OS: A birthday to remember

One week had passed since they had returned from Australia. Khushi was recovering well from her injuries, thanks to constant care from Arnav. Every four hours he used to call her up, to remind her to take her medicines. But she hadn't managed to see him, as he was very busy with his office work and thus hadn't been able to drop by her house.

Today, Anjali had called her up and had invited her for some Puja that was to take place in their house. She hadn't mentioned the occasion but had just told her to reach their house at 8 in the morning. Since the Guptas were busy with Payal's wedding preparations, they had decided to only send Khushi to their house.

When Khushi reached the Raizada house, she was greeted by Anjali at the door.

Anjali- "Khushiji, thank you for coming. Come inside, everyone is waiting for you."

Khushi- "But Anjaliji, may I know the auspicious reason for the Puja to be held today?" she asked her as she was led inside.

Anjali- "Actually it is Chote's Birthday today. Every year we keep a small Puja for him to pray for his well being and success. But you know him. He doesn't believe in all this stuff. He blatantly refuses to celebrate his Birthday let alone organise a party for him. So, as his sister, this is the least I can do for my brother, right?" she asked Khushi who was shocked to hear this news.

She had last spoken to him yesterday night, when he had reminded her to take her medicines. But he hadn't mentioned anything about his Birthday. Her eyes scanned across the room to find him, but he was nowhere in sight. He must be in his room, she thought to herself. She wanted to greet him. Oh No! she hadn't brought any gift for him. She banged her head with her wrist, realizing her mistake. Maybe she would apologise first to him and convince him that she would get it later for him. But what could she gift him.

All these thoughts were creating havoc in her mind, when she suddenly found herself being pulled to the floor by NK.

NK- "Please sit Khushiji, we are already late. I know what's going on in your mind. Eager to meet someone?" he asked with a teasing tone and winked his eye.

Khushi- "No, Nanheji, nothing like that." She lied but continued to strain her neck to catch a glimpse of him anywhere, but to no avail. Puja had started and she couldn't even get up in between. What was he doing so long in his room? Wasn't this Puja supposed to be for him? Oh wait! He doesn't believe in all this stuff, right! She disappointedly thought to herself.

As the Puja proceeded, she found herself praying for him.

Khushi '" Hey Devi Maiyya, today I ask you to please help my Lard Governor and bless him with happiness always. I know I used to hate him and I know that he doesn't believe in you. But you know that he is a good person at heart and so I believe that you should give him another chance." She was busy praying closing her eyes, that she didn't notice him come down from the stairs.

He was getting late to go out and so, in his haste, he didn't notice her sitting with the others as he hadn't expected her to be present for the Puja. When he was at the main door, his Di had stopped him to offer the Prasad. He had glanced at his watch. He was late and thus, he ran outside to his car.

Khushi had opened her eyes finally after the Puja was over. She got up to go upstairs to his room, but was stopped by Anjali.

Anjali- "Where are you going, Khushiji?"

Khushi '"Actually, I wanted to meet Arnav... ermm.. Arnavji." She still wasn't comfortable dropping the 'Ji' from his name in front of his family.

Anjali '" Oh! Khushiji! You missed him. He just left a minute earlier. I'm sure if you go outside right now, you might be able to meet him." She hadn't finished her sentence, but she saw Khushi sprinting towards the main door.

Khushi was too late, when she reached outside. She saw his car leave the main gate of the house. She ran towards it to stop him. But he didn't seem to notice her. She searched for her cell phone to call him, but it looked like she had forgotten it in her house in hurry. Now what was she going to do?

She ran outside the gate and tried to stop an Auto Rickshaw and got into it. Yes, she was going to follow him. She had to meet him at any cost. She asked the driver to follow the white SUV. As they went further, she noticed that he deviated from his usual path to office and turned right into a suburban area in Delhi. That was strange. Maybe he had some meeting with someone. After about five minutes, she saw his car stop. He quickly got down and entered into a huge compound.

She asked the Rickshaw driver to stop, paid the fare and followed him inside. At the entrance, she glanced at the huge board outside. It read '"Anila's home for Kids". Anila, that name sounded familiar but she couldn't remember it immediately where she had heard it. She saw Arnav enter the door of the huge building that resembled a house cum school. It had a huge play area in the front. Minutes later she heard screams of children followed by laughter. Curious to know, she decided to stand near the door and peep in to find the scenario that was slowly unfolding in front of her eyes.

