Always and Forever
Part - 37: The Strings of Relationships

The sky turned to a pinkish hue, early morning golden sunlight filtering through the white fluffy clouds which were dotted by few colorful kites. Somewhere a distant music system boomed with Ashiqui songs, loud enough for Naina to hear it as soon as she woke up. She rubbed her eyes and looked outside, a smile automatically curving her lips on seeing the kites. It was 15^th January, the second day of uttarayan or like people in Gujarat said “vaasi uttarayan.” She didn’t know why two days were celebrated for Uttarayan, and she had never tried to find out, but had always been happy for an additional holiday especially if it came mid-week. There was something she liked about a Wednesday or Thursday holiday, and this time it was just that, a mid-week festival holiday. It ideally shouldn’t matter to her now, because she no longer worked in the school, but still holiday meant Chachaji and Preeti would be home, and this time it meant Sameer would come again.

As she bathed in warm water, humming a soft melody, she recalled her escapade with Sameer yesterday. How had she gained so much courage to be so bold? But she didn’t need to think much to get to an answer. It was his love that let her do whatever she wanted, be however she wished. His gentle yet determined love was the sole reason behind the enormous change in herself from being a girl with almost zero idea of physical intimacy to a woman who was not shy to express her desires. Yes, she still blushed… and somehow she felt that Sameer liked this effect he still had on her. She was bold, yet his advances made her blush. Someday, she mused, she would like to make him blush. Oh yes… he blushed… but it would be for something she or someone said, usually while someone was teasing him… He had never yet blushed on her advances… flummoxed, yes… but not blushed.

She wiped herself with a towel, reflecting how ignorant she was earlier about her own body. She had never known that his warm palm on her belly could make the muscles contract, had not known that a gentle flick of his thumb could harden her nipples, had never imagined that her body was capable of so many responses. Whenever she was with Sameer, it seemed as if her body pulsed to the rhythm his fingers created.

Yesterday, he had been so gentle. She didn’t even have one single mark on her body. Not that he left marks every time, but she had felt that she had provoked him and enticed him to a new extent yesterday, yet he had been careful of the time and mindful of the marks. She had enjoyed it, but she enjoyed it all the more when he would be also lost in whatever they were doing. Marks weren’t a necessity of passion, but she could tell the difference in the way he would be, in the way he would touch her and kiss her. Yesterday, even though they didn’t have much time, he didn’t have that urgency to possess which he had displayed on the day of accident, his movements had been controlled, and he had been aware of surroundings. His ability to control astounded her. Had she been in his place, she was sure they would have already made love by now. The sudden thought of Sameer being ignorant and her teaching him made her giggle. It would have been so funny if she had had to teach him how to kiss, or more than that just convey the message that she wanted to kiss him.

Just then, there was knock on the door, and Preeti’s sleepy voice grumbled, “oye tu kitna nahayegi? Ya bathroom me bhi jiju ke sapne dekh rahi hai?”

Naina chuckled as she pulled on her dress, thinking how true that was. There wasn’t a single place where Sameer would leave her thoughts.

As she helped Chachiji in cooking bread pakoda for breakfast, a small treat for everyone, the phone rang. Naina smiled, and rushed outside to pick it up, “Good Morning Sameer.”

His lazy voice resonated from the other end, “haaye… subah subah itne pyaar se naam leke maarne ka iraada hai kya.”

She giggled, “pyaar ka pata nahi, par kisike andaaz aaj thode badle badle lag rahe hai.”

He smiled at how she could always sense his moods, “woh toh hai… aaj din hi aisa hai.”

“Firse patang udaane ki itni khushi”, she teased.

He chuckled, “nahi… aaj hamara living room ka saara naya furniture aa raha hai.”

Her excited squeal nearly hurt his ears, and he pulled away the receiver, shaking his head at it. He could also hear a few loud voices in background all enquiring about why she was literally screaming. Yeh Agarwal khandaan koi kaam shanti se nahi karte. He fondly mused about the ‘always little more than required reactions’ from his sasuralwale, and then waited for her to calm down and speak. It took her another minute, and then she asked, “kab aayega? Aur aaj kaise? Mera matlab… aaj toh har dukaan bandh hogi na.”

