𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞'𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐞

Chapter 13

Adhya POV:

As the evening sun painted the sky with hues of orange and pink, I arrived at the airport. I informed my family about my return and also warned them not to let Maan know. Carrying all my heavy luggage, I walked out of the airport and saw my brother, Rohan bhaiyya, waiting for me. When his eyes met mine, he waved, and I sprinted towards him like an excited kid spotting an ice cream truck.

I hugged him tightly, overwhelmed with joy. "Bhaiyyaaaaaa, I missed you so much!" I exclaimed, my voice filled with genuine happiness. Rohan bhaiyya patted my head affectionately and replied, "I missed you too, princess."

He began collecting my luggage and loading it into the car. I asked, "But bhaiyya, don't you have work? Why did you come to pick me up? Where's Sid bhaiyya?"

Rohan bhaiyya flashed a warm smile as he said, "Well, of course, I have office work, but when my princess is returning home after almost one and half year, I couldn't resist leaving all my meetings to come get you. As for Sid, he's swamped with work. Your maan is not giving him a minute of rest."

I chuckled as I settled into the car and watched the buildings pass by, a comforting sense of warmth filled my stomach. I was finally back home, and it felt wonderful.

As we arrived home, Priya maa was waiting at the door with an aarathi, and everyone gathered to welcome me. I took everyone's blessings, and Papa and Dada hugged me so tightly that I couldn't help but laugh at their reaction. Their eyes were filled with tears, and I assured them, "I'm not going anywhere now. You're stuck with me forever."

Papa replied with a grin, "You better be."

Baba chimed in, "We're more than happy to have you back." After the heartwarming welcome, I went to the living room, but my brothers were not there. My mother and Chotima were in the kitchen. I asked Papa, "Where are my brothers, Papa?" Baba assured me, "Everyone is in the office, but they'll be back soon. Don't worry. You go freshen up."

I went to my room, and to my delight, I found that nothing had changed, not even the place of my doll collection. It was as neat and tidy as ever. Papa came into the room and mentioned, "Abhi mostly stayed here, and he always kept your things just as you left them. He didn't allow anyone to disturb your room."

A smile of contentment crossed my face, knowing how much I had missed home and these dear people. A single tear rolled down my cheek as I embraced the familiar surroundings and the warmth of my family.

Papa left me to unpack my things, and it took nearly two hours to set everything back in its place. Just as I was finishing, someone hugged me from behind, and for a moment, I was startled. However, I felt a sense of relief when I heard Sid bhai's voice.

He said, "Oh, look who's back! I missed you so much, Di." I turned to look and saw Anandh standing near the entrance, with Akkash bhai near my bed. I hugged each of them warmly as they settled on the couch. I asked Bhai, "Did Maan come back?"

Akkash shook his head and replied, "No, Abhi bhai is quite busy. I guess he'll be back late."

I nodded, feeling a bit disappointed. Sid bhai then reassured me, saying, "Oh, Di, don't worry. We didn't mention your arrival to him, but I've told him to come back soon as he hasn't slept for days."

I nodded again, appreciating his concern. We chatted about many things that had happened over the past two years, and I was delighted to see Anandh opening up more. He was talking to everyone more than before, and I was happy to see everything falling back into place.

As dinner time approached, we all sat down to enjoy a meal together.

Rohan bhai had also come back, and we all sat at the dining table. The table was filled with all my favorite dishes. Since my return, I hadn't had a chance to speak to Mom. So, I turned to her and asked, "Maa, how have you been?" She didn't even look at me and replied, "I've been doing better."