her husband

Nikita POV:

I spent the day relaxing and the next evening was the function. I woke up and showered and did my morning business and came downstairs. I felt it best to wear respectable clothing in Kolkata so I put on another pair of salwar and patiala pants and put my duppata around my neck and came downstairs.

I saw Aunty making breakfast so I offered to help her. We smiled and continued talking.

"Aunty, I wanted to ask you something." I asked.

"Haan tell beta." She said, making food.

"Can I... Can I go visit my family today?" I said.

I saw aunty hesitate. Why was she hesitating? But she said yes in the end.

I smiled, and we both had breakfast early and then I went upstairs to get my bag so I can get ready to leave.

I wore my light blue pastel salwar with a white patiala duppata, added jhumkas and adorned myself with kajal and matte pink subtle lipstick.

Mayukh POV:

"Mayukh Mayukh!" I heard Mom call me in haste when I was done showering and wearing my shirt. I was only in my pants when I opened the door and Mom walked in.

"What happened Mom?"

"Firstly put some clothes on, secondly I..."

"Is everything okay?"

"Nikita asked me to go to visit her family today. What family?"

"What? Oh, she has a few relatives here, who were supposedly at the wed—"

"What?"

Shit.

"Arre nothing. She mentioned she has a few family here, apart from that witch woman. But, she wants to go meet them?!"

"That's what. I don't know if it's safe for her to meet anyone here. Listen, why don't you go with her? No one will touch you here."

I nodded, "Don't worry, I'll go."

"Hurry she's getting ready. You meet her outside. I'll tell her it's unsafe and send you." Mom said and went.

Nikita POV:

I was at the door with my bag and saying goodbye to Bruno when Aunty walked in.

"Beta, I'm sending Mayukh with you. It's a bit unsafe here right now. There's a few riots that happened last week so take him with you."

No. How can I?! These people know him. They were there when he married me, they'll recognize him.

"Aunty... don't. Don't worry about it." I tried to reason.

"Let's go!" I heard him from behind. I turned around and saw him ready to go. He looked amazing in his dark blue plain kurta and white pants.

"Yes, have fun, and please be back by 5 so we can get ready and do tell your family I said hello." Aunty smiled, cupped my face and then left.

I froze. I can't take him there. How do I tell him? We haven't even spoken for 2 months and I doubt he'd want me to bring it up again. I felt being shoulder being tapped by him. I turned to look. "Let's go." He said and he took my bag and went to the car.

I followed him to the car but before I could sit, I tried to explain.

"Listen..." I said and he placed my bag in the car, closed the door and faced me.

"Hmm." He said, while trying to find the location.

"I.. I can't take you here."

He looked up confused, "Why not?"

"They... they know about..."

"They know about our marriage, I know that." Now it was me who looked up in confusion, "I know that they know and that's exactly why I'm coming with you. Do you really think I'm gonna let you walk around in this city without me?"

"You said... she's... gone."

"She is gone, but your relatives aren't. Now sit in the car."

"I can't."

Before I knew it, I was turned around and pinned to the car, "We are married in this city. I'm not leaving you after I've seen what this city has done to you, so just sit in the car baby."

The word baby sent shivers up my spine and I instantly looked down. He left me and opened my door, I looked at him and sat. He came to the driver seat and sat and soon drove off.

"Suno." He said.

"Hmm." I looked.

"We're still married to them. That's the story we going by."

"But..."

"But what?"

"Our parents don't know. What if they talk to our parents?"

"They won't."

"Why?"

We were halted at a signal. He turned and put my hands on my cheek and smiled, "My innocent half wife, if they tell my Mom about the wedding, will she not ask about it?"

I nodded.

"So then won't they have to tell about the illegal marriage they were doing to you?"

Ohhh! He's right!

"Ohh, yeah." I gave a small smile and left my face and started driving.

Soon, we were at Meenakshi Bua's brother's house. I wanted to thank this aunt, because his wife, Rupa Mami, she found out about Meenakshi Bua and helped me escape. Mami and Mama caught her but before she could do anything, she and Kaka had ran off for a while. Nisha Didi mentioned them coming back.