Trust her to ask logical questions first even in excitement. “Haan dukaan toh badh hogi”, he replied, “lekin aaj bilkul traffic nahi hoga na, toh woh log bade wale pieces bhijwa rahe hai.”

She asked further, “aur baki ka? Bedroom aur study ka bhi toh aayega na.”

He smiled, “haan of course aayega… par usme aur 2-3 din lag jayenge.”

“Thike”, she replied and then frowned, “par Sameer… Furniture aaj aayega toh ghar pe kaun hoga?”

Now she comes to the point, he thought, “mere alawa aur kaun hoga? Yahi batane ke liye toh phone kiya hai… Rohan aur Mummy aa jayenge… Main dopahar tak aaunga.”

Her face fell, “par aaj to Munna, Pandit, Swati sab aane wale hai… aur tum nahi rahoge toh mazaa kaise aayega?”

“Aree, usme kya hai”, he tried to pacify her, “subah ka time tum sab log patang udaana… Waise bhi Sameer Maheshwari patang udaata hai toh sabki patang kaat deta hai. Toh jab tak main nahi hun tab tak baki sab uda lenge.”

“Hamesha apne muh miya mithu”, she mumbled.

He frowned, “kya? Konsi bhasha me baat kar rahi ho? Naina… Hindi me bolona…”

She bit her lip for a moment, and then laughed out loud, memories of school and college flooding her. He rarely used this phrase these days, but well… somethings never changed. Maybe she should speak more such idioms, just to hear his confused voice and his cute expressions as his brows would wrinkle, and lips curl is puzzlement, he would scratch his head and then ask her to speak in Hindi. Calming down she explained, “hindi me hi bola maine. Mera matlab tha ke hamesha khud hi apni tareef karte ho.”

He grinned and teased, “ab biwi nahi karti toh khud hi kar leta hun.”

“Sameer tum…”, she began but trailed off on seeing her family still standing nearby, eagerly listening to her side of the conversation, and she blushed.

Clueless about her condition, he continued teasing her, “main kya… bolona sweetheart.”

She slowly mumbled, “kuch nahi. Uhh… aap lunch toh karoge na.”

There was a prolonged silence at the other end before he started sniggering, “aap… oh wow Naina… parivaar ke saamne itni sharafat, aur akele me toh…”, he dropped his voice a few decibels imitating her moaning tone, “Sameer aur.”

Her face flushed as she disconnected the phone suddenly, and he toppled over on the sofa laughing hard. He had not noticed before how Naina would refer to him as “aap” or rather with additional respect in-front of family. She had smartly avoided detection, but that day when she had talked to his mother he had heard the unhe, and today her family must have been listening on so she had suddenly switched from tum to aap. It was so odd to listen when she addressed him like that; there had never been these formalities between them, after all they had been classmates and friends first before being lovers. But he also found it cute… The sudden shift or the consciousness with which she addressed him in-front of families told him of how their equations had changed from lovers to husband-wife. And well… he couldn’t let his wife feel embarrassed. With that thought in mind, he dialed her number again knowing very well that she would still be waiting beside the phone, probably after shooing away her family from there.

As soon as she picked up, he said, “Hi Sweetheart.”

A minute passed and then she asked, “main nahi hoti toh?”

He smiled, “mujhe tumhari awaz ki zarurat nahi hai yeh jaanne ke liye ke phone pe tum ho.” Not waiting for her to reply, he continued, “bhaga diya sabko?”

She huffed, “haan… tum ruko zara… aaj kal thoda zyada hi chedne lage ho.”

He chuckled, “mazaa aata hai. Ab suno… lunch ke liye wait mat karna. Yahan furniture 11 baje ke baad aayega, toh set karne me kitna time lagega pata nahi. Tum kha lena, main bhi yahan kuch kha lunga.”

She sighed, “thike. Par jaldi aana aur sambhalke aana.”

“Yes madam”, he smiled, “aur kuch?”

