Ok, guys, this is my first attempt at writing a piece of fan fiction based in the IPK duniya, or in any fictional world, for that matter. Fiction isn't what I am used to writing. I have only written essays till about 5yrs ago for the sake of my ICSE boards. But, I was watching this scene from IPK on YT some 3days back, & I couldn't help but wonder what Arnav & Khushi would be doing on the same day, the following year. So, that's how this happened at 2AM in the night. Please forgive any typos that there might be. Plagiarists-there, really isn't anything, here that you would feel the need to plagiarize, so, don't bother. So, here goes the 1st piece of fiction I've posted, anywhere.
An alarm rang in the quiet room at 5AM, disrupting the sleep of the young couple that occupied the bed. Khushi groaned in frustration & nudged Arnav awake to shut the alarm.
Khushi wasn't an early bird. She liked lingering in her bed till a little beyond 7am, by which time her predictably early riser-husband who woke up at 6AM-sharp, would have showered. He often teased her that she lingered in bed only to sneak a peak at his naked self as he came out draped only in a towel after the shower. Khushi being Khushi just told him that if it were not for his gorgeous body, why would she have stayed married to him after the Shyam-fiasco, making him laugh. She made him laugh a lot, all the Raizadas had noticed.
That day, however when the alarm rang at 5am & it was still a little dark outside, Arnav wondered why his alarm timings had been changed from his regular 6am to 5am. His sleep addled brain & Khushi's elbow nudging his side uncomfortably, made sure he doesn't dwell on that & just put the damn thing on snooze. He did just that & turned to his wife, pulling that damned elbow of hers away from his side & drawing her towards himself. He liked holding her, but he had told Khushi that he would absolutely deny it if she were to go around announcing to the world that he 'cuddled'. In any case, Khushi's Taekwondo poses could hardly be considered cuddling. But people needn't know that his wife could one day knee him in the groin in her sleep. Anyway, 'ASR' didn't cuddle. 'Arnav' did, but that was his business with his wife, & something the world or his family needn't know. Khushi, he thought, wasn't good for his ego or his reputation. She wasn't all that good for his sanity, either. Buaji, now referred to him as SankaDev, when he wasn't around, but he was The ASR for a reason & he knew(not that he could do much about it).
'Somebody set the alarm for 5. It's probably Aarav. He was playing with my phone, yesterday.' Arnav mumbled into his wife's hair as he wrapped an arm around her.
'That kid is such a brat, all because of you.' she said into his chest as she threw her hands & legs, back to their place, around him. Arnav just groaned in response to her complaints. She thought his parenting style was extremely lenient & didn't miss a chance to point it out to him, even when she was half asleep. He had almost drifted off to sleep after 15mins when Khushi woke up with a start.
Khushi made such noise wherever she went & there was just such chaotic energy around her at all times that when she woke up, it naturally woke Arnav up, too.
Arnav assumed she had had a nightmare. He rubbed her back as he sat up.
'Khushi, baby, are you ok? Was it a bad dream? Do you want some water? Which movie was it this time?' he shot question after question at her. He was used to dealing with this on the nights when she stubbornly watched those damned horror movies with NK, that good-for-nothing cousin of his who should be packed off to Australia ASAP. Arnav wouldn't, of course, acknowledge his part in it, that it was because he had once said she couldn't handle watching horror movies that Khushi had decided to prove him wrong. Repeatedly, make that every week. Khushi just made a frustrated growling sound in response to his questions & turned to him. 'I set the alarm for 5am.' she said abruptly.
When it came to Khushi, things seldom surprised him. He was so used to her haphazard mannerisms that he was, usually unfazed in the face of anything that most others would consider crazy, most others who experienced normalcy, but this was their normal, & deep down, he preferred it this way. And, he knew Khushi knew he enjoyed her madness(Whoa! He should refuse to join her in watching Friends. He was beginning to sound like those clowns).
So, he just looked at her face, calmly & asked, 'Why?'
