Chapter 1:
She sat leaning on an oak armchair, placed by the window, the snow softly falling on the ground. In her one hand she held her current novel 'Shirley' in the other a mug of strongly brewed coffee, whose aroma filled the air. If you knew her you would think she would be obsessed about finishing her latest novel, but no she had been staring out the window for the past hour. She saw how the snow was falling softly…slowly but surely it was building up. She sipped on her coffee, but didn't take her eyes of the window, she stared at the view before her, and she could clearly see the Toronto Skyline from her 21st floor apartment, in the distance she could hear the slight sounds of a police car probably chasing some drunk driver, she didn't know or care, but other than that there was silence. It was amazing how this view, her reclined position, this armchair, this coffee mug, this book, all these little things made her peaceful. Normally, she would have been curious to know the ending of the book, but she was at a point in the book, where she started relating the characters to herself, she was at the point in the book where "Caroline Helstone had fallen sick, she was almost going to die, yet she longed to meet the one person she loved", so… she felt sad! It wasn't unusual she told herself. But it wasn't everyday that you read a novel and your heart aches why was it happening today? Today she was not at peace, there was an uneasy unrest, something that made her feel like crying, and her eyes moistened. That's why she was trying to look out the window, because she knew looking at the skyline the snow…would make her feel better, but it didn't.
She glanced at the living room clock it said 8:00 pm, her family hadn't returned yet. She slowly got up and walked towards the kitchen placing the coffee mug in the basin, making sure she washed it, or else she rolled her eyes her mom would start yelling "This is what happens, whenever I come back everything's just the way it was, I never get a break, when will I get rid of this housework…yada yada yada". 'OK fine' she thought 'her mom didn't yell she just talked in a loud voice, to make herself heard' she mentally giggled. Her mom was Mamta Chatterji, fair complexioned a bit healthy, with light brown eyes, her mom was really pretty back in the old days… that was another phrase her mom hated 'back in the old days'. Her mom would be pissed 'what do you mean back in the old days huh? Mein itni boodhi nahin hu infact I'm so young in my early forties, you know people start getting married in this age here, and I was married so young, I should have said no to my marriage earlier, then I wouldn't have to do all this housework, I have been doing housework for so many years, God knows when I'll be free', she giggled again somehow everything always came back to housework whenever her mom started talking. Hmmm…she wasn't feeling that bad, her mood was brightening up, she felt better just thinking of her sweet little family. Then she thought about her dad tall, handsome, and dark he was just perfect for her mom, but he didn't talk so much as her mom, he talked less but intelligently. He was Alok Chatterji, her dad was someone who would understand and care for her very much, she loved her dad a lot but she didn't share everything with him nor with her mom, she shared everything with her older sister Ipshita…her best friend in the whole wide world, not that she didn't have a lot of friends, but she was very close to Ipshita. Now her sister was one beautiful gal, she was just like her mom, fair complexioned, light brown eyes, she had spectacles though but they only added to her beauty, long curly dark brown hair, that's how Ipshita was. She smiled her dimpled smile, and thought her sister would be teasing her if she knew that she was calling her beautiful, she could almost imagine her saying "to tum bhi meri beauty pe mar miti ho, how swweeet…but shame on you don't you have a life, mere bare mein soch rahi ho…ye to umar hai kisi special someone ke bare mein sochne ki…" She sighed, Ipshita would never change, her sister just needed a chance to bug or tease her, yet her sis would prove the most understanding and practical person whenever she wanted to talk about something or seeked advice, after all she was her big sis! She had missed her sister these last two years. After her marriage Ipshita had also left for Florida with her hubby Anupam, and now they were coming to Toronto, after their vacation to India. Anupam bhai was the sweetest most adorable bro anyone could ever have; he was a big FLIRT though which annoyed the hell out of her sister. But, just like Ipshita he regarded her as his little sister and loved her a lot. She had of course been in touch with Ipshita through countless phone calls, emails, msn chats, but it was still different to see her, embrace her and she wished she had gone to receive her…she hadn't completed her bio assignment which was due next week. But, the assignment was just an excuse to avoid something…rather someone…she sighed again her spirits were down again…her heart throbbed faster…. just at the thought of him…they were coming for his marriage she sighed…and felt a silent tear escape her eyes…
Anyway, now that we have a sense of what her thoughts are and how her family members are, let's look at this girl… who is she how does she look like? Well, let me tell you she's not the most beautiful girl you can imagine, yet she's beautiful in her own simple way, she has a wheat-ish complexion, with a normal nose not too large not too small, her lips are well defined, and her eyes…they're simply extraordinary, if you look at her, her eyes would be the first thing you would notice, they were large, almond-shaped, dark brown with long thick lashes. Another thing, she loved wearing eyeliner both above her upper lashes and below her eyes, but she did that only on occasions when she felt like, mostly she avoided it, why? coz a lot of people including her sis kept admiring her whenever she put Kohl in her eyes, and she would get these annoying comments that she looked pretty and stuff and frankly she would just get embarrassed at such comments and blush. Blushing! How she hated blushing, she would get all red, her cheeks and ears would go hot and the worst part is people would know she's blushing, if she could change one thing in herself it would be this! Oh yes, and her hair, they're straight, jet-black and layered, falling well-below her shoulders. And you're desperately waiting for her name I assume; well she's Gauri…Gauri Chatterji.
She glanced again at the clock it now struck 9:00 pm, and the wooden pendulum-clock started chiming nine times. Suddenly a thought struck her, 'did they meet with an accident or something', and she grew worried, this was one of her greatest fears loosing her parents. So she quickly grabbed the phone and dialed her dad's cell number, and soon enough she heard the familiar ring tone of his cell, she sighed angrily and said aloud 'yeh daddy bhi na cell humesha bhool jate hain! I don't know when he'll change'. Now, the only option left was to call Mahen Uncle's cell.
Chapter 2:
Gauri's family had gone to pick up Ipshita, Anupam and his two brothers along with Mahen Uncle's family. Mahen and his wife Nikhila were Alok and Mamta's closest childhood friends, they had grown up together, married during the same time, decided to immigrate to Canada at the same time, and their friendship had turned into a 'rishta' after the marriage of Anupam and Ipshita. Ipshita and Anupam's declaration of love for each other had come as a surprise to both families, heck even Gauri who thought she knew everything about her sis was surprised. Anyway the parents of the bride and groom were more than happy about this match, and had made sure that this event would be carried out with great pomp and vigor, after all it was the first marriage for both households.
Gauri called Mahen Uncle and was startled but soon happy to hear the voice of Vivaan at the other end. 'Hey Gauri! Whats up? All of us have arrived safely, Ippi di, Anu bhai, Shiv all of us are here don't worry nothing happened to Alok uncle and Mamta aunty, they're also here with us…" he said laughing knowing well enough the reason behind Gauri's call and her worried and nervous "Hello Uncle!" Gauri chuckled at Vivaan's quick and long reply and said "To janaab ko humari aadat abhi tak yaad hai, aur kya kya or should I say 'kaun kaun' yaad hai haan." She teased. He blushed on that and said ye lo Ippy di se baat karo. Gauri shook her head knowing well enough that Vivaan had the hugest crush on Kaaya – her best friend and cousin. "Gauriiiiiiiii!! How're you, We've so much to talk, hum abhi thodi der mein aarahe hain ok, im so eager to meet you and I've something realllllyyy important to tell you!", Gauri sighed "Yaar, you guys start talking before I even say Hello, tum log ko sabar nahin hota kya, anyways I'm waiting and I know ke even agar mein insist karungi tab bhi tum mujhe ye baat nahin bataogi, so you better hurry up and come home." Ipshita laughed and said "Yea, Yea bye Gauri!", "Bye" Gauri said and hung up.
Gauri closed her eyes momentarily and suddenly panicked thinking, 'O my god! I haven't changed yet and SHIV is gonna come soon.' She blushed at her silliness, for thinking about him, she should be waiting to see her sis and here she was waiting for someone who probably wasn't even thinking about her. She was now standing in front of her closet, cursing under her breath, when she couldn't find her pink salwar suit, 'oh! Here u are," she said finally finding it, "you better make me look beautiful!" she talked to the dress. She was now standing in front of the mirror looking at herself, her eyes were adorned with a thin layer of kaajal, she had little pink jhumke in her ears, and a very simple, quarter sleeved, pink chicken churidar. Her hair was clipped loosely with a gemmed clip with loose strands falling on her face from time to time.
