Chapter 193 - It grows on you...

Shreya actually went straight to the office as soon as the flight landed in spite of all the protests. And as expected piles and piles of files were waiting for her at her table as soon as she came in. She deposited her luggage in one corner and went to work. The office was absolutely silent except for the sound of her flipping pages every now and then or the sound of her tapping the keyboards on her system. Her eyes never deterred outside of her work even for one second. She was completely absorbed in her word.

She was so preoccupied with work that, she did not even know how the time flew by and Anand came knocking on her office doors well into the afternoon armed with her very late lunch.

"Somebody forgot her lunch!!" Anand said sarcastically keeping her lunch on the table and taking the files in her hands forcefully without permission.

Shreya looked up at him and instantly whined protesting, "Uncle, I am not done with them yet…"

But then Anand gave her a stern look… the same kinda look she would end up giving him whenever he forgot her lunch. And now that the tables were turned, Anand couldn't do much about the smug smile dancing on his face.

Shreya rolled her eyes at his childishness as she gave him a hug and then took the lunch from his hands and walked to the couch without any more protest.

"How was your vacation?" Anand asked sitting beside her.

"Long…" She said in a flat tone. It was not that she did not enjoy the vacation. She was able to relax and chill out after god knows how long and it was a welcome change but still, she was just not vacation kinda girl… at least not when it was going to go on for 2 weeks in the middle of nowhere. Even though she was the one who bought the island which was in the middle of nowhere.

"You went on a vacation, kiddo. Why do you have to make it sound as if you went through torture or something?" He asked exasperatedly at her hearing her reply.

"The island was nice… You and aunt should go and relax for some time there…" She said nonchalantly munching on her food.

"What are we two going to do on an island all by ourselves?" Anand asked bemused.

"Take Bhavna and Akash with you… for entertainment. They are hilarious together. They still fight like cats and dogs. By the way, Bhavna asked if she could come back home this time around once her semesters are over?" Shreya mentioned. After all, Anand was Bhavna's dad and he should have a say in what Bhavna does even if she had already given Bhavna an answer. But then again, Shreya did not mean any disrespect by it. She was just confident that Anand will actually agree with her decision as will Bhagya.

Anand completely ignored the first part and asked about the later, "And what did you tell her?"

"I agreed actually. Anyways its easier to be on the lookout here than on some other country far away. And she has an agent now! Did you know?" Shreya asked back.

"I know. Don't interfere too much with her work… She needs to learn… How long are you going to protect her at the palm of your hands?" Anand said. Everyone in the family knows how much Shreya pampers Bhavna. Even as a father, he never did anything that excessive as Shreya.

"She is fine just the way she is…" Shreya shrugged off.

Anand looked at her dubiously and asked, "She is not… She is too naïve for her own good Shreya. You can't be there cocooning her all her life. She has to learn… She is too spoilt by you. She has to learn to actually work hard to get something."

Neither Anand nor Bhagya ever interfered with anything Shreya ever did for both of their children. Because they always knew Shreya never meant any harm to either of them. But somewhere on the line, Shreya had become so protective of them… especially Bhavna that they are now afraid Bhavna will grow out to be spoilt.

Shreya thought about it for a while and at last agreed reluctantly, "Okay. Fine. I won't interfere too much in her work. But she is going to have two bodyguards with her all the time."

This way they chatted for a while. Once everything was shared… both of them went quiet and kept each other company as Shreya finished her lunch.

When Shreya looked up once finishing her lunch, she found Anand looking at the painting behind her table with a sense of melancholy. She knew he was thinking about Adithya. So she just kept quiet. After all, nothing she ever says is going to change any damn thing here. They are gone whether she likes to accept it or not. So a few words of verbal comfort now might actually do more harm than good.

"It is such an ugly thing but your dad was so stubborn to buy it and put it in his office… He said the colors mesmerized him… But I never got around to understanding it! I mean… look at that… it literally looked like some kid had spilled colors into a canvas accidentally. There were so many pleasant-looking paintings out there and it was not like Adithya lacked the money to buy it. But he was dead set on this one." Anand mumbled with a smile with his eyes still stuck at the painting on the wall.

Shreya looked at it and said with a smile, "It grows on you… with time…" There was a nostalgic taste in her expression.

After all, the first time you see it… it was almost impossible not to be weirded out by the ghastly look of the painting. But with time, you might not fall in love with it… but you end up getting used to it. Seeing it will become almost comforting.

"That it does," Anand replied thoughtfully and got up from his place while Shreya cleared the plates.

"Go home today, Shreya. Or else I am going to ask Bhavna to haunt you for another full month…" Anand warned before leaving her alone in the office.

"I am planning to go to the Imperial tonight. Its been long since I visited. I will have an early morning meeting there." Shreya called out behind him.

Anand just sighed without verbalizing his protest and waved his hands without really turning back. After all, he was completely helpless when it came to his niece.