Anchor

Summary: "Shukriyaan, Biwi Sahab."

◇◇◇

Amrit barrels out, still out of breath, still reeling - still feeling rather cold and adrift, and runs straight into someone hard.

Arms wrap themselves around her and hold, even as she struggles to wrench herself free.

"Shh," says Randheer's voice. "It's me Amrit. It's me. Aapko kuch nahi honga. Main hoon na? Aapko kuch hone nahi dunga." He vows intensely and Amrit finally detaches herself, looking at him in bewilderment.

Randheer has furious tears in his eyes. His entire being radiates anger. Amrit takes a step back.

"What do you mean?"

Randheer gulps, reaches and brushes a hand over her hair, bringing into her notice how mused her hair must look. He arranges it with his hand, his fingers combing through and the nath chimes, disturbed.

Amrit shrugs off his hand.

"Aap kya kar rahe hai?"

Randheer touches her cheek, full of a misplaced feeling.

"I came here for you. As long as I'm there you don't have to fear that man. Uss ke saya thak aap ke daaman mein nahi padenge. Yeh waada hai mera aapse. Aap darr gayi thi na Amrit? Aap ko darr ne ki -"

Amrit tears away from him violently, staring at him.

"Aap humein dekh rahe the?"

She feels furious. She feels violated.

That moment was private, intimate and not supposed to be trespassed on. The thought that Randheer had seen them, had seen her being vulnerable eats at her. Amrit feels humiliated. Angry tears spring to her eyes.

"You shouldn't have done that Randheer," she bites out and pulls her pallu over her head. Marking a line between them that hasn't been there before. Randheer looks at her with hurt in his eyes.

"Sauda kya hai aap ki uss aadmi ke saat?" He asks rather hurtfully. "Kher jo bhi ho, how could he force you like that? How could you let him -"

Amrit who is already half way down the staircase, turns to him with scathing eyes.

"Pati hai woh meri. Haq hai unhe."
Randheer freezes for a moment. "Joh woh kabhi jatate nahi hai."

Amrit makes her way downstairs, the pooja is starting. Drums start to beat.

He follows her.

Amrit wonders why nobody notices the daughter in law of the house being followed by the new secretary.

"Is that the only right he has? Shouldn't rights come along with duties? Kahaan hai woh ab? Hiding in his room in fear of the drums?" He let's out a humourless chuckle. "Hiding from the ghosts of his past sins. He is a man who killed his brother - aap jaanthi hai?"

Amrit freezes when she hears that.

"Kya kaha aapne?"

"That he killed his brother -"

"No before that?"

The drums are beating out loud now, and Amrit's heart too starts to beat.

"That he is afraid of drums? Rani Ma told me, paagal ho jaate hai aapke woh, jab dhol bajne lagthe hai. Amrit-!" He calls after irritatedly when she takes off.

Amrit takes the stairs two at a time, the sound of beating drums follows her all the way to Veer's room.

There is a crash and a sound of glass breaking. Amrit barges in and finds Veer on his knees, hands clasped over his ears.

He looks around wildly at the sound of her entry. There are pieces of glass everywhere, and the room smells of liquor so strongly that Amrit feels nauseated.

"Darwaza bandh karo!" He barks, the sound so high and volatile makes her jump.

He is shaking, his unfocused eyes wild. His hair is dishevelled and the shirt he had worn probably after she left earlier was still unbuttoned.

Amrit closes the door, bolts it shut and comes to crouch down beside him. He looks up at her, recoiling from her outstretched hand. He reminds her of an animal - untamed and injured. Unsure of every human contact.

"Sharaab," he utters. "Humein sharrab ki zaroorat hai! Sharaab la do humein!"

She flinches at his raised voice but nevertheless claps her hands over his on his ears.

Stirred at the touch of her cold hands Veer pauses and looks at her. Amrit shakes her head.

"Make it stop Amrit. Make them stop."

"Aap Aaiye Kuwar sahab," she says instead.

Taking one of his hands in hers she urges him to his feet.

He is shaking like a leaf, pale as a sheet. He holds her hand that grips him with his other hand so tight that Amrit is certain he would leave behind marks. She doesn't care - not just then.

"Amrit..." he says looking at her and seeing nothing else, looking so lost that it breaks her heart.

"Careful," she says. His feet are bare and the floor is strewn with shreds of broken glass. Amrit leads Veer across his room to her own, and shuts the connecting door as well. The sound of drums draws distant - a little louder than a heartbeat.

"Make it stop Amrit," he says again, clutching at her hand. Clinging to her. "Hum se saha nahi jaata. Hum se -"

She touches his face, seeing in him not a distraught man but a neglected child.

In that moment Veer was still a boy, a young boy who had lost his brother. With effort she makes him release her hand.

Amrit crosses over to her own mantlepiece and turns on the radio kept there - turns on the volume until it drowns away everything else. Then she turns to him.

"Meri aankon mein dekhiye," she says. He looks at her, reaching for her with shaking hands that she takes in hers - and holds with reassurance. "What do you hear now?"

"Tum," he says with a shuddered breath. "Aur -"

"Aur?"

"Aur woh gaana."

From the radio music pours out and Amrit begins to sing along, swinging their hands.

"Yeh raatein
yeh mausam
nadi ka kinara
Yeh chanchal hawa..."