She again looked at the clock, the wait was unbearable. She didn't want to go and receive him, she knew she would blush red with nervousness, but here in her house she wouldn't be as nervous. Shiv was her first and last crush, she was very little then, in grade 6, was it even possible to have a crush then? She didn't know or care. All she knew was he was in grade 10 then and he looked dashing and cute. He was in Ipshita's class and he would usually come to her place for his and Ippy's projects. Their parents knew each other so the families hung out at each other's place during weekends and specially during the summer breaks. She smiled as she remembered how he used to help her with her kiddy projects, smile at her kiddish talks, pull her cheeks whenever he felt like. "Oh! How she had missed seeing him!" She blushed as another memory crossed her mind. It was just before Ipshita and Anupam's marriage, she was 17 at the time, busy worrying about her university applications more than the fact that her sister was getting married and leaving her. Shiv had come over to her place only to hear her crying as she hugged Ipshita, "di! I'm not gonna get into a good university, I am screwed, I am not going to get a good mark in chem, I am so stupid" and she let out another sob and said "and you're gonna leave me and go, this is not fair"…Ipshita was meanwhile stroking her hair and saying "Gauri, come on cheer up, I promise you I've seen your marks so far you'll get in!". "Ahem, Ahem" Shiv cleared his throat and came in, Gauri looked up and turned her face not wanting him to see her in this state, just then Ipshita said with a hidden smile "Shiv, tum hi samjhao mein to thak gayi hoon, isko samjhate samjhate, an hour waste hogaya, mujhe Anu ko milne jaana hai." Shiv chuckled at this and said in his husky voice "tum jao I'll take it from here." Gauri was crazy about his demanding voice and him ofcourse, but she knew she blushed whenever around him, so she instantly stood up, wiped her tears and started to leave the room following Ipshita. When suddenly she noticed he had held her hand, "God, I'm gonna die today" she thought. He turned her and slowly bringing his hand to her face wiped her tears, and said "Your eyes are always so pretty, I wish I could say ke in aankhon mein aansoo acche nahin lagte." She instantly lowered her eyes and felt her cheeks and ears burning. He saw this and smirked, he knew she felt for him but what she didn't know was that he felt much more about her.
Suddenly the car stopped and Shiv broke from his trail of thought and blushed. He wondered if she remembered this, he wondered if she had felt for any other guy after he had gone. But he knew her too well, he knew she loved him. He thought how bubbly she used to be as a kid, but as she had grown he had felt her growing more and more shy, especially whenever he was around. He loved her for that, he loved the way her eyes lowered and her cheeks went red whenever he was around. And he had come back just for her, and this time not just to meet her but to keep her…
Chapter 3:
As Shiv stepped down from the car, he sighed looking at the huge condominium building in front of him. He was just steps away from seeing her. Vivaan also stepped down with the same sigh, longing to see Kaaya. In Vivaan's case, however, he had confessed his love for her, had endlessly talked over the phone and Kaaya knew he was coming with a marriage proposal for her. Meanwhile Anupam and Ipshita got off the 7-seater with Anupam carefully carrying Ipshita down, while Ipshita angrily said "Anupam! I can get down myself don't embarrass me, uff!!", to which he replied chuckling at her anger "Darling! I am a very caring father, and you're carrying my baby, that's why I am forced to carry you", "Yea, yea sirf baby ki fikar hai, mein to ab purani hogayi hu na…" she stopped talking and blushed when she felt Anupam give her a quick kiss on her cheek. Shiv seeing this shook his head and winked at Vivaan and said "Yaar lagta hai blushing runs in the family…"
Gauri heard a knock on the door and she nervously opened the door, her heart beating faster every second, her cheeks going even redder by the minute. Thankfully, all of this went unnoticed by everyone, because as soon as she opened the door, Ipshita gave her a huge bear hug and whispered in her ear "Your gonna be a khaala (aunty/maasi) soon". Gauri was very excited and she happily gave her a loud kiss and said "Di!! Congrats!!!" but soon she acted as if she was mad and said "why didn't you tell me earlier you big dumbo! I would have come to the airport, and…" Ipshita stopped her and said "arre baba, sorry and don't even act like your mad ok, I can see through your charade". Gauri smiled and was now happily talking to Vivaan and Anupam bhai, trying to ignore facing Shiv. Unknown to her Shiv had been stealing glances at her, from the moment he came, he had noticed everything, her nervousness as she opened the door, the fact that she had worn pink the color he liked and her hair that were tied partially yet left open, just the way he liked, he noticed she had lost a few pounds which made her deep dimples even more prominent. He smiled inwardly, happy that his Gauri was still the same. The dreaded moment came for Gauri when Anupam and Vivaan started talking to her parents; she had no choice but to say "Hi Shiv! How're you?"nervously, but before she said that she took in his appearance, he was still tall obviously! He wasn't gonna get shorter, she sighed her mind noticed the stupidest things, she continued gazing at him… he had gelled his hair…his unshaven look made him look irresistible, but mostly it was his eyes that she loved, they were light brown, penetrating and passionate. Like always he was dressed handsomely in a black shirt with silver stripes, and a black dress pant. She closed her eyes momentarily to capture his image in her mind, to remember his being till eternity. He replied "fine, and you?" enjoying inwardly at the way she was looking at him, she said "I am fine too" that was it… that was all he said to her, even though he wanted to ask her much more…take her small hands in his and look into her eyes and ask her how she had been without him, did she miss him?...but he was not going to express himself now, he wasn't insecure about his love and so he didn't feel the need to show her how much he loved her, atleast not now "She can wait" he thought.
Gauri was now setting the table for dinner, while everyone was excitedly talking about Vivaan and Shiv's marriage. Her heart was aching, he really didn't feel for her, if he had so much as glanced at her once, or smiled at her, or noticed her dress, she would have been content. But no he was cruel he had not looked at her side even once, 'but why would he?' she thought, 'its not like he loves you! He's getting married!' she felt a lump growing in her throat, and her eyes moisten, quickly she went into the kitchen and composed herself. When she came out everyone was sitting at the dining table and busy serving each other. "Mahen yaar tumne to biryani bohot thodi li hai, Mamta serve him some more" said Alok. "Are yaar nahin mein already lunch bohot heavy karke aaya hu, you know how Nikhila is, uska pakka plan hai mujhe mota karne ka, so that she can look thinner and younger." Nikhila replied with a chuckle "thinner and younger to mein hoon hi, usmein koi shak nahin kyu bhai" and the whole dining table was filled with their laughter. Gauri smiled…happy that everyone was happy, except her. Suddenly her mom said something that made Gauri angry and blush, "Arre beta, tumne wohi dress pehen liya, jo Ipshita ko airport chodne ke time pehna tha?" Gauri said "Jee mummy wo mujhe koi aur mili nahin". Mamta continued saying "Yeh yahan ki ladkiyan bhi pink colour hi pehenti hain, maine poocha beta ipshita se kaunse color ke dresses mangwane hain India se to ye kehti hai bus mummy zyaada pink ke shades, arre humare zamane mein to laal, peele, green, neele, har tarah ke colours pehenti thi ladkiyan kyun Nikhila." Gauri glared at her mom as she continued to speak, her ears were really burning right now, she felt herself getting all hot, she felt like burying her head in her biryani, and she really wished that Shiv hadn't heard her mom, but how could he not? Her mom was talking as usual on top of her voice! Meanwhile Shiv was silently smiling watching her turn red, more like maroon. After this Gauri lost her appetite and she quickly finished eating and left saying she was going to call Kaaya to come up, and giving a quick wink to Vivaan at which everyone chuckled, she hurried to her room.
Chapter 4:
Back in her room, she fell on her bed and buried her face in her pillow. Her thoughts lingered back to the day of Ipshita and Anupam's marriage, while Shiv at the dining table was also lost in thoughts about the same incident.
****Everyone was busy getting dressed in the best of their suits, Gauri had worn a very cute grey lehenga with intricate embroidery. Kaaya was busy helping Ipshita get dressed in her red and green lehenga, and was setting her hair, when Gauri came in and asked "Kaaya, tell me na mein acchi lag rahi hoon, what about my hair, what should I do? Mujhe bhi acchi hairstyle karni hai, Kaaya jaan you'll do my hair too na, haan plz plz" Both Ipshita and Kaaya were busy so they were a bit annoyed, by her continuous chatter, even though she was looking gorgeous. They both brushed her off saying "Gauriiiiiii tum bohot irritate karrahi ho, you're not the dulhan, go ask someone else!" Gauri was mad and embarrassed cause shiv was standing nearby, she just said "Hmph!!!" and left in anger. Shiv saw her leave and said "You guys! she was just asking, seriously girls are so rude". Ipshita now turned to him with raised eyebrows and smirking slyly said "Agar tumhe Gauri ki itni lag rahi hai, you tell her how she's looking". Shiv was a bit embarrassed, but masked it saying "OK I'll do just that".
