KIARA POV

ANOTHER WEEK LATER

It's Saturday again and my body screams in happiness. I can sleep all day long without any dis... dist...

" urghhh " I shout and stomp towards my cell phone which I threw at the sofa the moment I entered the house moving along the beautiful piece of music I was humming. I take the phone in hand to see Arjun calling. I don't mind this disturbance.

" Hello. " My voice louder than the normal times .

" You seem to be in a good mood . I would have guessed it is because of me but I know better that it's Saturday so that means its a holiday tomorrow. " Arjun says from the other side .

" Affirmative. " I replied cheerily .

" Why did I call ? Umm yes... come to our home and anddd before you decline your offer let me remind you that we had a deal to snuggle together but you were long asleep when I came in ..... "

" So you slept on the couch . " I interject in between.

" That is not the point but I was not going to jump in the bed with you without your knowledge and consent . We decided upon it but you slept so without your green light I was just not going to get in the bed . " Arjun replies softly. An euohria engulfs me as I hear him say this even if I knew . The world needs more humans like him . I thank karn's parents for their upbringing and raising two men who were thorough gentlemen . I know they must be looking down feeling proud of where they have recahed and the person they are from inside .

" So , my point is that you don't have to go to court tomorrow and I promise to take back to your house early . " Arjun sounds like a lawyer voicing out his arguments and there is no scope of changing his stance .

" You are going to get me to my house om time . " I start my interrogation.

" I promise ekdum time pe ( right on time ). " Arjun replies happily.

" Ok then... see you soon . "

" And you can drive at the speed of 80 or 100 you know its there on the meter. " Arjun laughs awkwardly as he says this .

" There is a board which comes on the road at regular inervals that says the speed limit is 60 because we are in city . " I reprimand.

" ohh well ... then see you in a hour or two given your driving. " He cuts the call immediately. I look at the phone screen which flashes disconnected .

My eyes widen and mouth parts oh so slightly. He is not going to hear the end of it .

______

I drive through the majestic iron gate , greeting the guards. I park my car parallel to one black fancy big car in the drive way . I enter the home only to be welcomed by silence . A house worker passes by in a hurry so he is out of my sight just as I smile at him . I march forward to check the living room but its empty to so I come our main open ares which connects the whole house which when you look up it is surrounded by glass railings of the first floor .

" Hello.... I am here... " I shout looking at the 1 floor railings to spot them .

" Oh you are here . " I hear Karn's voice and he emerges from the stairs in few seconds.

" Hi..ohh hii " I give him an awkward smile because that's the best I could do .

" I was at the 1 floor garden so didn't see you enter.. " Karn replies as if there is nothing wrong with his appearance.

" No to sound rude but you fot a little something in your face.. " I give him another awkward tight lipped smile as I move my index finger clockwise pointing at his face .

" Ohh this just a face pack . You know this is an indigenous Indian detoxing face pack . " He says in excitement .

" You see I wouldn't know.. " I wave my hand dismissively.

" Its easy to make you just need neem leaves , mint , raw milk , cream , honey . You grind it and then apply till it dries. See so easy... " He opens his arms wide on the word 'easy ' . To describe his appearance the word Caterpillar seems appropriate . His hair are comed back and a green headband is holding them on place . His face , neck are green . He is wearing a light green bath towel with dark trousers. Hey ! He looks like a tree , yes that's what it is .

" Too much green right there . " I laugh which is high pitched making karn frown .

" You are acting werid . " He finally says after observing me .

" Whattttt ? Me.... no no no... " Again with the high pitched voice . I shake my head and hand in negative.

" Just so you know , I do not trust a single word that came out of your mouth just now . " Karn gives me a disapproving look . How am I supposed to be honest with the fact that he looks like a clown ? A tad retarded. I have nothing against self care but he took it to his heart .

" Ahemm...where is Arjun ? " I ask changing the topic .

