Chapter dedication to Dhara
She has to be blamed for me updating this chapter. She was practically my Wikipedia while I used 50 mb for two days. So she practically helped me with every little step and research' needed for this chapter. And she was very nice to edit Meherbaan. I will be formatting the chapters and posting them all at once. So this thread will be a jumbled mess of Meherbaan updates. Kindly follow the Index. And remember, Dharu is to be blamed.
This update isn't up to the mark, I apologize, I have stopped watching the show and Ishita - Raman to me are the characters in my head. I had no net for three days - hail BSNL - thus no updates.
Chapter edited by Dhara - 7789 WORDS
C H A P T E R 1 9 D H O K A D H A D I
Many would vouch for the fact that Raman Bhalla wasn't the same man as he was the night before. He had changed for some reason unknown to them - he didn't speak to anyone, interact with anyone or even speak to anyone in that case. Instead he just walked down the stairs, ignored the crowd and headed for his 'jog'. Jogs in the Iyer estate wouldn't need one to leave the premises, instead one could jog around the premises. While the other youngsters used the early morning hours to walk around and get away from their respective partners and/or flirt with each other, Bhalla here chose the time to actually exercise while the ladies either envied his partner for his stamina or just fangirled over him. Bhalla they said, was an interesting man though severely complicated for their liking. Too weird for their liking. Trust him to jog and at the same time crack business deal all whilst being followed hilariously by men dressed to the boot. An hour later he was back in the room ignoring everyone again. So when a certain Mrs. Sen called him out on the hickey' on his neck, he just rolled his eyes at her and grabbed an icepack. Any normal man, Mrs Sen said, would at least blush or avert the topic but this man just rolled his eyes. How could he? That bad man. Speaking of that man where was Ishita? That runaway chick who returned home seven years later. Where was she? And why wasn't she available at seven am in the morning. Didn't these Iyers' teach their daughter to be up by six am and before their husbands' were even up? Look at that Ishita's nerve to be sleeping at this time of the day.
When Raman came down hours later it was he who prepared smoothies for him and the kid. Men were so fascinating when they worked in the kitchen. Especially if they were well clothed and freshly out of the shower. With well chiseled bodies, fresh beard growth and wet hair - he was truly a cool worthy masterpiece. That Raman Bhalla. Especially when he came back from a room on the lower floors with his adorable babe in his arms, or as he chuckled as the little one grabbed at his hair. Or that sleepy yet evil grin she gave him as he fed her the drink leaning against the table as he sipped his. The little one giggled at the fact that Mommy was fast asleep as she and her father gobbled their drinks down not-so-hastily and then rushed to proceed to get rid of the evidence. Ruhi stood on the counter and rubbed her belly as her father quirked an eyebrow at her. Soon he was preparing their breakfast and Roo watched her tv shows on his iPad - another one of those little things forbidden by Ishita. Oh, they were criminal. Especially when Mihika joined the duo with Mihir in tow. Or when the despicable duo inquired the older brother if he would be joining them on their day out. Raman instead claimed that he was heading right back to sleep. That Madrasan was going to be the death of him, he claimed while Mihika grabbed an apple, leaned against the counter and waited for Ruhi to climb on her back for a piggy back ride.
The watchers' couldn't really decipher what the Iyer-Bhalla couples or rather the Iyer-Bhalla couple and the conspirator were plotting. Instead all that they knew for now was that it was evil. Evil enough to make Ruhi cover her mouth, narrow her eyelids and go haww' with an equally evil grin in her eyes only to be tickled by Mihir. Now, it was an entirely different story that as the older Bhalla brother stole Ishita from Subbu, so did the younger one steal Mihika from Subbu's best friend Raj. Only that Mihika was a brash spoilt brat unaware of Raj's feelings, not that she cared in the least.
