Chapter- 45-Frozen hearts ...will they melt by Deepti

Chapter 45

“You don’t. So let’s not waste anymore time”, declared Arnav as he didn’t get any response from Kushi.

“Ya Kushi. Let’s hurry up. Give him the dress and get him ready while I check on the other models”, said Amit leaving from there.

“Go beta. Now you have Arnav with you. So there is nothing to worry. Everything will go well”, said Devyani as she gently patted on Kushi’s back.

Though she  found the solution to her problem in the most unusual form, Kushi still couldn’t digest the fact that Arnav agreed to be her show stopper. Decisions were taken and things started moving at such a fast pace that her brain was not  in a state to sync with the happenings around her. As she stood like a statue without any reaction, “What are you waiting for? LET’S GO!!”, barked Arnav, breaking her trance.

“Oookay!!! Now stop shouting and FOLLOW ME”, said Kushi authoritatively.

Though Arnav glared at her for using that tone with him, Kushi completely ignored it and walked towards the green room. Having no option as Arnav followed her gritting his teeth, Anjali and Devyani giggled, seeing the tiger following the tigress.

As she entered the green room Kushi ran into her Sangitha Mam who said, ” Hey Kushi! Good that I ran into you. Indeed, I was looking for you. Amit told me that you have a problem with your models. He asked me to adjust your slot and I pushed it to the end. So, you will be the last and our 30th constant. Hope that helps and gives you enough time to figure out the issue”.

“Oh Mam! That’s one amazing news. Thanks a ton”, said Kushi who felt relieved that now she had plenty of time to get her showstopper ready.

“Did you find a replacement or are you still looking?”, inquired Sangitha.

“I did. He is right here”, said Kushi showing Arnav to Sangitha.

“Good choice!”, said Sangitha  giving an approving nod and asking Kushi to hurry up, she left from there.

The  green room was not very crowded and as she now had plenty of time in her account, Kushi felt more relaxed. As she approached the table where she kept her dresses, something else caught her attention and a funny idea danced in her head. Without any further thought, she picked up the dress which caught her attention and turned around.

“There you go. Now wear it”, she ordered extending her hand towards Arnav.

Arnav’s jaw dropped and ‘WHAT THE’ escaped his mouth as his eyes landed on the one piece tribal wrap which was no more than a foot in length.

“What happened??? Don’t you like it??”, asked Kushi, innocently, while she tried her level best to control the urge to laugh, seeing the expression on his face.

“What the hell!!! Is this is your show shopper dress? What do you want me to cover with this tiny piece?”, asked Arnav making a face.

“Whatever you can”, replied Kushi giving him the choice.

“What rubbish! Forget it. I’m never going to do this”, said Arnav, staring at the wrap and visualizing himself in it.

“Why? What’s wrong with this? Just look at it. How beautiful it is! Just imagine yourself in it, wrapped in the leaves, and holding a spear in your hand….Oh!! You will just rock it!!!”, said Kushi , excitingly.

“Oh shut up, Kushi. There is no way I’m going to wear this. I didn’t expect your theme to be a tribal one. Or may be I should have guessed. Designing anything better than this  might be too much to expect from you”, said Arnav looking at the wrap covered with leaves which Kushi still held in her hand.

“See, I proved you wrong! And for your kind information, this isn’t my creation”, said Kushi giving a  grin to him. As she kept the wrap back where it belonged and looked at him, her grin grew wider seeing the shocked expression on his face.

With the smile still on her face, she picked a huge packet and pulled out a sherwani  from it. ” There you go. Now go and get ready”, she said giving the dress to him.

“WHAT THE!! So were you just kidding earlier?”, asked Arnav staring at her.

“Yup”, said Kushi nodding her head.

“Unbelievable! Amid all this tension how could you think about playing a prank on me?”, he questioned as he snatched the dress from her hand.

“O…Ooo … be gentle with it!! After all the tension I underwent I needed some sought of entertainment. So couldn’t help it”, said Kushi, with a shrug.

Arnav glared at her and after barging into the changing room, he banged the door on her face.

“Looks like Mr.Grumpy is full on. No problem! My dress will go well with the mood he is in now”, muttered Kushi as she moved from there to check on her other models.

Since her theme was wedding, her models were looking gorgeous in their colorful lehengas. She gave one final check to each one of them and just when she was content that everything was perfect, the door to the changing room opened with a squeak.

Kushi turned around and was amazed to see the 6 feet tall demigod in his half white sherwani. He looked no less than a prince and all the girls around him, including Kushi, couldn’t blink their eyes as he stepped out of the room.

