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Chapter 28: Upset With Him. Sorted It With Her.

"Why won't you help out?" She whispered and he turned towards her.

"I don't know, why should I?" He replied back in a low tone.

"They're too stressed. . . They need that help." Ragini responded and decided to add more "And because it's your brothers wedding and it's in four days and no preparations have been made at all."

"Yeah but. . ."

"Lakshya. . ." Ragini cut him in between, "you won't ever understand them if you don't get closer to them. They'll never understand you if you don't let them see you."

He sighed, feeling affected by her words. "Is it worth helping?"

"Yes!" She exclaimed in a low tone, "and this way you'll see if your family really care for you or not. Your mother definitely loves you, see the way she wanted to make you something else to eat because you didn't want that."

He slowly nodded his head as he noticed Annapurna's behaviour towards him.

"Please give them a chance." She requested and he exhaled, nodding his head positively. "Fine I'll help."

Ragini curled a small smile over her lips, "but I want company for these 4 days."

"Like?"

"Have my friends help me too. Nick and Uday. . ." He trailed off and she nodded, "and you." He added and she looked at him, nodding her head again.

"Okay, more hands the merrier." She replied and he slid his phone out, starting to tap the screen with his thumbs as fast as he could.

After writing the message, he sent it onto the group chat with him, Uday and Nikhil in it.

"Done. . ." He sighed a relief and held his phone in his hand tightly while looking at Ragini again, "what do I need to do here?"

"Ask then how we can help." Ragini whispered and he made a face. "I don't wanna ask them."

"You need to take the first step. . ."

"I. . ."

"Go." She pushed him a little forward and he hesitantly walked towards Sujata who was returning to the hall after speaking on the phone.

"Is. . . There anything that we could help with?" He hesitantly asked and she flapped her eyes at him. "Uh. . ." She was speechless and shocked to see Lakshya approach her to ask her if they wanted any help from him!

He waited for her to reply and she hesitantly shook her head. "No. . ." His eyes examined her expressions and realised she was shocked yet slightly unsure if she should ask for his help. "It's okay, just tell me if there's any help you want from me, Ragini, Nick and Uday." He calmly responded, passing another shock to Sujata who merely nodded her head.

"I. . ." She pointed in a direction, "I'll ask Jiji and let you know." She hurriedly uttered and walked in the direction she pointed at.

Lakshya had sensed the fear she holds because of him and started to feel bad and guilty, realising how harsh he had been on his family without reflecting back on it.

XX

Durga Prasad was stood in a corner, tapping on his screen and placing the phone on his ears. Worried yet surprised to see so many miss calls from his wife.

Ram was sat with Parvati, enjoying the time of his life.

"Hello, is everything okay?"

"Ji. . . They moved the dates. They want Adarsh to get married this Friday."

"What!" Durga Prasad was astonished as he licked his lip. "Why?"

"Mrs Lalwani's mothers condition had deteriorated and they asked if it was okay to get them married this Friday. I said yes, because we can't say no to a dying person's last wish. But. . . What should we do? This is too much to handle."

"Okay, I'm coming home now. We will sort everything out together."

"Okay." She disconnected the call and he sighed, facing Ram and Parvati. "This is too soon." He mumbled under his breath and headed towards them.

"We. . . Need to go." Durga Prasad interrupted the two, slightly nervous and Parvati looked at him, nodding her head. "And the wedding dates have been changed. . . It's this Friday."

"What? Again!" Ram exclaimed while standing up. "Why?"

"Mrs Lalwani's mother can't make it by next week so she wanted to see the marriage before she passes away."

"But, this. . ." Ram was speechless as he couldn't curse a would to be deceased person. "This is too much to handle now." He changed his words and sighed, feeling stressed.

"Oh, they changed the dates to this Friday?" Parvati asked and Durga Prasad shook his head positively.

"That's too soon. How will you guys be able to manage?" She sighed and stood up, straightening her skirt. "I'll help you."

"What? But Maa. . ." Ram was cut in between, "yes. Why can't I? Am I too unknown now? Or what do they say, to distant?"

Both shook their heads negatively and she flapped her eyes at them. "So let me help! The more hands the merrier. How can your wives handle too much stress on their own? They would need an elder person like me to assure them it's okay."

