SarAlia - A unique tale of love - Story9monthski closure

CHAPTER 18: LOVE IS IN THE AIR!

One Sunday morning, Sarang and Sayuri got ready to go to Alia's house for some family time. They wanted to surprise Alia and Aggu and hence didn't inform them beforehand about their visit. Meanwhile, Alia was struggling to make Aloo Paratha for Aggu. She was following a youtube video but wasn't getting it right.

"Aggu baby, eat your brownies. The paratha will be ready soon," said Alia.

"Ok, Mumma," said Aggu.

Just then, they heard the doorbell ring. Aggu opened the door and was happy to see his dad and sister.

"Good morning, my dear son," said Sarang.

"Hi Papa, Hi Sayuri," said Aggu excitedly.

"Hello Aggu, hello Mumma, " said Sayuri happily.

"Hi, Choti baby. So happy to see you," said Alia.

"Hey, good morning Alia. What's cooking?" enquired Sarang watching her apron and face smeared with dough.

"Trying out something new," said Alia.

"Shall I help?" asked Sarang.

"No. Thanks for asking. I will manage. You be with the kids," said Alia.

Hence, Sarang started playing with the kids. However, he kept looking at Alia and found her attempts to cook very cute. And finally, Alia managed to make paratha, but it was burnt. Sarang, Aggu, and Sayuri burst out laughing.

Sarang went up to Alia, held her hands from behind, and helped her make a fine dough. He also gently wiped the dough on her face with a soft wet cloth. Then, they prepared the potato stuffing, and eventually, their joint cooking efforts produced some delicious parathas. The family enjoyed them for lunch.

"Chalo guys, now let's go on a Mumbai tour," said Sarang to Alia and his kids.

"Yippee, let's go Papa," said Aggu.

"Papa, I want to go to the beach. And you promised to show me Mr Amitabh Bachhan's house too," said Sayuri.

"Mumbai tour?! But, have you booked any tour bus or taxi?" asked Alia.

"I have booked a guided tour in a comfortable AC car. Don't worry," said Sarang.

The family went sightseeing in different parts of Mumbai. They also went to the beach. However, when SarAlia and the twins ran towards the water, Alia slipped on the wet sand. She fell straight into Sarang's arms the same way she fell in his arms in a drunken state seven years back. There was a brief eye lock between SarAlia, but they were soon interrupted by Manju - an ex-DDS employee whom Alia had fired years back for submitting a plagiarized poem to the client.

"Alia, so nice to see you after a long time. Waiting to say a heartfelt thanks to you. You gave me a one-year salary bonus while firing me irrespective of my big mistake. I had a smooth pregnancy with no financial crisis and enough time to find another job, too," said Manju.

"No problem. Your kid is adorable," said Alia smilingly, looking at Manju's daughter, who had accompanied her to the beach.

Manju greeted Sarang too and later took leave of them. Sarang slipped into guilt again for misunderstanding Alia as a stone-hearted person but was distracted by Aggu and Sayuri.

"Mumma-Papa, let's play in the water. It's fun," said the twins.

The family had a fun time on the beach, followed by a beachside dinner. They also caught a glimpse of the palatial houses of some celebs. Finally, they headed back to Alia's house. Sarang and Sayuri wanted to leave, but unexpected showers stopped them. The family enjoyed the rain. Then, SarAlia dried their kids' hairs, changed their clothes, and put them to sleep.

"Sarangdhar, you are very wet. Wait, I will get clothes for changing," said Alia.

"But, how do you have clothes for me at your house," asked a surprised Sarang.

"I have preserved the clothes I had purchased for our wedding," said Alia melancholically.

Hearing Alia's words, Sarang also felt sad about their broken marriage. Both changed their clothes and decided to sleep in the living room as the kids slept in the bedroom.

"Alia, you sleep on the sofa. I will sleep on the floor," said Sarang.

"Ok. But I am not yet sleepy. Should we have a hot cup of coffee?" said Alia.

"Wow, Rain and coffee!? Amazing idea," said Sarang.

They both had coffee. Suddenly, Alia received a call from Veer regarding a new DDS contract. However, before Veer started with personal talks, Alia ended the call. Sarang felt jealous and also suspicious of Veer's intentions behind a goody-goody demeanour.

"Alia, you should maintain a distance from Veer. He is two-faced and had hurt you in the past," said Sarang.

"Sarangdhar, even you hurt me. Or maybe I made you both feel inferior to me. Anyways, if I can be friends with you, then why not with him? And he has changed after losing Nitya and his baby," said Alia.

Sarang couldn't argue further as Alia had a valid point. Both Veer and himself had broken Alia's heart. However, now he was determined to protect Alia from all evils.

Just then, he saw Alia drying her wet hair. In a noodle-strapped white nightgown, Alia was looking breathtakingly beautiful. He couldn't take his eyes off her. Meanwhile, Alia was a bit sad as SuperHero 2.0 didn't send a single message that day. Little did she know that SuperHero 2.0 wouldn't message her as he was with her only all day and was busy admiring her.