The golden beams cut through the navy sky, slowly spreading its light, vanquishing the darkness. The possessor of the beams rose high above the city, informing all of a new day.
Khushi woke up with a start, squealing out of exhilaration, she looked beside her, as if maybe her dream had come true early, however sadly the other side of the bed remained empty.
'Not for long', she thought to herself, causing her lips to spread out into a smile again, hurrying out of bed.
It had been three weeks since she had seen her husband, three very, very long weeks. Arnav had gone for a business trip in California, they had talked on the phone but not for long as the time difference had been a great barrier to their communication.
But no matter, Khushi would be with him soon enough, and then all they would do is spend time with one another.
Khushi looked inside her cupboard, unsure of what to wear, she was debating about whether or not to wear a saree or an anarkali dress when she spotted the deep red saree Arnav had bought for her birthday. She carefully picked out matching jewellery and made her way to the bathroom to change, glancing at the clock that read 8 o'clock.
"Two hours to go!" She squealed.
Khushi took her time to get changed, wanting to drag the process as she knew for the rest of the minutes and seconds she would simply and only be waiting for his arrival.
It felt like a century since she had seen him last, she was revisited by the memory of their goodbye...
"Khushi, don't worry, I'll be fine," Arnav told her as they walked into the departures terminal together.
"I know," she replied, feeling her throat tighten.
They were walking hand-in-hand, there were only a few step to go to the white bold line imprinted on the ground, marking their separation.
"Promise me that you'll phone," Arnav said, suddenly.
"I promise."
"We'll be together very soon," Arnav said, his voice hoarse. God, this was difficult.
It may have seemed childish to the onlookers but the couple was walking very, very slow, elongating their meeting to the white line on the ground.
"It's only a few weeks," Khushi said, trying to sound convincing, "I mean you'll come back so quickly, I won't have noticed you've gone." Her heart dropped as she realised for three weeks she would not fall asleep or wake up in his arms.
"yeah...that's right," Arnav replied, contributing to the act.
They came at a halt at the menacing white line.
This is it.
The curtain fell, as the act was over, unleashing their sorrowful emotions.
Arnav bent down to hug Khushi, feeling her arms tight around his neck. "I'm going to miss you," he whispered into her ear, beseeching God to save him from a break down.
"I'm going to miss you too," she replied, her tears staining his shirt.
They left themselves enclosed in their sorrow for a while, not letting, not wanting, anyone else in.
"You should go," Khushi said, looking up at him, placing her arms beside her, but not stepping back. He bit his lip, nodding.
"I love you," he said, meaning every word of it.
"I love you too," she replied, smiling through her tears.
"Today," he said
"Tomorrow,"
"And always" He completed before kissing her on her cheek, closing her eyes at his touch. "Bye, darling," he said, and then he was gone.
**********
Khushi blinked around her, she was still in the bathroom, having changed into her saree. She opened the door, wiping the tears, today was not a day to for grieving.
She made her way downstairs, humming a tune under her breath.
Everyone was seated at the dining table, having breakfast, the chattering seemed to mute as she glanced towards the door.
'Patience, Khushi, patience,' she said to herself, looking away from the door, the volume instantly went back to normal.
"Good morning, Khushi-ji," Anjali greeted her, a grin on her face, "so we've decided that at 10:00 we'll go shopping all of us-"
"No, but, Di-" Khushi began to panic.
Anjali giggled, winking at Nani, "don't worry, you're not going anywhere, you shall meet Chote as soon as he comes home, I was only joking."
Khushi shook her head at her Di, smiling at her.
**********
'10 more minutes to go,' Khushi thought to herself, staring at the clock. Akash had left forty minutes ago to pick up Arnav, Khushi done the calculations in her head thrice, concluding that her husband would be there, at the door in 10 minutes.
All were sitting in the sitting room, occupied in their own way, Nani was reading the newspaper, whilst Anjali, Payal and NK were guffawing at the TV that showed talking monkeys. Their giggles suddenly came to a halt as the sound of a key jiggling in the keyhole filled the room.
"Is that Akash?" Anjali asked, rhetorically, all eyes on the still closed door.
He's here! He's here! Khushi sang in her head, smiling eagerly for Arnav-ji to open the door.
The lock turned, the door handle was pushed down, and the barrier was opened as Arnav stepped inside, his hazel eyes seeking Khushi.
"Chote!" Nani smiled, hugging her grandson, as others greeted him as well.
Khushi was at the back of the queue, this was, however, insignificant as Arnav's eyes remained on her throughout the whole process.
After Arnav had greeted everyone, he stepped forward, taking the view of her in.
Beauty.
Pure beauty.
"Come here," he mimed to her. She took a couple of steps forward, then sprinted to him. She threw herself in his arms. Her arms squeezing his back, her head against his chest. His hands wrapped around her waist, his head bent down so his face was pressed against her cheek, inhaling her scent.
"I missed you," she whispered, tightening her grip around him.
"I missed you too," he replied, not quite believing that she was there, with him, finally. He softly kissed her hair, and then leaned back to see her face. She looked up at him, cupping his face. "You are never going away for that long ever again," she rasped.
"I love you, today, tomorrow and always" he whispered, feeling her moist tears droplets, before mixing his own tears with them.
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