Unedited.
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Riya's Pov.
"Please get up!" I almost cried, glaring at my husband's back as all my attempts proved futile to wake this kalyugi-kumbhkaran from his beauty sleep.
I swear if I've known his spoiled sleeping habits before, I would have rejected him on his face.
"Hmm hmm." He hummed in sleep the umpteenth time, as he turned his body towards my side, squeezing me in a death grip.
No, I didn't hug him back.
I coughed incessantly as he choked me with his squeezy hug. However, he remain unfazed by my choked-up condition as well as my attempts to push him away.
"Good morning." His highness murmured in my hair and almost forcefully made me wrap my arms around his nakey-nakey back.
"Huh." I grumped and he groaned in his sleep as I nudged him repeatedly.
"Mat kar yaar." He almost whined, rubbing his eyes and attempted to block my wriggling self.
I chose not to reply anything in my favour because this husband of mine is least aware of the fact that today is the auspicious day when Princess Riya of Hoshiarpur graced her official presence in Prince Aditya's life full one month ago, thus turning his monotonous routine into brighty-bright one.
Oh, and yes, today, a month ago, marks the day when I officially qualified to intrude the evergreen romance between Mr.Kansal and Mrs. Laptop.
"Why are you always so grumpy in the morning?" I could sense the perplexity dripping from his tone as he blatantly decided to throw his bulky leg's weight over myy teeny-weeny ones.
"Because I hate you!" I sulked, trying to push away his heavy legs from mine.
"I know. And yes, I hate you more." He replied in an instant, thumping his legs over me, again.
Haww.
"Get off your legs from mine." I groaned in frustration, trying my level best to escape the clutches of this mini-hulk's legs.
He backed away a little, and muttered, squinting his eyes in offense,
"Kyu bhai, you have the right to thump your legs over mine but I don't." He put forward and pressed his legs even more tightly, caging my poor legs under his hefty-heavy ones.
"Because I won that ring game, that too all the three times." I exclaimed in a split second.
"Huh?" He voiced, bewildered.
"Ohho, don't you know what that means? It says, whoever wins will always have an upper leg in the relationship." I reasoned sassily,
"And if not the other way, I took that meaning literally, that is why, my legs are always over you, and not the other way round." An intense feeling of pride surged my cores at the excellent explanation I offered.
Deafening silence prevailed in the room and I peeked to take notice of my husband's disheveled state, with his mouth parted, eyes widened and an expression of helplessness swirling his features.
He opened and closed his mouth repeatedly, but couldn't word anything.
See, I made him speechless.
When he finally opened his mouth to utter, I almost screamed internally that this unappreciative man is finallyy going to appreciate my rationale.
But unfortunately and much to my dismay, he decided to remark,
"Tu paagal hai, and I feel you'll make me too in a matter of few days." He spoke, raking an aimless hand in his messy hair.
"You are so cruel!" My mouth parted at his statement.
"You don't even remember what is today." I mumbled, my gaze complaining.
"Arey, I remember." He replied instantaneously and I could sense a feeble smile at the corner of his lips.
"Kya hai, tell tell." My eyes brightened in excitement as I awaited his response.
Sighing sadly, he puckered his lips, and tsked,
"One month of marrying you." Contrary to my imagination of him wishing me with excitement and happiness, he wished rather half-heartedly, with zero traces of his trademarked dimpled smile.
"Why are you so sad about it then?" I pursed my lips in disappointment.
Can a wife keep punching her husband for not wishing her properly until he does it with excitement and happiness?
"Arey I'm happy.." He drawled, his features crumpling into excitement.
But before I could heave a relieved sigh, he added, rounding his arms around my waist,
"I am happy because my poor self successfully managed to spend this one month with you, in a single piece, with my brain and other body parts intact, all fit, fine, and sound."
My eyes widened in horror and I wriggled in his hold, wanting to punch all his body parts in the best of my ability. But the more I wriggled, the more his hold on me tightened, keeping me firm at my place.
Before I could splurt anything, he continued, adorning a sullen face,
"Oh, and I am a little sad too because I am yet to figure out how I'll be able to manage my whole life with this spontaneous spitfire of mine."
My lips wobbled in offense as I continued glaring at him murderously until his expressions transformed from serious to terrified to nervous chuckles.
Better.
"Bas kar draame ab, You know I was joking." He lightly bumped his forehead with mine, halting all my plans to pinch him hard on that very visible nakey-nakey chest of his.