“I love you”, she whispered. He could never stop the grin that always spread across his face whenever he heard these three words, and neither could he stay without replying, “I love you too.”

Swati, Munna and Pandit arrived just before breakfast, and were overjoyed on seeing the bread pakoda treat. Vishakha and Rohan arrived thirty minutes after they had finished their breakfast, and Chachiji said that they could have come earlier as breakfast was for everyone.

Vishakha smiled, “jaanti hun aapne bulaya tha, lekin wahan Sameer akela reh jaata na, aur Ramdhari ki chutti hai, isiliye ghar pe hi breakfast bana liya tha aaj.”

Naina smiled, knowing how happy Sameer would have been, this was what he had craved for once – the understanding and love of his mother, he had wished his mother won’t always leave him to fend for himself, wished she wouldn’t take him for granted. And finally he had found that equation with her. Lost in thoughts she queried, “aloo paratha banaya tha mummy?”

Vishakha looked surprised, “haan… Sameer ne wahi maanga… par tumhe kaise pata?”

Her eyes were moist as she replied, “woh… Sameer ne mujhe bataya tha ke jab woh Ahmedabad shift huye, tab aap unko lene aai thi, aur aloo paratha banaye the breakfast me… par…”

“Par woh kha nahi paaya”, Vishakha finished her statement, “meri wajah se.”

Naina recovered from her memories, realizing that unknowingly she was scratching some old wounds. She tried to cheer her up, “aree nahi… ghar pe nahi khaya toh kya hua, aloo paratha toh zarur khaya tha… usi din school me mera tiffin churake kha gaye.”

Vishakha was puzzled, “par tab toh Sameer ne school me jaana shuru hi nahi kiya tha.”

Rohan interrupted ecstatically, “haan… par bhai Munna se milne gaye the. Wahi din hai na yeh bhabhi?”

Naina nodded and laughed, “haan wahi din hai.”

Vishakha enquired as to how Rohan knew about it, and soon everyone launched into the explanation of how they had narrated their tale in Mt. Abu. Another moment missed from her son’s life, Vishakha thought, but this time she didn’t let the gloom settle in. She knew she hadn’t asked, and she also knew that whenever she would both Naina and Sameer would gladly tell her about their love story. As everyone moved up the terrace, Vishakha slowly asked Naina, “tumko pata hai na ke Sameer ab tak paratha roll karke khata hai?”

Naina laughed, “haan jaanti hun. Kabhi kabhi roti-sabji bhi waise khate hai, par main kuch bolti nahi. Chachiji se bachpan me sikha tha, apno ke saath khana dil se khana chahiye, tareeke se nahi. Sameer aisi harkate parivaar ke saamne hi karte hai, unke clients aur colleagues ke saath toh aap unko dekhengi toh heraan ho jayengi.”

Vishaka smiled watching Naina move up the stairs, slightly amazed at how simply Naina had driven the point home for her. This morning when she had seen Sameer eating like that, she had almost been on the verge of telling him to eat properly, but something in her heart had stopped her, and she had decided to ask Naina about it. She had been right. If she had rebuked Sameer today, then maybe all the carefully built blocks of their relationship would have crumbled again. Naina had so simply explained that people let out the childish part of themselves only in-front of their loved ones, just like Sameer did to her and to Naina. She had never understood this, and had considered it his insolence, but Naina had chosen to ignore the face-value of manners and focus on his heart instead.

The kite flying session was almost boring for Naina, without Sameer she couldn’t fly kite, but she did her duty to keep a watch on Preeti and Rohan, who in their festive joy kept drifting towards each other quite often. Vishakha was slightly surprised on seeing the reserved Rohan laughing so freely with Preeti, but she just considered it Naina’s magic, her would-be daughter-in-law had indeed woven the strings of family perfectly.

