Butterfly for you...
not that my other readers are not equally special... enjoy you all...
Chapter 37
"Khushi, utho' " Payal shook her awake.
Khushi opened her eyes as she sat up and looked around but did not see the person her eyes were searching for and saw Payal.
"Kya hua Jiji?" Khushi asked rubbing her eyes.
"Sab nashte pe tumhara intezzar kar rahe hain. Jaldi se tayyar ho kar aa jao." She looked at Khushi and her disheveled state and smiled at her as if to convey the message of understanding.
"Jiji'" Khushi shot back trying to quell the question in her eyes.
"Chal ab'jyada drama mat kar'. tum Arnav ke baad nichhe aa rahi ho' Woh toh usne bola ki tumhein thori der aur sone diya jaaye'. nichche aa phir mein kya sab sawaal karne waale hain'" and with that she turned and left the room.
Khushi smacking a hand on her head, went into the bathroom through the dressing room and got dressed. A sari in gajjari color with gold border and jewelry that was light yet appropriate for a newly wed with matching bangles. Her mangalsutra and bindi were the signs she carried with her of a married woman.
She walked down the stairs to see Arnav at the foot of it halted on the way to his study looking up at her. She had not seen him after the early morning fiasco and he looked a dish in his usual business formals though the shirt today was not his regular pastels but a bright red. The only thing that reminded her of was a raging bull. His eyes did not leave her as she came down and stood in front of him.
"I am going to the office. Please try to dissuade Nani about the honeymoon. I have had enough of this drama already." With that he walked away.
Khushi's shoulders slumped. "Right Mr Raizada, leave the tough task to me." she muttered to herself as she entered the dining room to find the whole family stop laughing at something they were discussing and turn and look at her collectively.
Aakash then asked, "Bimaar ke haal kaise hain?"
"Bimaar?" Khushi turned around looking here and there and questioned.
"Aap hi Khushi' I hope you remember that you were in hospital couple of days ago and have not done anything strenuous, though Arnav asked us to not disturb you but Payal could not wait for you to come and get some strength back after'" and all of them burst into peels of laughter.
Not enjoying the harmless jokes as they were far away from the truth and yet so close. She sat in one of the chairs and had breakfast. Nani after she had eaten suddenly said,
"Bitiya, jaraa mandir ma aaiye."
They all left together and joined hands in front of the Devi Maiyya in their home temple. Khushi said, "Sorry Naniji. Mein woh aaj bhool gayee, kal se pehle Devi Maiyya ko naman karoongi phir breakfast karoongi."
"Arre isliye nahi bulaye hai hum aapko ehyaan. Jai Parkas, jao Arnav bitwa ko bulao." She told first Khushi and then called out to Jai Prakash.
Arnav came, "Kya hai Nani, waise bhi mein office jaa raha hoon."
"Pehle aap idhar aaiye. Ye lijiye." She told handing him the sindoor box.
Holding it he asked, "Kya hai?" Opening it.
"Oh!" he exclaimed. And looked at Nani and Khushi.
"Aap ab se har subah, mandir maa aake, Khusi bitiya ki maang bhareinge. Chaliye." She instructed prodding him.
"Naniji' iski koi jaroorat nahi hai' mein khud kar loongi." Khushi tried to evade.
"Idhar dekho." Arnav then commanded. As she turned and faced him and he filled his forefinger and thumb with some vermilion applied it in her parting. The small touch made Khushi shiver deliciously.
She wondered why did he have to do everything contrary to what she wanted?
"Ab aap dono yahin hai toh jo humne Arnav ko bole aapko bhi bol dete hain." Nani announced.
"Arnav ne bataya ki saare rasamon ke baad honeymoon par parson jaana munasib nahi hai kyon ki aapke maathe ke taanke niklenge aur phir shanichar ko aapka koi aaward phunkson hai. Toh hum somwar ki tikut kiye denge aapke honeymoon ki. aap dono jaanyenge." She finished her announcement.
"Lekin Nani meine aapse kaha'na koi jaroorat nahi hai' hum phir kabhi chale jaayenge' bahut kaam hai' Khushi ko bhi abhi bahut designs ka kaam dekhna hai' Aur Lucknow ke boutique ke liye bhi naya manager dhoondhana hai, tab tak Khushi' sambhalegi' Nahi Nani..abhi time nahi hai'" Arnav tried to get out of it earnestly.
"Naniji'. Jaisa aap theek samjhe." Khushi agreed meekly and looked at Arnav who narrowed his eyes in displeasure.
Knowing he was defeated, he made an excuse and went to office.
