TS: A Simple Dinner!
Everyone was sitting in the conference room and deciding what new shows to put in the channel to increase its TRP, as Kabir had suggested that it was difficult to reach the number 1 position but the real challenge was maintaining the position. And now that they had reached that number one place they had to make sure to keep the channel at that place and raise it even higher. The panel was open for suggestions and everyone was giving their ideas.
Ananya: I think we should do a show related to culture and explore different religious sites and interview people of that religion, as to why they follow it and some background about it.
Kabir: That's a good idea. We can do that, it will help connect with the audience.
Ronnie: Areh wah Ananya, aaj kal tujhe bhagwan ki yaad aane lagi! He remarked making everyone giggle.
Ananya: Nahi who actually, I wanted to say don't give me any credit for this idea.
Malvika (making a face) Why not?
Ananya: Kyunki yeh idea mera nahi Sunny ka hai. I was talking to him yesterday and he was telling me something about WaheGuru and Golden Temple and the history was so interesting that after hearing it I wanted to see those places. So I thought even the viewers might also be.
Kabir: So it's an idea from you and Sunny. Okay next.
Richa: Sir maybe we can do a 15 minutes show on interviewing the experiences and more about sports players of our country through their families. Usually it's the parents, siblings and friends who have a lot tell us about these Sports Idols which no one knows and it can help the fans understand them better.
Kabir: Great idea! We will work on that too. Next...
Trisha was busy eating something and not paying attention when Khalid scolded her, "Miss Trisha maybe you have forgotten this isn't the canteen and you are here for a discussion," and Trisha was embarrassed and blurted out without thinking, "Idea hi toh de rahi thi sir!" and she looked around at amused faces and Richa muttered to Ananya, "Yeh pagal ladki kya bol rahi..."
"Kaisa idea?" Khalid asked knowing she was lying, "Ki dear viewers hum aapko sikhaatein hai ki conference room khaate kaise hain..."
Ananya interrupted to save her friend, "No sir. Trisha ka idea hai ki we should do a cooking show. And not just any cooking show in which they show food which takes hours to prepare...uhh... instead food for people who are running late, like quick meal ideas or something." She said in a hurry and smiled as she realized that she did make some sense instead of sounding stupid.
Khalid smiled and said in his usual tone, "And Miss. Kashyap Trisha ka idea aap ke dimaag mein kaise aya?"
Oh shucks! Ananya was in a fix and she gave a small pout to her dear friend Mr. Kabir Sharma silently requesting him to save her. He chuckled at her innocent face and said, "Doesn't matter Khalid. The point is that the idea is good. Even I look for quick meal idea everyday as I don't like cooking complex dishes."
Ananya was kind of shocked! He cooked? The great Editor-in-chief who had the power to keep a full time cook for him actually cooked food for himself. Wow! That was something new for her but she couldn't ask him more about it as right now in front of him was the Editor-in-chief and not her friend and she couldn't talk casually with him as it would be disrespectful, being a junior if she talked freely with him then it would give leeway to all others and Kabir wouldn't like it, she knew.
"Okay guys. Keep brainstorming and we will meet here tomorrow morning at 10 to discuss more on this. Now Ananya you and Sunny go get some numbers of people who are ready to elaborate more on their culture. Richa, you go with Manav to meet the families of some sports personalities. And Trisha get me the numbers of the quick meal chefs and call them for an interview. Malvika please conduct this interview next week and choose the best chef. Gather all information and convince people this week, we are going to start shooting next week." Kabir ended the meeting and everyone headed to do their assigned tasks.
Kabir was speaking to Ronnie when he heard Ananya crib to Sunny as they were preparing to leave. "Sunny yaar! Pani-puri khaane ka bahut mann kar raha hai." And Kabir smiled looking at the child like face she made.