She saw many kids, of various ages, squealing with happiness, opening what seemed to be gift boxes for them. She saw variety of gifts being opened, ranging from soft toys, to books, to xboxs to even a guitar for one elder boy. The smaller kids were all surrounding a clearly embarrassed Arnav, trying to hug him. The smallest kid, a girl aged just three held out her arms, waiting to be lifted off the ground. Arnav bent down to lift her up in his hands and gave her a huge teddy bear from the pile of gifts beside him.

The little girl's face filled with amusement and delight at seeing the teddy bear and she held it in her arms and kissed it. Then, she turned to Arnav's face and kissed him warmly, on his cheek, shouting out a loud 'Thank you, Uncle.'

Khushi, still standing beside the door couldn't believe her eyes. Just when she thought she had seen enough, she saw Arnav signal someone to get something from inside. Looking in that direction, she saw two ladies bring out a huge cake from inside the door. It was bigger than the biggest cake she had ever seen in her life. It was a molten chocolate cake with chocolate dripping from all sides. She could see all the children in the room licking their lips at the sight of such a yummy cake. Khushi couldn't stop her own mouth from watering at such a delicious cake.

Twenty five candles were placed on it and she saw Arnav take out a lighter and light up all the candles. All the children stood behind the cake, while a few elders and Arnav stood on the opposite side of the room. And then the unexpected happened.

Arnav came a bit forward and started singing the 'Happy Birthday song' while the others joined him in the next stanza. Khushi stood stunned as this was the first time she had heard him sing aloud. He started clapping his hands, the others joining him, while all the children, together blew off the candles on the cake. Few kids at the centre began to cut the cake and then chaos erupted as every kid wanted to have a piece of the cake. The elders had to calm down everyone telling that they would get their share.

Arnav stood at the side scanning every kid's face, his own face gleaming with more happiness, everytime he saw a happy and excited face. Khushi had never seen him so happy and all that she wanted now, was to wrap him in a big bear hug.

An older boy , who was passing by, asked Khushi to join them in their celebrations.

Khushi- " Actually, whose Birthday are they celebrating?" she asked the boy wondering who was that lucky kid who shared the birthday with Arnav. Clearly, they weren't celebrating Arnav's Birthday coz he wasn't the one cutting the cake.

Boy- "Didi, you must be new here. Every year, we all celebrate our Birthdays on this day. That uncle over there," he said pointing to Arnav, "he brings us gifts on this day. We are asked to make a wish list a week before and he makes sure that we all get what we want. You see, Didi, all of us here, don't have parents. We were found in the streets of Delhi, homeless and hungry. We don't even remember our own birthdays. Hence, we all celebrate it together on this day. Our caretaker Aunt says, he has given us this new home. He looks after all our needs. I don't remember my own father's face. But this uncle here is the closest thing to a father for me." He said with a contented voice and a smile on his face and turned around to leave.

Khushi stood surprised and shocked hearing the words of this boy. Stood before her, was a man who was unwilling to celebrate his own birthday, but made sure that he brought smiles to these orphan children's faces.

Since everyone else was busy helping themselves with loads of food on the table, Arnav slowly moved aside to one corner, trying to sideline himself from the rest of the crowd. He stood leaning on the wall, lost in his own thoughts. That was when, Khushi decided to go towards him. She slowly sneaked in and stood beside him and placed her warm hand in his.

Surprised at the sudden warmth, he quickly turned around to see the person beside him.

Arnav- "Khushi..." he whispered in a low voice, unable to believe his eyes. What on earth was she doing here?

Khushi- "Looks like someone forgot to mention it was their Birthday today." She said looking straight ahead of her, not wanting to see his eyes, to show her disapproval. "I'm really angry and mad at you." She said with a pouted face. "And you didn't even meet me at your house today. You know, I was invited for the Puja at your house. I wanted to meet you but you left without saying a word. And you know, I had to follow your car all the way from your house in the Auto Rickshaw." She continued to complain without any signs of stopping.

Arnav quickly placed his hand over her mouth to only hear her muffled voice and this brought a huge smile on his face. "I got the point Khushi Kumari Gupta." He said making her to stare back at him with her huge round eyes in disbelief. But before she could utter anymore explanation, they heard one of the small boys shout out loud forcing him to remove his hand from her mouth.

Boy '"Looks like Uncle has brought us an Aunty this time." He said loudly making all the children in the room squeal with laughter. Hearing this, one of the old ladies, came running towards them.