While the family decided to spend the day at a nearby holiday destination - preferably a beach - the family' had wanted to take Ruhi along to which Raman had instantly denied only to hand the five year old over to the 'Mi' couple hours later mumbling something about required training, his daughter going too Madrasi for his liking and something that sounded like a threat about sending Ruhi on a vacation with her favorite aunt and uncle on their honeymoon to which Mihika had retorted saying that she'd spill all his dirty secrets while Mihir attempted to salvage the situation with somewhat legal claims that could losely be translated to a) he wasn't responsible for the fact that he decided to go private in public b) he should try dating a Madrasan instead of being married to one (which earned Mihir a well deserved whack from Mihika and a glare from Ruhi) and c) it wasn't exactly Mihir's fault that Raman was incompatible with South Indian food or that he fought with Ishita on their wedding right that needed their intervention. To this Mihika rolled her eyes, Ruhi hit her palm against her head while Raman sipped on whatever was in his club congratulating Mihika on the moron she decided to marry. To which Mihir fumed and walked away mumbling that he didn't like any of them while Raman locked his arm around Mihir's shoulder teasing him of all the fun things he could do with Mihika busy shopping with Ruhi. Even going further to plan a boys holiday with their friends - laughing all the way as Mihir fumed mumbling about how Raman had to have two of them when he couldn't even have one. While Raman smartly replied that both of them were nightmares - with the first one being with a self-obsessed wanton while the second with a bookish nerd who'd skin him alive if he had to say anything wrong or anything that sounded wrong to her ears. Further claiming that Mihika was scary as it is - the grown up version of the youngest girl of that cartoon that Ruhi watches with Minions, only more hyper. Mihir now laughed as he wondered aloud how his bhabhi tolerated a man like his brother.
Bhai was a wierdo, he knew. He was a crazy man who was right and well aware of the fact that he was. While Bhabhi micromanaged everything. They were a mismatched couple that ironically worked well.
Ishida descended the staircase hours later to her husband lazing on the couch with his laptop while she skipped down the stairs dressed in shorts and one of his old tee's. He took a while to check her out, whistled at her appearance while she shook her head at him as she walked away to the kitchen blushing and rolling her eyes at him.
Leaning on the counter she asked him what he was up to and in reply to her very stupid question he lifted his laptop now concentrating on it.
"Raavan Kumar," she smirked as she brewed herself a cup of coffee, humming a song as she did so.
"Try as hard as you can you really can't sing, Ishita," Raman muttered as he shut his laptop and moved towards her. She rolled her eyes at him. And when he walked towards her, she started singing louder just to annoy him. And when he covered her mouth attempting to shut her up, she continued singing - the lyrics mixed with her miffed laughter- and he laughed along asking her to stop singing.
"It's your favorite song," she laughed.
"Before you killed it for me," retorted her husband.
"It must be sad, right. Liking one song after ages and then having me ruin' it for you. Be proud, Ishita is singing for you. Aisa roz thodi hota hai."
"My point, aisa roz thodi hota hai. Not everyone is unlucky to listen to you sing."
She just smirked and nodded at him as she waited for him to realize that he had encircled her with her body not that she minded it in the least.
"Your breakfast," he said as lifted his palm off her mouth and he handed her a plate. "Zyada Hindi filmein mat dekha karo, tumhara dimag aise hi kharab hai," he continued as he tapped her nose.
And with that he walked away leaving her leaning backwards on the kitchen counter a cup of coffee in one hand and her breakfast in the other as her brain tried to process what just happened between them. And she shook her head at her thoughts - he would never change and she didn't want him too. Life would be boring without her Raavan Kumar.
She instead plugged in her CDs, propped onto the couch, lay down and snuggled in Raman's arm while he moved to adjust to other lying position as he muttered an incoherent version of how do you expect me to work,' and she just continued snuggling, using him as her human pillow despite his grumbling.
Turning on the TV she played one of her cringe worthy romances as he ignored her and focussing on his work except the times she decided that it was a good idea to absentmindedly feed him snacks that she liked as he shook his head at her.
They were a comfortable pair one would say. With him in his reading glasses, sweats and a loose tee working from home and her in her in worn out jean shorts, his tee, her hair in a messy lose bun and sans the war paint. He didn't drop in random kisses and she didn't crave affection. They did their own thing. One had to often think why this couple who were obviously comfortable with each weren't into PDA.
Somewhere before the climax and final proposal obvious to such cliche movies Ishita found herself asking Raman on why exactly he had to come here when he didn't even like her family save Amma, Appa, Akka, Mihika, Chitti and Jiju only to have him shrug at her. Which caused her to pester him further. He now replied that Ruhi followed her here.
'And?' she continued as she turned to look up at him.
'I missed her,' he replied quite sheepishly.
She turned away. Why was she disappointed? She sighed as she turned to focus on the movie promising herself that she wouldn't be annoyed at him and act normal.
He continued with his work as she waited patiently for the movie to end. This was awkward.
"Bored?" he asked her not looking away from his work.
