35. What eyes, Aksh? #3
"Thank you."
He whispered.
"But..."
He paused dramatically.
"I'll tell you the name only after I whisper it into our baby's ear."
For a second Shivika simply stared at him.
Then...
"What?"
She lightly smacked his chest.
"Akshhhhh! That's not fair! I want to know it first."
Rakshit laughed softly.
"Sorry, baccha."
He held both her hands.
"But I've always imagined saying that name to our baby first."
He smiled.
He looked at her affectionately.
"I promise... The very next person I'll tell will be you."
Shivika pouted immediately.
She folded both her arms across her chest and turned her face away dramatically.
"Fine."
She huffed.
"Then I won't talk to you until then."
Rakshit looked at her for a second before bursting into laughter.
"You won't?"
She deliberately looked away.
"No."
He leaned closer.
"I know exactly how to make you talk."
Before she could react, he cupped her face and started placing quick kisses all over it.
One on her forehead.
One on her cheek.
Another on the other cheek.
Then on the tip of her nose.
"Aksh..."
She burst into giggles.
"Aksh... stop..."
He continued kissing her face repeatedly.
"You said you weren't going to talk to me."
He teased between kisses.
"But you're talking."
Shivika tried pushing him away while laughing uncontrollably.
"Aksh..."
"Please..."
She giggled again.
"Stop..."
Seeing her laugh so freely, Rakshit finally stopped and rested his forehead against hers.
The laughter slowly faded into comfortable silence.
Both of them smiled at each other, their hearts full of nothing but love and excitement for the little miracle who would soon fill their lives with even more happiness.
The rest of the evening passed peacefully.
After dinner, Rakshit made sure Shivika took her medicines on time before helping her back to their bedroom. As always, he adjusted the pillows behind her, covered her legs with a light blanket, and placed the water bottle on the bedside table within her reach.
Shivika looked at the book lying beside her.
She picked it up.
Stared at it for a few seconds.
Then quietly placed it back.
Rakshit noticed everything.
"What happened?" he asked, closing his laptop after finishing the last work email for the day.
Shivika sighed dramatically.
"I'm bored."
He smiled.
"So read your book."
She immediately made a face.
"I don't want to."
"Then watch a movie?"
She shook her head.
"No."
"Music?"
"No."
He laughed softly.
"Then what does madam want?"
Shivika's eyes suddenly sparkled.
"Ludo!"
Rakshit blinked.
"Ludo?"
"Yes."
She sat up excitedly.
"Come on, Aksh. Let's play."
Rakshit looked at her for a second before closing his laptop completely.
"Your wish is my command."
A bright smile immediately spread across Shivika's face.
"Yay!"
She clapped happily like an excited child.
The next one hour passed with both of them completely engrossed in the game.
The game was still nowhere near ending.
Rakshit looked at the board before looking at Shivika.
She was trying very hard to stay excited, but he could clearly see the tiredness on her face. She had yawned twice in the last few minutes, rubbed her eyes absentmindedly, and every now and then rested her head against the headboard before straightening up again.
Yet...
The stubborn woman wasn't ready to stop.
"No," she said immediately when Rakshit suggested, "We'll finish this game today only."
Rakshit looked at her determined face and couldn't help but smile.
"My stubborn wife..."
He muttered under his breath.
From his next turn onwards, he quietly decided to take the game into his own hands.
Whenever he got a chance to cut her token, he deliberately moved another one.
Whenever he could make a smarter move, he purposely ignored it.
Slowly...
Without Shivika realizing anything...
He started clearing the path for her.
Completely engrossed in the game, Shivika didn't notice his little sacrifices.
She only focused on reaching home first.
Finally...
She rolled the exact number she needed.
With an excited grin, she moved her last token into the home triangle.
For a second, she simply stared at the board.
Then suddenly-
"I won!"
She clapped her hands excitedly, her eyes shining brighter than before.
"Aksh! I won!"
She looked at him with the biggest smile on her face, waiting for his reaction like a little child waiting for praise.
Rakshit couldn't help but smile.
Her happiness was worth much more than winning a simple Ludo game.
He gently clapped for her too.
"Congratulations, Champion."
"I told you I'd win." Shivika said proudly, lifting her chin.
"You did." Rakshit replied with a smile.
Shivika happily picked up one of the pillows and hugged it tightly.
"I defeated you."
Rakshit laughed softly.
"Hmm... you did."
He looked at her smiling face for a long moment before shaking his head to himself.
If letting her win brought this beautiful smile to her face...
He would happily lose every game for the rest of his life.