Only Mine Chapter 36: Realizations and Dreams

The sun shone bright over the Maheshwari bungalow making the white exterior wall gleam. Dressed in a cream colored kurta, Sameer Maheshwari stood in-front of the mirror in his room, his eyes fixed on the box wrapped with red gift paper. It was the gift they had bought for Deepika, but that would only be valid if his sister did tilak for him. After all these years, he really didn’t know if he should hope for it or not. Naina had told him that it was time for him to be a big brother… But were his siblings ready to accept him completely?

He combed his hair, his thoughts moving from his sister to his fiance. Naina… How was she? What was the situation at her home? He wished he could leave just now and go meet her. How her family could treat her so callously, he didn’t understand. Last night he had just barely woken her up to let her know that he had to leave… It had been 3am – extremely early for the day to start. But he knew that because of bhai dooj people could possibly wake up earlier than usual to start all the preparations. He had kissed her goodbye and assured that they would meet as soon as possible. He had already planned for a get-together this evening, so that Naina could escape from her home… But what about the morning? He couldn’t exactly go to her home right now, nor could he plan an outing… He had no idea how to deal with this problem…

On the other hand in Nirmal Jyoti society, Naina was standing in the balcony, combing her fingers through her long hair, trying to dry them in the sun. PB stood beside her, a worried expression on her face, “did you think anything?”

Naina shrugged, “not really… I don’t think anyone except Chachiji would ask me to perform bhai dooj. But I know I am going to say no.”

“And Pralay?” PB queried.

Naina sighed, “Pralay has no fault in whatever happened. I would happily do his tilak, but I know Taiji wouldn’t allow me to do that…”

PB looked on sadly as Naina dried her hair, hiding the pain inside her heart. Naina had always been a family oriented girl… She had loved her family, respected them, and held their teachings close to her heart. But in return she had always received rebuke, taunts, neglect and then finally distrust and heartbreak. Sameer had healed her but every trip to Ahmedabad, every hour she spent in this house, every harsh word she was subjected to made those old wounds bleed again. If only they hadn’t planned such a long trip.

Naina dressed up in an aqua blue churidar, pairing it with simple oxidized jewelry and bangles. However, even after she finished the final application of lipstick she had no inclination to go outside. She sat down on the bed, her thoughts wandering to Sameer. What was he wearing today? Had they already started the rituals? She wanted to call him but even for that she would have to step out to the living room, which she didn’t feel like doing at the moment. Sighing in defeat, she pulled out a book from the shelf and started to read. Just as she completed the second page of the novel, Preeti hollered her name from outside. Keeping the book aside, she reluctantly went to the living room only to find her family ready to start the rituals. Arjun and Pralay were seated on the sofa, while an aarti plate and dish of sweets was on the table. Preeti however stood by the door, “there’s someone to meet you.”

Perplexed, Naina moved to the door, “me?”

There, at the door, stood a driver she recognized from her previous trips to Maheshwari house. The man greeted her, and handed over an envelope. She read the letter inside with varying degrees of confusion at first which later was translated into elation. It was a letter from her mother-in-law asking her to come along for the bhai-dooj ritual at their home.

Naina asked the driver to wait downstairs for her, and then rushed to grab her purse. Coming back to the crowded living room, she informed PB that she had to go to Sameer’s home. Bela asked the reason, and after a glance at PB she told them, “since my and Sameer’s roka is done, it is custom for me to be seated with Sameer while Deepika does the bhai dooj tika for him.”

Bela agreed to this custom but asked if she left now what about the customs here in Agarwal house. Quirking her brow, she couldn’t stop the sarcasm in her tone, “do I have a brother here?” Several people gasped in outrage, but she continued, “I mean… if I remember correctly that relationship was cut off on my first Diwali trip from Mumbai.”

