It was just ten minutes since Tharun had written the note. He flipped on bed, sleep was still away from him. He closed his eyes and smiling face of Saanvi appeared in front of him.

"Tharun, you came so early?" asked his friend.

"I came to help you," he replied. He was in Saint Anthony's Friary Church to attend a wedding of his friend's elder brother. What he said was a blatant lie. He came early so that his other friends wouldn't make him eat non vegetarian food. They loved to tease him because he was a pure vegetarian. He was quite sure of what his nonsensical friends were capable of.

But he came quite early as the Sunday mass was still going on. He sat on one of the benches at the back. There were a group of youngsters singing Christian devotional songs in Telugu. Among the chorus group, he spotted Saanvi. She was constantly looking at one of the benches in front. Assuming her parents to be sitting there, he sighed.

He did admit that he had fallen for her the day he saw her in the library on wheels. Her blue frock, two neatly oiled plaits and those glares!

Suddenly, his phone vibrated, making him jerk. He hurriedly went out of the huge door. He pressed the green button to receive the call. "Hello, Vaibhav! I am in the church... okay... so where are you?... take a right from there... come straight, you'll find a blue and white building... that's the church... come soon macha, I am waiting for you here."

He disconnected the call. Just when he was about to keep his phone in his pocket, he heard Saanvi's voice. He kept his phone near his right ear, acting as if he trying to call someone. His back was facing her so that he could listen to what she was talking.

"Saanvi, tell me one thing, what were praying?"

"Nisha, you're not supposed to ask this question," she replied with fake anger.

"I asked Lord to pass me in these semester exams. Now you tell me, what were you praying?"

She sighed. "I wasn't praying. I was confessing and asking forgiveness."

"About Karnataka and Tamil Nadu thing? Saanvi, you were a seventeen year old kid, you were frustrated about your father's forced decisions in your life. You don't have to be sorry for that."

"No Nisha, even though I was frustrated about things that were happening in my life, I shouldn't have shouted on someone. I even had an opportunity to tell him sorry but I couldn't gather courage."

"Saanvi!" her father called.

"Coming Nanna," she replied.

Soon he came to know from Nisha after she joined the office that Saanvi wanted to pursue Arts but her father wanted her to do Science after tenth. She chose the stream as per his wish but he was not taking any chances. He had locked her painting materials in the attic.

He smiled remembering her innocent face when she was surprised to hear how he knew about her actual choice of stream.

"Tharun, my Nanna will never allow me to take any decision of my own. You know how both of our parents talked, right? It seemed before coming to meet, they had made up their minds not to agree to each other. Do you love me?"

"Of course Saanvi, I love you," he replied.

"Then let us get registrar marriage done. If anyone of our parent comes to us with marriage alliance, we will show them this certificate. We will keep this a secret until we find suitable time to break this news."

He took a deep breath. It's been eight months since we have married. But this aloofness was never experienced by me. Where are you, my wife?

As if to answer his question, Saanvi opened the lock of the door. She closed the door and sat on the sofa, massaging her temples. She kept the file on the glass table next to the sofa. "Tharun, are you there?"

He got up from bed and came to the living room. She was aghast to see her husband in that state. Disheveled hair, baggy dark under eyes, sad and depressed face, drooping body; she couldn't help standing up and walking to him. Nearly in her tears, she asked, "What has happened to you? Are you pichoda? Look at yourself."

"I am sorry but I thought I will earn more-"

"No need for that. Have I asked you? Do you love me, Tharun?"

"Of course Saanvi, I love you," he replied.

"Then leave this job."

He cupped her face. "Saanvi! It's not that simpl-"

"If not for me, do it for your child at least," she cut in. Realising what she had spoken, she exclaimed, "I had planned to tell this in a nice way but... anyways, don't think that I threatening you with our unborn child or something. Congratulations, you are going to be father."

She found her legs dangling in air. "Tharun! What are doing? Why are you lifting me? Last month only you told that I am too heav-"

He silenced her with a passionate kiss. "Hush! I can't see tears in your eyes. I will apply for new job and leave this when I will get new one. Happy?"

She nodded. "Care to listen to what happened in temple?"

It was his time to nod. He made her sit on the sofa and sat next to her. "I saw Shanti Akka going to temple. I followed her because I badly wanted to apologize to her. Our secret marriage is the reason Akka's only marriage alliance broke. I saw the man with whom Akka's marriage was supposed to be fixed.

I confronted him and talked to both of them. They found that they're compatible and will work out to finalize their relationship. Shanti Akka wanted to break this news after everything was confirmed. I waited for you at least two hours in temple. I gave him a side hug to congratulate them. But you saw only us hugging and left. Seriously Tharun, I never thought you can be this immature."

He smiled sheepishly. "I think we both haven't read that Tintin book, have we?"

Saanvi shook her head. He smiled. "We can go to watch the film, it was released yesterday. You at least have read some part. I couldn't read that also."

"All thanks to that librarian," she added. They both had a hearty laugh.

THE END

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Thank you all for being part of this journey.

Can you guess from which movie was this last chapter partly inspired from?
Ps. It's a Mani Ratnam movie starring Madhavan. ;)