Khushi pushed out of his arms & hopped off the bed to move towards the closet. She opened her side of the closet as dawn broke out outside. She brought a plastic Ziploc bag to the bed & sat next to him. The light from outside spilling into their room via the poolside French doors had been sufficient to help her move around the room. He switched on the bedside lamp, however to see the contents of the Ziploc clearly.
'Red colour.' he said, his words a statement, rather than a query. She, then smiled that smile of hers that bubbled with all her excitement, the one that he loved so much.
'Arnav, it's Holi today.' she declared, as if that explained this bizarre session at 5am in the morning.
'I am aware, Khushi. And, with the noise you have been making about it all week, the entire street knows there's a Holi party here, today.' he said, reclining his back against the headboard, & yawning. Khushi folded both her knees & sat on her calves facing him, her enthusiasm undiminished by his sarcasm. They had both resigned themselves to this. She was impossible & he was unpleasant. Only they could deal with each other.
'Yes. But, you have a flight to Singapore to catch at10am. You'll miss Holi. So.' she said & pointed at the Ziploc that contained the red colour.
'And, here I thought I had constructed such a clever & elaborate ruse to escape this.' he said eliciting an outraged 'Haww' from her. She looked about ready to throw the colour packet at his head. He laughed & secured her hands by holding her wrists because she really wasn't above throwing the packet at him. He bent his head & kissed her frowning mouth. 'I am kidding.' he said against her lips.
Khushi relaxed a little at that. Once he let go of her hands, she sat back in her previous position & explained for his benefit.
'This is our first Holi as a happily married couple. And, no. Being a happy drunk from Bhang on previous Holi doesn't count.' he nodded, wordlessly telling her to go on.
'As terrible as those early days of our marriage were, Holi was wonderful. Things became alright between us & our families.' where he cut in & said, 'All to your credit.'
She laughed at that & said, 'Obviously. You weren't anything but a pain in the neck at the time. You still are only that, more often than not. No need to scowl. Truth, as they say, Mr. Raizada is sometimes bitter. Anyway, you gave me something to hold onto on Holi, despite all the hate you were claiming you felt for me.'
Arnav cringed as she reminded him of the way he had behaved with her back then. There wasn't enough punishment in the world that would suffice to make him guilt-free, except, probably not having her with him. But he was a selfish bas***d & for the life of him, he couldn't let her go. And, to his utter bafflement & eternal gratitude, she chose to give him a chance to redeem himself. He had vowed to himself then, that he would do every damn thing within his power to keep her happy, & maybe by giving her a lifetime of happiness, he could become worthy of her love.
Khushi, though argued that he needn't beat himself up. She would make him pay for his mistakes every now & then, with impromptu jalebi runs & the like. Only she could probably have it in her to love him.
'Don't cringe.' she said smiling. She rubbed her thumb against the back of his hand trying to soothe his guilt.
Once he looked slightly relaxed, Khushi continued. 'You told me that our hearts beat in sync.' her voice grew tight with emotion. He could feel a response tightening in his chest, as he looked at her. He made to pull her to him, but she brushed his hands away & continued. 'I always knew you were a closet romantic.' she laughed even as the tears escaped her eyes & flowed down her cheeks.
'Khushi, please don't start crying, baby. I'll stay, ok? If Holi is so important to you, I'll stay. Aman can handle the Singapore meeting.' he said hastily, pushing away from the headboard & holding her face, wiping away her tears. If she started with her tears, the sight of it would haunt him all day. His meeting would be screwed, anyway. He might as well just stay with her & tell his clients to come down to Delhi if they needed to meet with the M.D of AR, in person, so desperately. For a man that had been the cause of her tears so often for so long, it was strange that its very sight almost unmade him. He didn't try to understand it. With them, not much was logical.
'You will, one day drive Aman to the point of resignation with actions like these, Arnav, & imagine how you'll deal with not having a personal punching bag within reach in the office.' she said. Arnav looked indignant, but still pointed out, 'Aman won't resign.' he said that with certainty, 'And, he is not my personal punching bag, but my right-hand man.' this not with as much certainty.
