"Shivaay... chalo. Humein yahaan aur rehne ka koi matlab nahin hai. Hum sab ko ghar chalna chaahiye"
Gauri had been passing the door to the terrace when her ears caught these words uttered in his voice... the voice that still managed to make her heart beat faster, the voice that vibrated in her soul and melted her from the inside.
Only she knew just how hard it had been for her to rebuff his words at the temple. How close to impossible it had been for her to not turn back and run into his arms. But it was about her self-respect this time... and Gauri knew she would have to be strong in the face of his misguided guilt. A strong, lifelong commitment could not be based on guilt and repentance. She knew very well that Omkara couldn't be acting on anything more than misplaced guilt, misguided possessiveness and a need to maintain control over the rapidly evolving situation.
But still, his decision to leave made her feel hurt and disappointed for some reason. Even though it was what she'd told him she wanted, Gauri couldn't help but hope that he would, his entire family would somehow make this icky situation go away. Being blackmailed into getting married was bad in itself, and even if she had no notions of going through with it, pretending to do so in front of the man she still loved with all of herself, had been horrific.
"Ye tu kya keh raha hai Om?! I thought... tum ne aaj subeh hi mujhse itne confidently kaha ki Oberois ishq mein dil haarte hain, himmat nahin. Ab kya ho gaya that you want all of us to leave? Tum Gauri ko us idiot se shaadi karne doge kya?"
"Agar uski yahi marzi hai tho... yes"
Though he'd started at normal volume, by the time he reached that last word, Omkara's voice had dropped to a tortured whisper. Gauri's heart was in there with him, needing to sooth him but she held herself back... this was no longer her job. She'd freed him from their relationship... she tried to tell herself that his emotional wellbeing was no longer her responsibility, but it still didn't stop her from heart from hurting for him.
"Maine Gauri ko itne mahinon mein ek bhi khushi nahin di hai Shivaay. Wo jitne bhi din meri life mein thi, she made it better every day. As Chulbul or Gauri, wo meri har choti badi khushi ka khayaal rakhti thi. Aur maine use badle mein sirf aur sirf dukh, nafrat aur naaraazgi di hai. Main nahin chaahta ki ab yahaan rehkar main use aur dukh doon."
Gauri frowned at that... it did sound like his guilt was guiding him like she'd made herself believe but this also felt like something more involved was going on. But she couldn't let herself build even an iota of hope on this. She really should move on, literally and figuratively... but found herself stuck to her position on the other side of the terrace door, listening to the developing conversation intently.
"Dekh Om... Gauri is your wife. Maana ki wo abhi thodi roothi hai, its your job to make things right. You can't give up like this every time something comes up. Rishte aise nahin nibhaaye jaate Om... you have to understand-"
Shivaay would've continued had his usually calm and collected middle brother's voice not risen to a shout, interrupting him
"YOU f**kING THINK THIS IS EASY FOR ME?! Tell me Shivaay... Tujhe lagta hai maine ye decision aasaani se li? Do you have any idea? Andar hi andar ghut ke mar raha hoon main! I am dying every second she's angry with me. I am killing myself for every angry, hateful thing I've thrown in her face... I know I deserve nothing but anger and hatred from her in return. I will do anything to get her to give me another chance. But I refuse to force her in any way. Agar Gauri ko mujhe ek aur mauka dena hoga, to wo apni marzi se mujhe wo mauka degi. And she doesn't want to give me that chance... not anymore"
The raw pain in his voice affected every one of them. Shivaay felt an echo of the pain in his own heart, as he saw his brother break down in front of him. Rudra wanted to hate his Chulbul bhabhi for doing this to his O but he knew better... Anika and Bhavya could do nothing but wish and pray that their Omkara would find his peace with his Gauri.
Gauri clutched a hand to her own heart, feeling it hurting in response to the amount of pain and emotion she heard in his voice and his words. She'd never let herself hope... never let herself even consider the possibility that Omkara could ever grow to have any sort of feelings for her that were not anger, hatred or disgust. Even when he'd come to Bareilly dressed as a sardaar and calling himself Dilpreet, even when his brothers and sisters-in-law had followed, dressed up as his Punjabi family, she'd only let herself think that Omkara was a typical alpha male, wanting control over what he couldn't have anymore.
