50. Happily Ever After

1 WEEK LATER

"Mayuuu" Aryaman carried her out in the lawn. She snuggled in his arms feeling cold. Aryaman covered her with the shawl and walked out calling her repeatedly. She felt the cold wood under her. Aryaman tried to wake her up but she kept falling asleep.

"Maitri" Maitri who was sleeping nicely on Aryaman's shoulder sat up straight hearing Rishav's stern voice.

"Good morning papa" She stood up with closed eyes and greeted him.

"Look who's here to meet you" He said making her open her eyes slightly.

"Dadi..." She recognized Vedanshi in half-asleep state and smiled at her. Vedanshi looked at her with a smile, feeling pity for the young girl who was woken up at an ungodly hour.

"How are you beta?" Vedanshi asked. Maitri showed her thumbs up and sat down beside Aryaman, snuggling in his warmth almost falling asleep. Using her hands she pointed at Vedanshi and asked her how she was. Vedanshi and Shaurya laughed seeing Maitri's cute antics.

"Maitri" Aryaman tapped her face when she again fell asleep on his chest.

"Let me sleep Maan. Am tired. I'll do everything you say tomorrow afternoon, let me sleep right now. You don't even let me sleep at night at least spare me in the morning. Am sore like hell, my arms are sore, my legs are sore, my whole body is sore. Tomorrow I promise, let me sleep right now." She forgot she wasn't in her room and replied to him. Aryaman placed his hand over her mouth while all the elder looked at him teasingly.

"Be glad shithead isn't here son" Rishav said trying to stop from laughing out seeing Aryaman blush.

"Your tea is here" Aryaman used the ultimate weapon to wake her up. She sat up sniffing for tea with a smile. She found 3 cups of tea on the table and looked at Aryaman with tears in her eyes.

"I love you" She held his face and kissed his cheek tightly leaving a wet patch on it which he aggressively wiped it off. Maitri drank the first cup of tea in one gulp and opened her eyes fully. She drank the second cup at the same speed and breathed out in happiness. She rubbed her eyes wiping away the traces of her much-needed sleep. She saw Vedanshi and Shaurya sitting beside Rishav and Kaira.

"Hello, how are you?" She greeted them properly with her usual chirpiness.

"We are absolutely fine, how are you? We just heard your husband doesn't let you sleep at night. What is this Aryu, go slow on her now, she's pregnant" Vedanshi teased her making her look at Aryaman who was already blushing stare right into her eyes with a smirk. Now instead of him she was blushing excessively.

"Just stuff, nothing serious" She said in a small voice. She picked her third cup of tea and sipped on it now like a human being.

"Why are we not sleeping?" She asked noticing that everyone including her husband looked very much awake except her.

"We are in a slight problem as you can see" Vedanshi pointed towards the chess board. Maitri looked at her confused.

"You guys are playing chess early in the morning. How bored could you all be to do this the first thing in the morning" She yawned loudly seeing Rishav and Aryaman's dedication to chess.

"They've been playing throughout the night and woke me up at 3 in the morning to come here" Vedanshi said smiling.

"Guys its never that serious. You need a break from chess because its messing with your neurons. Why am I speaking like Nidhi?" Maitri realized she was mimicking the way Nidhi spoke and sipped on to her tea more aggressively.

"Your husband refuses to back down and so does your father-in law. I was called here to play in person for him" Vedanshi explained to her.

"Toh khel lo. Why am I summoned? India is a free country, everyone is free to do as they like" She was blabbering nonsense and she blamed it all on one person who woke her up at such ungodly hour.

"Aryaman fears that if she plays you'd lose the bet made between you and me" Rishav said catching her every reaction.

"Aww husband. You were defending my honor. You'll be rewarded later on for your act" She hugged him feeling still sleepy.

"If she plays, I'll lose, and you won't win the cruise dad was talking about" Aryaman handed her the cup of tea so she started functioning.

"What is he offering you so you play for him?" Maitri ringed the intercom and ordered for another tea making Aryaman look at her with a glare. She asked Vedanshi what he was offering her in return to play for him.

"The cruise he has promised to give you is what he is giving me" Vedanshi said looking impressed with Maitri's question.

"Hmm, let's play" She drunk down all the tea and held out her hand for a shake.

"You sure about this?" Aryaman looked at her as if she had lost her mind. Maitri nodded her head and asked him to take a chill. Vedanshi shook her hand with her and since she was white, she opened with a Berlin Defense opening and pressed the clock for Maitri's turn. Maitri smiled and looked up from the game.

"I'll make a better offer than papa but then this game is discontinued" Maitri thanked the butler who served her the 4th cup of tea and took the other 3 empty cups on the table.

"Why should I do so?" Vedanshi looked at her with surprise.

