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19.Your Eyes
Armaan stops the car in front of a big farmhouse that is owned by Rahul's parents. Armaan has been to many places around the world and has lived in different locations, but he has never seen anything like this. This is also Riddhima's first time of being in a big place. Her family didn't use to travel a lot because her father would be always stuck with work, so they would stay behind. They get out and walk up to the door with Aarav the first one reaching. Before Armaan could ring the doorbell the door opened with a grinning Rahul. "Hey!" Rahul said. "Rahul uncle!" Aarav yells and jumps on Rahul. Rahul laughs as he picks up Aarav. "Hey buddy," Rahul said. "Come in." All of them walk inside to see the house getting decorated with lights and flowers and some drapes. "Wah, Rahul. Kya jaga hai tere paas," Armaan compliments. "I know," Rahul said then laughs. "Riddhima, Anjali upar hai Muskaan ke saath," Rahul tells Riddhima. Riddhima nods and looks at Armaan then walks upstairs. Armaan watches Riddhima walk upstairs. "Bataya usko?" Rahul's voice broke Armaan's eye contact. "Kisko kya bataya?" Armaan asks. "Don't act dumb, okay. Tune Riddhima ko bataya ke tu uske baare main kya feel karta hai?" Armaan sighs and shakes his head. By this time, Aarav had gone behind his mother. "Kyun nai?" Rahul asks. "Main usko sabit karna chatha hoon ke main uske liye kuch mehsoos karta hoon. Main nai chatha ke woh soche ke main bas aise hi keh raha hoon, sab ki khushiyan ke liye," Armaan explains. Rahul understands and nods his head. "Mere bhaiyon!" Atul said with his arms stretched. Armaan and Rahul give Atul a hug. "Kya hua? Anjali ne tujhe chod diya jo tu hume pyar dekha raha hai?" Armaan asks. Atul frowns at Armaan as Armaan high-fives Rahul and they laugh. "Nai. Main toh bas apne bhaiyon ke dekhe khush hoon," Atul said. "Uh-huh," Rahul said. Atul pouts at his friends teasing him. "Aw, I'm sorry Atul," Armaan apologizes with his dimpled smile. "Ab mujhe pata chala ke Aarav ko aise smile kahan se mili ke koi bhi usse maaf kar de," Atul said, looking at Armaan. Armaan chuckles and looks down for second. Everyone compares him to Aarav, but there are glimpses of Riddhima in him too. Maybe if him and Riddhima have a daughter then she will look like Riddhima and have glimpses of Armaan. Armaan shakes his head at his thoughts. He hasn't even proved to her that he has feelings for her and he's already on a second child.
The guys walk up the slightly spiraled staircase. "Mera kamra kahan hai?" Armaan asks, looking at the many doors on the sides of the hallway. "Tu akela soye ga?" Atul asks. "Haan?" Armaan said, confused with a strange look. "Haan," Atul gasps. "Yani ke tu aur Riddhima saath nai rahoge." Armaan narrows his eyes at Atul and shakes his head. "Atul, don't worry. Humne Mr. aur Mrs. Mallik ke liye ek room organize kiya hai," Rahul said with his arm around Atul's shoulder. Armaan gives a hard stare to Rahul while Rahul and Atul walk ahead of him. "Isme toh ladkiyon ki awaaze aa rahi hai? Armaan, tu ladkiyon ke saath soye ga?" Atul asks. "Chup! Kabse bakwaas kar raha hai," Armaan yells at Atul. Atul shuts his mouth as Rahul enters the room with his eyes covered. The girls inside scream on seeing the guys. "Rahul, tum yahan nai aa sakte. Tum Muskaan ko nai dekh sakte," Anjali said. "Isiliye toh maine apna haath apni aankhen pe rakhi hai," Rahul said. "Lekin hum toh de sakte hain," Armaan said and Armaan and Atul walk into the girls room. The girls that are Muskaan's cousins start to whisper about Riddhima. Riddhima hears them talking about how hot and cute Armaan is. She looks over at Armaan who is talking to Muskaan and annoying her. "Actually, hume Mrs. Riddhima Armaan Mallik chaiye," Rahul said. Everyone quietens down as Riddhima kind of looks embarrassed. She looks towards Armaan and Armaan looks back at her. All of them walk out of the room and close the door behind him. "Humne aap dono ke liye ek room organize kiya hai jo," Rahul said like a gentlemen, after removing his hand from his eyes.
Rahul opens the door and Armaan and Riddhima enter the room. They see a canopy bed with rose petals on the white sheets of the bed. The curtains were drawn for it to give a romantic mood. Armaan and Riddhima look at each other. "Tum dono apne honeymoon pe nai gaye toh why not yahan?" Rahul said. "Kya idea hai Rahul," Atul says. "I know," Rahul replies with a smile. "Hum chalte hain. In dono ko akele rehne dete hain," Rahul said. Rahul and Atul walk out and Rahul closes the door behind himself. "Rahul bhi na...pagal hai," Armaan said, walking over to the window and opening the curtains. Riddhima looks around the room as the light from the outside lightens up the whole room. "Aarav kahan hai?" Armaan asks. Riddhima was surprised not see Aarav around her. When he entered into the girls room he stayed beside Riddhima and was quiet. "Pata nai. Mere saath tha lekin pata nai kahan chala gaya," Riddhima said, worriedly. Armaan notices Riddhima getting worried. "Calm down, yahin kahin hoga. Main usse dhund ta hoon," Armaan said and walks out of the room.