He went and stood behind her. She was standing in the balcony with her hair tied up in a messy way…apparently she had tried her hand at some hairstyle, she was trying to calm her suddenly violent and irritating dupatta. "Ahem" he cleared his throat to gain her attention. Hearing his voice she stopped whatever she was doing, and turned to him. Since he didn't say anything, she said "Umm…kuch kaam tha?", "Nahin, I was just wondering if you wanted my advice on how you are looking" he chuckled. She smiled, he noticed she didn't blush because she knew he was kidding around, so she sighed saying "Theek hai shiv bhaiya koi aur nahin to aap hi batadijiye" He frowned a little, he hated it when she used bhaiya, she rarely addressed him with his name, but whenever she did she attached this 'bhaiya' word to it. God! If she only knew how he felt about her, and how much this word killed him. But keeping his calm, he said to her "Yeh bhaiya kyun kehti ho I'm just four years older to you, I don't mind you calling me by my name, aur waise bhi bhaiyya sounds like I'm some doodh-wala or something". She smiled her dimpled smile and said "ok fine, SHIV, batao mein kaisi lagrahi hoon" she said like a child, making him fall all over in love with her. "I would like you better in pink," he said in his husky voice, looking passionately into her eyes, noticing her color change he lightened the mood a bit and said "khair since you've worn this its ok, I like your mehendi...but it shouldn't cover your entire hand, I can barely see past the redness" he said taking her hands in his and looking carefully at her henna filled hands, caressing them, he noticed her hands were trembling under his touch. "and your hair they look better open." Saying this he unclasped the clip and her hair came cascading down, he noticed she was going red now and was suddenly interested in the carpet's design. She really hadn't expected him to say these things; she was just playing around with him, she was feeling extremely embarrassed at the way she had boldly asked him to tell her how she looked. He took advantage of this beautiful moment, with the wind swaying her hair on her face, her eyes downcast, she was looking ethereal, adorable, just the way he wanted her to be, and he silently admired her and removed the irritating tresses from her face. He was careful not to put them behind her ear, because he wanted the tresses to sway over her face again, just so he could remove them from her face again and again, caressing her soft skin. His trance was broken when he heard someone approaching it was Vivaan. He silently cursed Vivaan, he wanted to tell so much more to her...he sighed...he would say it later…
"Bhaiyya! We have to go Anupam bhaiyaa gussa ho rahe hain, ke baarat nikalne ka time hogaya hai aur hum abhi tak ghar nahin pohonche!" "Theek hai, theek hai! Main aaraha hoon chillane ki koi zaroorat nahin hai" his sudden booming voice startled Gauri, and he was forced to curse again, for startling her. He left without saying anything, as if nothing had happened, yet for her a lot had happened in the passing moments…her crush had turned into love...
Nothing much happened until the day she realized that Shiv was also leaving with Anupam bhai and Ippy di to Florida. He was planning on taking up a job there as a programmer. Gauri was heart broken, she knew she didn't speak much to him but his presence and his sight pleased her. He never spoke to her so she assumed he didn't feel anything for her, she brushed aside her thoughts about the incident on the marriage day thinking he didn't mean anything by that gesture, maybe he was just being nice because he felt bad at the way kaaya and Ipshita had talked to her, but she distinctly remembered him saying that 'he' would like her better in pink, why would he say that? and the way he had looked at her...held her hands...did that mean nothing? The question kept nagging her because after that he had rarely spoken a word to her except for the usual curt hello and bye.
The day they were leaving for the airport she decided to know for sure if there were any feelings behind what he had said to her, so she chose a pink churidar, left her hair open and went with a heavy heart to see off her sister, brother-in-law, Vivaan and most importantly him, leave. She sighed he hadn't acknowledged the fact that she had dressed exactly the way he would want her to, heck he hadn't even glanced at her!. Enough was enough she made sure she masked her feelings. But she wasn't capable of doing that. Unknown to her Shiv had noticed everything she was going through...he had seen her eyes moisten, her voice quiver, he could feel her heart break when he casually said 'bye Gauri!' and then laughing at a joke Anupam had just cracked...as if he felt nothing...but he knew that now was not the time nor the place to express his love, he knew how to mask his emotions and he did just that, he knew she would be his one day and so he was content. Yes...a streak of pain did cross his heart as he saw her turning away with a silent sigh noticed by no one but him, but he was not the expressive kind...plus she was still young, and he had to establish himself. He let her ache for him…for now…***
Chapter 5:
Her line of thought was broken by the sudden ringing of her phone. "Hello! Gauri, Vivaan aaya kya?", smiling she said "Kaaya, I was just about to call you they are all here and yeah Vivaan is eagerly waiting for you..." she chuckled when Kaaya took a moment to speak again, "Umm accha to mein aati hoon 5 minutes mein…"
Gauri knew Kaaya well enough to know that she had probably been deciding her dress, earrings, shoes everything before hand and she was ready well before she had called and could come her in a minute if it wasn't for the slow elevators. Kaaya was Gauri's cousin, her chachu's daughter, who were also good friends with the Kapoor family. They lived in the same building but at a lower floor. Just then she heard the door knock she quickly went to the door, but soon became self conscious when she realized that everyone in the living room was suddenly quiet as she entered it...she felt all eyes on her. She wondered what the matter was, and quickly walked towards the door opening it to drive everyone's attention away from her. She could feel herself going red again! God she hated her endocrine system for releasing so much adrenaline.
"Namaste! uncle, aunty" Kaaya said calmly, hiding her excitement which was evident because she just couldn't stop smiling. "Umm…Hi! Vivan kaise ho?", "Main theek hoon, your looking nice…I missed you…aur tum batao padhayi kaise jaa rahi hai" and he walked her to the living room sitting side by side, they were instantly engrossed in a deep conversation, with Kaaya looking down from time to time blushing and Vivaan laughing at that. Gauri was ofcourse noticing all this, and she couldn't help but feel left out. She sighed and thought how Vivaan had told Kaaya she looked good…she excused herself again and went to her room. She played the song "Tum bin jiya jaye kaise...kaise jiya jaye tum bin...sadiyon se lambi hai raatein...sadiyon se lambe hue din...ajaa laut kar yeh dil keh raha hai..." her favourite one before shiv came, but now it just made her cry, so she forwarded it, and then the dreaded "kya mujhe pyaar hai, kyun aajkal neend kum khwab zyada hai…lagta khuda ka koi nek iraada hai...kalta fakeer aaj dil shehzada hai..." started playing. "uuuuuhh! shehzada my foot! mera dil to fakeer hi rahega!", she cursed bollywood for making stupid love songs. She finally flipped through the songs and found a really nice one, matching her mood "Chubte kaante yaadon ke daaman se chunta hu...girti deewaron ke aanchal mein zinda hu...bus ye hai meri kahani...benisha nishaani..." Yeah! Finally some thing that she could relate to, with no love crap! Now that she had found a good song, she went back to her thoughts…before he came she had this tiny ray of hope that maybe he did like her. But God! He was sooooo stupid, ignorant, stern, cute, handsome, caring, everything she wanted…and that was it she started crying again. She would have to watch him get married to someone else, and that would be unbearable... She decided to wear the worst dress she could find and wear a really ugly hairstyle to his marriage, but then he would still not care, 'he hardly notices me as it is, if i dress ugly he's not even gonna look at me' she thought. At this she instantly changed her mind and decided to look really pretty and make him jealous right on his wedding day, yes! She smiled evilly that's exactly what she would do, and if possible she would get engaged to someone even more hot than him…if that was even possible! "Why do I keep thinking about him? He has so much more than just me to think about...bet he's thinking about his stupid fiance rite now! I should be doing something constructive with my thoughts!" she whined silently.
