Tadaaa!!!
Namaste! Hello! Asalam Waleikum! Guys...
Shit I've missed this place so much.. And I've missed you guys..i feel so good coming back.. And yes.. With an update..
So, i know i left it in a bad place and everyone wanted to know what happened.. I hope the curiosity still exists.. I wanted someone to guess it right but i guess the sherlock brains here didn't get it right this time.. Koi nai.. Now youll know what it is!!
So here goes!
Chapter 16
Wo Ai Ni
"I wish i could meet you once more, Abhi! Bring you back from the dead.. I wish i could just talk to you once more!"
"And what would you do if that wish is granted?"
"I'd hug you and kiss you, Abhi. I'd look at you to my heart's content! I'd hold you so tight that I'd never let go!"
"And?"
"And I'd tell you how much i love you! I'd tell you how much you mean to me.. That you're the only man I've ever loved. You're the only one i desired. Right from college. That if i love someone beyond anything in this world, it's you. But you didn't wait for me, Abhi. You didn't let me confess my feelings. You ditched me midway. Why did you do this to me! Why, Abhi!"
Pragya's eyes snapped open. She blinked around a couple of times to get used to the dark. A sharp pain hit her head as she flinched and sat up against the headboard. Her body was soaked in sweat and tears were ready to spill out of her eyes.
She reached for the bedside lamp and switched it on. The clock besides showed that it was just past midnight. She was still in her top and pants. 'Why haven't i changed before going to sleep?' She thought to herself. Last she remembered was talking to dadi late last evening when the latter had come back from her puja. 'I must've fallen asleep then' she thought to herself. Vague images of the news that Abhi's plane had crashed crossed her mind and she immediately froze. 'No.. No.. No.. Pragya this can't be true. It was just a dream.' She tried to convince herself.
Her hands automatically reached for her cellphone on the bed and dialled Abhi's number. She grumbled as a recorded message of the number being switched off played on the other side. She tried once more but the same result. She threw the phone aside and held her head in her hands. 'I should go and check on dadi and Aaliya.' She thought to herself.
Dadi had been sleeping peacefully with a small smile. A smile that wouldn't leave face ever since she spoke to Pragya earlier that evening. Her kids had finally got what they deserved and what they craved for. The only thing pending was reaching out to each other. Dadi was sure after the evening that they would be together as one soon. Pragya had been lying down on the bed with her head on dadi's lap as she told her stories and incidents from her life. After a while, when dadi had stopped getting responses, she realised that Pragya had fallen asleep. Moving her head on the pillow, dadi switched off the lights and left the room.
After being assured that dadi was okay, Pragya walked to Aaliya's room. She slowly opened the door to see lights on and an empty bed. She opened the door a little more to see Aaliya by her table, busy studying. "Aalu.." Pragya called out. She looked up at her bhabhi, the end of her pencil still between her teeth. "Hey bhabhi.. What happened?" She asked smiling. "It's late bacche. Don't you have an early morning lecture tomorrow?" Pragya asked. "Yeah bhabhi. But the project is due in a couple of days." She pouted. "I'll sleep in a bit.. Half an hour max.. Don't worry." Pragya nodded and smiled at her. "Do you need anything? Coffee?" She asked. "Nah bhabhi. You sleep.. You're gonna have a long day tomorrow with bhai coming back in the morning." Aaliya winked at her. A slight blush crept up her cheeks as she closed the door and walked back towards her room.
'Okay so that had been a dream. Abhi is alright. He'll come back tomorrow.' She said to herself as she shut the door behind her more so to convince herself. Sitting on the bed, she sighed. The flashes from her dream wouldn't leave her mind even though she had seen for herself that nothing was wrong. No where close to being sleepy and still a bit sweaty after the nightmare, she decided to take a shower and change before trying to go back to sleep.
As the cold water ran down her body, she recollected every single moment she spent with Abhi, right from the first face off. Their story had taken a turn that evening at the beach during the college fest. Destiny brought in misunderstandings and they were torn apart. After years of separation and heartbreaks and loneliness, they had met again only to take off from where they had left. Best friends, partners in crime.. After sharing her thoughts with dadi, she was sure that everything that would fall in place now. She'd let him know how much he meant to her. And then the nightmare happened. She shivered a bit on remembering it again. Shaking her head slightly, she closed the tap. Wiping away the water from her hair and face, she wrapped a bathrobe around herself and walked into the closet.
She reached out to open the door of her cupboard when her eyes fell on his slightly open cupboard. A sudden urge to be close to him shot through her and she walked towards it as if in trance. She smiled as she saw his favourite blue sweatshirt. Holding it closer to her heart, she took a deep sniff. Though washed, she could still smell him in hit. Without waiting another second, she slid out of the bathrobe and pulled the sweatshirt over her head. She chuckled as she saw the sleeves hanging down a few inches below her hand. The shirt in itself was long enough to reach a little above her knees. She smiled to herself as she felt warm and the musky aroma of his perfume and him hit her.
