e i g h t
glitter and glue

The air was buzzing with an excitement and anticipation of the upcoming festival. Typically, a ten-day celebration, it was celebrated on a different scale in different families. Shubman and Sara had decided to welcome Ganapati Bappa in their abode for five days starting from this year to...forever, perhaps?

Sara's enthusiasm and energy was palpable as went about the house, jumping and completing chores swiftly. Being a Marathi girl who was born and brought up in Mumbai, the festival was dear to her, always bringing in joy in her life, and creating some memories which stayed with her for a long time. Shubman, Sunita and Rajesh went along with her, doing as she instructed and finding happiness in her glee.

Sara had even taken a leave from her work to prepare for and then celebrate Ganeshotsav. Shubman was at practice and she couldn't possibly ask Sunita and Rajesh to continuously work and do tasks, so plugging in some Taylor, Sunidhi and Shreya she was single-handedly completing her to-do list.

While she was busy in the kitchen, she got a call. She turned off the stove, and walked to the counter, picking up her phone.

"Riti bhabhi?" She murmured, receiving the call.

"Hi bhabhi!" She greeted her, always happy to talk to Ritika.

"Hey sweetie," Ritika's voice sounded hasty, "Is it okay if Sammy comes over to your house after school?" She requested, talking without pausing.

"Of course bhabhi! I'm on a leave for the festival anyway," she quickly affirmed and Ritika audibly sighed in relief.

"Thank God, thank you Sara," she gratefully thanked her.

"But bhabhi, what happened?" She asked, pressing the phone between her ear and inclined shoulder, walking back to the stove.

"Sara, I've to go to the doctor, but our sitter got a fever. I cant obviously ask her to come over, you know?"

"Oh of course bhabhi. Everything's good right? It's just a routine check up for you na?"

"Oh yes, Sara. Don't worry, sweetheart," Ritika's voice was gentle and warm and Sara could hear Ritika smiling.

"Take care bhabs. I'll see you soon,"

"Make sure Sammy eats properly!"

"Ha ha, don't worry, don't worry,"'

🪷

"OH MY GOD," Samaira Sharma exclaimed as she set foot in the house. "Are you decorating for Ganpati Bappa?"

"Yes love," Sara said, taking off the heavy backpack off her shoulders. "You want to help?" She asked as Samaira plopped herself on the couch, tired after the wearisome day she had at school.

"Of course I want to help!" She replied cheerfully while lying on the sofa. While the excitement was there, the girl couldn't ignore how she wanted to doze off right there on the velvety fabric.

"Okay Sammy, I know you're super tired but let's get you changed into something comfortable. Then have lunch and you can sleep for sometime, what say?"

Samaira hummed, getting up, stretching her arms as she yawned.

While Samaira watched her favourite show 'Alexa and Katie', eating lunch- Sunita was chatting with her sister on the phone while Rajesh chose to read a book.

Sara was on the phone, talking to the event planners who were organising the party on the fourteenth. As the call concluded, she sat beside Samaira.

"Samaira, you literally haven't eaten anything. I'm pausing the show, watch after you're done," she said, taking the remote control and pressing a button.

Samaira pouted, tilting her head.

"Come on chachi, I'll eat now. Just resume the show please!" She pleaded but Sara shook her head.

"Nope. I'm sorry baby,"

"Oh come on, you're no fun. You're turning into Momma 2.0," she groaned and Sara smiled, patting Sammy's shoulder.

"That's such a nice compliment! I love your Momma!" Samaira shook her head, her lips curving into a mischievous smile, a glint in her eyes which couldn't be missed.

"I bet Shubi Chachu would let me watch tv peacefully!" She remarked making Sara gasp.

"I...fine, but he's...he's not...here," she somehow replied, stuttering, tearing away her gaze from Samaira. Samaira dramatically frowned, clicking her tongue.

"What a shame! I miss chachu!" She said, putting her face in her hands. Sara sharply inhaled, leaning in towards Sammy.

"Samaira Sharma- one day you're going to be a vicious businesswoman. Someone who'd be feared. I know I don't want to fall for your games, but..." Sara halted, breathing loudly. "You leave me with no choice," she picked up the remote, resuming the episode.

"Thanks chachi!" She very cheerfully said, gluing her eyes on the tv screen.

"But Sammy, I'm still the adult here. You don't finish up in fifteen minutes, I'm calling up bhabhi," Sara said and Samaira's smile faded.

"What?"

"I wouldn't want to make her mad, you know?" Sara continued her teasing. Samaira gulped, quickly digging in the food on her plate.

"You'll see this plate in the sink after exactly ten minutes!"

🪷

Samaira and Sara were cutting flowers from chart paper, while Sunita was making a garland of flowers, Rajesh was taking a quick afternoon nap when Shubman returned.

"Sammy? Hello!" He exclaimed in surprise as he entered the house.

"Hi chachu!" She grinned, her focus still on the paper as she cut along the drawn flowers with a kid-safety pair of scissors.

"Aaj yaha kaise aana hua?" (How are you here today?) he asked as Sara handed him a glass of water.

"Thanks," he softly said, shifting his focus back to Sammy who had stopped cutting.

"Mumma-Papa are at the doctor, and Rama aunty is sick, so..."

"Well, it's great that you're here! We'll have fun, hm?"

"Yes! Now go and freshen up quickly, we have so much work to do!" Samaira sternly instructed and Shubman nodded like a docile child, rushing to his room.

🪷

7 p.m.

Shubman and Samaira's faces were adorned with glitter as the duo assembled all the decorations they had prepared.

Sara had opted for a floral theme and they had created a garden like decoration, with beautiful handmade flowers, used to create a vibrant scenery.

