Posted:
Okay finally time to sleep. I will read tomorrow I guess since you still no post yet.
Sorry to have kept you waiting. But it will definitely be posted by the time you wake up. 😊
Okay finally time to sleep. I will read tomorrow I guess since you still no post yet.
Chapter 53:
"We could think about adopting," the words that Kabir had uttered just last week upon seeing her breakdown rung in her ears. She again recalled the grin that she had seen on his face earlier from the balcony while he was playing with Shiv in the lawn, as she waded through every bit of dark news that they had discovered over the last 4 days. Her head throbbed from the strain and she gave up, letting her mind drift free blankly.
Rachna sat in her room, in front of the dressing table, removing her earrings and unpinning her now limp locks, having lost their curl after the long day. Some of the hairpins had somehow managed to loop themselves around her hair multiple times and were turning out to be particularly painful to pull out. She wrestled a bit with one and yelped in pain as the pin came out with a jerk, bringing a few strands of her hair along with it. Rachna closed her eyes in frustration and massaged her scalp gently with her fingers to ease the pain when she heard the click of the doorknob turning. Keeping her eyes closed, Rachna spoke, assuming it was Sneha who had come in to say good night.
"Sneha mausi, can you help me with these pins please? Pihu didi seems to have lodged them into my hair quite thoroughly."
She removed her own hands from her scalp, keeping her eyes closed, as she felt a soft touch on her head, carefully sifting through her tresses to gently pull out the pins one by one, sans anymore strands of hair. Rachna moved her hands to the back of her neck, rubbing the tense muscles in circular motions with her fingertips, as she let out a small sigh of tiredness. As the last of the pins was extracted, she felt her hair swish down her back, almost like it was dancing with joy at being removed from its forced, pinned-up half-updo style. Rachna shook her head slightly and combed her fingers through her hair a few times, letting it breathe and move freely. She suddenly felt a slight pressure on the top of her head and warm hands brushing against her arms. Opening her eyes, she was surprised to see in the mirror that it was Kabir, not Sneha, standing behind her, resting his chin on her head with a grin and encircling her upper body with his arms.
"Kabir? I thought you left already with Karan and papa ji?"
Kabir just continued to stare at his wife through the mirror with a goofy grin. Rachna pushed off his hands and turned around in her seat so she was facing her husband. He grabbed both of her hands without a word and pulled her up to a standing position, wrapping her arms around his waist and vice versa, all in one swift motion. She wriggled around a bit with a frown, trying to get herself out of his grip.
"Kabir please, leave me. And what is this? You have grass stains all over your brand new shirt."
He chuckled aloud softly, as he turned Rachna around to face the mirror again, while keeping his hands wrapped loosely around her waist and his chin resting on her shoulder.
"We're more color-coordinated with each other now, don't you think? The grass stains match the color of your blouse perfectly and of course the magenta tie is spot on with the sari."
Kabir held out the tie that loosely hung around his neck and draped its tail over Rachna's shoulder. She smiled and let out a giggle as she elbowed her husband playfully, extricating herself from his hold. She turned to face him again and further loosened the tie by pulling down on the knot, opening the second button of his shirt as well, as she delicately fingered the red marks of irritation that were visible on his neck to soothe them. He winced a bit when her fingers touched the sensitive skin. She blew softly, as she squeezed out a drop of aloe gel from the tube on her dresser and applied it to his neck. Kabir closed his eyes momentarily, relishing the immediate coolness and relief that the gel provided.
"Tell me na...you didn't go home with Karan?"
Kabir bit his lower lip, trying to suppress a smile and keep a serious expression on his face. "Actually I realized I forgot my phone, so I told him to go since it was getting late and Rhea needed to get home quickly. I've looked all over the house for it already and the only place left was your room, so I figured I might as well check here."
Rachna looked confused as she turned her head from side to side, genuinely looking for Kabir's lost phone. "Really? But I don't remember you coming into my room all day. So how could your phone be here?"
A beep sounded, catching Rachna's attention. She put her hand into the front pocket of Kabir's trousers and pulled out his phone, which was flashing a message from Pihu.
Have fun. But not too much...😉
Rachna raised her eyebrows as she looked at Kabir for an explanation. He looked back at her calmly with an innocent smile, as though he really hadn't known that his phone was in his pocket all along.
Placing his elbows on her shoulders and leaning slightly in her direction, he gave a laugh. "Okay okay, you caught me. But before you get angry at me, I'll have you know that Pihu didi was the mastermind behind this whole idea."
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Earlier that evening...
By the time Rachna walked downstairs into the living room with Pihu, everyone else was already seated and finished with their coffee. Once Rachna arrived, Chirag, Chaya, and the entire Pathak family stood up to say their goodbyes, while Pihu took a seat next to Murli.
"Bye Rachna, we were just waiting for you to come down so we could leave. It's pretty late and Chirag has to work tomorrow, so we'll just head out. I'll call you tomorrow. Good night."
Chaya hugged her best friend, before exiting the room with her husband. Shweta too embraced Rachna and whispered into her ear. "I hope you think about everything I said. But don't stress out too much; enjoy the celebrations for now."
