Part Thirty Three

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Janhvi stood outside Omkara's bedroom door, wondering if she should wake the two of them up. Holding a tray on which a banarasi-silk saree in red and gold, a set of matching jewellery, and other accessories for Gauri, along with the white and gold banarasi-silk kurta-pyjama set for Omkara were neatly folded and arranged, she pondered on whether to knock on the door or not. It was still quite early, and the auspicious time was still an hour away for the pooja to start, which Omkara and Gauri had to perform as per tradition on her first morning in her new home.

"Jethani ji?" Pinky asked, looking at a confused Janhvi standing in front of the door. "Aap aise Om ke kamre ke darwaze ko sawere sawere kyun stares kar rahe hain? Kya hua?" Janhvi looked at Pinky, saying, "They need to get ready for the pooja which is in an hour. I'm thinking whether to wake them up so early or to let them sleep for some more time." Pinky smirked as she said, "Kya bhaagya hain aapke, Jethani ji. Aapki bahu ka aaj pehla din hai, aur aapko apni bahu ko wake-ups karna pad raha hai! Jab meri bahu ka pehla din tha yahan, tab woh 2 ghante pehle uthi thi, sawere sawere sabke liye chai banaya tha, aur harr kisi ke kamre mein jaake unko chai diya tha. Aapko pata nahi yaad hoga yan ahi, kyunki uss time aap waters se zyada alcohols peeti thi na?"

Janhvi frowned at her, "Pinky, how do you manage to be so bitter first thing in the morning?" Pinky rolled her eyes as she laughed, "Bitters nahi hoon, Jethani ji. Facts bol rahi hoon. Yeh alag baat hai ke sach kadwa hota hai." Taking a step towards her, she said in a soft tone, "Muft ka advices de rahi hoon aapko, Jethani ji. Apni bahu ko pehle din se hi controls mein rakhein, warna baad mein bahut difficulties hone wala hai. Aapki bahu toh waise bhi Omkara ko apni pallu mein baandh ke leke jaa rahi hai iss ghar se door, alag rehne ke liya. Ghar mein kadam padne se pehle hi uske aise tewar hain. Ab pata nahi aage kya hoga. Ek meri bahu Annika hai jo iss ghar ko jode rakhne ke liye itna kuch karti hai, aur ek aapki nayi-naveli maharani, jo iss ghar mein aane se pehli apna rang dikha chuki hai!"

Pinky walked away when Janhvi ignored her presence because honestly, Janhvi wasn't keen on ruining her mood early morning. After she walked away, Janhvi knocked softly on the door, hoping that she wasn't disturbing the newlyweds. "Mummy?" She turned to look at Rudra, "How come you woke up early?" she asked.

"Gym. My exams are starting next week, so Sumo is teaching me the subjects this week in the evening. Since I cannot work out in the evening, I'm going in the mornings." Then looking at her and the tray she had placed on the floor outside the door, he asked, "Yeh kya hai?" When Janhvi explained, he chuckled, saying, "O and Bhabhi won't wake up so early. Both were awake till late night yesterday." Janhvi turned pink at that but frowned as to how Rudra knew of it.

"I was in the kitchen last night, and O came searching for snacks to the kitchen. Later, Shivaay Bhaiyya told me that they were watching a movie. It must have been around two in the morning. Mummy, I don't think they would wake up any time soon." Rudra said, taking a sip of his protein shake. Jahnvi now genuinely looked worried. She knew how important this tradition was, and Kalyani Singh Oberoi had sternly told her to see that the pooja starts on time so that everything was auspicious. Not knowing what else to do, she knocked on the door, this time a little louder.

"Mummy, you know O sleeps like he's in a different universe altogether! Itne mein woh uthenge kya?" Then, without waiting for her, Rudra banged on the door. Janhvi had to slap his arm as he said loudly "O, Bhabhi, wake up!" "Pagal" Janhvi murmured, waiting patiently outside the room, hoping they would wake up soon.

***

Gauri heard someone knocking at the door and frowned in her sleep. The bed was too warm and comfortable to get out of it to answer the door. "Five minutes more, Mamma..." she murmured in her sleep, hoping that her Mamma would stop knocking and just let her sleep. But at least, this knocking on the door was way better than her usual habit of turning off the fan or pulling her bedsheet and shaking her up.

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