She thought of going back to sleep but then seeing the balcony door open and white curtains swaying to the cool wind outside, she decided to sit there for a while. She stepped out, wrapping her arms around herself. As she reached the railing, she looked towards the clear sky and the crescent moon shining bright. She saw the twinkling lights of an airplane passing by and immediately thought of him being in one. 'Abhi come soon. I miss you!' She sighed.
Shivers ran down her spine as she heard a low husky "Surprise" close to her ear. "Abhi" she whispered. 'How can Abhi be here? His flight lands in the morning.' She thought to herself closing her eyes. "Pragya what's wrong with you! I know you miss him bad.. But control.. Stop imagining him and go to sleep." She scolded herself.
Abhi chuckled as he observed his adorable wife standing in the balcony, scolding herself. His heart swelled with joy as he observed what she was wearing. An unknown emotion passed through his veins as he wrapped his arms around her waist. He inhaled her fruity shampoo as he felt her still in his arms. "I'm here for real." He whispered. "And i missed you too."
In an instant, she turned around and crashed into him. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she dug her head in the crook of his neck. Abhi smiled, his arms still around her waist, pulling her closer. "He's here! He's here!" She said to herself repeatedly, running her fingers in his hair and pulling him closer, if that was even possible.
He pulled back when he felt his shirt getting soaked. "Hey! What's wrong Pragya? You okay?" He asked brushing his thumb on her cheeks wiping off the tears. She looked up at him and nodded. "I'm okay now that you're here. Just had a bad dream." She said in a low voice. He smiled and pulled her into a hug again. She held him across his torso resting against his chest, his steady heartbeats giving her the calm she wanted. "Waise Prags, I didn't know you missed me so much that you had to wear my favourite shirt. Not that I don't like it. In fact, you look sexy in it!" He smirked. Pragya blushed and turned the darkest shade of red. She tried to wriggle out of his hold to go back and change but he tightened his grip on her. "Stay Prags!" He whispered in her ear. She let out a gasp as he placed a light kiss on her forehead.
'Did he just kiss me?' She thought to herself. 'I wish we could stay like this forever. I wish i could tell you right now that I love you Abhi. I can't hold myself any longer. Especially since i now know you love me just as much. Maybe I should just tell you. But then, i wanted to to make it special..'
'But this is special.. There's him. You are here.. And the night is just perfect. You should let him know Pragya!' Her mind told her. She gathered herself before changing her mind again and called out to him in a low whisper.
He broke the hug and looked at her. He could see his feelings reflecting in her eyes as well as she looked at him with all the love in the world. He was wondering if she felt the same for him when she spoke again. "Abhi, i wanted to make this special for you.. For us.. But then, i guess, special is the moment you decide to do it." She said. He noticed her hands fidgeting with the sleeves of the shirt. 'What's she upto? Does she lo..' His thoughts were broken when he heard her say something.
'Say it Pragya..' She encouraged herself closing her eyes and took a deep breath. "Abhi, I love you. I always have.. Ever since the college days. I did want to tell you this a long time back but I didn't know how you felt about me. But then, i found something that washed away my fears." He was about to say something when she stopped him. "I realised how stupid I once was to have run away. I happened to.. Actually, I landed on the note in your iPad after we spoke yesterday." She looked up to see his shocked gaze at her. The shock turned into confusion and she could see the creases on his forehead. Moving ahead, she cupped his face and ran her thumb through the creases erasing them. "I was about to close it down when i saw a note with my name. I.. I read it and I realised that all that ever happened was a misunderstanding. I saw you in the room with Meethu.. I thought you proposed to her. Now I know you were rehearsing. But then, i was hurt. Hurt that You never told me once. That you didn't need me in your life any longer.. I was in love with you Abhi and i wanted to tell you that night but things didn't go as expected.. Seeing you with her, my brain snapped. I called up home and got to know that mamaji was unwell. So i decided to go back. That way i could get away from you too."
"I.. I had this dream today that I.. You.. That you were in a plane crash and .." She choked. A tear escaped her eyes and landed on her feet. "The thought of not being able to see you anymore get me so scared. It's then that i realised that we have lost on so much time in life because i have been foolish enough. But not anymore Abhi. I can't keep myself away from you anymore. I want to spend each day for the rest of my life with you. Not just as friends.. But as your wife, in every sense. I love you!" She said looking at him expectantly.
His mind replayed her words over and over. "You foolish foolish girl! You thought i was proposing to Meethu? How did you even think like that? Pragya!" He said exasperated. Abhi took a step closer to her and she instinctively stepped back. "I'm sorry. I know I've been dumb. But i saw you on your knees saying those words to her. What was i supposed to think?" She sobbed. He wiped her tears and moved a little closer. "Hey stop crying.. And look at me.." He said holding her face in his large hands. "Pragya, you are truly one of a kind. Here i wanted to surprise you and when i come back home, you manage to surprise me instead. First the clothes.." He said looking at her from top to bottom. Only he knew what seeing her in those clothes were doing to him. She was so red that he wanted to kiss her that very instant. "And then this!" He smiled.