She laughed.
"It's a lie," she said, "The happily ever afters and prince charming - they're a lie. In the end we're all f**ked up in our way."
"So we're back to the cynicism," he mused and she laughed in return.
He completed his work and shut down his laptop. Placing his laptop aside he joined her in her game of predicting how long the couple in the show would last, the faults in their relationship and the cause of their break-up.
"We were worse," he said, "But nothing ever went wrong with us."
She smiled that sarcastic smile of hers.
"We have a long way to go," she said as he placed his arms over hers.
"Nothing will ever go wrong, you know," he said as she looked into his eyes in search of an emotion to validate his promise. And when she found a hint of one, she smiled.
"And if anything does go wrong, we'll fix it, together, like we always do," he promised.
She nodded at him as she locked her arms around his neck, pulling him closer to her.
"Just admit it - you missed me," she prompted and he chucked flashing his dimple. And she took the opportunity to touch the dimple in his cheek.
His smiles turned into chuckles and chuckle into laughter as he caught her trail of thought. She narrowed her eyes at him, just like Ruhi did earlier that day.
"I did," he admitted, "I actually missed you. Ab zindagi men sukoon ki aadat nah hai yaar,"
"Toh bataya kyun nahi,"
"Tumhein bhaav dene ka maza kuch aur hi hai," he smiled, "You get annoyed so easily and then struggle not to show it,"
"Then the next time you do that to me, I'll do this," she said as she brought his lips down to hers briefly only to move away from him and turn off the TV, "And then avoid you," she continued as she skipped towards the kitchen quite happy with both her revelation and threat.
"You can't be serious," he smirked.
"Oh, I am," she said.
"What's for lunch," he changed the topic as she struggled to hold back a smile.
"I'm not Ruhi, Raman. You can't bribe me with food."
"Well, your favorite chef is in town " the meatless wonder. So I thought we could get lunch from there. I'm getting Risoni and Pelati Broth with Garbanzo, Truffle Risotto and Morel and Chef's Selection of Dessert Sampling Platter."
She glared at him for a whole second while he smirked at her as he waited for her to crack.
"Espuma of Green Pea Cappucino or Infusion of Crepes and Truffle, Polenta Castle and I'm sharing dessert with you," came a prompt reply from her end, her previous warning clearly forgotten.
He smirked as she muttered that he was evil and then sighed in relief as he finished the call.
"We know your track record with the opposite gender," she sighed in reply as he quirked his eyebrows at her.
"And that is?"
"You're male chauvinist, Raman. Or at least you were. The first time officially met you all I wanted to do was fling a hot mug of coffee at your face."
"Ouch. In my defense you did call me out at 1 am. You called me up on my landline just to ask me out. What if my mother received the call?"
She laughed.
"I would be dead. She really hated me then."
"And now the both of you'll are best friends who even plot against me. Our family dynamics are truly weird, I'll give you that."
"And I didn't call you out."
"Yes, you did," he laughed.
"I didn't. Log kya sochenge. I would never ask a married man out. Not when I was getting engaged in less than a week."
"I wasn't married,"
"You never told me that,"
"Why would I tell you that? You believed in assumptions and I was more than happy to let you believe what you wanted instead of having the residential moral police volunteer to help me make amends with my ex."
"I wouldn't do that,"
"Sure, you wouldn't," he chucked,
"And jab shaadi fix hui thi tab,"
"You were stupid. Stupid and annoying as you came up with all those idiotic questions and clauses. I swear the neighboring table assumed that I would eat you up the minute I caught you alone. I was traumatized as it is and then felt like I was marrying a hormonal eight year old instead of the mother of my child,"
"With your track record, anyone would be scared. I knew nothing about you,"
"Other than my pay slip, family, ex, her stories and how good I was in bed - no you didn't ,"
They were seated at one of the doorsteps on Ishita's insistence as they waited for someone to deliver their food. Ishita found herself burying her face in her lap, struggling to hide her blush which just appeared for some reason.
"Don't you think Shagun has traumatized me enough with details of your sex life that you need to add to it. She couldn't just get over you for some reason." Ishita muttered while Raman shuddered at her comment.
"Speaking of Shagun, I am yet to meet your pedophile," he said
"We'll meet him," she said, grinning as she watched the food arrive.