" oh he is up stairs . " He points upwards. I rush past him towards the stairs directly to Arjun's room . I knock his door once , twice , trice to no response. I slowly , cautiously open the door to look for him but be is no where in sight . I walk inside 5 steps to check his balcony but he was not there . I door to his closet room remains open as the light falls in through the bathroom door which is closed . I walk inside the room and just on the right falls the bathroom. I press my ear to the door to hear for any movements, feeling like a spy . I hear somw rustling , footsteps and water running. I knock the door .

" Arjun ... " I say while knocking.

" ohh you are early . I guess you drove at the speed of 61 kilometres per hour huh. " He shouts from the other side and starts laughing .

" You just get out of here . " I shout back slapping the door.

"Or you can come in . " He tone teasing me .

" Umm..umm.. " I did open my mouth but nothing came out .

" I am really decent kiara just not wearing something on the top but there is a towel on my neck . " He says further clearly noticing my loss of words. I open the door walking in slowly , my east cast down at the floor where the tile is as shiny as a mirror. I look up to find Arjun leaning against the counter smiling at me . I roam my eyes around the bathroom and wondering how come a washroom be so beautiful . It was made with grey , white tiles as the lights cast down a gloden glow inside it . Right in front there is a big counter with two basins and a big mirror stretching across the length of the counter. There are so many fancy looking lights inside and to my left is an opaque glass covering rest of the bathroom . I place my eyes back on Arjun who seems to have the same look of admiration that I had for the bathroom but his was directed towards me .

" Want to help me with something? " He asks way too cheerily.

" I don't mind helping given its something I know or atleast I can do . "I shrug my shoulder giving him a smile .

" Come here then . " He holds out his hand . I walk to him and place my hand in his but a frown his etched to my crown wondering what is that he requires help with . Arjun then places his large hands on either side of my waist so due to the length it covers my waist, midriff and ends somewhat below my arms . I am really really short ! Arjun then lifts me and places my in between the two basins . I feel like a child on his eating high chair because my legs stay in the air as there a good gap between my feet and the floor . I look upto Arjun's figure towering over me . He bends down to shuffle through drawers below the counter and placing a few things beside me . He finally stands straight with a razor in his hand , a wide smile on his lips .

" Ever tried shaving someone. " He asks me .

" Just my legs . " I reply with enthusiasm because I know where he is going with this .

" Do you mind.... " He starts saying but I cut him off with a loud ' yes ' .

" Ohh wait.. I was supposed to say no ." I realise what his question was after few seconds.

" Yes you were but you got really excited. " Arjun replies but he can't control his lips contouring into a smile .

" Leave that.... when I was younger , I used to watch my father shave his beard and I always wanted to try it but he wouldn't let me . " I say dejected and then in an instant my mood soars.

" Now I will. " My jaw hurts from the wide smile I give him .

" You can shave my beard whenever you want . I saw mummy help papa with shaving . They used to sit on the balcony in the evening with some music , they would sing together and mummy would shave his beard. I always dreamed that someone would be happy to do that for me . " Arjun says solemnly and kisses my head .

" Let's do it . " I say softly. I look to my left at the can of cream . I spray some on my fingers and rub it on his cheek.

" It pointy and ticklish. " I say rubbing it on his other cheek the to his chin , upper lip .

" You shave your neck area too right. " Arjun makes a ' hmm ' sound as I proceed to rub the foamy cream on his neck .

" Get down now and come forward. " I tell him holding the razor. He bends through his waist , placing his hands either side of me . I place my one hand on his shoulder to keep both of us from moving . I glide the razor soflty onto his right cheek , I repeat the motion again with full concentration. By the time I am done with the right cheek my face is mere an inch away from his face . I look him in the eyes and they are a myriad pool of emotions. I kiss his nose and move forward to the left cheeck . After few minutes , I am at my last 2 strokes suddenly when Arjun shrieked loudly .

" Aaouchhh ... " My whole body shook with dread.

" Oh oh he bhagwaan ( oh lord ) .. " I say loudly . I hold his hand which laid against the cut to make him remove it to inspect . He obliges but I see no visible red , I squint my eyes and pull him forward by the hand I am holding for a better view and still not cut . I finally look at his face which was glistening with humor .

