तेरे बालों की खुशबू में खो गया,
तेरी मासूमियत में मैं खो गया।
तेरा साथ पाकर दिल की धड़कन तेज हो गई,
जैसे हर लम्हा अब तेरे नाम हो गया।
◇
Avyansh POV
Um... Mishti Doi? said the nickname that came to my mind, looking at the sweet.
Everyone looked at me for a second; I caught Avantika's eyes, which widened in disbelief. She shot me a look that was hard to read, a mix of surprise and something else I couldn't quite decipher.
"She doesn't like it?" I thought, feeling a knot tighten in my stomach.
"Ha ha, Mishti Doi!" Dev laughed, earning a glare from me that quickly silenced him.
"Acha hai, nice," Papa chimed in, and everyone nodded in agreement, but She didn't even glance my way.
I felt a pang of disappointment. Why was she so quiet? Was it really that bad?
After completing dinner, everyone began to depart to their rooms, and I remained at the table, lost in thought. I couldn't shake off the feeling that I had embarrassed her.
The laughter and banter faded into the background as I replayed the moment over and over in my mind.
Timeskip
As I sat there with Ruhaan, nursing a drink in my hand, I thought about how unusual this was for me. I normally avoided drinking, but since Ruhaan and I were catching up after such a long time, I made an exception.
He hadn't even been able to attend my wedding because he was out at sea for some project, so we had a lot of ground to cover.
"So, how's everything going?" I asked, trying to keep the conversation light.
"It's good. Busy, but good," he replied, taking a sip. Then, after a pause, he looked at me with that knowing look cousins always seem to have. "And what about you and Bhabhi? How's it going between you two?"
I wasn't expecting the question, but I couldn't dodge it either. I just looked at him, not sure how to put it into words.
"I mean," he continued, sensing my hesitation, "I can tell you two aren't exactly comfortable with each other yet."
I shrugged, unsure of how to respond. It wasn't like I hadn't noticed it myself, but having someone else point it out made it more real. "It's... complicated," I finally said, my voice quieter than I intended.
He tilted his head, his curiosity piqued. "Sudden wedding, huh? What happened? Why was it so rushed?"
I took a deep breath and decided to give him the whole story-not everything, of course. I left out the part about the awkward conversation Avantika and I had on our first night, but I told him about how she had wanted to reject the marriage initially.
When I finished, a chuckle escaped his lips.
I couldn't help but smile too. "What?" I asked, curious.
"She wanted you to reject her? and you denied??" he teased. "I mean, not that I'm surprised, you can be a bit intense sometimes," he added with a grin.
"Thanks," I said sarcastically, but I was still smiling.
He leaned back in his chair, looking thoughtful. "It's funny how things turn out, right? You're here, married, and she's... well, she's different from what I imagined."