"Chup kar ja maata!," Sunny told her, " Office ke kaam se ja rahe hain hum, tujhe ghumane nahi leke ja rahe, na pani-puri milegi aur na Amrish Puri.. mere paas milega sirf camera.. ab yeh khaana hai toh khale..." he laughed at her.
She pointed her finger at him, "Chal Sunny ab bore mat kar, kaam par lag jaate hain warna daat toh yaha puri milegi.." and they left leaving a thoughtful Kabir behind them.
Later that night, as Kabir finished his work it was around 7pm and everyone else had left for the day. He was about to get up when his phone buzzed and he smiled knowing who it was. He didn't have to guess nowadays, he knew it must be Ananya. That girl had a lot to talk about. He smiled as he read her message, "Mujhe pata nahi tha ki you cook for yourself. I can't believe it. Were you serious? :O"
He replied, "You think I was lying?"
Almost instantly the reply came, "No, not all. I was just shocked."
"Why?"
She smiled as she replied, "You have all the money to hire a full time cook."
"Doesn't mean I will spend the money on something I can do myself." He replied still smiling at her interrogation.
"Okay. What do you cook usually?" she asked curious, not being able to imagine him in the kitchen.
Kabir thought for a while and replied, "How about I show you? Have you had dinner already?"
Ananya almost jumped with excitement! Kabir was actually asking her for dinner!!! H phone fell from her hand and she quickly picked it up to reply, "No, not yet."
"Be ready in 15 minutes..." Came a quick reply.
Ananya ran to her room and found a beautiful white and cream colored strap top and some black leggings to go with it. She lightly braided her hair and put on a pink scarf. Being satisfied with her look she headed to the sitting room and informed her mother, "Ma, aaj main Kabir sir ke saath dinner karungi, theek hai?" and her mother smiled in agreement. Meeting Kabir a few times now, she realized how wrong she had been about the guy and despite her being confused about his character he had helped her family clear the name of her husband and now they could live proudly.
Ananya walked out and saw Kabir standing leaning against his car smiling at her; he looked at his watch and said, "Not bad. For the first time you are just 4 minutes late. That's some improvement."
Ananya rolled her eyes smiling as he opened the door for her and as she sat in the car. She saw him open the back door and take something out and walk towards her house. Upon ringing the doorbell, her mother opened the door and he handed her a small bouquet and a box of sweets. After speaking for a while he came back to the car.
"Yeh kya.."
He looked at her and replied, "Ananya it would be rude if I had not met her. You are a girl and she is letting you for dinner with me and that means she trusts me with her daughter. I had to show some appreciation."
Ananya was amazed by him, this guy was really something. So intelligent and thoughtful about everything, he actually thought about everything from all angles and acknowledged everyone involved. Her thoughts broke, when she saw the beautiful apartment in front of her as the car came to a halt. Kabir opened the door and she stepped out. She waited patiently as he opened the door of his house, and they stepped in. Ananya looked around at the gorgeous apartment. Everything was lavish but simple and she loved it.
"Make yourself comfortable." He said coming from the kitchen handing her a cup of coffee, "I will be back after a shower."
As Kabir was bathing, Ananya looked around a bit more when she heard his phone ring. She ignored it but it rang again then again so she thought it must be an important call, so she decided to tell him. She walked towards his room and knocked on the door and surprisingly it was not locked and it opened fully due to her knocking on it. Ananya stood with her mouth open, as she saw Kabir in a towel standing in front of the mirror running his hands through his wet hair. She wanted to close her eyes but they refused to leave the sight in front of her. His chiseled chest and back, Oh my dear God!!
Kabir looked at her through the mirror and smiled, "Ananya agar theek se mujhe dekh liya ho toh.. shayad tum jo kehne aayi thi who bolna chahogi.." he completed walking towards her.
Ananya was caught off-guard, dumbfounded by the enticing beauty of this Greek God she tried to speak but no words came out. "Kya hua?" asked he said nearing the door.