At the other end, Sameer opened his doors to a huge truck full of furniture. As men jumped down from the truck and started to open the tarpaulin covering the pieces, it took him a moment to finally realize that ‘it was happening.’ Finally… finally, all the things they had planned were coming together. The bathroom was done, the house was painted, most of the shopping done, the wedding venue was already there, the reception venue was final, caterer and decorator were booked, wedding cards were in printing already, the music band for baraat was reserved, and now… now he was starting to set up new things inside the house to welcome his bride. He started grinning nonsensically, and didn’t pay much attention when the men asked them to move.

A slight nudge and a sharp command of “sahab hatiye raaste me se”, made him come out of his reverie and he made way for the men to enter. He had already made arrangements with the same movers to take away the old pieces of furniture, and hence they worked swiftly to almost empty the living room. They spent the next hour and half in arranging the new pieces, the new resplendent sofa, the polished oak dining table with Chippendale style chairs, the open wooden cabinet near the wall which would now accommodate the TV and a couple of other things, the sturdy center table, and a long standing corner shelf that Naina had ordered. He didn’t know what the use of that one was, but he trusted her to know what she wanted to do with it. For now, it just looked good, empty and shining, with its intricate design.

By the time the men left it was already 1:30pm, and he stood in the center of the living room, watching the familiar place with unfamiliar things. It looked new and beautiful, and he desperately wished he had Naina by his side to admire this view. Just them and their home as they had wished to design it. And just like that, the urge to be with her became urgent, resulting in him deciding to skip lunch and leave. He wanted to meet her as soon as possible.

Naina was sitting in the shade, munching on a peanut chikki, when Chachiji came upstairs with a jug of water, and said, “Naina beta, damadji… mera matlab Sameer aa gaya hai.”

Her face lit up like the sun, and she immediately rushed downstairs with the half eaten chikki in her hand. He was standing in the living room, frowning at the swing for some reason, she closed the door behind her and hurried towards him. He turned to her, his face breaking into a smile, and she flung herself in his arms. Catching her to himself, he lifted her off her feet, burying his face against her neck, and mumbled, “I missed you.”

She kissed his cheek, and laughed, “sirf subah ke liye hi toh gayab the.”

He set her down on her feet, and frowned, “bol toh aise rahi ho jaise tumne mujhe miss nahi kiya.” He knew she would say she didn’t, and he also knew she would be completely lying before accepting that she did miss him; normally he would have enjoyed the banter but today he had something more important to tell her, so he hushed her with a finger on her lips. Gazing into her startled eyes, he said, “maine tumko miss kiya jab living room me khade hoke hamare chune hue naye furniture ko dekh raha tha. Sab kuch bahot khubsurat tha, par tumhare bina adhura sa tha.”

Her eyes misted slightly but her tone was jovial when she asked how the sofa looked and if the dining table was really as beautiful as it looked in the picture, and several other questions, each of which he patiently answered because he understood how much she would have wanted to see things with her own eyes too. He wished that the mobiles would come equipped with camera so that just like he could now talk to her from anywhere, he would also have been able to show her the picture of the living room instantly. Sameer had no idea that his wish, which was solely made for making Naina smile, would soon come true in some part of the world and then filter its way to India as well.

Meanwhile, as he was lost in his own world, she slid up to him and lifted on her toes, wrapping her arms around his neck. He blinked and looked down at her, and she murmured, “bedroom ka furniture aayega tab saath me dekhenge.”

He smiled, “haan, bilkul” and leaned down to capture her lips in a soft kiss. She was wearing a leafy green churidaar today, with copper shaded earrings, again something he had gifted to her in college. He just loved when she wore those pieces he had bought so many years ago, and he sometimes wondered how she still had all of them. Lifting his head, he frowned at her, licking his own lips, “chikki jaisa taste aa raha hai aaj.”

She laughed, “ayega hi na… Chikki hi toh kha rahi thi.” Saying so she opened her fist, which still concealed the half-eaten peanut chikki, and he grinned picking it from her palm and popping it in his mouth. She poked him, “woh mera tha.”

“Main kha gaya ab”, he mumbled while still chewing, “waise bhi bahot bhuk lagi hai… aur kuch hai khane ko?”

Her eyes widened, “tumne lunch nahi kiya? Tumne kaha tha tum lunch karke aaoge.”