“Kushi.. this button”, he complained as he kept trying to fix the top most button, which was right below his adam’s apple. Unaware of the attention he was getting, he waited for Kushi to respond and when she didn’t, he raised his head and was shocked to see everyone around him, staring right at him.

“It looks perfect on him! As if it’s made for him”, thought Kushi as her eyes ran along the length of his body. As she reached his eyes, she noticed the change in them and looked around and on finding  everyone’s eyes right on him, ” Girls! Get back to work!!”, she said clapping her hands.   “What happened?”, she asked moving towards him.

“It’s this button. It’s different. I’m not able to get it in place”, said Arnav who was still in an attempt to get the button right.

“Wait! Let me fix it”, said Kushi coming closer to him. As he took his hands away from his neck, Kushi took hers near it and tried to fix the button. While her entire focus was on the square shaped button, his was on her face. He couldn’t take his eyes off her blemishless skin which was shining radiantly and while he was lost in admiring her, “There you go!” said Kushi taking her hands off him.

She raised her head to look at him but before their eyes could meet, they were interrupted by Amit’s entry who said, ” Oh my my! Look at you man! You should be into modelling!”

As Arnav acknowledge the compliment with a slight nod, Amit turned his attention towards Kushi saying, “Kushi, after the next contestant, it’s your turn. You can line up the girls while I brief this dude about the process.”

Arnav noticed how the color from her face drained hearing the news and though she left leaving Arnav to Amit, Arnav’s eyes kept following her. Though he was listening to Amit, he was observing the girl whose face was filled with tension.

“How can she switch gears in such a short span? She was tensed when she learnt that her showstopper didn’t show up. Was relaxed when I stepped in, to such an extent that she even managed to play a prank on me and had a good laugh at my expense. And now ,when everything is going well, she is tensed again?What do I do with this girl?”, wondered Arnav staring at her pale face.

Just then the announcement for the final collection was made and hearing Kushi’s name, her family who were seated in the audience, became alert.

As the first model stepped on the ramp, Kushi’s tension became more evident on her face and as the models took over the stage one after the other, her tension only kept mounting. Not able to bear the pressure that was ruling her head, standing at the back of the stage, she was pressing her knuckles making them crack when she heard him say, “Kushi… relax”, right near her ear.

“What relax!! This is my first show and I have never been on the ramp. Look at the crowd there. God!! Hope I don’t faint on the stage”, she said sharing her worries with him as she started biting her nails in her  nervousness.

“Will you stop biting those nails?”, he asked for which she instantly pulled her hand away from her mouth.

“Listen, it’s my first time too.Do I look nervous to you?”, he said trying to enlighten her that she wasn’t alone in this.

“No. You don’t! And that’s because you are different and I’m different”, declared Kushi, whose eyes were scanning the hall which was filled with people.

He was amused seeing the way she said that and whispered,” So you finally agree that we are not equals. Glad that you did”, trying to draw her attention away from the crowd.

“What?”, asked Kushi as she didn’t pay attention to what he just uttered.

“Coward!!!”, he whispered in her ear which made her gape at him.

“ME?”, she asked.

“Yes YOU”, stressed Arnav.

“No, I’m not”, she retorted.

“Then prove it “, said Arnav.

Before Kushi could react, “Dude, take position and just when the last model reaches the center stage, you should start walking”, said Amit giving the directions to Arnav.

Arnav looked at Kushi and saying, “Prove it, Kushi”, he walked towards the entrance of the stage, throwing his challenge to her.

Seeing the smirk which was directed in her direction, Kushi’s nervousness bid a farewell to her and boosting herself, she said, ” Coward and ME? Never! It’s my big day and I’m going to rock it!”.

She took a deep breath and motivated herself while Arnav took his position at the entrance of the stage. Soon all the female models stood in a row and people were thoroughly impressed seeing those colorful lehengas which were traditional yet trendy. While they waited eagerly for the showstopper, Arnav started walking on the ramp, seeing which people were just awed.

“Oh my God, Dhadhi, he is looking amazing. What a handsome brother I have!!”, said Anjali excitedly.

“Whose grandson he is”, said Devyani giving a proud look to Anjali, seeing which Anjali smiled and shifted her focus back to the stage.

The family was extremely pleased to see Arnav in Kushi’s design and were happy for their girl whose designs seemed to impress the crowd.