It had been two days since the Honeymoon disagreement and at every point they had disagreed to what the other had said. It looked like they were on a war path than on the advent of a married life. If they were asked to do one thing one of them did the opposite. And today had been the classic. He had been silent mostly when they were in their bedroom and thankfully there had been no repeat performance of the first night, as he had taken to sleeping on the floor with some blankets put there every night and all traces of their arrangement taken off every morning.
But today, he seemed to want some sort of revenge for disagreeing with every plan of his. He claimed that he could not manage to tie the dhoti somehow for the pooja that Nani had kept and she had to help him. She had been ready wearing a Banarasi saree that had dual colors of shocking Pink and burnt Orange. It had been when she had walked out of the dressing room and found him in the bedroom that had made him ache with wanting and he had decided to torture her as he was tortured every night sleeping in the same room yet not together.
He knew it was going to back fire on him. Her one touch and he burned but he was burning anyway. Having her close to him, flaunting her loveliness every morning. It had been particularly agonising yesterday, when she had come out with her hair open, wet tendrils hugging the side of her face, her neck and drops of water running down the kameez between her breasts and he had stifled a groan for he had wanted to lick them away. Hell! he had such an instant hard on just looking at her, he wondered if he would last a week the way she was making him feel.
He had almost felt like damn to the condition and ravish her then and there but had held on, with difficulty but held on. He felt his control was hanging on a very thin thread which was already bare and ready to snap any minute.
But he had to do something, he had to feel her or die. Surely he would die.
And he had come up with this idea. And she agreed. She actually agreed? Whatever happened to disagreeing he wondered caustically.
He stood as she asked him to come wearing only his boxer shorts. As if he did not know. He stripped in front of her, her color increasing with every garment he discarded. he was wearing a white boxer shorts and warned his not so little self to behave itself and not raise its head too obviously.
She touched his ridged abdomen and tucked one end into his short. Sacrilege! What had he done to himself. Was torture not enough? First he stabbed himself now he was turning the knife deeper. He sucked in his breath and felt her finger slide deeper into his waistband. He removed her hand and said, "I can do that."
She did not reply and went around him as she moved around she touched him everywhere, his arm, his back, his spine, the waist. Having had enough of her fluttering movements, his control snapped and he turned and captured her in his arms and said, "Tumhein mazaa aa raha hai kyon?" and kissed her.
As if a pliable doll, she just melded into him and kissed him back. And the fire raged. He kissed her lips like he had been thirsty for ages. He drank her sweet nectar and deepened the kiss. He slowly let go of her lips, his lips still lingering over hers and murmured, "Khushi' Khushi'."
And she sighed, "Arnav" against his lips and yearning that he hear in the way she said his name had him delving back on her mouth and kissing her again. Her hands roaming hungrily on his body. And his on her back. He found the strings that tied the blouse and tugged at them to make room for his fingers to feel her. He backed her against the wall and suddenly turned her and made her face the wall with hands on it. He pushed the paloo off her shoulder and moved the edges of the blouse away from her back to find no bra strap hampering him. He cursed and put his lips against her nape. Suckling velvety skin there as his finger traced the spine down to the small of her back where the sari was tied low. He let his knuckles run over her back as his lips followed the path his finger had taken a few moments ago. When he reached the base of the spine he traveled east and reached the curve of her waist and nipped it with his teeth.
She hissed but he was beyond mercy. He needed to do this, he needed her to know what she did to him. He had been thankful for once for she had tied her hair up in a bun and nothing hampered him while he ravaged on her back. The tantalizing glimpse of it through the deep back of her blouse and her open hair had been driving him crazy every time she had worn a sari which had been almost everyday for there had been some or other ritual in the house.
He travelled again on the delectable back a journey he had anticipated taking every time he had seen her in a sari and had his fill of fulfilling one of his fetish. Her back.
About to turn he around, they heard a knock on the door and a Payal say from the other side, "Ab aap dono tayyar ho gaye ho toh Pooja ka mahurat chala jaa raha hai."
Arnav cursed again, "Ye Payal meri behen aur saali ek saath na hoti toh mein' " and moved away from her asking Khushi if she needed help with the strings. She nodded silently as she knew her voice had deserted her. She looked at the state Arnav was, half tucked in Dhoti, with trails of it around his feet. She knew she did not look prim or proper at that minute but looking at him, she simply laughed out and Arnav first scowled then looked down at himself and joined her as well.
That moment changed something between them yet again. The kaleidoscope had moved, giving a different picture to their relationship.
Pati Patni Aur Panga
35