He pouted, “tumse milna tha jaldi se… kaha to aate hi ke tumko miss kar raha tha.”

“Uff”, she put her hands on her hips, “tum kabhi nahi sudhroge… maine subah hi pucha tha na tumko?”

“Aree toh ghar me kuch nahi hai kya”, he argued, “hamesha toh itna saara khana banta hai iss ghar me.”

She snapped back, “bana toh aaj bhi tha… par shayad tum bhul rahe ho ke Rohan, Munna, Pandit teeno hai… tumko lagta hai ke khana bachega?”

He scowled, and muttered, “koi chance nahi…” Then he rubbed his tummy, “par Naina… sach me bhul lagi hai. Subah teen parathe khaye the bas.”

If it had been someone else, she would have thought that three aloo parathas would be enough even for lunch. But this was Sameer, she knew his appetite. Hence she asked him to come into the kitchen, and pulled out the boxes of snacks and chikkis, “main kuch sochti hun, tab tak tum yeh khao.”

He made a face, “nashte se pet nahi bharega, aur kal se chikki kha khake thak gaya hun. Itna hi meetha khana hai toh mera wala meetha zyada achcha hai khana.”

She frowned in confusion, “tumhara wala meetha?”

He smirked and dipped his head, pecking her on lips, “yeh wala.”

She blushed, but pushed him away, “asli khana chahiye ke isi meethe se kaam chalana hai?”

He sighed and moved back from her, sitting on chair, “khana chahiye… bhuke pet toh romance bhi nahi hota.”

She chuckled and opened the fridge to check what could she cook quickly. There was some spinach and cabbage which she immediately rejected, a box containing paneer caught her attention. She pulled it out, wondering if she can make parathas. But he had eaten paratha just this morning. She was still debating when he spoke up, “aree itna kya soch rahi ho? Bread nahi hai kya ghar pe… Aloo sandwich bana do na.”

She rolled her eyes, “firse aloo? Kitna aloo kha sakte ho tum!”

He grinned, “breakfast, lunch aur dinner sabme chalega. Please Naina… jaldi karo na.”

“Haan haan”, she pulled out the pack of bread, “samajh gai ke tum aloo ke deewane ho. Par itna aloo bhi achcha nahi hai sehat ke liye. Sandwich hi bana deti hun, par paneer ka.”

He wrinkled his nose, “paneer bhala kon bread ke saath khata hai?”

“Khate hai”, she affirmed, “maine magazine me recipe dekha tha. Iska matlab kahin koi toh khata hi hoga.”

He sighed, looking at the basket full of potatoes, knowing he was not going to get to eat even a bit of them, “thike… aloo se zyada bada tumhara deewana hun… jo khilaogi kha lunga.”

She laughed as she crumbled the paneer, and then quickly chopped onions, tomato and coriander. Mixing them all in a bowl, she tossed the spices she remembered from the recipe, and added a dash of lemon. There was some coriander chutney left over from breakfast, and she used that to layer on bread, and filled a generous portion of paneer, and covered it with another piece of bread. Sameer rubbed his belly vigorously as Naina set the skillet on the burner and the smell of buttered toast wafted in the air. She put one sandwich on a dish, added ketchup on the side and gave it to him. He eagerly picked the hot sandwich up, and bit into it without even waiting a minute, and then made a surprised sound, blowing air through half-open mouth.

Turning away after setting another sandwich on the gas, she saw his condition and her eyes widened, she snatched the dish back from him, “Sameer kya kar rahe ho! Dekha na abhi garam garam gas pe se utara…”

He somehow chewed the hot piece quickly and swallowed it, “sorry… bhuk lagi hai.”

She shook her head, and lifted the upper slice of the sandwich, blew air to cool it down. Seeing him fidgeting, she handed over the plate to him, and instructed, “dheere se.”

He didn’t want to burn his mouth again, and took care to take small bites. Naina tried cooling down the sandwiches considerably herself before handing over to him. On the third sandwich, he gobbled big bites, and spoke around a mouthful, “ummm… bahot tasty hai.”

