Arranged To Adore

3.

His face bore no smile but rather an adorable frown, as if he were dreaming of Brinjal.

He hates brinjal.

As I woke up, Abi's face was half-buried in the mattress, partially visible to my hooded eyes. It was still early in the morning; the clouds hadn't moved aside for the sun to replace the gloominess with bright daylight.

The rhythmic breeze entering through the window created a soft sound in the curtains that caught my attention before I focused on him. An instant smile enveloped me as I recalled his response to my tempting offer last night.

"No thanks; I'm better off sleeping with blue balls than having sex with you when youre least interested... You owe me a wild night tomorrow but for now, shut up and sleep" With that, he slept, and I smiled in his embrace. Hes silly. Instead of taking my offer and making the most of it, he just chose to let me sleep tonight since I was tired.

Every time he does something silly like this, he wins a part of my soul.

Looking at Abi's adorable baby-like face, I couldn't believe I was about to let this man slip away from my hands on the day of my marriage. Thank goodness I married him. Otherwise, who knows which lucky woman would be admiring this sleeping hunk in bed right now?

In just four months of our marriage, we've crossed all the hurdles and hesitations in the intimacy department. Now, we dont even feel shy about approaching each other for sex at any time of the day. However, it's not just about sex; in these four months of our marriage, we've spent a lot of time together trying to understand each other's perspectives. We put the 'intimacy' part aside and gave each other the needed space because marriage is a major fact of life that requires time to accept that from now on, its no longer about me it's about us.

On our marriage night, I was relieved to know that he wouldnt cross boundaries until we were comfortable enough to explore intimacy. Running my fingers through his hair, I recalled the sweetest moment of our first night together after marriage.

"Good luck. Do your best." My cousins pushed me inside the room, locking the door behind me with dramatic laughter.

After five days of sleep deprivation and a full day of smiling for photos and enduring all the marriage rituals, all I could think about was ditching every piece of jewellery and hitting the bed as soon as possible. However, these girls were having their own comic session, teasing me about my first night and laughing loudly as if I even got shy.

Firstly, I don't know why they're so excited for my first night more than me. I mean, having sex with my husband for the first time after marriage is something related to him and me only. So, why are they so happy and excited about it? What's there to laugh about having sex with my partner?

Standing near the door, I scanned the room: jasmine, fruits, and sweets on the side table, roses on the bed, heart-shaped red balloons around, and some glittering lights. Everything was set and ready, just like they show in typical movies, except for my husband. Where is he? I hope these devils, called my cousins, didnt tease him until he ran away from his own first night. That would be an embarrassing story to tell our kids.

Placing the glass of milk on the table, I was about to look for him on the balcony when I heard the bathroom door open. It was him.

" You look beautiful" he said, smiling at me while shutting the door behind him.

" Thanks to my cousins who played a major part in getting me ready" I said, leaving out the last two words for the sake of politeness, but inwardly, I was just imagining removing all the dozen hairpins from my hair and the heavy jewellery to breathe with relief.