"And, you can't scare me with these innocent threatening looks of yours." He squinted his eyes with a teasing smile making me pout in response.
I told you, nobody fears me, neither my threatening looks nor my innocent pouts.
Chuckling at my pouty self, he took me in a bear hug and caressed the messy bunch of hair on my back gingerly.
"Happy one month." He murmured in a soft whisper, pressing a lingering kiss on the side of my head and my insides melt effortlessly as I embraced him back for a soothing hug.
"Happy one month." I whispered too, gently cradling his face with my palm and stroked his cheek with the pad of my thumb making my favourite dimpled smile of his grace its presence at the corners.
"But I still hate you." I mumbled, narrowing my eyes at him for the buffoonish joke he passed a minute ago.
"You can do anything but hate me." He murmured in a fleeting second with his intense gaze never leaving mine, thus forcing me to press my face tightly into his neck.
"I can do anything but hate you." I voiced almost inaudibly, and I felt another lingering kiss on my hair the exact second.
"At what time you'll come back from the office?" I quizzed a few seconds later with my face enjoying its stay in the crook of his neck.
"Around 11:30, I guess. Then we can leave by 12. Okay with you?" He answered, his fingers busy in toying with the edges of my hair.
"Hanji." I replied as we sneaked a few more minutes for our morning snuggles before the usual morning routine set in.
âââââââââââ
Aditya's Pov
"Mom, where are my bike keys?" I frowned, rummaging the contents on the dining table in their search.
"I don't know. It must be on the dining table only." She answered back from the kitchen.
"Nahi hai." I sighed in exasperation and sauntered towards her.
Why is it so difficult for the keys to not move away from their place?
"Ohho, why are you opening these cupboards Aditya!" Mom chided as she noticed me scouring the kitchen cabinets where the sugar and tea-leaves containers are kept.
"Because I can't trust myself in this regard." I mumbled, profoundly aware of my responsible habit of randomly keeping things anywhere and later forgetting their whereabouts.
"Dhoond do na yaar." I requested, eyeing my only ray of hope.
"I don't understand why is it so difficult for you and Kunal to hang the keys on the key holder. It hardly takes a second to do it. Every other day, one of you stands over my head demanding your belongings." Momentarily diverting her attention from chopping the onions, she glared at me in annoyance.
Why do I feel, I am the vegetable here and she wants to chop me?
"Not again mom!" I resisted the urge to roll my eyes as she prepped herself for her age-old lecture on her favorite topic 'Irresponsible Kansal's'.
"Haan haan, of course...," She started and I internally face-palmed at the immortal list of dialogues she's going to shoot in my direction.
"They can't keep their things in place, they can't find their things on time, they don't know what they are doing, and then they will madly search the whole house, creating a ruckus in every possible corner for us to settle afterwards." She spoke in one breath, her hands moving rather harshly in all directions with the knife still in her hands.
Before I could say anything in my defense, she started again,
"Oh and yes, if we even dare to say something to these overly-responsible, highly-busy, idiotically-mannerless children, then all they say is, not again mom." She mimicked me towards the end, scowling all the time.
I preferred staying mum. Can't trust her with this knife in her hand.
"Bas kaho na kuch inhe. Theek hai fine, I am not going to say anything to you from now on. Do whatever you want to." She strode outside the kitchen rambling on and on, while I silently tagged along with her, raking my hands in the hair to stop myself from commenting anything that would motivate her more to mention all the wrong things I've ever done in twenty-six years of my existence.
"Sara din, tak-tak-tak-tak-tak-tak." She grumbled as she noticed me checking my phone.
"Yaar what has my mobile phone done now." I gawked at her incredulously.
"Everything is done by this phone." She declared openly as she looked through the table in search of the keys.
Please keys, I beg, please don't be here. Please.
"Because your eyes are stuck on this stupid thing all the time, that you people don't even remember what are you doing, where are you going, what the other person is saying, where are you keeping things, when to sleep, when to eat, how to eat. No, nothing, saara din bas tak-tak-tak-tak." She looked at me as if challenging me to defy her.
"Mom yaar." I internally chided myself for asking her for help.
"If I found your keys na Aditya....," She threatened, her hands busy in rummaging the contents on the table, momentarily halting to randomly pick the newspaper.
