🎶 Yeh Lamhe Hazar Se
● A U T H O R ●
2 years later
"No Vihaan!" Aarohi whined and tilted her head to a side exasperatedly. "I don't want to eat strawberry icecream. It tastes like medicine and I'm already having lots of medicines daily."
Vihaan's shoulders drooped and he looked at the ceiling as if silently crying for help while his wife continued watching him with the same expression, sitting cross legged on the bed with her hands on her hips.
"Two days back," Vihaan started, walking towards the bed, towards her, "you asked me to bring strawberry icecream when I brought chocochips one and then I had to bring strawberry icecream. Now, you called and asked me to bring icecream. I brought the strawberry one since you'd asked for it just two days back." He said stressing on the words 'two days'.
Aarohi jutted out her lips in annoyance and threw the pillow that was lying on her lap at him just as he was about to sit on the edge of the bed making him wince. "That was two days back!" She exclaimed. "That is 172800 seconds back!" She added theatrically and Vihaan cocked a brow at her. "Probably," she muttered in a low voice sheepishly and he shook his head.
"So you want me to go back and bring you another flavour icecream this time?" He asked, his voice weary.
Aarohi smiled and nodded her head frantically. "Butterscotch."
Vihaan groaned. "I had to travel to five different places today and now you're making me run errands."
"Come-on." She said in a duh tone. "What is all this fitness for?"
Vihaan continued staring at her. There was no way he was going to win against her.
"Please.... for me and our baby." She said, gazing at him with pleading eyes and kept a hand over her bump.
Although he was utterly exhausted, he was ready to bring her another flavour of icecream or whatever she wished for the moment she said she didn't want to have the strawberry one. But it felt nice to indulge in a meaningless argument with her and watch her being her cute self.
Some things never change. Like him wanting to get a reaction out of her unnecessarily.
"You just have to step out of the house, take the lift, get out of the building, cross the street, buy the icecream pack and come back by the same route." She explained, trying to make him agree.
"Fine," he gave in. "I'm going. I'll be back in a few minutes." He smiled at her a little amidst the tiredness and she blew him a flying kiss.
He walked out of their room, wore his footwear and had just opened the main door of their apartment when he heard her shout his name. He immediately rushed back to her, not even bothering to close the door.
"What happened?" He questioned worriedly when he saw her eyes welled up with tears.
"Don't go." She said, blinking back the tears and he frowned.
Vihaan sat near her and one of his hand cupped her face as he gazed at her softly.
She looked down and said, "I'm sorry. I'm troubling you too much. You don't need to go. You're tired and you should freshen up and eat something and- "
He shut her up by placing a finger over her lips. "Shh," he chuckled, his eyes gleaming with amusement. He pulled her head closer and wrapped his arms around her face and neck. "You don't have to feel sorry for this. I'm always at your service and you've entire rights to treat me as your personal delivery boy." He kissed the crown of her head and she giggled at his words. "You're going to give me the greatest gift of my life. You've been bearing so much pain since last six months, going through so many changes and you don't even complain about them. So the least I can do is treat you like the queen you're." He admitted sincerely and she smiled against his chest. "Considering how easily you get annoyed, I'm really surprised that you've managed to keep yourself pretty calm and collected throughout."
Aarohi whined and pushed him lightly. Just as she was about to complain about him annoying her, he spoke up. "It's quite impressive though." He looked at her innocently and she couldn't help but melt. Her lips that were pulled into a frown were curved upwards a little in a soft smile that said 'you're hopeless but you're my kind of hopeless'.
"Okay then," Vihaan stood up. "Should I go and bring you, your icecream, your majesty?" He bowed down dramatically with one hand behind his back and the other bent at the elbow with palm outstretched.
Aarohi took another pillow and kept it over her lap and started stroking her chin with her fingers, pretending to be in a deep thought. "I don't think I feel like having it now." She drawled.
He straightened up and said in a rhetorical tone. "Really?"
She looked at him with the corner of her eyes and replied meekly. "Maybe a little."
"Good. Wait for me." With that he left to fulfill her wish.
It was the seventh month of Aarohi's pregnancy. When they went to the doctor and she had said that Aarohi is pregnant, both freaked out. They knew they had to start a family and it was the perfect time to yet the news managed to startle them. There was a myriad of emotions that flooded them. While Aarohi was trying to form coherent words to say to the doctor, Vihaan was busy to calm his racing heart. And the doctor kept waiting for their response.