She tried speaking again and thank her lucky stars this time she was able to whisper, "Uhh.. wo.. aapka phone... wo baj raha tha.. uhm ek baar baja toh maine ignore kardia... uhh par baar baar baja toh mujhe laga zaruri hoga... toh wo main aapko bulane aayi thi...uhh.. I'm sorry.."
Kabir just smiled at his budbudati reporter, "Oh theek hai main dekhta hun.." saying that he walked past her and started checking his phone. Ananya breathes a sigh of relief yet her heart still stuck in her throat as she realized he just walked out of his room in a towel and she closed eyes gulping hard.
"... Theek hai Khurana main kal subah hi aata hoon..okay..." he kept the phone and turned around to go to his room and at that same time Ananya turned to hurry to the balcony and thud, Ananya banged hard on his chest all ready to fall when she felt his strong arms around her.
For a moment her world stopped, it felt so perfect in his arms and she looked into his eyes with admiration. He didn't know why he always drowned in those light brown eyes, that innocent smile and he too felt it was perfect but nevertheless he had to get them both out of trance, "Waise Ananya I don't mind this. Par agar main thodi der aur aise khada raha toh mera towel khul jayega.."
Ananya gasped and stood up quickly apologizing and Kabir went to change. Ananya sat quietly on the dining table waiting for him and as he returned she couldn't help but admire how handsome he looked in casuals...
"So what do you want to eat?" he asked her walking to the kitchen and smiling at her.
"Aapne toh kaha tha ki jo aap khate ho who khilayenge.. mujhe wahi khana hai jo aap usually khaate ho.." she replied content.
"Okay..." he said rubbing his hands together looking around, deciding what to cook and finally he decided he would cook his favorite eggs and began working on it.
Okay if Kabir Sharma was hot then a cooking Kabir Sharma was s-e-x-y!!! She looked with eyes wide opened as he cooked away cutting all the ingredients.
"Teekha khaati ho?" he asked her looking up smiling yet again at her shocked expression and not getting a reply he coaxed her again. "Ananya?"
"..huh..haan.." she said coming out of her dreamland.
"Teekha khaati ho tum?" he asked again.
"Jaisa aap khate ho exactly waisa hi banaiye.." she replied quickly because he brain could not register anything.
"Main aap ki kuch help karun..." Ananya said walking to the kitchen because she knew if she stayed a while longer staring at him she would die!
Kabir looked around trying to find a suitable task for her because he too was having butterflies knowing that her eyes were glued to him. "You can keep the plates..." he said and she asked where they were kept and just as he was about to put his hand on the plate, her eyes also found the plates and they happened to touch it together.
Their eyes quickly darted at each other, feeling the current of each other's touch as they removed their hands quickly and she took the plates to the table and then started filling in water for both of them. Kabir served the food and they began eating, "Mmm! This is delicious!" Kabir chuckled. "Thank you!"
They enjoyed their dinner with Ananya speaking and Kabir listening and then she cleaned the dishes insisting that he had cooked and being friends there was no formality. Kabir leaned on the kitchen slab and admired her with a small smile playing on his lips, she had lit up his dull house with so much liveliness and now she was busy singing as she washed the dishes. For the first time, his house felt like a home!
Ananya was surprised as she came to the living room and saw all the ingredients of pani-puri on the table. "You said you wanted to eat..." Kabir said shyly.
Ananya was touched with his gesture and she didn't realize when she hugged him tightly, "Thank you so much!" Kabir was hesitant at first but then responded to the hug, "Ab khao warna kharaab ho jayega..." he said breaking the hug.
Ananya sat cross legged on the sofa, just like it was her own house and Kabir sat beside her. Ananya started making pani-puri's and began eating them, "Oh! Yum! Mmm..." she devoured the taste of it and started eating them quickly like a child and she didn't realize when some syrup slid down from the side of her mouth, she was too busy eating but Kabir who had his eyes glued to her, gulped hard looking at her. She was an ethereal beauty!