He took a step back and put his hand in the pocket of his coat. He got a small velvet box and held it out on his palm. 'Tiffany & Co.' She saw engraved on the top and blinked a couple of times to make sure she wasn't dreaming. "Remember I told you there was a surprise for you? This is the surprise. I had planned to take you out tomorrow and tell you how much i love you but then, you are.. You.. You manage to throw me off guard. So here i am now, in our balcony, under the stars and moon with you in my shirt trying to tell the same thing. But like you say, it's the moment that counts and not the setup."
He opened the box and pulled out the delicate Tiffany band with an exquisite diamond on it. "Mrs. Pragya Mehra, i have loved you forever and i don't want to spend another day without you either. Though i know the answer to this, let me ask you again.. Will you be mine and only mine?" He beamed. Her hands flew to her mouth and happy tears ran down her cheeks as she nodded her head vigorously. He chuckled and reached for her hand. Pulling her closer to himself, he slipped the ring into her finger and kissed over it. She flung herself over him and hugged him tight. He kissed her on the cheek and hugged her back.
"Pragya, as much as i love being here at this moment, i really need to shower and change. I've been in these clothes way to long." He said pulling out of the hug. She Looked at him embarrassed and nodded. "I'll be right back.. " he whispered in her ears and walked into the washroom. Pragya entered the bedroom still flushed. The clock showed 2.45 a.m. She noticed his bag near the bed, his shoes thrown around. His wallet and cell were on the bed. She sighed and moved around keeping everything in place. 'He's such a baby!' She thought to herself. Sitting down on her side of the bed, she adored her hand and the new addition to her ring finger. "He's my baby!" She chuckled. She heard the bathroom knob click and saw him walk out wearing only his pyjama. He smiled at her and sat on the bed, besides her. He took her and in his and played with the ring. "You like it?" He asked her. She nodded her head. "Abhi how did you come so early? I thought you would arrive in the morning." She asked him. "I got a seat in an earlier connecting flight from Doha. I didn't wanna spend four hours there waiting." He yawned. "Abhi you should sleep. It's late.. And besides, you must be exhausted." She said smiling at him. He nodded and slid down into the bed. She lay down too and turned to face him. He slept off facing her side, adoring her smile and the spark in her eyes.
She kept looking at him, not wanting to close her eyes. She could hardly believe all of that had actually happened. She was scared that if she closed her eyes, everything would vanish away like a dream. She sat up against the headboard again and leaned in a little closer to him, running her fingers on his hair lightly. She observed her sleeping husband to her hearts content. He slept all cuddled up like a little kid, a small smile on his lips. His angular jaws made him look sexier. The day old stubble made him look so edible that all she wanted was to kiss all over them. His muscles flexed a bit as he shifted to make himself more comfortable. She noticed the gorgeous V that disappeared in his pyjama as he slept straight.
"Pragya.." He called out to her as he saw her looking at him intently. Her hand was still playing with his hair as she turned to look at his face. "Not sleepy?" He asked. She shook her head. He sat up against the headboard and she facing him sideways. "It feels like a dream Abhi. I won't be able to bear it if this is one. What if you disappeared when i wake up?" She said in a low sob. Abhi instinctively put her arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him, making her sit on his lap sideways. He took her hand and placed it on his chest. She could feel the steady thumping of his heart. "Do you feel this Pragya? This heart beats only for you. It only belongs to you. And it always will. Believe it Pragya. Believe me. I won't let you get away from me. Not now, not ever. You and me are meant to be Pragya and now is the time we need to let go of everything in the past and move ahead making new memories for ourselves. Trust me when i say I love you because i mean every word of it." He whispered in her ear as she rested her head on the crook of his neck. She placed a soft kiss on his neck as she absorbed each word he spoke. He was here.. This was real an there was no doubt about it. She turned to look up at his face and saw him staring at her intently. His eyes were filled with love and admiration for her, but, beyond that, she saw in his eyes a desire. Her eyes mirrored his and without thinking any further, she pulled him down to her kissing him on his lips. To say Abhi was shocked would be an understatement but he recovered soon and crushing her to himself, he kissed her back with all the love he held for her.
Okay then.. There it is.. I hope I'm not getting any joota chappals in return.. That was just a dream guys.. Just a dream...
I feel so evil!! You thought I'd kill Abhi? Or hurt him?. No! Never! Nada! Zilch! Not happeing in this lifetime..
So drop in your views and I'd love to know what you think..
Until next time!!!
For those wanting PM's kindly buddy 'Iyeristic_PM'
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
