"Madhu... before anyone sees me here, let me in." RK tells her.
Realizing she was blocking his way, Madhu moves aside and he gets it. RK turns to look at her and she was still standing there looking at him holding onto the door wide open. RK gently pries her hand away and closes the door. Madhu turns to look at him lock the door and her heart starts slamming against her chest they both were alone now. RK starts to walk towards the bedroom and Madhu hurries behind him.
"I thought I would use this room as my bedroom." Madhu tells him as she saw him walking into the bedroom.
"Yeah... I saw your luggage in here earlier." He tells her.
Madhu waits for him to go to the other room but he didn't look like he was ready to go anywhere as he stood near the bed hands in pocket looking at her. Sighing she says, "I'll use the other room then."
"What?" RK asks confused.
"You can sleep here, I will sleep in the other room." Madhu tells him and starts to walk off when he calls her.
"If I wanted to sleep in a different room, I would have slept in my bedroom only. I wouldn't have taken a risk and come here."
Madhu looks at him in horror, "You mean to say, we both sleep in this room?"
"Yeah." RK says confused seeing her horror.
"There isn't even a couch here." Madhu says horrified. God! She didn't want to sleep on the floor. She always pitied the soap heroines to have to sleep on the cold floor, and she needed the soft bed tonight, she was really tired.
"Why would you need a couch?" RK asks confused.
"When two people who were not supposed to get married, get married then one of them sleep on the bed and the other sleeps on the floor or couch." Madhu explains.
"Really?" RK asks confused. God! His and her worlds were so bloody different. "In your social circle this is a common thing?"
"What?"
"People who were not supposed to get married, get married?"
"No."
"Then how do you know this?" he asks utterly confused.
"I have watched in the serials."
"Serials?" RK asks shocked.
Madhu nods her head. RK sighs loudly, "Get on the bed, Madhu."
"You will sleep on the floor?" Madhu asks shocked. "No, I won't have it."
"I won't sleep on the floor. We both are sleeping on the bed." RK tells her.
"Bed?" Madhu croaks.
"Yes." RK tells her calmly.
Madhu watches him watching her patiently. Finally she drags her feet to the bed and gets on it. RK walks to the door and locks it.
"Why are you locking the door?" Madhu asks shocked.
"I am used to it. I can't sleep with the door unlocked." RK calmly tells her. Then he turns off the light.
"Why are you turning off the light?" Madhu asks worried.
"I can't sleep with the lights on." RK tells her and walks towards the bed and gets in.
"Where did my pillow go?" RK asks shocked. When he had walked in he had seen both the pillows on the bed. "Why is it here?" RK asks feeling it on the middle of the bed between Madhu and him.
"I kept it here, to make a pillow wall." Madhu gently tells him.
"Pillow wall?" RK asks as he took his pillow and kept it under his head. And then feeling another pillow in the middle he takes it and gives to her. "Use the pillow, Madhu."
"Then there won't be anything between us." Madhu says scandalized.
"Why do you want anything between us?" RK asks shocked in the dark.
"Er... because..." Madhu didn't know how to answer that.
"Is this what happens in a serial too?"
"Yes." Madhu replies but in a confused tone.
"Tell me this, if they are not willing to share a bed why do they get married?" RK asks confused.
Madhu remains silent for a long while then she whispers "I don't know."
"Here, take the pillow." After she had kept the pillow under her head RK sighs and says "Good night, Madhu."
"Good night, Rishu."
"Rishu?"
"Trish told me to call you that."
"She is mad."
"You don't want me to call you that?"
"It's okay... you can call me that."
"Okay."
"I was not in love with him... I hardly spoke to him. Have only seen him twice in my life." Madhu whispers to him.
"Who?" RK asks confused.
"Sultan... the man I was supposed to marry." Madhu explains.
When RK remains silent, she tells him, "I wanted you to know."
"I don't care about your past, Madhu. It is our present and future that matters."
"But still I wanted you to know. So later, if he come back and says something about me you should know he is lying." Madhu tells him.
"Why would he come and say anything to me?"
"It happens all the time." Madhu tells him.