Rachna responded with an understanding nod, smiling as she high-fived Shiv and placed a tender kiss onto a sleeping Shivani's forehead. Once the guests had exited, just the immediate family members remained in the room along with Rhea, who was to get a ride home with Karan. Everyone waited expectantly for Prakash to announce his surprise; Rachna stood next to Kabir, facing Prakash. He smiled at his son and daughter-in-law and placed their hands together, while clasping his own tight hold over them.
"It's not much, but here's my engagement gift for you two." Prakash pulled out a paper from his back pocket and handed it to Rachna, who unfolded it and held it in the middle so both she and Kabir could read together.
"Papa? The house in Dehradun? Really?" Kabir looked up with astonishment, after he skimmed through the contents of the document.
"I remember you loving that place when we visited it all those years ago. In fact I bought it for you and registered it in your name that very summer. I figured there would be no better time than now to gift it to you. You and Rachna can enjoy some relaxing weekend trips there."
Kabir fondly recalled the quaint cottage in Dehradun that he had visited with Karan and his father during his adolescence. "Three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The kitchen is in the middle of the house and there are huge windows on every wall. The view is absolutely stunning since the house is located in the valley, right at the foot of the mountains. There are multiple rainbows visible from the upper balcony after it rains...truly a picturesque sight. And there's a tea vendor right across the street, who makes the best ginger chai and sells delicious piping hot samosas, which make for a perfect snack in the wet weather."
Rachna looked at Kabir with a surprised smile, observing how his face lit up while talking about the house. He turned his face to look back at her and gave her a huge grin, enveloping her into an excited hug.
"You're going to love it Rachna! It's tucked away from the rest of town and there's just an indescribable serenity in that house."
Looking towards his father, Kabir stepped forward and gave Prakash a hug as well. "Thank you so much papa! I can't believe you did this. I didn't even remember that house after all these years. Really, this is a wonderful surprise."
Prakash patted his son's back lovingly and looked towards his daughter-in-law, who was flashing a happy smile at him as well. Parting from his son, Prakash turned to Rachna. "Now there's the smile I've been waiting to see all day! Just like your mother Rachna, exactly like her."
Rachna whispered into her father-in-law's ear, as he took her into a fatherly embrace. "Thank you papa ji. For the house as well, but more for putting that smile on Kabir's face."
Prakash nodded with acceptance and patted Rachna's head softly.
"All right, so we should also get going now. It's been a long day for everyone and I'm sure we could all use the rest. Sneha ji, Akash ji, thank you so much for the wonderful hospitality today. It's been a great start to kick off the celebrations for the next two weeks. Gunjan and Pihu beta, it was a pleasure to meet you; Murli, you as well."
Prakash hugged his samdhis (son's in-laws) in turn and walked towards the front entrance of the house, with Karan, Rhea, and Kabir following closely behind. Rachna waved good-bye to her in-laws and excused herself to go upstairs so she could change out of her sari.
The two Tripathis, the oldest and youngest, seated themselves into the car with Rhea and waved to Kabir as they drove off, smiling with the knowledge of the secret plan that they had just been made aware of after Rachna's departure from the premises. Meanwhile, Kabir was let back into the house by Pihu, who stood giggling at the door with Murli.
"The coast is clear. I already told Sneha mausi. Now go on and cheer her up; she really needs it." Pihu finished with a concerned smile.
Kabir nodded understandingly as he gave Pihu a quick hug and whispered a thanks into her ear. He ran up the stairs, taking them two at a time, as Pihu and Murli let themselves out of the house silently and drove home to their own residence.
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Kabir gave a half smile as he tightly grabbed hold of Rachna's waist and pinned her against the wall, taking her completely by surprise. She looked on with wide eyes as his lips flitted dangerously close to her own without actually making contact. He held her wrists and her arms quivered as they were guided upwards gradually, sliding bit by bit against the smooth wall. Kabir took two steps forward and moved himself closer to Rachna, as he brought her arms to a rest when they were parallel to the ground, restraining her hands forcefully against the wall. Every square inch of her body was brushed up against his. His cuff links pressed into her wrists, feeling like cold rocks. Her bare arms felt the softness of his cotton shirt while the dried grass stains on the fabric felt hard and rough. He could easily sense her rising heartbeat and feel even the slightest up and down movements of her chest as she breathed. She was aware of his breath on her cheek, a mixture of coffee and mint, inviting her in to take a taste. She held her breath as he leaned his face in even closer, bringing his mouth to her ear and pausing for a moment, letting his intoxicating scent waft towards her. She could discern the smell of grass mixed with the familiar woody, piney smell of his cologne; the aroma of Old Spice from his aftershave lingered mildly across his face from when he had shaved earlier that morning. Touching his lower lip to her ear lobe, he spoke with a husky whisper.
"We should probably get the door."
A blush crept over her face as her eyes darted in the direction of the door, her heart beating even faster when she saw it wide open. He released her from his hold just as swiftly as he had pinned her against the wall, again catching her off guard, causing her arms to drop to her side like limp noodles as soon as he let go of her wrists. He tossed another half-smile in her direction as he walked to the door and closed it without a sound in a matter of seconds. She stood rooted to her spot, left dazed and speechless by his unexpected attempt to seduce her.