Anand stood up, his expressions full of regret, “beta… I know we all hurt you a lot… but I am sure Arjun didn’t mean it. You are his sister, why would he…”

“Chachaji”, she interrupted, “he meant every word he said… he called me an embarrassment to this family. And anyways… the brother I knew and respected was an honest and intelligent person who cared for others. This person in-front of me is a liar, cheater and he doesn’t care even a single bit about me or anyone. And he has proved this repeatedly. So I am sorry, even if you want me to do this ritual, I won’t…” Her eyes moved to the younger boy, who was looking at her with wide eyes, and she smiled, “Pralay… whatever happened in this house, I still consider you as my younger brother, but I don’t think your mummy would allow me to do your tilak. I am so sorry.”

Taiji proved her words to be right by immediately making a derisive sound and turned her face away from her. Naina shook her head, wished goodbye to PB & Preeti, and left from there.

Sameer hid the packet in his kurta pocket as he descended downstairs. Nanu spotted him immediately, “finally you are here… what took so long?”

“Nothing Nanu”, he replied, his eyes roving around, “where are the others?”

Just then Deepika came running into the room, followed by Rohan who was yelling at her, “stupid… idiot… give that back.”

Deepika laughed, “no… it’s for me… why should I give it back?”

Rohan caught up to her, grabbing her hand to wrench the blue packet back, “because I have to give this to you afterwards… not now.”

She pouted, “but… can’t you even tell me what you have got this time?”

Rohan shook his head, “nope… now go and eat bhai’s head… ask him about your gift.”

Deepika turned to look at her older brother standing near the stairs, grinned and happily skipped up to him, “Sameer bhaiya… what did you bring for me?”

Sameer blinked, “huh… I…”

She looked at his empty hands, and her face fell a little, but then she smiled again, “oh… it’s okay bhaiya… you can buy me a pen later. I really need a new one for exams.”

Sameer kept staring at his sister in mild shock… Here he had been so worried, constantly thinking if she would even do tilak for him, but it seemed as if he had nothing to worry about. She was talking about the tilak as if it was perfectly natural, as if she had been doing it for him since years. He smiled at the young girl, about to confirm that he had indeed gotten a gift for her, when suddenly there was the sound of the doorbell, and Deepika sprinted away with a happy whoop.

Sameer was confused, “why is she so excited?”

Rohan chuckled, “you will be excited too bhai…”

Before Sameer could ask why, Deepika skipped back into the living room, tugging along a laughing Naina behind her. His heart skipped several beats at the sight… Naina seemed to be sparkling or maybe something was wrong with his eyesight… Her dress, her bangles, the jhumkas in her ears, her lilting laughter… It seemed all the stars had suddenly decided to glitter in-front of his eyes. Rohan bumped against his shoulder, “so bhai… excited?”

Sameer drew in a shaky breath, “damn yes…”

With a mischievous glint in his eyes, Rohan moved forward, his arms open as if he would hug Naina, “bhabhi… so good to see you…”

Naina stared at him in surprised amusement, wondering what her would-be devar was up to. Just before Rohan could reach close enough to hug her, he was suddenly pushed to the side and she was instead enveloped in a familiar possessive hold, and a husky voice declared, “mine…”

A moment of silence, then Rohan and Deepika burst out laughing, while Naina blushed, held securely in the arms of a still frowning Sameer Maheshwari. Vishakha stepped out of the kitchen, her questioning gaze landing on her father, who gestured towards the couple with his eyes.

“Naina”, Vishakha called.

Sameer let out a soft ‘oof’ at the elbow on his stomach as Naina detangled herself from his arms, and moved towards his mother, bending to touch her feet. Vishakha blessed her and then stood surprised as her would-be daughter-in-law hugged her, whispering a thank you in her ear.

Sameer felt like he was witnessing a miracle as his mother’s face softened and she hugged Naina back. He swore his heart stopped beating for a moment… How he had craved for this same affection from his mother. And now he was seeing Naina getting it… But he didn’t mind… Rather he felt happy, relaxed, as if finally everything right was happening in his world. His eyes automatically moved to his Nanu, who had a similar expression of awe and happiness.