"Aarav," Armaan said in a relief when he finds his son with Rahul and Atul."Tu bahar kya kar raha hai?" yells Atul. Armaan was taken back by his best friend/brother yelling at him. "Chila kyun raha hai?" Rahul stands up. "Tujhe andar hona chaiye...apni biwi ke saath," Rahul said, with his arms crossed across his chest. "Main Aarav ko lene aaya hoon," Armaan said, seriously. "Nai, Aarav humare paas rahe ga. Aaj sirf tum aur Riddhima ho," Rahul said. Armaan's eyes go wide and glares at his friend. "Rahul, this is not funny," Armaan said. Armaan thought they were joking at first, but they were serious about him and Riddhima having a honeymoon. "We are not kidding," Atul spoke up. "Teen saal main tum dono ko honeymoon ki yaad nai aayi ab tujhe yaad aa raha hai," Armaan said. "Lekin toh tujhe apni dil kya chathe hai woh toh ehsaas ho gaya hai," Rahul said. Armaan looks at Rahul and thinks Rahul is right. Armaan grabs Rahul's arm and pulls him away from Atul. "Maine tujhse kaha tha ke main Riddhima ko sabit karna chatha hoon ke main usse ke liye kuch mehsoos karta hoon. Aise hi nai usse jaa ke kahoga," Armaan explains to Rahul for the second time. Rahul sighs and looks at Armaan. Rahul thought Armaan could just confess right now and his friends will be happy at his wedding, but that's not going to happen. "Theek hai. Main chatha tha ke mere dost khush ho meri shaadi par," Rahul said. "Rahul, hum khush hai. Main aur Riddhima dost hai," Armaan said. "Dost se zyada kyun nai ho sakte? Armaan, tum apne aap rok kyun rahe ho. Tumne khudi kaha ke Anu tumhari zindagi se chali gayi hai." Armaan glares at Rahul for saying her name. "I don't care Armaan. Tumko uska samna karna padega. Tum hamesha bhag nai sakte. Aur tum aise kyun behave kar rahe ho ke tum Anu ko bhool gaye ho?" Rahul asks. Armaan looks at Rahul with his eyes narrowed. "Armaan, tum Anu ko nai bhool paye. Char saal hone wale hai. I think ab Riddhima ko uska pyar lautane dena chaiye tumhe," Rahul said. Armaan nods slightly as he knew Rahul is right. Riddhima can't live like this for the rest of her life. He has already ruined four years of her life, and he doesn't want to ruin it anymore.
Armaan walks in the room to see Ridddhima unpacking some clothes. Riddhima looks up when she hears noises. "Aarav kahan hai?" Riddhima asks, worriedly. "Woh Rahul aur Atul ke saath hai," Armaan answers. "Lekin Rahul ko toh bohut kam hoge. Usse lekar aate," Riddhima said. "Maine kaha tha lekin na Rahul aur Aarav mane," Armaan said. Riddhima nods and gets back to unpacking. Armaan's eyes stays on Riddhima's as she unpacks. Riddhima sees from the corner of her eyes, Armaan looking at her. This made her shiver so she turns her back to him. Armaan smiles slightly as he saw a hint of redness creeping up on her cheeks. Riddhima could feel her cheeks burning so she puts her hands on her cheeks. She sighs and closes her eyes. Riddhima always loses herself in front of Armaan. Whenever she is looking at him or he's looking at her, or when they share proximity. Armaan starts walking over to Riddhima. Riddhima turns her slightly to the side and sees Armaan walking up to her. Riddhima starts to breath heavily and looks in front of her. Armaan could see from behind that Riddhima is breathing heavily. This thought made him smirk that he had such an affect on Riddhima and he never knew that. Armaan stands with his chest touching her back. Riddhima closes her eyes and bites the corner of her lower lip. Armaan reaches over to the side table and picks up his cell phone. Riddhima opens her eyes to see Armaan taking his cell phone. She looks up at Armaan and Armaan looks down in her eyes. Riddhima could see an emotion that was not familiar to her from Armaan. Armaan leans his head closer down, but Riddhima moves back a bit. Armaan wraps his arm around her waist and pulls her against him. Riddhima lets out an involuntary gasp. This time Riddhima didn't want to pull away. Something in Armaan's eyes told her to stay. It won't harm Armaan nor Riddhima in any way. Riddhima would runaway from Armaan when they'd be close to each other, but not today. It's not happening today. Riddhima turns her head back, so its facing the front. Armaan moves Riddhima's hair from her neck and leaves a wet, soft kiss on her nape. Riddhima let out a shaky breath and shivers. Armaan feels her shiver in his hold, so he holds her tighter. Riddhima closes her eyes as Armaan starts to leave more kisses along her nape. Riddhima turns around quickly in Armaan's hold and hugs him with her arms around his neck. Armaan hugs her back by her waist, with his face buried in her neck. Riddhima closes her eyes as she feels Armaan's teeth taking her skin on her neck. Her hand goes up to Armaan's hair and grips them in a fist. Armaan could feel the pull on his hair on his head so he grabs her hand that was in his hair and turns around, so her arm is twisted behind her back. Riddhima winces lightly and Armaan loosens his grip. Love can sometimes be aggressive. Armaan slowly turns Riddhima back around and kisses her forehead ahead, asking for forgiveness that he hurt her. Riddhima looks in his eyes, accepting his apology. "Mama!" Aarav runs in the room, laughing. Armaan quickly lets go of Riddhima because Rahul and Atul came in behind. Rahul and Atul actually caught Armaan and Riddhima in each others arms, which caused a smirk to form on their faces. Riddhima moves behind Armaan to hide herself while putting a strand of hair behind her ear. Armaan looks at his friends, embarrassed and not meeting eye contact with them. Aarav was just looking at them confused. "Aap sab aise kyun khade hai?" Aarav asks, sweetly. "Bas aise hi," Atul said while smirking. Armaan glares at his friends. Riddhima wanted to get away as she felt embarrassed and suffocated. Riddhima takes Aarav's hand and they walk out. Rahul and Atul circle around Armaan with the huge smirks still on their faces. "Agar tum dono aise muskurana band nai karoge toh main tum dono ka muh thod dunga," Armaan threatens. Rahul and Atul immediately stopped smirking because they knew Armaan could go up to any height.