"All the time?" RK asks confused.
"Yes. When the couple starts to get to know each other and start liking each other, the villain comes back and creates misunderstandings."
"Are you telling me a serial story?" RK asks incredulous.
"It has happened in many serials." Madhu tells him
"You watch too many serials, Madhu. Just go to sleep."
"Did you sleep?" RK asks in a whisper. He was lying on his back looking at the ceiling while she had her back to him.
"No."
"Why were you upset when we came here in the evening?"
Madhu thinks of the way she had entered the house and tears filled her eyes.
"Madhu... is it because you have to stay here in the outhouse? You understand why I have to do this right?"
"It's not that." Madhu says as tears started flowing from her eyes.
"Are you crying?" RK asks worried as he leaned up and turned her around to face him.
"No." she lies.
Then she felt his chest on her face as he leaned over her to turn on the bedside lamp. For a second she was distracted from her crying with his cologne.
"Madhu..." RK says horrified seeing the tears on her face.
Madhu quickly turns and switches off the light.
"Why are you crying, Madhu?" RK asks panicked.
"You won't understand." Madhu whispers.
"I am your husband, Madhu. If I don't understand you then who will?" RK asks her as he turned her again to face him.
Madhu looks at him for a while and then hugging him she bursts out into tears "None of the rituals were followed to welcome me here."
"What rituals?" RK asks confused.
"The rituals to welcome a new bahu. Our marriage feels incomplete." Madhu tells him sadly.
RK hugs her as she cried. "What are these rituals?"
Madhu explains to him.
"That's all? Madhu, you still haven't entered my house. This is just the outhouse. I promise you when you enter the house all these rituals will happen."
Madhu looks up at him and he gently wipes her tears, "I don't know whether your grahapravesh would be to this house or another... but wherever it is, it will be with all the rituals."
"These rituals are very important to me." Madhu tells him.
"I understand, Madhu." RK tells him smiling. Now that their eyes had adjusted to the dark they could see each other. Seeing him smiling at her, she smiles at him. They get lost in each other's eyes. RK gently rubs his thumb over her cheek, he had this uncontrollable urge to kiss her, he had never felt like that for any girl and with her... he sighs and says, "Go to sleep, Madhu."
Then they turn to lie on their back.
He looked like he wanted to kiss me... does that mean he is not a gay?
"Do you have any deep dark secrets?" Madhu asks hesitantly.
"Yes."
"What is it?" Madhu asks worried as her heart started slamming against her chest.
"Since it is a deep dark secret do you think I would be telling it to you so casually and easily?"
Madhu turns to look at him in shock and sees him shaking in silent mirth.
"You were teasing me?" Madhu asks smiling.
"Do your heroines ask their husband this question after their wedding?" RK asks her still chuckling. "And do they get a truthful answer?"
"No... but they find it out."
"Do you have any?" RK asks her chuckling.
"No. Do you?"
"Hmmm... well my deep dark secret is you now."
Does that mean he is not gay?
Madhu wakes up with a smile on her face. If she was worried about their marriage working out, it was no longer there. Last night, he had come to be with her and that meant a great deal to her. After her initial shock and after she had overcome her fear when he didn't seem to want to consummate their relation, she had relaxed and realized how good her husband was and her good luck to marry him instead of that money-minded Sultan. It was a good thing he had come, they had talked not anything really important but they had talked and now she truly accepted him as her husband and she hoped he accepted her as his wife too. And somewhere deep down she no longer thought he could be gay. She turns to look at him to find his side empty. Frowning she sits up and looks around, the door was closed but it was unlocked. She was about to get up from the bed when she spotted a note on the side table.
Good morning, Madhu... call me when you wake up - Rishu.
She smiles seeing the note and she takes it in her hand and gently runs her hand over Rishu. Then she starts frowning, she didn't know his number then how was she going to call him? Maybe she will call Patil and ask him for Trish and ask her for Rishu's number. With that idea in mind she walks towards the intercom and sees a set of buttons on the side with names across each button. Rishabh. Smiling she presses on the button across Rishabh.