"Aap bhi khaiye nai sir..." she said having another one.
Kabir denied, "Nahi. Tum khaao."
"Please. Bahut tasty hai. Sach mein!" she pleaded him.
He looked at her and wiped the syrup on the side of her lips with his thumb and slowly brought it to his mouth and tasted it. "Sach mein bahut tasty hai..." he replied while Ananya looked at him shocked. This gesture of his had taken her heart away! On the other hand, Kabir couldn't decide what was tastier the syrup or the fact that the syrup came from her mouth!
Both sat silently, trying to calm their racing hearts...
A Simple Dinner Part 2
There was complete silence in the room after Kabir's unexpected gesture towards Ananya, no matter how much they would try to deny it both knew there was something extremely intimate about it was affecting them both. Kabir didn't want Ananya to feel uncomfortable and make this the last time that she came to his house, he wanted her to come more often now so he knew he had to get the sanity back in the air, he mentally kicked himself for not thinking twice before tasting the syrup from her mouth.
"Uhm tv dehogi?" he asked her not looking directly her, pretending to look for the remote though he knew exactly where it was kept.
Ananya caught he was trying to do and smiled, this guy was too adorable! "Haan zarur!" she tried to keep her voice as chirpy as possible to assure him that she had not taken him negatively. Who could? *wink*
While Kabir switched on the tv, Ananya cleared the table and both of them sat down to watch tv. The movie playing was Humko Deewana Kar Gaye and both of them soon got engrossed in the movie, as somewhere both knew that they were feeling what Akshay and Katrina were portraying in the movie. They both enjoyed each other's company just like Akshay and Katrina did and they both knew that they had some special feelings towards each other but they were too confused right now to call it love. The scene where Katrina was at Akshay's house at night and they were watching a movie together came up and suddenly they could feel the living room heat up again as they realized they were watching a movie too just like Akshay and Katrina.
Ananya gulped hard, why had God planned to do all awkward things in one day. Agar awkward situations laana hi that oh split kardete throughout the week, but nahi bhagwan ko toh saara adventure ek hin raat mein dena tha!
They both sighed in relief when the scene ended and they both avoided each other's gaze. Now the scene where Katrina misunderstands Akshay and is leaving came up while Akshay went to meet her in the washroom and him getting intimate with her, both quickly reached for the remote which was kept between them, to change the channel and they held it together. If the scene was awkward then their hands in each other's hands and their eyes not leaving each other was just about to burn Kabir's house. This time even Kabir was so lost in her that he couldn't break the trance, however, God smiled and counted 3...2...1 and clicked his finger and the Ananya's phone rang breaking their eyelock. God shook his head laughing, how much he loved teasing them, he was in no hurry and wanted to take his own sweet time to make them realize their love for each other!
"Hello haan Armaan main.. ek minute..." Ananya said and asked Kabir, "Pooch raha hai ki main kab aaungi..."
Kabir looked skeptical, things had been so awkward moments ago and he had expected her to tell Armaan she is about to leave but this girl was here, asking him so casually, if he wanted her to leave. "Ek ghante mein drop karunga toh chalega?" he asked quietly unsure if she would agree.
But she turned to the phone next instant, "Armaan mujhe ek ghanta ya use zyada lagega. Tu soja aur ma se bhi kehde I will be fine and ask her to sleep too. Keep the key under the mat. Okay bye. Goodnight!" she kept the phone and looked at a surprised Kabir, but how could she answer his confusion about her behavior when she herself didn't understand why she was ready to stay longer. So to take a break from all the awkwardness she excused herself to visit the washroom.
While Ananya was in the washroom, her phone beeped and involuntarily Kabir's eyes darted to the screen and he saw in the notification that it was a message from Manav, which read, "Hey Partner. I heard you got a new lead about this fashion designer being a drug dealer in disguise. I hope you will share this news with me. By the way you looked lovely today; you should wear yellow more often!"