Riddhima walks in the room where the girls still were. "Riddhima, kahan gayi thi tum?" Anjali asks. "Woh...Rahul...Rahul...hume kamra dikha...raha tha," Riddhima answers, stuttering. "Toh theek se bol na. Aise kyun ghabra ke bol rahi hai?" Muskaan asks. "Huh...nai...main nai ghabrayi vi," Riddhima said. Anjali looks at Riddhima carefully to find her cheeks flushed and a shy smile that would come and go. Anjali walks up to Riddhima while the other girls talk to themselves. "Tum aise sharma rahi kyun ho?" Riddhima looks at Anjali and shakes her head. Anjali turns Riddhima around so she can take a look at herself in the mirror. Riddhima's eyes go wide when she sees herself all red. "Exactly," Anjali said. "Ab batao." Riddhima turns around and looks at Anjali. "Kuch nai hua, Anjali," Riddhima says. Riddhima so did not want to tell Anjali about what happened between her and Armaan in the room. "Lagta tumhare aur Armaan ke beech main kuch hua hai," Anjali said, nudging Riddhima's shoulder with her hers. Riddhima blushes and looks down, smilingly. "Anjali please," Riddhima said. "Okay, sorry," Anjali apologizes. Both of them laugh and take a seat next to Muskaan again.
Armaan walks downstairs of the farmhouse to find it fully decorated. Tonight is the mehndi night and tomorrow is the wedding. Armaan is dressed in a black kameez and white salwar suit. He greets people that he passes his way towards the guys. As he was walking, his eyes land on Riddhima. She is dressed in a green and gold sari with her hair clipped half up. Armaan stood there and just gawked at Riddhima. He came out of his trance when Atul bumped into him on purpose. "Sorry Armaan," Atul apologizes with a grin. Armaan glares at Atul. "Its okay," Armaan replies with gritted teeth. "Ab toh bata de Riddhima ko," Atul said. Armaan sighs and looks at Atul. "It's not easy, Atul. Tu toh janta hai," Armaan said. "I know," Atul said with pout as he remembers him confessing to Anjali. "Chalo," Armaan said as he heard Rahul's dad calling them.
Riddhima sits with the ladies on the floor as they sang song along with the dholki. Aarav sat in her lap because there were no kids his age that he could play with and he is also shy meeting new people. Aarav maybe adorable and hyper in front of his parents, but in front of new people he's a shy little boy. Armaan sat with the men around them on couches, chairs, or on the floor. His eyes always went on Riddhima and Aarav, especially on Riddhima. Anjali notices Armaan looking at Riddhima and raises her eyebrow. Armaan looks over at Anjali, who is sitting next to Riddhima. Armaan turns red on getting caught so he looks away. Anjali giggles and shakes her head. Riddhima looks at Anjali with a questioning look. "Tera pati tujhe dekh raha tha," Anjali says to Riddhima. Riddhima blushes and looks down, then lifts her eyes slowly to look at Armaan. His head was turned away from her and she frowns. Riddhima sighs and was about to look away herself when Armaan turns his head back and steals a glance. Riddhima looks at him and Armaan looks at her. It felt to them that they were on the only one there. No one, just them. Again, Riddhima sees something in Armaan's eyes that she saw this morning, but was it? Riddhima knew that the emotion is familiar to her because she can recognize it easily, but she couldn't point out what emotion it is. It was making her confused, so she put that thought away and thought on concentrating on the wedding.
Next morning, Riddhima walks in the room to find her husband and son still sleeping. Riddhima sighs with her hands on her hips and shaking her head. She walks over to the bed to find them sleeping in the same position, sleeping on their stomachs. Riddhima sits down on the bed and shakes Aarav a little. "Aarav, beta utho. Dekho subah ho gayi aur aaj shaadi bhi hai," Riddhima said in a soft voice in Aarav's ear. "Mm," Aarav turns the other way and cuddles up to Armaan. Riddhima smiles at this and kisses Aarav's chubby cheek. "Baby, utho na. Please aaj toh Mama ki baat maan jao. Aaj Mama ko aur kam bhi hai aur phir aap Mama ke saath nai reh sakte pura din," Riddhima said, stroking Aarav's hair. Aarav sits up and crawls into Riddhima's lap and closes his eyes. Riddhima smiles and kisses his forehead. "Theek hai thodi daer aur so jao lekin phir uthna padega." Aarav nods and hides his face in Riddhima's neck. Riddhima turns her head and looks at Armaan. Riddhima reaches her hand out to wake up Armaan. Riddhima has woken up Armaan so many times by touching him, but still she is nervous. Every time her hand will shake. Riddhima slightly shakes Armaan and Armaan opens his eyes with a little jerk, surprised by the small shake. Armaan turns around and lays on his back as he rubs his eyes. "Uth jaye. Gyaara (11) bajne wale hai," Riddhima said, looking down at the bed. Armaan looks at Riddhima and nods in a daze. He was hypnotized by Riddhima. Today she looked beautiful, not that she didn't look beautiful everyday, but today it was a different kind of beautiful. Saying beautiful or complimenting her would not reach her beauty. Clad in a pink anarkali dress and green churidaar with the pink dupatta set around her neck, Riddhima turns her head away from Armaan. Her curls facing Armaan. Armaan sits up and moves closer to Riddhima. He moves her hair and breathes on her neck, letting his warm breath hit her creamy skin. Riddhima closes her eyes and lets out a staggered breath. Armaan leans down and kisses her shoulder. Armaan moves his lips up to her the back of her ear, but Riddhima turns her body halfway and her hand on his bare chest. Armaan looks down in her eyes and she shakes her head. "Aarav...uth jayega," Riddhima whispers, with her eyes lowered a bit. Armaan looks down at a sleeping Aarav in Riddhima's lap. Armaan carefully picks up Aarav so he doesn't wake up, and puts him down on the bed, beside him which is the other side of the bed, so Armaan is in the middle right now. Riddhima looks at Armaan. There is that same emotion in Armaan's eyes. Armaan lays her down on the bed as half of his body lays on top of Riddhima. His hand on her cheek, stroking it lightly. Riddhima rests her head on the pillow with her eyes closed. Armaan just takes in Riddhima's beauty while Riddhima laid there with her eyes closed. Armaan kisses her forehead, cheek, and down to her neck. Riddhima arches her head back, giving Armaan more free access. Armaan kisses down her throat, but stops before anything else can happen. Armaan lays down back on his bed and Riddhima opens her eyes. She quickly sits up then gets up. "Aap...Aarav ko...tayar kar de aur...aap bhi...tayar ho jaye." Riddhima is about to leave the room, but feels a pull on her neck. She turns around and finds Armaan holding onto the end of her dupatta. Riddhima gazes at Armaan with a confused and serious look. Armaan gets up and stands in front of Riddhima, real close. "Aaj tum had se bhi zyada khoobsurat lag rahi ho." Armaan knew no compliment would reach up to her beauty, but those words left his mouth. Riddhima blushes and looks up in Armaan's eyes for a few seconds before running out with a shy smile. Armaan smiles, his dimples deepening. Armaan looks at his son, who still is sleeping. Armaan chuckles when he remembers that he use to sleep this much to. Armaan picks up Aarav with ease and walks to the bathroom. Aarav whines because of the movements. "Aarav, utho!" Aarav squirms in Armaan's arms to find warmth because the warmth was taken away from Aarav when the blanket was pulled off of him.