Old lady '"Wah Arnav Beta, won't you introduce me to your fianc? You turned out to be a big Chupa Rustam. Till recently, when I asked you about your marriage plans, you said you weren't interested in any girl and that marriage was not your cup of tea. But today, you have finally got the right girl, haven't you?" she asked him winking her eyes.

Both Arnav and Khushi couldn't stop blushing, embarrassed at being noticed together.

Arnav ' "Nothing like that, Auntyji. I haven't thought about marriage yet. She is just my girlfriend for now." He said with a cute smile looking at Khushi.

Khushi '" Namaste Auntyji," she said bending down to seek the blessings of the old Lady and began exchanging few words with her. But after few minutes of their conversation, she was led away from him by the old lady, to introduce her to all the kids and other staff members. Arnav concluded that he wasn't going to get Khushi all to himself soon and thus decided to go outside into the play area.

After twenty minutes, when Khushi was finally free, she decided to search for him. She found him in the play area, standing all by himself, away from the hustle bustle inside, lost in his own thoughts. She slowly sneaked behind him and placed her hands on his chest from behind, engulfing him in a huge hug. She rested her head on his back, her hands feeling his heart beat rhythmically inside his chest.

He lifted his own hands and placed in on top of her hands, slowly lifting them one by one, placing warm kisses on her fingers. He turned around to see her smiling face. She stood on her toes and put her hands around his neck and bent it a little, to place a deep and passionate kiss on his lips, all the while, moulding her body into his, feeling the heat emanating from him. She broke apart, to gaze into his chocolate eyes and whispered, "Happy Birthday, Lard Governor."

He groaned with displeasure at being called Lard Governor.

Khushi ' "Arnav!" she said with a cheeky smile and punched him lightly on his chest. Oh! How much he loved the way she uttered his name.

Arnav- "Thank you, My Jalebi Bai." He said bending down to kiss the nape of her neck.

Khushi '" Oh Arnav!"she moaned out with pleasure as his lips touched her skin. "Come let's get into the car before anyone sees us like this." She said giggling and both of them, got inside the car.

Khushi '"Does Di, Nani know that you celebrate your Birthday like this?" He nodded a silent No.

Arnav- "And even you weren't supposed to know this." He said like an innocent kid being caught off guarded. Khushi couldn't help herself from caressing his cheek at the innocent face he was portraying. After pondering for a minute, she suddenly realized.

Khushi '"And these kids here have no idea it's your birthday, right?" He looked away unable to respond to her. "Aww.." she glided her fingers into his hair and slid it down his shoulders , softly patting his body. "But why?"

Arnav- "I haven't celebrated my Birthday since my Mom passed away. You know , she used to celebrate my Birthday with so much grandeur. She used to buy me gifts just like this and make my favourite Molten Chocolate Cake every year for my Birthday." His voice was now filled with anguish and pain at the memories of his Mother.

Khushi suddenly remembered the name Anila. Ofcourse, it was his Mother's name. So he had built the home for orphans in his Mother's name. His mother would be so proud of him, she thought to herself. Khushi was so proud of the man beside her.

Khushi '"Arnav, can you drop me back home? I know your getting late for work. Even I have some important work. " She said. He was a bit disappointed as he wanted to spend more time with her today. His day was only getting better with her a part of it. But he relented to her wish.

After he dropped her home, Khushi ran into the kitchen to search for that recipe book which had the special sugar free chocolate cake recipe. She would make this day, a birthday to remember.

Late in the evening, Arnav had returned home, all tired and greasy after a long day at work. He glanced at his watch. It was 9:00 pm. He met his Di on the way upstairs to his room.

Anjali '"Chote, you have something waiting for you in the terrace." She said winking, grinning all the way.

Arnav '"Di, please don't tell me, you've organised a surprise party or something like that. You know how much I hate such parties." But his Di decided to ignore him and pretended she didn't hear anything.

Arnav hurried himself upstairs to the terrace, but he found the place all dark. He went outside to search around the place. Then, he saw a lone candle flicker, few feet away. As he neared it, he saw it was on top of a cake. On the cake it was beautifully written. 'To my Dearest Arnav, With love, Ma.'

The next minute, he found Khushi hugging him from behind. He turned her around to face her.

Arnav- "Khushi, what was the need for all this? And I know, you must have prepared this specially for me, sugar free and all that." He said with pouted look on his face.

