Ruk jaana nahin tu kahin haar ke,
Kanto pe chal ke milenge saaye bahaar ke,
O raahi, o raahi...
Ruk jaana nahin tu kahin haar ke.
Manzil milegi bhatak kar hi sahi,
Gumrah to wo hain jo ghar se nikle hi nahi.
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The clock ticked... 7 pm... 8 pm... 9 pm... 10 pm... 11 pm... 12 pm... but still there was no sign of Aaranya.
Her father paced in the hallways of the palace furiously with nervousness. Veer made a stop at every single toll to check if any vehicle had Aaranya in it. Lakshay and Devansh were trying to contact the guards and drivers, desperately trying to get any piece of information they could get.
Aditya, on the other hand, called her personal assistant. "Mrs Kapoor", He acknowledged on the phone call in a firm, almost completely emotionless tone.
All the eyes turned towards Aditya and the phone as Tanvi replied in a haze of sleep and nervousness, "Ji Kunwar sa, kahiye".
(Yes, sir, please speak.)
Aaliya looked into the phone, trembling with fear of losing someone as precious as Aaranya. She tried to call Aaranya's phone desperately, even though the response of the same each time, 'the number you are dialling is currently switched off. Try again later.'
"Where is Aaranya, Mrs Kapoor? Has she informed you of anything?" Aditya spoke in a stern tone, expecting a true answer only... most probably a positive one.
"Sir she said that she was leaving in the afternoon only. Hasn't she reached yet?" Tanvi said anxiously, her voice flowing out a little louder than she intended. She was scared and anxious for her new friend, like a boss, who cared for her so much. "No", Aditya replied curtly and disconnected the call.
Meanwhile, Yuvraj was waiting for Aaranya outside her company for the last three hours. He wasn't anxious, nervous or scared like the others as his heart said that his Anya was absolutely fine and would come back soon.
In the palace
A guard came running inside the palace, "Raja sa, rajkumari woh..." He said quickly, his voice coming out hoarse as he ran inside, laced with hesitancy and nervousness.
(King, The Princess...)
Everyone's faces perked up on the mention of the term "Rajkumari". They all turned towards the guard with sheer curiosity, nervousness and expectations for the news of her return. They knew it in their hearts that they couldn't handle losing their princess once again.
(Princess)
"Kahiye Kya 'rajkumari' boliye kya pata chala aapko Aaranya ke baare mai." Rajendra, her father, asked as the nervousness was a lot for his weak heart to already handle. His voice was full of concern for his daughter, and his eyes longed to see his daughter again if it had been years since he had last seen her even if it had been just fifteen hours.
(Speak, what 'princess'? Say what you got to know about Aaranya.)
"Ahm, sir, the news is showing princess." The guard blurted out, extremely anxious by the death glares all four brothers were giving him, which clearly said, 'This better be good. '
Everyone looked at the guard for a minute, but then Veer turned on the news on the television. And what they say next blew away their minds.
The headlines were all praising Aaranya for her bravery and smartness.
'A young journalist caught a gang of sixteen men.'
'Princess Aaranya seized the scandal and helped all the victims recover their lost money.'
'Alwar's recently returned princess has got a large gang arrested alone and returned crores of lost money to the people.'
They all see the attached the attached videos, audios, and the article she had written. All this left the entire family stunned, still in denial as they were shaking their heads slightly, trying to process everything.
On the other hand, Aaliya earlier been ebbed by the anxiousness, was now proudly smiling and flexing her best friend to every member, who were themselves in shock and disbelief.
β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°β’Β°
"Yes, I'll just watch," I replied to Lakshay as he just called me to tell me that the news is flooded with the newly released article of Aaranya.
I turned on the news channel on my phone and boom... the headlines praising my Anya overflowed my entire phone screen.
I knew she was brave, braver than most of us, but I didn't know she was this brave, smart and witty.
I am just so proud of her right now that I just want to kiss the hell out of her to tell her how proud I am and how my love just grows more and more for her.
While I was lost in my thinking and staring back at the headlines in the phone with a genuine smile on my face for her achievement on my face. I came back from my reverie of thoughts at the sound of someone snapping their fingers.
I looked up and saw Anya looking at me with amusement.
"Kunwar sa, why are you here so late at night? Shouldn't you be in Udaipur right now?" She asked me with slight confusion echoing in her voice.
I stepped forward, leaning down so I could match her height and spoke with a smile stuck to my face. "How can I be in Udaipur when I have to celebrate this big achievement of you, Anya? CONGRATULATIONS!" My breath was falling on her earlobe as she straightened up, and a smile quickly made its way to her face, almost instantly. I was liking the effect I had on her, even if she didn't remember anything about us.
"Can I hug you?" The words slipped out of my tongue before I could stop myself, and I instantly regretted it. My mind was bombarded with questions 'What if she hates me now?' 'What if she thinks I am a creep now? '
I was thinking about the questions and the consequences, which were each more worse than the next, when I felt two hands wrapped around me. I looked down at all my earlier thoughts scattered the instant she hugged me β soft and steadyβ pulling me back to the present.
I wasn't required to be told the second time, I hugged her back, tears quickly pooling down my face as the longing of ten years felt like ending. A tear drop fell on her face and she looked up, her own eyes glistening with tears and emotions as if she could also feel the storm I was feeling.
Her palm brushed against my cheeks, rubbing away all the remnants of tears, leaving behind only her soft, lingering touch.
I shook my head slightly, removing all the emotional thoughts for the moment as a teasing grin returned to my face with a mischievous glint shining in my eyes.
"So, I didn't know you were this smart and cunning. Huh?" I playfully teased as the tears in her eyes vanished into thin air, and playfulness returned to her eyes.
"I was always like this only, kunwar sa." She said, blinking her eyes repeatedly, trying to look innocent. She was looking really cute instead, and I just wanted to kiss those eyes of hers.
Arghh god, you could have punished me anyhow, but why this? I am dying to touch her, kiss her like before... but I can't, she'll think I am a creep.
"Oh, really, my little fox," I replied to her and playfully tapped her nose. She turned red with the mention of the new nickname or the touch. Maybe.
"Little fox?" She blurted out, her voice low with disbelief and her face still covered with a slight blush.
I nodded, taking another step towards her, leaning down and lowering myself so my breath would fall on her neck, and my nose brushed against her earlobe. She stiffened under my touch, and with each second the pinkish hue on her face grew more and more dark. She took a step back, then another and rubbed her cheeks as if trying to remove the colour and warmth. At that moment, I could say that she looked hella adorable.
"Yeah, you are cunning, smart and small, so little fox suits you. Don't you like it?" I asked with my voice dropped down and my eyebrows raised, not dangerously but flirtatiously, which is quite contrasting to my personality these days.
She shook her head almost instantly, which filled my chest with warmth at that very second. She didn't say anything, but her actions spoke louder than ever.
As she was heading back towards her bike, I also hopped on mine and followed her instead of directly leaving for my palace, just in case she needed me on the way back or in other words, to make sure she reached home safely.
[A/n: Haaye yeh gentleman ki prajati bhi na.]
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SPOILERS AND UPDATES FOR THIS CHAPTER AND THE NEXT CHAPTER ARE UPLOADED ON MY INSTAGRAM HANDLE 'KHUSHIIWRTS'.
THIS CHAPTER IS ALSO UPLOADED ON WATTPAD AND INKITT.
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