Sivaangi was livid, "Ashwin, this is not fair. Idhu ethana maasam munnadi plan pottom. Ippidi last minute la cancel pannina enna artham? You know how important this New Year is for me. We are starting a new journey together and I wanted to start it with you beside me. This is not ok Ashwin" she complained. He held her hands, looked around and said, "Maa naan enna maa panattum. Padam correct aa 30th release date kuduthirukaanga. Naan irundhe aaganum maa. Nee jolly ya poitu vaa. Unakku thaan Mani-Hussain, Shrutika-Arjun company romba pudikumme maa. Avangalum Unna semmaiya paathupaanga. Nee thirumba vandha udane namba rendu perum special aa edhavudhu pannalaam, ok? Sorry Kutty maa. Please kochukaadhe" he pleaded but nothing could pacify Sivaangi. She was in no mood to be the understanding girlfriend. She pulled her hand away from his grip. She just got up and, without looking at his face, said, "Ungalukku unga poriurundai thaan mukkiyam" she mumbled. "Ok bye. I have stuff to do. You have fun with Ravi sir and Prabu sir. Naan kelambaren" and stormed out of Fruit Bae, leaving the helpless Ashwin.
Ashwin-Sivaangi and few of their close friends had planned to celebrate Christmas and New Year at London. They had all worked really hard and had planned this months ago. London was known to look gorgeous at this time of the year. They had saved up enough for this trip. Ashwin's movie was supposed to have released at least a couple of months ago so it all seemed fine at the time of booking but as time passed by, there was no news for his movie release date. Finally, when the announcement came, it was a shock. His movie was releasing on the 30th of December and he had to be here. Although Sivaangi knew that it was not Ashwin's fault, she was extremely disappointed and heartbroken. She was looking forward to begin the year with him.
Shrutika and Arjun had completed 10 years of marriage, Manimegalai and Hussein had completed 5 years of marriage. Both Ashwin and Sivaangi were inspired by their love stories. They were deeply in love. All the three love Jodi's from different walks of life had planned to be together for New Year's celebration. Now, Sivaangi was going to be by herself and a third wheel to the other two couple. She could not believe this was happening.
Ashwin got busy with promotions and had to spend a lot of time with PS sir. He messaged Sivaangi only to get the silent treatment from her. He knew she will be ok soon but he also understood her point of view.
It was the 23rd of November. Although, Ashwin had apologized to her several times, she was being passive aggressive. It was time to go to the airport. She was meeting the others at the airport. Her parents dropped her off. As soon as she landed at the airport, Ashwin stood there with a bouquet and a puppy face. Her heart melted at the sight of him. Even though she kept a stern face, Ashwin could see her love for him, in her eyes. He walked towards her with the flowers and a card that said "Mannipaya". She wanted to hug him right away but she controlled her self. She took the flowers and started walking away. After taking a few steps she stopped, turned around and walked towards him. She cleared her throat, stretched her hand and said, "All the best for Sembi. Unga mela kovama irundhaalum enakku theriyum idhu evvalo important nu. Unga release podhu unga kooda irukkanum nu naan romba aasa patten. ESP kum mudiyala ippo vum mudiyala but I will pray for you" she walked away then again stopped to look at him, "unga mela kovam illai, varutham thaan. I will miss you". This time she walked without looking back. Ashwin smiled and said softly, "I love you so much Kutty maa. I am so sorry. I hope I can make it up to you." He stood there waiting for her to turn around and give him a glance but she kept moving ahead. He waited till she was finally out of his sight.
London was bitter cold. There were Christmas lights a decoration everywhere. You could hear Christmas carols. It was white Christmas. The ice skating rinks were open. The festivities were is full swing. Little children running around in their winter jackets, gloves and hats. There nose were red like the reindeer. Sivaangi had never experienced this kind of weather and was enjoying it. She had wrapped herself in warm clothes. She looked at the other two couples who were holding on to each other for warmth. She missed Ashwin. She rubbed her hands for warmth and blew into them. She sighed while enjoying the beautiful city. Window shopping was a lot of fun too. There was a beautiful cathedral next to their hotel. They decided to attend the midnight mass which was gorgeous. She prayed for his movie to be a success.
The next few days were shopping and exploring London. They had decided to spend New Years Eve in Paris. There was a huge ball for which they had booked tickets. It was at a roof top restaurant right next to the Eiffel Tower. They reached their promptly at 10pm. Sivaangi looked gorgeous in her red gown. She had her hair let down in curls. She wore her favourite pearl earrings. The dance floors opened up at 11. Mani akka and Shrutika invited her to the dance floor but Sivaangi asked them to go ahead. She glanced at her phone. She had not heard from him since the release of the movie. She had sent him several messages and even tried calling, with no response. She had looked at some reviews which were in favor of Ashwin. They all said that he had performed exceptionally well but she wanted to talk to him. She missed him so much.
Just then there was a pat on her back and a voice said, "May I have the next dance please?" Her eyes widened and so did her lips. She could not believe it. She swiftly turned around to find Ashwin looking dashing in his formals. He had the mos gorgeous smile and held her hands. Sivaangi squealed and jumped towards him for a hug, "Neenga eppo...eppidi...inge...enna nadakudhu..." she cupped his face trying to hold her tears, "I can't believe this. Nejamave neengala?" and she hugged him. He picked her up and swirled her around, pulling her towards the dance floor. He looked into her eyes and said, "I wasn't going to miss this for anything. Nee kelambina aparam all I could think of was your sad face. So Ravi sir kitta sollittu vandutten. Just then the countdown began and at midnight, their lips locked. Their first kiss under the mistletoe. When their lips separated, they held each other close, looked into each other's eyes and Ashwin said, "Many more Happy New Year to us, my love" only to lock lips again.
Brinda Subramanian