When they were back to their appartment after finally being able to talk to the doctor like responsible adults, Vihaan strictly told Aarohi that from now onwards she'll only take rest. No work, nothing. Aarohi had looked at him with pure horror and disbelief. She was just a week pregnant and Vihaan was acting as if it was her eighth or ninth month. When she didn't speak anything for a while as she was too busy comprehending if her husband was alright in his head, he assumed that she agreed to what he said. He muttered a satisfied "good" and she had blinked coming out of her trance. It took a good amount of hours to actually convince him that this is not how it works. It was hardly a week since she was pregnant. She doesn't need to rest the whole day. But he was adamant and grumpy on the fact that she doesn't know how to take care of herself. Aarohi resisted the urge to strangle him. She couldn't believe that her businessman of a husband was acting as if he knew better than her when ironically she was a freaking paediatrician. Nonetheless, although reluctantly and petulant, Vihaan had to give up in the end and Aarohi mentally thanked the heavens for the relief. It actually took almost a month for him to stop being overly conscious and protective over the littlest of things. This was new to him, to her, to both but with time, they did learn to balance and where to draw the line.
Aarohi in her original mode already used to have a lot of mood swings so pregnancy just doubled them up and Vihaan was as always her major victim. Vihaan wasn't the most patient man anyone would meet but when it came to Aarohi, nobody could handle her as well as him. Also, nobody could bring out the side of him that everyone else including him believed didn't exist like Aarohi did so easily, so effortlessly. Not to forget, the woman had become more violent. She would throw whatever she gets in her hand when she's annoyed at him. Once, she was even about to throw the empty glass that lied on the side table after emptying the content in it and making him drenched. Fortunately, she realised and stopped herself from doing so and Vihaan thanked her for letting him live.
Last month, Vihaan had to go to Mauritius for some business related stuff for four days. It was hard for him to leave her and go but he had to. It was important. He had asked Kiara and Kevin to stay with Aarohi for the time period although Aarohi tried to convince him that she'll do just fine alone. There was no need to disturb Kevin and Kiara when they had a one year old baby girl to take care of. But obviously Vihaan wouldn't take any chance and he didn't want her to feel alone in his absence. On the third day, Aarohi was missing him a little too much. She started crying hysterically and looking at her, Kriti, Kiara's daughter started crying. It was chaos and Kiara had a damn difficult time trying to calm the two kids who couldn't stop the river flowing from their eyes. Then, she had an even more difficult time to calm Vihaan down who was ready to catch the next flight and fly back to India. She legit felt that all her hair will soon turn grey with all the stress.
Vihaan and Aarohi were excited as well as nervous for the new phase. They wanted to be the best parents ever. They'd been to shopping and brought teddy bears, toys, clothes, soft blankets and many such things. They used to go to walk in the morning, Vihaan would help Aarohi do some yoga, he would cook for her most of the times since she loved the food cooked by him, he would make sure she had her meals and medicines on time, pamper her, they would indulge in talks regarding the new member that would become a part of their life soon. Sometimes, it would end up in a silly argument, sometimes it would end up with both of them giggling and then there were times when it would end up making them emotional. They wanted to give their kid everything that they themselves felt deprived of as a child.
When Vihaan came back, he had not only brought butterscotch icecream but boxes of each and every icecream flavour that was present in the parlour.
"There are 16 flavours. If you don't have the mood to eat butterscotch, you can have something else." He said satisfied by himself while laying down all the boxes on the table.
Aarohi's eyes widened in awe and her lips parted. "That's smart of you." She complimented and he was waggled his eyebrows in pride. "But I still want to have butterscotch."
Vihaan took a bowl and scooped the icecream in it. He handed over the bowl and spoon to Aarohi and sat beside her. She licked her lips as she took the bowl in her hand. It was tempting. Without wasting any time, she started taking large spoonfuls of it and shoved them in her mouth, moaning at the taste of the heaven melting on her tongue. Vihaan gazed at her tenderly with narrowed eyes. Watching her happy and content takes away all his stress, all his tiredness. He can never get over the sight of her in this lifetime and every lifetime that follows.
As if on cue, Aarohi realised that it was uncourteous of her to eat like a starving lion without asking if the person sitting beside you wants to have it or not especially when the same person was the one who brought you the icecream. She turned her head towards him and forwarded her bowl, asking with innocent eyes if he needs it. Vihaan didn't say anything. He looked at her with an inexplicable expression and leaned forward while her brows knitted in confusion. He grazed his lips lightly against the corner of her lips making her heartbeats quicken and a gasp left her mouth when she felt his tongue sliding against the skin near her lips, licking off the cream smeared there. He pulled back and looked at her mischievously.