Do I still need to mention that my stupid bike keys had no other place to play hide and seek than under this kalyugi newspaper?
The sight was enough to jerk her head towards me in a hopeless glare, while I gulped in horror, silently praying for a miracle.
"Uh, um mom..," I swallowed a lump in my throat, smiling nervously to calm the frenzy beats of my heart.
"The keys were not here when I checked, sacchi." I put forward in an attempt to save myself from her wrath.
"Haan haan, of course, I am the one who kept these here haina? Or probably I've four-eyes that I'm able to find every single thing you can't." She countered, her voice dripping in sarcasm.
Though, before she could open her mouth to rebuke again, Isha called her from the upstairs at the exact moment and I felt a jolt of love swirling in my heart for my angel-like little sister.
Grabbing this lucky chance, I spoke in a hurry, "Acha chalo I am going to the office, we'll continue this later." Saying, I almost ran towards the entry but not before pressing a kiss on her cheek.
"And yes, tell Riya I'll come back around 11:30-12." I called rather loudly and rushed outside without giving her a chance to reply.
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Riya's Pov.
"Hanji even she didn't eat anything from outside." I spoke, as I took notice of mumma adding some fennel seeds, cardamom, ginger, tulsi leaves, crushed black pepper, and a few cloves in the boiling water for making kaadha for Isha.
"Hmm, she has been coughing incessantly since she woke up." She pursed her lips in a thin line, as we waited for a few minutes till the water content in the saucepan is reduced to half.
I nodded, not knowing what else to say.
"Baki I can't trust her, she has this habit of keeping her room stocked with chips and chocolates. She might have eaten it at midnight and then would have drunk water over it." She shook her head helplessly, straining the kaadha in the steel glass.
"I think Aditya has come." She voiced as the sound of his bike's engine reached our ears.
"He came early, It's only 11." I mumbled in confusion and eyed the mobile phone to check the time.
Rare are the times, when 11:30 turns to 11 and not 1:30.
"Don't worry beta, the time he will be spending in getting ready will compensate for his early arrival." She jested, picking up the tray making me giggle at the truth behind her words.
"I think I've locked the front door. I'll check once." I remembered all of sudden, while she nodded exiting the kitchen.
********
"How's Isha." My husband asked as soon as he stepped inside.
"Quite unwell. Sore throat, cough, and cold." I replied, offering him water the moment he settled himself on the dining chair.
He nodded taking a sip of water,
"You know, she messaged me a few minutes ago, Bhaiya I am unwell today. And I am sure she has messaged the same to Kunal. Such an attention seeker even when she is unwell." He shook his head in amusement making a smile to quirk up at my lips too.
"Chal I'll just go and check on her." I nodded at his words while he ambled towards the stairs.
However, he turned around abruptly even before he could ascend the first step.
My brows furrowed in confusion as he walked in my direction. Standing in near proximity, he began sniffing my cheeks,
"What are you doing?" I squeaked and my face pulled up in a frown at his incomprehensible actions.
"Have you applied some chocolate cosmetic thingy on your face?" He queried, palming my one cheek and inhaling the smell of the other,
"Huh?"
"Arey you are smelling like chocolates." He remarked, still inhaling the chocolaty scent from my cheeks.
"Ohho yaar." I giggled, suddenly feeling ticklish with his warm breath fanning my cheeks.
Shooing him lightly, I created a decent distance amidst us, dreading that anyone might catch him doing this sniffy thing in the middle of the lobby.
"I have not applied any chocolate thing." I informed, almost rolling my eyes at his assumptions and tugged him in the direction of the kitchen,
"But, I made this!" I remarked brightly, uncovering the cooker lid to show him the teensy-weensy chocolate cake I made after he went to the office.
"I thought we'll be gone for the whole day so we can cut the cake at home only. Isi bahane both me and Isha will get to eat some chocolate cake." My eyes gleamed and my mouth watered at the sight of this chocolaty piece of heaven in front of my eyes.
Instead of commenting anything at what I just blabbered, he asked confused, "So why are you smelling like chocolates."
Resisting the urge to slap my forehead, I clarified,
"I am not smelling like chocolates Aditya, you just assumed it. I love tasting the batter, maybe that's why it might be stuck on my face? Or maybe, a few minutes ago I showed papa the cake in his room when it was still hot, so maybe its aroma is still lingering in the air?"