Thank god mobiles nowadays had a notification which displayed the entire message thought God and he realized he was God and was thanking himself and he laughed, KaYa were making him insane too! Then God burst out laughing as he saw Kabir fuming with anger and he started fanning himself saying, "Bhagwan! Manav ki raksha karna. And Ananya get ready for a whole new session of Coffee with Kabir because you have a lot of questions to answer."
Ananya returned and sat beside Kabir again, her eyes fixed to the tv when Kabir who couldn't remain quiet any longer finally spoke calmly, "Ananya, aaj kal koi nayi lead par kaam kar rahi ho?"
Ananya looked at him confused, usually he kept professional work out of their friendship then why was he asking but then she answered, "Nahi filhaal kuch khaas nahi hai..." she said still unsure about the drug case.
Kabir's anger went up to level 2, so she can tell Manav but not him! He tried again, "Ek bhi nahi?"
"Nahi..." she replied casually.
Both remained silent, while Ananya watched the tv unaware of his thoughts Kabir was boiling inside, still not realizing why he was feeling so angry. He was angry because Ananya shared this information with Manav before him, and more on the fact that Manav complimented Ananya. His brain was flooded with questions. How often did they text each other? How many times did Manav compliment her? Did she like him flirting with her? Did she trust Manav more than him?
"Waise... tumhe compliments toh bahot milte honge haina?" he asked looking down at his hands, his voice was low yet edgy. Ananya was bewildered with his question, Kabir never behaved this way. What had happened so suddenly? "Kya matlab?" she asked him still confused.
"Nahi. Now you are more recognized as a reporter and now more people might be knowing you and complimenting you..." he replied still not looking at her.
She still didn't get his cue because she had not read the message yet, "Nahi toh! Aisa kuch nahi hai. Jaisa pehle tha waise hi hai..." she replied honestly.
If she was confused until now then his next question shocked her, "Do you trust me?"
"Why are you.." she tried asking but he cut her off, "Yes or no?"
"Yes!"
"Then why didn't you tell me about the drug deal case which you are working on and you told Manav about it already?"
"What? Why told Manav sir?" she asked surprised. "Then what is this?" he asked handing over her phone from the sofa.
Ananya read the message and looked confused, and in a moment her expression changed to anger and she started dialing somewhere, "Hello Tinu!" she roared as he answered the phone, "Teri toh khair nahi! How many times have I told you not to share my leads with Pandey! He goes and tells verything to Manav sir and Manav sir starts eating my head. Next time if I see you talking to him I will cut your mouth!"
Kabir was stunned, this girl was a tigress and that made him smile as all his confusion was cleared. It wasn't Ananya who told Manav and he thought, but then the realization hit him! He had landed himself in a soup! Now it was her turn to fire him with questions and he didn't know how to answer them. He was all prepared to hear her taunts and scolding but he was amazed when she spoke calmly, "I am not going to break your trust or our friendship. Please trust me."
"You are not angry?" he asked her, touched by her words.
"No. I know your past is not so rosy and betrayal has made you sensitive to these things." She replied smiling at him.
"Wo actually... main..." he hesitated looking for words.
Ananya placed her hand on his, "I'm in no hurry. You can tell me when you are comfortable. Afterall what are friends for."
"Shreya. She thought.. that i.. I cheated her.. and that... I was good for nothing and there were guys better than me... and she left me... feeling devastated I decided to prove her wrong in anger. I started working day and night to become successful... But when I did reach the top spot, I realized how mechanical I had become. I had nothing in life except power and money, a routine to follow, work, eat, sleep then work again... your friendship has filled up my life... and it matters much more to me than you can imagine... now I feel like I too am living and not just breathing... I started laughing again... these emotions which I stopped feeling years ago are knocking on my door, ready to hug me! I'm sorry for a moment I thought maybe I was not able to become a friend and you..." he couldn't complete his sentence when Ananya placed her hand on his mouth, nodding her head from said to side gesturing him not to speak anymore.
