Hi Friends.
I am back, okay confession time. This update was ready since yesterday but I worked a double shift and something kept getting in the way of my update.
As many of you know one of them was the new SS Swasthi and I started, so please be patient with me. My next update for Destiny may be late, since the SS is track related we need to stay on top of it.
I apologize in advance for this, please forgive me.
Next, my thanks were really short today, again I will make it up to you guys soon.
Okay I will stop now. Here is the update. Hope you like it.
Thank you again Friends.
Part 12
Once Gopi said yes Ahem moved quickly to make arrangements for the wedding. Gopi already had the wedding dress that her aunt made for her. He still remembered the beautiful dress; it was maroon and hunter green in color with gold zari work and stones throughout the outfit. It had been made for her. His kaki and mom insisted he wear a sherwani for the wedding instead of a suit. He agreed to their demands and bought a sherwani gold with maroon embroidery design on the top. The scarf for his neck was maroon and gold bandhni work in satin fabric.
Once he had the wedding clothes sorted to his kaki and mom's taste he took Gopi shopping for the engagement ring. He did not want anyone's help in this; he only wants Gopi's input for the ring. He took her to his friend's shop in Edison who dealt in the most perfect diamonds. He didn't give Gopi a chance to look it the smaller rings and guided her to the ring he wanted to get for her.
Ahem signaled his friend to take them to the private room and bring the ring he had requested and various other rings also. Gopi's eyes widened when the tray of rings were put in front of her. She looked at Ahem helplessly. "Ahem these look very expensive, ask them for simple solitaire rings."
Ahem took her hand in his. "Would you let me present the ring that I like? If you don't like it then you can pick another one." Gopi looked at his expression of excitement and hope and gave in. Ahem signaled his friend to bring out the ring.
Five minutes later the sales girl came back with the ring. "Here you are sir." She said placing the ring box in front of them and opening it. Gopi gasped when she saw the ring. It had one big diamond in the middle and smaller size diamond on each side of the big diamond. There were smaller paved diamonds on each side of the ring. The ring was set in platinum setting. "This creation is composed entirely of gleaming princess cut diamonds, channel-set along the shoulders and surrounding the center stone for the ultimate expression of love." The sales girl read from the card that accompanied the ring box.
Ahem took the ring out of the box and placed on the ring finger of her left hand. When Gopi opened her mouth to say something he squeezed her hand to stop her. He looked up at the sales girl and smile. "Can you give us few moments please?" The girl left the room with a smile.
Ahem turned back to Gopi. He looked down at the ring and ran his hand over the diamonds gently. "Do you know why I picked this ring Gopi?" Gopi shook her head no. Ahem touched the biggest diamond in the middle. "This big diamond in the middle represents my love for you." He pointed to the smaller diamond on the right. "This one is my apology to you for hurting you the way I did." He pointed to the other small diamond on the left. "This one is my promise to always be with you." He then ran his thumb over the smaller paved diamonds on both sides. "These are for building new memories." The last sentence was full of hope and promises.
The day she met Ahem must have been the luckiest day of her life Gopi thought. She still could not understand why he loved her to this extent. She never thought she would have life partner who would love her more than his own life. "It is the most beautiful ring in the world Ahem. Thank you for choosing it for me." Ahem kissed her on the forehead. "It is made for you therefore it is beautiful."
Forty-five minutes later they walked out of the store hand in hand. Ahem had insisted she keep the ring on from now on. While Ahem had been talking to his friend Gopi had pretended to roam the store and made arrangements to pick up a wedding band for him later. As for Ahem while Gopi was looking around in the store he had given his friend the go ahead on the matching wedding band for Gopi. They both walked out satisfied with the arrangements they made for each other's wedding ring.
Once they were settled in the car Ahem turned towards Gopi. "Where would like to go next Madame?" Gopi smiled back at him. "Shall we go home?" He frowned at that. "So you want to get rid of me already." He said pretending to be sad. Gopi placed her hand on his arm. "It's not that, but I have to finish packing rest of my things to move to your house, and I also want to see if Rashi needs any help. Besides you were supposed to accompany mom and kakiji for shopping remember."
