JI HUZOORI | ✔

✨CHAPTER 74✨

"Please, come in." As they approached the drawing hall, Shama asked her kids and Vidhi to let the guests sit peacefully. "Kids take your toys inside. Play there. Give some place to sit."

Kids ran inside, disappearing behind the drawn curtains. Shaurya's eyes were desperately in search of a pair of eyes, his heartbeat picked up pace when faint sounds of somebody's approaching footsteps reached his ears.

However, that wasn't her but her aunt who appeared from behind the curtains.

"Who is it, Shama?"

Shaurya stood up in order to greet her. He remembered the last time when he was about to touch her feet and he was told not to. Since making sons-in-law touch his elder in-laws' feet was considered wrong in their eyes.

"Namaste!" Mrs Megha Rao added chancing a glance at Shama who stood behind her couch, "Shama, bring some water for the kids. Prepare tea..."

Dev immediately chimed in.

"No, thank you, Aunty, but none of us drink tea."

"Coffee then."

"Only water will do. Don't bother yourselves unnecessarily."

Shaurya replied hesitantly. He wasn't really sure of how possibly an ideal son-in-law should act in particularly that moment. All that was way too awkward. He tried hard to think of how he had observed Ved handling such undivided attention aptly.

"Oh come on!" Mrs Megha Rao smiled a bit before turning and wordlessly giving instructions to Shama. And just as Shama was about to walk away, he heard her mistress instruct some more, "Call Miru and check how long will it take?"

To that Shaurya shared a glance with Dev. Taking the hidden cue, Dev questioned,

"Is she not at home?"

"Young'un has gone to temple to inquire details of her Dadiji's Shraadh (first death anniversary). Priest had only called her to give the list of items required for that day."

Shama answered in place of her mistress offering a glass of water to each. Mrs Megha Rao filled in more before taking a sip of water from her glass. "It is scheduled on this Friday." Suddenly her gaze fell on Dev who was waving to someone behind her. She turned to look.

"Vidhi, why are you hiding there? Come here. Did you greet your Fufaji? Say Namaste! "

In hearing her grandmother's words, that little girl hid more in the layers of the curtain. Mrs Rao asked again.

"Coming or not?"

"No, I'll not come."

Vidhi answered back whilst giggling. Mrs Rao was quick to use her tactic almost immediately.

"Ok then. I'll send your Bua with them. See he is already here to take her..."

"No, Bua will stay with me only." Vidhi whined emerging from behind. Shaurya had to appreciate that little girl's confidence when she directly challenged him, that too when she was speaking to him for the very first time. "Fufaji, you won't take her, right?"

Luckily, he was saved from answering that when the doorbell rang and Vidhi ran out to check who it was. It was someone from the neighbourhood who needed to speak to Mrs Megha Rao thereby she too went there after asking both the Mohan cousins to freshen up and make themselves comfortable.

Shaurya stepped out of the washroom as he freshened up. Regardless of the length of his travelling span, he always preferred rinsing his hands and face with soap the minimum if in case taking a shower was not in his reach. He was finding a place to spread his wet towel in the verandah where a few other clothes were already spread for sun drying, just when he noticed Manjiri getting inside the house with some polybags in her hands. However, she failed to note his presence. Perhaps her focus was somewhere else or perhaps it was because of the clothes who were surrounding him.