Raman's Madrasan was foodie. Only he didn't know why she had to starve herself in order to get in shape'. The best bit about ordering food was watching her as her eyes lit up in pure joy, her feet tap and her smile as she impatiently folded her hands and waited for him to get the food. He smiled as she shooed him away to collect the orders, shrugging as she gave him various looks. She was a kid at heart he decided then as she waited impatiently for him to arrive with the package.
"What are we watching?" asked Raman as he returned a while later with the food and documents.
"Game of Thrones," she said as she plugged the hard drive to the TV.
"Pass, I'm not watching po*n with you in public,"
"It's not po*n, it's Game of Thrones, Raman,"
"It's po*n with a script,"
"Po*n is made following a script," she rolled her eyes at him.
"The point is, I won't be caught watching that show with you in public. Imagine the look on Amma's face when she comes to know what you watch on TV." he smirked.
"It's sex and nudity, Raman. Get over it. It's not like you're some virgin."
"I never said I wouldn't watch it. Just not in public and as long as I get something out of it,"
"We're watching it,"
"So, I'm getting something out of it," he quirked an eyebrow at her.
"No, you're not. I have to finish watching it before your siblings spoil the whole season for me,"
"We're watching Top Gear,"
"No, we're not."
"Yes, we are."
"No, Raman. I'm not watching a show about cars with you. Not happening,"
"House of Cards,"
"Breaking Bad,"
"True Detective,"
"Dexter,"
"Two and a Half Men,"
"Sherlock,"
"Agent Carter,"
"Daredevil,"
"Doctor Who,"
"Football. That's the best one,"
"I will shoot you."
"Watch sports, Madrasan. "
"Do something fun, Raavan Kumar,"
"Sports is fun,"
"Until your mood starts deteriorating,"
"Why are we even having this conversation? We could just talk,"
"Orphan Black,"
"Penny Dreadful,"
"Hannibal,"
"Empire,"
"..."
"Shameless,"
"The Walking Dead,"
"Community,"
"Bloodline,"
"Fortitude,"
"..."
"The Americans,"
"Justified,"
"Parks and Recreation,"
"The Fall,"
"Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt or Fresh Off The Boat,"
"Okay!"
"You gave up," she laughed as she did her signature victory move,
"Did I have a choice? You're a frickin encyclopedia,"
"No, babe. You just live under the rock," she mused as she set the show to play, "While you're here, you can catch up with Doctor Who all eight season and then watch the next one with Adi and thank me later,"
"Adi watches your shows?"
"No, Adi watches Doctor Who. Something about his best friend watching it, Shagun being too dumb to get it and he got me into it. And it's good. Ruhi and I like Matt Smith and Adi loves David Tennant's Doctor. Knowing you, you'll like Peter Capaldi. And once you're done watching the seasons you can join us,"
"Or you can brief me on it,"
"Or I can get Adi to watch it with you. He would love to get you join his cult,"
"What's the bargain?"
"No bargain," she shrugged as he quirked an eyebrow at her nodding as she went on.
"You can take me out one of these days?"
"This counts as a date,"
"Doesn't,"
"Does,"
"Not,"
"Okay."
"Forget that I mentioned it. Dates aren't really your thing," she smiled at him.
They moved to the media room a while later owing to the bigger screen and better features available there to whoever wanted to watch TV or anything. He set their lunch as she drew the curtains, adjusted the room temperature, collected some comfortable sheets to pull over, stocked on comfort food and did everything to prep them for hours worth of binge watching.
Dates weren't really his forte. Neither were they hers. Instead they sat there fighting over food, laughing over the show they watched. He narrated tales from his childhood or just instances that occurred in his life, and she listened to him often adding her bits to it. Lunch was how it usually was when they ate veg together. She mostly liked the stuff he did and ironically he liked the stuff that she didn't. She had picked up the habit of stealing from his plate and he chastised her as he picked stuff off hers.
Half a season of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt he fell asleep, and she lowered the volume not to disturb him. He hadn't slept a wink in 48 hours and only he knew how he functioned. He was a light sleeper and a borderline insomniac. He could go on for days skipping on sleep and working on his projects, but then his work demanded exactly that and she didn't mind it. She was a career woman too. She knew the demand that had to be met in ones field. She also knew the stress and frustration that followed. What she knew best was the importance of rest in ones life no matter who they were or how important they were. So she let him rest his head on her shoulder and lock his arms with hers as he slept.
"Don't you dare play Game of Thrones," he warned her once she finished watching Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and she gave his sleepy self the dirtiest look she could muster.