Aarav runs to Riddhima and hugs her legs as he wasn't tall enough to hug Riddhima from behind. Riddhima turns around and picks up a nicely dressed Aarav. "Aaj toh aap bohut ache lag rahe hain," Riddhima compliments. "Dada ki tarah?" Aarav asks. Riddhima smiles and nods. "Haan, bilkul apne Dada ki tarah." Armaan hears Riddhima and smiles. He feels his heart beating faster. "Muski aunty!" Aarav yells and hugs Muskaan who walks in the kitchen. Rahul had gone out of the house so it easy for Muskaan to roam around the house for right now, even though she should be resting. "Aarav!" Muskaan yells in the same manner and hugs him. Armaan walks in too. He had actually hid when he saw walking towards the kitchen, but as usual she was blabbering to herself so she didn't catch him. Riddhima gets conscious when she sees Armaan enter the kitchen. Aarav and Muskaan were playing with each other and the aunties had gone out to the dining room. Armaan and Riddhima kept on stealing glances at each other while Riddhima made breakfast for her, Armaan, and Aarav. Armaan clears his throat and sits down at the dining table. "Toh Muskaan, ready to be Mrs. Muskaan Rahul Garewal?" Armaan asks. Muskaan blushes and nods. "Tujhe pehli baar dekha hai sharma te hui. Lagta hai Rahul ka jadoo toh tujhe pe chad gaya," Armaan said, teasingly. "Obviously chada hai. Isiliye toh usse shaadi kar rahi hoon," Muskaan retorts. "True." Armaan smiles at Muskaan. Aarav leaves Muskaan and walks over to Armaan. Armaan picks up Aarav and settles him on his lap. "Lekin mujhe bohut dar lag raha hai," Muskaan said with worriedly. "Kyun?" Armaan asks as Riddhima puts a plate filled with food in front of him. He glances up at Riddhima flickers a small smile to her, then turns back to Muskaan. "Ma aur Papaji ko chodne ka dil nai kar raha," Muskaan said with her eyes moist. Riddhima stops walking as she hears the mention of parent's. "Bohut ajeeb hoga. Har roz Ma aur Papaji ko dekhti hoon aur jab ghar aati hoon toh une hi dekhti hoon. Woh mera intezaar karte hain," Muskaan said with sad smile. "Lekin ab tu Rahul ka intezaar karegi apne asli ghar main baith ke. Tumhare Ma aur Papa tumhara saath nai chodne wale bas thode se door ho jayege. Waise bhi Rahul ko tu school ke dino se jaanti hai," Armaan said in a soft voice and his hand on top of Muskaan's. Muskaan smiles and nods at Armaan. He's right, she's going to be waiting for the one she loves. "Tu kisi ghair mard ke ghar nai jaa rahi," Armaan continues. "Lekin hota toh hai na. Ladki ne ladke ko dekha bhi nai na usse baat ki aur chal padi apni puri zindagi uske saath bitane ke liye," Muskaan said, with hand gestures. "Aur yahan tum aur Riddhima - " Muskaan stops talking as she realizes what she was about to say. Riddhima didn't move from her stop a bit. She stayed rooted in the same spot as Armaan and Muskaan spoke. Today Riddhima really misses her parent's, but they kicked her out just like that. They didn't care for her and didn't even come back to take her back home. "Muskaan!" an aunty calls her. "Main chalti hoon." Muskaan walks out of the kitchen. Aarav had already started eating his food so he was least interested in what the adults were talking about. Armaan puts Aarav on the table and walks over to Riddhima. He had noticed Riddhima stopped in her place when Muskaan told about her parent's. Armaan stands in front of Riddhima and sees her face with tear stains. Riddhima looks up at Armaan which caused more tears to fall from her eyes. "Aaj...Mama aur Papa ki bohut yaad...aa rahi hai," Riddhima said in a cracked voice. Armaan looks at her. She lost her parent's because of him. Armaan never wanted that to happen. He thought that her parent's would understand, but Armaan didn't know how they were personally. He had met them once or twice in a conference when Riddhima had brought them along. "I'm sorry," Armaan whispers. Riddhima stares at Armaan, confused about why he is apologizing. "Meri wajah se tumne apne Ma aur Papa ko kho diya," Armaan said, looking down. "Lekin saath main ek parivaar bhi toh paya hai," Riddhima said. Armaan looks at Riddhima. Both of them just stare into each others eyes. "Mama, maine kha liya," Aarav said. They both turn to find Aarav holding a clean plate. "Aarav, tumne saara kha liya?" Riddhima asks shocked. She had made that plate for Armaan which is more filled than what Aarav eats, but Aarav had finished it all. Aarav nods innocently and Armaan and Riddhima laugh. Aarav pouts because his parent's are laughing at him. "Aap mujhe pe has rahe hain?" Armaan picks up Aarav and leaves a wet kiss on Aarav's cheek. "Dada," Aarav whines. "Aarav," Armaan whines the same way Aarav did. Riddhima ruffles Aarav's hair and sloppily kisses Aarav's cheek. Aarav leans down and pecks Riddhima's lips lightly. Riddhima giggles and shakes her head at Aarav. Armaan so wished to kiss her too, but he has to wait.
--
Hopefully this part turned out well. I wasn't really in the mood to write, but I want to start 'Take My Hand' as soon as possible. I know how you all are anticipating for it start.
Also, I updated on AR's reunion!!!! Can't believe its been a year since DMG had ended.