" Just kidding . " He says innocently.

" I did not think that was funny . I thought what if I sliced through some vein and you are going to bleed to death. " I say each word slowly through my teeth which were grinding together.

" woah ...You thought too much in just a second. " Arjun says holding out his hands and moving them to indicate stop .

" Bakki ab khud karna ( Do the rest yourself) " I jump off the counter and run for the exit . I can hear Arjun laughing in the background till the close his bedroom door . I go to the terrace garden which was also on tge first floor to find Karn freshly showered and dress . I inhale deeply because there is a beautiful aroma in the air .

" What is this smell ? " Karn turns around smiling proudly.

" Lavander ... I got this one from turkey . "

" Walking in felt like I am entering a garden. " I walk upto him and settle beside him .

" Want to see something interesting? " He asks me pointing at the laptop on his lap .

" Yes please. " I say happily and move my chair closer to him for a better look .

" That's a car . " I say looking at the screen which shows a bright red car .

" This is not interesting. " I say after a few moments.

" ohh come on kiara its a Ferrari! " Karn exclaims.

" Oh good for it , I guess . " I say confusingly.

" I am buying it . " Karn says looking at the car admirably.

" Why do you need it ? " I ask him incredulously.

" Because its beautiful. " He exclaims.

" That is not a good enough reson . " I shake my head in negation.

" That's the only reason I mean look at this . " He turns the screen fully around for me to see .

" Its good but wasting money seems absurd when you have 3 cars right down there and there is one in Mumbai too . " I try to reason with him .

" But butt its a Ferrari. " Karn says again feeling attacked.

" How much does it costs anyway? " I ask out of curiosity.

" 1.9 crores. " He says normally, really easily. My eyes widen at the amount as I snatch the laptop off his lap to bring it closer to my face .

" whattt.. 1.9 crores for what exactly ."

I stare at the screen wondering that it would make sense after some time but it doesn't.

" That is a total wastage of your hard earned money . " I admonish him , keeping the laptop on the table in front of us .

" I will take Arjun's card...so no problem " He says giving me his hand for a celebratory clap . I look at his hand and then at his face , he finally lowers it .

" It is a waste of money no matter whose card you use . Try to save money. " I try to make him understand.

" Even of you don't buy it there would be no problem with your travelling plans so no big deal.... " Karn looks straight straight into their garden which was at the back of the house . He nods in understanding.

" I think you are right . " He finally says and I settle down comfortably into the chair feeling calm .

" Arjun ne abhi 69 lakhs ki rolex order ki hai ( Arjun just ordereda watch worth 69 lakhs ) . " Karn says in a accusatory tone .

" I am all up for ' save money ' campaign . " I tell him and he winks . They both have so many identical habits and gestures, it makes me wonder if they are long lost siblings .

" I was thinking. " Karn continues.

" You may want to resist that urge of yours. " I simply reply.

" Its not an idea just an epiphany. " I turn my face to look at him .

" Go on . What was the epiphany ? "

" You talk like just our mother sometimes and you have that persuasive powers of a mother . You made me give up on that car in 1 minute and that was something I was looking for months now.... maybe you are our mother reborn . " He says looking like he found some hidden chest of gold , vaccine for cancer. His realisations are as deadly as his ideas.

" Thankyou so much for the compliment , I am really happy that I give you such aura but I am not the rebirth of your mother because we all were born in the same year so ... " I give him an encouraging smile to move on from the topic .

" You are right but I am happy you are here . I take you as my sister who inherited the qualities of a mother at a very young age . " Karn throws his arm around me , bumping his head with mine smoothly.

" You can pass as the jagat bhai ( brother of the world) you know . " I say looking at him .

" Just the characteristics that come with being older . " He says teasing me .

" Months karn just months . " I get free of his embrace to put up a fight .

" Facts ! " He simply dismisses with the flick of his hand . Arjun enters the terrace freshly showered with damp hair , towel aroud his neck . Karn looks at me and moves his face slightly in Arjun's direction and months ' watch ' .