Suddenly her door opened and in came Shiv. She knew her tears had dried but she really wished that her eyes were not red, she really didn't want him to barge into her room like that, 'Shiv, your so ignorant and pathetic! Can't you see I was crying privately, and the door was closed!! Emphasis on closed! God! You're really a manner less-insolent fool!' ofcourse her heart was screaming this but her eyes were downcast, her ears red with the anger that she was feeling at him for ignoring her and at herself for loving him. "Umm…I see you were busy" he said ignoring the fact that she was looking really angry right now, she rarely lost her temper, he wondered what had gotten her so mad, and he noticed she had been crying...he knew her well enough to know the reason behind it...he continued "but I wanted to see ke ye room mein itna special kya hai, that you're always running into your room" and he laughed at his stupid comment. She remained silent, desperately trying to suppress her anger, but she knew even if she tried she could never talk rudely to him. She noticed he was walking towards her computer now...and before she could stop him he was browsing through her song list. "Don't you think the song your playing rite now is really depressing, let's see Gauri ko kaunse songs pasand hai...arre wah! Gauri...I didn't know you listened to such songs tsk tsk..." he said slyly and then he played it...a beautiful melody started playin followed by "Chal Chale apne ghar ae mere humsafar...bund darwaze kar...sabse ho bekhabar...pyaar dono kare...raat bhar toot kar...chal chale apne ghar...humsafar..." She was so embarassed...and suddenly she started feeling her blood rushing to her face...her ears and cheeks were really burning right now...out of all the people he was the last one she would want to hear the song with...as it is her mind was having really corrupt thoughts! "N..n..nahin wo mujhe sirf music pasand hai..." she stammered going redder by the second. "Yeah the music is good, but the wordings are even better rite?" he winked. "hehe" she smiled nervously...while her brain was searching for something 'different' to talk about ...anything but this song...Sensing her embarassment he quickly said "Oh! mein to bhool hi gaya I came in here cause Maaya has come with your beloved akshat, she's tired of handling him, she wants you to hold him" as soon as he had said this she screamed in delight "Akshat aaya hai!! mera ganda baby, my shonu!!" she said pouting her lips cutely as if she was a baby herself and ran out to greet Maya aunty. He smiled thinking she was so innocently cute, and couldn't help but think 'tumhari inhi adaaoon pe to mein marta hoon Gauri!', "someday I wish"...he sighed placing a hand on his heart "you'll call me like that "....
When he returned to the living room he noticed that everyone was now in groups...Anupam, Ipshita, Kaaya and Vivaan were glued to the TV set, watching their favourite 'Hera Pheri'...and were currently watching the part where Akshay Kumar runs to the washroom to annoy Sunil Shetty saying "Arre pressure aagaya.."...he could hear Vivaan saying to Kaaya, "Anu bhai does that every time I wanna go to the washroom", at which Anupam replied "Kaaya, Ipshita se pooch lo, I do that because yeh washroom jaane se pehle humesha announce karta hai, 'I'm going to the toilet, paanch minute mein niklunga' arre yeh bhi koi kehne ki baat hoti hai? atleast spare us the time details!"...at which all four started giggling, Shiv chuckled at his brother's joke, he really had a way of being the center of attention, wherever he went. While Maaya, Mamta aunty and his mom were busy talking about a new reciepe of 'malayi kofte (meat balls)'..."maaya u know i found this really good reciepe usmein dahi thoda zyaada padta hai...lekin kya tasty banta hai", his mom was saying, "inko to bohot pasand aaya" she continued, shy at the last words...while the uncle party was busy engrossed in political mumbo jumbo..."yaar chodo Bush ko to...Blair bhi kya kum hai...waise bhi nothing has changed, ab colonialism nahin hai phir bhi, power to yahi countries ke haathon mein hai..." Mahen was saying thoughtfully, while Alok and aditya tried to voice their thoughts as well....
and right in a corner was his love Gauri with Akshat in her lap, who was cooing at the way she was talking to him "Yes, who's my baby, who's my baby...awww mera pyaala pyaala baby haina". Obviously the most appealing place to him was near her, so he went and sat there. She became a little conscious but kept talking to Akshat in the same manner, ocassionally saying "dekho kaun aaya hai shiv uncle aaye hain, kaun aaye hain?" and the baby would coo at that. The baby was now staring at Shiv's stuble and trying to touch it...Shiv chuckled at this and took the baby in his arms from her, their hands brushing slightly. They were completely engrossed with the baby when "click" Ipshita had taken a picture of them. "You guyz are looking so cute with Akshat" she said and clicked another one. "Yaar, pose to karne do pehle" Shiv said, "Trust me, natural poses are way better cause Gauri gets really conscious while taking pictures, she has this really annoying constipated look which according to her is a very good pose" Ipshita said chuckling. "Usko chodo, I care about my pic with Akshat", Gauri frowned at the way they were talking about her and completely ignoring the fact that she was sitting right there... and angry at herself for wanting to take a pic with Shiv when he didn't care one bit... "Guyz you know I'm right here right? and mujhe bhi koi shouk nahin hai kisike ke saath pic lene ka I want me and Akshat's pic, and I'll smile anyway I like!" she said glaring at Ipshita. She was about to get up so that Shiv could take a pic with the baby when Shiv pulled her down and said "Ipshita, le lo pic, Gauri tum aur Akshat ka pic akela bohot boring sa lagega, with me in it pic mein thodi jaan aayegi", giving a wink he placed his hand lightly on her shoulder...she gave her typical smile, making sure that her face really looked constipated this time... "click". "Gauriiii phir wohi !" Ipshita said really annoyed right now, at which Gauri burst out laughing, she had done it purposely to tease Ipshita. "click"..."finally! a good one, and is mein Aksh bhi camera ki taraf dekh raha hai...". "Ippi give me a copy of this ok..." Shiv said seriously, "aur mujhe bhi dena..." Gauri said, "haan baba de dungi!" and turning Ipshita started shouting "Guyz I told you to pause it...Anupam your really mean! ughhh!"...while Shiv and Gauri continued playing with Akshat, both silently longing to get the picture...to cherish and lock this moment in their hearts...
yeh jeevan dil jaane...dariya ka hai pani...pani to beh jaaye...baki kya reh jaaye...yaadein yaadein yaadein...
Chapter 6:
Ipshita had been staying at the Chatterjee house for the past three days, while Anupam was at the Kapoor house, ofcourse both of them didn't like this arrangement one bit! but Ippy's mom had insisted so much that denying her wish would be breaking her heart, and while Mamta's wish was granted, Nikhila's wish was also granted, which was inviting the Chatterjee families (both Kaaya and Gauri's family) to stay over for the weekend...Gauri and Kaaya were both excited for different reasons, Gauri was excited just to see Shiv, while Kaaya was excited to spend some quality time with Vivaan. Unknown to Gauri, the families had decided to officially talk about and settle the two matches: Kaaya and Vivaan, Gauri and Shiv...over the weekend. Kaaya's family had been delighted when Mahen had asked for their daughter's hand with Vivaan...Kaaya had blurted out "Yes! mama I'm all for it" when her parents asked her opinion...and then blushed at her forwardness. Meanwhile Gauri's family had always known that Gauri liked Shiv, infact everyone knew about this, because even though Gauri didn't realize...everyone noticed the sparkle in her eye and the blush on her cheek at the mere mention of his name or the announcement of his arrival. So, even before Mahen and Nikhila had asked Gauri's hand in marriage, they knew the Chatterjee's answer...Unlike Kaaya, Gauri had no idea what was going on behind her back, and she was still under the heart wrenching illusion that this weekend Shiv was getting engaged to 'the girl'...She had tried numerous times to get her mom to tell her who the girl was, ofcourse she had to pretend she didn't really care, and that she was just asking a casual question, this is how the conversation would go..."Mummy, I was just wondering yeh Nikhila aunty ki daughter-in-law ko hum jaante hai kya" she would ask...steering clear from Shiv's name. "Gauri don't joke around, Kaaya...", at which she would cut her mom and say "Mum obviously am not that stupid, nor am I in the mood to joke around, waise bhi mujhe kya padi hai, I was just taking interest in these societal matters, since your always nagging me ke mein interest nahin leti in your gossipy talks..." and she would huff puff and walk away, leaving a smiling Mamta shaking her head saying.."societal matters, khoob jaanti hu tumhe Gauri"...
"Gauri! which saree should I wear? Anupam's gonna be hear in two hours!" Ipshita shouted from Gauri's room, where she had her suitcase open, and her clothes were scattered around in a really messy way. "Uff!! I'm coming! seriously stop shouting di, we have neighbours here, remember?!" Gauri shouted back. She was busy helping her mom in the kitchen, and was wondering why she was always stuck helping her mom...while her married-experienced in kitchen stuff-sister was lazily lying around all day, either watching TV or talking to Anupam over the phone (which was seriously creepy they had just been away from each other for three days!), and her mom wasn't even saying anything to her! "Beta, wo thode din ke liye hi to aati hai, let her relax" Mamta was saying for the umpteenth time to Gauri who had been complaining about her mom's partiality towards Ipshita, since the moment she had started helping her mom.
Back in the room, Gauri was whining "Di!! my room's so messy! I tolerated it when we shared the room, lekin you should remember this is my room now...hmph!" and with that she stood stubbornly, crossing her arms across her chest, tapping her foot waiting for Ipshita to apologize. Obviously Ipshita was totally ignoring her as she was busy looking through her dresses, and she looked up again from her suitcase and said "Gauri please tell me na..." Sighing Gauri said "Wear the lime green one, its nice...", happy with Gauri's choice, Ipshita now turned to her sister "arre tum abhi tak tayyar nahin hui, what are you gonna wear?"..."wo meine socha hai ki mein..." gauri was saying when Ipshita said "why don't you wear this pink saree I got it specially for you from mumbai..." 'okayyyy' she thought this was really starting to get weird, suddenly everyone was mentioning 'pink' so much. Before she could say no, Ipshita showed the saree, and Gauri couldn't help but say yes, it was faint pink with little fuchsia coloured embroidery on the edges and the pallu. Kaaya had joined Gauri and Ipshita once they had dressed up...and were now waiting for Anupam to come pick them up.
