Chapter 11

The morning of her birthday, Naina wakes up to discover that Raj is already gone. She's not sure why it is that she feels disappointed, she hadn't really expected him to remember. Last year her mother had told him about her birthday despite Naina asking her not to, and Naina still remembers the surprise she had felt when a gift had arrived for her.

Smiling, Naina shook her head at her own ridiculousness. She didn't remind him and then somehow she had hoped that he would actually remember. Well, it was her own fault really, she had nobody to blame except herself.

Dressing for the day, Naina wears a full skirt and a kurti, before putting the earrings he had sent for her last birthday on as well. After all, they did match. She was just packing her bag for the day when the door opened and Raj entered, already dressed for the day and carrying a bouquet of flowers.

Naina just stared at him, not quite able to believe it.

"You remembered," she told him, "I wasn't expecting…"

Giving the bouquet to her with a smile, Raj then stepped back. "Why wouldn't I remember?" he asks, "I made sure I wrote it down as soon as your mother told me last year."

Naina admires the flowers, smells them and then goes to find a vase, filling it with water and putting the flowers in. As she bends over them, she brushes her still loose hair back behind her ear, and Raj notices that she's wearing the earrings that he had sent to her. He feels a tug on his heart that not only did she keep them, she actually brought them here with her and likes them enough to wear… he had been so uncertain while buying them, not knowing what style jewellery she even liked and having no experience in buying any.

He can't get the small smile off his face, and Naina looks up from the vase once she's done arranging the flowers, seemingly a bit confused as to why he's looking at her in that way.

"I want to call Ma this morning," Naina announces, "It's been about a week since I talked to her and she must be missing me today."

"Of course," Raj tells her, "You go and call, I'll just be in the canteen."

Naina goes to the telephone in the hallway and dials the number, anxiously waiting for her mother to pick up. It's the first birthday that she's ever celebrated without her, and it seems strange that her mother won't be here to feed her cake or smile affectionately when Naina opened her presents.

"Hi Ma," she says when her mother picks up the phone.

"Happy birthday, Naina Beti," her mother tells her, "I'm missing you very much today."

"I'm missing you too, Ma." Naina tells her emotionally, "It's my first birthday without you."

"But you have Rajveer there with you this time." Her mother tells her gently, and Naina suddenly feels as if she's a child again, being reminded that it's time to grow up.

"He actually remembered that it was my birthday," Naina says quietly, "I didn't expect him to."

Mrs Ahluwalia laughs, "He actually called me a week ago to ask what he should get you. I tried to give him some suggestions."

Naina is surprised by this, he must have made sure to do it while she was at college so that she wouldn't find out.

"You are getting on well together, aren't you?" her mother asks, sounding concerned, "I know that we conducted your marriage without much warning, and you didn't know him very well at the time, but your father was always confident that things would work out eventually."

"It's fine Ma," Naina tells her, "You know that it was awkward at first… but it's much better now." She stops, unable to express herself properly and especially not to her mother. "He's very kind to me." She finally finishes.

"You don't know how relieved you've made me by saying that," her mother tells her, "I do worry about you there… you've had to deal with a lot from a very young age."

"Ma… can't you come for a visit?" Naina asks, "Even Rajveer would like to see you."

"Naina, you know I can't." Her mother tells her, her voice trembling. "That place… there are so many memories, I don't think I'll ever be able to go there again. But maybe… you could come home to visit some time."

"I can try," Naina tells her, "We get some holidays for Diwali, maybe then."

"Good," her mother tells her, "And don't worry about me, I'm perfectly fine here. Just concentrate on your studies and don't worry about naything."

"I will, Ma." Naina promises her, "I'll talk to you again soon."

"Happy birthday, Beti." Her mother tells her.

"Thanks, Ma, I love you." Naina tells her.

"I love you too, Naina. Enjoy your birthday."

Naina walks into the canteen and joins Raj at a table where he already has a cup of chai and some breakfast waiting for her.

"So I'll pick you up after college today," he tells her, "And then we'll go out."

"Where are we going?" Naina asks curiously, wondering how long he's had this planned for.

"You'll find out then," Raj tells her, a smile on his face.

"But I don't need to dress up do I?" Naina asks a bit worriedly, "I mean I'll be coming straight from college…"

"Don't worry, definitely no dressing up required." Raj informs her, "And there's nothing else you need to worry about either, so relax and enjoy your birthday today."

It was at this moment that Pooja was passing by their table and heard the last sentence.