Right at that moment, Vikram Somani stepped down the stairs. Sameer stiffened… He waited for the peace to shatter, for the happiness to turn to chaos like it always had in his life. However, this time, the moment was broken not by a sharp comment or rebuke, but rather by a gleeful laughter from his mother and Naina as they shared some private joke. Sameer watched his step-father pause in his steps, and look at the laughing women… He watched as Mr. Somani’s eyes moved over Naina and then to his wife, lingering for long moments on the visage, and a corner of his mouth quirked in a smile. Sameer blinked in shock…

Rohan, having no reservation for Mr. Somani, unlike his elder brother, rushed up to his father, happily telling him how this year his bhabhi would also do his tilak. Sameer watched with helpless fascination as his nemesis, Mr. Somani smiled and nodded his head at his son’s obvious happiness. Rohan’s happiness at having two sisters was evident, and Mr. Somani’s pleasure at his son’s happiness was also as evident as the sun shining outside. Sameer felt dizzy for a moment…

Naina fluttered like a butterfly from his mother to his Nanu, taking his blessing as well, chattering about some food from Mumbai that they had missed to get him to taste. Nanu generously promised to come to Mumbai once more, this time just for Naina. Sameer smiled at the radiant happiness shining on his beloved’s face. In a few seconds his smile faltered slightly at the hesitance in Naina’s expression, and then turned to trepidation as Naina moved to take blessing from Mr. Somani.

If he dared to hurt his Naina, he would… he would… 

Before Sameer could come up with an apt punishment for his step-father, the man in concern looked at his wife, possibly for guidance, and on being graced with a smile from her, he gently placed a blessing hand on Naina’s head. The bride-to-be beamed at the man, and then turned to Sameer nearly blinding him with the wide illuminated smile. Sameer had to close his eyes for a second to take in the sight that he had seen, but he quickly opened them again afraid that if he shut his eyes for long then the circumstances would turn out to be a dream.

Naina came up to him, looping her hand around his arm, her eyes on his as she murmured, “it’s real.”

His eyes expressed the gratitude he felt in that moment. He had no idea how the tangled thread of relationships were easing at his home, but it was… and the only reason he could think of was Naina.

The morning seemed to pass by at astonishing speed as he watched the rituals with fascination. He sat still like a statue when Deepika did his tilak, his damp fingers clutching Naina’s hand in death grip. He had no idea what sweet his sister fed him or what his mother and Rohan blabbered the whole time. He handed over the gift-wrapped box to Deepika and she opened it to find two pairs of earrings and a couple of anklets… Her gasp of pure delight and the hug and smile she bestowed on him finally eased off a burden from his shoulders he had no idea he even carried. His grip on Naina relaxed and he rubbed his thumb over her knuckles as if apologizing for the painful pressure.

The lunch was, for a change, merry… Probably his first lunch with his mother on the same table where he didn’t have to hear any taunts. When he got to know that the dahi wale aloo was prepared by his mother, he didn’t hesitate in telling her that they were delicious, and in return he was graced with a genuine wide smile from her. Sameer and Rohan gorged on the variety of sweets that had been bought for today’s occasion, while their sister teased them about how they would grow a paunch very soon. “Poor bhabhi”, Deepika slyly commented. Naina shared a mischievous look with her would-be-nanand and nodded, “yeah… poor me… I wanted to marry a handsome hero but it looks like I will get a fat & round husband.” His mother and Nanu giggled like kids, while Mr. Somani pressed his lips to hide his smile. Sameer finished the gulab-jamun he had stuffed in his mouth, threw a smirk at Naina and then started to undo the buttons of his Kurta.

His mother gasped, “what are you doing?”

“Showing your would-be-bahu what she is getting as a husband”, came the swift reply from him.

Naina choked on the sip of water she had taken, Deepika’s mouth fell open, Rohan laughed freely while the remaining three adults clapped their hands over their mouths. Sameer was on the third button when Naina found her voice back, “stop… what… I…”

He flashed an evil smile, “see… just two buttons and you are speechless… what would happen if I remove the kurta…” His voice dropped a few decibels as he crooned, “poor poor you…”

Naina’s face turned bright red, her eyes lowering and she bit her lip. Sameer smirked at the sight… It was such a rare event to see his Naina being so bashful. However the moment was disturbed by his entire family, who burst out laughing. Naina flushed, and getting up from the table, she started to leave, but her way was blocked by Sameer. She sidestepped to the right, and so did he… When she stepped to the left, he followed… Biting her lip she looked up at his face, her eyes full of love and happiness… Sameer didn’t need her words to understand that even though they all had teased her, she had enjoyed having a family surrounding her once again. He flicked her nose, “rabbit”, and then moved away from her path to let her go.