Ahem looked away. Gopi cupped his face and made him look at her. "Ahem you promised you wouldn't give them hard time about this. They are very excited for you please don't disappoint them. Let it go, they are trying to make up for what happened in the past." Gopi said to him pleadingly.
Ahem took her hand in his and kissed her palm before placing it back in her lap. He smiled and nodded at her. "So when is Rashi moving in with her parents?" He asked as he drove towards her house. "At the end of the month. We decided to let go of the house now. I am glad because I didn't want her to be living by herself." Gopi replied.
"How does she feel about living with her parents again?" He asked next. Gopi smiled; leave it up to Ahem to remember about Rashi and her mom's relationship. "She is fine with it, and it's not for long. She would have moved back before hers and Jigar's wedding anyway."
Since Ahem and Gopi didn't want big wedding the family decided to have Kinjal and Jigar's wedding at the same time. Things were already being arranged for the double wedding hence the shopping expedition. Once Gopi finished all her packing in between her work schedule she was to join them for the wedding arrangements.
In two days her grandmother's death anniversary was coming up and she had talked to her aunt and brother about performing a small puja at the mandir. They both had agreed it was best to keep it low key, since Gopi's wedding is in the following week.
Ahem stopped in front of Gopi's house and glanced at her. He noticed she had gotten quiet as they neared her house. "Are you going to miss your house and your own space?" Gopi was startled by his question and looked towards him. "No I won't miss my own space, as for the house, may be I will miss it a little. Rashi and I have good memories of this place."
Ahem grinned at her. "Well at least you won't be apart from her for long. Good thing Jigar and Rashi hit it off or you both would have been miserable." Gopi laughed at his statement. "Yes you are right. I don't know what I would have done without Rashi." Gopi bit her lip worriedly. "I hope Jigar doesn't give her hard time about her friendship with me."
Ahem sighed he knew Jigar's distrust had bothered Gopi but he also knew his brother would come around soon. When Ahem spoke to him on the phone after Gopi said yes to his proposal Jigar had been elated and congratulated him with enthusiasm. Ahem took Gopi's hand in his. "You know Jigar puts on a big act sometimes but he is not mean at all. It takes him a while to warm up to people and I am sure he will be a great friend to you once you get to know him."
Gopi nodded and moved to open the door. "You better go before you are late. I will see you later. Have fun shopping and remember to participate and not sulk in the corner." Ahem caught her hand before she could get out of the car. "Not so fast my love, what do I get for being good?"
"My heartfelt gratitude?" She said with a grin. He laughed and brought her closer to him. "Not enough, I want more." Gopi's eyes widened. "Like what?" Ahem kept smiling and brought her even closer, until their lips were almost touching. He gave her a quick kiss and moved back a little. "How about dinner tomorrow night." Gopi shook her head no. "I have to work late tomorrow."
Ahem sighed. "Okay I will think of something." He said and kissed her again before she could say anything. She responded to the kiss warmly, automatically opening her mouth to deepen the kiss. Ahem felt his blood rush from his head to his southern region, making all his thoughts of being her friend fly out the window. He hoped he was able to keep his promise and not seduce her the very first night of their marriage.
Gopi clutched Ahem's shirt in her hand as the passion between them ignited beyond reason. It never fails, at his first touch she loses her ability to think straight. Nothing matters but the touch of his lips to hers, the taste of him and wanting to express her own feelings in the most primitive way. She stiffened at the thought of sharing her body with him and he ended the kiss abruptly and moved back.
Ahem closed his eyes and took deep breaths to control his raging desire. He looked over at her just in time to see her wipe a tear from the corner of her eye. He cupped her face to turn her towards him. He gently caressed her swollen lips with his thumb and looked into her eyes. "I am sorry sweetheart; I didn't mean for it to get out of hand." He looked down in shame for causing her pain and sadness.
Gopi felt worse seeing his guilt. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held on to him tightly. "It is not your fault Ahem. I am the one who should be saying sorry. You really are getting the raw end of the deal of our marriage."
Ahem ran his hand up and down her back and buried his face in her neck, he kissed her neck and felt her shiver. He knew she wanted him as much as he wanted her and he will do his best to get rid of all her fears. "We have to agree to disagree on that one. I feel like I am getting the best deal here. I know you won't be able to resist me for long, I will just take cold showers until then." Gopi choked out a laugh and moved back.
