OS: Ecstasy

Slowly and reluctantly, he uncovered his face, pushing the blanket off. He blinked, closed his eyes, and blinked again. The last rays of the late afternoon sun fell slanting through Bihaan and Thapki's bedroom window. The warm sunbeam cast squares on to the glossy wooden floor, which reflected several objects in the room. He shut his eyes as streaks of sunlight penetrated and wringed his sluggish eyes, through the curtains that were ebbing down and flowing up with the strong gust of wind from the open window.

He felt a slight tugging at his hair, and a few seconds after, something was yanking it, rather; someone was pulling his hair out if it's roots! "Ouch!" He sat up, rubbing his head. Two tiny hands clasped around his face from behind, his sleepy eyes lit up with delight, and he grinned like a Cheshire cat. "Bppprrr brrrpp...". Little Siya underpinned Bihaan's face from the back to stand up against his broad frame. She poked her finger in his eye on her way up, sending flying spittle at the nape of his neck while doing the motorbike sound that babies do.

"Siyaaa, yeh kiya karrahi ho?" Bihaan called her out in a sing-song voice, reaching back to pull her from behind to the front. On seeing his face, Siya gave him an adorable toothed smile; two tiny, spaced front teeth were showing from between her pink lips. His heart melted, and surged with contentment at his daughter's beautiful smiling face, taking all his drowsiness away, and filled his being with pure love. "Good morning, humari jaan" Bihaan took her in his arms, planting her chubby cheek with a kiss, and in return, she gurgled with excitement.

Siya, Bihaan and Thapki's first born; had entirely changed their life; most importantly Bihaan's. He had never known what ecstasy was until that warm July morning in the hospital, nearly a year and a half ago. That morning he held his new daughter, the best feeling was sweeping him off his feet, she was his. That had made him to fall in love with Thapki, all over again. She was theirs. He was rocked to his core; he knew he would do anything in the world for her. He would be her hero, her keeper, the one who gave her cuddles, and kept her safe.

Ever since he had found that Thapki was expecting their first baby, he had felt nothing, except a sense of responsibility over her. Of course he was happy, but nobody could tell that, because he had mixed feelings. It had taken a day or two for the news to sink in, for Thapki to make him believe that he was going to be a father soon. He was amazed, yet bewildered, worry had taken over him, what if he couldn't make a good father?

He had a flashback of when his daughter was born... There was a horrible twenty seconds when the baby had arrived but didn't cry. It felt like twenty hours to him. When Siya had finally cried, he cried. That's when he had known in the truest form, what it felt like to become a father, the best feeling one could ever feel. That was ecstasy to him.

Though, at first, they couldn't figure out who Siya looked like, but she was growing up to be exactly like her Papa. She had small eyes, fair skin, and a button nose. Her cheeks were rosy pink, like two water balloons, waiting to be popped! Her smile gave way to cute dimples that played at the corners of her mouth. She had taken it all from her father, except her eyes. Siya's eyes were like Thapki's, big, and as dark as a mid-night sky. Her eyelashes were long, and thick, often too unusual for a child at this age.

At times, Bihaan got awe-struck between the stark similarity of his daughter's and wife's eyes, but he thought, Thapki's eyes held greater darkness, resembling a starless sky. They were the kind of darkness that wasn't dark; they were a sweet tranquility, before aurora breaks the sky. They were fringed by long eyelashes, so long that when she dropped her lids, they almost brushed her cheekbones, curling slightly at the ends. Her stunning eyes had a twinkle gleaming whenever he looked into them, sealing his faith of love all the more that, he resided in her soul. He could feel himself being captivated by them, drawing him in, devouring his self. Her eyes were filled with kindness; which she showered it like rain, not caring who it fell upon, which was innocent, and genuine, so endless. It set him alright, and made him happy.

He wasn't the Bihaan he once used to be, or at least he tried his level best not to be, but what could anyone say about B for Bihaan? You'd never know when his fuse has blown up over something so petite, that your mind wouldn't even wander over it, let alone giving a thought. He no more beat people up, and didn't smash a lot of glasses to let everyone know that he was hell angry, yes, but one or two were an exception, only at the peak. Thapki had somewhat tamed him steadily, without him realizing it. His anger and stubbornness was very much there, but how he vent it, was slashed down. No one can really change anyone's disposition, because nature is unshakable, however, being in love had nestled his soul, and made him a better man now, especially after Siya's birth. He had started a small business with a friend, just because he wanted to provide for his child all by his own. This was the most prominent enhancement in his life, he worked hard for her, and it made him content.