"How much knowledge do you possess about the Cruise he has promised to give you?" Maitri asked took a sip of the tea and smiled feeling alive and pumping with 0 trace of sleep in her.

"It is the largest cruise Ranawats own. I could use it to my benefit" Vedanshi crossed her legs and replied.

"There are 2 reasons why you should take up on my offer.

1) The cruise papa has promised to offer you after the win belongs to Ma. More importantly, this cruise was gifted to her by him on I think on their 15th anniversary if am not getting the numbers wrong" She looked at Kaira for confirmation. Ma hasn't said that she is up to give it away in a game of chess. She has kept the roses given by papa to her so safely, she wouldn't give away this cruise.

"2) This cruise is of no help to any of your business. It is made for commercial use, the maximum it can be used for is to hold extravagant celebration involving all our relatives, high-profile people and friends. It is literally of no use to the business. Has papa given you any confirmation that he'd give you the cruise after the game?" Maitri leaned back on to the bench which was quite a very authorative move to do. Vedanshi shook her head in denial.

"You'll never get the ship then. He believes in only one policy 'A Deal's Not Done Until It Is Done' You were lured in here with fake promises" Maitri explained to her.

"I'll do it" Rishav said hurriedly. Maitri looked at him challengingly but once she realized that it was her father-in law she was looking at, she lowered her eyes. Rishav's lips curled slightly liking the look of proud and arrogance in her eyes.

"What is your offer?" Vedanshi asked looking interested.

"I've heard that the last accountant is giving Ruhi masi a hard time. I'd personally come to the office and clear the clutter in one week and not charge a single penny from you" Maitri crossed her knee over the other and then again opened it remembering that she was sitting infront of her elders and she should be respecting them.

"You have the time to think over it until I finish my tea" She accepted the gambit and hit the clock and sipped onto her tea. Vedanshi looked at Shaurya and then at Rishav. Maitri didn't fail to notice the way they were having a silent conversation.

"Offer agreed" Vedanshi stopped the clock and pushed away the chess board. Maitri shook her hand smiling and passed her a flying kiss.

"Can I sleep now, please?" She looked at Aryaman who still hadn't wrapped his head around what happened.

"When will you come to the office?" Shaurya asked.

"Never or atleast not until you pay for my exceptional services" Maitri wrapped the shawl around her tightly and finished the cup of tea.

"You are backing from the deal you made" Shaurya said with a calculative look.

"What you all trying to do? What ploy are you scheming against me?" She asked them.

"Why do you think this is a ploy?" Rishav looked at her with hurt.

"This is a game of normal chess. You brought a National level chess player to it, offered her the same prize you offered me. You accepted his offer and came here when you could rather be sleeping peacefully. You are making a small game into a huge gambit. For a matter of fact you and I both know that you wouldn't gamble anything that belongs to the Palace even if it is in your or ma's name. Secondly, my husband has been awfully quite since the time I've come" She looked at all of them boredly because all she wanted to do was sleep.

"Then why did you accept the challenge?" Kaira asked her.

"I wasn't sure if papa was joking or testing me. If dadi is here then I realized it should be something massive, but I thought probably they came late night here and you all were lost in talking you didn't realise it was morning. I had hopes" She answered Kaira smiling.

"You could have made the offer towards the end of the game or before the game, why right after I made the move"

"I got to know that you know something about me. Everyone here feels that am a new-beiito chess including you too. You are a National level player, take the hint where you let that piece of information slip" Maitri pulled the chess board in between them.

"Such aggressive opening for a new-bie dadi? A simple opening would have also done the trick easily" She showed her, her opening and also her response to it.

"You accepted the gambit" Vedanshi looked at her shocked.

"If you didn't take up the offer, I would have played the game but there was no need since you accepted my offer" Maitri again yawned lightly and Vedanshi looked at her impressed. Rishav and Kaira were also impressed by Maitri.

"Why did you lie that you don't know how to play chess?" Aryaman asked.

"Papa looked bored at times now that you don't let him do anything. I thought to give him company. It felt like he needed to be reminded that there was still so much we had to learn from him so I let him believe that I need to be taught chess. This way you, Avi and papa all also got close" She suppressed another yawn. Vedanshi and Shaurya looked at Rishav and Kaira in appreciation of choosing a good Queen.

"Go sleep Maitri. Let her sleep at nights son. It is important for her to rest equally" Rishav said asking Maitri to go sleep. Aryaman nodded his head unconsciously and stood up to leave.

"Oohh husband. Who'll carry me?" She called him sleepily and raised her hands for him to carry her.

"Walk yourself" He said rolling his eyes. Maitri looked at her in-laws complainingly.