He shrugged nonchalantly, unconcerned of what I just explained, and extended his hands to steal a bite from the cake.
Slapping his hands away, I chided, "Don't you dare touch it. We are supposed to cut it with everyone you cakey-man."
"Cakey-man?" He gaped at me in disbelief, while I instantly felt proud at the brand-new addition of a word in my Rictionary.
Though his features neutralized almost immediately when his eyes fell on the 'One' I wrote on the cake with crushed pieces of gems and a few pieces placed neatly at the corners so that a border is formed.
Kissing my cheeks swiftly, he whispered in a soft smile, "Thank You."
I blinked my eyes twice, smiling in return, and covered the cooker with its lid before this cakey-man change his mind and decides to gobble my chocolaty piece of heaven.
"Where's papa?" He quizzed, as we walked towards the stairs.
"In the room, settling some bill receipts of the shop." I informed.
"Acha. Chal I'll just go and check up on Isha, till then you get ready." I nodded at his words as he patted my back before climbing the stairs.
********
"Sir, ready?" Leaning against the room door, I asked my husband for the umpteenth time in the past twenty minutes while he remained busy in styling himself as if his highness has to grace his royal presence at Cannes 2022.
I will kill him if he says bas 5 minutes.
"Bas 5 minutes." I heard him say from the dressing room, "I don't know why my hair are not settling today." He mumbled in frustration before the sound of his blow-dryer fell into my ears.
No, I didn't kill him. I am a nincompoop and I fear going to jail.
Trudging in the direction of the dressing, I silently prepped myself to raid the dressing room with the sole intention to witness any signs of fashion mishaps, but before I could execute my duty, a ring at the doorbell stopped me.
Sighing heavily, I spun on my position to see who dared to stop RFD (Riya Fashion Department) from raiding the prime location at the Kansal's in context to the suspected fashion mishap.
Next time, I will bring my other hardworking officers, Officer Kunal and Officer Isha before planning to raid the fashion abode of Junior Kansal.
***********
"Uh, namastey." The moment I opened the front door, the faces of a middle-aged couple came into the line of my vision. I bent down to touch their feet, despite being unaware about their identities.
Patting my head gently, they wished me back, and prodded smiling, "Pehchana humein ke nahi?"
Why do these relatives love to test our memories?
"Hanji hanji." My stupid mouth spluttered in a nano-second.
I beg, please don't ask me to tell you who you two are. Because I don't want to be embarrassed by standing like a statue here only to confess blatantly that I said hanji because my mouth is stupid enough to blabber wrong things at super-wrong times.
"Arey Ashok, Sudarshana such a surprise! Aao aao, why are you standing there, come inside." I drew a sigh of relief the moment I heard papa's voice from behind.
By now, mumma and Aditya have also descended the stairs, and the elderly meet and greet session was happening in the lobby.
When everyone was engrossed in chattering, he stepped near me and I mouthed, discreetly motioning in the guest's direction,
"Kaun hai?"
"My cousin taya ji-tayi ji from Patiala. They are very close to mom and dad." He whispered, and I exhaled inaudibly, that I know now which set of relatives they are, and where they belong to.
"Let's meet them shortly, then we'll leave." He spoke stepping towards mumma-papa's room.
*********
"That's why we called you yesterday afternoon to silently confirm that you'll be at home or not. We were planning to surprise you all." Taya ji looked at papa, taking a spoonful of bhujia.
"Arey this was a beautiful surprise. It's been so long since we sat like this." Papa gushed forwarding the snacks tray in front of the guests.
"Aur kya. We both were planning for so many days to come and meet Aditya and Riya after their wedding, so today we finally made the plan to visit you all. Though this time, we have specially come to meet Riya." Tayi ji put forward, smiling tenderly at me.
"Uh, hanji." I spoke, passing an awkward smile.
"You both were going somewhere?" Tayi ji asked a few seconds later, giving me a short once over, probably noticing my readied self whereas papa, Aditya, and Taya ji busied themselves in talking about business things.
Confused as to what to reply with her gaze fixated on mine, I voiced almost hesitantly,
"Uh nahi nahi tayi ji, just vaise hi." I couldn't come up with anything comprehensible.
"Nahi nahi beta, if you were going somewhere you both go. Don't spoil your plans." She offered politely, patting the back of my hand.