On the other hand, though Siya's eyes were like her mother's in appearance, but it held a mischievous glint like Bihaan's. She was as headstrong as him, and sulked if she didn't get the attention she wanted, even worse, she threw tantrums making sure everybody fulfilled to her naughty little demands.

She squirmed to get out of his grip, and he let her loose. She quickly stumbled with her bouncy steps across the king size bed, and reached to grab Bihaan's charging phone, it was her favorite "toy". Before he could stop her, she pulled the charging cord out of the phone, and started drawing random patterns to unlock it. It always amazed him, how children picked up things so fast, and they grew even faster. When she failed to unlock it, she held the phone out towards her Papa to do the job for her; she knew he wouldn't say no, never. He took it from her, and asked, "Aapko kiya krna hai phone ke saath, Siya?" She replied with a cute gibberish, saying "Hello" at the end. He looked up at her, and smiled. She learnt a new word today, 'Hello'. Every day, she did and said something new, leaving Thapki and Bihaan jump with excitement. A few days ago, Siya had learnt to say "Papa" and "Mama", he teased Thapki that she says Papa more. Yesterday, she had said "Dedo", and day before that, she had said "Nai", and before that...

Pulling him out of his thoughts, she snatched the phone out of his hands, and tapped on it with her little fingers to bring the light on, but he had switched it off. The last time he had given it to her unlocked, she had called his bike mechanic, given a missed call to a business client, deleted two of his most used applications, and muted the phone, this time he didn't want to fix everything, again.

After trying a couple of times, and still not finding the light coming on, her patience was over; with a jerk she thrust the phone over the bed. It hit on the floor with a crack, a little piece tumbling off. His eyes wide with disbelief, he called her out, "Siya?!" With this, her eyes brimmed with tears, and lips quivered. Her face was blotched, and her little mouth stretched wide, her shrill cries were only broken by her gasping for breaths in between. He picked her up, and rubbed her back to soothe her. "Sorry, beta" She had broken his phone, but he was apologizing to her. Why? He did, because he made her cry. This was Bihaan for his Siya.

Thapki had just entered the room, and watched all this standing near the door, hiding a smile, she picked up the phone, camera broken, its glass branching like a tiny spider's web. "Camera toot gaya hai, aur dou apna phone isko" He gawked at her sarcastic remark. Siya's sobs were now subsided, she turned around at the sound of her mommy's voice, with a tear stricken face and a red nose, she stretched her arms towards her, asking Thapki to pick her up. Bihaan handed her to Thapki, and got out of bed to have a look at his damaged phone, checking it, he tossed it on the bed.

"Meri baby ko ksne rulaya?" Thapki dabbed Siya's eyes, and covered her face with kisses, and took her to the bathroom to bathe her. She set her down in the bathtub, knotting her hair in a lose bun, and turned around to get some baby products out from the cabinet.

"Thapki, meri shirt kahan hai?" Bihaan flew open the ajar door, and before she could answer, he shot an order, "Bathroom jaldi khali karo!"

"Bihaan tmhe dikh nahi raha? Mein Siya ko nehlarahi hun." She snapped back at him.

"Mujhe ready hona hai. Jaldi karo!" She could see he was in a hurry, and teased him, "Nahi tu kiya karoge, Bihaan? He smirked, and came forward, wrapping his arms around her from behind her back, he murmured in her ear, "Din ke 2 bajre hein" His closeness was making her weak in the knees, she gripped the cabinet door firmly from falling over, "T-tuo?" She asked stammering.

"Tou yeh ke mein din dahaare esa kuch kronga, ke tum ksi ko apna chehra dekhane laek nahi rahogi." He said that while dropping a kiss on her cheek. Siya was banging her bathing toys against the bathtub, the "chuon-phuon" sound making her to hit her favorite yellow duck harder. Thapki quickly removed his arms away, and pushed him out of the door, before closing it, she asked, "Aaj tu Sunday hai, kahan jaare ho?"

Narrowing his eyes wittily, he asked "Har baat btaana zaruri hai?" Raising her eyebrows, she gave him a coy look, and smiling she banged the door shut. Coming over to the bathtub, she softly chuckled, and said, "Pagal..." At this, to Thapki's surprise, Siya said, "Paa-paa!" She giggled, and started giving Siya a shower.

It was a lazy Sunday evening, they were done with a late lunch, and everyone was here and there, doing about their own businesses. Dadimaa was taking a nap, Maa was out at the Jeweler's, Preeti had dragged Suman along with her to a spa, Sanjay and Ashwin were at a friend's farmhouse, Bihaan was out with a friend as well, and Bauji sat in the lounge, going through some property papers, which he had just bought. Dhruv and Shraddha? Well, nobody cared to keep a track of their whereabouts...