Half a season into Fresh Off The Boat he woke up to her sleeping whilst watching a show that if replaced by an Indian cast could be the perfect version of the desi family life. He wasn't going to watch any of it. And she was uncomfortable sleeping clinging to him as if he was running away in his slumber. He chuckled at her sleeping position as he shook his head and googled Doctor Who episode by episode, reading summaries and making a list of episodes he would like. Trust his trio to find an unrealistic show as this one. 'Blink' had him into the show followed by the 50th Anniversary Special. A bunch of episodes later, he found himself watching the show until he came across a folder on her drive marked as 'Mihika+Jiju'.
He didn't know what possessed him to open the pictures but he did only to be stunned by it's contents. In those pictures was a girl he hadn't ever met. A crazy, beautiful and proud girl who loved herself for who she was. Grinning at the camera, posing away as if the world belonged to her. A girl who was comfortable wearing what she did. A teenager comfortable in her own skin and someone who didn't obsess over covering herself up or shun her body. She had smiled, but he had never seen her smile like she did in these pictures. Or act like she did in the videos. She wouldn't trust like she did before or show affection like she did here. It was then that he realized that circumstances had stolen his innocence from him, but for her they had snatched away her very being to further crush her beyond measure leaving behind a shell she filled with her solitude. And in that very moment he loathed the people present here. He hated the people she grew up around for destructing the naive innocent girl beyond measures. He was no saint either, he was equally guilty. He deserved nothing from her. They were bad and he, he was worse.
His assumptions weren't facts, they were theories he had no right to make. He didn't know her. Seven years after meeting her she was still an open book he refused to read too afraid of facing the fact that he had hurt her beyond redemption. It was then he realized that she did the same - she refused to talk out loud. He couldn't remember a serious fight they had where they discussed the cause out. They fought, stayed away for an hour or two and her personality took a 360 degree turn refusing to acknowledge anything that had happened. Never had she ever discussed anything with him until she decided to cut ties with him. He couldn't remember if he cared then. He was fine, they were fine until now.
The path they were heading on was a scary one - uncertain at it's best and the worst part was the fact that they had been there and they both knew exactly how it ended. Five years ago he was harshly reminded of the fact that relationships ended. Cruel as they were they ended with or without your consent, but with her, his Ishita, he wanted it to last. He wanted the remainder of his life to be about her - the girl who crashed into him on a lonely winters' night changing his life for the better. He didn't want to let her go, not now or ever but the harsh fact was that he could never be the man to return that smile to her face. This was their utopia and a month later they would return to life as it was - with him too busy in his work and her in hers. Life would be about messes, raising kids and nothing that she would deserve. He had trapped her and girls like her didn't marry men like him. Try as he wanted he would never be a man good enough for her. He would be the workaholic too obsessed with his son to care about 'people and their feelings'. Didn't she say that the first time? She was nice, too nice for him. Too good for him and he knew that once her patience ended she would end up leaving him too. And like his son, his daughter would follow her. Where would he stand? Where did he stand?
Scrolling through the images he found no pictures of her family here. Not about the brother who claimed to love her so much or vice versa or grandmother. No aunt, uncle or cousins save for the ones in Delhi. And that was saying something considering the fact that her drive consisted of pictures ranging right from her childhood. He for some reason found the drive spammed with pictures of Ruhi and her, followed by pictures of him. The little milestones he had forgotten to record. Like Adi sleeping over for the first time in years, or the time he, Adi and Ruhi baked (they had messed up the whole kitchen only to have a frustrated Ishita walk in on them who promptly gave them a piece of her mind while they stood in a line as if her tin soldiers), the first picture taken of Ruhi (a pictorial his mother insisted on), pictures of the time he crashed right after work (these were selfies with Ishita and Ruhi grinning I-told-you-do smiles and arranged in numerical order followed by a little hash tag), Ruhi's first day of school, the iconic Ruhi-Raman glare, pictures to commemorate the little celebrations they had in honor of each other's achievements.
A well-deserved correction to his previous line of thought he realized that somewhere down the line life had stopped being about Ruhi but rather as them as a team and family. She took precautions with Adi but then she didn't completely shun Adi like he once did Ruhi - the irony being that Ruhi was his own flesh and blood while Adi probably didn't even matter to Ishita. He didn't expect anything from her when it came to Aditya, that brat was his responsibility and lord save him he was going to straighten that kid out or out any suggestions from Aditya's mother or step-mother who both pampered him beyond means.
