Part 2:
'Veer, you can turn off the light!' said Ananya standing in front of the mirror dressed in loose salwar and a top which clung to her petite form accurately showing her curves. Her back was facing him and she was tying her hair in pony before got to sleep, as she left her hair, it revealed her fair back.
Veer was lost in that scene and least bothered to reply.
'Turn off the light? What, and miss all this?' he grinned cheekily while flexing his muscles. She wasn't a vain lady but had much to be vain about, thought Veer. Her fair skin was glowing in room's light, as sliky hair were playing with the cool breeze blowing from the window, she has maintained herself very well in fact she has that perfect model size figure and attractive features that any man go GAGA for her. Ananya is 5.6'' tall and perfect for his six foot tall figure. Most of all he loved that when he hugged her, her head would rest neatly just below his chin, where her breath lightly blowing on his chest.
When he came home tired and angry after work he was invariably sympathetic and listened to his complaining. They seldom fought, and when they did it was over stupid things that amused them after, like who had left the porch light on all day or who had forgotten to set the alarm at night.
Ananya finished her task for night before sleeping and dived into the bed. She snuggled up beside him tucking her freezing cold hands by clutching his arm to warm herself. Her hands usually ger this cold in Manali's winter. To which he pulled her closer and embraced her tightly in his arms and bend his his head to enjoy his night kiss.
'Aaargh! Veer, your hold is too tight!' Ananya knew that this positions meant he had no intentions of budging an inch. 'Veer,' Ananya's voice warned.
'Anu,' he mimicked.
'Didn't you forget something?'
'No, not that I know of,' he answered.
'The light?'
'Ah yes, the light,' he said sleepily and pretended to snore loudly.
'Veer!'
'I had to get out of the bed and do it last night, as I remember.'
'Yeah, but you were just standing right beside the switch a second ago!'
'Yes'' just a second ago,' she repeated.
Veer sighed. He hated having to get back out of the bed he was nice and snug, and fumble around in the darkness on the way back to the bed. He tutted.
'I can't do it all the time, you know, Veer. Someday I might not be here and then what will you do?'
'Get my new wife to do it,' Veer huffed.
'Ha!'
'Or just remember to do it myself before I get into bed.'
Ananya snorted. 'Fat chances of that happening, my dear. I'll have to leave a message on th light switch for you before I go, just so you'll remember.'
'Ha-ha.'
'And on the milk carton.'
'You are a very funny girl, Anu.'
'Oh, and on the windows so you don't open them and set the alarm off in the mornings.'
'Hey, why don't you just leave me a list of things for me to do in your will if you think I'll be so incometent without you?'
'Not a bad idea,' she laughed.
'Fine then, I'll turn off the bloddy light.' Veer grudgingly got out of the bed, grimaced as he stepped onto the ice-cold floor and switched off the light. He held out his arms in the darkness and slowly began to find his way back to the bed.
'Hello? Veer, did you get lost? Is there anybody out there, there, there?' Ananya shouted out to the black room.
'Yes, I'm hhhooowww aaahhh!' he yelped as he stubbed his toe against bedpost. 'Shit, shit, shit, amn, crap!'
Ananya snorted and sniggered underneath the duvet.
'Number two on my list: watch out for bedpost'.'
'Oh, shut up Anu, and stop being so morbid,' Veer snapped back at her, cradling his poor foot in his hand.
'It'll really help if you kiss it for better' he asked.
'No need,' Ananya replied quickly and looked at his disappointed face.
She laughed softly and placed small peck on his lips. Now, that was what he wanted and he got it and that small peck turned out into a long, wet, passionate kiss.
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So that was how the joke about the list came about. It was a silly and simple idea that was soon shared with their closest friends, Prem and Taani.
It was Prem who had approached Ananya in the school corridor when they were just fourteen and muttered the famous words, 'My mate wants to know if you'll go out with him.' After days of endless discussion and emergency meetings with her friends, Ananya eventually agreed.
'Aaah, go on, Anu,' Taani urged. 'He's such a ride and at least he doesn't have stubble beared on his face like Prem.'
Taani and Prem had married the same year as Veer and Ananya. Ananya was the baby of bunch at twenty-one, the others were twenty-two. Some said they were too young and lectured them about how, at their age, they should be travelling the world and enjoying themselves. Instead, Veer and Ananya travelled the world together. It made far more sense that way because when they weren't together'.. well, Veer just felt as though he was missinh a vital organ from his body.
His wedding day was the best day of his life. Like most of the boys of his age, he always denied and made excuse at the idea of marriage. He used to run away when there were discussions going on about someone's marriage. He never had thougth that he'll get married at this early'''. But he agreed because''.. because he couldn't resists her.
There were so many guests and friends had come for this ceremony. All were so excited and happy and so was he. Prem was too busy with the preparations and helping out his family members. His parents were engrossed with all relatives and their talks. Only Dharam was there with him, to prepare him as a royal Groom.
The whole day just seemed a blur to him now. He barely had time to speak to Ananya, as they were both being pulled in opposite directions to meet Great-aunt Sumitra, whom Veer hadn't seen since he was born, and Grand-uncle Bhuvan, who had never been mentioned before but was suddenly a very important member of the family.
And nobody told him it would be so tiring either. By the end of the night Veer's jaw was sore from smiling for photographs, and his feet were killing him from running around all day in very silly mojadis. He desperately wanted to join the large table of his friends who had been howling with laughter all night, obviously enjoying themselves. But as soon as Veer stpped into his bedroom and saw his wife inhoney moon suit, all worries of the day faded and the point of it all became clear.
Tears once again rolled down Veer's face and he realised he had been daydreaming again. He sat frozen on the couch with the phone still off the hook beside him. The hours just seemed to pass him by these days without his knowing what time or even what day it was. He seemed to be living outside of his body, numb to everything but the pain in his heart, in his head. He was just so tired''. His stomach grumbled and he realised he couldn't remember the last time he had eaten. Had it been yesterday?
He shuffled into the kitchen; he opened the fridge and stared in at the empty shelves. Just vegetables and yogurts long past its sell-by date leaving a horrible strench in the fridge. He smiled weakly as he shook the milk carton. Empty. Third on her list''.
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Diwali one year ago Ananya had gone shopping with Tani for a dress for the house warming ceremony they attended at Prem & Tani's new house. Ananya had spent a disgraceful amount of money on the most beautiful pearl colored saree with mehroon & golden embroidary she had ever seen.
The saree was perfectly fitted to her petite figure making her even more attractive and beautiful. Veer hadn't been able to take his eyes off her. It wasn't because she looked so beautiful, however. He just couldn't understand how on earth such a piece of material had cost that much. Once at house ceremony, newly become Mrs. Malhotra overindulged in preparations for ceremony and succeeded in destroying her saree by spilling kumkum water from the bowl kept on the table for pooja. At that time Prem blurt out that, 'it would have been better if it was milk then the spots wouldn't be visible.'
Was it possible that Ananya had kept her word and had written a list for him before she died? He had spent every minute of every day with her up until her death and she had never even mentioned it, nor had he noticed any signs of her writing it. No, Veer, pull yourself together and don't be stupid, he told himself. He so desperately wanted her back that he was imagining all kinds of crazy things. She wouldn't have. Would she?
Edited by samu_khamkar - 12 years ago
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