FF- Sparkling Dreams (COMPLETED) epilogue pg 43 - Page 25

6 months later

"Arnav, where are we going? I am losing my patience here" Khushi said threateningly, her fingers tapping restlessly upon the hand rest.

"Will you just keep that pretty little mouth of yours shut for a little while...please" he begged and chuckled at the annoyed expression on her face.

She pretended to look away angrily, ignoring how he had picked up her hand and held it to his lips sending her heartbeat scurrying to the stars. "Angry...are we? Why do you always have to be so curious, Khush?" he asked with a silly grin.

"You pull me out of office...no drag me out, when I have piles of files to check, then you get Jiya to side with you and forcefully push me out and now I'm sitting here in this stupid car with a stupid man who won't tell me where we are going!" she exclaimed and huffed at the way he still kept smiling, his eyes dancing with amusement, watching her as though she was performing for a circus.

"We are just going someplace nice, just wait and you will see, and as for dragging you away I've been in London for the past week, is it so wrong that I want to simply listen to your silly voice, watch that dramatic face and then kiss you senseless later" he asked with a smirk.

With slight colour creeping up her cheeks she hastily replied "Oh please don't go all cheese-ball on me, I'm sure you didn't even think of me and ended up having the time of your life"

"Ah Khushi, that hurt...really" he exclaimed in mock agony with his hand over his chest while she rolled her eyes and looked away smiling at his silly antics.

Khushi's eyes widened as she recognized a landmark, her fingers excitedly pointing outside the window "No...really...it can't be?!" she whispered. Arnav just smiled at her baffled face as she stared outside in utter astonishment.

"Arnav, where are we going" Khushi asked with wide eyes, her frock crumpled and smeared with dirt as she was lead by a quiet little boy across fields sprinkled with grass, golden hay and some trees. "Wait, you'll see" he said and held her hand, pulling her with him as he marched on, their tiny feet sinking into the grass.

Blue. Waters so blue, they looked like shining opals beneath the sparkling afternoon sun. Her hazel eyes widened as though entranced by utter magic. "How did you find this place?" she whispered in wonder, the blue waters reflecting across her eyes. "I explored a little, ma told me not to go beyond the post office, but I couldn't resist" he said mischievously.

They plopped down beside the water, their feet barely touching the cool glassy surface. "We can come here and play now" he said proudly at having made such a discovery, "And it will be like our own little place, tomorrow we should bring some sandwiches and jalebis" she said her eyes wide with excitement and plans. "Yes and I'll bring my new football too, there is so much place to play over here" he said smiling widely.

"It will be our own little Atlantis" she sighed as they sat together, their smiles highlighted by a few missing teeth, the sun generously kissing their cheeks and their eyes enchanted by the endless blue before them.

"I thought this part of town was heavily industrialized over the past few years" Khushi said, the astonishment still evident in her voice.

"Nu-uh, apparently the owner out rightly refused to sell this plot of land stretching for miles" he answered. "Oh my God...I used to call this place Atlantis, remember? ahh the number of times I sat here reading" she said grinning, her eyes plastered to the sight outside the window as they stopped at the rugged road a little away from the field.

She hopped off the car, the evening breeze twirling the edges of her coral blue dress and sending her hair flying. Arnav picked up the basket from the backseat and stood beside her, his heart flooding with warmth as he watched her, she looked like one of those paintings that you could simply watch forever.

"What?" she asked, noticing his lingering gaze.

"You're beautiful" he softly whispered as he pushed back her brown hair, his fingers softly entangling within those tresses before gently placing his lips upon hers.

He smiled as he watched her slightly flushed face, his fingers brushing softly with hers in a silly dance as they walked together, their feet sinking into the fresh grass reliving old memories and calling back footprints from a time long ago.

"Sandwiches and Jalebis" she exclaimed, sitting cross-legged on the ground as he plopped down beside her and opened the basket. "And mango juice too" he said with a laugh knowing how much she loved anything with mango.

"Look at you being so romantic and all" she grinned as she hungrily reached for a neatly wrapped sandwich, "Didn't you go to work today? When did you have time to make sandwiches?" She curiously asked as she chewed slowly. "I worked late yesterday and since there were no meetings scheduled for today I took the day off" he said as he opened a bottle of water.

"Man...this place, I'm so glad that it's still unchanged" she said, her eyes watching the last rays flicker across the water. "True" he said as he watched the fading sunlight dance across her eyes.