I stood by the door and waited for him. I stared at the house. I was adorned in this house just a few months back, without knowing what my aunt had in store for me.

"You don't have to do this." I heard him say.

I shook my head and said, "I have to."

I looked at him and he gave me his hand. I stared at him, "We're married. A husband can hold his wife's hand."

I slowly gave him my hand and we walked to the door and I rang the bell.

The door was opened by Rupa Mami, who instantly burst into tears seeing me.

"Nikita!" She cried and took me in her arms. I hugged her back, "How are you beta? I... I'm sorry I couldn't save you that day. I failed you as an aunt, beta..."

I pulled back and wiped her tears, "I'm fine Mami."

I saw Mami's eyes turn to Mayukh, before she could say anything, I spoke, "Mami, he's—"

"Mayukh Chaudary." He said and touched Mami's feet. Mami looked at me and then looked down and blessed him.

"Mami, he's the one who..." Mami understood and smiled and turned to him.

"Thank you beta, for giving my daughter a new life. Thank you so much beta."

"Aunty. Please. I couldn't see her die." He side hugged Mami and wiped her tears.

"You both wait. I'll get the aarti thali." She said and ran in.

I wanted to stop her because we're not truly married but she ran off. I sighed and stood. I felt Mayukh take my duppata and come close. "What... what are you doing?" I asked.

"Wife, have some cultures. Head needs to be covered during this time right!" I knew that.

"I know that but it's for married couples. She's assuming."

"In my city, you're my wife. Now cover your hair, don't upset Mami." My heart did a summersault when he called her Mami. I felt him take the duppata and place it over my head gently, with a few strands of my hair coming over my face.

"Suresh! Come fast!" Mami said and I quickly went back to my place.

Suresh Mama came and I quickly hugged him. Mami did our aarti and we walked in and they closed the door.

We were now seated in her living room as she spoke to us about everything. I saw Mama talk to Mayukh and I was internally panicking.

"Beta... I... I wanted to ask." We both looked up, "are you two still...."

I looked down, unable to answer.

"We are Mami. We decided to give us a chance since we were married on a good day, and coincidentally we both are studying in Dubai, so destiny." He said and I looked at him.

I don't know what he said after that, but was this right? Was God telling me to give him a chance? Marrying on Vijay Dashmi, us coming to the same city, is this a coincidence? My thoughts were shrugged by Mami giving us chai. The next few hours we spent talking and chatting. Mayukh had blended in so well with them, it almost felt real.

"Aunty we'll get going now." Mayukh said, getting up, "My brother's function is today."

"Theek hai beta, please keep coming." Mama said.

I got up and took their blessings with Mayukh and we both were about to leave when Mami stopped me.

"Beta wait." She said and went inside to get something. She walked out with a small pendant and sindoor. My eyes widened. I tried looking at Mayukh but he was talking to Mama and didn't notice.

"Beta, I know you're hiding this marriage from everyone, so I got you this necklace. The heart pendant has the same design and few beads from a mangalsutra so you can wear it, it's a form of mangalsutra. Please let us see you get married once, for our eyes." Mami requested.

How do I tell her all this is fake? I looked at Mayukh, who seemed to have a straight face. I thought he'd deny so I waited, but instead he said, "Of course Mami."

He looked at me and turned me to face him, we went to the DevGhar, led by Mama Mami, and Mami took the sindoor and gave it to him. Mami placed my duppata over my head and I looked at Mayukh, who took the sindoor and put it on my hairline. A drop of sindoor fell on my nose and Mama Mami started smiling. Mayukh then took the necklace and came closer and adorned it around my neck, bringing my hair to the front. I could feel his breathing on my neck.

"Beta, here you go." Mama said with two rings. I was even more shocked. Did these guys know I'm coming?!

"Mama Mami what is all this?"

"Beta, these rings were for us. We got it from RadhaKrishna mandir, they're very blessed."

"So keep them with you Mami."

"We have rings beta, we can go and get it again. I want you two to have it. A marriage feels baseless without a mangalsutra, sindoor and rings. If you've given each other a chance, let God's blessings be with you. Even your mangalsutra is from a temple." Mama argued.

Mayukh took the rings and gave me one. I hesitantly took it and he slipped the ring on my ring finger and I did the same.