Khushi just shook her head. 'Do not bullshit me. Di was ready to take up Aman as her next charity case when she heard you yelling at him on the phone on Saturday. I had to make her to drop the idea by diverting her towards helping HP who was, fortunately being harassed by Mami-ji about food right at that moment.' she said & when he looked about ready to argue, she made a face that told him he would be wise to not argue with her at that moment.
Khushi continued clearing her throat, 'Where was I? Yeah, so, when you told me your heartbeat theory, you made me believe that there was something between us, & it wasn't all in my imagination when you had been so happy & eager to be around me, that things would, perhaps become clear someday. And, in that atmosphere of absolute hatred, you made me happy, even if it was only for that day.'
Arnav wasn't sure how to react to this. He loved Khushi with every fibre of his imperfect being. She was his joy. He didn't attach much importance to days. His love for her was a thing that he carried with him at all times & he didn't think it mattered which day it was as long as she was by his side to share that day. But he understood how Holi might have been a happy occasion in such a time for Khushi. He had been happy, too but like at other times, his happiness seemed to be innately tied to the presence of the woman that epitomized that feeling.
And, now, she wanted to celebrate Holi. Sigh, Aman will have to go to Singapore on his own, Arnav decided. He had tried really hard to get the dates of the meeting changed, but when that hadn't happened, he had agreed to fly out of the country on Holi. Khushi had been so disappointed with the news of the meeting that Arnav had decided to take the early morning flight instead of the flight the previous night, like he had planned, to cut short his trip to the bare minimum. Now, the entire plan had to be cancelled.
While Arnav was thinking about calling Aman & dumping the entire business trip into his lap, Khushi, still wasn't done.
'So, I wanted to celebrate Holi. With you. Before anybody else. Don't look so guilt-struck, Arnav. You can go to Singapore. I am not in the mood to have Aman complain to me all day about keeping his boss all to myself.' Khushi said slyly, teasing him about his right hand man, at which he made a disgusted face.
'But, before you leave, I wanted us to have a private holi, like we did last year, but without the bhang, this time. As much as I like you all tipsy, I want this year's Holi celebration to be out of a choice made when we are in our senses & not because our guards are down. It would be a nice trend, don't you think? It could be our thing for Holi!' she said excitedly & pushed the Ziploc towards him & he just stared at it.
Arnav didn't know how to react to this. For starters, he felt like a heel for leaving her on Holi, especially because she wasn't arguing against it. Khushi had a nasty habit of putting everyone ahead of herself, even when it wasn't necessary. And, he knew that he was the only one whom she made any demands of, the only one that she exercised any right over. Honestly, he liked it when she was a little selfish where he was concerned. It made him believe that she trusted him to love her even if she were selfish enough to be happy for herself & for them, without wanting to spread it all around to the world. She had come around to value their space without feeling guilty for enjoying it. But, now, it looked like she had decided to be kind about his business trip. She would probably yell at him even, if he were to cancel his trip on her account. He was in half a mind to take her along, but she would be bored out of her mind with him in meetings, all day long. Her parents were attending the Holi party at RM, this year & he knew, much as he would miss her & she would miss him, she would enjoy spending the day with them way more than she would, alone in a hotel room.
Arnav looked at her dear face waiting for him to apply the red colour & he felt overwhelmed by her very presence there. The fact that she was in his room, with HIM, of all people, celebrating Holi, instead of somewhere else, away from him, hit him hard. And, giving into the soul-deep longing that he constantly felt for her, he pulled her to himself & kissed her hard, morning breaths be damned.
Khushi was startled for a moment, but she caught on & returned his kiss with the same ardour, passion, love & something else that was innately Khushi- some sweetness & a lot of spunk. He let go of her after long minutes, to allow both of them to breathe. She seemed to have gauged his mood because she cupped his cheek tenderly with one hand, in that way of hers that he was so used to by now, & pressed a warm kiss to his mouth, in what seemed like a reassurance of her love & companionship.