Khushi '" Who said I prepared it? It was sent by Ma." She said pointing at the stars above them. "Doesn't it look just like the way Ma used to prepare it?"

He looked into the sky, his eyes searching for his Mother and felt his throat choking with emotions. He turned around to Khushi and said "Unbelievable!" before he grabbed her body for a tight hug. "Yes, it does look like that." He whispered as he kissed her ear, suddenly feeling fresh and cheerful after a tiresome day.

Khushi- "Thank God, coz I spent hours talking to Anjali Di on the phone, asking her to describe all the minute details about the cake. Come let's cut the cake." She said, handing over the knife to him. And then she began singing 'Happy Birthday' loudly like a kid, making him to laugh loudly. Before he blew off his candle, she asked him to make a wish.

As he closed his eyes, the only thing that came into his mind was Khushi. He wished that she would always be beside him throughout his life. As he blew off the candle, she switched on the fairy lights that decorated the entire terrace, providing a warm glow to the slightly chilly night. He cut the cake and took out a huge piece and shoved it inside Khushi's mouth.

Khushi closed her eyes and moaned with absolute pleasure at the deliciousness of the cake. Ever since she had prepared the cake, she wanted to take a bite of it. But she had restrained herself from doing so till the cake cutting.

Arnav- "I think you've forgotten that you are supposed to feed me the cake too." He whispered with a husky voice and a wicked grin on his face. He was only staring at the liquid chocolate that now covered her already luscious lips. He bent his head slightly to lick off the chocolate on her outer lips, his eyes now fixated on her eyes, observing her every reaction to his assaults.

Khushi '" No, I haven't." She said, slightly pushing him away to grab a piece of cake and feed him. He held her hand firmly, after she had fed him the cake. After relishing the piece, in his mouth, he opened his eyes. He took her fingers and slowly put them inside his mouth, licking off the chocolate that was on them after holding the piece of cake. "Arnav.." she moaned feeling her knees go weak with his assaults. But he was in no mood to stop.

She snapped open her eyes to find him devilishly looking at her. "You know right, you are getting away with this only because today is your Birthday." She declared to him.

Arnav- "Oh really, then for what all am I going to get away today?" he asked amused with a cocked eyebrow. He pulled her closer to him and lifted her and carried over to the steps lying beside them and placed her on top of them. He removed his tie and waist coat and unbuttoned the first few buttons of his shirt as he hovered himself on top of her. He began kissing her mercilessly all over her body and face. She groaned with pleasure as her body began to tremble.

She quickly turned him over, now her lying on top of him, as she fully unbuttoned his shirt. He felt the cold breeze caressing his body. She began planting warm kisses on his hard chiselled chest and abs going from top to bottom. When she reached his naval, he pulled her back up unable to with hold the pleasure growing inside him.

Arnav- "You know, I haven't received my gift yet" he asked pretending with an innocent look on his face.

Khushi '"I didn't know what gift would you like. Well, why don't we try something similar to what you did to those kids today? Make a wish list and I will fulfil it." She said with a huge smile on her face.

Arnav- "Will you do anything for me?" he asked, a faint smirk appearing at the end of his lips.

Khushi '" Hmm.. since I'm in a good mood today, I will definitely do it. Try me." She said.

After thinking for a long time, he replied, "Ok, then Khushi. Will you go to Maldives with me tomorrow? Only you and me. No one else."

Oh! No! what was she going to tell everyone back home? Would they allow her to go out all by herself with Arnav. But then the idea of both of them being all by themselves in Maldives excited her. She nodded with approval and he pulled her over his chest, wrapping his legs with her, holding her protectively as he gazed at the stars above them.

Arnav- "Thank you Khushi, for everything." he said as he planted a feathery kiss on top of her head.

Khushi '"Is this all in your wishlist?" she asked looking into his eyes.

Arnav- "Honey, this is just the beginning." He said with a wicked smirk, his fingers sliding inside her clothes, instantly making Khushi blush crimson as she realised what was going on in his mind.

How was it? you may have felt the story was disconnected, or atleast the emotions. That's because it was written over 2 days. So the story went according to my mood.

I enjoyed writing it. Did you enjoy reading it? Even if you liked a tiny bit, press the like button. And if you want me to stop writing, plz say so.😆

A big🤗 for supporting and appreciating my work.

p.s. plz don't ask me to continue. Will only do so, If I get some ideas. Or else I'm planning to start a new FF soon.😃