Meanwhile at the Kapoor house...Nikhila was saying "Beta I'll get bored you guyz will be busy enjoying, mein soch rahi hoon Mamta aur Roshni (Kaaya's mom) ko bhi bula leti hoon"....Shiv was quick to point out that Anupam's five-seater won't be enough, and that the only option was for him to take his car along with Anupam's. Shiv ofcourse had other reasons, he had been dying to see Gauri for the last three days, and the wait was unbearable...
"Anupam bhaiyaa, late horaha hai, they must be waiting for us!" Shiv shouted..."Ek minute yaar aaraha hoon, apni wife ko 3 days ke baat dekh raha hu I should look appealing" said Anupam coming down the stairs. They lived in a two-storeyed house, which had a beautiful backyard turned into a rose garden...the house was large enough to accomodate the future families of all three brothers. Anupam was dressed in a black dress shirt with subtle green stripes, tucked out of his loose-fitted blue jeans, his hair were slightly gelled and was smiling a huge smile happy to meet Ipshita and confident that his wife would compliment his look. He had decided that he and Ipshita would go alone in their car, and Shiv could take everyone else so that he could spend some romantic time with his wife...little did he know that the plan would go a huge flop and that too because of Ipshita...Anupam saw Shiv hurrying towards the car, and smirked "Yaar shiv itni bhi kya betaabi..." "bhaiyaa stop joking around, hum late hogaye to Ippy will be furious, and tum uski smile dekhne ke liye betaab hojaoge" said Shiv not liking that Anupam was purposely wasting time..."Shiv I still can't believe that you chose Ipshita over me to confess your love for Gauri, Im your brother so I should have been the first one to know that" Anupam said pretending to be hurt..."Ippy se mein koi baat nahin chupata, and u noe that bhai, now stop wasting my time"...
Kaaya was in the balcony enjoying the cool breeze...the weather had improved in the last week, the harsh winter spell was now slowly loosing its charm, and the earth was welcoming the rain for a change...she spotted Anupam's car and another one enter the parking lot, she was silently hoping that Vivaan had come instead of Shiv, but for Gauri's sake she wished that Shiv was in the second car..."Gauri! Ippy di! wo log aagaye hai..."
"Tring...Tring..." the phone rang, and Gauri picked it up, "Open the door..." Shiv said, Gauri's heart bet faster at his voice, he's come? she was a bit uncomfortable around him because...well...she loved him and looking at him reminded her of what her life would lack...She pressed 8 to let them in...Kaaya and Ipshita were still putting the finishing touches on their make-up and adjusting their sarees, why wouldn't they afterall they had someone who would admire them...Shiv and Anupam were now greeting aunty, and busy talking with Kaaya and Ipshita, while Gauri was busy in the kitchen wrapping the 'gajar ka halwa' her mom had made for Anupam. "Gauri beta v're gonna leave, lock the house and come downstairs ok" "Theek hai mummy I'll do that"...Meanwhile at the parking lot, Ipshita decided that Kaaya, and the two aunties will be going with Anupam, not because she wanted it, but she knew that Shiv wanted that...she also knew that if she didn't take the initiative, Shiv would never voice his thoughts, his feelings were deep but he rarely felt the need to express them, and Ipshita was surprised that things always turned out the way he wanted despite his lack of expression. Anupam was heart-broken because he was stuck with the aunties, who he knew would keep chattering all the way and if he would so much as comment on the fact that Ipshita was really looking amazing today, they would embarass him by saying "Hai Anupam, kitne romantic ho, you should give lessons to your dad and our husbands!"...and to top that Ipshita had just looked at him once with a twinkle in her eye and a hidden smile, but had refrained from passing any compliments...Anyway they left early because apparently they were getting late...Shiv was now waiting for her...and was annoyed at the fact that she hadn't come out of the kitchen the entire time he was there, he wanted to see her, how she looked, how she talked, what she had worn?
When Gauri entered the parking lot she saw Shiv leaning against his silver car looking really attractive, with a white dress shirt with pale pink stripes, his usual gelled hair, were giving his hair a wet-look...she stammered "W..Wo...Woh Ippy di wo log chale gaye?" ...stammering because he had been staring at her throughout the walk towards his car. Shiv noticed Ippy had made sure she wore the saree he had chosen for her, thanking Ippy silently, he continued staring unable to take his eyes of her, she had adorned her eyes with kaajal making her beautiful eyes even more appealing, her cheeks had a permanent blush around him he noticed, her jewellery was a light pearl set matching the shade of her saree, while her pallu and open hair were swaying rythmically with the wind giving her an ethereal look...her saree was showing off her petite figure and sleek neck...sans bangles her gold-toned hands were looking...well let's just leave his thoughts to him. "Haan, kyun mere saath chalne mein koi problem hai?" he said trying to confuse her..."Nahin I like going with you..." and then blushed at her stupid response and to cover-up she said "I...I mean I don't mind...chalein" and sat in the car near him. Shiv was surprised at how he observed these tiny details...he never cared about how anyone dressed...least of all how girls dressed...but then again Gauri was special...He thought he was being unfair by not complimenting her when she had managed to arouse feelings within him...the magnitude of which Gauri could not imagine in her wildest dreams...so he complimented her after a while, once they were on the highway "Ahem" he cleared his throat "Achchi lag rahi ho..." his words were simple yet feelings true and the effect they had on Gauri was a sight to remember....Gauri was really blushing hard right now,she wanted to bury her head in ice cold water cause her cheeks were burning, one of these days she was sure her cheeks would turn ash-black...she wanted to scream with joy...in these few words he had not only finally spoken to her but also said that she looked beautiful...she said "thankss" softly almost like a whisper, but he heard it and smiled. The rest of the trip went quietly both lost in the other's thoughts...while a song softly played in the background..."Ek din aap yu hum ko mil jayenge...phool hi phool raahon mein khil jaayenge...meine socha na tha...dil ki waadi mein kaliyan si khilne lagi...jub nigahen nigahon se milne lagi...ek din zindagi itni hogi haseen...jhumega aasman gaye gi ye zameen...meine socha na tha..."...Shiv was enjoying the affect his words had on her...Gauri was enjoying the attention he had finally given her, yet she couldn't help but feel sad because even though his words meant a lot to her she felt he had just casually said them...perhaps to initiate a conversation...The car came to a halt infront of the Kapoor house bringing them both out of their thoughts. While getting out Shiv purposely locked Gauri's door, so that now Gauri was trying to open the door with little luck and was really embarassed that she couldn't open it...he knew there was no way she could guess that he had done it purposely...acting all macho he went and opened the door like a fine gentleman...and assisted her out taking her hand in his...which was not needed ofcourse, because Gauri could get out herself...but then again Shiv didn't get a lot of chances to touch her...Gauri was as usual red...and she said 'thanks' again not looking at him, because she felt stupid. Shiv said 'my pleasure...' softly in his strong husky voice...leaving Gauri in an even more darker shade of red...it was amazing the tricks his voice played on her...
Chapter 7
The afternoon passed by merrily and by lunch time the uncles had arrived, leaving their work early because they wanted to spend time with their families...they knew this weekend would be a blast...it had after all been a long time since the three families had gotten together...The dining table was not big enough to fit everyone, and therefore it was decided that they would settle themselves on the ground...the usual hustle bustle of the aunties and uncles continued throughout lunch...whereas the two love birds Kaaya and Vivaan were having a silent conversation with each other the topic of which was not hard to guess seeing their expressions...Ipshita was busy placing the chicken pieces from her plate onto Anupam's plate at which he finally voiced out his frustration in a whisper, "Ipshita! behave yourself ye kya bacchon wali harkatein karrahi ho!", Ipshita retaliated by putting some more chicken in his plate and said "Anu baby you can't do this much for me", her voice dripping with love...ofcourse had an instant effect on Anupam and he silently ate the chicken. Meanwhile the two star-crossed lovers where stealing glances at each other...not a word was said by them throughout lunch...each longing to hear the voice of the other addressing them...Gauri hoped that Shiv would ask for the 'raita' (yoghurt salad) that was near her...but apparently he liked the biryani without it...whereas Shiv was wishing Gauri would ask him for the cold drinks placed near him...but apparently she was content with water...
