The next morning Aryan woke up late and found Imlie smiling at him with the babies in her lap. He loved how angelic she looked and snuggled up to her and his kids.
I- aree tum utha gaye? Abhi kaisan feel karat ho?
Ar- Imlie I'm perfectly ok, I told you last night! mmmm... more important question, did you sleep well last night?
I- Hanh ! Tum Sahi the Amma ki davai kaam kar de
Ar- thank you Amma! Waise suno aaj Meri Amma I mean mom aa Rahi hai...
I- Hanh Amma batai humka...ukke vaste inn dono ko acche see tyaar Kari hai hum! .... Aaj tumhri dadi aane wali hai, Kal Tum Nani ke Saath khele aaj dadi aur phir Kal buaa! Kya majje hai tumhare! Kitne saare log toka Milne aavat hai, humre rajkumar!
Ar- Imlie abhi se mat bigado inhe! Rajkumar nahi they have to be strong and make it on their own in this world!
I- Matlab? Tohar business ekka hi hoga na?
Ar-Imlie not necessarily, whoever in our kids will actually show interest and aptitude for the business can have it the rest are free to choose their own career path! No zabardasti!
I- hmmm accha khayal hai tumhara! Sacch bataye humka inn dono mein tumhri jhalak dikhat hai!
Ar- hmmmm but I think they look like you!
I- Hanh par baba pe jyada gaye hai yeh ! Ekdum handsome!
Ar- aree waah subah subah tareef!
I- aur bhi kucho hai, tumhara favorite breakfast banaye hai.. get ready before it gets cold! Aur Ek surprise bhi hai, Jo hum abhi late hai, inko pakdo
Ar- Imlie Iss sabki Kya zaroorat thi?
I- ye lo tumhrri kaali coffee! Amma Lai thi Kal , hum thik se banaye hai Kya? Peeke dekho na
Ar- hmmmm bahut achhi hai Jungli thank you!
The aroma of the coffee was the best part of the rhythm of his day, another anchor in routine that soothed and gave him a sense of normality and predictability. Aryan was in his happy place that morning, he placed a deep kiss on Imlies lips surprising her before heading to freshen up.
I- mmm kitne Baar bole hai ABP! Pehle brush karo phir humre pass aao
Ar- nahi karunga ! Tum Kya karlogi
Imlie threw a pillow at him and he sneaked in another kiss and just then he heard a familiar cough and laughter coming from the door, it was Narmada watching her kids being adorable.
N- woh Meethiji ne mujhe keys di thi toh mein andar AA gayi! Sorry Tum dono ko disturb kia
Ar- mom aap bhi na!
Narmada came over and hugged her son tightly, she missed him terribly
Ar- mom I'm ok! Abhi aap please Rona mat Shuru karo , aap imlie aur inke Saath ruko ! Mein ready hokar aaya! And please don't worry for no reason!
N- thik hai TU ja waise bhi , mein Apne beti aur poto se milne hi aayi hu, tujhe toh bass Apne ma ko rulana aata hai!
Ar- hanh aisa hai toh mera health food kyu leke aai aap?
Imlie loved watching the mother son duo and wondered if she would have a similar relationship with her boys.
N- Yeh Aaru bilkul buddhu hain maa se keh raha hai don't worry! imlie tu kaise hai beta? Aaru tujhe tang nahi karta na?
I- nahi ma, ABP humaar aur inn dono ka bahut khayal rakh rahe hai
N- imlie Meri bachhi
Narmada hugged imlie and began crying.
I- ma aapko ABP abhi bole na, please aap Roiye nahi hum Sab thik hai, aap roengi toh yeh Kya Sochi hai? Amma ne dadi ko rula diya! Itni buri bahu hai Kya hum?
Narmada let out a giggle and tapped imlie on her head , she loved her daughter in law, she was always in awe of her innocence, strength and simplicity, she had brought her lost son back to her not once but twice and for that she felt deeply indebted to her. Imlie was the sunshine of her family and she would always take her
side in any argument with Aryan.
N- Imlie Tum bahut strong ho, Maine tumhari delivery thik se ho isliye Devi ma ke paas mannat mangi thi, uska yeh Prasad Khao aur bachhon ke liye yeh dhaga hai, inhe nahane ke baad bandho.. tumhare liye yeh Wala dhaga hain, yeh tumhari Raksha karega
I- ma ABP ki liye nahi Lai?
Ar- Mere Aaru ka Raksha kavach toh Tu hai imlie, usse Iss sabki Kya zaroorat?
I- ma aap bhi na! ahhhh
N- Kya hua beta ?
I- Kuch nahi ma woh stiches kabhi kabhi pain karte hain
N- imlie eek Saath dono ko mat uthaya karo,Itna vajan Ek Saath utha Rahi ho isliye Dard ho Raha hai, aarav ko mere paas do, aur woh bag mein Ek hot water bag hai! Mein tumhare liye hi layi thi , woh use kia karo jabhi bhi Dard ho! Thik hain?
I- thik hain ma...
N- Devi ma ka shukar hain Tum Sab safe ho, Meri toh jaan Nikal gayi thi tumhari delivery ke Barre mein sunkar, kitni ghabrao gayi hogi Meri bacchi
I- aap please Roiye mat ma hum abhi thik hain, ABP aur Sita maiyya the na humre Saath aur sabse important cheeze bhi thi
N- woh Kya?
