|| ShiVi Drabble Only for her||
Shiva Pandya had gotten into a lot of fights in his life. He never shied away from a physical fight, ever. In fact, he felt he expressed better through his actions than he ever did with any words. And what better way to express anger and frustration than to beat someone up? Create some destruction? Getting roughed up in return on occasion, was collateral damage. He never even gave it a thought. Tough men don’t get hurt. A little blood and some bruises never killed anyone. His family had come to accept and rely on this tough exterior of his. When he brushed away his injuries as nothing, they patted him on his back and told him they were proud of him and he went about ignoring any physical pain till it went away. That’s probably where he’d learned the art of ignoring. He was strong. He was, what did that Chipkali call him? Yes, Chattan Pandya. So, why did his heart ache so much to see the unshed tears in the Chipkali’s eyes?
He watched her face with intense concentration as she winced every time she applied medicine to his wounds. Like his wounds were stinging her. The brothers had been released from jail and they’d come home to an exuberant welcome from the women of the family. Raavi’s face had literally lit up when she’d seen them and it filled his heart with so much light and joy, he couldn’t help the smile that broke out on his face. But just as he came closer, her smile faded as lines of worry creased her forehead. As he got pulled away to be hugged and welcomed by his Maa and bhabhis, his gaze was fixed on the pain in the Chipkali’s eyes. The first chance she got, she dragged him by the arm into their room, shut the door, sat him on the bed and started to apply medicine to his wounds.
A single tear escaped the ocean of her eyes and made it down her cheek. He raised his hand and brushed it away from her cheek softly. She sniffled as she continued putting medicine on his wounds. He placed his finger under her chin and made her look at him. “Kya? Kya dekh raha hai?” she asked, anger, hurt and pain swirling in the depths of her eyes, threatening to spill at the slightest of nudges. “Dekh raha hoon ki tujhe mujhse zyaada takleef ho rahi hai,” he commented, studying her intently. “Haan, tho? Sab teri tarah Chattan Pandya thode hi hote hain?” she replied, her lips wobbling with the effort of keeping her tears in check. “Yeh pehli baar tho nahi hai na, Chipkali, jab mujhe chot lagi hai? Tho phir yeh aansu kyun?” he enquired, softly.
She stopped tending to his wound and looked at him. Like her fingers had a mind of their own, they reached out to caress the purple and red bruise on his cheek bone. The tears she had been holding back for so long finally burst forth and she flung herself into his arms. He steadied himself with an arm on the bed to make sure they didn’t fall before wrapping his arms around her. It amazed him how the Chipkali fit so perfectly within the circle of his arms. She was so tiny, he thought to himself amused. “Aye Chipkali!” he gently prodded her. When she looked up, her lips were turned downward in an adorable pout, her tiny nose was red and her eyes were filled with crystal clear tears. Every single cell in his body screamed with the need to kiss her tears away, kiss her tiny red nose and while he was at it, kiss the absolutely adorable pout of her lips.
“Jaanthi hoon yeh pehli baar nahi hai jab tujhe chot lagi hai. Par patha nahi kyun, jab baath teri aati hai tho main har cheez, har ehsaas ko bahut zyada mehsoos karthi hoon. Phir woh gussa ho, dard ho ya pyaa..” she stopped herself before she uttered the word pyaar and looked at him wide eyed.
His breath literally caught. She was going to say pyaar, wasn’t she? Then why had she stopped? He wondered. They both knew there were so many unsaid words, feelings and bonds that tied them to one another. Could one word, pyaar, encompass it all? His hands came up to cup her face and his thumb brushed against the corner of her eye, at the teardrop glistening against her skin.
He could feel her breath hitch as his eyes focused on the lines of worry on her forehead. He raised a hand and smoothed the lines away softly before leaning in and briefly placing his lips against her forehead. It was nothing like the way he ached to kiss her. But there was something so intimate, so poignant about the moment that it seemed to demand this of him.
She closed her eyes, feeling his lips on her skin. The softness of his lips, the warmth of his breath, the sound of his lips against her skin, his smell that was so uniquely him and only him, it was like her senses had heightened manifold to capture that moment into her being forever.
“Sorry,” he apologized, still cupping her face, looking deeply into the glistening orbs of her eyes. In response, she hugged him tight, her head against his thumping heart. And in that moment, Shiva Pandya knew that things would never be the same. There was someone now, who cared and worried about his slightest discomfort. Saw beyond the facades and walls he put up around him. There was someone now, who waited for him. To return to her safe and sound. There was someone now, who needed him. Just the way he needed her. There was someone now, who loved him. Maybe even more than he loved her. And for her, Shiva Pandya would tame his aggression. For her, he would be more careful. Only for her.
***
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