The words were hardly decipherable, but Naina understood he was praising the sandwiches. Flipping the last sandwich on the skillet, she thought, ‘kaun kahega yeh business tycoon Sameer Maheshwari hai… Harkate toh kabhi kabhi paanch saal ke bachcho jaisi karta hai.’ But as she cooled down the sandwich for him, and he insisted that she feed it to him with her own hands, she smiled and mused, ‘par inn adaao pe bhi pyaar aata hai.’

He wrapped his hands loosely around her waist, as she fed him, and asked, “kya sochke muskura rahi ho?”

She blew on the sandwich, and held it for him to take a bite, “yahi ke shaadi hone wali hai par fir bhi bachapana nahi gaya tumhara.”

He thought about what she said, and then asked softly, “tum chahti ho ke chala jaaye?”

She dipped and kissed the top of his head, “bilkul bhi nahi. Mujhe mera Sameer jaisa hai waisa hi pasand hai.”

He grinned up at her, his eyes twinkling; she was the only one who had always accepted him just as he was, with all the good and bad. After finishing the sandwich, he washed his hand and mouth, while Naina cleared up the kitchen. As she wiped the countertop and washed her hands in the kitchen sink, he came and hugged her from behind, asking in astonishment, “hum itne der se neeche akele hai, koi bulane bhi nahi aaya?”

She chuckled, “tumne sabko yaqeen dila diya hai ke hum pati-patni jaise hi hai, isiliye koi itna sochta nahi hai ab.”

He grinned, turning her to face him, “toh fir toh main ab lunch ke baad apna meetha kha sakta hun.”

She only got to utter the first syllable of his name before he cupped her face and sealed their lips. The kiss started slow and soothing, him relishing the taste of her lips which still had some trace of jaggery. How many chikki she ate, he wondered. One big palm slid from her cheek to her throat, his fingers massaging the taut skin, tilting her head further. Sharp teeth nipped at her lower lip, and she gasped, automatically allowing him the entrance he demanded. As the kiss deepened second by second, her scalp tingled, her flesh burned, the soft cotton churidaar seeming to be too harsh against her sensitive skin. He wasn’t even doing anything, or rather he did everything, she mused, as he held her captive against the countertop and his body moved rhythmically matching the strokes of his tongue, resulting in his chest rubbing against her breasts, his hardening erection pulsing near her belly. Her response to him flooded through her body, and she squirmed unable to decide whether to part her legs or clench her thighs. She was astonished and fascinated, till date she had thought he could do magic only with his mouth and fingers, but no… his whole body seemed to work in tandem. This man was pure magician, and she… she was the trick he played every time.

She felt dizzy when he finally left her mouth, and gasped for breath. It was a kiss… just a kiss, she tried to convince herself. But then why did it feel it was so much more? Did he feel the same way as her? Eager to know she placed her palm over his heart, and the thundering beats satisfied her, because this meant for him too it was much more than a simple kiss.

Enthralled, she asked in a whisper, “yeh kaise kiya?”

She didn’t have to elaborate; he knew what she was asking. Smirking with pride, he winked, “seekh jaogi yeh bhi.”

Fifteen minutes later, they went on the terrace, and Sameer was greeted with his friends jumping onto him. Indeed somethings never changed, Naina thought, recalling how the trio used to behave exactly like this in school as well. The remaining afternoon and majority of evening went by like that; everyone wanted to take full advantage of the sunlight to fly as many kites as they could. Chachiji went downstairs to prepare dinner for everyone, and when Naina tried to follow her, Vishakha held her back, “tum yahi ruko. Khane ka intezaam hum kar lenge.”

Naina smiled, “Chachiji aapko nahi banana degi.”

Vishakha quirked an eyebrow, “banane ki baat kaun kar raha hai? Main to order karneki baat kar rahi hun. Akhir Belaji ko bhi tyohaar achche se manana chahiye na… Kitchen me kyun rahe woh?”

Grinning wide, Naina nodded, and said, “thike… par fir bhi main aati hun unko manane.”