"Aryaaa when you needed her you carried her here and now that you don't need her she needs to go back on her feet? Whereas the gentleman we raised"

"Geez women chill. I was joking with her. And you stop complaining about me to your in-laws at every open chance you see" Aryaman scolded Maitri who removed her tongue and teased him. As soon as he carried her she rested her head on his chest and was fast asleep by the time they reached the room.

On the other hand in the garden Vedanshi and Shaurya smiled widely seeing Maitri mould perfectly in Aryaman's arms.

"She picks up on hints very fast" Shaurya said looking at Rishav and Kaira who nodded their heads.

"Too fast for anyone's good. Where normal people take a few minutes to add 2 and 2 together, she does it faster" Kaira said smiling widely.

"Your both daughter-in laws are seriously too good. Nidhi is silent but there's nothing that escapes her attention while Maitri might give out the personality of being dumb but she's too smart. Nidhi is quick with solutions, she cools her temparament fast and looks for a solution. You are both lucky to have these girls as your family" Vedanshi said smiling happy for the Ranawats.

______________

"Maan" Maitri woke up to find herself tangled with Aryaman who was sleeping peacefully. She kissed his nose, then his cheeks and pecked his lips. She rubbed her finger on his nose asking him to wake up.

Aryaman woke up with a yawn and pulled her closer to him.

"Maan suniye na" Maitri said pleadingly asking him to wake up.  He yawned and looked at her curiously. He placed his one hand behind his head and looked down at her. Maitri climbed onto his chest.

"What was it all about last night?" She asked confused because she still couldn't find the reason of the happenings of last night.

"Dad got the file of the background check I ran on you when we first met and he saw you are a good chess player which he didn't believe so yesterday that was all about it. He called dadi to play because none of us at home have much knowledge about chess like you and dadi" He said in his raspy voice that sent tingles down her spine.

"You ran a background check on me?" She pretended be hurt with it.

"You know I had to do it but I promise I never went through it. Everyone comes up with a new idea to hurt the royal family so I had to do what I did" Aryaman ran his fingers in her hair.

"I ran a background check on you too" Maitri confessed smiling.

"Acha? What did you see there?" Aryaman turned both of them until she was beneath him and he was on top of her.

"I came to meet you without even going through your biodata husband. You think I read the  background check file?" She asked wrapping her arms around his neck.

"That was quite a dumb move that you pulled that day. Asking the CEO of Ranawat Enterprises that what would you do if you were fired from work, seriously Mayu?" He laughed thinking of their first meet.

"Are you laughing on me Maan? The mother of your child" She looked at him with hurt.

"Well am laughing at the woman who fell in love with me, why would I laugh at the mother of my child?" He asked winking at her.

"You.... Forget it, move now. You need to go to the office" She tried pushing him but couldn't move him a bit even.

"Morning kiss first then we shall see if work is important or not" Aryaman forwarded his cheek to her making her look away shyly, biting her lip.

"What will I do with you Ranisa? Even after we have done everything you are shy to kiss your husband" He kissed hers, biting her cheek slightly, making her glare at her.

"Let's shower together" He looked at her pleadingly with a cute smile which she couldn't refuse and agreed.

_________

9 MONTHS LATER

"Someone please bring water" Rishav asked a nurse to get some water as Aryaman fainted outside the OT as Maitri was in labor. Aryaman laid on the hospital seats unconscious from the thought of what was happening behind the closed door.

Nidhi and Rishav laughed seeing Aryaman wake up panicked. Kaira and Juhi were inside with Maitri.

"I want to go in" Aryaman stood up to go in but Rishav and Aviraj asked him to relax.

"What the hell was that Aryu? Maitri would be fine, trust me" Nidhi said smiling trying to help Aryaman's panic.

"What if something goes wrong?" He looked at her with fear.

"Scoot little please" Nidhi held on to her  9 month pregnant belly as Aviraj and Aryaman helped her sit on the seats.

"They need to seriously leave the warmth of my womb and face the real world" Nidhi said looking at her belly wondering when she would deliver.

"Maitri is going to be fine. Ma and Juhi ma are with her inside. I went through all her vitals before they took her in. Believe in me" She held Aryaman's hand and explained to him patiently.

"Aryaman Ranawat?" A nurse walked out with two bundles of happiness in her arms. Yes, Maitri and Nidhi were having twins.

"It is a girl and a boy" The nurse placed both of them one by one in his arms in a way none of the kids were hurt and he could hold both in his arms. Aryaman looked at both of them with tears streaming down his cheeks and he placed a kiss on their foreheads very delicately. Nidhi looked at him with teary gaze as she leaned onto Aviraj's shoulder who hugged her.

Rishav held both the babies fingers and cooed at them.