Ahem grinned at her flush. "Now go before I change my mind about shopping and spend the rest of the day with you." She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "You are right about one thing, you are irresistible." She got out of the car before he could stop her. She knew he was watching her as she walked towards her front door. She turned and waved before going inside the house.
Once she was inside the house she leaned against the closed door and smiled. She had left him stunned at her last statement. She smiled to herself, it had felt really good to banter with him.
Next morning Gopi went over to her grandmother's house with her aunt. She had rented out the house but the tenants moved out about a month ago in their own house. Gopi decided not to rent out the house and get it renovated instead. She wanted to hand over the house to her brother and Ria for future use. When the will was consented her aunt had stepped in to stop the nonsense, but Gopi still felt it was wrong of her grandmother to do this. Her grandmother had her own reasons to will everything to Gopi, but she had felt it was not her right to keep everything.
The house was bought with her father's money. Gopi had taken the matter into her own hands after she became the owner of the house. She made the arrangements to rent out the house and split the money three ways. Her portion had been used to pay the medical bills and student loans. She had put her brother's portion in savings account for her brother and the third portion was in a trust for her sister Avni, which she will receive when she turns 25 years old. Gopi had shared this information with her aunt and Rashi only.
Later that night Gopi was still contemplating on how to go about presenting the house papers to her brother. She was aware of the fact that this will upset him but she also knows he will eventually understand why she did what she did with her inheritance.
Gopi glanced at the clock and realized her shift will be over soon. She decided to stop thinking about the house and the papers she will present them to her brother and Ria when the time is right. She made her last rounds of the floor and reported off to oncoming shift and walked towards the staff room.
Gopi arrived home half hour later and felt relief at seeing Rashi's car parked in the drive way. She had missed her friend the past few days while Rashi was at her parent's home. She knew Rashi would not abandon her on her grandmother's death anniversary.
Gopi showered and got ready for bed. Her phone rang just as she was relaxing in the bed. She knew who it would be without looking. "Why are you not asleep at 1 am in the morning Ahem?" She said in way of greeting. She heard him chuckle at her greeting.
"Why are you asking when you know the answer to this already?" He asked. Gopi sighed into the phone. He has been doing this for a while now. Anytime she had a late shift he always called to check to make sure she was home safe. Gopi felt tears sting her eyes. "I am fine Ahem; I have been doing this for a long time now."
Ahem relaxed back on the pillows. "I know you have, but I didn't know about those times and now I know and I just want to make sure you are safe." Gopi hesitated then voiced her thoughts. "Ahem please don't care for me so much. You wear your heart on your sleeves and I don't want to hurt you."
Ahem frowned in concern when she said this. "Gopi let it go and relax. You won't hurt me. Now why don't you get some rest, you had a long and busy day." Gopi closed her eyes in frustration. He will not listen to her and this made her determined to make sure her past does not touch him. "Goodnight Ahem."
Ahem closed his eyes in relief. "Goodnight sweetheart and sweet dreams to you."
Next morning Gopi dressed in white salwar and tied her hair back at the nape of her neck. She came down just as the doorbell rang. She wondered who was coming to visit early in the morning. She waited at the foot of the stairs as Rashi opened the door. She was surprised to see Ahem at the door in white Kurta Payjama.
Rashi glanced back at her and raised an eyebrow. Gopi shook her head to let her know she hadn't told him anything. Ahem smiled at them both. "Are you two ready?"
Rashi crossed her arms. "Ready for what?"
Ahem was taken back by Rashi's attitude. "To go to the mandir." He replied. He watched as Gopi and Rashi communicated silently. Finally Rashi shrugged her shoulders. "I am going to grab my purse and phone." She left giving Ahem and Gopi privacy to greet each other. Ahem relaxed as he saw Rashi leave.
He pulled Gopi into his arms for a hug. "How are you feeling?" Gopi hugged him back and looked up at him. "I am fine, just miss her very much. Who told you about today?" Ahem kissed her on the temple. "Sheetal aunty called me and told me." He released her when Rashi came back.
