As decided the party was scheduled two days before Diwali that is on Dhanteras,the whole house was being decorated for the party according to the lady's wish and the males just had to be present for the party that was all they had to do.
Bela was supervising the decorations since after noon,after she came back from the jewellery shopping she went earlier that day with Mahir.
Currently there was only half an hour for the party and Bela was not at all ready,the decorations and all were done just a few mins ago and now the only work left was to make a rangoli on the house entrance and so Bela gladly took that responsibility,she knew she had less time so she settled for a simple yet beautiful design for the rangoli.
Mahir was all ready for the Diwali party in the Kurta and Shalwar Bela had bought for him,he was just searching for his beautiful wife whom he hadn't seen since noon as she was busy with the party preparation.
Post her accident he had made a tendency to look at her every few mins and if he doesn't finds her in front of his eyes he gets worried sick.Those months were torturous for both of them,now when Bela had made a full recovery,he still gets worried for her.
"Bela kaha h??"Mahir asked as he saw Ishan sitting on the sofa using his phone.
"Bahar h rangoli bana rahi h....aap unhe bol dijiye ki jaldi kare party start hone mein sirf aadha ghanta reh gaya h"Ishan said not removing his gaze from the phone.
"Sab ready h??log bas aate hi honge thode time mein"Andy said as he entered the living room with Shakti and Dadu.
"Sab ready h bas aapki pyaari Bahu ka kuch pata nhi h usse hi dekhne Jaa Raha hu"Mahir said and left.
He went towards the house entrance and saw her and his breath hitched,there she sat eyebrows furrowed in concentration as she filled the color in the rangoli,she looked so beautiful in that maroon saree,the sleeveless blouse showed off her soft,lean arms as she had kept all her hairs on her left side,she looked beautiful.He just kept staring at her with mouth slightly open when she looked up at him and gave him a smile which just made him fall for her more then he already was.
"Bhabhi aap yaha pr h??dad waha sabko bol rahe h ready rehne,guests aate hi honge bas"Kunj said as he came towards her.
Bela just nodded at him and said.
"Mein toh ready hi hu bas yeh rangoli bachi thi,yeh bhi ho gayi,tum chalo mein aati hu"Bela said and Kunj nodded and left.
Bela got up from the floor and dusted her hands and moved towards Mahir who still stood just staring at her.
"Chaliye dad bula rahe h sabko"Bela said.
"Have I ever told you how beautiful you are Mrs.Sehgal??"Mahir asked her all of a sudden and she smiled brightly at him with a tint of red on her cheeks.
"A lot of times I guess"Bela said confidentially as she gave him another smile.
"Tum itni acchi lag rahi ho ki party mein meri nazar kahi aur jaa hi nhi sakti"Mahir said and Bela shook her head at his words,this guy never missed a chance to praise her or make her blush.
"Ab yeh sab chodiye aur chaliye dad bula rahe h"Bela said and walked away from him who just kept staring at her retreating figure and had a foolish smile on his face.
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"Hayee kitni pyaari lag rahi h puttar"Dadu complimented Bela as soon as she entered the living room Mahir following her.
Bela smiled at him in return.
"Aapko aapki laadli bahu ke alawa koi dikhta nhi h kya dadu?"Mahir asked as he stood beside Bela who rolled her eyes at his comment, always the jealous one.
"Oyee chup kr,ek hi bahu h meri uski bhi tariff na karu ab?"Dadu asked in irritation.
"Meri bhi tariff ki h dadu ne"Ishan said happily.
"Kyu??bandar toh lag raha h tu"Kunj said.
"Bhabhi!!"Ishan whined as he looked at Bela.
"Mat suno inki,tum bht acche lag rahe ho"Bela said.
"Aur bhabhi aa gayi apne pyaare devar ki tarafdaari krne"Neil said.
"Aisa kuch nhi h"Bela said.
"Oh please sabko pata h ki bhabhi ka favourite devar kon h"Rudra said.
"Mera koi favourite nhi h aap sab mere liye khaas h"Bela defended herself.
"Oh please bhabhi diwali ke din toh jhooth mat boliye,sabko pata h yeh Ishan ka baccha aapka favourite h"Neil said and Ishan smiled victorily while Bela pretended not to hear the statement.
"Favourite nhi h Ishu sabse chota h isliye aap logo ko lagta h ki mein usse favour krti hu"Bela said.
"Chal jhoothi"Mahir teased her and she sighed,it was impossible to win with these Sehgal brothers.
"Accha bas ab yeh sab band karo,and be ready guests aate hi honge"Andy said and everyone nodded.
The guests started arriving and Bela being the responsible DIL greeted them with bright smile and made sure they are comfortable,not many were invited as per her request,only close friends and Bela's family was invited.
"Bela yaha aao beta"Andy called Bela who walked towards him as he introduced her to one of his old clients while she too greeted them with a smile.
