Chapter 19: Chapter 19
Armaan had his schedule cleared by his PA for the day
He got ready in a blue jeans and white shirt ,his hair left open
He tucked his black aviators inside his shirt and walked towards the nursery to see if his companions are ready yet
"Shanthima,I have already prepared the food.Please reheat it before packing it.Khanna bhaiyya would take it to the office for Aadesh" he heard Janani instructing while changing Ava's dress
She had got Ava into a pretty white T shirt with some Disney princess printed on it and paired it with a blue Jean's
She herself was dressed in blue kurti with white leggings
"Oh my!! Ava and Jaan are matching today" Janani said rubbing her nose with Ava's
Jaan...that's what Ava calls her
"Ava Jaan same same" Ava giggled touching their dresses
"Let us make Advi also wear same same" Janani said combing Ava's hair leaving it open with just two colourful butterfly clips pinned to the side
Janani then picked up Advi and got him out off the dress she had made him wear after his morning bath
She picked up a blue shorts and white T shirt with Ben 10 printed on it and proceeded to change his diapers
When she took the diaper pants a smile appeared on her face thinking of Armaan learning to diaper his son
There is something so endearing about the way Armaan is around his children
He might be arrogant and rude to her most of the times and he has a PhD in drawing his own horrible conclusions, but deep down ,she could feel there lies something else
Something gentle and sweet
Which he has expertly masked with his arrogant persona
If you ask her how she knows it ,then she doesnt have an answer
No ,she is no psychic
But she feels a connection, something she can't name
Maybe because he is Advi's father and she is deeply attached to Advi, it might be natural to feel a certain connection to Advi's father
Wasn't that why she felt something that afternoon at the park, which had led to the controversial kiss on the cheek
"Heyy ,that's easy" she came out of her dreamland when she heard an almost accusing tone
She looked up to see Armaan pointing at the diaper Advi is wearing now
He is wearing casuals
She had never seen him in something other than his suits
And he had always looked handsome in suits
But in casuals, he had taken it to the next level
What is wrong with her??
Why was she ogling him now as if she is seeing him for the first time
Okay she hadn't liked him very much in the beginning, so she had overlooked his obvious looks
Now that she had started warming up to the real man in him ,she could actually appreciate his looks
Not that she would let him know
One slip from her part already is enough, no more
"Huh??" She asked confused as to what he is talking about
"This diaper. This is not the one you made me do. This is simple" he said and a grin appeared on her face
"This is diaper pants and the ones you made him wear are normal diapers" she said
"If diaper pants are available, why would you make me do something difficult" he grunted
"Difficult?? But I thought it was a piece of cake for you" she said playfully remembering his words once he finished diapering Advi
"You were having fun at my expense " he said through gritted teeth making her grin wider as she made Advi wear his dress for the day
"A girl ought to have her fun right" she said with a cheeky smile
Once Advi was also ready she packed a small bag with some essentials .
"Diapers check ,formula check ,spare clothes check, wipes check ,snacks check ,water check" she said checking the things in the bag making Armaan shake his head
What is he going to do with her??
What is he going to do without her?? He wondered
"Dada same same" they both looked down to see Ava looking at her dress and Armaan's with twinkling eyes
That's when Armaan realised he was also matching
They almost look like a family
Almost ,he reminded himself
They are not a family
*****
They had a look around the pre kindergarten
Janani instantly liked the place
Its perfect for kids
And she liked the woman who owns the place
Ananya Mittal
A single mother of a three year old boy
She saw a photo of a young good looking man with a diya lit in front of it in Anika Mittal's office
That might have been the woman's husband
There are no much children in the kindergarten
Around fifteen kids with two caretakers
One among them is pregnant too ,maybe in her third trimester
The place is warm and kid friendly
"We start at 10 and ends by two in the afternoon. If you need to use the day care facility it can also be taken care of" Ananya said
"Oh no .That won't be necessary. You have mentioned about snacks and lunch. Is it a must to only have food from here. Can't we sent packed lunch from home" Janani asked her most pressing concern
"Oh its perfectly alright. The pre kindergartens are mainly opened for the convenience of working parents. So I thought providing lunch would be more convenient for them.If you want to send packed lunch for your child you definitely can" Ananya said with a smile
Janani was about to correct the woman that Ava was not her child when Armaan intervened
"The security service?? It's completely safe here right?? Would you mind if I ask my security team to do a thorough check up here" Armaan asked and Ananya raised her eyebrows amused
She had seen many over protective fathers like him