Folders moved from family pictures to ceremonies that he hadn't seen pictures of. The wedding from her photographers, third party pictures of several functions and the godh-bharai ceremony his side of the extended family insisted they have two days after their official wedding'. He hadn't seen the video of these. The ceremony was so hurriedly put together on the insistence of his maternal and paternal grandparents that he assumed there weren't any records of it.
Why hadn't she shared any of this with him?
His mother called him right after cross questioning about Ishita. Even cursing him warning him of the consequences if he even dared to raise his voice at her darling daughter-in-law. Talk about overprotective mothers. Reminding his mother that he was her son and Ishita her daughter-in-law, his mother was curt to reply that she had given up on him the minute he started supporting Madhavi. Calling 'Madhavi' by her first name had earned him another lecture on Indian ethics from his darling mother who further cursed that those South Indians were going to be death of her. He chose to laugh it off. His mother further warned him to keep her 'precious Ishita' away from that 'vicious Devyani', only he knew Devyani as Bala's mother or netaji. Further questioning him about those his mother further revealed that his grandparents wanted Mihir's wedding to be done the traditional way which caused him to cringe as he revealed that his mother would be a grandmother yet again if Mihir and Mihika were to be married the traditional way.
Before disconnecting the call he asked his mother if she knew the existence of any unseen pictures from any of Ishita and his ceremonies, his mother had simply stated that those pictures were a mess and that the ones captured were yet to be segregated and edited out. She had simply asked him to help Ishita sort them out.
He knew better than to be the martyr and sort the files for her only to have her scream his head off later. Instead he went through them convincing himself that they were their pictures and he wasn't invading anyone's privacy. He found pictures of her getting ready for their wedding - both of them - either blushing around his cousins, rolling her eyes or making funny faces. This portfolio of their wedding pictures wasn't professional, it was personal. It wasn't meant for any of them to look good, it was meant to show what really happened, like the little videos of their families bonding or their family bonding.
The post wedding games with his cousins urging them to kiss under a dare, which the both of them had refused until one of his aunts passed a comment that they were going to raise a kid in a few months time so they had obviously done worse to which Ishita had rolled her eyes. What the camera hadn't recorded was her threatening him to do it and save her from the embarrassment of being teased again, not let it last for than a second and better not to enjoy it because it wasn't happening ever again (if he could only take her up on that now). So they had kissed with people passing comments that they wouldn't need a Catholic wedding now to follow their Iyer and Punjabi one.
Now what he didn't know was that his evil wife had tricked him into rescuing her from his overly openminded family and their version of a bachelorette party. All she had done was hold a glass of an alcohol being forced on to her by a guest knowing perfectly that he needed to be sober that week. That glass of alcohol had lead her being dragged away from the party' by him as he gave her a piece of his mind as she gave whoever was watching an annoying smug smile as she linked her arms with him smiling at any passerby quickly letting go as if it was infected the minute they reached a place away from the crowd. They had spent the night strategizing and perfecting their legal battle while the pictures taken made it look like they were spending a 'romantic night before their wedding', only that he had married this Mad-rasan a week ago and spending a romantic night together was the last thing to ever happen to them. They had parted with a hug forced when his grandmothers too afraid that his second marriage would end as badly as the first one had passed by all whilst Ishita was threatening him, he had engulfed her in to a hug while she struggled to get away muttering protests of being alone a night with a f**king pervert' until he had told her to shut up and stand still if she didn't want to be interrogated at midnight by 'Punjabi grandmothers'.
