Desde sempre e para sempre Chapter 18

Desde sempre e para sempre

Chapter 18

Gael: “Naina, nobody.”

Aaji: “She was not nobody on the plane.”

Leo: “On the plane? You got some booty and you told Aaji before you…”

Gael: “Shut up!”

Aaji: “Leo! I would like you to show some respect!”

Leo: “I am sorry…but I am a little…”

Gael: “No, I did not get any booty…HEY!”

Aaji hit him on his forearm as hard as she could: “Same is applicable to you!”

Leo laughed: “If you don’t want to talk about your Naina, suit yourself. I am going to talk about mine.”

Gael: “Say what?”

Leo: “I think I am in love and her name is Naina too.”

His heart curled with pain even though there was no way it could be his Naina! Could it? HIS Naina?

Aaji: “What do you mean?”

Gael: “Does it matter? He falls in love every week.”

Leo: “This time it’s different.”

Gael: “That’s what you say all the time.”

Leo: “Why are you being so rude? I bet you the success of Davi’s film, she is not the same Naina.”

Gael: “Bet with something that YOURS to lose.”

Aaji: “NO! Never gamble! You two are devils! Where is Davi?”

Leo: “This is not a gamble, Aaji. I am not uncertain.”

He fished in his pocket and pulled out Rs. 10.

Gael: “At the moment, that’s all I own.”

Gael: “How about if I win, you do everything I say for the next two weeks without any complains and if I lose…”

Aaji: “You do everything I say for the next two weeks without any complains!”

Leo: “What am I winning?”

Aaji: “If you win, I will make you Dal and rice everyday.”

Leo: “Oh, thank God.”

Gael: “Wait, what…(he tasted a spoonful and spit it out) This is disgusting! Why didn’t you say anything!?”

Leo: “I wanted to, Irmão, you know I did but Aaji threatened me not to…”

Aaji: “Do we have a deal?”

Gael: “Whatever happened to no gambling?”

Aaji: “Well, you only live once.”

Leo: “Dang! Aaji is a total G!”

Gael: “Let’s get this straight. You are betting that the two Naina’s are different and my bet is that they are the same?”

Leo: “If you have the hots for her, why would you even want her to be the same?”

Gael: “I don’t want her to be anything. It just so happens that in a wager the second party has to bet on the other outcome.”

Leo: “So, you have the hots for her?”

Gael: “I am not in High School.”

Aaji: “Breno, you make bets on things you are not sure about?”

Gael: “Never.”

Aaji: “Then why now? For all you know she could be the same person...”

Oh, he hoped he lost. He would do her bidding any day...he would not, he could not share HIS Naina even if it was only in his head that she was his!

Gael: “You only live once.”

He had seen the flash in her eyes as he had made the wager. He just wanted her to live.

Davi burst into the living room: “SHE IS GETTING MARRIED!!!!!”

“WHO IS???????”

Leo: “I bet Davi met a Naina…”

Aaji and Davi looked at each other and he nodded. Aaji suddenly grabbed her chest in shock.

Gael: “Aaji! Leo! Call the doc!”

John who had just entered the living room after Davi: “I am on it!”

Gael carried Aaji in his arms and took her to her bedroom. Davi quickly poured a glass of water for her and followed Gael inside along with Leo. John entered the bedroom a few seconds later with the medical entourage.

Aaji: “I am okay…its just….”

Doctor: “No shocks! Her condition is very fragile as it is…she is stable now…and I…”

Aaji: “I need to talk with Davi in private, please…”

Doctor: “But…”

Aaji: “Please inform Breno about what needs to be done. He is going to want to know more than I do anyway…”

Gael and the rest left the room. Davi closed the door after they left and turned around.

Davi: “Are you okay?”

Aaji: “It is when things like this happen, I remember the imminent reality of my situation...but I don’t want to talk about it…if I have learned anything, we have to work now and we have to work fast.”

Davi: “She said she is getting married!”

Aaji: “I have nothing against that. We are just going to have to change the groom.”

Davi: “I don’t think that is right.”

Aaji: “Please don’t go “Mr. Do the right thing” on me! I don’t have the time or the patience for it!”

Davi: “Bem. What do you suggest?”

It said a lot for Davi to be convinced so quickly to not do the right thing. He could see, just like she did, that Naina was meant for Breno.

Aaji: “How did you even bump into her?”

Davi: “About that…your place…well, there is a Community Center where your home was supposed to be…I guess after you left for Brazil things changed back here…”

Aaji: “How is that possible?! I owned that room!”

Davi: “Well, since there is no building in which your flat existed over there anymore…I believe they do things a bit differently here in India...”

Aaji: “Oh no! ”

Davi: “Anyway, I went inside to check it out and she was practicing Kathak.”