The remaining afternoon passed in games of ludo and carrom. As the clock struck 5, Ramdhari opened the main door to let four youngsters in. Vishakha greeted them and guided them upstairs. Sameer had lost the latest game of ludo, and was now sitting beside Naina, playing with her dupatta while watching her play with his siblings. Just as Deepika rolled the dice, the door to the room banged open and in came their friends. Naina quickly got up and hugged Swati, she also slowly asked Preeti if everything was alright after she had left in the morning. Once Preeti assured that there was nothing to worry about, all three girls chattered away, including Deepika in the circle as well sometimes. Rohan shook his head, glanced at his brother, “are they always like this?”

Before Sameer could answer, Pandit did the honors, “oh yes… don’t you know women always like to gossip?”

Sameer rolled his eyes at the ensuing laughter, and softly explained, “Preeti and Swati are very important part of Naina’s life, and just because of her stupid family she doesn’t get to see them as often as she would like. Having me is one thing… but she needs more. She shouldn’t have to sacrifice her sister and her friend just because her family was idiotic enough to judge her based on some dumb neighbor’s gossip.”

Munna placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, “marry her soon and bring her home…”

“Oh I will”, Sameer grinned.

The evening get-together was simple but it seemed it was just what the friends needed. A movie played on the DVD in Sameer’s room with big bowls of popcorn, reminiscing their school days and regaling each other with tales of childhood that hadn’t been shared before, an unusual dinner of pani-puri and aloo-tikki chaat cooked by Ramdhari along with a myriad of sweets. By the time Sameer dropped Naina and Preeti home it was pretty late in the night, and for a moment he worried about what her family would say. And that was the reason he accompanied the girls upstairs. Thankfully it was only Anand, Bela and PB who were sitting in the living room; Anand engrossed in the late night news while the women shelled peas.

Sameer sat for a few minutes talking to the elders, apologizing for being late and explained about the get-together. Glancing once at Naina, who managed to keep her face blank of any expressions, he sighed, “I want to take Naina out yesterday. It’s just a simple date I have planned… Can I pick her up at 11am? I promise I will bring her back by evening.”

Anand pressed his lips together, not completely happy with the situation but at the same time relieved that at least Sameer thought of taking permission. Bela shared a discontent glance with her husband and then slowly expressed her concern about how Naina barely stayed at home. PB frowned and opened her mouth to override the objections, but Sameer beat her to it. He kept his tone respectful, but firm as he asked, “is that surprising after how she was treated here?”

Anand looked sad, “Naina told us you know everything.” Sameer nodded. Anand carefully continued, “I wanted to believe her but circumstances were not such that I could do much… At that time it felt like the right decision to send her away otherwise who knows what could have happened… Her education could have been stopped… Bhabhiji might have taken the decision to get her married as soon as she turned 18. Sending Naina to Mumbai seemed to be the right decision…”

“It was”, Sameer assured, “you indeed did the right thing by sending her to Mumbai. The environment here would have been stifling for her and being with PB was better for her future… But perhaps, and maybe it’s not my right to say so, but I think the way the decision was conveyed to Naina was wrong. You wanted to believe her Chachaji… so maybe you could have told her that… after all from what Naina tells me you were more of a father to her than Rakesh sir ever was.”

He paused as he felt a hand on his, and looked down to see Naina’s trembling fingers on his wrist. Gently he linked their fingers, holding her small hand secured his big warm ones, and continued, “If you had given her the confidence that you still believed her but that you thought Mumbai was better for her future aspirations, then maybe the situation would have been different. But instead she was made to feel that she was being pushed out of her own home for a mistake she didn’t even commit… She was hurt that her family trusted an outsider over her. And then over the years she was hurt repeatedly with taunts and insensitive comments over the situation, not to mention her own brother telling her that she was an embarrassment to the family. I know what it feels like to not have a family and home to call my own… I know what it is like to not have parents support and love… Believe me, that pain is not something that’s healed easily… At least in my case my father died and my mother remarried, which made things complicated for me. But for Naina… She had everyone but still no one was there for her.”