Gopi was surprised to see the entire Modi family and Ria's parents at the mandir. She greeted everyone and looked to see if her father had arrived yet, when she didn't see him she felt sadness envelope her heart. She wished he would join them at least once. She shook off the sadness and waited for the pandit to start the puja. She only wanted to pay a tribute to the woman who had fought for her and raised her to be the person she is today.
As she closed her eyes she remembered all the happy times growing up with her grandmother's guidance, her aunt's support and her brother's love. The time after her graduation from college only caused her pain so she did not dwell on that. She hadn't realized she was crying silently until she felt someone put their arm around her and wiped her tears. Gopi opened her eyes to see both Koki and Hetal beside her.
Koki smiled at her. "Gopi dikra your Dadi would want you to remember her with a smile on your face not tears." Gopi nodded and wiped her face with a tissue offered to her by Hetal.
After the puja Hetal and Koki insisted everyone return to their house for lunch. Ahem sensing Gopi's need to be alone to gather herself decided to intervene to buy her time. "Mom I am going to take Gopi home first so can change and also bring back some things she has packed already."
Koki turned her head away to hide the prickle of tears from Ahem. Her son had spoken to her directly after a long time and that too without the usual sarcasm he reserved only for her. Hetal placed her hand on Koki's arm for support. Koki smiled at her and turned back to Ahem. "Okay Ahem you take Gopi home and come straight home by lunch time."
Gopi did not miss Koki's reaction and was really pleased that Ahem was making effort to speak to his mom pleasantly. She knew it won't be easy but one day he will forgive and forget what happened three years ago. She was also grateful to him for saving her from being overwhelmed.
Rashi came to Gopi and hugged her after the family left. It was only Ahem, Gopi, Jigar and Rashi who were still lingering in the parking lot of the mandir. "Do you want me to come with you?" Gopi saw Jigar stop in his track and frown at Rashi. She gave Ahem a sideway look to let him know not to interfere with what she is about to do. "Yes I think I could use your help Rashi."
Gopi smirked when Jigar looked disappointed but she knew he won't be defeated and knew he will have a comeback for her. She waited and thought bingo when he straightened his shoulders and stopped in front of her. "What's the matter Gopi bhabhi, are you afraid of being alone with my bhai?" The way he said bhabhi almost sounded as if he disapproved of her status as his brother's wife. Gopi gave him a false smile. "No actually I am not; I am sure you are afraid of him being alone with me, this is why I suggested Rashi to come with us."
Ahem leaned back against his car and held in his laughter at Jigar's stunned look. Rashi was gaping at both Jigar and Gopi. She too stood back and let them fight it out. Gopi decided to make him little madder. "Jigar are you trying to protect Ahem or Rashi from me?"
Jigar was not one to give up easily. "May be I am trying to protect them both." Gopi raised an eyebrow and took two steps back. "Have at it, but first ask them if they want to be protected by you."
Ahem thought it had gone far enough and stepped up to his brother. "Take Rashi with you, I am going to take Gopi home to change and pick up her things. We will see you at home by lunch time." Jigar smirked at Gopi for getting his way, but his smile faded at his bhai's next words. "Don't get too happy, she never had any intention of taking Rashi with her, she was just trying to give you hard time."
Jigar decided to keep his mouth shut and escorted Rashi to his car. He glared at Rashi when she smirked at him. "Okay I was also just trying to get her goat but she can hold her own without any help."
Rashi smiled at him in approval. "I am glad you are beginning to see her true nature under the tough act she puts on." Jigar smiled at Rashi as he drove towards his home. "Yes I am beginning to understand your friend. She will be good for bhai and he will be good for her. Are you still mad at bhai for jilting her the first time?"
Rashi sighed. "Even if I want to be mad I can't be because I can see that he is still hurting for doing what he had to do. I can also see that he still loves her very much and won't ever hurt her again." Jigar was relieved to hear Rashi approve of his bhai and her friend's marriage to his bhai. He was glad he had pushed the issue otherwise his bhai would have never pushed Gopi. She is the person that will make his family very happy by bringing his bhai back to the way he was before all the disasters of three years ago. He took Rashi's hands in his and kissed her knuckles to say thank you.