I stayed silent for a second, contemplating what to answer, but not having the heart to disrespect the fact that they have come a long way from Patiala only to meet us, I uttered the first thing that came to my mind,
"Nahi nahi it's okay tayi ji. We'll go afterward." She nodded lightly and my eyes flickered to mumma who was entering the room with the tea tray.
Aditya jerked his head in a split second as soon as my words fell into his ears and throwing me a bunch of discreet glowers, he quietly sneaked outside.
"Riya?" I heard my husband call from the lobby,
"Voh, my laptop charger is not in the room. Aana zara." He slightly peeked inside the room, while I nodded meekly, internally fearing the concealed glares he was busy shooting in my direction with our parents eyeing me partial apologetic expressions.
*********
"What was that?" Aditya berated, pacing to and fro in the room in agitation.
"What else could I've said yaar. They came all the way from Patiala only to meet us." I reasoned, aware of what he was insinuating.
Rubbing his face in exhaustion, he voiced in annoyance, "Yaar mom or dad would have said something in our favor. Infact I would have said something if I was listening to this conversation at the first place."
"I know, but their gazes were fixated on me. What else I could have done?" I tried to explain my situation.
"They are not going till five or six Riya, mark my words they will leave only after the evening tea. They don't come often, but when they do, they leave only in the evening."
"We'll go after they leave." I offered gently, "We'll still have half-day after they leave."
"How will we go after they leave." He demanded, crossing his arms around his chest.
"Kyu?" I frowned, not getting him.
He gaped at me in disbelief, "Are you serious? Have you forgotten Mom, Dad, and Kunal have to go to Kunal's best friend's jaagran tonight?" My eyes widened in surprise as soon as he reminded me.
"We can't even ask them to stay at home when Piyush has personally requested them to come to the jaagran." He voiced in irritation, and I internally cursed myself to have forgotten this.
"Isha is unwell, we can't take her with us, nor we can leave her alone at night with this feverish state. Tell me, when will we go?" His pitch sharpened towards the end, as he demanded an answer.
Not another fight, please. At least not today.
Before I could say something, he cut me off,
"I don't know why was it so difficult for you to say that we have to go somewhere. What was so difficult in saying a simple no." He remarked as if it is as easy as it seems.
"It's not that easy! You might know them for twenty-six years, I don't." I gasped, astounded.
"So what? I didn't work overtime to spend my day with them." He countered shortly.
"I know but..,"
"You don't know anything." He interjected, rather rudely.
"Fine, what do you expect from me then? That I meet them for the first time knowing they specially came to meet me and they look forward to spend time with all of us and keeping aside everything, I just say a simple no, which you know is probably one of the most difficult things for me to do. How conscious it makes me as a person, do you have any idea? It might be easy for you, not for me!" I exclaimed in disbelief that how casually he thinks about these things.
Sighing deeply, I continued,
"You might not be obliged to follow certain things out of respect Aditya, but I have to, at least now, and especially when they both look so loving and welcoming." His gaze wandered away at my words,
"I can't be blunt with them when they are nothing but polite. And honestly, it completely slipped off my mind that mumma, papa, and Kunal have to go tonight. Otherwise, I would have not said anything."
"Fine, do anything you want to. Go, even ask them to stay for the dinner. Or even let them stay for the night." Annoyance brimmed in his tone, as he randomly arranged and disarranged the contents in his almirah.
"You are fighting with me for no reason." My lips pressed tightly in disappointment.
"That too today." I whispered feebly, noticing his ignorant self.
"I am not fighting, you are." He opposed immediately, his tone distracted yet upset at the same time.
"Fine." I stood there for a few seconds, taking notice of his agitated self. When he didn't budge, I took a step back and turned around to leave because I was least interested in exaggerating this discussion anymore and getting even more upset than I already was.
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Aditya's Pov
Throughout your life, you will encounter a plethora of situations, when your mind will be stuck between two complex choices;
Either to seize the occasion and cherish and honor it with mutual respect and empathy or to prioritize your ego and differences, thus ruining that very occasion for you.
And if you ever have to make a choice, always choose the former, because your ego and differences might make their comeback time and again, but that occasion, that day, and that moment will never return. And you will be left with nothing but a lifelong regret for spoiling that very moment for you.
Mom's words rung into my ears as I craned my neck sideways to see her leaving the room.
However, the upbringing and values with which we have grown up caused me to take a step forward and prevent her from taking a step outside the room, thereby ruining this day for us.