"It's your birthday today?" she asked excitedly, "Rajveer Sir, why didn't you put the reminder message in our organisers? We could have arranged something, well anyway, Happy Birthday Naina!"

"Thanks," Naina tells her, smiling warmly. "And you didn't need to arrange anything, I'm used to having a fairly quiet birthday."

It's true, for the past two years it's been only her and her mother… before that, there was her father too of course. Naina remembers the days when Navin was still alive and they would throw huge parties for both of their birthdays, inviting all of their friends home.

By now the rest of the cadets have heard Pooja's loud happy birthday to Naina and they gather around to wish her as well. Raj sits back smiling quietly as the cadets all start exclaiming about how they would've arranged a party if they'd known.

"But it's not too late," Yudi says, "We can still have something arranged by tonight. We could have a cake… and some music… it will be great!"

"Uh, Yudibhai, maybe they already have plans for tonight," Ali tells his friend gently, not wanting Captain Rajveer and Naina to feel pressured into spending time with the cadets."

Raj looks at Naina, trying to judge what she would prefer by the look on her face. Then turning back to the cadets he smiles. "I think we could definitely be back in time for cake," he tells them, "Why don't we make it 9pm?"

"Excellent!" Yudi exclaims, already getting excited, "I'll order a cake straight away and we can have snacks and…." He stops suddenly, seeing the two new arrivals who have just walked in, "Dr Shalini, Dr Ritu, you should come to the party for Naina tonight!" he tells them.

"Party? What's the occasion?" Shalini asks, very interested, "Do I need to say congratulations for anything?" She raises her eyebrows at Raj, who struggles not to blush, knowing exactly what she's suggesting.

"It's Naina's birthday today." He informs them both, "The cadets found out and wanted to have a small party."

"Oh really," Ritu says, her expression changing slightly, "And how old did you turn today, Naina?"

Naina knows exactly what it is that she's trying to say, but replies calmly anyway. "Twenty one." She tells them.

Shalini doesn't make any comment, but Ritu can't help herself. "I always forget how young you are." She tells Naina in a very sweet tone.

"I've always been very grown up for my age," Naina informs her in a tone that clearly says she knows exactly what Ritu is up to.

"Well I would love to attend this party tonight," Shalini says brightly, trying to diffuse the tension that she senses. "And I hope you have a great day today, Naina."

"Thanks Shalini," Naina tells her with a smile, "I'm sure I will."

"Well I'd better get you to college now, or you'll be getting into trouble on your birthday." Raj tells her, checking his watch.

They say their goodbyes to everyone and he drives her there, stopping in front of the steps to the college.

"So don't be late, we have a lot to do this afternoon." Raj tells Naina in a mock serious tone. His heart flips for the small smile she gives him in return. He just hopes that everything goes to plan and she enjoys herself today.

**

The entire day, Naina remains distracted, trying to work out what Rajveer has planned for the afternoon. He hasn't given her any type of hint except for saying that she doesn't need to dress formally, so it could be anything. She's relieved that that he hasn't planned anything large, she would far prefer to celebrate her birthday casually than with a lot of fanfare.

Her eyes keep drifting to the clock, and she has to force herself to pay attention to what the professor is saying. The moment that the final bell rings, Naina quickly says goodbye to her friends and heads for the exit. She can't believe how nervous she's feeling, as if she's heading for a first date. And the sight of Raj waiting, leaning against the side of the jeep, is enough to make her feel even stranger, butterflies appearing in her stomach.

She climbs down the stairs quickly, coming to stand face to face with him.

"Did you have a good day so far?" he asks, and she nods. "Well, shall we go?"

Naina climbs into the jeep and they drive to their first destination, which is definitely not what she had expected.

"You're taking me to a mall for my birthday?" she asks, with a tone of slight disbelief. She hadn't quite known what to expect but this is well… certainly different.

"You're not happy?" Raj asks, sounding nervous. "We can go somewhere else…"

"No, no." Naina replies quickly, not wanting to hurt his feelings. "I'm just not sure what it is we're doing here."

"We're here to buy you presents." He tells her, "Don't think that I haven't already bought you something, because I have, but more presents never hurt anybody."

"Really, there's no need." Naina tells him, "Whatever you've bought me will be fine."

Raj laughs, "I know it will be fine." He tells her, "And I know that there's no need, so you can stop protesting now. It's just that ever since you've arrived I haven't really taken you anywhere, or bought you anything. I was remembering how whenever I see them, my friends would always complain about their wives spending all their money so I thought that you deserved an opportunity to do the same thing."