Anything aside, those two weeks had been war for the both of them. With wanting nothing to do with each other and at the same time having traps expecting them to be with each other at every nook and corner. Having his own plan of giving her a proper wedding backfire on him all whilst this stupid Madrasan with the mentality of an annoying pre-teen giving him all of her attitude - he had proposed an escape plan for them. She for once agreed to follow him. They had successfully snuck out of the resort dressed in casuals; with Ishita in jeans and a white tee and Raman wearing something similar. The only difference had been that Raman has worn a jacket over his and Ishita still had her Mehendi and bangles on minus her makeup which had dramatically reduced to kajal and concealer and he then preferred her annoying self over pesky guests. They had visited one of those overly expensive play-what-you-want theaters all for the sake only for him to realize that they had been followed. And in that moment he felt like Steve Rogers in Captain America: The Winter Soldier as he realized that all his hard work had been a waste. They had spent that night watching films to kill time only he had been working on his phone and she texting whoever the heck she had been texting. And once they were out of charge and about to be kicked out they had decided to get dinner, or at least he did as she chose to watch him eat in fear of not fitting into her outfit (a concept he still failed to grasp, how could one not fit into an outfit after one stupid meal?) so he had taken her out for ice-cream and she gorged on ice-cream having a scoop of any flavor that caught her eye while he had a spoonful or two of whatever she had. Now how was a man on his last night out in his weeklong struggle to know that he had been followed by stalkers who documented every bit of that night in romantic detail. Whoever this photographer was had managed to capture images of times he swore never happened. When had he smiled at her? Or she look at him with that creepy gaze and when the hell did they appear to enjoy their time out. It was an escape plan romanticized.
Only what was to follow had to be way worse. They were video clips of Ishita fresh out of the shower in her bathrobe as she opened the door absentmindedly to god knows whom who walked in on her fresh out of her an illusion that looked like he was wrapped in a sheet. Only that none of it happened. Post the Punjabi wedding fiasco followed by the stupid game session, back in their suite Ishita quite convincingly having forgotten that fact that he was a grown ass man, who hadn't slept with anyone in months, had kissed her minutes ago and now had no control over his bodily functions that had his mind filled with x-rated images of what was to happen on their wedding night. Madam, having forgotten that she had absentmindedly started stripping also forgetting his presence in the room. Right from seductively removing the jewelry, stealing looks at him from the corner of her eyes, and using her teeth to scrape the lipstick off her lips. If only that wench had to know what she was doing to him. But the chick having no idea had started proceeding stripping down to the flimsy skirt she wore below whatever she wore and her corset. She had then remembered the presence of a men in suite and had proceeded to change in there. And right when he thought his horrors were over she had to come along dressed in a flimsy night gown handed to her by one of their mothers or siblings and had demanded he not think anything of it. As if he cared. Now he was Raman Bhalla and he'd be damned if he let her get away so easily. He had stripped right to his boxers and joined her bed. It was a win-win situation for him. She either had to tolerate the temptation like he did or continue stripping in their strip war. Not only she was an early riser and he took any opportunity of stocking up on his sleep. What he hadn't realized was that along with being an early riser, she had been stupid and this was the core proof of her stupidity. And how he would like to hear her explanations how she averted questions about their first night. Only at the moment of joy finally finding something to bug Ishita with after days the possibility that she could have narrated her encounter with some other man failed to cross his mind not that it mattered if Ishita was a virgin or not, which judging by her so called hero and actions she clearly wasn't. It wasn't a topic for him to judge her on, not when they clearly had their own lives before they met each other.
He skipped the reception video, watched bunch of others, Ruhi's baby videos, her fourth birthday video which Raman wasn't a part of followed by Shravan's birthday video a year ago during which Raman had taught Ruhi to use the camera recorder and the little one had recorded every fascinating thing she had seen which included Mihir and Mihika doing god knows what, Ruhi dressing Ishita up or picking out her outfit, Bala and Raman battling a video against Romi and Shravan who were soon joined by Ishita and the four of them had taken it upon themselves to teach Ishita how to game and given up soon after all while Ruhi who clung to Raman like a baby chimp commented on how her mom was so bad at gaming. And knowing Ishita and Raman it had turned into another challenge with Ishita taunting Raman that he clearly didn't learn his lesson from the Palak Panner fiasco and Raman quoting the Salsa and chess instances. Ishita ordered her Amma to forget her love for Kud Kud Kumar and prepare her worst case of Pyasam while Raman swore to whoever was listening that he feed this Madrasan a taazi tandoori murghi. Ishita's frustration saw new heights when Bala joined Raman's team leaving her with no known good player. Until Romi joined her and the challenge turned into a battle with every crossing new heights of stupidity until Vandita confiscated the controllers claiming that she wanted to see neither Raman or Ishita hospitalized. She also pulled at Bala and Romi's ears for supporting Raman and Ishita's stupidity while Raman gave Ishita the I-am-watching-you finger movements and she rolled her eyes at him and then Ruhi and Shravan demanded for pyasam causing Ishita to chuckle, Raman to comment saying tujhe toh mein tandoori khilake rahunga' and Ishita to mutter that she'll like to see him try when she had an army ready only for a very brash Simmy to ask them to cut it out handing Ananya over to Raman who spent most of his evening pacifying the kid as Ishita focused her attention on Shravan and Ruhi who were at war with each other yet again.