Towards mid-afternoon some family pictures were being taken and everyone huddled up in a group, the first picture had all the ladies...the second one all the men...the third and fourth had all three families...which was hard to adjust in one frame nevertheless Mahen managed it, by asking all the kids to kneel in front while the elders stood behind them...finally the last pic was of the children...Gauri's cheeks were twitching by now after all the smiling poses she was giving...but since it was the last pic she agreed and stood near Kaya, with Anupam bhai right near her and Ipshita beside him...Vivaan was standing near Kaaya and Shiv near Vivaan...Mahen uncle had been standing with the camera in his hand for sometime now and was frowning..."kuch sahi nahin lagraha...something is off...there's no flow in this picture"...Gauri rolled her eyes and felt like saying "take it already, otherwise I seriously think my cheeks will be paralyzed"...Gauri didn't bother to budge from her place and was looking towards the camera the entire time waiting from him to click..."haan ab sahi hai" and as he said that she felt Kaaya's arm around her waist...pulling her closer...which wouldn't have been weird except for the fact that Kaaya had made sure that her hand slipped through the cloth that was covering her waist...and Kaaya's hands...unusually warm were now lightly touching her bare waist...Gauri had this habit of covering her waist and midriff entirely in a saree...she hated showing it off which was apparently the way to wear a saree...but Gauri disagreed with that...She ignored it thinking maybe Mahen uncle meant they should be standing more closer and have their arms around each other...but she couldn't help but feel a little creeped out with Kaaya...nevertheless she smiled in the pic...this time a natural one because she was tired of the poses she had been giving...plus her dad had just cracked a really good joke...'click'....after the pic was taken she turned to her side...because Kaaya had still not removed her hand...she was going to reprimand Kaaya for doing whatever she did because it was creepy...she was sure Kaaya had done it as a joke...but to her horror she saw Shiv standing there! He was casually talking with Vivaan and Kaaya...as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened...Gauri was extremely uncomfortable now, her breath and heart beat were getting faster...she was blushing hard and with the sudden blood rush...she was looking even more red now owing to the fact that Kaaya had insisted that she apply some pink blush to 'accent her cheek bones'...
She now saw what Mahen uncle was saying...the pic was taken kuch is tarah...Vivaan and Kaaya...Shiv and Gauri...Anupam and Ipshita...she thought the arrangement was perfect except for the fact that she and Shiv were not a couple...'they should have asked us to excuse ourselves from the pic, o my god...they're so stupid...what if Shiv's fiance gets mad at him for taking such a pic...what if..." and her thoughts kept wandering and her imagination running wild with what his fiance could do to him...It was weird despite being a girl...she was worried more about what Shiv would have to go through, as opposed to what his fiance would feel...how his fiance's heart would break seeing another girl standing beside Shiv...that too in a pic where everyone was a couple...
Gauri took in a deep breath to calm herself, she closed her eyes momentarily, Shiv had still not removed his arm...she was wondering why no one was noticing this...it was as if they were purposely ignoring Shiv's appalling behaviour...since he wasnot taking the initiative she freed herself from his grip and went upstairs...unnoticed...to collect herself from what had just happened...She was standing at the upper balcony, hands folded behind her...looking at the reddish skies, the sun was setting....deep in thought about how she would manage after Shiv was engaged and married...she knew she couldn't live her life without marrying even if she wanted to...her parents would never allow that, and a million questions would be raised...and frankly she didn't have the guts to raise a scene, then again why should she raise a scene? Shiv would be happily married to someone he loves...and she didn't want to ruin his perfect life...she sighed...a lone tear escaping her eye...she could still hear the continuous chatter and laughter from downstairs...Shiv had felt her nervousness when her cold trembling hands had removed his arm, he wondered if she was ok. When he went upstairs he found her standing in the balcony, looking up at the skies, deep in thought, he knew she needed some privacy at the moment...so he left...he had to take a shower anyways...
Meanwhile downstairs..."Ippy beta, zaraa Gauri ko uske dresses to batade...but just tell her ke you need her opinion on how the dresses look...because your mom and I are planning on speaking to her tonight about this rishta..." , "theek hai mummy ji I'll do that" said a smiling Ipshita...She found Gauri was upstairs in the balcony, enjoyin the cool evening breeze and smiled knowing exactly who Gauri was thinking about, she wanted to ease her sisters pain and tell her...'Gauri you're gonna be married to him!' but that was her mom's right and wish...and she would let Nikhila aunty and her mom handle that matter...Placing a hand on Gauri's shoulder, she said "Gauri, why are you alone here, I was looking for you downstairs, khair I have to show you the clothes we have chosen for Shiv's fiance, and I want you to tell me ke acche hai ya nahin, ok", sighing Gauri said "Yea sure I would love to" with a hint of sarcasm in her tone, "ok good the dresses are in Shiv's room, I'll come there in a few minutes hmm" said Ipshita mischeviously, ofcourse Gauri didn't notice this, because she was busy sighing over her fate...she was now supposed to giver her opinion on his fiance's dresses! She didn't know how much more her heart could bear...the mention or thought of his marriage would constantly cause a sharp pain through her heart...and she was sure one of these days she would die of heart ache...
"theek hai, jaldi aana di, I wanna sleep for sometime, I'm feeling very tired" more like she wanted to cry her heart out, her head was constantly aching because she had been thinking so much over the past few days...
Confident that Shiv was downstairs, she went up to his room...his room was very neat unlike the usual messy rooms...smiling she said "just like me"...she noticed that the two side tables near his bed were uncluttered except for some photo frames...one of the tables had a picture of his family and another from when he was two years old...his mouth had chocolate all around it and was grinning showing off his two upper teeth in an otherwise toothless mouth...his features were still the same ofcourse, but she couldn't help but notice the look in his eyes was exceptionally similar to the way he looked at her sometimes...his eyes were sparkling...the other table also had two frames, one was from Shiv's graduation ceremony...giving a confident smile, with a diploma in one hand and a hat adorning his head he was looking gorgeous...except that she liked him better unshaven...she carressed his pic...closing her eyes she expressed a long sigh of longing...she placed the pic back on the table...the next pic made her smile it was from the other day at her house...she was surprised to see that he had chosen the last picture to frame...where she was laughing heartily...her cheeks dimpled...and her eyes twinkling with tears of joy, akshat was giving an adorable grin and looking right at the camera...which made her want to kiss him, and he...well he was looking at her instead of the camera, with that look...she was still quiet unsuccessful in finding a word for this expression of his...nevertheless she couldn't believe he would pick this one out of all of them...she could swear his other pictures had turned out much better...maybe he liked his side pose?..."Acchi hai?" she heard his husky voice whisper close to her...which was enough to startle her, and raise her heart beat...he was here...since when? did he watch her carressing his pic? oh! how she hoped he had not seen that...she hid her embarassment...but stammered unsuccessfully and without turning said "H..h..haan...aap yahan pe kub aaye?" she asked, "I was here before you came in, taking a shower, waise I was observing you..." he chuckled when he saw her bring her hands to her mouth and gasp...she was so expressive unlike him...he had seen everything...he had seen her thumb softly caress his pic...heard her silent sigh...she had once again strengthened his belief that she did love her...he was always sure of it...but a few hours back when she had removed his hand and walked off without a word...he had wondered if she was really in love with him? afterall it had been two years...someone could have found her? proposed to her? but now he was content...thanking God for his luck, fate...whatever you wanna call it..."Nahin...itna ghabra ne ki koi zaroorat nahin hai...i was just kidding...lets talk Gauri, jub se mein aaya hoo I haven't had a proper conversation with you..." and with that he motioned her to sit on his bed. She smiled and sat yet the nervousness was still there...she had just glanced at him once...he was wearing a crisp white cotton shirt...which was a little moist as he had just come off the shower...his hair were wet...water trickling down his neck and...chest which was visible because his first two buttons were undone...his face was unshaven...just the way she liked...she had just glanced once because she felt it was wrong to look at him with such intensity and desire, because well...he was someone else's man...
They sat near each other...one waiting for tomorrow...the other dreading tomorrow...tomorrow the families would talk and the engagements would be finalized...the marriage wouldn't be long after...in about 2 weeks...the preparations were done...the grooms were ready...the brides were also ready...except...Gauri's consent was not taken yet...but soon that would also be done...