Arnav tried to shrug off the intense mood & striving to bring back the lightness said, 'Are you sure you want this to become a trend? I don't think Holi would be enjoyable if you were to become crabby because of sleep-deprivation, from waking up this early.'
Khushi raised her eyebrow at that. She had pestered him, one Sunday evening to see if she was getting it right & had continued till she could get the one-eyebrow raise right. And, ever since, she had been using that on him at the drop of a hat. It was hilarious & adorable.
Arnav smiled, opened the Ziploc, took some colour & applied on both her cheeks. And, since it was Khushi, & he couldn't resist the lust & greed she inspired in him, he dragged his hands down her cheek, along her neck to the top of her kurta, by which time Khushi's senses had returned from being lulled by desire. She slapped his hand away knowing where they would land up if his hands moved any more South. He just smiled at her rouguishly at that.
Khushi, then took some colour & applied it onto his cheek. And, since it was her Arnav & she couldn't let go of one opportunity to trouble him, she upturned the contents of the Ziploc onto his head when he was least expecting it.
Oh, Khushi knew Arnav was only a moment from exploding & she moved away from danger zone, i.e., their bed. And, he didn't disappoint. 'WHAT THE! KHUSHI! YOU'RE GOING TO PAY FOR THIS!'
And that is what the Raizada Household woke up to, on that Holi.
Khushi laughed as Arnav sputtered. He would yell, but he was harmless. At least, ever since they had decided that there was no point in fighting what they felt for each other, he had been that way. Nevertheless, she moved further away towards the closet, just in case, because while Arnav wouldn't hurt her, he could still be wickedly devious in his ways. He was frowning, she noticed & he was saying something rather loudly, too & she had missed what he had said, while she was busy in her musings. She had a feeling she was going to be subjected to some delicious sensual torture for this, but oh well, that seemed dangerously tempting, she thought.
'What?' she asked, still laughing as he got up & stalked toward her in a predatory walk. And, just as he got close enough to have her within his arm's reach, rang his phone. Right on the clock. That could be nobody but Arnav's trusted Right-hand man, the over-efficient Aman Mathur blessed with the world's worst timing, calling at 5.45am to make sure his boss was up & getting ready. See? Completely, wife-like, thought Khushi smirking to herself.
Arnav frowned at her, & mentally decided to put Aman on the task of dealing with the worst of their clients as punishment for his pathetic timing. He asked her as he went back towards their bedside table to take the call, 'Do you know how long it is going to take me to wash all that colour off my hair & face!'
And, as he stood there by their bedside, answering Aman's call, looking red hot-hot, literally, in his white t-shirt & dangerously low hanging-slacks, Khushi thought, she had to make it up to him for troubling him so much, so often. And, with a wicked smile on her face she walked up to him & hugged him from behind. She, then went up on her toes & said in his ears as her lips grazed his earlobe, 'How about I help you with washing it off...And with anything else you need?'
Arnav's back went ram-rod straight at her tone. He knew that tone. The days when she used that tone were some extremely memorable days for him. He turned around when his wife let him go, even as Aman kept ranting off information about where to meet, etc. He could always call & demand that Aman tell him all that again. But, his wife in a mood to seduce him- now, that wasn't something to ignore. He watched her as she moved towards the bathroom. She turned around at the doorway of the bathroom & gave him a come-hither look so deliberately, comically seductive that he ended up smiling. He hung up on Aman. He would let his wife pay for showering him with red colour. He would welcome it with both his hands, his mouth & some of Khushi's other favourite parts of him, as well, he thought. He then, pulled off his t-shirt & went into the bathroom to deal with his vixen. Oh, Happy Holi, it would be, indeed, he thought. This should, most definitely become their thing for Holi. Wasn't his wife the smartest woman to have come up with this, he thought as he smiled to himself.
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