Armaan stops the car in front of a big farmhouse that is owned by Rahul's parents. Armaan has been to many places around the world and has lived in different locations, but he has never seen anything like this. This is also Riddhima's first time of being in a big place. Her family didn't use to travel a lot because her father would be always stuck with work, so they would stay behind. They get out and walk up to the door with Aarav the first one reaching. Before Armaan could ring the doorbell the door opened with a grinning Rahul. "Hey!" Rahul said. "Rahul uncle!" Aarav yells and jumps on Rahul. Rahul laughs as he picks up Aarav. "Hey buddy," Rahul said. "Come in." All of them walk inside to see the house getting decorated with lights and flowers and some drapes. "Wah, Rahul. Kya jaga hai tere paas," Armaan compliments. "I know," Rahul said then laughs. "Riddhima, Anjali upar hai Muskaan ke saath," Rahul tells Riddhima. Riddhima nods and looks at Armaan then walks upstairs. Armaan watches Riddhima walk upstairs. "Bataya usko?" Rahul's voice broke Armaan's eye contact. "Kisko kya bataya?" Armaan asks. "Don't act dumb, okay. Tune Riddhima ko bataya ke tu uske baare main kya feel karta hai?" Armaan sighs and shakes his head. By this time, Aarav had gone behind his mother. "Kyun nai?" Rahul asks. "Main usko sabit karna chatha hoon ke main uske liye kuch mehsoos karta hoon. Main nai chatha ke woh soche ke main bas aise hi keh raha hoon, sab ki khushiyan ke liye," Armaan explains. Rahul understands and nods his head. "Mere bhaiyon!" Atul said with his arms stretched. Armaan and Rahul give Atul a hug. "Kya hua? Anjali ne tujhe chod diya jo tu hume pyar dekha raha hai?" Armaan asks. Atul frowns at Armaan as Armaan high-fives Rahul and they laugh. "Nai. Main toh bas apne bhaiyon ke dekhe khush hoon," Atul said. "Uh-huh," Rahul said. Atul pouts at his friends teasing him. "Aw, I'm sorry Atul," Armaan apologizes with his dimpled smile. "Ab mujhe pata chala ke Aarav ko aise smile kahan se mili ke koi bhi usse maaf kar de," Atul said, looking at Armaan. Armaan chuckles and looks down for second. Everyone compares him to Aarav, but there are glimpses of Riddhima in him too. Maybe if him and Riddhima have a daughter then she will look like Riddhima and have glimpses of Armaan. Armaan shakes his head at his thoughts. He hasn't even proved to her that he has feelings for her and he's already on a second child.
The guys walk up the slightly spiraled staircase. "Mera kamra kahan hai?" Armaan asks, looking at the many doors on the sides of the hallway. "Tu akela soye ga?" Atul asks. "Haan?" Armaan said, confused with a strange look. "Haan," Atul gasps. "Yani ke tu aur Riddhima saath nai rahoge." Armaan narrows his eyes at Atul and shakes his head. "Atul, don't worry. Humne Mr. aur Mrs. Mallik ke liye ek room organize kiya hai," Rahul said with his arm around Atul's shoulder. Armaan gives a hard stare to Rahul while Rahul and Atul walk ahead of him. "Isme toh ladkiyon ki awaaze aa rahi hai? Armaan, tu ladkiyon ke saath soye ga?" Atul asks. "Chup! Kabse bakwaas kar raha hai," Armaan yells at Atul. Atul shuts his mouth as Rahul enters the room with his eyes covered. The girls inside scream on seeing the guys. "Rahul, tum yahan nai aa sakte. Tum Muskaan ko nai dekh sakte," Anjali said. "Isiliye toh maine apna haath apni aankhen pe rakhi hai," Rahul said. "Lekin hum toh de sakte hain," Armaan said and Armaan and Atul walk into the girls room. The girls that are Muskaan's cousins start to whisper about Riddhima. Riddhima hears them talking about how hot and cute Armaan is. She looks over at Armaan who is talking to Muskaan and annoying her. "Actually, hume Mrs. Riddhima Armaan Mallik chaiye," Rahul said. Everyone quietens down as Riddhima kind of looks embarrassed. She looks towards Armaan and Armaan looks back at her. All of them walk out of the room and close the door behind him. "Humne aap dono ke liye ek room organize kiya hai jo," Rahul said like a gentlemen, after removing his hand from his eyes.
Rahul opens the door and Armaan and Riddhima enter the room. They see a canopy bed with rose petals on the white sheets of the bed. The curtains were drawn for it to give a romantic mood. Armaan and Riddhima look at each other. "Tum dono apne honeymoon pe nai gaye toh why not yahan?" Rahul said. "Kya idea hai Rahul," Atul says. "I know," Rahul replies with a smile. "Hum chalte hain. In dono ko akele rehne dete hain," Rahul said. Rahul and Atul walk out and Rahul closes the door behind himself. "Rahul bhi na...pagal hai," Armaan said, walking over to the window and opening the curtains. Riddhima looks around the room as the light from the outside lightens up the whole room. "Aarav kahan hai?" Armaan asks. Riddhima was surprised not see Aarav around her. When he entered into the girls room he stayed beside Riddhima and was quiet. "Pata nai. Mere saath tha lekin pata nai kahan chala gaya," Riddhima said, worriedly. Armaan notices Riddhima getting worried. "Calm down, yahin kahin hoga. Main usse dhund ta hoon," Armaan said and walks out of the room.