"Madhu..." RK picks up the call with a smile.
"How did you know it was me?" Madhu asks shocked.
"Because it flashed outhouse." RK tells her chuckling. "Did you sleep nicely?"
"Yes... when did you leave?"
"Around 5... didn't want anyone to see me leave." RK tells her.
"Why didn't you wake me up?"
"I tried but you were just not willing to wake up."
"It is difficult to wake me up." Madhu tells him embarrassed.
"I know." He says in a teasing tone.
"I don't have your number." Madhu tells him remembering.
"Even I don't have yours. Give me your number and I'll give you a call from my mobile." RK tells her and Madhu proceeds to tell him her number. Then she hears her mobile ringing.
"Got it." Madhu tells him.
"Okay... if anything call me... I'll be leaving for office in a bit. Patil, will bring your breakfast."
"You had your breakfast?"
"I have an early meeting, so I'll have from office. Trish, will come to give you company."
"Okay. What time will you come back?"
"Evening... depends, Madhu. I might be late as I have a meeting in the evening too." RK tells her.
"Okay." Madhu says.
"Take care, biwi... bye."
"Bye." Madhu says blushing hearing him call her biwi.
Madhu had her breakfast with Trishna, and then she unpacked her bags with Trishna's help. She and Trishna were becoming fast friends, Madhu even talked to Trishna's fiance Samay. Then Patil had come with the grocery, and Madhu had spent the rest of the day setting up the kitchen. RK had called twice to check on her for a few minutes. In between Mukund had called to check in on her and say bye as he was leaving to Saudi.
RK gets out of the car and starts walking towards the silent almost dark house when he turns to look at the outhouse and was surprised to see the lights still on. He decides to check on Madhu and walks towards the outhouse. He rings on the bell and Madhu opens the door. Seeing him she starts smiling as she moved aside to let him in.
"You didn't sleep?"
"No."
"Why? Is everything alright?"
"Yes..."
"Then?"
"You hadn't come back... so I was..." Madhu says hesitantly.
RK looks at her in shock, she had waited up for him? No one has done that for him, not even Trish.
"Did you have dinner?" Madhu asks him.
"No... I'll wake up Patil and have food." RK tells her.
"I have made food." Madhu tells him as she looked down hesitantly.
"Ah... I'll go freshen up and come then."
"I'll heat up the food by then." Madhu tells him smiling.
Madhu was setting the table when she hears the bell. Smiling she hurries to the door and opens it and her heart drop to the pit of her stomach. He was standing there in a jockey vest and shorts. First time, she was seeing a real life man in so little clothes other than her brother, and with his wet hair he was looking unbelievably hot. Suddenly, her body became aware of him as a man and not just as her husband.
"Close your mouth, Madhu." RK says with a smirk as he walked past her.
Madhu locks the door and hurries after him. "You walk around here naked like this?"
"Don't tell me your serial heroes don't wear these." RK says with a chuckle as he sits down on the dining table. Since the moment she cried in his arms she was no longer a stranger to him... and then the moment she had asked him for his deep dark secret, he had felt the ice breaking in between them... somehow he felt a connection with her.
"They do... but they are not my husband."
"And I am not naked." RK tells her grinning enjoying rattling her up.
"You walk around like this in front of other girls?"
"The only female species here are my sister and mother."
"And me!"
"You don't count." RK tells her waving his hand as if discarding the idea, deciding to have some fun.
"I don't count?" Madhu asks in a bare whisper, that kind of hurt.
"You are allowed to see me even without all this."
"Wha..." Madhu looks at him eyes going wild and face going pale.
"You know, truly naked." RK tells her winking at her.
Madhu turns pink hearing that.
"I was just joking, Madhu." RK tells laughing seeing her turning pink.
Madhu starts serving him and sits down to eat.
"You didn't eat?" RK asks shocked.
"No."
"Why?"
I was waiting for you. But she just couldn't bring herself to say it, so she looks down at her plate.
"Were you waiting for me?" RK asks her not willing to drop the subject.
Madhu gently nods.
"You shouldn't do that, sometimes I come really late."
"I wasn't very hungry."