Arnav stood on the center of the stage with six female models on either side of him and after staying like that for few seconds, he walked back on the ramp and went to get Kushi.

“Ready?”, he asked extending his hand towards her.

Kushi looked into his eyes and after taking a deep breath, she gave her hand to him. And Arnav wrapped his fingers around hers and started walking, with her, by his side. And when the perfect pair walked on the ramp, it was a visual treat to the viewers.  Her peach and orange combination anarkali suit, went well with his half white Sherwani and they complimented each other to no extent. Hand in hand they reached the end of the ramp and waited there watching the reaction they were getting from the crowd. As flashes and camera clicks filled the space, Kushi felt on top of the word.

Moments later, as that was the best collection of the evening, Kushi was announced as the best designer and was awarded a certificate of excellence and a trophy on the very same stage.As the hall got filled with applauds, Kushi felt that it was the moment which she would cherish, forever.

She thanked the judges and looked in the direction of her family, showing them the award in her hand. And as Arnav looked into her eyes which were filled with happiness, he didn’t know why, but he felt extremely content.

When asked to talk, by her Sangitha Mam, Kushi took the mike and started her little speech. “Just a while ago I was super tensed and seeing the reaction I got for my designs I felt relieved. But  now, when asked to say something…I’m again tensed”, said Kushi with a giggle.

“Thank you one and all  for making this evening very special to me”, she added and after thanking her teachers and friends who supported her during her course, she looked at her family.

“And coming to my family, I can’t thank them enough for whatever they did for me. They are my strength, support and everything. Dhadhi, Babuji,Maa, Mamma,Papa,Di, Rishi..”, she paused for a second and then looking into Arnav’s eyes, she said, ” THANK YOU…… FOR EVERYTHING”, completing her sentence.

Though she didn’t take his name, her eyes said  it all and Arnav was pleased to see the way she looked at him.

Soon they left the stage and Arnav went to the green room to change his attire and by the time he was back from the changing room, he found Kushi surrounded by a small group of people from the media. He stood close to the group and watched the girl who was answering the questions in her very own style.

“In spite of it being your first show, you just rocked it. How do you feel about it?”, asked a reporter.

“Well, it feels great!I’m on cloud nine”, replied Kushi excitingly.

“Why did you name this particular collection as DREAMS”, asked another reporter.

“Actually, most of the Indian girls dream about having a beautiful wedding. And since my theme is wedding,  I chose that name for my collection”, replied Kushi.

“Why  made you select this wedding theme?”, came the question from another reporter.

“I just love Indian weddings. Couldn’t think of anything else for my first show”, said Kushi.

“So do you also dream about your wedding”, asked the first reporter.

“Of course, I do!! Don’t you?”, asked Kushi questioning back, for which the girl giggled.

“What might be her dream wedding”, Arnav couldn’t help but wonder.

“You used a lot of  vibrant colors in your collection…what’s your favorite color”, asked the girl.

“After seeing my collection, you shouldn’t be asking that question. I love all the bright colors. But, if you ask me to pick one… I will say RED”, said Kushi.

“Ah! So there is something we like in common“, thought Arnav.

As the reporters moved on to interview the other contestants, Kushi finally came to her family who were eagerly waiting to meet her by then.

” I always knew that my little princess is quite talented. And you proved that I was right.We all are so proud of you, Kushi”,  said Shashi as soon as Kushi came and hugged him.

“All the lehengas are just fabulous. I just loved them all”, said Anjali animatedly.

“Thanks Di”, replied Kushi.

“True. Each design was so unique”, agreed Aarthi.

Kushi looked at her mother and when Sakshi spread her arms, she went and crushed her mom in a bear hug. While the mother and daughter were lost in their own moment, “Time for a celebration. Let’s go for dinner”, said Anjali.

“That’s a great idea. It’s been a while since we all went out together”, said Devyani.

“But first, let’s decide on the cuisine and don’t tell me it’s Chinese again”, said Rishi who hated Chinese food while he knew that it was  Kushi’s and Anjali’s favorite cuisine.

Kushi and Anjali looked at each other and after exchanging a naughty smile they came near Rishi and screamed, ” CHINESE”, in both his ears.

“NOT AGAIN!!”, said Rishi making a face seeing which the girls giggled. They caught hold of his hands and tagged him along while Anjali said, “It’s Kushi’s day! So not a word more. Let’s go”. The other followed the trio with smiles on their faces and reached the parking lot.