Kabir stood up and walked out to the balcony, looking at the dark night, trees swaying and cool wind blowing to his face. He closed his eyes for a while to calm himself down, he breathed deeply. After so many years he felt so emotional. The feelings rushing inside him made him feel human, again. Ananya let him calm down then walked to him, standing beside him quietly looking at weather getting rougher and the wind getting stronger. She rubbed her hands together and smiled. He had finally opened up, that means today he had placed implicit trust in her and now he had complete faith in their friendship.
After what felt like ages, Ananya finally spoke up. "Kabir?"
"Hmm..." he said slowly still looking ahead.
"Can I get a hug?"
That made him turn and look at her, while she smiled at him innocently. He nodded in a yes and she came to him slowly engulfing her arms around him, placing her head on his chest and she could hear his racing heart-beat. "It feels like you just ran a marathon." She mumbled laughing slowly. "I feel so too," he said chuckling as he placed his arms around her petite form. She was wearing a strap top so he could feel her skin to be cold, "Are you feeling cold?" he asked her.
"Not anymore." She replied slowly, her voice conveying contentment. "I will never leave you. No matter how bad your day is. If you want proof then consider the fact that it took so many years to prove that my father was innocent, people always told me otherwise but I had faith in him. I knew he was a good man and I have the same faith in you Kabir. I don't know why but I just want you to know that, I want you to know that I will not break our bond, no matter what."
Kabir smiled, "I promise too, to never leave your side. I will always be there for you."
Kabir made a mental note to thank Trisha the next day because if it wasn't for her eating in the conference room, Ananya jumping in to save her and him saving Ananya by revealing that he cooked the Ananya wouldn't have been so curious and this dinner wouldn't have happened. He had planned a simple dinner with her, but it turned out to be a turning point of their friendship. Until now their friendship meant behaving casually with each other instead of formally but today there friendship meant accepting each other and creating an unbreakable trust in each other.
"Thank Trisha huh?" someone looked annoyed with hands on his hips, "Where is the part where you thank God for all this? You have any idea how much mehnat it took to bring the perfect timing for things? Goodness! Anyway I just can't enough of these adorable people in front of me..." he chuckled looking at the beautiful hug.
"Shall I drop you home now?" Kabir said looking at his watch as they sat in his living room a while later cracking the drug case. So finally Ananya told him about the case and they decided to sit down and work on it just to get distracted by it so they both could ignore the warmth of the hug.
"OMG! It's 1am already?" she made a shocked face looking at the clock. "Yes, please drop me. I have to go to office tomorrow; there is a meeting at 10!"
Kabir smiled, "Ananya tum shayad bhool gayi ki main bhi ussi office mein kaam karta hoon aur jis meeting ki tum baat kar rahi ho use coordinate bhi main karunga..."
"Oh haan!" she said biting her tongue, "Sorry! Acha ab chalein?"
As Kabir and Ananya settled in the car, someone smiled mischievously, "Ek aakhri baar kuch toh banta hai..." saying that he clicked his fingers and the seatbelt got stuck!
"Kya hua?" Kabir asked looking at Ananya struggle. "Pata nahi.." she said pouting.
"Main dekhta hoon..." he said moving towards her. His faces one inch apart from her, his hot breathe fanning her face, she closed her eyes gulping hard, and opened her eyes only to get lost in his again! Just then by mistake Kabir's foot touched the brake and the car jerked pushing Ananya in front placing her lips right on the side of his lips.
God almost fainted, "Phew! That was close!"
The rest of the journey remained quiet as both of them were lost in their own dreamland about each other, the tingling feeling of the incredible touch occupying their minds.
As they waved goodbye to each other, finally God pulled on his blanket. "Goodnight lovelies. I have to wake up tomorrow as I have a meeting at 10."
Well and we all know what job he has in the meeting! *wink wink*
