Thanks to all for voting and commenting on the previous story. Sorry, I have been a little busy and I am not able to reply to the PMs, will do so as soon as I get some time.
Gauri, Pinky and Shakti walks into Oberoi Mansion wondering what the urgency could be. They walk in to find the Oberoi clan waiting for them including Anika. Gauri walks to her and hugs her smiling, "Di."
Soon, Shakti and Pinky were hugging Anika and asking her about her life in her new sasural. It's been a little over a month since Anika got married. Gauri smiles at her sister's in-laws and makes some polite conversations with them. Then she walks towards Omkara who was leaning near the window watching everything silently.
"How are you doing?" Omkara asks her in a gentle whisper.
"Getting better." Gauri replies as she watches her happy sister. It still hurt something fierce looking at her sister or coming to Oberoi Mansion. The man she had loved was married to her sister now. She gave up her boyfriend for her sister. She has been trying to forget him and move on in life but she was not able to do it as she has loved him for the longest time.
"Why did you ask us to come urgently?" Shakti asks Anika.
"Is everything alright, Di?" Gauri asks walking towards her worried.
"Yes."
"What did you want to tell us?" Pinky asks her.
"That Papa... we wanted to tell you something." Anika says with a shy blush.
"What?"
Anika turns to her mother-in-law for help as she blushed uncontrollably.
"We are going to be grandparents." Jhanvi informs Shakti and Pinky happily.
Gauri turns to Anika in shock and sees her happily smiling. Forgetting her pain she hugs Anika plastering a smile on her face and Anika hugs her happily. Gauri turns to look at Omkara and he was watching her sadly. Gauri closes her eyes to hide her pain and then quickly steps away from Anika as her parents hugged her happily wishing her. Seeing everyone so excited, Gauri couldn't take it anymore and she quietly leaves from there.
Gauri walks to the pool area and sits on one of the lounger as the tears dropped down. She knew that neither her parents nor anyone would notice that she was missing as they would be too happy at present. The only person who would notice that she had left was Omkara and he would come behind her in a few minutes. He always managed to realize when she was upset. He always was there when she needed him. She didn't know how he did it but he was always there for her. He was her anchor.
She feels him sit next to her and she turns to him with tears in her eyes. Without a word he hugs her. Gauri cries as she hugged him tight around his waist. She was getting his shirt all wet and it was not the first time. He was the shoulder she cried on since she was a baby. He was her best friend.
"You have to let go, Gauri." Omkara gently tells her.
"I am trying." Gauri tells him as she looked up at him. "I am really trying."
"I know." Omkara replies. "But you have to try harder. He is no longer yours. He is married and now he is going to be a father."
Gauri hugs him as she broke into loud sobs. Omkara hugs her muffling her loud sobs. Omkara gently pats her back as he tries to calm her down. Gauri calms down as she thought of Shivaay. She had been in love with him since she started college. Even though she has known the Oberoi brothers ever since she was a kid, she had started having romantic feelings for the elder Oberoi when she had joined college and got to know him better. Omkara, she has known him since they were in pre-school. They were best friends since then. She grew up in his house and he in hers. They were such best friends that their parents also became friends because of that. Then she fell in love with Shivaay, and had told Omkara about it. Omkara had told Shivaay about her feelings for him, on her insistence. Shivaay reciprocated her feelings and they were together for about a month when he met her elder sister and fell in love hopelessly with her. When she found out about that, she was heartbroken and when she realized that Shivaay and Anika were willing to forget their love for her happiness, she had stepped aside and let them be together. They got married quickly after that with her blessings and now they were waiting for their first baby. Shivaay and Anika are under the impression that she was over Shivaay. Only Omkara knew about her pain and heartache. Without even telling him much, he always knew her pain and like this time, he would come running to help her.
Omkara closes his eyes, as he heard her heartbroken sobs. He could never bear her pain. More than her, her pain hurt him the most because she was more a part of him than he himself. He has been in love with her as long as he could remember. Since they were in pre-school, since he used to carry her bags for her he has loved her. Hell, he started carrying her bag for her because he was in love with her. She had stopped crying; now she was breathing slowly tired, thinking about what had happened. He knew that she was thinking about her past with Shivaay. He thinks about his past with her, he had always known Gauri was oblivious to his feelings for her. She was stupid like that. She never saw what was obvious. Even before she realized it, he had realized that she was falling in love with his brother, of all the people in the world, his brother. At first, he had tried to stop that from happening but then he couldn't be selfish for long as he wanted her to be happy. He had stepped aside and tried to get her love for her and he did too. He had stood by and watched Gauri and Shivaay in love and then he had watched Gauri's heartbreak when her sister came in between. He had tried to intervene and set everything right for Gauri but Gauri being Gauri had decided to do the right thing and broke up with Shivaay and set him free. The darkest phase of his life was his brother's wedding as he had seen the turmoil Gauri went through. He had stood by her and supported her as much as he could. Today, when he found out that Bhabhi was pregnant more than the joy of being an uncle, what had hurt him was how this was going to affect Gauri. And he had been right; he was always right when it came to her. He had seen her quietly slip away and he had followed her out. He feels her moving away and looks at her. She looked composed now.