"Aarav," Armaan said in a relief when he finds his son with Rahul and Atul."Tu bahar kya kar raha hai?" yells Atul. Armaan was taken back by his best friend/brother yelling at him. "Chila kyun raha hai?" Rahul stands up. "Tujhe andar hona chaiye...apni biwi ke saath," Rahul said, with his arms crossed across his chest. "Main Aarav ko lene aaya hoon," Armaan said, seriously. "Nai, Aarav humare paas rahe ga. Aaj sirf tum aur Riddhima ho," Rahul said. Armaan's eyes go wide and glares at his friend. "Rahul, this is not funny," Armaan said. Armaan thought they were joking at first, but they were serious about him and Riddhima having a honeymoon. "We are not kidding," Atul spoke up. "Teen saal main tum dono ko honeymoon ki yaad nai aayi ab tujhe yaad aa raha hai," Armaan said. "Lekin toh tujhe apni dil kya chathe hai woh toh ehsaas ho gaya hai," Rahul said. Armaan looks at Rahul and thinks Rahul is right. Armaan grabs Rahul's arm and pulls him away from Atul. "Maine tujhse kaha tha ke main Riddhima ko sabit karna chatha hoon ke main usse ke liye kuch mehsoos karta hoon. Aise hi nai usse jaa ke kahoga," Armaan explains to Rahul for the second time. Rahul sighs and looks at Armaan. Rahul thought Armaan could just confess right now and his friends will be happy at his wedding, but that's not going to happen. "Theek hai. Main chatha tha ke mere dost khush ho meri shaadi par," Rahul said. "Rahul, hum khush hai. Main aur Riddhima dost hai," Armaan said. "Dost se zyada kyun nai ho sakte? Armaan, tum apne aap rok kyun rahe ho. Tumne khudi kaha ke Anu tumhari zindagi se chali gayi hai." Armaan glares at Rahul for saying her name. "I don't care Armaan. Tumko uska samna karna padega. Tum hamesha bhag nai sakte. Aur tum aise kyun behave kar rahe ho ke tum Anu ko bhool gaye ho?" Rahul asks. Armaan looks at Rahul with his eyes narrowed. "Armaan, tum Anu ko nai bhool paye. Char saal hone wale hai. I think ab Riddhima ko uska pyar lautane dena chaiye tumhe," Rahul said. Armaan nods slightly as he knew Rahul is right. Riddhima can't live like this for the rest of her life. He has already ruined four years of her life, and he doesn't want to ruin it anymore.
Armaan walks in the room to see Ridddhima unpacking some clothes. Riddhima looks up when she hears noises. "Aarav kahan hai?" Riddhima asks, worriedly. "Woh Rahul aur Atul ke saath hai," Armaan answers. "Lekin Rahul ko toh bohut kam hoge. Usse lekar aate," Riddhima said. "Maine kaha tha lekin na Rahul aur Aarav mane," Armaan said. Riddhima nods and gets back to unpacking. Armaan's eyes stays on Riddhima's as she unpacks. Riddhima sees from the corner of her eyes, Armaan looking at her. This made her shiver so she turns her back to him. Armaan smiles slightly as he saw a hint of redness creeping up on her cheeks. Riddhima could feel her cheeks burning so she puts her hands on her cheeks. She sighs and closes her eyes. Riddhima always loses herself in front of Armaan. Whenever she is looking at him or he's looking at her, or when they share proximity. Armaan starts walking over to Riddhima. Riddhima turns her slightly to the side and sees Armaan walking up to her. Riddhima starts to breath heavily and looks in front of her. Armaan could see from behind that Riddhima is breathing heavily. This thought made him smirk that he had such an affect on Riddhima and he never knew that. Armaan stands with his chest touching her back. Riddhima closes her eyes and bites the corner of her lower lip. Armaan reaches over to the side table and picks up his cell phone. Riddhima opens her eyes to see Armaan taking his cell phone. She looks up at Armaan and Armaan looks down in her eyes. Riddhima could see an emotion that was not familiar to her from Armaan. Armaan leans his head closer down, but Riddhima moves back a bit. Armaan wraps his arm around her waist and pulls her against him. Riddhima lets out an involuntary gasp. This time Riddhima didn't want to pull away. Something in Armaan's eyes told her to stay. It won't harm Armaan nor Riddhima in any way. Riddhima would runaway from Armaan when they'd be close to each other, but not today. It's not happening today. Riddhima turns her head back, so its facing the front. Armaan moves Riddhima's hair from her neck and leaves a wet, soft kiss on her nape. Riddhima let out a shaky breath and shivers. Armaan feels her shiver in his hold, so he holds her tighter. Riddhima closes her eyes as Armaan starts to leave more kisses along her nape. Riddhima turns around quickly in Armaan's hold and hugs him with her arms around his neck. Armaan hugs her back by her waist, with his face buried in her neck. Riddhima closes her eyes as she feels Armaan's teeth taking her skin on her neck. Her hand goes up to Armaan's hair and grips them in a fist. Armaan could feel the pull on his hair on his head so he grabs her hand that was in his hair and turns around, so her arm is twisted behind her back. Riddhima winces lightly and Armaan loosens his grip. Love can sometimes be aggressive. Armaan slowly turns Riddhima back around and kisses her forehead ahead, asking for forgiveness that he hurt her. Riddhima looks in his eyes, accepting his apology. "Mama!" Aarav runs in the room, laughing. Armaan quickly lets go of Riddhima because Rahul and Atul came in behind. Rahul and Atul actually caught Armaan and Riddhima in each others arms, which caused a smirk to form on their faces. Riddhima moves behind Armaan to hide herself while putting a strand of hair behind her ear. Armaan looks at his friends, embarrassed and not meeting eye contact with them. Aarav was just looking at them confused. "Aap sab aise kyun khade hai?" Aarav asks, sweetly. "Bas aise hi," Atul said while smirking. Armaan glares at his friends. Riddhima wanted to get away as she felt embarrassed and suffocated. Riddhima takes Aarav's hand and they walk out. Rahul and Atul circle around Armaan with the huge smirks still on their faces. "Agar tum dono aise muskurana band nai karoge toh main tum dono ka muh thod dunga," Armaan threatens. Rahul and Atul immediately stopped smirking because they knew Armaan could go up to any height.