Sameer overheard their conversation, and gave his wallet to Naina, “naa maane toh bolna maine kaha hai.”

There was no need for him to explain why he gave the wallet to Naina. She was his wife according to him, and had every right to access his wallet. Secondly, he was the son of this house, while a payment from his mother would be an obligation, he could spend freely on this family. He wouldn’t think twice, and nobody would think of questioning him. Vishakha realized that how even without being part of a proper family since childhood, Sameer had somehow not just learned to fulfil his responsibilities, but had also helped tighten the strings of the two families which Naina had woven so devotedly.

When the sun finally set over the horizon, they boys pulled out the sky lanterns or lantern kites or as they said in Gujarat, fanas. Pandit and Sameer flew the kites while turn by turn everyone lighted a lantern and tied it to the thin threads. Sameer watched Naina scribble something over one lantern, and when she lighted it, he realized that she had drawn a heart with their initials in it. He grinned as she tied it, and let loose of more thread. As the lantern flew up in the dark sky, she inched closer to him, and he wrapped an arm around her pulling her in-front of him, and handed the thread to her. She was encased in his arms, and he didn’t step back, not even when she was pressed totally to him. He tilted his head a bit, touching her hair, and together they looked up at the distant gleaming lantern, and even though they couldn’t see from so far, they knew it was highlighting the heart which Naina had drawn.

Conversations after a scrumptious dinner spanned across several topics, most prominent being the wedding. Their friends had already left few minutes ago, and now Sameer waited for two topics to be discussed. But before that, Vishakha pulled out an envelope, and passed it on to Naina, gesturing her check it. Her eyes widened on seeing the contents, and she didn’t know what to say.

Taiji as usual queried, “oh bai… aisa kya hai isme jo teri aankhe button jaisi ho gai hai?”

Preeti leaned over to see, and so did Sameer. He tried to bite back his laughter understanding why Naina had gone so silent, but Preeti squealed, “parlor!”

Vishakha quickly explained, “pre-wedding aur bridal package hai Naina ke liye. Ab dulhan ko thoda toh araam milna chahiye na.”

Taiji was shocked, but sensing an opportunity, she started speaking, “neva! Main toh hamesha kehti thi ke haldi-chandan ka lep laga liye kare. Bholuram ke saamne thodi toh dhang ki dikhe.”

Sameer stiffened for a moment, and before Vishakha could speak, he declared, “Naina jaisi hai mere liye toh iss duniya ki sabse khubsurat ladki hai. Aap kahe to abhi inhi kapdo me le jaau dulhan banake.”

Bela and Anand smiled, and Naina placed her palm over his arm to calm him down. Vishakha added to what her son said, “haan bilkul. Parlor jaane ka matlab yeh nahi hai ke Naina me kuch kami hai. Yeh toh bas har dulhan ha haq hai. Aur maine socha main hi usko yeh tohfe me de du.”

Taiji though disappointed was not dissuaded, “par hamare ghar me beti ko shaadi se pehle aise bahar nikalne nahi diya jaata.”

Vishakha was unfazed, “mujhe pata hai. Tabhi toh maine aisa parlor book kiya hai jo sab kuch ghar pe aake karenge. Shaadi ke ek hafte pehle se.” Then she turned towards Bela and said, “main soch rahi thi ke Naina ko apne saath kal le jaau, agar aapki ijazat ho toh. Parlor me se usko kya kya karwana hai sab dekh le woh, aur Sameer ke liye bhi shopping khatam kar lete hai. Bahot zyada kuch baki nahi hai, bas sabse zaruri shaadi ki sherwani hai.”

Bela looked towards Anand who nodded, and so she too agreed, “ji behenji. Damadji ki sherwani ke liye toh hum bhi aapse baat karne wale the. Aapki nazar me koi tailor ho toh kahiye, hum unke paas se order deke silva lenge. Ya, aap kal Naina aur Sameer ke saath hi dekh aaiye… Bachcho ki pasand hamari pasand.”