"We should go in." Gauri tells him wiping her tears.
"I wanted to talk to you." Omkara tells her dreading her reaction to what he had to say.
"What?" Gauri asks worried seeing his expression.
"Bhaiyya is not going to US now. As Bhabhi is pregnant the Doctor advised her not to travel." Omkara informs her.
"Oh." Gauri says as she looked away, she had thought that once they go to US, and out of her sight, she might be able to forget him and move on in life.
"Gauri..."
"Hmmm?" Gauri turns to him and seeing his worried look she says smiling, "I will be fine, Omkara. As long as you are here I can face anything."
"Gauri..." Omkara says gulping.
"Is there anything else?" Gauri asks worried.
"Now that bhaiyya is not going, someone has to go to take care of the project in his place."
Gauri's heart stops beating and she asks as she felt the panic set in "Who is going?"
"Me."
"No! You can't go." Gauri says stubbornly.
"It is very important, Gauri. Otherwise I would have never agreed."
"I don't care. You can't go. What will I do without you?" Gauri asks him as fresh tears filled her eyes. "I will die without you, Om."
Omkara closes his eyes; Gauri called him Om only when she was really emotional.
"Please, Om."
"Come with me then." Omkara tells her as he opened his eyes to look at her.
"Okay." Gauri quickly agrees.
Omkara chuckles hearing her, "But will your parents agree?"
"No." Gauri replies sadly realizing her parents would never let her go away with him like that.
"Then?"
"I don't know but you can't go anywhere without me."
"Marry me." Omkara tells her.
"What?" Gauri asks shocked looking at him.
"That is the only way you can come with me. Ever since I realized that I will have to go, I was thinking about what we could do."
"How can we just marry?" Gauri asks him in shock.
"I love you, Gauri. I have always loved you. Maybe I should have told you earlier itself, then maybe things would have been different." Omkara tells her.
Gauri looks at him in shock trying to digest what he was saying.
"I can't be away from you, Gauri. Marry me and come with me. I know you need time to get over him and I understand that. I'll wait for you. But I don't know for how long I'll have to be in US for this project, so right now don't think about anything else. Just say yes and we'll be together forever."
Two months later, Gauri walks out of the airport to find Omkara waiting for her. Seeing him, she hurries to him and hugs him tight. The last couple of weeks without him were sheer hell. Especially when she had to stay at Oberoi Mansion with Shivaay and Anika, and Omkara not around to help her through it was a nightmare that she didn't want to relive. Her visa had taken forever to process and finally it was ready yesterday, and she had been waiting for her Visa with her bags ready since the day he left to US. They had got married in two weeks' time after that day and he had left soon after that. Even though they were married, things were the same, he was still her best friend and she was struggling with her feelings for Shivaay and trying to digest the fact that Omkara loved her.
"I missed you." Omkara tells her smiling.
"Even I missed you." Gauri tells him as she looked at him. She still couldn't believe that he loved her, and he said he has always loved her, then why didn't he ever tell her that?
"Let's go." Omkara tells her smiling taking the trolley.
Omkara unlocks the door and Gauri steps in with her right leg and looks around the flat. It was a studio flat very tastefully done, tastefully as in according to her taste. She would have set up the place just the same way. It kind of shocked her that he knew her to such an extent that he could actually set up their house to her taste.
"Did I miss anything?" Omkara asks her smiling.
Gauri shakes her head smiling then remembering she adds with a smile, "Fishes."
"I didn't forget that, I thought you might want to select which all fishes you want as I am clueless about it." Omkara tells her.
Gauri nods. Ever since she was a kid, she had been obsessed with fishes. She always had an aquarium. Her pocket money was always spent on that. "We could go today evening if you want."
"Maybe after a few days." Gauri tells him.
Omkara nods understanding that nothing had changed. She had missed him and seeing him she was happy but very soon she was going to go back to her old depressed mood.
