Rishton Ki Dor

17. Strike

Mihir was very nervous. He'd thought asking Annie out had been hard, but turns out the actual date was even more nerve wracking.

He glanced at his watch for the thousandth time. It was 5.56. He'd told Annie he would meet her at the restaurant at 6 PM. He'd ended up coming 15 minutes early. He now regretted it though. The wait was awful.

Finally, after what felt like forever (but actually was just another five minutes), he heard a shy voice.

"Uh..hello, Sir."

Mihir looked up. His breath caught.

Annie stood in front of him, and she looked beautiful. He'd only seen her in formals before today but now she was wearing a gorgeous blue salwar kameez. She looking stunning.

Annie smiled and looked down at Mihir's open mouthed expression. She'd been worried about how she looked but Mihir's reaction proved her choice had been right.

Mihir realised what he was doing and caught himself. He cleared his throat, embarrassed. Very smooth, Sehgal.

"Um..," he began, then cleared his throat again. "Hi, Annie...baitho na." He got up and pulled a chair for her. Annie smiled in thanks and took her seat.

"Tum...um, tum bohot acchi lag Rahi ho," Mihir said after a moment.

"Thank you," Annie replied. "Aur aap bilkul waise hi lag rahe hai jaise Roz lagte hai suit Mai."

Mihir laughed. Just then the waiter arrived with the menus.

"I hope I didn't make you wait for too long, Sir," Annie said once they'd given their order.

"Of course not," Mihir replied. "And Annie, it's not 'sir'. It's Mihir."

"Are nahi Sir, how can I-"

"Please Annie," Mihir said. "Don't call me Sir here. Bohot ajeeb lagega mujhe."

Annie nodded slowly. "Okay...Mihir." Mihir smiled, ridiculously pleased to hear her say his name.

"So, how is Ayaan doing, Si-Mihir?" Annie asked. "Bohot din ho Gaye wo office nahi aaye aapse milne?"

Mihir smiled. "He's doing well. And actually...he's grounded right now. Isliye kahi baahar nahi aa sakta."

"Oh...that's too bad. I'm sure he must hate it."

Mihir laughed. "You have no idea. Paagal ho jaata hai wo Ghar baith ke. Aur baaki sab ko bhi paagal kar deta hai."

Annie smiled on seeing the fondness in Mihir's eyes as he spoke of his brother. It was unmistakable.

"Tum batao," Mihir said. "Tumhaari family mai kon kon hai?"

Annie's smile dropped. She looked down.

Mihir was suprised. "Um-you okay Annie?"

Annie sighed and looked back up. "Yes, Sir. Mihir. It's just...I don't really have any family. Mai ek orphanage Mai badi Hui hu."

"Oh," Mihir said. He felt like kicking himself. Annie had worked for him for so long, how had he not known this before? "I'm really sorry Annie," he said.

Annie smiled sadly. "Don't be, Mihir. It is what it is. Waise bhi, maine to kabhi apne parents ko jaana bhi nahi. What's the point of remembering someone you never know?"

She looked so sad that Mihir couldn't stop himself from reaching forward and placing a hand on hers'. "Aisi baate soch kar udaas hone ka bhi to koi point nahi hai na Annie," he said gently. "You have your whole life ahead of you. Apni zindagi banao, forget the past. You're not an orphan; you're an independent woman forging your own path."