Durga Prasad gave it a thought while Ram nodded his head.

"Besides, I'll get Swara and Ragini to help too." Parvati added and glanced to the side, seeing Swara walk towards the kitchen.

"Swara!" She stopped and turned to face Parvati. "Come here. . ." Parvati trialled off and Swara slowly headed towards her. "Yes Daadi?"

"Get ready, we have to help out with wedding preparations."

"Ji?" She was confused and Parvati signalled her to go. "Okay, I'll go get ready." She was clueless yet decided to follow Parvati's order.

"Thank you." Durga Prasad uttered and she shook her head, "it's not needed. Don't worry about it either, I'll be glad to help out. Besides in my old age, I need something to cut time with."

XX
Maheshwari Mansion:

"Thank you for actually turning up." Lakshya uttered as he stood in front of Nikhil and Uday.

"Don't mention it man, we can do this for you anytime." Nikhil uttered, brushing his gratitude to the side, "you just need to tell us. Don't say cringing shit like thank you and make us feel entitled." Nikhil continued and Lakshya smiled at him.

His gazes then moved towards Uday, who was looking at Ragini helping Sujata out. He realised and pressed his lips together.

"What is she doing here?"

"She's. . . Helping out."

"Why?" Uday sounded serious and upset as he flapped his eyes at Lakshya. "Why is she helping?"

"Uhh. . ." Lakshya wasn't sure what to say as a response. "She wanted to?" He sounded confused, knowing he wouldn't make sense.

"And why is that? How did she even end up here in the first place?"

"What did I miss?" Nikhil interrupted, so confused with what Uday and Lakshya were talking about.

"My family knows her family." Lakshya lied but Uday wasn't buying it, he found Lakshya's behaviour strange yet decided to let it slide for the time being.

"That is the same girl who insulted me on the streets, calling me a kidnapper." Uday revealed and Nikhil looked at Ragini. "Ohh that girl. But for real though, what is she doing here?"

"You're two steps behind. He already answered it."

"Aah did he?"

"Yes, I did. Where are you lost?"

"Nowhere, I'm just thinking too much."

"More like not listening at all." Uday remarked and Nikhil curved a fake smile. "That would be so lovely wouldn't it." He sarcastically responded.

"Okay. . ." Lakshya rolled his eyes as he continued, "no come and help. There's a lot to do for this last minute wedding."

The two nodded and Lakshya led the way, allocating them to the 'need doing' works that were piled up on Annapurna's list.

x

After a while, Uday disconnected the call after organising the location of the wedding. He was proud of himself and smiled, turning to see everyone busy.

As he approached the hall, he heard Sujata and Uttara talking while unwrapping a cardboard box.

"I can't believe Laks is helping us." Sujata was shocked, never expecting to see Lakshya helping them.

"I know right. I think it's her influence."

"Ragini's?"

"Yes. . . He became more nicer in a sense after becoming friends with her."

"I can't believe they became friends, she slapped him and now. . . They're close. Is this the same Laks?" Sujata uttered as she took items out from the cardboard box.

'Slapped & friends?' He mouthed to himself and creased his forehead, shocked as he heard Sujata and Uttara.

His eyes move towards Lakshya, who stopped in front of Ragini. He felt disheartened yet surprised, flapping his eyes at the two.

"Can you help me put clean the storage room? We need to find something." Ragini requested and Lakshya nodded his head, "okay. . ."

"Nikhil. . ." Annapurna called out while walking out. "Ji Aunty?" He responded, rushing across towards her. "Can you please call the car company to hire cars. . . I don't know much about this so. . ."

Nikhil smiled widely, "sure Aunty, I'll organise this matter. Leave it on me without tension. Assume the work is perfectly done, I'll make sure to get the best of best deals on cars."

"Thank you so much beta." She uttered, sounding genuinely thankful. "But Aunty, you remembered my hobby?" Nikhil sounded surprised and Annapurna smiled at him. "How could I forget? You and Lakshya would always talk about cars when you were younger. I still remember you told me your dream was to make a car when you grow older. So. . . When will I get a ride on it?"

"Very soon Aunty. . ." He trailed off and she gave him a look. "You're personal one?"

