The night after - IshRa OS | Final Part: Page 13 [23/08] - Page 5

He stepped out of the washroom, threw the hand-towel on the chair and walked towards the bed, when he stopped in his tracks, retraced his steps, picked up the hand-towel and went and hanged it inside the washroom. Never had he done that before, but his wife's habits were now getting on to him.

He saw her lying on the bed, with a slight smile on her face. He shook his head and lay down next to her. He shifted himself closer, wrapped her in his arms, whispered, "Good night, Madrassan." As he said so, he couldn't resist himself from kissing her on her neck and cheek. He felt her stiffen for a fraction of a second, and then she melted in his arms. He could feel her cheekbones against his as she smiled her widest in her sleepy state. She's probably getting used to this, to us, he thought.

Crazy. That's the word that describes her perfectly. She's a complete goner, and he is now equally gone too, maybe farther than she has. She's an enigma, always reacting in the most unexpected manner on the most unexpected things. Calm as a cucumber in a storm, but a storm herself otherwise. Here he thought she was trying to fit in the who's who of Page 3. Turns out she wanted to impress him, thinking he wasn't interested in her. How did this idiotic thought even enter that little brain of hers? One day, he'll find out and he'll freeze her brain forever.

But it is this idiocy of hers that has him captivated. She has rubbed off on him big time, and he's now equally crazy, about her. Truly, madly, deeply crazy, for his madrassan. He doesn't know when, or where, or how did he fall in love with her, but he was already deep in the trenches when the realization stuck. "In love". For the past few months, he has begun to understand what people mean when they say loving someone is different from being in love. He has a past, where he loved someone from the bottom of his heart, but this time, he is in love, in love with his mature-yet-childish, docile-yet-fiery person of his wife.

How she became his wife is a different story altogether. If, while getting married a year and six months ago, someone had told him she would one day become his life, he would have punched that person in the face. He was never more wrong about anyone as he was about her. She entered his protected bubble that he had put up to save his own self from the cruel world, and burst it inside out, drenching him with her love and more.

He thought women were not to be trusted. The one thing she brought with herself in this marriage was trust. He thought nobody could ever love him, care for him. Her unsaid concern shouted from the top of her actions. He thought he would never get to be his daughter's father the way his little one wanted him to be. She made him Ruhi's most favorite person in the world. He thought his son would never address him as his father, would become a juvenile criminal. She brought his Adi home and transformed him into the child he ought to be. He thought he could live alone for the lifetime. She made it impossible for him to breathe without her.

They both were not living until they started living. She became his rock, his biggest strength, his strongest support. They had now found and fitted the only missing piece in their marriage and nothing could have been more perfect. She proved herself to be the perfect daughter-in-law, an adoring mother, a caring wife, and, made herself the love of his life. How he once detested love, and how she brought him to his knees with her love. In fact, this was not just love. His relationship with her was nothing like anything he had ever experienced or observed. Theirs was a bone-crushing, soul-shattering dependency on each other. They were not lovers, they were soul-mates. And last night, their souls merged into a single being, literally making them "do jism ek jaan".

Hiding his face in the nape of her neck, he felt truly thankful to Him, for sending her in his life. As he buried himself in her, she tightened her hold on him too, the same way she claimed her hold on his being last night. Possessive, jealous, hurt, she cooked up things in her mind, exaggerated by his unexplainable behavior, and they ended up being together as man and wife.

He had been wanting to take their relationship ahead for these last few months, after they had realized and confessed. He took one step forward and two steps back, always wondering whether she was ready. Even though she always said she was and never backed out, he had that nagging doubt at the back of his mind. Maybe it was her past that made him conscious.

But the previous night, for the first time ever, she staked a claim on him as his wife, and he loved it. She could not see him with anyone else, could not hear him talking about another woman, and hit him hard for daring to do so. She was all 'Jhansi ki rani' until she was not, until he showed her how much he desired her. If only the woman would have shut up in the first place, well then, he wouldn't have been able to see the fire in her eyes. Once again, he was wrong about her all along. She was ready in all respects, and he had proven to be an idiot.

When he woke up this morning, she was in his arms. She looked ethereal, holding his hands so close and firm, as if she would break into pieces if she let go of his hands, never knowing how she was the one holding himself glued up. How many times had he thought of waking up by her, but the reality was so much more beautiful that it took his breath away. He was blown away by how comfortable she was with him, with them. He had always thought that she, being from a traditional South Indian family, would feel a little awkward, a little shy after their first night, but here she was, casually answering him about breakfast, wrapping the blanket along her curves and getting up, like it was just another day. Later when he joked with her about their first night, she took everything in her stride. Blushed hard, but managed to answer without getting swallowed by embarrassment. She looked so sexy, and he loved this new, bold and confident madrassan. Once again, her reaction was unexpected, and he was caught unaware. He had realized long ago life would be interesting with her, but this was unexplored territory, and she stumped him. He knew now that this is how his life is going to be for every single day until he dies, and he wouldn't change a thing about it.

He had been running all his life away from what he didn't know, towards what he never realized, but right now, in this moment, with her in his arms once again, he felt at home. He nudged closer to her, waiting for another morning to wake up to her angelic face, knowing well that this is just the beginning to a series of new morning afters.