She'd even thrown it in his face that morning at the temple, telling him that he only came now because she was no longer his to control. She's seen a look of shock settle on his face then, but had been too involved in her own pain to address it then.
"Aisa kya hua that you suddenly want to leave Omkara? Aaj to tum ne aur Gauri ne wo movie waali rasam bhi kit hi na mandir mein?"
Anika's quiet voice broke the long, fraught silence that had fallen on them all
And when Omkara's quiet reply came, Gauri felt her heart squeeze and her eyes tear up
"Usne apne Shankarji ke saamne mujhse apne aap ko door kar diya. Uska dupatta mere watch se ulajh gaya tha aur Gauri ko mujhse door jaane ki itni jaldi thi ki usne mere help karne ke liye bhi wait nahin kiya. She just tore her dupatta off and walked away. She just walked away bhabhi... wo chali gayi."
"Magar Om-"
"No guys. Main bas apne kiye ki sazaa bhugat raha hoon. She's right. Maine use kabhi ye ehsaas hi nahin hone diya ki uski meri life mein kya ehmiyat hai. Mujhe khud nahin pata tha ki wo mere liye kitni essential hai. Aur ab jab wo kisi aur ke saath move on karna chaahti hai apni life mein, to main beech mein kaise aa sakta hoon? I've lost the right to be anything to her. But I can at least give her what she wants. Uski khushi mere liye sabse important hai. Mujhe nahin pata hi Gauri ki khushi kya is shaadi mein hai ki nahin... magar main samajh gaya hoon ki uski khushi ab mere saath nahin hai. Aur main Gauri ko aur dukh nahin dena chaahta hoon. Like they say... if you love something, let it go. So I've decided. Main waapis Mumbai jaa raha hoon. Aaj ke baad main Gauri ke life mein apna saaya bhi nahin padhne doonga. Shaayad mere saath uski saari problems aur saare dukh bhi chale jaayenge."
Listening to those words, the words she'd been subconsciously waiting for, Gauri knew what she had to do. She'd walked away before because she'd known then, that there was no hope for their relationship. If she let him walk away from her now, she knew she would regret it for the rest of her life.
For Gauri, Omkara was her endgame... he always had been. Since the day of their hastily conducted marriage in Bareilly, she'd been his wife. Now he was going to be her husband... hers. For eternity. And she couldn't let the self-sacrificing idiot ruin both their lives because he felt that was what she wanted.
Taking a deep breath, Gauri pushed the door to the terrace open and stepped out.
All five pairs of eyes snapped to her, but she was only aware of the one pair of chocolate eyes that were currently filled with anguish.
"We're going to let you guys-"
"Koi zaroorat nahin hai bade bhaiyya. Aap ke bhai ne apni saari feelings aap ke saamne share ki hain. Hum aisa kuch nahin bolne waale jo aap sab ke saamne nahin bola jaa sake"
As the rest of them awkwardly stood around, she slowly walked up to her man... this sweet, complicated, stupidly generous and utterly gorgeous man that was hers but just didn't know it yet. When she stopped, she was close enough to him to feel the warmth radiating from his body. Never moving her eyes from his, she quietly whispered
"Humein Dilpreet se nahin, Omkara se baat karni hai"
His eyes widening momentarily told her he'd noted the lack of 'ji' at the end of his name. For some reason, it made him happy on the inside, and he quickly got to work unwinding his padgi. Gauri waited patiently as he reverently folded and kept the piece of cloth aside. He then pulled the hairband out of his hair and let it fall as it naturally did, waiting for her to continue.
Whatever he'd expected her reaction to be, it was not this. She inched closer to him and placed a small, cool hand on his cheek, cupping it almost lovingly as she stared into his eyes, searching for something.