Thapki was in the lounge too, Googling something on her iPad, while Siya played at her feet, trying to build something with her blocks. A couple of minutes later, Bihaan was back. He came straight towards Siya, picked her up and threw her up in the air. She went up, her hands going along, her face broke into a smile, and the silent room crackled with sweet laughter. Bihaan kissed her, putting her back, he took a seat next to Thapki. "Kiya karrahi ho?" Before he could peek at the iPad screen, she instantly switched it off frustratingly, and got up. Not looking at him, she asked, "Bauji? Chai piyenge" Bauji happily agreed, "Pilaado bitiya" She darted across the lounge, and hurried in the kitchen, with Bihaan looking after her, perplexed at her strange behavior.

He wanted to go after her, but Bauji said, "Bihaan, yeh dekho tu zara..." He put some documents in front of him, and asked to take a look. They both were discussing some legal property policies, when she came back carrying a tray. She served tea to Bauji, and handed a cup to him too, still not looking him in the eye. This irked him, "Kiya hua hai?" She looked down at him for a second, and turned around to leave.

"Haan tu mein kehra tha Bihaan..." Bauji continued. To Bihaan's escape, a phone call interrupted Bauji. He quickly set his cup down on the table, and tiptoed over Siya's scattered blocks to follow Thapki in to the kitchen.

She was filling Siya's beaker with apple juice on the counter, when he came and stood beside her. "Kuch problem hai?" He gently asked her.

"Nahi tu" Came back her short reply. "Matlab kuch hai" He insisted.

"Humse naraaz ho?" He took a guess. She looked him in the eye, and asked him instead, "Mein tumse kyun naraaz hongi, Bihaan?"

Sighing with relief, he took a guess once more, "Patanai shyd... Oh! Tum naraaz ho islye, kyunke hum tumhe bataakar nahi gaye thay ke kahan jaare hain?" He grinned, thinking she might be jealous.

Looking at her straight face, he knew there was something else, more serious that was troubling her. He stopped her moving hands with his, and turned her to face him.

"Batao Thapki, kiya baat hai?" She didn't say anything, instead stood there, searching for something in his eyes, as if wanting to break news to him. He added, "Aur wese, hum Paan ke saath gaye-" She didn't let him finish, and mumbled something timidly. He brought his ear closer, and asked, "Kiya?"

"Mein pregnant hun, Bihaan" Pressing each word, she finally said it, and waited for him to react. She was sure, like the first time, Bihaan wouldn't show much of a reaction. He will be happy, wouldn't he? She thought worriedly. He just stared at her for a full minute, and finally spoke, "Tum sach kehrahi ho?" He held her shoulders, drawing her closer. She nodded, befuddled, not sure what was on his mind. "Tu phir ese udaas kyun ho? Yeh tu khushi ki baat hai." He grinned, and pulled her into a tight hug.

This time around, it was Thapki whose reaction was cynicism and fearful. It was unplanned, and totally came as a shock. She thought that Siya was a baby herself, and considering how demanding she gets, handling the two of them would be quite draining. Her worry was natural, all the more when it came to her very unexpectedly. His embrace was warm, and his big, strong arms were wrapped protectively around her. The world stopped still on its axis, as she squeezed him back, not wanting the moment to end. Her distress faded away when he kissed the top of her head, it was a reassuring kiss that he was, and will be there, always.

"Papa?" Siya peeped into the kitchen, holding clumps of blocks in both her hands. They pulled apart, Thapki rubbed her glistening eyes, and looked over at their daughter. Just when Bihaan was about to tease her that Siya hadn't called her out yet again, in a screechy voice, Siya called out, "Maamaaa!" An exhilarating smile appeared on Thapki's face, and Bihaan smiled in return. Siya threw the blocks in front of her, and giggled as they fell down in a huddle, making cluttering noises.

He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and pulled her close, gently rubbing her arm. Despite a sick feeling in her head, her heart fluttered at the proximity of his body pressed against hers. She sunk into the warmth of his side; her worries swished away, a feeling of euphoria taking over her.

Bihaan had a look of contentment on his face, the kind anyone would wish they could wear. He had everything he wanted in life right there, a happy child bouncing up and down at her own cuteness, the woman he loved right beside him, and another life taking shape inside of her. Their love was powerful, so infinite, to be able to create things so beautiful. Not things, their children, their everything. Ecstasy enveloped Bihaan yet once more, promising to come back again, soon.