" We were talking about how important it is to save money ? " Arjun settles on the beside me and nods .

" It is imperative. " He says rubbing his wet hair with a towel.

" So , that's why you ordered a watch worth umm how much was it karn ? " I ask feigning innocence because the amount is etched itno my mind .

" 69 lakhs . " He replies smiling at Arjun who in return was glaring at him , his movements stilled .

" Would you look at this . My watch is from sonata ot was around 2 thousand and shows the accurate time according to the IST . " I shove my watch clad hand forward for Arjun to see . He looks at the watch with concentration and nods in appreciation which was obviously reluctant .

" You will cancel the order right ? " I ask sweetly.

" Yes , I will cancel the order . " He says solemnly.

" That was easy ! " I exclaim looking at both of them as they both were busy at staring at each other.

" Are you talking bad about me in front of me that too through mind link , that is a cheap move ." I say feeling offended.

" She has the same skills as mummy . " Arjun says out loud .

" I said the same . " Karn shouts.

" I am honoured . " I shout too .

___________

" Which movie are we watching? " I ask Arjun getting inside the covers of his bed and pulling them upto my chin as I lay slouched against the head board .

Arjun turns around and stalls , looking at me with some emotion that I can't place my finger on . He keeps looking at me without blinking and I keep looking at him to figure out .

" Arjun.... " I say loudly to get him out of his trance. That did it ! He shakes his head looking at the floor then smiles at me . Weird?

" How about we skip that? " He walks to his side of the bed and sits .

" I don't mind .. " I could just go to sleep in an instant. Arjun settles onto the bed in the same posture as me .

" You are far away for us to snuggle . " I move my hand showing the big gap . Arjun smiles coming closer and lying down completely without making a move first giving me the head to get into a comfortable position as I desire. See , real gentleman.

I pull myself down so that I am completely laying down . I throw my hand on his on chest , my head on his shoulder. Arjun wraps his arm around shoulder and the other played with the bracelet that laid on his chest.

" I love you . " He whispers softly , kissing my head .

" I love you... " I say smiling, content , happy. I remember sleeping with a big smile on my face .

____________

When I woke up in the morning, Arjun was long gone for exercise. I was sleeping clock pointers , one was on 3 one was on 8 ; definitely not a good position because I covered the whole bed . When I went down stairs after bathing myslef not before admiring the bathroom for some time , I was welcomed my very energetic Arjun and Karn was sleeping on the table . We had breakfast where Arjun thought it was ok to break the information about my sleeping positions . So , apparently as Arjun says which I do not trust a bit but , I started spreading my arms and legs to the extent of leaving him no room to sleep.

We spent the whole day eating, playing, cooking and laughing . This seems to become the pattern of my life now and I would not want even a single thing to change. When it was my time to leave , I insisted on going alone because I feel low leaving this place and going back to that empty house .

I do not want him to see me like this and I know he would say something sweet making me cry .

I take out my car to the driveway towards exit when Arjun taps the window. On rolling them down he moves half of his body inside, holding my face in his hands . He kisses me sweetly pouring emotions .

" I'll miss you.. " He says moving back a few inches.

" I don't want to cry... " He was not supposed to do that.

" Don't cry . A week passes before you know it . " I nod my head .

" I'll see you tomorrow. " I ask hopefully. There have been hardly any day we have went without meeting. But I know how badly I would want to meet him tomorrow.

" You definitely will ! " He says kissing me cheek and moves out .

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AN EARLY UPDATE AGAIN .

THANKYOU SO MUCH FOR THE LOVE AND SUPPORT. IN THE MIDDLE AFTER THE INITIAL CHAPTERS I DID NOT HAVE IN MIND THE CLEAR STORY LINE , CHARACTER DEVELOPMENTS .

I HAVE THE FURTHER CHAPTERS CLEAR NOW . KEEP LOVING 🥰

NOTE - 2 CHAPTERS IN THE BEGINNING HAVE BEEN ACCUMULATED TOGETHER BECAUSE THEY WERE EXTENISON OF THE SAME DAY.