By this time Bela, PB, Naina and Preeti all had tears trailing down their faces, while Anand’s gaze seemed to be fixated on the floor. “I am sorry”, Sameer added, “I didn’t mean to hurt you or disrespect you. No matter how angry Naina is, I know her Chachaji holds a very special place in her life, and perhaps that’s why it hurts her more. I can’t do anything to fix this, because it’s not my place to do it. The only thing I can do is be with Naina when she needs me, and right now, she needs me more than her family. So please… will you give me permission to take her out tomorrow?”

Anand finally looked up at him, “yes… it’s better if you take her out for the day. Bhaisaab and Bhabhiji were not happy with how things went this morning, so if she stays at home tomorrow it won’t be good.”

Sameer nodded, “thank you Chachaji.” As he stood up, Naina also stood up along with him. The family watched as he wiped her tears, and then whispered something in her ear that made her smile. He looked down at her with a fond smile, which made her smile wider. Regardless of the presence of family members, Naina slipped her arms around him and laid her head on his chest. Sameer also hugged her, dragging in deep breath and kissed the top of her head before pulling back and wishing her good night.

Sleepless nights were not uncommon for Anand since that incident with Naina years ago. That one night and a few subsequent nights were when he had struggled first with what had happened, and then his decision. Once Naina had left he would stay awake the entire night on her birthday and the days he knew were important for Naina, like the day she joined college, the day her results would be announced… No matter what anyone thought, he knew in his heart that it hadn’t been an easy decision to send Naina to Mumbai. And now today, once more he lay on his bed, eyes open, staring at the ceiling fan lost in thoughts… All these years he had anguished over his decision, wondering if he had done the right thing… The initial months when his family and neighbors had been spouting venom against Naina, he had firmly believed he had taken the correct decision… But after the first time Naina had come home, so quiet and aloof, he had been struck with the thought that maybe he had not been right. However, today for the first time he had received a perspective that had seared his heart.

Sameer… The young man who loved his daughter had for the first time voiced his thoughts. Anand couldn’t help but consider his words to be true because he had spoken of his own experiences and from his heart. His words had revealed a perspective no one had thought of… A perspective of a traumatized teenage girl who had been falsely accused of humiliating her own family. And instead of fighting the outsiders who brought the storm to her doorstep, her family had turned their back on her and joined in the accusations. For a girl, her family, especially her father, is a safe harbor, but for Naina the supposed safe harbor had been the eye of the storm. Anand realized that in his haste of saving Naina from the fate of an early marriage, he had ignored the most critical step of assuring his daughter that he trusted her, and the reason he was sending her away was not because he thought of her as an embarrassment. Now after all these years his heart ached as he knew the reason for the distance between him and his daughter was his own fault, but he had no idea how to breach this gap. Maybe, when Naina moves back for her marriage he could take the opportunity to talk to her… Maybe, Sameer would help him…

The next morning Naina sat for breakfast with the family, thanking God in her mind that Taiji & Tauji were not there. Quickly gobbling down a paratha, she dashed to get ready for the date. Having no idea what exactly Sameer had planned, she decided to wear a fitted dark grey jeans and coral full sleeved georgette shirt patterned with blue-green miniature flowers, that she tucked in and then looped a slim leather belt around her waist. Pairing the outfit with her watch and silver earrings, she checked her hair once more and then grabbed her purse, dumping her lip gloss in it.

Sameer was already waiting for her downstairs, leaning against his car, his long legs crossed at the ankle, sunglasses covering his eyes. His lips curved in a lopsided smile on seeing her, and he extended one hand out to her. Confusion glimmered in her eyes but she did hold his hand… A soft gasp escaped her as he lifted her hand and pressed his lips to her knuckles. He smirked, “ready?”

She blushed, nodding her head, “where are we going?”

“On a date”, he smartly responded, opening the door for her.

