LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 44: The visitor
Meisha entered the room chirping like a bird, and repeating, "Then who is gonna keep an eye on me, Bhaiya?"
Mehul smiled and enveloped her in a warm hug. He then patted her head affectionately, saying, "Oh so now, the little devil is also here! That means I will have to work at twice my efficiency. But first, tell me how you landed up here; and why didn't you inform me, so that I could come and receive you?"
"So what I have heard is really true- the professors can't stop asking questions for even a minute! I will explain everything, but first step aside so that I can hug Nikku Di!" Saying this, she stepped forward and hugged Nitya, while whining "It's not fair, Di! My exams just got over and now you are sick. How will we get to roam around this city before I get enrolled for my undergraduate programme?"
Nitya laughed at the innocent complaint ftom the kid and spoke, "Don't worry Meisha! I will be taking you to all of our favourite spots- just let me get discharged first!"
"Nobody is going anywhere before you are totally fine," Mehul spoke, raising his voice not in anger but in concern as if the naughty duo was somehow going to sneak out from right under his nose if he didn't interrupt their plans on time. He then turned towards the visitor and inquired "You! Our little devil, Meisha, speak now- how did you manage to come here, all alone?"
Meisha started recounting her journey with a proud smile. "You might have forgotten this, but my board exams got over last week and I was supposed to visit after Di got back from her trip. But last night, Surbhi Di called me and narrated the entire situation, so I boarded the flight this morning. Naveen Bhaiya picked me up from the airport and here I am! Smart, aren't I?"
Mehul was getting concerned about the possibility of her getting lost in the new city, so he asked once again, "Does aunty know about this? How did she let you travel by yourself?"
"Oho Dada!" Nitya was the one to reply in her defense, "She is 17 , stop worrying too much. She can take care of herself and so can I , you are just transforming into a bummer who just doesn't trust his younger sisters enough!"
"Shut up! Nikku, I know why you are trying to provoke me, but my answer is still no! You are not staying alone; and let me remind you that I let you travel by yourself only after you turned 18, and Mukul also got permission to travel alone after 18- so my rule is the same for everyone. And now you, young lady ,tell me- does anybody know about your surprise visit? Or have you just sneaked out like your elder sisters love to do?"
"No! No Bhaiya, I am the most well behaved kid of the century; and yes, both the Jaikars and Kashyaps know about the situation. And before you pop off, let me tell you that uncle is totally fine, as Surbhi di has not informed them about Nikku Di's health yet. They only know that she is alone at the house and is unable to sleep properly due to recurring nightmares, so they sent me here without any delay!"
After she finished her monologue, she saw Ruchi and asked, "I'm sorry but I don't recognize you; who are you? I am Meisha, Surbhi's sister!"
"I am Nitya's professor, Ruchi!" Ruchi replied with a smile, gazing curiosly at the bubbly visitor.
"Oh! Hello professor," she greeted her amicably. The four of them then continued chatting, making plans for the upcoming week as Nitya would get discharged that evening.
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Ho-jin stepped forward and held Ji-hun in his strong arms to support him. He stayed that way for a moment and then spoke softly, "Hyung, you don't have to worry and please don't take stress about this. I will be taking care of everything, so just breathe and let everything fall on me. I will always be by your side, whatever your decision will be- which I know is probably going to change after some time. But even if you wanted to stick to your current decision, I will be rooting for you. Just don't put so much stress on yourself, as you need rest right now. So please eat some more and take as much rest as you can now, given that we have concerts in a few months; and I want you to be perfectly healthy before that, okay?"
Dae Jung also came forward and hugged his best friend, saying, "He is totally right J, you don't have to worry about anything. Just let it go, everything will happen on its own time. We will see whatever the future brings with it, and we'll face it together, okay?"
Ji-hun nodded as he was overwhelmed by both his subconscious and conscious feelings, he couldn't thank his stars enough that he had got those two by his side- it was probably because of some good deeds he had performed in his past lives.
Ho-jin and Dae Jung made him finish his food and put him to sleep before leaving the room.
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"Are you sure that you can manage everything alone?" She asked once again, without raising her head and continued to pack the suitcase.
"Of course! Anyways, I am a marvelous cook and a cool dad; and despite everything, everyone is here- hyungs, Dae Jung and Ho-jin as well! You just go and enjoy your vacation, I am not gonna trouble you as much; you always complain that I don't let you go and visit your parents enough. So this time, I will not be calling you before you call me yourself and ask me to come pick you up- it's a bet!"
"Think well, I am giving you a chance once again, young man. I will probably choose not to return after that, you are well-acquainted with my escapist nature!" She teased him, grinning.
He stepped forward and grabbed her hands, pulling her into a hug. Sitting on the bed, he said with a smug smile "I know my charm will not let you escape."
"Oh! That's actually a great misunderstanding on your part; and if you have forgotten, let me remind you that your charm had nothing on me-"
He hugged her once again, even more tightly and cut her off mid-way, saying "-but my love sure does! Trust me, we are attached very tightly with this bond and you can't break it. And even if you tried to break it, we are also attached with the red string of fate for this and every other lifetime!"
She smiled and replied. "Relax, I was never implying that I will elope with someone else; it was you, it is you and it will always be you whom I am madly in love with. I was just saying that I might not return to you in this lifetime."
"Is that so?" He replied with a sudden mischievous glint in his eyes. "We will see about that, now let's go, otherwise you will miss your flight." He stood up, giving a peck on her forehead and extending his hand to silently ask for hers.
"Okay, let me check on the kids once before I leave, please close the suitcase in the meantime." She walked out of the room, assigning him the remaining tasks.
After some time, the flight took off and he returned home. He hadn't even gotten a chance to change his clothes when he heard someone banging on his door hysterically. He stepped out quickly to see what the matter was, only to find Hyeon standing there with a pale face.
"Hyung, what happened?"
"The flight...the flight has crashed."
"No! It can't be!" He felt a sudden weakness in his legs and fainted.
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"I can't live without her!" Ji-hun woke up, screaming and gasping for air.
"Without whom?!" Chang Min asked, panicking. He had been sitting beside him, not wanting to leave him all alone.
Ji-hun realized that it was all a dream, as he was still in his room, sleeping on his bed. 'But what was that, why did it feel so real? Whatever that was, now he knew for sure that this girl was the same girl he had seen in the previous dreams. The thought of losing her had scared him so much, then how had he been so stupid to think about just passing by her!'
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