pompously.
"Hah! Toh main bhi Khushi Kumari Gupta Singh Raizada hoon aur yeh meri zidh hai khi main vapaas nahi aoge." She said, the truth was Khushi wouldn't mind going back to Shantivaan but not when he was acting like this.
"Tum dekhna Khushi, haar baar ki tara tumhari kismaat ki dhor tumhein keeche leyeagein mere paas. Yeh bhi meri zidh hai ki kaal ki shyaam tak tum vapaas ghar agaye hogeen." He said and Khushi fumed, she grabbed his collar.
"Tum intazaar karte rahoon, main toh yahaan rahoge." She said and Arnav smiled as he removed Khushi's hands from his shirt collar.
"We will see." He said, that was the final nail in the coffin for Khushi and she went inside, enraged.
Khushi sat around in the living room, Bua, Umma and Bauji had gone to the Mandhir, but told Khushi to stay at home as she'd been throwing up all morning. She was fine now but she was just angry, muttering to herself as she saw the clock tick. It was nearly six in the evening.
"Dekha, main apne ghar main hoon. Patta nahi woh kya samjada hai apne aap ko, kohi pundit hai joh meri puri bhavishyaa ke bharein mein patha hoon. He was so confident last night that I would definately come home. Aur dekh, main araam se beteen hoon." She said happily, trying to convince herself that this was a good decision. That was until the phone rang, Khushi went to pick it up assuming it was Arnav.
"Hello, apne haar ka maataam manane ki liye phone kiya?" She said jokingly into the phone.
"Khushi?" Payal asked and Khushi's face fell.
"Jiji aap? Maine socha ki Arnav-" Khushi didn't get a chance to finish her sentence.
"Khushi tum abhi ki abhi ghar ajaon!" Payal said frantically, oh he was good, getting to her sister.
"Nahi Jiji yeh meri jung hai, aap isme maath aon toh better hai-" Payal cut Khushi off once again.
"Khushi meri baath suno toh! Mujhe nahi patta ki tum aur Bhai ki beech mein kya hua, lekin Bhai ko apke zuroorat hai!" Payal said with genuine worry that made Khushi worry also.
"Kya hua unko?" Khushi asked the words flying out of her mouth as she forgot all else.
"Patta nahi, ek minute woh tik teh, aur phir woh office seh ghar aya aur suddenly he became unconcious. Doctors ko bulaiya, lekin woh saab ko bhi pataa nahi ki kya hua. Khushi main kuch nahi jaanti, tum baas aon!" Payal said and Khushi felt her as though her heart had sunk into the pit of her stomach.
"Main abhi ayee Jiji! Baas main nikloge." She said and hung up. Khushi quickly put on some shoes, grabbed some money for the rickshaw and she ran frantically out of the house. She hailed for numerous rickshaws but they all passed her. Khushi felt as though she may break down. She remembered how they had fought yesterday, how it had been her being stubborn and immature. They were married, they were having a baby and they were in love for god's sake! So why was she acting like this? A rickshaw finally stopped and Khushi got in telling the driver to take her to Shantivaan as fast as possible. If anything happened to him, Khushi would never forgive herself.
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