The drive was familiar, the looming building in front of them made her smile, “my school?”

He stopped the car outside the gates, “yes… c’mon.”

She looked around at the grounds as they walked in, “our date is here?”

“For now”, he grabbed her hand, tugging her around the building towards the back.

She looked at him perplexed, “what are you doing? Where…”

“Shsh”, he winked at her, and then rounded another corner, stopping at a partially broken window pane. Lifting a finger he glided it along the broken edge, “this is where I used to wait…”

She blinked, “huh?”

He smiled, “whenever I used to play some prank on you, I wanted to see the effect… Like when I put that caterpillar in your tiffin box… I waited here, peeping in to see your reaction.”

“Oh”, she peered inside the classroom, her eyes roving over the desks, “I wish we could go inside.”

He grinned, “let’s try”, and started adjusting the window pane.

Her eyes widened, “what if we get caught?”

He rolled his eyes, “caught by whom? Even the watchman is gone for vacation.”

She bit her lip, staring here and there… Glancing at his mischievous eyes once, she squared her shoulders and grinned. It wasn’t as easy as it looked to go in through the gap created by the tilted panel. She had to twist to put in one leg, gain traction and then move her body inside, finally clambering her second leg, all the while maintaining her balance to avoid falling inside at an odd angle. She held the panel up from inside when Sameer climbed in, somehow making it look graceful as opposed to her awkward clambering, and she scrunched her nose blaming her shorter height. He caught her expression and raised a brow in question.

She frowned, “your height makes it easy… I am jealous…”

He chuckled, “don’t be honey… I enjoyed watching your wiggling ass as you climbed in.”

She gasped and swatted his chest, making him laugh. Wandering over to the desk she used to sit on, her eyes scanned the scarred surface, immediately spotting the ‘NS’ carved on it. She trailed her fingers over the rough alphabets, smiling when his arms looped around her waist, his body pressing to her back and she heard his breath hitch as he too spotted the carving. “It’s still there”, his voice was low and amazed.

She turned in his arms, “maybe for us to see it once more…”

His eyes darkened, the chocolate brown turning molten as he gazed into her soft whiskey eyes, “I like that…”

She swallowed, and then opened her mouth to ask if he was going to kiss her, “are you… mmm…”

Before she could even complete her question his lips descended on hers, his right hand moved to her hair, while his other hand tightened around her waist. His tongue traced the seam of her lips… she didn’t need any further motivation to open up to him, letting him deepen the kiss, her fingers clenching on his back as her purse dropped to the floor. It seemed as if it had been so long since they had kissed like this… had the freedom and privacy… “I love you”, he whispered against her lips, sharing a spare breath before delving in her mouth again. She moaned, pushing her hips against him, her body feeling feverish, the desire for him burning hot in her veins.

Suddenly he grabbed her waist with both hands and lifted her, making her sit on the bench. Her legs twined around his hips pulling him close, and he happily obliged, still kissing her hard. She let her hands wander over his back, his chest, undoing two more buttons to feel his skin… He did the same, his fingers threading through her hair, down her back, on the side of her waist and then creeping up slowly… His thumb brushed the underside of her breast before his long fingers covered the swell, kneading gently…

Pulling back from his mouth, she drew in a much needed breath and demanded, “more.” Her hands fisted in his hair as his mouth moved on her jaw and down her throat… Deft fingers opening her floral shirt halfway down her body… Succulent lips trailed wet kisses, nibbling when they reached the swells of her breast… Hard calloused hands moved impatiently over the delicate cream lace, thumb insistently rubbing her peaks to stiff aching points. A growl escaped his mouth as he struggled to control his need to taste her, some part of his brain reminding him that he can’t just push aside her bra in a classroom, even if they had privacy. Her nails scratched against his scalp, needy sounds spilling out of her kiss swollen lips, her legs clenching around him… Giving a last lascivious lick across the lace border, he moved up to capture her lips again, and used his hands to pull her hips forward, pressing her heated core flush to his throbbing length… Simultaneous moans of need and satisfaction were muffled by the possessive demanding kiss… Naina felt as if she had lost semblance of time and place, her body instinctively trying to move in a primitive motion… Meanwhile Sameer wanted nothing more than to strip every barrier down and take her right at that moment… Even the next breath seemed to be less important than claiming her as his. He broke the kiss abruptly, pressing his forehead to her, his eyes clenched shut, his harsh breath fanning her face. She whimpered, licking her lips as if trying to take in more of his taste, panting for breath… Slowly senses clicked into place one by one, she realised his hands were buttoning up her shirt once more, her lashes fluttered, eyes hazy with desire lifting to watch his face and in her typical practical way she blurted, “I think it’s time we make love after we go back to Mumbai…”