"so are you happy?" he asked, "kisliye" hoping he wasn't asking about his marriage she didn't want to lie to him..."Kaaya ke liye..."he probed, "Yea ofcourse I am very happy for her", "what about me? have you looked at the girl?" he chuckled at her apparent nervousness, shifty hands..."hmm...I haven't seen her bus kapde dekhne aayi thi shaadi ke, di said they're here" she said steering clear from the first question...he was glad she hadn't answered it, and eventhough he knew the clothes were not here, he said "Yea, they're probably around, Ippy ko pata hoga...Gauri I've noticed that tum bohot chup chup rehti ho, you are always thinking something...i know its a personal question if you don't wanna reply...i'll respect your choice...lekin are you in love?" he was joking around, but to her this was serious...she nodded her head to indicated a yes, tears that were now so used to flowing out of her eyes...were screaming to be let out...but she closed her eyes shut, silently enduring the pain his question gave her..."do you want me to talk to aunty and uncle?" she nodded sideways indicating a no...her eyes were brimming with tears and a lump formed in her throat...she couldn't speak or he would know..."kyun? bhaag ke shaadi karne ka iradah hai?" he said chuckling again, he knew exactly the intensity of pain he was giving her, but she would be happy tonight wouldn't she? He was afterall a fun-loving person, and there was no harm in this, he would apologize later for his inconsiderate behaviour...but right now he was enjoying this as much as she was not..."kyun?" he probed suppressing his smile, she stood up, walking forward towards the door she said with a quivering voice "It's complicated...I...I...I...I wish you all the best" she said, tears now flowing out, the pain in her throat easing as she let the tears out...she walked out of his room...the tears were lost yet the pain remained...she wanted to say much more to him...she wanted to say...I love you...but then again she didn't have the guts...not when she knew he liked another...he knew exactly what her hesitation at 'I' meant...he silently cursed himself for asking such questions not because he didn't enjoy teasing her, but because she would have stayed longer...
On her way up, Ipshita saw Gauri coming out of Shiv's room, with tears in her eyes, she cursed Shiv for making her sister wait so long...she would scold him for this...after all she had to stand up for her little sister...she had purposely sent Gauri to his room, in the hope that he would say something to her...afterall when did he plan on expressing his feelings? on the wedding night?! "Gauri, I am sorry I forgot...the clothes are in my room" said Ipshita, Gauri didn't have the strength to shout at her sister and scold her for making this mistake...'di, can't you see the pain I'm going through, I can't face Shiv anymore...why is everyone ignoring me, my tears? why aren't you asking me why I'm crying?..everyone says that I'm like an open book...so why aren't you reading me?' she thought silently...aloud she said "hmm"....and walked towards Ipshita's room. Back in the room "Shiv!!! yeh kya hai, jub dekho use rulate rehte ho, seriously ek number ke ghade ho, why can't you be more like anupam and vivaan...why don't you tell her! I can't believe how everything works out so smoothly for you I mean sub ko raazi karliya without telling her...I don't even know why you are always so confident ke she loves you!" Ipshita said angrily, "Arre baba sorry ok, I'll apologize to your sister, and your sister loves me you know it...just look into her eyes you will find me..." he said smiling...continuing he said "rahi baat apni feelings batane ki, if I had even the slightest doubt that my love wasn't mutual I would have expressed myself to her, when the right time comes I'll tell her, it will be special Ippy tum nahin samjhogi" Ipshita rolled her eyes "I don't know when your right times gonna come, kuch seekho Anu se, remember how he proposed to me...it was special Shiv, girls like such gestures"...at which Shiv said "Not my girl..." he paused closing his eyes remembering her face once more, collecting his thoughts he continued..."I know her Ippy...she's content even with a simple gesture as a glance...I have seen her eyes linger on me long after my eyes have turned away from her...the look she has is of satisfaction...its as if she has finally found her saahil...and that's only with a glance Ippy...and trust me I know how to express my feelings...waise bhi tumhari sis itna blush karti hai ke I can't imagine what will happen to her if I express the love I have for her.." he smiled and once again remembered how she had blushed during Ippy's marriage...continuing he said "I don't have any insecurities Ippy that's why I can afford to express my feelings at my leisure...I have talked to my parents and your parents about marrying her..."...he had talked to his parents four years ago, when he was in his second year and she had two more years of high school left...ofcourse he had fallen in love much before that...it was in the summer before grade 12...Ippy had been the first one to know about it he had confessed that he loved Gauri and she had confessed to him after that she loved Anupam...he smiled remembering the confessions...he was hesitant to tell Ippy because he didn't know how she would react...she was very protective of her sister...unknown to him she felt the same hesitancy...they were young...their love true...she was now married and bearing Anu bhai's child...while he was still at the same point...but the wait would soon be over...he continued speaking after a while "so I knew she's not getting married to anyone else, and besides everyone knows she'll say yes not because she's obedient but because she loves me...she's like an open book Ippy..." he sighed placing his hand on his heart...the wait was unbearable...just two more weeks..."aur waise bhi your my friend first so you better be taking my side, there's no harm in teasing her...seriously she looked adorable..." he chuckled "crying for me...", Ipshita was also laughing now, she couldn't help it, Gauri was taking this so seriously, she said "haan yaar! I was gonna burst out laughing at her expressions, I don't know why woh hur baat par roti rehti hai..." she chuckled..."lekin humko pakad ke maregi once she knows the truth!" she giggled...
A faint song could be heard upstairs...Vivaan was busy playing his collection of love songs downstairs...Kaaya on the other hand thoroughly enjoying the attention he gave her...
'yeh madhoshiyan...yeh tanhaiyan...tasavvur mein hai kiski parchaiyan...yeh bheega sama...umange jawaan...mujhe ishq le jaaraha hai kahan...kyun gum hai har disha...kyu hota hai nasha...kyu aata hai mazaa...na tum jano na hum...na tum jaano na hum...
dhadakta bhi hai...tadapta bhi hai...yeh dil kyun achaanak behekta bhi hai...mehekta bhi hai...chehekta bhi hai...yeh dil kya wafaa ko samajhta bhi hai...kyu milti hai nazar..kyu hota hai asar...kyu hoti hai seher...na tum jaano na hum...na tum jaano na hum...'
While Shiv sighed with a joyous heart...Gauri sighed with a heavy one...while one slept ready to enter his dreamworld...another slept tired of dreaming...
Chapter 8
Gauri woke up early in the morning...it was just after dawn...she noticed that Ippy and Kaaya were fast asleep...quietly she freshened up...and took a quick morning shower...she dried her wet hair...wore a simple black salwar suit with a grey silk-chunri dupatta...put some kaajal, because her eyes seemed puffy perhaps because she had cried herself to sleep....and stepped out into the balcony...the entire house was still fast asleep...she liked it that way, waking up before the hustle bustle of everyone, their chatter...laughter...something that she didn't feel like doing anymore...the sky was a pale blue with contrasting orange-red streaks across the horizon...a cool breeze was blowing letting her hair sway with it...the silent humming of the wind...the ocassional chirping of birds allowed her to forget the events of the past few days...she had decided that she would be strong...she had to be...besides not everyone is lucky in love...some are lucky enough to marry their love and some wish their love with luck...but she stopped herself from such depressing thoughts...she would laugh...enjoy...hide her feelings...after all 'mere yaar ki shaadi hai' she thought referring to Kaaya...the thought instantly cheered her and she began to enjoy the breeze again....until...she saw him...he was bending over a pink rose bush trying to do something apparently he was trying to pick a rose...but was failing and was now a little frustrated...he was making a cute frowning face at his failure...she smiled staring at him...
He was really getting frustrated now...he sighed looking up from his bending position because his neck was aching...he had been trying to cut a blooming rose with the stem intact...as he looked up he saw her staring at him...smiling her dimpled smile...he was happy to see her awake...she was the first person he had seen today, so he was sure that his day would go smoothly, and why wouldn't it? afterall he was getting engaged to her tonight...
kyon hawa aaj yu gaa rahi hai...kyun fiza rang chalka rahi hai...mere dil bataa aaj hone hai kya...chandni din mein kyon chaa rahi hai...zindagi kis taraf jaa rahi hai...mere dil bataa kya hai yeh silsila kyon hawaa aaj yu gaarahi...
She saw him looking at her...he had a sweet smile on his face...almost as if he was glad to see her...he motioned her to help him cut the rose...she held out her hand and said 'ek minute, I'm coming...'
yeh kis ka hai chehra jise mein har ek phool mein dekhta hu...yeh kiski hai awaaz jise na sun ke bhi mein sun raha hoon...kaisi yeh aahatein aarahi hai...kaise yeh khwab dikhla rahi hai...mere dil bataa kaun hai aaraha kyon hawaa aaj yun gaarahi hai...
She was now bending near him and he smiled again and said "thanks, actually I have been trying to pick a rose, lekin as you can see I'm not really good at this kinda stuff" he said with his hand behind his head ruffling his hair, smiling...embarassed at his failure...she replied "you know phoolon ko bhi katne par dard hota hai..." the words were simple but meant much more...the best part though was that her message was conveyed..."dard to hoga...lekin I'm positive that this rose will be happier in my vase..." he said pointing to the rose he wanted which was right near Gauri, for a second Gauri felt he was pointing at her but dismissed it cursing her wild imagination, he would never understand her...