Her agency is mainly availed by the elite class of Mumbai ,so she had made sure the place has the best security precautions
"Sure Mr Verma" she said and Gauri shot her a light apologetic smile on behalf of Advi's father ,in case the woman felt offended
*****
Armaan walked out of Ava's room after kissing his baby girl a goodnight
Its past ten at night and she is fast asleep
Once back from the kindergarten he had to go to the office and couldn't reach home before the kids slept
He walked towards Janani's room and knocked twice and when he didn't get any response he opened the door and entered
He saw Advi sleeping with his mouth lightly open and one leg out of the blanket
He gently tucked the wayward leg inside the blanket without waking him only for the kid to kick the leg out of the blanket again
He shook his head and bent down to place a feathery kiss on his forhead
He couldn't find Janani in there but he saw the baby monitor is on
"Now where have this girl gone" he murmered walking towards his room
Once he freshened up and changed into a track suit and V neck t shirt he walked towards the kitchen
He is hungry
He hope Janani has saved some dinner for him
He opened the fridge and searched for anything to eat ,but found nothing cooked
His lips pulled down and he straightened up only to see a sticky note on the oven
Reheat for 2 minutes
A smile made it's way on his face
He reheated the food and was about to sit on the kitchen island when he heard noise from the theatre room
He took his food and walked towards the theatre room to find Janani sitting there and watching some movie,the baby monitor right next to her
Janani was watching Zoya factor
She liked Dulqer Salman
She is a movie buff and she hadn't restricted her interest to Bollywood movies only
She loves south indian movies very much and DQ is one of her favourite south Indian actor
She was too much into the movie that she didn't notice the presence of another person until he changed the channel to sports
She looked sideways to see Armaan sitting next to her and eating food while watching cricket
"I was watching the movie" she pointed out reaching for the remote only for him to keep it away
"It was some movie related to cricket right?? Why waste time watching something fake.Watch the real cricket " he said pointing at the screen where an India-Pakistan match re telecast is going on
"I hate cricket" she said and he choked on his food
How could someone hate cricket?? He loves cricket
"But you were watching a movie related to cricket?" He asked confused
"There is a difference between watching sports and sports based movies"
"Sure. There is" he agreed
"Sports based movies are always more interesting " she said and he looked at her in disbelief
"Why would you say so?? Cricket is an amazing sport " he said
"I don't like it" she said
"You have never watched cricket??" He asked
"I have. That's why I hate cricket. Can you believe I have watched an Australia-South Africa match four times....the same match four times that it became by heart for me what run it is going to be on the next ball" she said rolling her eyes
"Is that the match where south Africa wins chasing a score of above 400" Omkara asked excited.
That is one of his favourite matches and he had lost the count of how many times he had watched it
Gauri threw a dirty look at him
"Don't tell me you like that match. I absolutely hate cricket" she said
"Why would you watch that if you hate cricket" he asked
"Aditya ,my neighbour boy. He is like my little brother. He always comes to my home to watch cricket as his father is always watching news. He would sit and watch cricket all day not letting me watch movies." she huffed remembering all those fights for the remote
"So you have never watched a cricket match on your own will?" Armaan asked
"I have " she grinned " just to see- " he cut her off
"Sachin Tendulkar??" He asked .
Obviously there are people who watch cricket just to see Sachin Tendulkar.
Legend of Indian cricket team
"Actually ,Irfan Pathan" she said and he looked at her in disbelief
"You watch cricket to see Irfan Pathan??" He asked shaking his head
"Kitna handsome hei??" Her tone turned dreamy making him scowl
"Armaan movie rakh lo...please " she said
"No"
She heaved a dramatic sigh
"Okay. All day I have my hands full with Ava and Advi, I thought I could watch some movies at night. If you don't want me to...then.." she trailed off sneaking a sideway glance at him
Guilt tripping...he scowled at her
"Fine. Watch the movie" he said handing her the remote making her grin
Armaan decided he would watch the movie too ,after all the movie is cricket based
"Don't fall asleep on me like they do in movies okay?? I'm not going to carry you in my arms bridal style" he said making her roll her eyes
Once the movie is over, Janani sighed
Like seriously, zoya devi??
She felt the weight of his head on her shoulders and sighed
"Don't fall asleep on me like they do in movies ..I'm not going to carry you bridal style " she mimicked rolling her eyes
"Armaan.... Armaan wake up" she shook him awake
He groggily opened his eyes
"What??" He asked in his sleepy tone
"I can't carry you bridal style in my arms hero. You will have to walk upto your room" she said standing up
"What a boring movie. How can people be so illogical " he murmered as he stood up to leave
"Goodnight Armaan" she said and he turned around to look at her with a smirk
"No kiss today Janani??"