"Bela puttar yaha aa zara"Dadu called her to introduce her to one of his friends.
Like this Bela kept meeting people and in the end when she was exhausted she chose to play safe and went and stood beside Mahir who was talking to one of his colleagues whom Bela knew as she had met him before.
"Kya hua??"Mahir whispered in her ear holding her waist and moving a lil closer to her.
"Mein sab logo se milkr thak gayi isliye aapke paas aa gayi"Bela whispered back leaning a lil over his left side.
"Yahi khadi raho mere saath....kuch khana h??"Mahir asked and she shook her head and kept her head on his left shoulder as her feets ached due to the heels she wore today.
"Toh Andy bhaisab aapke ghar khushkhabri kab aayegi??"One of the ladies asked Andy and though he knew what she meant he chose to ignore her words and didn't commented on it.
"Bahu toh bht sanskari h aapki"A man appreciated Bela and Andy felt very proud of his DIL.
"Aapne ab tak khana kaha khaya h?abhi dinner karnege toh pata chalega ki kya khana banati h hamari Bela.....Sara khana usi ne apne haathon se banaya h"Mahir's dadu said proudly.
Bela's mother heard this and she sighed,no matter how much she tried to make her daughter understand,this girl just didn't listened and keeps doing all the chores by herself as if she is a servant,what was the need to make food for so many people when she could have easily ordered a catering service to do the job,not only that she knows her daughter too well and even knows that all the decorations and all must also have been done by her.
Asha Singhaniya made her way to Bela and saw her standing with Mahir as she leaned over his body and they talked.
"Mahir 2 min zara Bela se baat krni thi"Asha said and Mahir nodded understandingly and left the ladies alone.
"Ji"Bela said not making eye contact with her mother.
"Yeh khana wana banane ki kya zarurat thi??itne log h tere under kaam krne wale phir gadho ki tarah saara kaam khud krne ki kya zarurat h??tu kab samjhegi??kyu krti h yeh saare kaam??yeh saare kaam krna Teri zimmedari nhi h,kitni baar bolu tujhe??? chod,wese konsi tune meri aaj tak koi baat mani h jo aaj manegi,kr jo tere Mann mein aaye"Saying so Asha left her alone,Bela was hurt by her words,no matter what her mother also had some issues with her, it's not her fault that their opinions and choices don't match,she thought maybe her mother wanted to appreciate her for all the hardwork she has done to make this party successful but she was so wrong.
Everyone then settled for dinner,the dinning tables were set in the garden as a lot of guests were invited,Bela had specially made kadhai paneer, Paneer Biryani,Veg Pulao,Dal makhni,Jeera rice,Mix veg,Okra,Salad for dinner while she had ordered Ice cream,Gulab jamun and Barfi for desserts keeping it simple yet delicious.The guests list consisted of only 40 people who were extremely close to the Sehgal family,so Bela thought it would be nice if she herself prepared the food for them, offcourse she had a lot of help from the staff for this but she felt nice as she did this.
During dinner,the Sehgals and Singhaniya's dined together talking about business and other stuff,Bela was not at all paying attention to anything,her mother's words still rang in her ear and she was sad as she had once again disappointed her mother.Mahir knew something was the matter with his wife so to cheer her up he made all kinds of jokes but Bela just gave him half smiles and didn't reacted to even one of those.
"Bhabhi aapke haath dijiye chum leta hu unhe,itna tasty khana bana kese leti h aap??"Neil flirted with her as he always did and she just gave him a smile.
"Aapko na ek dhaba khol Dena chahiye bhabhi trust me ek din mein itne paise kamaoge na ki ginne bhi mushkil ho jayegenge"Rudra said.
"Mein toh kehta hu aap mere partner ban jao,dono milkr kamayenge"Kunj said.
"Oh chup Karo nalayako,itne saare logo ka khana banayegi toh thak jayegi meri bacchi"Mahir's dadu said and everyone rolled there eyes at him,he treated Bela like a fragile doll at times.
"Ek baat batao mein aapka pota hu ya yeh aapki poti h??"Mahir asked his grandfather.
"Tu hi h mera pota pr meri khwahish thi ki mujhe ek poti toh chahiye thi Kam se kam,pr mere dono hi khote beto ne khote pote hi diye mujhe"Mahir's dadu said and the Sehgal men just sighed.
"Aap hi ek beti paida kr lete phir"Kunj taunted his grandfather as even he himself didn't had a daughter.
"Kismat mein hi nhi likha tha meri toh,kam se kam tum mein se koi mujhe ek par poti de Dena"Mahir's dadu said.
"Mom 2 min zara aapse baat krni h"Mahir said as Asha was about to go wash her hands post dinner.
Asha nodded and followed him,both stood a lil away from the family and she raised her eyebrows at him.
