Just then, Jai snapped out of his thoughts hearing the principal's words. The principal was praising the child, saying, "This boy is the most intelligent student in our school. A very sweet and calm child who respects everyone. We have never received a single complaint about him."
Jai listened carefully as the principal continued to praise Jeev. Although the compliments were for Jeev, Mudkan's heart rested on Jai's support. Hearing the praise for Jeev made her very happy.
Jai thought to himself, Yes, he is sweet, but he's also quite mischievous and brave—brave enough to fool Jai Singh Rathore. Just one day, and how much he's impressed everyone!
At that moment, Neel turned to him and asked, "Sir, have you ever been to Shimla before?" Jai looked at him confused. "No, why? Why do you ask?" Neel replied in a teasing tone, without even looking at Jai, "I don't know why, sir, but this boy's face looks exactly like yours. If you had a son, he'd be just like him."
When Jai understood Neel's words, he glared at him angrily. "Stop your nonsense, Neel." Hearing Jai's cold tone, Neel fell silent and softly said, "Sorry, sir."
Jai ignored him and looked back at Jeev. Then he muttered to himself, "Actually, Neel is right—he does look a lot like me. But how is that possible? I've never been to Shimla before." He shook off the thought. What am I thinking? Living with Neel has made me crazy.
Jai then wondered quietly, Could this be mine and Vani's child? But Vani is in Shimla… or at least, no information about her yet. Is it possible she's here in Shimla? Or is this just my imagination?
Lost in his thoughts, just then Jeev won the quiz competition. The teacher announced, "Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for the most intelligent student of the year—Jeev Singh Rathore!"
Hearing his name, both Jai and Neel were stunned.
Neel quickly teased, "See, sir, it's not just his face—his name is almost the same as yours! Did you ever come to Shimla?" Jai shot him a sharp glare. "Just shut up, Neel."
Once again, Neel silenced himself at Jai's icy tone.
Though Jai rarely paid heed to others' words, Neel was one of the few he trusted deeply and considered very clever. In fact, Neel was like Jai's right hand. They had been together for a long time, and Jai treated him like a brother. But one thing about Neel was his slippery tongue.
After Jai scolded him, both turned to watch the stage, where the teacher was praising Jeev.
At that moment, the teacher called Jai to the stage as the chief guest to present the trophy. Jai went up and, seeing him approach, Jeev's gaze fixed only on Jai. Jai smiled at Jeev, but Jeev just ignored him. Jai's expression was priceless. Still, forcing a smile, Jai walked toward Jeev.
What's this kid's problem? Jai thought. Since the day we met, he's shown nothing but attitude. What's wrong with smiling a little? Did I tease his mother or something that he's so angry?
As Jai reached out for a handshake, Jeev extended his hand. Jai introduced himself warmly, "Hi, I'm Jeevesh Singh Rathore." Jai liked the name—it sounded unique and lovely.
Jai said, "That's a very unique name. Do you know what it means?"
Jeev answered in the same cold tone, "Yes, I know. Jeevesh means courageous—one who never loses heart. My uncle named me Jeevesh. Impressive. It's nice to meet you. You're not only intelligent but also very confident. I would love to meet your parents someday."
Jai asked about Jeev's parents, hoping to learn something, but Jeev was just as clever. He refused to say anything about them and coldly said, "Thank you," pulling his hand away. Jai's face twisted in disappointment.
The teacher asked Jai to present the trophy. He handed it to Jeev, who took it and said "Thank you" before leaving.
Jeev went outside looking for Vani, but she was nowhere to be found. She had promised to come watch the competition. Jai came down from the stage and started searching for Jeev. Neel followed him.
Outside, as Jeev searched for Vani, Nisha ran up to him, apologizing, "Sorry, Chap, I'm a bit late. But Chap, I'm here now. How was your competition?"
Jeev grew sad. "Masi, Mom didn't come."
Seeing Jeev's sadness, Nisha tried to cheer him up. "Jeev, you know your mom is a warrior. She had an emergency at the hospital, so she had to stay there. That's why she sent me."
"What? You're not happy to see me, Masi?" Jeev asked.
"No, no, it's not like that. I know my mom is strong; she saves lives—she's a warrior. And I'm a warrior too. I will always protect Mom from bad people," Jeev said proudly.
"Look, Jeev, you won the competition and got the trophy. Wow! Jeev, this is a big trophy!" Nisha kissed his cheeks.
Jai stood at a distance, watching the two but couldn't hear their conversation. He assumed Nisha was Jeev's mom. Seeing her, he felt a strange disappointment and watched them walk away from afar.
Just then, Neel came to Jai. "Sir, it's getting late; we should leave. We have a meeting at eight, so we need to get back to the hotel soon."
Jai nodded, and Neel started the car. Suddenly, another car crashed into their vehicle from behind. Neel got out, furious, and walked over to the other car.
"Do you have eyes or not? How could you miss such a big car? If you don't know how to drive, why are you even driving? Get out!" Neel yelled.
Nisha, who was about to apologize, got angry at Neel's words. She stepped out and said, "Oh Double Battery, Single Power, don't get too cocky. It was an accident. Any damage? Just one puff from a matchstick and you'll fly away."
"I'm ready to pay for it," she added.
Neel adjusted his glasses and said, "What did you call me? Double Battery? God gave you big eyes, so how did you miss such a big car? And you call me double battery? I'm like a matchstick—one puff and you'll blow away."
Nisha raised her finger, "Look, you're talking too much. I told you I'm ready to pay."
Neel gave her an attitude, "So you want to pay the damages, right? Fine. One lakh."
"One lakh?" Nisha's eyes widened. "For this small scratch, I could get your car repaired for a thousand. This is so expensive."
Neel smirked, "Why? What's the matter? Don't want to pay now? Don't waste time; pay up. Do you think I'm a fool? One lakh for a tiny scratch on such an expensive car? It should be packed and kept as a showpiece."
Nisha laughed, mocking him, "What's wrong with you? Wanted me to pay? Now deal with it. Out of your league, huh?"
Nisha was about to curse him in anger but stopped herself because it was her fault. Calmly, she said, "You're talking too much. Look, I'm not paying that much. If there's a discount, tell me."
Jai, watching Neel fight with a woman, was losing his mind. Meanwhile, Jeev silently scolded Nisha in his mind for her foolishness. She can't even handle this properly.
Seeing them fight like children, Jeev and Jai got out of the car. Jeev glared at Neel when Jai saw him with Nisha. Jai scolded Neel, "Are you fighting like street thugs? Come on, we're running late. We have a meeting in a little while, and you're acting like kids."
Neel got back into the car, and after they left, Nisha and Jeev also got into the vehicle.
Jai and Neel headed for the hotel.
Jeev asked Nisha, "Masi, if you don't know how to drive, why do you take the car out? You scratched Mom's car; she must be very angry."
Nisha replied, "Kids, don't lecture me. My mind is already messed up. Let's go home; we'll talk later."
With that, she took Jeev directly to Vani's house.
Nisha's heart was heavy with worry. What will Vani do when she sees the scratch on her car? Please God, save me this time. I promise to be more careful next time.
Vani had asked her not to touch the car, but Nisha had taken advantage of her absence and taken the car to school anyway.