Her steps halted as I grabbed her wrist gently, turning her around. Our somber gazes matched before I slowly took her into my arms and murmured softly,
"I am sorry?"
Silence was the only answer I received in response before she rested her face on my chest,
"Why have we started fighting so much?" She whisper asked, intertwining her fingers behind my back in a firm grip.
"I don't know." My voice reflected exhaustion, clueless as to what to answer.
"I just wanted to spend this day with you." I confessed meekly, "Only you."
"I know. But you were so rude." She mumbled, rubbing her nose into my chest.
"I was not rude yaar, I was just saying." I reasoned gently, stroking her back in tender strokes.
"Your saying seems more like scolding these days." She scowled as she raised her eyes to frown at me.
"I am sorry if you felt like that. I didn't expect that things will turn like this." I sighed, pressing a gentle kiss on her forehead.
"But..." She opened her mouth to speak again.
"Are we going to start this all over again?" I quizzed, raising my eyebrows in question.
"No." She mumbled, rolling in her lips, though she didn't refrain herself from uttering,
"But still you were wrong today."
"Fine, we both were wrong." Catching the serious glare I threw in her direction, she corrected half-heartedly, her lips protruding in an offended pout.
"Better." I murmured in her hair, an amused smile threatening to spill noticing her expressions.
"I know this day is not going as per our plan..," She spoke a few seconds later, and I hummed in response.
"But that's what life is haina?" She backed a little to look at me, with her hands now placed on my shoulder, and mine resting on her waist.
"Maybe." I hummed quietly, my heart still not ready to accept that we can't go out today.
"But we can't fight with each other whenever things don't go as per our plans Aditya. We can only accept them and make the most of it. Isn't it?" She peered at me with hope, while I opened my mouth to oppose her statement.
She shook her head before I could defy her words.
"If you know me a little," She leisurely placed her head on my shoulder as her lips spoke the next words,
"You'd know that out of us two, I have this habit of silently planning and imagining each and everything, like getting all systemic and planned." She shrugged before adding,
"And, if there's one thing that I find difficult to tolerate then it's when I have to take a different route than what I have initially thought of. Acceptance has always been a tough nut for me. " I nodded gently, somewhat aware of her habits,
"So if you are upset because of us not going out today, then you can imagine how much disturbed I would be, considering how I feel when things don't go the way I plan them." She tried to put her thoughts into words.
"But tell me one thing Aditya.." She passed a questioning glance, "Can we do anything about it?"
At her question, I pursed my lips firmly and as much as I wanted to oppose, I couldn't, knowing she was right here.
"Bas fir, if we can't change the moment, let's live it? Acceptance is Blissful, Remember?" A gentle smile curved up on my lips as she reminded me of the words I said to her once.
"We'll spend time at home, vaise bhi it's been quite a few days since I irritated you in leisure time." I chuckled at her secret attempt to lighten the air amidst us.
"Aur vaise bhi I think God does not want me to see where you and your first wife spend time and romance all day." She grinned teasingly, wiggling her brows in mischief and I couldn't help but peer at her in amusement and admiration at the same time.
"You are my only wife you jealous woman." I remarked, squinting my eyes in fake offense.
"Bas fir, Let's just celebrate mild monthiversary?" She gleamed, eyeing me in hope, her lips twisting into a feeble smile.
"Mild monthiversary." Nodding, I repeated in a gentle whisper before wrapping my arms around her again.
Securing her in my arms, I couldn't help but wonder how each time I blindly assume that maybe, this is the last limit as my feelings for her will not be able to intensify at any point after this.
But I am proven wrong the second my gaze falls on her shy yet spontaneous self, or the moment I listen to the nonsensical blabber her mouth spills at the most unexpected times.
Or maybe the minute her lips splutters an alien name, or when she surprises me with a snippet of her mature mindset.
Or just moments like these when I tug her closer into my arms, or perhaps every little moment that I get to spend with this spontaneous-spitfire of mine.
And with each day passing, my heart couldn't help but feel more drawn towards this woman, I love to address as my wife.
*********
I have originally written around 12k words (double the length of an average-sized update) which would have been too long for a single update.
Hence said, the next chapter is already written, and I'll update it as soon as this chapter reaches the average number of reads, votes and comments as it is in every update.
Do comment your views and vote on the chapter, if you find it worthy enough to read.
Chapter Dedicated to stolenlxst