THE STORY OF LIFE | A 21ST CENTURY RAMAYANA

WORDS UNTOLD

"Please make yourselves comfortable and let us know if you need something!" Sumitra chimed as all the members of the family, now hosts to their guests themselves, arranged for a large seating in the backyard of the Suryavanshi mansion and owing to Sumitra and Kraanti fore planning, treated them to the finest of delicacies.

"Pawan would you like something else?" Siya asked him as he found himself seated at the outdoor table, his plate a mountain of food.

"Maam, do you really think he needs anything else?" Sujit said nudging him.

Siya laughed as she patted Pawan, looking at his embarrassed yet innocent face.

"Oh come on, don't feel shy Pawan, you can have all that you want. Its your own house after all, you shouldn't feel awkward in your own house."

"No..No Maam.. I mean DI... Im quite full..." He stammered as both of them began to laugh after a pause.

"Dont stop from helping yourself if you need more, okay?" Siya said in a warm tone as Pawan nodded.

"Here, have some curry," Lakshman said as the signalled an attendant to fill the plate for Naishal.

"I can't have any more Lakshman Bhaiyya!" He gulped as he watched all the food on his plate.

"Come on man, you told me you wanted to be a bodybuilder right, so you need to eat this much! And more, actually."

Lakshman laughed as he left the poor Naishal and attended to the others when his eyes found Urmila, standing with Sushen and a few others as they ate and laughed. She then nodded and came away to a corner of the garden where she stood to drink water.

"You're very busy it seems."

Urmila put the cup down as she turned slowly, smirking, very well knowing who was calling her and what his intentions were.

She turned as his breath seemed to surround her all throughout. The night sky shone brightly with all its stars and the big bright moon, and the moonlight falling on her face seemed to make her so, so pretty.

"Why is my wife avoiding me?" He asked sarcastically looking straight into her eyes.

"She is not. She has work to do you know, she can't stand and joke around like her husband."

"So my wife thinks all her husband does is to stand and joke around?"

"Well," she said trying to control her laughter. "He does other things too, good things at that. But joking around is something he seems to have a degree in, despite the white hair now showing on his head."

"Hey! I have a grand total of like two white hair okay, and that too just because of stress. Ill sleep nicely for 2 days and they'll go away."

"You know that's not how they work, right?" She giggled.

Lakshman nodded as if in defeat and pulled up a mischievous smirk in front of her, one that made her knees go weak every-time.

"You wait and watch Mila, I haven't spent all this time waiting to let you off so easily."

"Oh really?" She said raising and eyebrow. "And how exactly do you plan to trap me?"