Sameer choked on a surprised gasp, his eyes widening as he reared back from her, only managing to create a distance of a few inches because her legs were still around his hips and she didn’t seem to want to let him escape. She waited patiently as he opened and closed his mouth a few times, imitating a goldfish, his gobsmacked expressions making her bite her lower lip to control her grin… He dragged a hand through his messy hair, ruffling the strands even more, his eyes roving over her face and body once before moving up to look at the ceiling… A few muttered curses about her damn practicality were aimed at the sky that was obstructed by the thick cemented roof… And then his glittering eyes snapped back to hers, his hands moved to cup her face, and he kissed her once more… tenderly, lovingly but briefly, suckling her bottom lip in his mouth once before leaving it with a soft plop… His voice was gruff with want yet determined as he asserted, “I think you are right honey…”

She smiled, stealing one more kiss from his willing wet lips and then hugged him, finally loosening her legs from around him to let him shift. He whispered his love in her ear as his fingers stroked through her hair, trying to straighten the strands he had messed up earlier. She closed her eyes, burying her face in the warm skin of his still visible chest and breathed in deep, filling her lungs with his masculine scent.

It took them several minutes more to separate from each other and straighten their clothes, comb their hair… Naina checked her lip gloss, but to her surprise the smudge proof taint had even survived their exuberant kisses. Like naughty school children they escaped through the window once more, and then sprinted through the grounds, laughing in delight all the way.

Their next destination was obviously the secluded pond where Sameer sat leaning his back against the very same tree under which he had kissed her hand for the first time, and Naina settled between his sprawled legs, her back against his chest, her head resting against his shoulder, her hands stroking gently on his arms secured around her body as they talked of the last few months in Mumbai, their final exams and upcoming wedding. While Sameer talked of rituals and clothes, Naina expressed how she wanted to be a proper part of the preparations rather than leaving everything to their families.

Sameer took her to lunch at a restaurant that specialised in Indo-chinese cuisine and they gorged on delicious chowmein, chilli paneer and spring rolls, accompanied by iced lemon soda. The dessert was a decadent chocolate pastry in a nearby bakery. He confessed that he had tried to plan for some proper destination for their date, but had not been able to get any proper idea, hence he had thought to go back to her school as they had discussed the possibility of the carving on her desk still existing on their last trip. Naina assured him that she loved the date and also the unexpected privacy. He laughed at that, completely in agreement with her. They stopped at a famous local snack shop and bought some packets of Ahmedabad’s famous farsan and sweets for their friends, not bothering to buy any for themselves as they knew their families would stock up their bags.

As they sat back in the car, Naina asked, “are we going back?”

Sameer shook his head, “no… I couldn’t think of a place for a proper date, but I did think of a place you would enjoy extremely.”

She tilted her head in confusion, “and what place is that?”

“Patience honey”, he smirked, “we will reach there soon.”

She sat back without further questions, perfectly happy to just be with him, no matter the location. But her eyes widened in surprise and elation as he parked the car near Fernandes Bridge – a popular and antique second-hand book market… It was a place of unending joy for book lovers and an equally enthralling place for bibliophiles hunting for some rare books. “Oh my God”, she gasped, her gaze lighting up at the line of book shops, her fingers squeezing his hand in happiness and gratitude.