I- apni ma ka ashirwad, phir hum toh superwoman ban gaye , jaldi se hospital gaye aur yeh dono pat se duniya mein aagaye
N- hahahah tu pagal hai Imlie, Kuch bhi bolti hai .. waise tu thodi kamjoor lag Rahi hai , mein aur Kuch cheeze banakar layi hu there Liye, tu kha lena
I- Itna saara khana ! Maa aap Kya pura hafta kitchen mein ghussi Rahi thi? Aap apni medicines Lena bhuliye mat!
N-kuch nahi bhuli mein, waise beta inke naam bahut pyare hai
I- hai na ma? ABPne rakhe hai! Humka bhi bahut Pasand Aaye... Waise aap bataiye inn mein se abhiram kaun aur aarav kaun?
N-mmmm mushkil hai Batana , par mujhe kagta hai yeh arav hai aur woh abhiram
I- Sahi pehchane ma! Do taali!
Narmada laughed at her daughter's usual antics and kissed her forehead, imlie was the light in her son's life but also in hers. Narmada thought - My Imlie is an eagle. My daughter is a fish swimming up river. My Imlie is a young lioness on the prairies. I used to think of her as a flower waiting to bloom, or a delicate spring leaf, but she is so much more. She has her own wings, her own propulsion and her own inner strength. And over the years she has shed her vulnerabilities, and rose as a beautiful phoenix. She blessed imlie and her grandsons with an open heart. Narmada spent rest of the morning pampering Imlie, Aryan and her grandchildren. At times like these She wished Aryans father could be with them but she knew he smiled at them from the heavens.
Few days later at the Rathod house-
Aditya was in dual mind about transferring the property to Imlies name, it felt like a good idea one day and a bad one the next, he knew how much imlie loved the Rathods and what if she would transfer all the money to them after their marriage? Aditya didn't care about the money much but he was interested in seeing Aryans family suffer, afterall Aruan was the reason imlie and Chini had been away from him so long. The weekend was here and Shalini was growing anxious about Aditya's inaction, she decided to give him the nudge he needed.
It was late night after dinner and Aditya thought imlie was looking particularly worried and stressed out that day, he tried talking to her a couple of times but he wondered if she was hiding something from him, he tried his best to use the chance to comfort her and get close to her, but his efforts had been fruitless.
Ad- Imlie Tum Yaha? Kuch kaam that?
Sh- Hanh woh babu Saheb aapse maafi nangna chahte the..woh din chinike homework ke liye aapko bahut date hum
Ad- Imlie I understand your concern, you are such a good mother and have done such an amazing job with our girl! And for that you never have to apologize!
Sh-thank you babu Saheb aapse yahi ummed thi, aap humka samhajte hain, humka Chini ke bhavishya ki chinta hai
Ad- woh Kyu imlie?
Sh- ab hum Kya bataye aapko
Ad- Imlie khul ke bolo! We will be married soon, there shouldn't be any secrets between us!
Sh-woh abp Chini ko apni beti mante the par uski financial security ke liye woh will mein kucho rakhne waalw the par hum ukka rok diye.. hum khuddar hai hum humri Chini ke lie kuccho nahi maange!
Ad- I know how self respecting you are imlie , I'm proud of you! You did the right thing, why should we take anything from Aryan?
Sh-Hanh par ABP hum pregnant hue toh will badal diye the hum nahi jante will mein Kya hai ? abhi humka Chini ke future ka sochna Hoga woh badi ho Rahi hai!
Ad- Imlie don't worry mein hoona ? I'll take care of you and the kids and that reminds me woh lawyer NE kaha tha Kuch papers sign Karne hai ! Mein Kal hi Leke aata Hun , thik hain na?
Sh-aap Jo thik samjhe Babu Saheb,
Ad- Imlie puchogi nahi, papers kiss cheeze ke liye hai?
Sh-aap toh jante hain kanooni cheeze humme nahi samhaj aati! Aap hi dekh lijiye hum bass sign kar denge , aappe Pura bharosa hai humka!
Aditya was emboldened by Imlie's declaration, she trusted him blindly, and that meant he could easily switch the papers after they were married, and again become the sole owner of all the financial holdings that belong to the Rathod family. He moved closer to Shalini and touched her thigh,. then placed an arm around her back and held her hand firmly. Shalini flinched at his touch but quickly realized that it would make him upset and went on with the ruse.
Ad- thank you Imlie, your trust is very important to me! after all, it is the foundation of a strong relationship. I know humara rishta.. last time broke because of my lack of trust in you, but I promise you I will never repeat, that again we would be together always.
Sh- hmmmm accha Babu Saheb hum chalte hain, thodi kamjoori lag Rahi hai aaj
Ad-Aree Imlie why didn't you tell me sooner? Wait I'll get you some warm milk with some dry fruits, it will help
Sh- Hanh thik hai aap jaisan kahe
Ad-and always remember that I am here to take care of you and Chini!You both are my whole world.
Sh-Hanh ab is world mein humri Suah aur Naina bhi aai hai na Babu Saheb?
Ad- of of course imlie how could I forget about them, they are the most precious little angels, I'm lucky to have so many women around me to take care of me!
Shalini returned to her room and felt disgusted at Aditya's touch , she decided to take a shower and then throw the milk Aditya had given her in the drain. Shalini thought- Evil is born of emotional indifference, and this is why we are commanded to love, how contrasting was the fake love that Aditya showered on her and how pure was her sister and Aryans love, Everytime she would see them together, their love would ignite a hope in her heart too.