Kabir walked back to where Rachna was standing and grabbed hold of her right hand in his left. Leading her out into the adjoining balcony, he let go of her hand softly and himself leaned his elbows against the railing once they had reached the far edge, very much in the same spot from which Rachna had observed her husband earlier that evening. Tilting his head to the side, Kabir observed his wife, as she stood casually leaning her back against the metal railing. She appeared more composed now as she looked back at him, though he could see several questions flashing through her eyes at that moment. He threw her a confident smile before he spoke.
"Distracted yet?"
Rachna gave him a confused glance. "Distracted? From what?"
He shrugged vaguely. "From whatever was troubling you earlier as you watched us from this very spot on the balcony while we played."
Rachna looked away, grabbing the pallu of her sari in her hands and playing with the fabric distractedly. Kabir pushed off from the railing and stood to his full height, as took her hands into his, maintaining a safe distance between them this time.
"Should I take that as a no then?" He asked with a thick voice, pushing her chin up so she was looking into his eyes.
She stared back at him, her eyes empty this time. He drew her close to himself again, running his fingers across her bare arms, causing her to squeeze her eyes shut and shiver from the compounded effects of the chilly night air and his seductive strokes. He brought his mouth close to her trembling lower lip, teasing her with a barely there, nanosecond-long touch, still enough to leave her begging for more. Pulling his face back a few inches, he spoke to her with a soft sultry whisper.
"New lipstick?"
She opened her eyes with surprise, questioning whether she had heard him correctly. "What?"
"Am I right?"
She nodded her head with a subtle agreement, unable to figure out what her husband was up to. "How did you know?"
"It doesn't taste like strawberry. The one you usually have on does." He responded in a matter-of-fact tone.
Just as she put her guard down and let out an amused chuckle at her husband's reasoning, he joined his lips to hers zealously and drew her body close to his, stroking her bare waist, easily accessible through the flimsy sari, with a feather-like touch. He sucked on her lips slowly, letting her savor the minty taste of his mouth, mixed with some bitter undertones from the coffee that he had sipped less than an hour ago. She let out a soft moan when his hands inched their way up from her bare waist to caress her exposed back, the low cut neckline of her blouse being particularly advantageous here. One of his hands caught hold of and yanked open the dori of her blouse, causing the garment to slip a few inches down her arms to expose her shoulders, the smooth, milky skin beckoning his fingers to come explore. He calculatedly pulled himself away from her just as her tongue lingered over his bottom lip, leaving her out of breath and at his mercy, longing for more.
Seeing the goosebumps rising all across her exposed skin, Kabir grabbed Rachna's hand and led her back into her bedroom wordlessly; she followed without a struggle. Having her take a seat on the bed, he sat down next to her, silently observing the color return to her limbs as the heat from the room warmed her almost instantly.
"How about now? Distracted enough?"
Unable to think straight, she looked longingly at his mouth and shook her head absent-mindedly, not taking in the meaning of the question he asked, hoping intrinsically that he would let her have access to his delicious lips again. Kabir smiled successfully seeing the disoriented, faraway look in his wife's eyes. He gently grabbed the drooping sleeves of her blouse and pulled them back up to cover her shoulders, as he easily pushed her long tresses to one side and tied the dori in the back. Feeling his hands on her shoulders, Rachna came out of her daze and questioningly looked at her husband.
"What are you up to? What are you trying to distract me from?"
He stared back at her intensely, replying with conviction. "Yourself."
She furrowed her eyebrows together and stood up suddenly. He grabbed her hand and pulled her onto his lap before she could take even one step away from him. Nuzzling his nose into the nape of neck and placing a few soft kisses there, he quickly got to work unfastening the pin that held up the pallu of her sari before her mind had a chance to register what was going on.
The fabric that was draped over Rachna's shoulder fell as soon as the pin holding it to her blouse was removed, exposing the bare midriff that had peeked through the magenta colored net and teased him all day. She stood up again, carelessly tossing the pallu back over her shoulder, and stepped out of her husband's reach with three quick steps. Turning around to face Kabir once she was a safe distance away, Rachna gave him an annoyed look and an exasperated sigh, as she caught onto the game he had been playing all along.
"Stop it Kabir. I don't need you to distract me from anything. I'm fine." She knowingly put an emphasis on the last word.
He looked back at her with a mischievous smile, which transformed immediately into a look of concern and shock as he watched her sway unsteadily and collapse onto the carpeted floor with a soft thud.
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❤️ Nivi
Originally posted by: nividances
Sorry to have kept you waiting. But it will definitely be posted by the time you wake up.😊
Originally posted by: nividances
Omg right?!?! I was totally thinking of that when I watched the last few episodes and they showed Mayank as one of the villains in Rabir's love story. 😆I don't know why but I always thought that the actor who played Mayank could totally pull off an evil role so that's why I took the decision to make him the bad guy in this FF. Guess I was right because even in the show he did a pretty convincing job playing the villain. 😡
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