By 8:30 am everyone was awake...busy taking a shower, eating breakfast...Kaaya and Vivaan were exceptionally happy, and couldn't stop smiling, Anupam was busy scolding Ipshita for neglecting her food, the uncles were talking politics as usual, and the aunties well they were not gossiping or discussing reciepes they were for once talking something different...Nikhila and Mamta were in distress because they had still not spoken with Gauri, they had planned on speaking yesterday night but seeing her asleep, they had changed their plan..."What if Gauri says no? hum kya karenge? Nikhila Shiv will be heartbroken...Ippy ne mujhe kaha tha ke aisa kuch nahin hoga lekin pata nahin kyu dar lag raha hai..." Mamta was saying the worry apparent in her voice..."kuch nahin hoga Mamta, waise bhi Gauri ko poora haq hai haan ya na kehne ka, I'll respect her choice, but for my sake I wish ke wo mere ghar ki bahu bane..." Nikhila was saying, unknown to her Gauri had just entered the kitchen...just in time to hear Nikhila's words...Gauri was shocked...actually there were no words to describe what she was feeling right now...happy? joyous? but what about Shiv...did he know? she was sure he would have said something to her if he would have known they were getting engaged...not thinking even once...she jumped to the conclusion that Shiv was being tricked into marrying her...Nikhila aunty wanted her as a bahu and she was gonna force Shiv to marry her...maybe she reached this conclusion because she thought Shiv wanting to marry her was too good to be true?...she ran upstairs and saw him playing cards with everyone...Kaaya, Vivaan, Ipshita, Anupam and Shiv were busy engrossed in their game...she entered the room gasping for air...bending slightly to calm her heart and breath....she didn't care if everyone was sitting here or if she was sounding absurd or anything for that matter...the only thing that she wanted was to tell Shiv that he was being tricked...so that's exactly what she did "Shiv, our parents are marrying us without our consent!" she said, everyone was suddenly quiet, and had amused expressions on their face...and Shiv well he was just staring at her smiling...after a while he said "You mean your consent?", shaking her head sideways, she felt Shiv was so innocent...how could his parents not tell him? who was he thinking he would get married to? she repeated trying to make him understand "No, without our consent! they are planning on your marriage.."pointing towards him, "with me" pointing towards herself...he smiled at her actions, and grinning now repeated himself "You mean your consent?" and raised his eyebrows hoping she would get the message...this repetition of his words had an instant affect on her...he smiled he had conveyed his message...she saw everyone leaving looking down trying to supress their smiles, as Ipshita was leaving Gauri caught her wrist and looked into her eyes...her own vision blurry...Ippy di was smiling a smile of assurance, of happiness, of joy, and Ippy took a tear from her cheek and splashed it away with her hands, releasing herself from Gauri's hold she smiled at Shiv and looked at him...her eyes saying 'you better give her whats due to her'...
Gauri had closed her eyes to calm her tears...yet tears silently trickled down...she tried to calm her heart beat unsuccessfully...her cheeks were burning with embarassment at jumping to such a silly conclusion, she mentally made a note to never speak before thinking...yes she was angry...mad...at everyone for playing with her emotions...but she couldn't deny the fact that her heart was smiling...the storm in her heart had subsided, she could clearly see her destiny...him...she couldn't help but say that her tears were worth this single moment of happiness...his words from the morning played in her mind...blushing she opened her eyes quickly, hoping he had not left again...but her eyes were not disappointed...she met his gaze...he had been seeing the change of her expressions with an amused look...he walked up to her, realizing she had collected her feelings and was now ready to speak with him...as she looked at him approaching her slowly...her heart was screaming to embrace him...to feel the reality of it all...before she could think and stop herself she walked up to him and surprised him by hugging him tightly...literally crying her heart out...he silently let her cry...he had expected her to hit him, to refuse to speak with him, or the worst...to refuse to marry him...anything but this...he had underestimated her love...its depth...agar tum yeh dil maang lete jaaneman hum tumhe jaan dete...tumhe kaise hum bhool jaate...mar ke bhi tum humein yaad aate...tumhe hai pata bewafaa hum nahin the...
after a while he felt her grip on him loosen, so he let her go...she wanted to look into his eyes finally...she wanted to see the love in his eyes...as she looked at him he had the same look in his eyes that he often had when he looked at her...she smiled and said looking into his eyes..."desire"...teri aankhein dikhati hai humein sapne sitaaron ke...he didn't quiet understand what she meant but all he cared about right now was that she had said yes! this was real, his life, his dream, his destiny, his desire was standing...gazing at him...waiting for him to say something...he didn't have words to describe his feelings...he didn't know what to say...I love you? that for some reason would sound cheesy...they both knew by now how much the other loved them...he wanted to do something special...something that would express what he felt for her...he bent down towards her lips...they trembled at his breath...he knew she wouldn't approve of it...not now...so he chose to save this kiss...instead he kissed her blushing cheeks his lips lingering a little longer than normal...she had closed her eyes at his touch...she was calm...her breathing even...amazingly she felt what he wanted to convey...his touch had conveyed much more than the three words would ever convey...
When they arrived downstairs everyone was aware of her approval...and were joyously celebrating...Kaaya and Ipshita embraced her as soon as they saw her...she had been walking behind Shiv...holding his hand...the hall was filled with the uncles and aunties hugging each other and the sound of "mubarak ho...mubarak ho" echoing...it was all a daze to her she was still holding his hand...savouring his touch...she felt Shiv's hand slowly slipping away from hers...because he was being embraced now by Anupam and Vivaan...she held it tightly for a moment before letting him go..."Gauri...tsk tsk abhi se itna rob jama rahi ho, Kaaya dekha tumne she wasn't leaving his hand" Ipshita teased...Gauri smiled her eyes lowered...blushing...not as hard as she used to...her cheeks were a faint pink now...she looked up and saw him staring at her...teasing her he said in his usual strong voice "You can rule me anytime you want Gauri...I am all yours" winking at her....Gauri had figured she wouldn't be blushing around him as much as she used to...but she was wrong...she had turned a dark shade of red...and was feeling her cheeks and ears warming up...Shiv seeing this came up to her and let her hide her face in his chest...grinning he whispered to her "Gauri, aise karogi to kaise chalega...what am I gonna do with u!"...and with that he gave her the pink rose he had picked for her...she smiled a sweet-dimpled smile, looking up to him lovingly with her kohl-layered eyes, she gave him a kiss on his cheek...confirming that the rose was indeed happier with him...
Ofcourse the engagement and wedding were a huge success...after their marriage Gauri and Kaaya had shifted to Florida, and continued their university there...the Chatterjees and Kapoors had solidified their long friendship through these two marriages...everyone remembered Kaaya and Vivaan as the romantic couple...Gauri and Shiv as the blushing one...well mostly because of Gauri...they could have easily been the most romantic couple if only people had seen that side of Shiv...the fact was that only Gauri knew how romantic Shiv could be when he wanted to...to outsiders Shiv was stern, reserved, cold, unromantic, and extremely quiet...to Gauri he was warm, welcoming, witty, talkative, demanding, loving, caring, a joker...and yes he still had the ability to make her blush...he was everything she wanted him to be...Gauri was happy with her match, she constantly thanked God for making her match so perfect for her...even if she could she didn't want to ask for more...Shiv had realized that as much as he had power over her with the smallest of his gestures, she had an equal amount of hold over him...much more actually...her tears, her smile, her kiss, her love, her actions...everything shot daggers at his heart...be they of pain or love...
He sighed looking at the stars, standing in his balcony, his grey hair waving from the cool and fierce breeze, the summer vacation was over...and their kids had returned back to their university residence, along with their cousins...with Anupam bhai and Vivaan's family coming over often, the summer had been fun-filled and had passed by quickly...he missed the echoes of the children's voices...the house was silent now...if it wasn't for her he would be really lonely...he sighed again...she was always busy in the kitchen...he wanted to see her smiling her dimpled-smile once more..."kya soch rahe the, my shonu" she asked softly standing beside him placing a hand on his shoulder....she was surprised when with a smile he said "thanks, Gauri" kissing her on her forehead...he turned back to stare at the stars, while she stared at him still under the spell of his words and kiss....after a while he turned facing her, enjoying her gaze and the fact that even after so many years...his kiss could do wonders on her...placing a hand on his heart he looked into her twinkling kohl-layered eyes..."I would be lost without you Gauri..."
Hum deewanon ki to bus yahi hai dua...saari umar chahaton ka chalta rahe silsila...
😳a.i.c.
Cricket
Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon
Forum Games
Bade Achhe Lagte Hain