Veer watches her without exhaling, caught and confused.
"What comes next Kuwar sahab? Do you know?"

He blinks.

She shakes her head at him, humming the tune. Swinging along with the music and carrying him with her.

This girl, who has become a habit over the time, was now starting to turn into an addiction. An addiction that is potent enough to drown away everything else.

His arms find their way around her, as naturally as if they were made to hold her. Amrit falters for a moment when his fingers slide along her bare midriff, Veer pulls her closer. She notes with satisfaction that amusement glitters in his eyes. He takes her hand and places it on his shoulder while holding the other.

"I don't know waltz," she chuckles, trying to pull away.

Veer bows and mutters against her ear.

"Hum sekha denge, " he smiles pointedly, leading her back and forth across the room humming along the radio.

"Yeh baahon mein baahein
Yeh beheki nigahein
Lo aane laga zindagi ka maza..."

The last of the words are tinted with chuckles, Amrit joins in, forehead pressed against his shoulder.

"Yeh raatein yeh mausam nadi ka kinaara...." they sing together, punctuated with little laughs at how out of tune and breath they are.

Soon the laughter draws.

It happens to them often, that one begins with a chuckle and the other joins in and then neither of them could stop.

Veer twirls her around, watching with drawing warmth in his heart how laughter brings color to her cheeks, shine to her eyes. How well her name suits her, he thinks off handedly; Amrit - elixir, the reliever of all pain, cure to all cursed.

He spins her and pulls her back to his arms, her back to his chest and her arms clasped in his.

"Kasam hai tumhe, tum agar mujhse roothe," he mutters in her ear, around them the song continues.

Neither moves anymore. They just stay like that, holding each other - and just breathing.

Kasam hai tume tum agar mujse roote
Rahe saas jab tak yeh bandan na toote
Tumhe dil diya hai

Amrit turns around in his arms, she holds his eye and shakes her head.

He had to know, of cause, he had to know that she would never - never leave him.

"...Yeh waada kiya hai
Sanam main tumhari rahungi sada..." she mutters along. Not exactly keeping with the tune.

Anyway the song is loud enough to hide any mistakes she makes.

Veer nods and smiles at her, taking both her hands with his he draws her closer.

Yeh raatein yeh mausam
nadi ka kinaara
Yeh chanchal hawa
Kaha do dilon ne
Ke milke kabhi hum
Na honge juda...

For a moment she pauses, staring up at him, caught in the thrall but also frightened. Amrit knows that she doesn't have it in her to reject him once again if he -

Veer reaches in and presses his mouth to her forehead, her eyes flutters shut.

There is so much reverence in that brief touch, and though she doesn't know it, his eyes are closed too.

Veer sighs against her hair, and the bright red of her parting stirs with his breath.

"Shukriyaan, Biwi Sahab."

She blinks and looks up at him with so much innocence that Veer feels his heart clenching tight.

He wants her. Deeply, relentlessly and achingly that she would run away if she could just read his mind.

Oh perhaps she wouldn't, she wouldn't understand. She wouldn't understand how he wanted her - not just physically, no, never only that, but to consume her thoughts, her soul the very essence of her.

Veer presses the back of his palm against her cheek instead.

"Tumhe dekh kar samjha kyun humare yahaan biwi ko daulath kehethe hai. Tum jiss ke hojaao woh aabaadh ho jaayenga."

He draws away. Outside in his room they could hear someone clearing the glass shreds. Low undertones of servants rise and fall. Amrit remembers that she had bolted the main door not the servant's entrance, she holds him back.

"Stay here," she says in a low voice and unable to help herself starts to button up his shirt.

Veer watches her with a gaze that makes her burn, she ducks her head and continues with trembling fingers.

He holds her hands after a moment, making her look at him.

"Won't you go to that puja?"

"No need," Amrit brushes of the question. But then knowing he was still curious she adds. "Lord only gives you courage Kuwar Sahab, if you truly wishe for something you only have to work for it. Mere pati ko pooja ki zaroorat nahi hai -"

"Tumhari zaroorat hai," he says.

They hold each other's gaze, neither daring to blink.

"Kuwar sahab main -"

"Hum intezaar kar lenge," Veer cuts her off. "Yeh jo Chaar kadam rehe gaya hai humare beech -  neither of us can cross it on our own. Meet me in the middle Amrit, I will wait for you."

*

"Did you talk to Amrit?" Rani Sahiba is impatient.

"What did she say? Is she ready to leave with you? Put all this behind her? You do know - don't you Randheer, how difficult it was to get Veer away from her and get you this chance to talk to her? You know that I had this puja arranged so that you could -"

"Rani Sahiba," Randheer says slowly. "She didn't come to the puja. Haan Maine koshish kiya tha unse baat karne ki par baat nahi ho payi. She is with Kuwar sahab and they have bolted the door."

The way he says it, the particular choice of words make Rani Sahiba's jaw clench, not for what he says but for what he leaves to her imagination.

She had to do something and do it quickly. The more she delays the more the claws of that girl will sink into Veer's life and the more mess it will be to remove her.

**
A surprise update, to celebrate CK crossed 6K views, 600 votes and of cause to mark the milestone of 100 episodes of the show!
Don't forget to vote and comment!😊