MaAn Love

Shaadi Mubarak (Part 1) - The Color of Love

(Writer's note: The last two paragraphs contain explicit sexual content not suitable for anyone below 18.This piece is the first part in the MaAn Shaadi series. Next part will be up next weekend)

21:00, 11th Feb 2022

Anuj twisted the unfamiliar gold band around his ring finger; staring into the distance facing the mirror, lost in thought. The top buttons undone, the front flap of his mint green sherwani hung limply waiting for him to finish what he had started. It felt surreal to have a ring on that finger, and yet there it sat snugly -further proof (in case his memories alone didn't suffice) that his God Dhana ceremony had actually occurred earlier this evening.

As scenes from the ceremony floated by in front of his eyes, he unbuttoned the rest of his outfit, blushing slightly as he remembered Anu walking in. He had been standing right here... in front of the mirror, adding the finishing touches to his attire... the soft sounds of the evening rush hour traffic travelling in through the open balcony, suddenly interrupted by loud laughter echoing in the hallway. He had turned around just in time to see Anu walk in; head bowed slightly giggling, with Samar clutching her arm, hysterically laughing at some comment Pakhi had passed in the hallway just then. Her chiffon saree in the same mint green as his sherwani swayed elegantly as she stepped into his apartment, her long hair in loose curls, the deep green of the jade on her neck, ears and hands making her look like royalty... he had smiled - she was after all his queen. Anu had looked up, her eyes locking with his, her cheeks turning a shade of soft blush pink to match her blouse.

Slipping his watch off, he closed his eyes, remembering the sweet jasmine scent that had washed over him, as Anu was brought to the chair next to his. His mind wandered to when they had both caught Bapuji and GK sneaking a couple of the god dhanas every few minutes and Anu had grabbed his arm to point this out. The border of her pallu had settled on his sleeve and he had noticed that her saree border matched the embroidery on his sleeves. Thank God, Mukku and Kinjal had commandeered the whole process of picking & getting the outfits ready for them, Anuj thought, his fingers absently tracing the gold floral swirls on one of his sleeves as he placed the sherwani on his bed. Pulling a navy blue t-shirt over his head his mind went back to that glorious moment when Anu had reached over for his hand, holding the ring Baa had given her. Peals of laughter had resounded through his apartment when he had shoved his hand forward, a little too soon, too eager to be officially engaged to the woman sitting beside him.

The strong earthy smell of freshly ground mehendi wafted in from his terrace balcony, bringing him back to the present. He could hear loud laughter, some off key singing followed by more laughter. Kinjal and Pakhi had offered to stay back & help Mukku grind the mehendi...something that Mukku could have finished in less than 20 minutes had she used the blender. But Mukku had adamantly refused resulting in poor Kinjal bringing the heavy sil batta from her home to his (after he had personally assured Baa it would be back where it belonged in less than 24 hours).Less than 24 hours? In less than 24 hours he would be at the Shah household watching his name being written on Anu's hands... Blushing at this thought Anuj stepped into the balcony.

Mukku and Pakhi seemed to be playing their own version of Holi throwing ground mehendi at each other. "Kal ke liye bhi kuch bachake rakho Mukku" Anuj said, amused. Still standing in the doorway, he admired this scene. Until today he hadn't realized what his apartment was missing. But looking at this noisy messy balcony, he silently thanked Anu for making him a part of her life and her huge family. Mukku retorted, "Bhai apke naam me toh teen hi akshar hai. Uthne ke liye mehendi rakh denge." Kinjal, who was diligently grinding the mehendi chuckled and addressed him, "Waise Anuj ji, Pakhi aur mein aapse kuch poochna chahte the". Anuj looks from Kinjal to Pakhi waiting. Pakhi spoke up: "Woh... hume parson se aapko papa bulaana hai ya aaj se hi bulaana shuru karein? Papa??" she added teasing him. Anuj brought his hands together begging them to never repeat this -"Pleaseeee tum sab mujhe Anuj hi bulao." Pakhi attempting to pull his legs again exclaimed: "Par papaaa..." as Anuj hastily leaves, slightly regretting his decision of stepping into the balcony. Loud laughter followed him to his bedroom as he decided to call it a night.