Aaji gasped: “Kathak?”

Davi: “Not only is she beautiful, she is also an extremely graceful and talented dancer…”

Aaji: “I want her for Breno NOW!”

Davi: “If only things worked that way…”

After the doctors left, Gael took John to the side.

Gael: “What did you find out?”

John: “The place where Aaji stayed was taken over by the Government 10 years ago. It was converted into a public property; a community center was established in its place.”

Gael: “Buy it back.”

John: “But it’s not a private property…”

Gael: “Private or public, all understand the language of money. Buy it.”

John: “Yes, sir. I will go to the Municipal Corporation…”

Davi entered the living room with Aaji.

Leo: “I don’t think you should be out of bed just yet…”

Gael and John turned around…

 Aaji: “So, my house, what happened to it?”

Gael and John looked at each other. Had she overheard them?

But she was looking at Leo.

Right, Gael had asked Leo to take care of it.

Leo: “Uhhh…what had happened was…”

Gael: “John, has it all under control!”

Aaji: “Does he?”

Davi had filled her in.

Gael: “Yes. He will go over there and get it all ready for you…”

John cleared his throat loudly.

Gael leaned forward to hear him out.

John: “I might just be able to buy the place back which will need all sorts of coercion considering the government is involved but I hardly doubt I will be able to build a house there in a day!”

Gael: “We will live in RVs for all I care! As long she is where she wants to be.”

Aaji: “No.’

Gael: “No?”

Aaji: I want YOU to go there.”

Gael: “Go where?”

Naina was lounging by the balcony lost in thought when something hit her. Scratching her forehead and trying to figure out what hit her, she stood up when another one hit her. Annoyed, she leaned on the balustrade when yet another one hit her on her face.

Naina: “OY…Kuku…”

Kushal: “Shhhhhh!!”

Naina looked around her. It was late in the night and everyone was in their respective rooms. Jaya had gone to bed already because of her mother. The boy and his family were going to come see her tomorrow…

Naina whispered loudly: “You are way too early...”

Kushal whispered back: “Shut up and come down!”

Naina: “No. It’s past 11 pm and I am not allowed to be out of the house past 11 pm…”

Kushal: “Just you wait till I tell your Dadi how many curfews you have broken…”

Naina: “Shhhh! Acha! Okay, I am coming!”

But before she left, she turned around and threw a pebble back at him.

Naina made some excuse to her Dadi and left the house. She reached downstairs and Kushal was about to hug her when she pulled away.

Naina: “This is not New York. You are coming to see my friend tomorrow and if someone…”

Kushal: “Got it, Nainai. Well, this is your town, where to?”

Naina: “I don’t know. Where are you staying?”

Kushal: “The Taj.”

Naina: “Aunty and Uncle here yet?”

Kushal: “Yup. They took the flight from Delhi in the evening. They are already in bed and since I am still running on the EST, it is time for me to wake up.”

Naina: “Tell me about it! I feel so sleepy at exactly 7 pm after having stayed up the whole day, our night, but past 11 pm, I am wide awake!”

Kushal: “We can go to the bar at Taj.”

Naina: “Only if you are paying.”

Kushal: “You are sooo Desi!”

Naina: “Of course! I am giving you my best friend, in return, you can at least take me out for drinks.”

Kushal: “One drink.”

Naina: “Why?!”

Kushal: “You have negative alcohol tolerance.”

Naina: “Whatever, how did you get here.”

Kushal: “My car.”

Naina: “Your car.”

Kushal: “I rented one.”

They walked over to his car. 

Naina: “You rented an Audi!”

Kushal: “They don’t have a Maruti at the Taj.”

Naina: “I wish I was born to a rich family as their only heir!”

Kushal: “You can always marry one.”

Naina: “Ha! My expiry date is looming. At this rate, I need to marry something, anything. Beggars can’t be choosers.”

Kushal: “First of all, expiry date? Gross. And you can marry that Brazilian, he is totally into you.”

Naina stopped and Kushal banged into her.

Kushal: “Ouch!”

Naina: “What?”

Naina: “I am talking about Pablo, the guy you were on the Human Rights Commission with, remember?”

Naina sighed relieved: “Oh! Him!”

Kushal: “Yeah, him. Who did you think I was talking about?”

Naina: “Nothing. I mean no one. I am driving.”

Kushal: “No way.”

Naina: “You can afford to pay for the damages.”

Kushal: “I don’t like how you take it for granted that there will be damages. I can afford to pay for the damages but I only have one life. I want to get married to Jaya, Nainai!”

Naina: “Jaya is all you think about now! As soon as the wife enters, you forget about your best friend?!”

Kushal: “Well…”

Naina punched him on the side: “You are supposed to say ‘No, Nainai, it’s not like that!’ and here you are…”