Gauri had expected to see a whole lot of emotions in his expressive eyes but what she found there almost blew her away. Here he was, standing in front of her stripped of all his layers. What was left behind in his eyes told her everything she needed to know. The love, the longing and the affection he had for her, the sadness and the resigned courage at his decision to let her go and above all, the respect he held for her and what he thought was her decision to move on.
"Itna pyaar? Humare liye? Kahaan se aa gaya?" her voice was a whisper filled with emotion
"Pehle se tha... bas main itna buddhu tha ki pehchaan hi nahin paaya. Aur jab pehchaana to bohot der ho gayi"
His reply was equally soft, his voice wobbling with suppressed emotion.
Even now, she could see that he held no hope, there was no happiness in him that she was there, no expectation that she would forgive him or come back to him. Her jatadhari was convinced that he'd lost her for good... Now it was her job to make sure he knew just what he had left to fight for.
Her eyes tearing up in relief and happiness she finally let herself feel, Gauri shook her head firmly, her fingers splayed over his stubbled cheek, caressing him softly as the tears spilled over her lashes. His fingers came up involuntarily to wipe her tears away but stopped short of touching her cheek as he remembered all those times she'd rejected his touch recently. His guilty eyes met hers once more intent on apologizing but she'd caught his hand in the meantime and settled it on her cheek, her hand over his, assuring him of its rightness.
Her dark, beautiful eyes telegraphed to his that it still was indeed his right to wipe her tears away, to comfort her in the time of need and that it would always be his right to care for her for the rest of their lives. His eyes filled in response, the tears overflowing as his rare happy smile made a bright appearance, both of them letting go of all the guilt, the pain and the anguish they'd made each other go through with the cleansing tears.
The two of them would've just stood there for ages, their fingers caressing each other's cheeks as their eyes spoke volumes for them, had it not been for a cheeky Rudra's question interrupting their moment, reminding them of their audience, which if Rudra was to be believed was getting bored and quite ready to go home.
"Aap donon aise hi ek doosre ko ghoorte rahoge ya kuch bolne ka bhi iraada hai? Mujhe pata tha ki O thoda boring hai magar mujhe apni Dabangg Chulbul bhabhi se ye ummeed nahin thi. Waise Chulbul bhabhi... Bareilly is nice and all aur ye shaadi waala mahaul was fun and everything but main ab ghar jaane ke liye ready hoon. Chalo na hum sab waapis ghar chalte hain"
Blushing a bit and still teary-eyed, Gauri's happy smile beamed through as she nodded her head yes.
"Magar... usse pehle kuch kaam baaki hain jo karne padenge"
His happiness making him slightly giddy, Omkara slipped a hand around his wife's waist and pulled her closer and asked
"Kya kaam baaki hai?"
Blushing brighter at being so close to her jatadhari, Gauri could only stammer in reply as Omkara smirked knowingly at her
"Wo... wo... sh-shaadi.."
"Shaadi karni hai?"
His cheeky question was quickly answered with a head shake no'
"Rokni hai"
A healthy portion of his mischief and happiness bled away at that. In the light of some recent revelations, he'd forgotten that his wife was in the process of getting married to someone else.
Gauri knew what everyone thought about her strange decision so she hurried to explain, her eyes staring into her jatadhari's, willing him to understand her position
"Hum ne is shaadi ke liye apni marzi se haan nahin ki hai. Humein us Ajay ne dhamkaaya hai..."
"Dhamkaaya?! What the hell? Kya kehke dhamkaaya tumhein? What the heck does he think of himself"
Gauri felt her husband go stiff beside her as he fired questions at her rapidly
"Wo... wo... Richa... humein maaf kar dijiye... magar... Ajay ne hum se kaha ki wo Mukesh aur Richa ki shaadi rok dega agar hum ne usse shaadi nahin ki tho"
Based upon his previous reactions to such statements and situations in their life, Gauri expected Omkara to react angrily and question her decision and her intentions. But all he did was take a deep breath and question her in a calm but decidedly steely voice
"Aur tumhare is blackmail ko maanne ki koi wajah to hogi right? Situation kya hai? Kaunsi problem hai jise wo bas***d tumhare khilaaf use kar raha hai?"
