23
SHIVANI
The heated tension of the argument surrounds us as we keep staring at each other. Rudraksh and I are arguing at the moment. According to him, I shouldn’t wait for him every night.
“You need to sleep well, darling. You wake up early,” he says, his voice full of smugness as if he is right.
“Well, you do too,” I reply in a small voice. Mr. Smartpants should know that we both wake up at the same time, and it doesn't matter.
He runs a hand through his hair. I know he cares for me, and I love that—but I can’t help it.
I have to see him come back home and watch him eat his food.
It’s so sad to eat alone. I realized that after moving here.
It’s amazing to have people around when you eat—everyone talks about their day or something random.
I like that . I had never had that before marriage.
I always ate alone before marriage—never really wanted to eat with anyone.
I always felt people would think I do not deserve to eat, considering I am already so fat.
But with this family, now my family too, I like it.
I still feel uncomfortable most of the time, but it doesn't feel like all eyes are on me or that they are judging me, so I just eat in peace. Eating with them made me realize it’s unfortunate to eat alone.
He looks frustrated. Slowly, I near him and pat his bicep— definitely not just to feel it . “Rudraksh, I like doing it. But if you want, I won’t,” I say softly, finally giving in.
I don’t want to anger him. If I had spoken this much in front of my father, I’d be dead by now. At least Rudraksh tolerates me.
“Trust me, Shivani. I more than like it,” he says, his voice low and steady. He stares at me and then inhales deeply, “Fine. I’ll come early from today,” he adds with a defeated sigh.
I smile in victory. He looks at me and gives me a small smile.
“Can I hug you?” he asks and straightens his spine.
I walk up to him and nod. I think I like his hugs—no one else’s. But his. I tried hugging Aditi ji yesterday, and it was a disaster. We both ended up awkward. She politely excused herself while I just stood there, embarrassed.
But now, I feel his arms wrap around me, his hard body pressing into mine. I hug him back, silently inhaling his masculine scent—it’s intoxicating.
I think we stand there for too long, lost in the moment. Just as I sink deeper into the warmth of his arms, the door creaks open, and I instantly push him away. A bit too hard, maybe—he stumbles but steadies himself quickly, looking at me in astonishment.
“Brother, did you not hear me?” Aarav steps in as he looks between us, and a playful smirk appears on his face.
“I think I disturbed you guys. Continue whatever you were doing,” he teases, wiggling his eyebrows at me.
Then he closes the door halfway before peeking through again.
“Just wanted to remind you, I’m too young to be an uncle, so please use protection.”
“Aarav!” I exclaim, but he’s long gone. I can hear his laughter echoing down the hallway.
In the past few days, I’ve grown very close to Aarav.
He’s more of a friend than a brother-in-law.
He took me to the arcade yesterday—it was my first time.
He taught me most of the games; he also made sure I was getting the rules and regulations of each game.
I didn’t enjoy them that much, but he seemed happy, and that made me happy.
“What was that, wifey?”
Wifey? My eyes widen. He does call me darling, sweetheart, and all these sweet endearments—but wifey ?
My breath catches in my lungs. It feels personal, as if he's acknowledging me as his wife. I didn’t notice Rudraksh had gotten so close.
He’s just inches away, bent to my eye level, his warm breath mingling with mine.
“Wh-what?” I stutter.
He smirks, clearly amused, “You pushed me away.”
I think he loves making me flustered.
“What if Aarav saw us?” I question, avoiding his eyes as blush blooms across my face.
“So what?” he shot back, sounding breathless. “You’re my wife. We can do anything we want, baby.”
Slowly, he raises my chin, and I look at him. His pupils are dilated. His phone starts ringing, but he doesn’t move.
“Yo-your phone is ringing,” I whisper.
“I know,” he replies, rubbing his knuckles along my jaw, and I close my eyes momentarily.
“Y-you won’t pick it up?” My breath hitches as his knuckles trail down my neck. I instinctively tilt my head, giving him more access.
“No. I’m with my wife. Everyone else can wait, darling,” he whispers in my ear. His warm breath tickles down my neck.
A shiver runs down my spine. I know I’m red—totally red. I push him away again, but gently this time. It’s almost as if he steps back on his own. I turn to run, but he catches my wrist and pulls me close, gently. I feel his chest press against my back.
“How long will you keep running? You’ll have to come back here eventually,” he murmurs in my ear and gently bites my earlobe, making me squirm in his arms.
His grip loosens, and I take the opportunity to escape. I rush out, closing the door behind me.
Leaning against the door, I try to catch my breath. My heart is racing—I might as well have a heart attack at this rate. He definitely loves teasing me.
“I know you’re out there, Shivani,” he says. Oh God, not again.
“It’s okay. I won’t do anything. I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable.”
I hear the hint of regret in his voice—and I absolutely hate it. “No, I’m fine,” I reply softly.
There’s a moment of silence before he speaks again. “Okay. Get ready. I’m taking you to the mall,” he says.
His phone rings again, and this time he answers it. I lean against the door, squealing internally. Officially, this is going to be our first date. My first ever date. Is it a date, or am I just cooking things up in my head?
“Is it a date, Mr. Malhotra?” I ask quietly.
“It is, if you want it to be, Mrs. Malhotra,” he replies after a pause.
I run off, too excited to stand still. I think I’ll wear a black kurti—we can twin.
Rudraksh hardly wears anything that’s not black.
I asked him about it yesterday, and all he said was, “Colors left my life a long time ago.” And I don’t know why, but I understood that.
If my life had a color before, it would’ve been black too.
But not now. Not at this moment. Now, it's colorful. I’m surrounded by people who respect me, who adore me.
At least, I think they do. I hope they do.
I quickly change, apply some light makeup, and tie my hair up. It’s hot—you can’t blame me. As I am done getting ready, I hear Maa calling me from the kitchen. Hastily, I rush to her, and she smiles at me as she stirs the pot. “Lunch is ready. Please help me set the dining table.”
I nod and take the plates out. Everyone walks in one by one. As we finish plating, Maa gestures for me to sit. “I’m going out with Rudraksh. Is it okay if I eat out?” I ask. I don’t want them to think too much or worry.
Maa smiles and nods at me. “You don’t need to ask me. Just inform me next time so I don’t prepare extra food.” I give her a small smile and nod.
I quickly walk up to Rudraksh’s office and raise my hand to knock. Giddiness making a home in my guts. But before I can even knock, he opens the door.
“Come on, let’s go. I was waiting for you,” he says and walks out of the office.
He takes my hand as we walk side by side. But then I stop. “How did you know I was outside the office? I didn’t even knock.”
He pulls me forward and keeps walking. “I could smell you. It was your perfume,” he says, maintaining his stoic expression. Is he a sniffer dog or something? I giggle, and he narrows his eyes at me.
The idea that if I were ever lost, my husband could find me by my scent makes me feel safe.