Ahem walked around Gopi's room while she changed her clothes. This was the first time he was seeing the sanctuary of her room and he was pleased to see she had packed almost everything already except for few essential things she will need for the wedding and her work clothes. His eyes fell on a photo album on the bed and he sat down to flip through it. He smiled when he saw Gopi's baby's picture on the first page. As he turned the pages of the album he saw images of Gopi in several stages of her life; first day of school to few school activities, high school graduation and then the college graduation.
Gopi saw Ahem sitting on the bed flipping through her photo album and smiled. She sat next to him on the bed. He was on the last page of the album looking at her college graduation pictures. She pointed to picture of her grandmother and her. "This was the last picture of her. She fell ill few weeks after my graduation and never recovered. The doctors said her heart gave out on her." Ahem heard the pain and regret in her voice and put his arm around her for comfort.
Ahem closed the album he didn't want her to be sad today. "Have you decided what you want to take with you to the house?" Gopi stood up. "Yes, I want to take all my important papers and things over tonight, and then decide on rest over the weekend." Gopi pointed to the bigger box she wanted to take with her and she took the smaller one herself. Ahem picked up the box and followed her out the door.
Once they arrived at Modi house they were both pulled in different directions. The women wanted to discuss the wedding and have everything finalized while the men's discussions turned to business and upcoming events. Ahem didn't see Gopi again until later that night when he took her to his room to see where she wanted to put her things.
Ahem showed her the bathroom first, Gopi was not surprised to see the size to the bathroom or the walk-in closet he showed her next. "Why does one person need all this space?" She asked him genuinely curious. He chuckled at her baffled expression and placed his arm around her to pull her to his chest. "You manage to surprise me every time. I thought all women want a big bathroom and large closet space."
Gopi turned towards him, "told you I am not normal." Ahem's smile faded. "You are really trying to make me mad aren't you Gopi?" She pulled away from him and walked out of the closet. Gopi didn't know why she couldn't stop hurting the people she loved. She stared out at the rose garden and recalled her conversation with Ahem that first night she came to this house to have dinner. She realized he had done everything in this room and out in the garden with her on his mind, this is how much he loved her and she couldn't even bring herself to let him know that she too loved him with all her heart.
She felt Ahem behind her and relaxed against him when he put his arms around her to pull her to his chest. "You forgot to listen to our song everyday Gopi. You still didn't listen to the CD did you?" Gopi felt her throat clog with unshed tears. She knew exactly which song he was referring to; he had played it the first time when they drove from Daytona Beach to Orlando. She couldn't tell him she had played that CD once every day until the day they were supposed to meet. She could recite the words of the song by heart. She was not surprised to hear the song now.
Oh, her eyes, her eyes, make the stars look like they're not shining
Her hair, her hair, falls perfectly without her trying
She's so beautiful, and I tell her every day
Yeah, I know, I know, when I compliment her she won't believe me
And it's so, it's so, sad to think that she don't see what I see
But every time she asks me do I look ok, I say
When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change
Cause you're amazing, just the way you are
And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while
Because girl you're amazing, just the way you are(yeah)
Her lips, her lips, I could kiss them all day if she let me
Her laugh, her laugh, she hates but I think it's so sexy
She's so beautiful, and I tell her every day
Oh, you know, you know, you know, I'd never ask you to change
If perfect's what you're searching for then just stay the same
So, don't even bother asking if you look ok
You know I'll say
When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change
Cause you're amazing, just the way you are
And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while
Because girl you're amazing, just the way you are
The way you are, the way you are
Girl you're amazing, just the way you are
When I see your face, there's not a thing that I would change
Cause you're amazing, just the way you are
And when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while
Cause girl you're amazing, just the way you are. Yeah
When the song ended Ahem pulled Gopi closer to him, he bent and kissed the side of her neck tenderly. Gopi closed her eyes when she felt his warm lips on her neck. No words were needed after listening to the words of the song that expressed his feelings so well. Ahem wished she believed in those words and their love Gopi wished she was to be able to accept the fact that she is loved just the way she is, that there was nothing abnormal about her. It wasn't just her outer beauty that he finds love worthy but she stole his heart with her inner beauty from the very first moment he laid his eyes on her.
*~+~*
Please excuse spelling and grammatical errors.
Thank you again.š¤š¤
Edited by sbp1971 - 14 years ago
Current Affairs
Fan Fictions