"My hands are so sticky because of the glue," Shubman frowned, looking at his stretched out palms. "Ew,"

Samaira scrunched up her nose, looking at his hands and nodded, shoving her palms in front of his same.

"Same, brotha. Same,"

"Brotha?" Shubman mumbled, the confusion in his tone, unmissable.

"Can you two move?" Sara asked hastily as she stood in front of them will a cello tape. Shubman and Samaira shared a Quick Look, stepping away. Sara clicked her tongue, expressing her frustration as she stepped on a few bits of paper which had fallen on the floor.

"Why is this paper sticky?" A groan left her lips as she bent down to pull out the sticky handmade paper off her foot.

"Your wife's scary," Samaira whispered to Shubman, leaning in. He stifled a laugh, trying to maintain a neutral expression on his face. He nodded, pressing his lips in a tight lipped smile.

"I'm aware," he whispered back, using his palm to cover his face in a typical secret-sharing fashion. Sara tilted her head, their hushed voices piquing her intrigue. She furrowed her eyebrows, squinting her eyes as she eyed the duo.

"Something very interesting guys?" She asked, smiling.

"Nothing chachi," Samaira vigorously nodded her head and Shubman mirrored her actions, terrified of Sara's demeanour. She had been on the edge for quite some time, pushed into a frenzy because of all the preparations and tasks at hand.

"Hm. Good," she replied, in a daze as she adjusted the decorations.

"It looks good, doesn't it, Sara?" Shubman mindlessly asked as he glanced at Samaira who was already seated beside Sunita, watching some silly soap opera with her.

"As a matter of fact- it does. It looks beautiful," her answer was accessorised with a smile. She turned around to see him take pictures of the decor.

"You wanted my opinion?" She asked and he looked up to meet her eyes, confused.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, no one's listening to our conversation so technically...we don't even need to talk. But...but you asked for my opinion?" Her statement sounded more like a question and he simply nodded, unable to grasp her confusion.

"Yeah. Is that wrong?" He asked.

"No, nothing..." she trailed off, accidentally making a flower fall as her hand brushed against it. "Oops," she softly squealed but her husband was faster, picking it up before she could even crouch.

"Oh...uh thank you," her eyes softened as she looked at him, fixing the flower.

"It's not attached properly. Give me the glue gun na," he said, without looking at her. Sara nodded, handing the 'gun' to him.

"Arey Rohit-Ritika! Andar aao na," (Rohit and Ritika! Come in, come in) they heard Sunita's voice. Sara went to the kitchen to get some water for the couple. Samaira ran towards her mother, hugging her.

"Hi Mumma!" She grinned. "Hi baby, how are you?" She proceeded to whisper.

"Hi Sammy, had a good time?" Ritika asked lovingly.

"Of course Mumma, Chachi had made a great lunch, then we decorated for Bappa. I also got to watch some Alexa and Katie," Samaira began to fill her mother in with the details as they walked to the sofa. Rohit was silently listening to his daughter ramble on about the day.

"That sounds like fun!" Ritika chimed in. "Shubman, are you done fixing the flower?" She shifted her attention. He shook his head, walking to her.

"How are you bhabhi? He asked. "What did the doctor say? Is everything okay? And-

"Everything's fine, Shubi. Calm down," he was interrupted by Ritika's composed voice and just nodded. "Anyway, what is going on with this flower?" She asked and an instant frown appeared on his face.

"It's not sticking to its stem," he whined like a child and Ritika softly chuckled, nodding.

"Gill, tu itna bhi nahi kar sakta? Chota baccha hai kya?" (Gill, you can't even do that? Are you a child?) Rohit teasingly asked, making Shubman whine more.

"Arey yaar Bhaiyya, try kar raha hu, it's not happening," (I am trying, but it's not happening)

"Give it to me, I'll try," Ritika begun by carefully removing the layers of glue accumulated on the flower and the stem. She then joined them and cautiously put a drop of glue with the glue gun and kept it aside.

"Are you sure it will stick?" Shubman asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Sometimes you just have to give it some time together and then it'll stick forever," she replied, a glint in her eyes and a small smile on her face.

By 7:45, after Sunita had given Ritika a lecture on how to take care of herself during pregnancy, Rohit and Rajesh's discussion about cricket, the family of three- technically four, got up to leave.

"Chalo we'll leave. I'll see you all home, don't forget to come," Rohit politely said, owing to the presence of Shubman's parents.

"Of course, we'll be there," Sunita was quick to respond.

"Rohit, isn't it ironic that you're asking them to not forget to do something?" Ritika joked and Shubman burst into laughter, giving a high-five to Ritika. Sara stayed mostly silent, though even she couldn't help but chuckled slightly.

"Come on now you two, stop ganging up on my bhaiyya," she quickly sided with Rohit, interlinking her arm with his.

"Thank you bhagwan, yeh isko mere woh...side pe rakhne ke liye," (Thank you God, for sending someone who'll stay on my side) Rohit said as the room burst into giggles and laughter.

🪷

Sara and Shubman were in their room. Shubman was choosing which clothes he wanted to get ironed while Sara was lying on the bed, unwinding by scrolling on the 'gram after the long day she had. As she refreshed her feed, the first post she saw was of her husband's. It was a selfie with Samaira, glitter visible on their faces.

The caption read, 'Ready to welcome Bappa!🤗'

Sara found herself smiling brightly at the photo as she went through the comments. Secretly, she looked up, glancing at her husband, who was removing kurtas from his closet, while humming a song.

He isn't a bad singer.

"Oh ho ho ho, oh ho ho ho, ohho, ishq tera tadapaave," Shubman happily sung the song, content after a day well spent.

A/N: The events of this part happen on 6th September 2024! It's a special day🩷
Also, vice captain and captain's daughter are the cutest uncle-niece bond, hm?