He shook his head, slightly disappointed "when the latest one arrives I'll make sure you ride on it first." He assured and she continued curling a smile.

Lakshya watched Annapurna and Nikhil, starting to feel a void as she spoke with Nikhil in a more friendlier tone and approached Nikhil rather than him.

"Lakshya. . ." Ragini interrupted his thoughts, "should we go?"

"Yes. . . Come." He realised and the two start heading in a direction.

Uday clenched his jaws, shaking his head as he spoke "you betrayed me Lucky. Now watch!" He angrily uttered to himself, storming towards the direction the two disappeared in.

*

Adarsh and Sanskaar, rushed inside, glancing around to find the servants, alongside Uttara, Sujata and Nikhil making arrangements.

"Maa. . ." Adarsh trailed off as he walked closer to Annapurna. Annapurna, who was talking to the maid stopped as she faced Adarsh.

"Adarsh. . ." She headed towards him and he stopped in front of her. "What happened?" She concernedly asked him and he shook his head. "I heard about the wedding dates being moved to Friday. . ."

"You don't mind do you?"

"Maa. . . If it's stressful for you then please refuse. I. . ."

"No Adarsh, we will manage. Besides, we cannot do this to them. . . Pari's Naani is very unwell and it won't be fair to let her go without her wish being completed. Unless you have a problem with this decision?" He shook his head, "I don't but. . ."

"And don't worry about the arrangements. We will get them done, so far we have managed." She added, assuring him however he felt uneasy about this.

Annapurna's phone buzzed and she glanced down at it. "It's Mrs Lalwani. . . Excuse me for a minute." She walked to the side and Adarsh sighed, facing Nikhil who was speaking over the phone.

"No dude, we want a show stopper. Something that will blow people in the pit of jealousy. Something flashy yet fine. . ." He trailed off and them curved a smile, "now that's what I'm talking about. How much would you do it for?"

"Pfttt. . ." He scoffed as he held the phone with his other hand, resting the hand he was using on his hip. "I'm not paying 100,000 for 1 day. The minimum I'm willing to pay is 50,000."

"Why is Nikhil here?" Adarsh whispered to himself, slightly confused.

"Chhora, you're here. . . Finally." Sujata stopped in front of Adarsh. "We need to go shopping!" She exclaimed and he flapped his eyes at her. "When?"

"Tomorrow. We don't have any time to waste. So take a day off and come shopping with us."

"I. . . Can't." He replied, remembering he had an important meeting tomorrow. "Why not? You have to chhora."

"You can go ahead without me, I really can't tomorrow."

"But. . ."

"It's a proposal meeting tomorrow Chachi, we need to be there otherwise we would be in deep trouble." He instantly interrupted her and she closed her mouth, twisting her lips. "Fine! You may as well marry your work. . ." She rolled her eyes and he curved a small smile, "why is Nikhil here?"

Sujata sighed, "to help out. Laks called him and Uday over."

"Lakshya?" Adarsh creased his forehead as he uttered his name and Sujata nodded. "Yes, he's here. . . Helping us. He must be somewhere here. He brought his friends to help us, including Ragini."

"Lakshya. . . He's helping?" Adarsh sounded shocked, in disbelief as he flapped his eyes at Sujata who shook her head. "He is chhore. I'm not lying."

Adarsh glanced around the hall, unable to find Lakshya yet confused to why he was helping out.

*

Ragini covered her mouth with her drape as she glanced around the messy storeroom. Lakshya's eyes widened as he witnessed the amount of dirt and mess, starting to feel lazy.

Uday walked inside, holding Lakshya's hand and dragging him outside the room. Lakshya was startled and Ragini turned around, watching the two stop outside the room.

"I didn't expect this from you!" Uday exclaimed as he stared at Lakshya with seriousness. "Huh?"

"Don't act confused!" He shouted, "I can't believe you did me dirty like this. . ." Lakshya creased his forehead as Uday continued, sharing his dismay "you. . . You befriended her?" He seemed hurt and upset. "Out of everyone, her?"

Lakshya realised Uday found out and looked on, not sure what to say.