Riddhima walks in the room where the girls still were. "Riddhima, kahan gayi thi tum?" Anjali asks. "Woh...Rahul...Rahul...hume kamra dikha...raha tha," Riddhima answers, stuttering. "Toh theek se bol na. Aise kyun ghabra ke bol rahi hai?" Muskaan asks. "Huh...nai...main nai ghabrayi vi," Riddhima said. Anjali looks at Riddhima carefully to find her cheeks flushed and a shy smile that would come and go. Anjali walks up to Riddhima while the other girls talk to themselves. "Tum aise sharma rahi kyun ho?" Riddhima looks at Anjali and shakes her head. Anjali turns Riddhima around so she can take a look at herself in the mirror. Riddhima's eyes go wide when she sees herself all red. "Exactly," Anjali said. "Ab batao." Riddhima turns around and looks at Anjali. "Kuch nai hua, Anjali," Riddhima says. Riddhima so did not want to tell Anjali about what happened between her and Armaan in the room. "Lagta tumhare aur Armaan ke beech main kuch hua hai," Anjali said, nudging Riddhima's shoulder with her hers. Riddhima blushes and looks down, smilingly. "Anjali please," Riddhima said. "Okay, sorry," Anjali apologizes. Both of them laugh and take a seat next to Muskaan again.
Armaan walks downstairs of the farmhouse to find it fully decorated. Tonight is the mehndi night and tomorrow is the wedding. Armaan is dressed in a black kameez and white salwar suit. He greets people that he passes his way towards the guys. As he was walking, his eyes land on Riddhima. She is dressed in a green and gold sari with her hair clipped half up. Armaan stood there and just gawked at Riddhima. He came out of his trance when Atul bumped into him on purpose. "Sorry Armaan," Atul apologizes with a grin. Armaan glares at Atul. "Its okay," Armaan replies with gritted teeth. "Ab toh bata de Riddhima ko," Atul said. Armaan sighs and looks at Atul. "It's not easy, Atul. Tu toh janta hai," Armaan said. "I know," Atul said with pout as he remembers him confessing to Anjali. "Chalo," Armaan said as he heard Rahul's dad calling them.
Riddhima sits with the ladies on the floor as they sang song along with the dholki. Aarav sat in her lap because there were no kids his age that he could play with and he is also shy meeting new people. Aarav maybe adorable and hyper in front of his parents, but in front of new people he's a shy little boy. Armaan sat with the men around them on couches, chairs, or on the floor. His eyes always went on Riddhima and Aarav, especially on Riddhima. Anjali notices Armaan looking at Riddhima and raises her eyebrow. Armaan looks over at Anjali, who is sitting next to Riddhima. Armaan turns red on getting caught so he looks away. Anjali giggles and shakes her head. Riddhima looks at Anjali with a questioning look. "Tera pati tujhe dekh raha tha," Anjali says to Riddhima. Riddhima blushes and looks down, then lifts her eyes slowly to look at Armaan. His head was turned away from her and she frowns. Riddhima sighs and was about to look away herself when Armaan turns his head back and steals a glance. Riddhima looks at him and Armaan looks at her. It felt to them that they were on the only one there. No one, just them. Again, Riddhima sees something in Armaan's eyes that she saw this morning, but was it? Riddhima knew that the emotion is familiar to her because she can recognize it easily, but she couldn't point out what emotion it is. It was making her confused, so she put that thought away and thought on concentrating on the wedding.
Next morning, Riddhima walks in the room to find her husband and son still sleeping. Riddhima sighs with her hands on her hips and shaking her head. She walks over to the bed to find them sleeping in the same position, sleeping on their stomachs. Riddhima sits down on the bed and shakes Aarav a little. "Aarav, beta utho. Dekho subah ho gayi aur aaj shaadi bhi hai," Riddhima said in a soft voice in Aarav's ear. "Mm," Aarav turns the other way and cuddles up to Armaan. Riddhima smiles at this and kisses Aarav's chubby cheek. "Baby, utho na. Please aaj toh Mama ki baat maan jao. Aaj Mama ko aur kam bhi hai aur phir aap Mama ke saath nai reh sakte pura din," Riddhima said, stroking Aarav's hair. Aarav sits up and crawls into Riddhima's lap and closes his eyes. Riddhima smiles and kisses his forehead. "Theek hai thodi daer aur so jao lekin phir uthna padega." Aarav nods and hides his face in Riddhima's neck. Riddhima turns her head and looks at Armaan. Riddhima reaches her hand out to wake up Armaan. Riddhima has woken up Armaan so many times by touching him, but still she is nervous. Every time her hand will shake. Riddhima slightly shakes Armaan and Armaan opens his eyes with a little jerk, surprised by the small shake. Armaan turns around and lays on his back as he rubs his eyes. "Uth jaye. Gyaara (11) bajne wale hai," Riddhima said, looking down at the bed. Armaan looks at Riddhima and nods in a daze. He was hypnotized by Riddhima. Today she looked beautiful, not that she didn't look beautiful everyday, but today it was a different kind of beautiful. Saying beautiful or complimenting her would not reach her beauty. Clad in a pink anarkali dress and green churidaar with the pink dupatta set around her neck, Riddhima turns her head away from Armaan. Her curls facing Armaan. Armaan sits up and moves closer to Riddhima. He moves her hair and breathes on her neck, letting his warm breath hit her creamy skin. Riddhima closes her eyes and lets out a staggered breath. Armaan leans down and kisses her shoulder. Armaan moves his lips up to her the back of her ear, but Riddhima turns her body halfway and her hand on his bare chest. Armaan looks down in her eyes and she shakes her head. "Aarav...uth jayega," Riddhima whispers, with her eyes lowered a bit. Armaan looks down at a sleeping Aarav in Riddhima's lap. Armaan carefully picks up Aarav so he doesn't wake up, and puts him down on the bed, beside him which is the other side of the bed, so Armaan is in the middle right now. Riddhima looks at Armaan. There is that same emotion in Armaan's eyes. Armaan lays her down on the bed as half of his body lays on top of Riddhima. His hand on her cheek, stroking it lightly. Riddhima rests her head on the pillow with her eyes closed. Armaan just takes in Riddhima's beauty while Riddhima laid there with her eyes closed. Armaan kisses her forehead, cheek, and down to her neck. Riddhima arches her head back, giving Armaan more free access. Armaan kisses down her throat, but stops before anything else can happen. Armaan lays down back on his bed and Riddhima opens her eyes. She quickly sits up then gets up. "Aap...Aarav ko...tayar kar de aur...aap bhi...tayar ho jaye." Riddhima is about to leave the room, but feels a pull on her neck. She turns around and finds Armaan holding onto the end of her dupatta. Riddhima gazes at Armaan with a confused and serious look. Armaan gets up and stands in front of Riddhima, real close. "Aaj tum had se bhi zyada khoobsurat lag rahi ho." Armaan knew no compliment would reach up to her beauty, but those words left his mouth. Riddhima blushes and looks up in Armaan's eyes for a few seconds before running out with a shy smile. Armaan smiles, his dimples deepening. Armaan looks at his son, who still is sleeping. Armaan chuckles when he remembers that he use to sleep this much to. Armaan picks up Aarav with ease and walks to the bathroom. Aarav whines because of the movements. "Aarav, utho!" Aarav squirms in Armaan's arms to find warmth because the warmth was taken away from Aarav when the blanket was pulled off of him.
