Aadya laid on Tanay's bicep, her one hand under her head and the other on his chest, drawing random patterns with her fingertips.
Tanay laid wide awake, staring at the ceiling.
"What are you thinking about?" She slowly asked, placing her hand on his face, tracing his jaw.
He took her hand in his and brought it to his lips. Kissing her palm, he shook his head. "Nothing."
She stared up at his face, her fingers tracing every inch of his face. He was a beautiful man.
"Have you ever had a girlfriend?" She asked.
He looked down at her, smiling, and shook his head. "No."
"Never?"
"Mhm."
"Never ever?"
He let go of her hand and pulled her face up by her nape. He pressed a firm kiss to her lips. "Never ever ever."
She smiled softly. "Talk to me. What are you thinking about?" She asked again.
"I'm thinking if we should pack our bag tomorrow and leave or a couple of days later and leave." He looked at her. "What do you think?"
"The later." She said. "It will not look good if we leave immediately after...your argument with papa."
"Hmm." She stretched up and kissed his jaw under his ear. "So... Fashion designer?"
"Yeah." She sighed.
"Did you want to open your own boutique?" He asked, pulling her on top of him and sitting back against the headboard.
"Yeah." She smiled. "I was even offered an internship at 'GALA'."
"Ishaan Chopra's brand?" He raised his eyebrow in surprise. She nodded. "We secured a deal with them last year. When they launched their summer clothes or something."
"Really? That's so cool." He brushed her hand with his fingers.
"Do you still wish to open a boutique of yours?"
"Is that all?" Tanay asked Aadya when she handed him the last bag.
"Yes, but I'll go check once again." She said and went to their room again.
A while later, she came back and told him that was all. They turned to the parents and together they kneeled down to touch their feet.
"Chalte hai hum dono. Phone karenge aapko." Tanay said, getting up. He hugged his mother and father once. He didn't want bad blood between them.
The Uber outside honked impatiently.
"Come on." He took Aadya's hand in his and pulled her out towards the door.
He loaded their bags with the driver and opened the door for Aadya.
She sat in and soon, the car pulled out of the parking space.
After they'd made it to some distance, Tanay wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him, kissing her head.
She smiled and leaned into him.
"Sir, love marriage hai aapka?" The driver grinned at the couple.
"Nahi bhaiya, marriage ke baad love hai." Tanay said, making everyone laugh.
"Acche dikhte ho dono saath mein." The driver said.
"Arey, shukriya. Aapka shaadi hua hai?"
"Nahi na. Humko Jo ladki pasand aaya hai, woh humare gharwalo ko pasand nahi. Hum kya karein batao?"
As the conversation carried on between the driver and Tanay, it became more and more entertaining for Aadya to watch.
The Uber stopped at the railway station. The driver was so kind; he helped them carry the bags to their train compartment.
Their seats were lower berths.
Placing their bags under their seats, they sat in front of each other.
As the train left the station, both their hearts were thumping with a new kind of excitement. They were about to start a new life. A happy life.
After a while, Tanay got up and sat beside her. He wrapped his arm around her and she leaned into him.
"Do you think we're being too clingy?" He asked, jokingly.
"So what if we are?" She looked up. "Would you change?"
"Good point." He smiled. "I'll never change."
A couple of stations later, people started crowding the place. Luckily, Aadya and Tanay were in the AC sleeper, so they had no disturbances.
A teenage boy and a middle-aged man sat next to Aadya. Beside Tanay was a young girl.
The middle berth on his side was probably not reserved.
They confirmed this when the TC came to check their tickets.
A while later, the boy said to Aadya, "Ma'am, I need to sleep. If you don't mind...?"
"Yeah, sure." Aadya stood up and sat next to Tanay.
The boy put the seat up, and soon the man went to the upper berth as well.
Aadya turned to Tanay. "Do you feel sleepy?"
"Actually, I feel wide awake." He chuckled.
"Me too." She snickered. "I feel like we are lovers eloping."
He laughed at that. "We're lovers, alright."
"Mm, yes."
"Do you wanna sit on this side?" He asked, knowing how much she loved window seats.
"No, I'm okay." She leaned more into him.
"Okay? I want you to be good, amazing, fantastic."
"I'm fantastic." She giggled.
"You are." He leaned his head on her. "I wanna kiss you." He mumbled in her ear.
She blushed. "Not the right place."
"Mm." He sighed. "But you're gonna be all mine from now on."
"Stop." She hid her face in his arm.
He pulled out his phone and earphones. "Let's watch a movie."
"Horror." She said. "Please."
"Your wish, my command, babygirl."
They couldn't watch the movie.
Only thirty minutes into it and they were now being paranoid of every human passing them.
So they decided to sleep.
The next morning, they woke up at 6. They brushed their teeth and had chai and poha from one station and continued their journey. At around 10 am, they finally reached their destination.
Chatrapati Shivaji Terminal; otherwise known as CST.
Tanay's office had sent him a cab and a guide to lead them to their new apartment.
When they saw their apartment, he was a little surprised.
He expected their apartment to be small but not so small that it only contains a room and a kitchen with attached washrooms.
"Extremely sorry, sir. Actually, we weren't aware of you being married so... But don't worry, sir. I'll arrange a new place for you in just a week. Trust me, sir." The guide said.
Tanay looked at Aadya with an apologetic face. She squeezed his hand with a smile.
"Baby steps."
For a week, they lived in that apartment.
Adjusting to that small house from a bungalow was very difficult. Tanay felt guilty. He wanted to give her a comfortable life, and this house barely had a window. Even the water wasn't available 24/7.
But Aadya, she didn't mind. She knew it was all temporary, and eventually, they'd settle somewhere comfortably.
As promised, they were shown a new apartment a week later.
It was a 1BHK and five times as big as the previous one.
It had amazing ventilation with a balcony, and since they were on the 7th floor, the view was just perfect.
"Do you like it?" Tanay asked her.
"Yes, it's perfect!" She smiled. "We'll simply get a comfortable mattress here," she pointed to one corner of the bedroom, "and eventually, we will keep getting the necessary furniture."
"Okay." He smiled.
"If it's good with you, please sign here."
Tanay looked at Aadya once again to confirm. When she nodded, he took the pen and signed the papers.