Gauri almost sagged into his arms in relief, tears threatening to pool once more in her lovely eyes.
"Richa... uski aur Mukesh ki shaadi nahin ruk sakti."
"I understand ki Richa tumhari best friend hai Gauri... magar ek baar socho. Agar uski shaadi Mukesh se hoti hai to use Ajay jaise insaan se zindagi bhar deal karna padega..."
"Hum jaante hain bade bhaiyya... lekin haalaath kuch aise hain ki unki shaadi nahin ruk sakti. Samajhne ki koshish kijiye"
An almost suffocating silence fell as everyone digested the truth of the situation.
"Shivaay... Us gadhe ka background check karaao. I need to know what we're dealing with here."
Shivaay quickly nodded and got on the phone while Anika pulled off her old lady wig
"Abhi Dilpreet ke Punjabi family ki nahin, Omkara Singh Oberoi ki family aur Gauri ke sasuraal waalon ki zaroorat hai. Chalo sab log... in Bareilly waalon ko dikhaate hain ki hum Oberois apni bahu ko kaise shaan ke ghar lekar jaate hain. Hum shaadi rokne aaye the aur dulhan saath mein lekar jaayenge."
As the rest of them started toward the door that would lead them downstairs to the main house, Omkara spoke up
"Tum log chalo... main aata hoon guys"
The four of them smirked at the couple who were blushing heavily by then, and walked out, leaving them alone.
"Gauri... main aaj tak na hi accha pati ya accha dost ban paaya hoon. I have treated you so badly, taken out so much anger on you, misunderstood you so much... ki mujhe ab is baat par yaqeen hi nahin ho raha ki tum yahaan mere saath ho abhi. I don't know why or how you decided to give me another chance Gauri... magar main tum se aaj, abhi aur isi waqt ye waada karna chaahta hoon ki tumhari is decision ko kabhi second guess karne nahin doonga. Aaj ke baad tumhari zindagi mein koi regret nahin rehne doonga. Aaj tak meri wajah se tumhari life mein jitni bhi problems aayi, us sab ko main mitaa doonga. I want to make you the happiest woman in the world Gauri... tumhein itni khushiyaan dena chaahta hoon ki tum in pichle aath maheenon ke dard aur mushkilon ko bhool jaao."
He held her hands in his, going down on his knees in front of a sobbing Gauri
"Gauri... kya tum mere saath humare rishte ki ek nayi shuruaat karna chaahogi?"
All Gauri could do in response was nod repeatedly as she was literally drowning in her own happy tears. That was all she had time to do before she was swept up in a tight hug by her ecstatic Jatadhari. She buried her face in his chest, reveling in the feeling of being in his arms, of being enfolded securely in his embrace. The feeling of security and peace that stole over her was as new as it was welcome. Had she been able to look up at him at that moment, she would've known just how similar his thoughts and feelings were.
Gauri finally felt like she belonged... like she was a wife, like she was wanted, needed and necessary for someone. And Omkara finally felt complete. It was as if he'd been searching for her his whole life and missing her without even knowing about it. Now that she was here, she was his, he'd finally found completion... he'd come home.
He let down a deep sigh, as if he'd been holding it in for a long time and squeezed her a bit tighter to himself
"I love you Gauri... I love you so much!"
The words were uttered as if saying them was as normal as breathing for him... and it possibly was now. The sentiment itself had become so essential to his very existence that saying it was no more difficult than saying her name. Gauri meant love to Omkara Singh Oberoi and now that he'd finally realized that, it was never going to change for as long as he breathed.
"I love you too Om... hum aap ko shaayad bata bhi nahin sakte kitna..."
Her fingers which had been clutching his kurta till now, left the garment to wrap around his waist, pulling him closer to her. Gauri snuggled into his hold further as she felt his fingers at her chin, making her tilt her head up to meet his eyes. His dark eyes shone with a million little happinesses while her luminous ones smiled right back at him in utter joy.
"Om?"