Mama Mami then took a picture of us. Mayukh wrapped his arms around my waist and we smiled. Mama sent it to us and soon we said goodbye and sat in the car. I felt a drop of tear fall from my eye. Mayukh was driving without talking. I'm sure he got even more angry now. I kept quiet too and just looked out the window.

Mayukh POV:

Today was an emotional rollercoaster. Seeing her family made me feel horrible that I didn't give us a chance. I know I didn't want to get married, but why is my heart beating so fast? I looked at her.

She was asleep. Her necklace had my adorned mangalsutra. I looked closely at the necklace. It was a mangalsutra, it had two beads. Her face looked like she was in tears. It hurt me. I looked at her hairline. The red sindoor which reminded me off that day and today, how I again adorned her and claimed her as mine. I never thought I'd be adorning her again. I looked at her hand and my own. We had similar rings, which complemented each other. Her ring was more feminine but they both complemented each other.

We reached home and I parked in the garage  and woke her up. She was going to get up and started getting down when I pulled her back. Her eyes widened as I came closer to her.

"What... what happened?" She asked.

I grabbed her hand and pulled her closer to me. "Who's going to remove that sindoor, half wife?"

She touched her sindoor and the face of realization hit her.

"Oh... I... Yeah.. I'll.." She was going to remove it when I stopped her. I pulled her closer so our foreheads were almost touching.

"I'll do it." I said and started rubbing the sindoor on my kurta sleeve. She stared at me in shock.

"Most of it is cleaned. The rest, you can just, remove when you shower."

She nodded. We stayed in silence for one minute when I looked at her. She was looking at me and then looking down. I saw her. Her braided hair resting on her shoulder, her sindoor and mangalsutra and her beautiful face.

"I... We should go." She said and got down the car.

I got down as well, locked the car and turned to her side and walked to her. She was fixing her duppata to hide her necklace and I noticed she had changed the finger that ring was on. Instead of the 3rd finger, it was now on her 2nd finger. I walked towards her until she was caged between me and the wall.

"Wha...what are you doing?" She stammered.

She looked beautiful right now, everything about her screamed that she's mine and I felt my control being lost. I pulled her closer and wrapped my arm around her waist as she held my bicep for support.

"Why did you hide the necklace?" I said, coming near her neck.

"So...so... no one asks."

"No."

"Half wife...." I said, coming close fully intoxicated in her sweet strawberry scent, "You're my wife now. We have a ring, mangalsutra."

"No. We... we'll ignore it."

I came closer, her lips inches away to mine.

"Mayukh...." she whispered.

F****, This was the first time she took my name and it sounded so hot hearing it from her. I don't know what got into me when she said my name but I grabbed her waist tightly, pulled her close, looked at her and watched her breathing heavily and slowly slammed my lips onto hers. I felt her gasping and clutching my biceps tightly.

Third Person POV:

Mayukh kissed her roughly yet carefully. It felt beautiful. He had kissed before but nothing compared to what this is. He pressed my lips against hers as she stood still, unable to process what happened. His hands trailed her body along her waist and he slowly lifted her salwar up and touched her bare skin. She gasped and Mayukh smirked against the kiss. He, then, left her lips and kissed her neck, finding a sweet spot and kissing it. Nikita moaned slightly and this triggered Mayukh more as she pushed her more against the wall and kissed her lips again. After a while, he let go and Mayukh observed his wife's face.

Mayukh POV:

I watched her smudged lipstick, red face and heavy breathing. She looked at me and I could sense my eyes darkening. I just wanted her right now.

I fixed my kurta and fixed her salwar as well. I placed her duppata neatly on her shoulders and opened her hair. Then, I took a clip and tied it halfway. She looked at me as I did this. Does she feel anything for me? Is it just me? How did I just kiss her?

"Let's go." I said and grabbed her hand to walk away when she pulled me back, "What happened?"

She didn't say anything. She just came closer and placed her hands on her duppata, then brought it to my lips and around it. Oh her lipstick! I watched her remove her lipstick. My eyes were glued on her brown eyes and that adoring face. Once she was done, she gave me a look and then started walking.

————————————————————————

HEHHEEHEH🫶🏻