And he had been spot on. Gauri quickly went back to her depressed mood thinking about her lost love and trying to cope with it. Omkara gave her space when she needed it and his shoulder to cry on whenever she needed that. She was always in her world lost in thoughts especially on those days when either of their parents called and she find out how happy Shivaay and Anika were.
Omkara walks in to the apartment to find Gauri lost in thoughts again. He sighs; it was high time Gauri started accepting their marriage and him as her husband.
"Gauri..."
"Omkara." Gauri turns to him with a gentle smile as she walked towards him.
"How was your day?" Omkara asks her.
"Same old." Gauri says.
"Dinner?" Omkara asks her.
"Can we order? I am not in the mood to go out." Gauri tells him.
"You order." Omkara tells her slightly irritated as he went to freshen up.
Gauri was about to clear the plates after dinner when Omkara stops her, "We need to talk."
"Yeah?" Gauri asks sitting down.
"It's been a month since you have come here, Gauri." Omkara starts. "But you are still the same. Nothing has changed."
"I need time, Omkara." Gauri says as she looked away.
"How much ever time I give you it is going to be less as you are not ready to move on."
"I am trying, Omkara." Gauri tells him helplessly.
"You are not trying hard then."
"How can you say that?" Gauri asks him hurt.
"You are my wife, Gauri. Have you ever done anything that a wife does?" Omkara asks her. "Forget everything; you don't even take care of the house. It never occurred to you to cook food here. Always take away, home delivery or dinner out. It never occurred to you to start working and make a life of your own. All day long, you sit here and think of Shivaay."
Gauri looks away realizing he was right. He had adjusted and gave her space and she had utilized it without thinking about him. She was wallowing in self-pity and he was suffering.
"It is high time that you pull yourself together. I am doing all that I can and I'll do everything I can but I need you to help me to help you, Gauri. Then only this will work. Then only we will work and our marriage will survive." Gauri looks at him in shock and he says, "I can't be just your best friend all our life. I am your husband and I want you to respect that and this relation. Tomorrow onwards, Gauri I want my wife. Only my wife." Omkara says and starts to get up.
"Omkara..."
"It hurts, Gauri, to see my wife pine for my brother!" Omkara says unable to hide his hurt from his voice. "I am not God, Gauri. I am just a human like you and I have feelings too."
Gauri looks away feeling guilty for what she had made him go through all these while and says in a soft voice "I just wanted to tell you that I am sorry that I hurt you and I'll be your wife in every way I can."
Omkara looks at her, not shocked though because he knew Gauri and he knew the day he opened his heart to her and told her about his pain she would forget her own pain and would try to make him happy, and that was the reason he had tried to not have this conversation with her all this while.
Gauri slowly gets up and holding his hand tells him with tears in her eyes. "Please don't give up on me."
Omkara looks at her in shock and then he leans down keeping his lips on hers. He feels Gauri stiffen for a brief moment and then she slowly parts her lips. He accepts her invitation and starts nibbling on her lower lip, gently kissing her.
Omkara hears the alarm next morning and ignores it as he tried to sleep when he feels someone shaking him.
"Wake up." a very drowsy Gauri says.
"What?" Omkara turns to Gauri who had the blanket covered over her head.
"You have to go to office. Get up!" Gauri tells him.
"I am sleepy." Omkara replies as he turned around to sleep wondering why she was waking him up. Everyday, he woke up and went to office while she slept. She woke up way after he had reached office.
"You'll be late." Gauri says shaking him.
"I am always late." Omkara replies.
"Not anymore."
"Shut up!"
Then he went flying out of the bed as she kicked him on his butt. Omkara sits up on the floor completely awake to find Gauri still under the blanket though her leg was now stretched out on his side of the bed.
"WHAT THE HELL?"
"Get ready!" Gauri orders him.
"What has gotten into you?" Omkara asks her shocked.
Gauri pulls down the blanket from her face. "The bhoot of your wife!" Gauri replies with half closed eyes.
"Wife?"
"You wanted me to behave like a wife... remember?"
"This is how a wife remembers?" Omkara asks shocked.
"I am going to be this kind of wife." Gauri replies arrogantly. "Now, get ready!"
Cursing her loudly Omkara gets up and walks to the washroom to get ready.
Few minutes later, Omkara finds Gauri sleeping on the dining table with her head on the table.
"Gauri?"
Gauri wakes up with a jerk and points at the toast and scrambled eggs. "Breakfast and coffee!"
"You don't have to do this." Omkara tells her though he couldn't help smile at her antics. She was never a morning person. She could never get up before 8 and here she was up at 6:30 with breakfast and coffee, a definite first. Though not like the typical wife with a smiling face and food, she was trying the best way she could and more importantly she was being herself, and that was enough for him.