She just nodded silently before clarifying
"Humare Om... sirf humare"
Caught in her passionate gaze, Omkara involuntarily leaned forward, his lips millimeters from hers when he stopped himself. When she looked at him questioningly at that, he whispered
"Tum par pyaar jataane ke liye to poor zindagi baaki hai. Apni dulhan ko ghar le jaane se pehle uski shaadi to rok loon..."
His devilish smirk caused her to blush prettily and he laughed in pure joy as she nodded shyly and they both left the terrace hand in hand.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Epilogue
Later that evening, as everyone was getting ready for Richa's mehendi function, Gauri was acting quite distracted and repeatedly looking either at the display of her phone or the entranceway to the house. Ajay, who'd been watching her since his arrival, got frustrated that the woman he'd blackmailed into getting married to him was ignoring him royally. He'd just started walking up to her to demand that she pay attention to him, when he heard a bunch of cars screeching to a halt outside the front door to the house. Before he could utter a word, Gauri had almost flown to the door, making him huff in frustration before following her.
There were three cars outside... all of them high end luxury vehicles, looking quite out of place in the narrow by-lanes of Bareilly. The doors to the Audi opened and out came an impeccably dressed man with blue-green eyes and a beautiful young woman dressed in a simple but gorgeous peach saree with a tasseled blouse.
By then, half the house had spilled out into the entrance way to see who was making such a blockbuster entrance to their Richa's wedding. Gauri's happy little scream of 'bhaujaai' was met with looks of astonishment. They'd all heard rumors that she'd married well but to see evidence of it in the form of the expensive cars and the rich looking people, was fast becoming fodder for the gossip mill.
The two ladies squealed and hugged each other as if they hadn't seen each other in ages. Her reunion with her bade bhaiyya involved a lot less squealing but was no less emotional.
By this time, the second car, a flashy sport convertible in bright Orange had opened its doors to reveal another young man and a young woman, both dressed in a quite modern manner. His name turned out to be Rudy if Gauri's happy greeting to him was to be believed and the pretty denim clad woman with him turned out to be Bhavya, his friend.
Ajay, who'd worked himself up to anger by then, was about to intervene when the third car, a Range Rover that looked disturbingly familiar for some reason, opened up to reveal a handsome man with long hair, clad in casual looking but obviously expensive clothes.
As the crowd looked on curiously, wondering who this man was because Gauri had remained surprisingly silent upon noticing him, though a deep, dark blush had stolen across her cheeks, making people start to whisper about their ideas of who he could be. He too, didn't speak upon seeing her with the others but just stood a couple of feet away from her, a small smile on his lips as he just continued to stare at her. It was only when the light-eyed man nudged her did Gauri move. And move she did... she literally flew into the long haired man's waiting arms, causing a loud gasp to go up from the crowd and for people to start whispering loudly.
But the two were completely unconcerned with any and all of this. They seemed to be unaware of anything that wasn't the two of them. Ajay, the supposed groom who was standing by the side, watching Gauri meeting these new people and was flabbergasted to see his supposed fiance fling herself into another man's arms. But before he could say a word, his mother's loud voice was heard
"Ye kya ho raha hai yahaan?! Gauri! Ye kya kar rahi ho? Tumhari shaadi tho mere Ajay ke saath taiy hui hai. To tum is aadmi ke saath kya kar rahi ho?"
Gauri's only reaction to the lady's tirade was to glance up at the man whose arms she was snuggled into and smile happily before she turned to the crowd, Ajay and his mother. By this time, Mukesh, Richa and her mother were also outside and Gauri could tell that her friend had recognized who the new people were. Mukesh too, seemed to know the Oberoi brothers if his starstruck expression was anything to go by.
"Are Auntyji! Gauri ki shaadi kaise kisi ke saath taiy ho sakti hai? Wo tho already shaadi shuda hai na?"
Anika asked in an innocent manner, relishing the role she was playing here thoroughly. She could literally feel Shivaay's smirk next to her as his fingers tightened on hers.
"Hum sab ko pata hai ki Gauri ki shaadi sirf naam ki hai... Aur wo us rishte mein nahin rehna chaahti... Bolo Gauri... tum hi ne to mujhse kaha tha... Gauri?"