"Mujhe galat mat samjhiye,mein aapko samjha nhi Raha hu,but meine aapki aur Bela ki baatein sun li thi,I didn't meant to I swear"Mahir said immediately and Asha sighed,it was no secret that Mahir knew about the strained relationship between Bela and her parents.
"Woh kabhi samajhti hi nhi h"Asha said and sighed deeply.
"Toh aap samajhna shuru kr dijiye"Mahir said with a small smile on his face.
He took her right hand in both of his and looked into her eyes and said.
"Mein aapko judge nhi kr raha,na hi Bela ki side le raha hu, experience se bata raha hu ki jab rishte mein dono log zidd krne lag jaatein h na toh baatein kabhi thik nhi ho paati,ek ko toh bada Dil rakhkr sochna hi padega,in this case aapko pata h Bela kitni stubborn h,woh batati nhi h but she does loves you and dad after all,aapke approval ke liye she can do anything but will show ki aisa kuch nhi h,bht saal ho chuke h unn baaton ko mom,you should try to mend things now before it gets too late"Mahir said and Asha nodded at that as she had tears in her eyes which she tried not to shed in front of her son in law.
"Aap ek step lekr toh dekhiye uski taraf,I promise mein jaan laga dunga uska dimag thik krne mein,I promise woh khud aapse baat karegi,you just need to show her that you love her and care for her,that she is important for you after all"Mahir said and hugged Asha,who finally let those tears fall and Mahir patted her back.
"Chaliye ab aansu pochiye,rote huye acchi nhi lagti,aap toh logon ko daant lagate huye hi acchi lagti h"Mahir said as he pulled away and wiped her tears with his hands.
"Meri beti bht lucky h ki usse tum mile"Asha said caressing his face.
"Nhi,mein lucky hu ki mujhe woh mili"He said and Asha smiled at him,the guy was such a pure hearted person,he was willing to try to help her even though he knows what mistakes she had made.
"Wese bhi woh manegi nhi but aap aur woh bht similar h,sirf shakal Surat mein nhi,zidd aur gusse mein bhi,isliye aapke itne clashes hote h,na usko haar manni h na aapko,so be the bigger person and make that idiot understand your love for her"Mahir said positively and she nodded.
"Meri beti ko idiot mat kaho,bht samajhdar h meri beti"Asha said and Mahir surrendered his hands in air dramatically.
Mahir then went towards his brothers who were sitting in a group with Bela in the middle,he went and took a seat beside his wife.
"Ha Bhai kya baatein chalu h??"Mahir asked.
"Kuch nhi,Neil apni nayi girlfriend ki baat kr raha tha"Bela said as she scratched Newton's ears as the now large dog sat on her lap clearing enjoying it.
"Konsi new baat h,roz hi badalti h"Mahir said and Bela glared at him to which he rolled his eyes.
"Aur tum??yaha se jaane ka kab irada h??almost saare guests jaa hi rahe h ab"Mahir said teasing Ritik who sat with them.
"Mein tumhara ek lauta saala hu"Ritik said.
"Inhe ignore kariye,yeh sabko aise hi chedte rehte h"Bela said and Ritik nodded as he knew his brother in law's personality.
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"Kya soch rahi ho??"Mahir asked as he wrapped his arms around Bela's waist and sat behind her,his legs on either side of her body, on the cute lil setting she had made for them in their balcony.
"Kuch nhi"She said as she leaned on his chest and sighed deeply.
"You are not a great liar Mrs.Sehgal"Mahir said as he kept his chin between her right shoulder and neck, such that their cheeks touched.
"Mom,unko phir mere efforts faltu lage"She said and leaned in more towards him, completely dissolving in his arms.
"Bela,give her a chance"He said as he rubbed his palm on her left arm.
"I don't think kuch thik hoga,hrr baari mein umeed lagati hu aur hrr baari ummed tut jaati h meri,mujhe laga tha woh tariff karengi meri kyuki meine itni acchi party arrange ki thi,but woh ulta gussa krke chali gayi"She said as she entangled her hand with his and played with his fingers idly.
"Woh nhi chahti ki tum itna burden karo khud ko,abhi abhi you have recovered from a fatal accident after all"Mahir said justifying his mother in law.
"Mujhe theek huye 2 mahine ho chuke h"Bela retorted not liking that her husband was not supporting her.
"Accha baba,insan h galti ho gayi,maaf kr do na tum,bada Dil rakhkr"Mahir said.
"Mein kyu hamesha bada Dil rakhu?woh nhi samajh sakti kya?"Bela said like a kid.
"Accha baba...
He was about to say something but she interrupted him and said.
"Mujhe iss baare mein baat nhi krni h aur"Bela said and he sighed but ended the topic right there, because she wasn't in a mood to listen so his words would just fall on deaf ears he knew that.