He smiled, giving himself a mental pat on the back for his idea to bring her here. They spent hours scanning through the small and big shops, perusing through old and new books… Naina loved books, but she rarely had the chance to own them as the money in her family was limited to be spent on the necessary textbooks every year… Understanding her family’s financial condition and never wanting to burden her Chachaji, she had satisfied her soul by devouring books in the school library. In Mumbai PB had let her have money to buy anything she wanted and she did pamper herself by buying a few novels every year, but never had she spent time at a market like this… In fact she didn’t even know if there was a place like this in Mumbai; maybe it was something for her to research when they were back. In a shadowy dusty corner of a shop, she talked about reading in some magazine about Calcutta’s College Street – another famous place for book lovers, and Sameer promised her that they would plan a trip to that city after their wedding.

Naina looked up from the book she had in her hand, and asked, “you mean for our honeymoon?”

Sameer chuckled, checking the wooden shelves once to ensure that it wasn’t covered in dust before leaning against it, “no way… you are not going to spend time on books on our honeymoon. Calcutta can be some other trip…”

She immediately countered, “but we can go to Darjeeling for our honeymoon and then spend a few days in Calcutta while returning.”

He quirked a brow in amusement, “looks like you have already planned it.”

She bit her lip, but shook her head, “no… it’s just… uh… actually…”

“Naina”, he interrupted her, “what is it?”

She stroked a slender finger over the spine of the book, “Chachaji, Chachiji and Preeti had gone to Darjeeling for a vacation when we were in 2nd standard… I wasn’t allowed to go… Chachaji wanted to take me, but Taiji refused saying that they shouldn’t give such freedom to a girl with no mother… My father also refused, asking Chachaji to not waste his money on me… When Preeti told me tales of the clouds hovering close enough to feel as if we could touch them, the snow covered mountains, and the misty mornings, I… I felt jealous… I felt as if, if I also had a mother then maybe I could have had family vacations… I didn’t tell anyone anything but I prayed to God to give me a family with whom I could visit Darjeeling.”

Offloading the incident in-front of Sameer felt like another burden, one she didn’t even know of, lifting from her heart. But she was mortified of the tears pricking her eyes as she had no idea of the hurt her small fragile heart had felt when she was so young and impressionable. However, in another part of her brain that was thinking analytically, she recalled how there had been no more vacations for Chachaji’s family unless they all were visiting their village for which of course Naina was allowed. Had Chachaji done that on purpose? Before she could think more down that road, she felt Sameer’s fingers pinching her chin and lifting her head up to look into her eyes.

He stared at her for a moment, as if trying to search her soul, and then said in a low steady voice, “Thank you… for sharing this with me and for choosing such a beautiful honeymoon destination…”

She blinked, “you mean we will…”

He smiled as she trailed off, “yes… we will… Maybe you could find some tour guides in the library in Mumbai and we can go through them together… Decide how many days we would need to visit Darjeeling properly and if it is cold, then I guess we will need to do some shopping as well.”

She kept the book down on the shelf properly and then flung her arms around him, squeezing him tight. He chuckled, returning the hug with equal enthusiasm before asking if she wanted some books from this shop.

She pulled back, nodding, and pointed to the shelf where she had kept the book down, “that’s famous five… Usually children read this when they are young, but I could only read it when I was in 10th standard, as that’s when our school library had these books. But even then it was only 3 books out of the actual 22.”

He picked up the book, noticing it was book number 5 in the series, and checked the price as well, “do they have the full series?” She nodded once more, gesturing to the several shelves where her eager eyes had spotted the title she had always wanted to read. He grinned, “what are you waiting for then? Let’s gather all of them…” Excited and happy, she helped Sameer gather all the 22 books and together they carried the precious treasure to be billed and then down to their car.

Later on they had evening tea and maska-bun at another famous roadside stall. They discussed the logistics for tomorrow. And by the time he dropped her home, Naina thought it was the best date of her life, and told him so as well, making him grin in pride and delight. He walked with her to the door, assuring himself that her family was not going to give her pain over the time she had spent outside, and told PB that he would wait for them at his home in the morning. The remaining evening was spent packing for their return trip and her happy mood didn’t even deteriorate when Taiji & Tauji came in for dinner. That night they both dreamt of heated naked bodies, burning kisses, and snow-capped hills.