Ajay was the one who answered... and the one who stood there looking like an idiot as his so-called fiance was busy being lost in her jatadhari's eyes.
"Use dekh ke to nahin lagta ki uski shaadi sirf naam ki hai... hai na Shivaay?" came Anika's snarky reply
At that, Ajay lost his last bit of restraint and stalked toward Gauri who was now busy wrapping her arms around her Omkara's neck while his arms found their place around her waist. Ajay's hand was inches away from grabbing Gauri and yanking her off of this man when his hand was caught in an iron grip and the eyes that had been warmly staring at Gauri moved to meet his, hardening into ice chips that glittered with anger and malevolence.
"Don't even think about it... main apni biwi ko kisi ko haath lagaane nahin deta. Better keep to yourself if you don't want to lose your hand"
"Who the heck do you think you are?! She's my fiance... she is marrying me in three days"
"Oh you don't know me?!"
The lazy surprise in his voice conveying just how unimportant Ajay was for him, the man just tightened his hold on Gauri
"I'm Omkara Singh Oberoi... and this is my wife"
"Gauri Omkara Singh Oberoi" she finished sweetly for her husband, who seemed to be dazzled at her pronouncement.
He gently but urgently turned her to look at her eyes, as if to confirm what she'd just said. She just nodded in return, tears in her eyes but a wide smile on her lips. The hug that followed was swift and tight, followed by a loving kiss on her forehead before they both turned as one to face Richa and Mukesh, as if Ajay wasn't even important enough for them to pay attention.
The Oberois and their ladies walked up as one to the couple getting married and took turns congratulating them. Omkara handed Mukesh, who he'd found was a big fan, a thin rectangular wrapped package as a wedding present and gave an envelope to Richa. The package turned out to be a beautiful painting of him and Richa which Omkara had made for their wedding present... something that almost sent the groom into emotional hysterics while Richa stood there gaping at the flight tickets and hotel reservations she held in her hand. The Oberois had given this simple girl from Bareilly a honeymoon in Bali.
"Sorry about this Richa magar hum sab Gauri ko ghar le jaane ke liye aaye hain. I don't think she'll be able to stay for your wedding. But Congratulations from all of us! We hope ki tum aur Mukesh ek saath khush raho... Mukesh, honeymoon se waapis aakar, get in touch with me. I have something for you..."
The bride and groom, who still looked dazed at receiving a surprise honeymoon from her bestie's sasuraal, just nodded their assent to the older Oberoi scion while the rest of the crowd still murmured about the public displays of affection their Gauri was indulging in with the man that had turned out to be her husband. For the first time since they'd gotten there, Omkara disentangled himself from his wife and walked over to her mother, to take her blessings.
"Maaji... I am sorry ki Richa ki shaadi khatam hone se pehle hum aa gaye magar main Gauri ko bohot miss kar raha tha... kya main Gauri ko apne saath ghar le jaa sakta hoon?"
"Damaadji... ye aap kya keh rahe hain? Ye bhi koi poochne waali baat hai? Mujhe to bas khushi hai ki aap sab aaye meri Gauri ko ghar le jaane ke liye."
In the meantime, Gauri had slipped into the house and returned with a small suitcase which was duly put into Omkara's Rover and even as the crowd along with Ajay, his mom, Mukesh and Richa looked on, the Oberois paired off into their cars, Gauri sliding into the passenger seat of Omkara's Rover after hugging her mom goodbye, like she belonged there and drove off without even a by your leave.
Soon, the rest of the crowd also went back into the house, their quota of entertainment for the day finished. Richa and Mukesh walked into the house excitedly discussing the wedding presents they'd received from Omkara and Gauri... their moms went in after them leaving a still astonished Ajay to gape at the dust trail left by the cars all by himself.
Back in the cars, Anika and Shivaay were having another good natured argument, Bhavya and Rudra were discussing their gym routines while the third car with the newly reconciled couple, was driving off in an entirely different direction, taking the lovebirds to their secret honeymoon destination from where they would only return a full three weeks later, looking all kinds of adorable and in love with each other.
Itti Si Khushi Sab TV