Aarav runs to Riddhima and hugs her legs as he wasn't tall enough to hug Riddhima from behind. Riddhima turns around and picks up a nicely dressed Aarav. "Aaj toh aap bohut ache lag rahe hain," Riddhima compliments. "Dada ki tarah?" Aarav asks. Riddhima smiles and nods. "Haan, bilkul apne Dada ki tarah." Armaan hears Riddhima and smiles. He feels his heart beating faster. "Muski aunty!" Aarav yells and hugs Muskaan who walks in the kitchen. Rahul had gone out of the house so it easy for Muskaan to roam around the house for right now, even though she should be resting. "Aarav!" Muskaan yells in the same manner and hugs him. Armaan walks in too. He had actually hid when he saw walking towards the kitchen, but as usual she was blabbering to herself so she didn't catch him. Riddhima gets conscious when she sees Armaan enter the kitchen. Aarav and Muskaan were playing with each other and the aunties had gone out to the dining room. Armaan and Riddhima kept on stealing glances at each other while Riddhima made breakfast for her, Armaan, and Aarav. Armaan clears his throat and sits down at the dining table. "Toh Muskaan, ready to be Mrs. Muskaan Rahul Garewal?" Armaan asks. Muskaan blushes and nods. "Tujhe pehli baar dekha hai sharma te hui. Lagta hai Rahul ka jadoo toh tujhe pe chad gaya," Armaan said, teasingly. "Obviously chada hai. Isiliye toh usse shaadi kar rahi hoon," Muskaan retorts. "True." Armaan smiles at Muskaan. Aarav leaves Muskaan and walks over to Armaan. Armaan picks up Aarav and settles him on his lap. "Lekin mujhe bohut dar lag raha hai," Muskaan said with worriedly. "Kyun?" Armaan asks as Riddhima puts a plate filled with food in front of him. He glances up at Riddhima flickers a small smile to her, then turns back to Muskaan. "Ma aur Papaji ko chodne ka dil nai kar raha," Muskaan said with her eyes moist. Riddhima stops walking as she hears the mention of parent's. "Bohut ajeeb hoga. Har roz Ma aur Papaji ko dekhti hoon aur jab ghar aati hoon toh une hi dekhti hoon. Woh mera intezaar karte hain," Muskaan said with sad smile. "Lekin ab tu Rahul ka intezaar karegi apne asli ghar main baith ke. Tumhare Ma aur Papa tumhara saath nai chodne wale bas thode se door ho jayege. Waise bhi Rahul ko tu school ke dino se jaanti hai," Armaan said in a soft voice and his hand on top of Muskaan's. Muskaan smiles and nods at Armaan. He's right, she's going to be waiting for the one she loves. "Tu kisi ghair mard ke ghar nai jaa rahi," Armaan continues. "Lekin hota toh hai na. Ladki ne ladke ko dekha bhi nai na usse baat ki aur chal padi apni puri zindagi uske saath bitane ke liye," Muskaan said, with hand gestures. "Aur yahan tum aur Riddhima - " Muskaan stops talking as she realizes what she was about to say. Riddhima didn't move from her stop a bit. She stayed rooted in the same spot as Armaan and Muskaan spoke. Today Riddhima really misses her parent's, but they kicked her out just like that. They didn't care for her and didn't even come back to take her back home. "Muskaan!" an aunty calls her. "Main chalti hoon." Muskaan walks out of the kitchen. Aarav had already started eating his food so he was least interested in what the adults were talking about. Armaan puts Aarav on the table and walks over to Riddhima. He had noticed Riddhima stopped in her place when Muskaan told about her parent's. Armaan stands in front of Riddhima and sees her face with tear stains. Riddhima looks up at Armaan which caused more tears to fall from her eyes. "Aaj...Mama aur Papa ki bohut yaad...aa rahi hai," Riddhima said in a cracked voice. Armaan looks at her. She lost her parent's because of him. Armaan never wanted that to happen. He thought that her parent's would understand, but Armaan didn't know how they were personally. He had met them once or twice in a conference when Riddhima had brought them along. "I'm sorry," Armaan whispers. Riddhima stares at Armaan, confused about why he is apologizing. "Meri wajah se tumne apne Ma aur Papa ko kho diya," Armaan said, looking down. "Lekin saath main ek parivaar bhi toh paya hai," Riddhima said. Armaan looks at Riddhima. Both of them just stare into each others eyes. "Mama, maine kha liya," Aarav said. They both turn to find Aarav holding a clean plate. "Aarav, tumne saara kha liya?" Riddhima asks shocked. She had made that plate for Armaan which is more filled than what Aarav eats, but Aarav had finished it all. Aarav nods innocently and Armaan and Riddhima laugh. Aarav pouts because his parent's are laughing at him. "Aap mujhe pe has rahe hain?" Armaan picks up Aarav and leaves a wet kiss on Aarav's cheek. "Dada," Aarav whines. "Aarav," Armaan whines the same way Aarav did. Riddhima ruffles Aarav's hair and sloppily kisses Aarav's cheek. Aarav leans down and pecks Riddhima's lips lightly. Riddhima giggles and shakes her head at Aarav. Armaan so wished to kiss her too, but he has to wait.
--
Hopefully this part turned out well. I wasn't really in the mood to write, but I want to start 'Take My Hand' as soon as possible. I know how you all are anticipating for it start.
Also, I updated on AR's reunion!!!! Can't believe its been a year since DMG had ended.
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