"You hurt my feelings Lucky. . . I didn't expect this from you." He scoffed, hurt as he swallowed. "You proved that you don't care about me. This girl insulted me in front of everyone, accused me of kidnapping and harassing. Embarrassed me, was rude to me and you. . . You went ahead with being her friend. How could you?"

"Uday. . ."

"No!" He interrupted Lakshya, "you have to choose between me and her! It's either my friendship or hers." He made clear and Lakshya looked on. "How can you give me this choice?"

"The same way you became her friend while knowing what she did to me."

Lakshya sighed, "it was a misunderstanding. . . She. . ."

"Oh wow." Uday interrupted him, "it was a misunderstanding now? Instead of choosing you're trying to justify why you became friends with her. . . Should I assume you don't want to leave her?"

"Uday, listen. . . Stop twisting things."

"I'm twisting things?" He questioned in disbelief, on the verge of becoming emotional. "So you forgave her for what she did to me? Fine, you know what. I get it, cause she didn't do the same to you! Yet, if she had then I would've chose you over her but I see how it is, you didn't even choose me, you're rather hesitating. I guess I was never your number 1. Now that she came, she must've taken my place."

"For gods sake, stop overreacting. And why you becoming so emotional over this shit? Grow up."

"You grow up!" Uday roared back, "and leave me alone now. I'm leaving! Don't message me or call me, I'm done with you!" He walked away and Lakshya clenched his fist, watching Uday walk away.

"Idiot, stupid, jerk. Dumbo!" Lakshya yelled as he watched Uday's figure disappear within seconds.

Ragini, who had heard their argument looked on. Starting to feel guilty and disturbed.

X

After a few minutes, Uday was heading towards the exit door, absolutely upset, hurt, annoyed and irritated with his argument with Lakshya, in disbelief. He felt betrayed and demotivated, realising Lakshya didn't choose him over Ragini.

"Uday, beta listen. . ." He stopped, turning his head to the side, watching Annapurna walk towards him. "Are you busy?"

He exhaled, brushing his emotions to the side for the time being, shaking his head at Annapurna. "Not really. Why is that?"

"Is it okay if you can take this platter and drop it off to Mrs Lalwani's?"

"Yes, it'll be fine. What's the address?" He responded, calm and nicely and she smiled at him. "Thank you! I really appreciate it. I'll message you the address right now, is your number still the same?"

"Yes." He responded and took the platter from her hands. "Thank you so much once again beta. I am really grateful."

"It's okay Aunty, don't worry about it. I'll go give this now."

She nodded her head and he started making his way towards the exit.

"Uday!" He stopped, hearing his name and turned, finding Ragini heading towards him.

His expressions change and he let out a sigh.

"Do you have a moment?"

"No! I'm busy, I don't have time to waste on useless people." He remarked rudely and she flapped her eyes at him.

"I'm sorry. . ." She apologised and he looked on, slightly surprised. "I know you're upset at me for what happened that day. I'm really sorry for judging you and misunderstanding the situation. I didn't know she was your girlfriend at that time. To me it seemed as if you were forcing her to go with you. It's a bit trashy how she stayed silent despite knowing how everyone were judging your behaviour. . ." She added, trailed off and he blinked at her, speechless yet shocked.

"I'm truly sorry." He shook his head, "it's okay. Don't worry about it." His tone and behaviour changed towards her, as he genuinely accepted apology.

"I'm sorry too. . . For being rude." He replied hesitantly and she shook her head, "I wouldn't blame you. . . After all I acted without knowing the whole matter."

"It happens. . . It's not your fault either because the way things were, it did seem like what you had thought at first."

"So. . . You don't have any grudges against me?" She asked, hoping for a positive answer and he passed her a smile, "no I don't."

She reciprocated to the smile, "great. . . I hope we get along with no misunderstanding."

"Looking forward to." He responded and the two chuckled. "Anyways, I'll catch you later, I have a job to do."

She nodded and he started walking away. She sighed a relief. "Done, misunderstandings sorted. Now I hope Lakshya and Uday make up."

Her eyes fall on Parvati and Swara, who had walked inside the mansion with Durga Prasad and Ram.

To Be Continued. . .

Up Next - Uday to be nice with Ragini and rude with Lakshya. . . New entry. . . Sangeet preps begin. . . Nikhil exposed. . .

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