Vishakha knew tailors of course, but wondered about the budget. Not knowing what to do, she looked at Sameer, who shook his head slightly, indicating that she need not mention anything. Anand saw this and smiled, “haan Bela theek keh rahi hai. Aap Naina aur Sameer ke saath dekh aaiye, waise bhi Naina hi toh shayad pasand karegi. Aur baki cheezo ki fikar mat kijiye, Naina sab jaanti hai… maine baat kar li hai usse.”

Vishakha understood that this meant Naina knew how much money to spend, and thought she would discuss it with her tomorrow when they were alone, definitely not in-front of her Taiji. Moving onto the next topic, she said, “thike jaisa aap log kahe. Aur ek baat aur karni thi aap sabse… Naina ka passport bhi banvane de dete hai.”

“Oh bai, passport ka kya kaam ab ise?” Taiji gasped.

Naina glanced towards Sameer in surprise, and he winked, leaning back on the sofa, absolutely confident that his mother would handle Taiji. Vishakha nearly rolled her eyes at this frequent disruption, “passport toh pehchaan patra hota hai, sabke paas hona chahiye. Aur Sameer ki business ke wajah se saal me ek-do baar India de bahar kahin aana jaana hota rahega, toh Naina yahan akeli thodi na rahegi.”

Bela tried to say something, but Taiji overrode her, “Bholuram ka itna bada ghar toh hai… Warna mayke me aake reh legi.”

Vishakha sighed, “dekhiye behenji… Naina ka passport toh shaadi ke baad bhi ban hi jayega. Aapko wakai lagta hai Sameer use yahan pe ya ghar pe akela chodke jayega? Abhi se banane ko bas isiliye bol rahi hun ke shaadi ke baad agar bachche kahin ghumne jaaneka plan banaye to passport ke wajah se koi rukawat na ho.”

Taiji’s eyes widened as she caught on to the meaning of the words. Preeti giggled; Naina blushed; Rohan tried to control his smile; and Sameer flashed a lopsided grin on seeing his mother effectively shut Taiji up. Before the matter could escalate to embarrassing proportion, Tauji declared that he had no problem with Naina’s passport application. Vishakha thanked him and said that Sameer’s office would handle all the documentation and support Naina for the application process.

And then came the final matter of the evening, as Vishakha extended a dinner invitation to the entire Agarwal family for the next day, “ghar ka renovation khatam ho gaya, aur aaj living room ka naya furniture bhi aa gaya. Sameer ki bahot dino se ichcha thi ke aap sabko ek baar khane pe bulaye. Main toh do din baad chali jaungi, toh socha kal ka din sabse achcha hai. Aur Sankranti ke baad ka din hai toh shubh bhi hai. Lage haatho aap log Naina ka ghar bhi dekh lenge.”

Once again Bela and Anand smiled at how Vishakha addressed the Maheshwari bungalow as Naina’s home, and Taiji’s mouth twisted with jealousy. After a few deliberations and customary refusals, Tauji agreed. In all this, Sameer had totally enjoyed the way his mother handled the situations and got him what he had asked for, and also noticed that Rakesh Sir who would be usually either glaring at everyone or be totally disinterested was actually paying attention to whatever was being discussed. By the end of it, every person involved had different reactions and contemplations –

Bela and Anand thought about what they should take tomorrow to Maheshwari house.

Taiji scanned through her sarees and furiously muttered about the lack of a new saree and also expressed displeasure on Naina’s good fortune.

Tauji was pleased at the chance of being able to visit one of the richest businessman’s house, and wondered how he would spread this news in the community.

Rakesh paced in his room seeming to be lost in some internal struggle.

Preeti hugged her sister ecstatically, and chattered non-stop about how excited she was to see Naina’s sasural.

Rohan felt that Preeti also coming to this house might be lucky for their future relationship; after all, this house had seen the blooming love of his bhai-bhabhi.

Vishakha smiled to herself knowing that even though Sameer had just wanted to show Naina’s family members the house, she had held back one piece of surprise from him as well.

Sameer looked around the house and their room, and decided that he knew just the thing to make tomorrow’s visit even more interesting.