"I might just take you up on that offer." Gauri declares as she falls back down on the table.
Omkara sits on the table chuckling as he sipped his coffee and had breakfast all the while watching her sleep.
"Sleep on the bed."
"Oh I will. You go first."
Omkara chuckles hearing her. He finishes the breakfast and he goes to pack his office bag when he sees it already packed.
"You packed my bag?"
"Yeah!"
"Did you keep my phone charger?" Omkara asks her and in reply she gives thumbs up.
"Laptop charger?"
"I kept everything! GO!" Gauri says as she growled at him looking at him.
He walks towards her and leaning down he gently kisses her on her lips. And she comes wide awake surprised. He winks at her with a smile and walks off.
Evening Omkara walks in to find Gauri on her laptop. She smiles at him as he walked in.
"How was your day?" Omkara asks her.
Gauri starts glaring at him in reply.
"What?" Omkara asks confused.
Gauri's look turn furious.
"Okay... I know that look. It says I am an idiot who missed something."
Gauri ties her hand at her chest waiting impatiently.
"What did I miss?" Omkara asks confused.
"Look around you, pig!" Gauri says furiously.
Omkara looks around and sees the place cleaned. "You cleaned the house?"
"Was that a question?" Gauri asks furiously.
"No... no... I can see that you cleaned."
Gauri waits.
"And it looks nice." Omkara says automatically.
"You don't even mean that." Gauri says hurt as she walks away.
Omkara looks at her in shock.
"When I said you behave like a wife, I didn't mean a nagging wife." Omkara says worriedly as he went behind her.
"So, now I am nagging?" Gauri asks him furiously hands on hips.
Omkara gulps not knowing how to answer her. "No... no."
"Nothing is ever good enough for you!" Gauri says pissed as she walked to the kitchen.
"What do you mean by that?" Omkara asks offended.
"I spent the whole day, cleaning this place and you didn't even notice it." Gauri says sadly.
"I am away at office the whole day. I come home after a tiring day at office, and the moment I step inside do you expect me to look around the house or you?" Omkara asks her.
"Ermm."
"If I was given time, I would have noticed it." Omkara tells her.
"You are a blind idiot. You wouldn't notice it." Gauri tells him pissed. "Dinner is ready. Freshen up and come."
"You made dinner?" Omkara asks smiling.
"Yes." Gauri says and then she smiles seeing him smile.
"One minute noodles?" Omkara asks looking at his plate.
"With additional vegetables and omelette." Gauri says offended.
"Yes, I noticed."
"I don't know cooking. It is going to take me time." Gauri adds.
"I am just happy that you did all this." Omkara tells her smiling.
Gauri smiles happily at him as she joins him to eat.
"I was thinking, maybe this weekend we should go to some pet store." Gauri tells him smiling.
Things were going smoothly for the next couple of weeks. Omkara was happy with the way Gauri was starting to accept her new situation and Gauri was getting comfortable with her married life.
Omkara watches as Gauri comes out of the shower wiping her hair. He knew it was time they took their relation to the next stage. He had been struggling with their physical proximity for ages now and he didn't think he could control anymore and he knew, Gauri was ready for the physical intimacy of their married life. She didn't say or give any hints but he knew because of the way she kissed him now. Now when they kissed, it was no longer gentle and slow, it was hungry and passionate.
"Did you feed the fishes while I was in the shower?" Gauri asks as she looked at her fishes.
Omkara rolls his eyes, "No. I learned my lesson. You don't have to keep asking me that. I stay away from your precious fishes now." Omkara tells her. He used to feed the fishes whenever the mood struck him and not realizing he was feeding the fishes, Gauri used to feed the fishes. As a result of being overfed, all the fishes had died and she never took chances with him after that.
Gauri grins at his outrage and talks to her fishes wishing them goodnight.
Gauri walks towards the bed and Omkara gently stops her. Gauri turns to him curiously. Omkara cups her face and she shyly smiles at him realizing he was going to kiss her. He leans down and takes her lips. Gauri wraps her hands around his neck loosely as she kissed him back when she feels his hand on her robe. She feels him untying the knot and slowly she stops kissing as she rests her forehead on the bridge of his nose breathing heavily thinking what he was doing. She feels his hand on her shoulders as he slowly slipped her robe off. Gauri moves back and looks at him and sees him intently watching her. She nervously takes her hand down letting the robe fall off her.
Omkara and Gauri were in bed trying to catch their breath.
"Are you alright?" Gauri asks him.
Omkara starts chuckling as he leaned up and looked down at her, "I should be asking you that."