"It's a little too sweet." The innuendo was clear in his words and heat crawled up her neck, making its way to her cheeks, giving them a light crimson colour.
She averted her gaze trying to think of some good response. "Don't you think you're spoiling our son by such insolent acts!?" She whispered and squinted her eyes at him.
Vihaan came closer and whispered back, "If anything, I'm just letting our girl know that her father loves her mother way too much."
Aarohi frowned and hit his arm with the end of the spoon. "It's a boy, not a girl."
"It's a girl. Over and out." Vihaan declared adamantly.
"I have already told you that it's gonna be a boy. Kiara and Kevin had a girl so we're gonna have a boy so that in the future, they can get married and live happily ever after. It was decided."
"Excuse me?" He said in a baffled tone. "Just because you two girl besties have a stupid fantasy doesn't mean Kevin and I are going to support it."
"It's not stupid." She hit his arm again with the spoon and he winced. "We're just looking at the bigger picture."
"And then you'll make the kids of our kids marry each other?" He questioned sarcastically.
"Yes," she said instantly and immediately realised the error in it. "No, hell no! That's incest." She screamed in horror.
He continued staring at her with a straight face as if he already expected this reaction from her. "So stop with this day dreaming and planning of a future when the child isn't even born. You sound like those mohalle vali aunties who can't talk anything beyond marriage."
Aarohi shot him an amused look. "You know quite a lot about them." She snickered and he sighed defeatedly. "Anyways let's get back to the main topic," she continued in a feign formal tone. "I'm his mom so I know- "
"It's not he, it's a she." Vihaan interrupted. "Come out- "
"He kicked." Aarohi spoke all of a sudden, her eyes widened with realisation.
Vihaan was puzzled. "Who's he!?"
Aarohi snapped her eyes at him, miffed by his blatant cluelessness. "The baby," she gritted.
Vihaan's eyes too widened on it's own accord. "Can- can I?" He asked nervously and Aarohi held his hand and placed it over her stomach.
"The baby kicked yesterday as well when I was in the hospital during work. I told you remember."
Vihaan nodded quietly wanting to feel the kick once. "Why isn't she kicking? Is she upset with me?" He asked, a little disappointment, a little sadness lacing his voice.
"I don't know." She replied, her own voice a little dejected. She didn't like the sullen look on Vihaan's face. She cupped his face and made him look into her eyes. "Stop looking so sad. And anyways, this makes me realise that you'll always be my first baby." She tried to cheer him up with her cheesiness.
Vihaan chuckled a little and rolled his eyes. "As I should be!" He agreed and she mouthed 'narcissistic'. You'll always be my first baby too." He added softly.
"Babies having babies." Aarohi immediately shook her head. "That sounds so corny. My boy must be having second hand embarrassment." She cringed.
"You mean our girl." He corrected stubbornly.
"IT'S. A. HE."
"IT'S. A. SHE."
And then both of them stopped arguing because the baby kicked again and this time Vihaan felt it too as his hand was already on her tummy. Their gazes met, glassy and full of emotions.
"This feeling.... it feels unreal." He murmured.
"It's beautiful."
"But why did she kick?" He asked curiously, laughing a little as he was still in a daze due to the overwhelming emotions coursing his veins.
"Is he- is he annoyed because of our argument? Maybe we should stop fighting it it's a he or she. Maybe it's the baby's way of saying that we're causing him a headache. Even Kiara said we annoy her a lot." Her voice was low. "Our baby is irritated by us?" Her hormones were acting up and she was feeling overtly emotional.
Vihaan tucked a loose strand of hair behind and ear and held her face. "Or maybe he or she cannot wait to come out and join us in this madness," he whispered slowly and winked at her.
His words instantly managed to uplift her mood. She closed the gap between them and pecked his lips. "I think I would like to believe this theory." She answered playfully and grinned.
Vihaan smiled and rested his forehead against her, their eyes closed. "I love you," he said, sighing softly and she rubbed her nose against his.
"I love you too."
He bent down and kissed the baby bump. "And we love you too. A lot," he murmured affectionately and Aarohi gazed at him softly with lot of adoration.
Just a couple of months more and they'll officially be parents. A new start, a new chapter was waiting for them and they couldn't wait to turn the page.
***
A bonus chapter coz there were many who requested me to write it. This was such a random chapter lol that I've written in a haste while travelling through train. I've been away from writing since long so sorry if the chapter doesn't meet up with your expectations :( take care and lots of love to y'all. wishing better days for everyone ♡
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