Naina can't help but smile at this reasoning, and although she's feeling a bit embarrassed at being told to go and spend his money, she knows that she won't be able to refuse.

And the look on his face is so… hopeful… that she doesn't want to say no anywhere.

"Alright, let's go then." Naina tells him, "But only if we get some things for you as well."

For the next couple of hours they roam around, visiting various shops, while Naina tries to stop Raj buying too much for her, and he tries to convince her that she needs yet another outfit. She picks shirts out for him, while he stands watching her, overwhelmed by how much this small action affects him.

"Are you newly married?" the shopkeeper asks with a knowing smile when they come to the counter with their purchases.

"Yes," Raj replies, because it's not actually too far from the truth.

Finally Naina manages to convince him that they really have done enough, and they head back to the jeep.

"Well I hope you're hungry," Raj tells her, "I was thinking we could have an early dinner, especially if we're going to have to be back at the academy for cake by 9."

"Actually I am quite hungry." Naina tells him, "I never knew that shopping gave you such an appetite," she jokes with him.

Raj takes her to a nice Italian place that's a short distance out of town with a nice view.

"How did you…" Naina begins to say.

"I cheated," Raj admits, "I asked your mother what your favourite food was."

"You've gone to a lot of effort today," Naina tells him quietly as they sit down, "Thank you. Nobody has ever done anything like this for me before."

"Naina, it's the least I can do for you." Raj tells her, "It hasn't been any trouble at all, and I've enjoyed seeing you so happy."

Naina looks away, knowing that if she looks at him for any longer she's going to start blushing. She feels like a stupid schoolgirl, and wishes that she could control herself a bit better.

Their food arrives and they chat while they eat, Raj asks Naina to tell him about some of her previous birthdays and she's in the middle of telling him a story about what Navin had done at one of her parties when she was ten, when she suddenly realizes that she hasn't become emotional while telling it.

"It's okay to remember him happily, Naina." Raj tells her, understanding the look on her face perfectly, "That's what he would've wanted."

And Naina realizes that maybe she is finally ready to remember Navin with happiness.

By the time they finish their dinner, it's already dark outside, and Raj suggests that they go for a short walk. Leaving the restaurant, they head down the road, walking mainly in silence until they reach a lookout from where they can see the lights of Ambala shining in the distance.

Raj sits down on a bench there and motions for Naina to join him, which she does.

"So I did buy you a real present," he tells her, and pulls a box out of the inside pocket of his jacket, handing it to her.

Naina undoes the bow on it curiously, before opening the box. Seeing the contents, she looks up at Raj questioningly, unable to quite believe it.

"At the time we got married I didn't give you anything." He tells her, "If things had been different, if my parents had been there, then you would've received more than this at that time."

Naina pulls his present out of the box, admiring the simple golden bangles that he has given her. They're not overly ornate or heavy, and she wonders how it is that he knows her taste so well.

"They're beautiful," she tells him, and before she can think about the meaning of her action, places the bangles into his hand and holds out her wrists.

Raj stares at her for a moment unable to quite believe it, before he recovers and slides the bracelets onto her wrists one by one.

When he has put the last one on her, he doesn't let go of her wrist immediately, holding it lightly in his hands. If Naina had the courage to look up, then she would've seen that the look in his eyes is something that could not be described as anything other than love.

Finally Raj drops her wrist, and clearing his throat slightly, he stands up. "Well, shall we go back?" he asks, and Naina stands too, brushing imaginary dirt off her skirt self consciously.

**

They enter the academy and head straight to the canteen where the small party has been planned for. Naina is relieved to note that Dr Mishra is nowhere in sight, although everybody else including Suriji and Lolitaji are already gathered.

They've decorated the mess simply with some blown up balloons and streamers, but Naina can't help but feel touched at the effort they've gone to. There's a cake on the table with twenty-one candles on it, and when she walks in, Suriji begins to light them.

"First thing's first, putar." He tells her, "You'll have to blow out your candles and then we'll all have some cake. After all, we don't have too much time before lights out."

When the candles are lit, Naina stands before them, and they all tell her to make a wish. There are many things that she could wish for, many things that she wants in life, but right now all she has no idea what she should ask for. She blows them out, before cutting the cake, and taking the first piece, she offers it to Raj. He accepts, before picking up another piece to feed her, and Naina finds herself struggling not to blush once again.

After that, everyone gathers around, eating cake and laughing and talking, and Naina realizes that really, genuinely, she hadn't needed to make any wish at all.

Because she can't remember a time recently when she's ever been this happy.

And that's good enough for her.