Our Little Home

12

The entire neighborhood had their lights dimmed and were cozily tucked in bed, except for a particular house,  where the lights were bright on and the couple was constantly moving around. There was still an hour left until sunrise, so it was out of normal for the pair to be awake at such ungodly hours. It does eventually make sense though when you realize the duo along with their friends are gearing up for the opening of their restaurant today. 

Standing in front of the mirror, Sivaanya was brushing through her luscious locks when she heard a series of grunts and whines. She turned behind to see her husband in a white shirt and black trouser, glaring at the veshti which was supposed to be wrapped around his waist, but was now laying flat on the ground. 

"Aravindey, innum-a ready agala? Na saree kati, make up pottutan; neenga innum antha veshti vechi dance aduringa!"

"Ma, na enna panradhu! Na pavam. Ithu keela vizhudu. Na pant poduran, please! Inga vizhanda parvalla, road la vizhuntha enna panradha! En mannam parandhu poidom!" Aravind pleaded on his knees with his hands interlaced. 

"No, na saree, neenga veshti! Irunga na katti viduran."

Saying so, she walked towards him, picked up the piece of clothing and began wrapping it around his waist.

"Aii, Sivu ma kosudhu!" He said, laughing but halted his actions when she came a step closer.

He stood intoxicated from the floral scent that effused of her. His heart skipped a beat when he felt her little fingers caress his waist, while tucking in the cloth.

On the other hand, Sivaanya was oblivious to the effect she had on him. She continued to inch closer, correcting the last bits of his outfit.

He felt her warm breathe penetrate through his shirt and tickle his chest. His eyes squeezed shut, while his hands clenched tight, bringing his palm to a lighter shade of red.

Feeling a sudden loss of warmth, he opened his eyes to see her staring at him with a small smile. Disliking the sudden change in the surrounding, he quickly wrapped his palm around her waist and brought her into his embrace. 

She shook her head in disbelief, before adjusting herself in his embrace, leaving her ears to hear the melodious tunes of his racing heart beat.

"Apa, enna evalo fast-a adikudhu? Water venuma?"

"Unala than! En ivalo azhaga iruka? Athum intha light pink saree-la, mudiya light-a curl panni, aprom intha kutti pottu. Etho oru devatha erangi vandha marri iruka. Ivalo azhaga lam iruntha, indha body thangathu, ma!"

Sivaanya's cheeks had turned a shade closer to the one of tomatoes. She quickly buried her face in his chest, hearing a small laugh in response.

"Athukunu, evalo fast-a lam heart adika kodathu. Athuvum kalyanam agi 6 months mela airuchu."

"Ithala enna ma iruku. We are both new to physical intimacy, so it is natural our bodies react this way. Marriage munadi oru tharava namma kiss panom, apo romba kevalam-a vetla matikitu, just next five days-la namaku kalyanam. Namma oru trending, legendary pair!" he spoke, for which she laughed, recalling how crazy and anxious those few days were.

They stood in each other's embrace in complete silence, until Sivu noticed the time and began yelling the same in repeat. 

"5:30 achu! 5:30 time, 5:30 achu! 5:30..5:30"

"Enna ma, yenna mari agita. Seri iru na poita thala varitu varen."

"Pochu apo namma oru pathu varsham aprom than restaurant open panna mudiyum. Neenga unga mudiya pathu vati seri panratha kula, time poidum. Irunga na inniku brush panren." she said, dragging him to their dressing table before making him sit on the chair.

She began brushing his hair, detangling the knots; while he hugged her waist, burying his face in her stomach. 

"Aii! Ithu kooda jolly-a iruku, daily ipdi brush panni-vidu. Nalla thookam varathu." He spoke, with a sheepish look on his face, once she finished combing his hair. She simply ignored him and walked to the living room.

xxx
A small crowd of mutual friends had gathered outside their restaurant, eagerly waiting for the doors to open for them to be able to grab a bite. 

The group opted for a purple light strip to beautifully display the name of their restaurant- 'Bites and Sips'. The lights contrasted with the white exteriors, grabbing the attention of every passerby. White and purple balloons were hanging from different spots, dancing to the tunes of the blowing wind. 

A ribbon ,that tied both ends of the door together, eagerly waited for one to cut open into their paradise. A paradise that they individually crafted to perfection. From the interiors, lighting to the menu, they focused on making their restaurant stand out of the crowd to give their visitors an experience like never before. Aravind curated the menu to have many distinctive continental dishes and even took a course on the same to brush on his skills and to learn more. It was safe to say Sivaanya had a great meal variety.

After a long debate of who would do the honors of cutting the ribbon, they decided to hold hands and open the doors together with Pugazh and Sivu screaming 'happy birthday to you' on top of their lungs.  Their friends eventually settled in and were waiting for the cake to be baked. They decided it would be better to order a dessert and share as the group wasn't huge.

Sivaanya and Pugazh helped Aravind, or at least tried to help Aravind with the dessert before they gave up and watched him bake. 

"Anney, avaru cook pannum podhu azhaga irukar-la? Namma ivaru cook panradha insta-la upload panalam. Apo oru idea irukum-la, epdi namma cook panrom and dishes pathi."

Pugazh found the idea interesting and shot a video of Aravind baking, which they later uploaded. It wasn't an easy task though convincing him as he was really shy to be in front of the camera. 

The rest of the day passed by in a jiffy with not many people visiting the restaurant. They did predict something like this would happen. It would take time to establish themselves and they were willing to wait. 

Once they reached home, the couple called it a day and went to bed. They usually alternate between who gets cuddled. However, even though it was Sivaanya's turn today, she spread her arms wide open for him to be spooned because she knew he needed it more than her.

She waited in silence for a few seconds for him to begin talking, while she slowly caressed his back.

"Workout agum-la?" He asked softly, voice laced with doubt. 

"Agum! Agum!" she replied, placing a kiss on his forehead after pulling up the blanket to cover them. 

xxx
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