If Raman had to be asked which was the beautiful footage he had watched in the past few hours he would undoubtedly choose the one with Ishita's Godh Bharai - a ceremony his grandparents and their parents had agreed on having days after their official' marriage. Days had been hectic then, they had work to manage, followed by two weddings, court proceedings, a whole community to trick and evading the media. And it was getting to both of them. They couldn't meet Ruhi and neither could they disclose their circumstances. The Godh Bharai would officialize Ishita's status as Ruhi's mother in the community and Shagun having refused to do one Ishita would truly be Ruhi's mother in the eyes of his extended family and he knew how much it meant to her. He also knew they were also her fears coming true. She was cranky, scared and unbearable to be around while their families had obsessed over every tiny detail, Ishita confronted her fears. He had taken those days off, something he didn't do even for the wedding, as he joined in her self pity. It was just them against everything they stood against.
"What if I fail to be a good mother," she had asked him looking at him straight in the eye.
And in that moment she wasn't the annoying Madrasan he married but rather the innocent crush he met years ago. He believed in fate and he believed in her love for Ruhi.
Instead of answering her question or making up a reply he had changed the reference of her question.
"What if I turn out to be a terrible father," he remembered asking her as he held her hands.
"That you are, you have so much to work on Raman," she had chuckled.
"And I have the best teacher," he had uttered the cringe worthy line as he quirked an eyebrow at her.
"Me?" she had asked and he had given her a lopsided smile.
"Stay with me," she requested.
And he did.
Through every step and milestone. From the simplest of the Puja's to the longest ceremony performed. And she clung to him like the plague and he let her.
They had done their best, he realized. Through the roughest patches they had kept their promise of being good parents. They treasured their Ruhi. And she still clung to him like she did that year only now she didn't need to request him to.
Now playing the first episode of Agent Carter, Raman pulled Ishita closer and she snuggled even closer letting him pull the comforter over them as he made himself comfortable. Assured by Mihir and Mihika that Ruhi was safe, feed and falling asleep Raman let the show play on as he himself fell asleep failing to notice the eyes that followed them. Eyes that belonged to Subbu.
And when the travelers returned home that night they were graced by Raman and Ishita cuddled together fast asleep. Amma and Appa chose to take care of Ruhi that night while someone tried to find out what they had been watching only to have it password protected. With no hopes of snooping around, the gossip mongers gossiping about what they walked in on. Once again failing to notice Subbu crouched in a corner in the adjoining room. Subbu had returned earlier with a sleeping Abhilan only to go unnoticed by Raman and Ishita. He had sworn to find out any wrong in the facade they put up only to be shocked by them for all the wrong reasons. Ishita had indeed met Raman when he was still married, she had carried his child before they were even married and then had decided to get married to him. What he couldn't pin point was why Ishita was so comfortable with a man she obviously had an affair with to get over him (Subbu) or why she still stayed with him. He hated those pictures that that leech was looking at as if he never saw them before. That pervert priding himself over the fact that his family or whoever knew that he had his way with Ishita. What he wouldn't get was how Ishita trusted this stranger to be out with her post midnight when she didn't trust Subbu a minute after night fall citing some curfew. Or why she had to sleep with a married man to prove her point when she didn't let Subbu even kiss her. Where the f**k were her Iyer values that she spread her legs for anyone ready to get between them? What Subbu couldn't get was why she chose a man who would never love her over Subbu who loved her since forever. That bitch. That bitch deserved the abuse they said she got from her drunk ass husband. She deserved every bit of it for choosing him over Subbu. For choosing Raman over Subbu when Subbu loved her. When Subbu did everything to give her the future she had always wanted. When he had struggled to prepare the future they dreamed about all the time when she was out there f**king a married man. Now Subbu couldn't wait for that Raman to give her the same treatment he gave his wife. And then he'd have her begging on her feet for him - Subbu. And he didn't know what he'll have her do then. Probably have her as his mistress until he was done with that idiotic bimbo he had to tolerate these days. Oh, the options were limitless. And all Ishita had to do was wait for her perfect world to crash tainted by betrayal.
Writing in Hindi with auto correct is such a chore, I tell you. Especially when autocorrect fails to capitalize your I's.
Leave behind your comments and views. It's motivational.
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