Becoming Sweethearts [✓]

Part Thirty Nine

The rain kept pouring and the thunder kept roaring through the night. Omkara and Gauri lay wide awake for a longer part of the night, as she kept playing with his fingers while he spooned her. The weather was cool enough, but they'd pushed the duvet away for the night. Only when Omkara had heard Gauri's soft snores did he lift his head to look at her in the darkness, and a soft smile came upon his lips. He shifted a little away from her, gently turning her around to face him without disturbing her sleep, and then huddled closer so that he was hugging her with his head cradled against her chest- just the way he usually slept next to her.

Omkara inhaled a long breath and felt the calmness in his heart as the natural scent of her body filled his senses. She smelled so delicate, causing him to have a sweet rush through his veins. In the dark, he ran his fingers through her hair as if gently massaging her scalp, and he heard her moan. Sleepily, she threw her arms around his shoulder. Omkara smiled; he was so used to cuddling next to her, that now he couldn't even sleep a wink without being close to her. Resting his leg on top of hers, he closed his eyes listening to the rhythm of her heartbeat with the sound of the steady rain in the background, not realizing his heartbeat and his breathing had started to sync with hers. He felt sleep wash over him, and in the depths of his unconscious mind, the soulful kiss they shared that evening played itself on a loop.

Like every morning, Gauri found herself waking up in his embrace. She looked at his sleeping face and her heart was overwhelmed at the realization that she would wake up for the rest of her life at the sight of such a serene look. Gauri bent her head and placed a soft kiss on his forehead, unable to hold herself back. Omkara slept like a baby, huddled up against her, but when she kissed him, a small sleepy smile came upon his lips. She closed her eyes and made a silent prayer to always keep this man peaceful and happy. He had been through a lot, and she knew he deserved all the happiness in the world. She vowed to herself that she will do everything in her capacity to always keep him happy. With a renewed confidence, she slowly moved his hand away to slip out of his hold, and like every morning, placed her warm pillow in her place for him to keep hugging.

Gauri, after freshening up, changed into a pair of three-fourth slacks and a t-shirt. Since they had been informed to stay at home due to the brewing storm, and she wasn't required to connect to work from home, she decided to do the laundry. Once she had put the clothes for drying, she was in a mood to cook some breakfast. Luckily, they had stocked up after shopping just two days back. Gauri decided to cook some breakfast sausages, some eggs, and toast, along with tea. Once the rest was ready, she had put the slices of bread into the toaster, and that was when Omkara sleepily walked out, still rubbing his eyes. Gauri felt her heart melt when she saw his tousled hair as he leaned against the kitchen entrance half-sleepily.

"Good morning!" she cheerfully wished him and he opened his eyes. "You're as cheery as Cinderella!" he exclaimed with a lazy smile coming to his lips. She, in response, twirled around once and curtsied in front of him, making him grin. "Oooh, fancy breakfast?" He said, peeking at the plate behind her and she nodded, "Brush your teeth and freshen up first. We'll have our breakfast together." Omkara nodded, closing his eyes, still sleepy.

"Oberoi!" she warned, asking him to quickly finish washing up. "Yea, yea, going!" he muttered sleepily and walked towards her instead. "Bathroom is the other way!" she said looking at him in confusion. He, however, kept walking towards her and hugged her, resting his head in the crook of her neck as if he were a baby. She was amused and hugged him while patting his back gently. He drew a long breath, pulled away from the hug, and with a goofy smile, turned around to make his way to the bathroom. Gauri watched him walk away as a sweet grin adorned her lips.

***

Omkara noticed she hadn't brought up last evening's kiss, and preferred to eat her breakfast in silence, looking into her phone. While, on one hand, it avoided any awkward conversations which he was partly thankful for, he also knew that they couldn't pretend that it didn't happen. Staying mum about it or avoiding the topic altogether wouldn't help, especially given how the physical attraction was so evident between them.