Soon they reached the restaurant and were guided to a table which had seating for ten with four chairs on either side of the table and one at each end. While Devyani took the chair at the end of the table, the ladies sat on one side of the table with the men on the other.

Kushi and Anjali sat right next to each other while their brothers sat right across them.

After placing their orders, the conversation about the fashion show was resumed by Anjali who said, “Good that everything went well. If not, how tensed were you when your model didn’t show up”.

“Ya Di. Don’t even remind me about that!!”, said Kushi shaking her head.

“Had Arnav not jumped in, in the last moment I can’t even imagine what would have happened”, said Anjali hearing which the duo shared an eye lock and Kushi couldn’t help but mumble,” Neither do I”.

“Good that he supported our Kushi in the last moment”, said Devyani agreeing with Anjali.

“True.  I was so tensed looking at Kushi in that situation. Had Arnav not handled the situation,God! I can’t even imagine that”, said Sakshi.

“What made you take that decision, Arnav? Never in my wildest dreams I thought I would see you walking on the ramp”, said Rishi, hearing  which Kushi was all ears to know Arnav’s reply.

“It’s no big deal. I just did what I felt was right at that moment”, replied Arnav.

Kushi was instantly reminded of his’ IT MEANT NOTHING’ and she thought, ” Is there anything in the world which could mean something or which could be a big deal for this grumpy fellow?”

“What ever it is, you did a good job, Arnav. Not everyone can jump in and handle the situation like you did today”, appreciated Devyani, for which the others agreed.

“And you were looking very handsome in that outfit, Arnav”, added Anjali after which Arnav’s look in the show became the hot topic at the table for the next five minutes.

“Wow! It was my show and I was the designer of that dress and look who is getting all the appreciation!!”, muttered Kushi as she spread the napkin on her lap.

As the dinner was served, Kushi became really busy with her bowl of soup and the others too got engrossed in their talks, enjoying the yummy food. She was thoroughly enjoying her manchow soup, munching the baby corn manchuria in between and was not aware of the soup drop which was on its way to drip from one corner of her lips. After sipping a spoonful of soup, she lifted her head and found Arnav staring at her.

As he had been watching her every now and then, the moment their eyes met, he pointed his finger towards her lips while his eyes told  her to check her lips.

Reading the signal, Kushi instantly licked her lips without much thought, seeing which Arnav’s throat went dry and he swallowed the bile in his mouth looking at what she was doing to her  pink wet lips.

She raised her eyebrows asking him if the job was done but when he pointed his finger guiding her in the right direction, she moved her tongue in clockwise direction on her upper lip and that was the most he could take. As she repeated her action, it became too much for him to handle and, “NOT THERE”, he said aloud in an impulse, banging his hands on the table, turning everyone’s attention towards himself.

“What is not there??”, asked Aarthi, for which he said, ” Nothing” and bent his head and continued eating to escape from the attention he was getting.

Meanwhile, Anjali looked sideways and on spotting the soup drop at the corner of Kushi’s lips, she picked up a napkin and wiping the drop, she said, ” You have some soup there”.

“Thanks Di”, said Kushi who wiped her mouth and looked at him. But since he was too busy with the food in his plate, their eyes never met for the rest of the dinner.

After the dinner Kushi left in her father’s car and Arnav who drove Anjali and Rishi home couldn’t help but think about her.

Soon they reached home and since she had a pretty tiring day, Kushi directly went to her room and after taking a hot shower and changing into her satin soft night dress, she picked her teddy and crashed on the bed. As she recollected the whole days events her eyes landed on the trophy she placed on the night stand and his face flashed in front of her eyes.

” He is a monster.No doubt about it.But deep down, there is a heart inside that monster too. If not, why would he come to my rescue. Maa and Di were right. Had he not stepped in to help, I can’t even imagine what would have happened to my show. I would have done my first show without any show stopper and my collection would have been incomplete. Glad that everything went  well. Thanks to him. He did so much for me and I??? I didn’t even thank him properly. It’s not the first time that he pulled me out of some mess. He helped me thrice and I never expressed my gratitude.  I need to thank him in a proper way. But how??? If I go in front of him and say ‘Thank you,’ his big fat ego will take a quick hike. He might also say that my thanks means nothing to him. So I can’t say it directly. Then what else could I do?”, thought Kushi.

Soon a idea flashed in her head and she said, ” This would be perfect. I don’t have to face him for this and can convey what I want to without going in front of him. PERFECT!!!”.

After sketching a plan to implement her idea the very next day, she signed off for the day and retired into a deep slumber.

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-Deepti©

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