"Well, you didn't." Gauri replies smiling shyly at him.
"Are you alright?" Omkara asks her.
"Yes." Gauri replies shyly smiling biting on her lower lip.
Seeing her do that Omkara groans and takes her lips in his kissing her soundly. Then he rolls over her to lie on his back. Gauri turns to him and snuggles next to him.
"Well..." Gauri shyly asks him.
"Well what?" Omkara asks confused.
"Did you..."
"Did i?"
"You know?" Gauri asks shyly.
"I don't know." Omkara says confused.
"Like it." Gauri asks in a shy whisper.
"Ah!" Omkara chuckles as he turned to face her hugging her.
"Welll?"
"Yes." Omkara tells her grinning.
"You should say that then." Gauri tells him shyly smiling at him.
"I should?"
"A wife likes to hear that."
"Really?" Omkara asks grinning.
"Yes." Gauri shyly tells him.
"Then biwi, I liked it very much."
"Even me." Gauri tells him smiling as she hugs him.
"I know." Omkara replies confidently.
"You are so over confident."
"No... I look at your face and I know what is in your heart." Omkara tells her.
"Then what is in my heart?" Gauri asks him smiling.
"Lot of things..."
"Ha!"
"Well... for one... I know since that talk between us, you had made a resolve not to think about Shivaay."
"Don't talk about him. He has no place in our bed." Gauri tells him sobering up.
"He doesn't matter anymore, Gauri." Omkara tells her.
Gauri looks at him lost in thoughts.
"Not to you at least." Omkara tells her.
Gauri looks at him in shock and asks in wonder, "How did you know that?"
"That you stopped loving him?" Omkara asks her.
"Yes."
"When we kissed the first time."
"Since then?" Gauri asks shocked. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"You were not ready to accept it." Omkara replies.
"It took me a long time to realize it." Gauri tells him amazed.
"I know." Omkara replies smiling.
"Then what else?" Gauri asks him as she turned to look at him smiling.
"You are very happy with me."
"That I am." Gauri says smiling.
"Then there is... that you still can't believe that I have been in love with you since our childhood. You haven't forgiven yourself for never realizing it and telling me about your feelings for Shivaay when I loved you."
"I am sorry for that, Omkara. It was not..."
"Shhh love... I know." Omkara tells her smiling.
"How did you fall in love with me?"
"I don't know." Omkara tells her. "As far as I can remember I have been in love with you."
"And I never knew." Gauri says regretfully.
"You are an idiot." Omkara chuckles.
Gauri frowns at him.
"What?" Omkara asks laughing. "You are."
"Okay once I was."
"What about now?" Omkara asks her.
"Now?" Gauri asks frowning.
"Yeah, now... you are in love with me and you never even realized it."
"WHAT?"
"Think about it, love." Omkara says pecking her on her lips and turns to lie on his back, "Good night."
Gauri looks at him in shock wondering whether what he said was true. Did she love him? she has always loved him as her best friend but more than that? She was no longer in love with Shivaay, she knew that as well as she knew herself or Omkara. But her feelings for Omkara? Omkara is her husband, who was also her best friend who has stood by her always. Even when she had married him for her own selfish reasons and then went on to ignore her marriage and her duties to him, he had been patient till she went too far but then she had decided to be his wife and tried her best to be his wife and he had stood by her for that and helping her with that silently. He was and has always been and will always be her anchor, her rock, her Omkara. She was nothing without him and there won't be a Gauri without Omkara Singh Oberoi. She couldn't survive without him. Suddenly, it was as clear as the day, she loved him. Somewhere down the line, she had started loving her husband, and as usual her best friend realized that before her.
"Omkara... Omkara..." Gauri starts shaking him awake.
"What Gauri?" Omkara moans. "I have known ever since you forgave me for killing your fishes."
"I never forgave you for that. I just refrained from killing you." Gauri replies, "But it is not that. Wake up."
"Then? You want to tell me you love me?" Omkara asks as he rolled over in half sleep.
"Yes... wake up."
"It doesn't matter even if you don't say it. I know already." Omkara mumbles.
"But I want to tell you."
"You can tell me in the morning." Omkara replies.
Gauri furiously looks at him. Here she wanted to tell him she loves him, and for a man who claims to be in love with her since childhood, shouldn't he show some excitement and eagerness to hear her declare her love for him? then he lightly starts snoring and Gauri loses it. She furiously kicks him on his butt and he falls on the ground. His shout of outrage was drowned down by her furious declaration, "YOU STUPID IDIOTIC BLOODY MORONIC PIG, I LOVE YOU DOG!!!!"
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- Lazy