"You should eat when you are hungry, Madhu." RK gently tells her.
Madhu nods her head in reply.
"Thank you." RK tells her.
Madhu looks up at him confused.
"Waiting up for me, for the dinner and staying hungry for me. No one has done that for me."
"I am your wife." Madhu tells him in a soft voice.
"Can I ask you something?" Madhu hesitantly asks him.
"What?"
"If you don't want to tell me then you don't have to... and if you feel that I am overstepping..."
"Just ask, Madhu."
"You don't seem to be very close to your parents or grandfather." Madhu says hesitantly.
RK was silent for a while and then says "I don't know..."
Madhu looks up at him curiously.
"I hardly saw them when I was growing up. The servants raised Trish and me... the nannies kept changing, the only constant in my life was Trish and her life me... so we kind of looked out for each other... everyone else was busy making money... we had only each other, and we never felt any kind of attachment to them..."
"You and Trish are very different from the rest of them."
"It was a conscious decision... we started resenting all the money and partying as we were kind of put aside for it... so decided not to be what we hated in them... I don't know how to explain it, Madhu." RK tells her shrugging.
"I understood." Madhu gently tells him.
"You did?" RK asks shocked.
"Yes... did I make you uncomfortable?"
"No... I never talk about these things to anyone... but you are my wife... you need to understand what I come from. And this is the reason why I never joined our family business and started my own business."
"Trish told me you are a loner."
RK chuckles, "I like my own company."
Madhu smiles hearing that.
"It's not a bad thing."
"I know." Madhu tells him smiling.
Madhu was clearing the table. "Patil will do that in the morning."
"I can't sleep if dirty dishes are there." Madhu tells him.
"Do you have OCD?" RK asks curiously.
"I wouldn't call it OCD." Madhu tells him blushing.
RK chuckles, "Do you want my help or do you feel the dishes are not clean till you do it by yourself?"
"I prefer washing it myself." Madhu tells turning pink.
"Oh God!" RK says in horror. "OCD!"
"I'll come now." Madhu tells him collecting the plates.
RK watches her walk away then chuckling he walks to the window to smoke.
Fifteen minutes later, Madhu comes back to the living room to find it empty. She wondered where he had gone off to. She knew he wouldn't go without telling her.
"Rishu?"
"Yeah." He calls out from the bedroom and Madhu walks towards the bed to find him lying on the bed slightly leaning up on his arms looking through a magazine which was on the bed. Hearing her at the door he looks up. "You ready to go to bed?"
Madhu nods her head.
"Okay. Lock the door then." RK tells her as he closed the magazine and kept it on the side table.
He was going to sleep here tonight also? Madhu turns to lock the door and starts blushing as she locks the door. Then turning off the light she walks towards the bed. As she got on the bed she felt it. "What is this?"
"What?"
Madhu turns on the bedside lamp to see a gift wrapped box on the bed.
"What is this?" Madhu asks.
RK shrugs in reply.
"How come I didn't see it when I walked in?" Madhu asks curiously. She seriously couldn't have missed it as it was pretty big.
"Are you going to open it or not?" RK asks exasperated.
Madhu giggling opens the box then her eyes fill with tears seeing a Bappa's murti. He was lying down and it was absolutely beautiful.
"Thank you." She whispers as she took it in her hands.
RK smiles seeing her happy. Madhu gets down from the bed and turns on the main light. "We'll keep it here?" she asks him pointing at the corner she had decided earlier to keep the Ganpati Murti. RK shrugs in reply. Smiling she says, "Come." RK curiously gets up from the bed and walks towards her. She holds one end of the Moorti and looks at him expectantly realizing what she wants he holds the other end and they together keep it on the table. Happily folding her hands and closing her eyes she prays and seeing that RK does the same.
RK opens his eyes to find Madhu happily smiling at him and he smiles back at her. "Let's sleep?" Madhu asks him. "I'll switch off the lights you get on the bed." Madhu gets on the bed while RK switches off the light. Once RK got on the bed Madhu switches off the bed lamp and pulling the blanket over them they go to sleep.
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- Lazy