"Accha kya baatein krni h phir batao"He asked and she just sighed and didn't said anything.
"Tumhare exhibition ki taiyariyan kesi chal rahi h?"He asked her.
"Acchi hi chal rahi h,bht kaam bacha h ab tak,but sab ho jaana chahiye time pr I guess"She said.
Mahir pulled her on his lap and cuddled her close,Bela sighed in relief as he pulled her closer.He pulled her chin up gently and crashed his lips on hers,giving her a kiss that made her toes curl,she still felt butterflies everytime they kissed,which they have done tons of time now,it still felt as if it were their first time.Her left hand made its way into his hairs which were still long and her right hand caressed his beard covered cheek.
They pulled apart when both were breathless.He again captured her lips into a soft kiss,and then pecked her lips twice and joined their foreheads.
"I really love you a lot"She heard him whisper as he placed a firm kiss on her forehead and she smiled as she hugged him tightly.
Life feels perfect now thought Bela and had a bright smile on her face.
"I love you too"She said as she looked up at his face and kissed his right cheek.And then both sat their for sometime just feeling eachother close.
"Mahirji!!!"Bela squealed as she found herself being carried into the room by her husband.
"Mujhe warn kr sakte the aap"She said as he placed her on the bed and himself joined her on the bed.
"Usmein maza kaha h"Mahir said and immediately pulled her towards himself and lightly squeezed her waist.Bela also made herself comfortable and placed her face in his neck while he kept his on her forehead,their bodies glued to together.
"Accha yeh bataiye Mrs.Sehgal ki mujhe jesa pati paakar aapko kesa lag raha h??"Mahir asked jokingly.
"Hmmm..........thik thak hi lag raha h"Bela also replied just for fun.
"Accha bacchu,mein thik thak hu??"He said and his fingers immediately reached to tickle her ribs and Bela laughed out loud because she is extremely ticklish and he knows her weak spots.
"Accha sorry,sorry,chod dijiye"She said inbetween her laughter and Mahir did showed mercy to her.
"Aap bht bure h,aapko pata h mein ticklish hu,phir bhi gudgudi krte h mujhe"She said.
"Ab meri kya galti h tum ticklish ho toh?"Mahir said as he again pulled her closer and leaned in to kiss her again but Bela kept a hand on his mouth.
"Bas so jaiye chup chap,no more kisses for you"She said and removed her palm.
"Okay"He said and immediately attacked her neck with quick pecks all over and she laughed again as it tickled her.
"Chodiye...Mahi...Mahirji....bas.....accha sorry"She said between her laughs and he again stopped and she took breaths to calm down herself.
When she was normal,he captured her lips with his and gave her yet another deep kiss which made her moan,he moved further this time and started placing kisses on her cheeks,chin and on the sides of her neck,she moved her hands in his hairs as he placed yet another kiss in between the valley of shoulder and neck.Unknowingly she arched her neck backwards giving him more acess which he utilised well and gave her more kisses.
Before he could go any further there was a knock on the door and Bela pushed him aside and asked him to check who it was,Mahir saw the clock and it showed 12am,who was here now distrubing their moment.
"Mujhe woh tera laptop ka charger de na?,mera chal nhi rha,aur ek important presentation banani h mujhe"Shivaay said immediately as Mahir opened the door and in return he received a glare.
He gave him the charger and asked him not to disturb them anymore.Once he was back into bed,Bela moved close to him and wrapped her arm around his torso and her left leg on his legs and kept her face in his neck.Mahir also pulled her closer.
"Shivaay ke liye ek nayi ladki dhundni padegi"Mahir said.
"Aap matchmaking ki batein kr rahe h?"She said as she moved a lil away and stared at his face.
"Oh please, it's been months now, surely agar woh kisi aur ke saath time spend karega toh hi Anika ko bhul payega"Mahir said.
"Aap bhul sakte h kya mujhe??"Bela asked and he gave her a weired look.
"This is not about us Bela"Mahir said.
"Mahirji,Shivaay bhaiya usse pyaar krte h,bhulna mushkil hota h,unhe time chahiye,abhi hume rishte ya ladki ki baat nhi krni chahiye unke samne"She said.
"Bela agar hum kuch nhi karenge na toh woh kabhi phirse shadi ke liye ready nhi hoga,woh apne kaam mein doob jayega,kuch krta hi nhi aaj kal Bina kaam ke!!"Mahir said as it pained him to see his brother in this state.
"He needs time"Bela said.
"Nhi,I think better hoga ki tum uske liye ladki dekhna shuru kr do,agar woh naye logo se milega toh better hoga uske liye,aur kaam se break bhi milega usse"Mahir said.
"Agar aapko Aisa lagta h toh thik h,mein dadi ko bolti hu,unke paas acche rishte honge hi"She said and Mahir nodded.