"They look like you and Maitri" Rishav wept as the babies held onto his finger. He remembered the way years ago when Aarchi was the same size, she had grabbed his finger in her little hand so tightly that even today he found it hard to have her away from him.

"Congrats son" Rishav congratulated him and soon Divya and Manav along with Aarchi and Vihaan came running, dressed in pajamas.

"Sorry we couldn't come early, our car broke down and there was no taxi" Aarchi said as she looked at the two babies sleeping peacefully in Aryaman's arms.

"Aww my babies" She asked Aryaman to pass him the babies who refused.

"You'll drop them" Aryaman held them closer to him while Aarchi glared at him.

"Stop being such a...Ouch" Nidhi was going to scold him when she had a contraction and squinted her eyes in pain. Rishav and Aviraj held onto Nidhi worried about her. She felt another hard contraction and started taking deep breathes.

"Call for the nurses. I think its time" Nidhi said holding tightly onto Aviraj's hand who was now panicking similarly as Aryaman.

"I'll do that" Vihaan said and looked around for any one who could help Nidhi and soon a doctor with a nurse helped Nidhi sit in a wheel chair and checked her vitals.

"Can you asked Kaira ma and Juhi ma to come please?" She asked the doctor screaming in pain. Before she could say anything the older women were by her side and kissed her forehead.

"Its going to be fine baby" Juhi said lovingly. Juhi had accepted Nidhi as her daughter knowing that Nidhi's parents were dead and she felt bad for the girl who missed her parents everyday.

After a 12 hour long labor, Nidhi delivered a boy and a girl. The whole Ranawat clan alongside their friends bombarded the hospital rooms with flowers and balloons as Rishav held onto Nidhi and Maitri's hands.

"Thank you for making me a grandfather" He said looking at them gratefully. They smiled at him and looked ahead as everyone fought with each other to hold the babies.

"So finally the names we thought were true" Nidhi said as she laid on the bed beside Maitri.

"Your Antra and Ridham" Maitri replied with a smile on her tired face.

"And your Pahel and Vidhan" Nidhi replied as she slipped into sleep.

Aryaman and Aviraj heard their wives talk and smiled knowing what to name their children. They kissed their sleeping wives and thanked god for keeping both the mother and the babies safe.

________________

5 YEARS LATER

"Pahel..."Maitri ran behind Pahel who was running around the palace to avoid drinking milk. She went and hid behind Aviraj's leg thinking Maitri won't be able to see her.

"There's her milk glass, do what you have to do" She handed Aviraj the glass went to check on Vidhan who finished his glass of milk by competing with Antra. On the other hand Nidhi was breathing out deeply trying to keep her cool before she scolded her son whom she loved a lot but at times he demanded to be beaten up by her.

"Ridhh" Pahel called for Ridham, asking him to come hide with her behind Aviraj.

"They are going to get late for school because of these two" Nidhi said looking at Pahel and Ridham who giggling to themselves.

"Both of them are going to get Methipak from me one of the days" Nidhi handed Aviraj the other glass and asked him to make sure that it was emptied in to the kids mouth.

Over the years, the couples grew closer. Life had not been a straight line but rather a sine curve where they had their ups and downs. Aryaman was still the brooding, dark business man in front of the world but at home he'd be the fun dad to his children. Maitri was running her firm well from India and her firm was making name in the business world.

Aviraj said something to the 2 kids and they both drank their milk quickly before again starting to run around in the house.

"I can't run now please. I've never stepped into a gym" Nidhi looked at the two kids running around the house with no reason.

"Get up get up, you'll get late for school" Maitri made Antra and Vidhan wear their school bags and pushed Aryaman behind them to go sit in the car as she and Nidhi ran behind the tornados of the house.

"PAHEL!" Maitri screamed her name angrily stopping Pahel who looked at her curiously.

"Dad, Antra and Vidhan are waiting for you two, go now!" Maitri placed her hands on her waist and said sternly. Pahel and Ridham imitated her and laughed to themselves. Aviraj snickered from behind seeing it. Rishav and Kaira laughed entering the room earning Maitri's glare.

"Let's go kids before your mum erupts like a volcano" Rishav and Kairaheld their hands and asked them if they wanted to race knowing it was the only way to handle the two. Once the kids were packed in the car, Nidhi and Maitri collapsed onto the sofa tired.

"I didn't sign up for this" Nidhi exclaimed making Kaira laugh.

"Who have they gone after? I swear I was nothing like Pahel and Ridham. I was more of Antra and Vidhan" Maitri said making a crying face.

"Welcome to motherhood" Kaira kissed their foreheads and gave them a plate of aalo parathas to eat which they ate halfway before remembering that they forgot to give the notorious siblings their water bottles that were lying on the dining table.

"Indeed Motherhood" Both of them exclaimed tiredly.