"Ahh...mayonnaise is like a gift from God" she exclaimed as she chomped on her second sandwich, her hands simultaneously reaching for the bottle of mango juice.

"Khush...take it slow, the sandwiches aren't going to disappear, I know I make the best sandwiches but you resemble a cannibal" he said and laughed slowly as he watched her gulp down the juice and drown the entire sandwich in a few bites.

"Oh please don't flatter yourself, you may make good sandwiches but you can never master the art of baking" she said triumphantly.

"Please spare me the lies, I can still recall that pitiable face of yours as you stood with burnt cakes wondering what went wrong" he chuckled and fell victim to a string of cuss words.

"Uff I am so full, I don't think I can have dinner after this" Khushi said as she sat by the edge of the water, her feet partly immersed in the cool water as she watched the tiny ripples slide whenever her feet touched the surface. "Right...just give it a few minutes and you will be grumbling about being hungry again" he grinned at her exhausted face as his feet teasingly slid over hers beneath the water, meeting like a flutter of butterfly kisses.

Their voices drizzled over the field like embracing raindrops, teasing, loving and so very enchanting as their laughter echoed old tales and memories etched in eternity.

Arnav shuffled restlessly beside Khushi who seemed to have become very silent, her eyes dreamy as she stared at the deep blue waters, her head slightly leaning backwards, letting her hair fall artfully over her shoulders, catching tiny glimmers of the teasing sun rays.

"Khush remember when we came here first, we were just 10 years old" Arnav said softly earning a dreamy "Hmm" from her.

"It has been 16 years since then" he let his words magically dance between them as he stared at the woman beside him, his face lifting in a smile as he remembered the girl with missing teeth and a runny nose.

His hands enveloped hers as their feet met softly in a whisper beneath the water, no longer dangling as they used to several years back.

'16 years...I feel so old" she chuckled and looked into his deep brown eyes, her eyes startled at the depth she saw within them.

He let his fingers trail gently across her cheeks, tracing the slight blush as she gazed at him, "I am so lucky to have you in my life, Khushi. After all these years and I still have you by my side, I am so grateful for you...and I do not know what I would do without your constant shrill voice telling me what to do" he said with a soft laugh as he watched her eyes gleam with beams of joy.

Her eyes widened as she watched him shuffle quickly in a swift motion to get on his knees, dusting his hands quickly across his chinos, with his eyes filled with an expression so beckoning that she wanted to simply drown, freefall unthinkingly into everything they held. He softly spoke

"Within the ocean of your eyes

Within the silent whispers of your heart

In every smile, in every hope and each sparkling dream

I hope to dwell forever until I cease to remain

I hope to be yours if you would simply be mine"

Her eyes gleamed with unshed tears as she smiled widely at his eager expectant face, his one arm slightly scratching his head as he muttered "I tried Khush...I really did but this was the best poetry I could come up with after hours of scrawling mindlessly" he laughed pathetically.

He held out a ring, the little stone against platinum sparkling like a constellation in a jar. "So?" he whispered, an intense smile touching his gentle face.

Seconds ticked by as her eyes remained frozen, a dozen emotions passing through those endless depths.

"Khush...no hurry, but a little quicker, my knees.." he explained with a sheepish smile.

Tinkling laughter filled the evening air "Please tell me you recorded all this" she said watching his confused and painful face, a few tears slipping out onto her red cheeks, finally sobering up she said "Fine...fine we can reenact everything later".

"Wow Khush...this is so romantic" Arnav grinned, still kneeling on one knee.

Sighing she pulled her feet out of her water and crouched before him "Arnav, I have and always will love you, yes...yes,always and forever" she said happily with a countless dreams rejoicing behind those gleaming eyes.

As he gently slipped the ring into her fingers, she lovingly gazed at his slightly bent head and relieved eyes "Did you actually think I would say no?" she asked in a surprised tone, "Nah...of course not, I've seen the way you can't keep your eyes off me" he said with a chuckle as he plopped down and pulled her into his lap, capturing her lips before she could come up with a hasty retort whispering about how much he her loved a countless times across those yielding lips that gave up with a sigh.

Underneath the sparkling sky, him and her, together, as it always was and always will be, a song as old as time.

This is probably the last chapter. Will post an epilogue soon. Hope you liked it.😊 To all those who love intense proposals...I'm sorry...I had to put in a little silliness between these two characters that I have come to adore.😆