TW: 18+ content. 

Comparatively shorter update than my usual updates, but shorter updates are easier to write and more frequent. 

Enjoy! 

..... 

Shiva stood at the entrance, a sight for his poor sore eyes; his Raavi, his chipkali.

Raavi's expressions changed from annoyed to disbelief to surprise and then finally to relief, as she leapt into his arms, sobbing.

"I missed you. So much." She cried, and he cradled her head, kissing her hair and letting his tears flow down his face too.

"I missed you more." He crushed her body to his own, no place for even air to escape.

Raavi broke the hug, that little sliver of disbelief wandering somewhere in her mind, cupping his face, wondering if he was real.

Teary eyes, ruffled hair, rough beard. He was there. Right there, with her.

She chuckled tearfully, kissing him on the lips, once, twice, thrice, placing kisses all over his face, his cheeks, his eyes, his nose.

Shiva pulled her into a tight hug, kissing her hair, her shoulders, her hands and her lips, just content being in her arms after being miles apart

"Tune toh kaha tha flight ek mahine baad ki hai?" She wiped her tears, still confused how he was here.

"I lied?" Shiva shrugged, kissing her like his life depended in it, suddenly remembering something and grinning, "Tune toh kaha tha 2 hafte tak chune nahi degi?"

"Offer not valid." Raavi swatted his arm, bobbing on heels of her feet as she hugged him again; he was finally here, and this was her home. Her home away from home.

Shiva buried his head in the crook of her neck, kissing her there, his arms tightening around her waist, rubbing her back as they cry-laughed until they couldn't no more.

Someone cleared their throat, and they broke apart, smiling and grinning as Gaurav said, "Hum bhi hai idhar. Issi ghar mein rehte hai. Girlfriend nahi hain, toh ek 'hi' tak nahi bolega?"

"Aur nahi toh kya?" Shashank said, matching the dramatic flair, "Saale, tere liye 5:30 ko neend se uthke darwaza khola, ek thank you bhi nahi bola. Dost dost na raha-"

Shiva swatted the back of his head, pulling his best friends into a bear hug, the three of them waddling and jumping around around in their group hug, eventually losing balance and falling right next to Raavi, who lost her balance as well and plopped on top of them, laughing their behinds off.

Once Shiva had settled back in, unpacked and handed over everyone's gifts to them, he plopped down on the sofa as his friends went to catch up on some sleep. Raavi sat down and looped her arms around his torso, comfortably nestling herself against his chest and leaning her head in the dip of his shoulder.

Shiva put an arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer, the same hand gently brushing her hair away from her eyes.

"Tujhe chipkali bulata hoon, toh aake chipak jaane ka invitation nahi milta tujhe." He said, kissing her forehead tenderly.

In response, Raavi threw her leg over Shiva, now nestling herself comfortably OVER him instead of beside him.

"Ab kuch nahi ho sakta." She titled her head slightly, kissing his chin and cheek from where she lay.

"Phas gaya. Bacha le, Somnath. Bacha le." Shiva prayed, kissing the bridge of her nose. "Uth. Haathi jaisi hai, mere upar aake baith gayi seedha."

"Tujhe godh mein uthaake le jaana hai toh theek. Mai toh yaha kaafi comfortable hoon. Tu dekhle ab."

He rolled his eyes, propping her up by her thighs as her legs came around his waist, his hands under her butt for support while her carried her to the room, and then unceremoniously dumped her on the bed.

"Rude." Raavi pouted, until he changed into a pair of comfortable clothes and climbed into bed with her, his hands automatically wrapping around her waist, pulling her close.

"2 din tak boyfriend treatment milega, uske baad chipakna mat mujhse." Shiva whispered in her ears, kissing her cheek.

"Boyfriend hai, toh permanent boyfriend treatment bhi milega mujhe. Drame kara lo bas isse." Raavi wriggled her butt against him, and he groaned, hands coming to stop her from the torture.

"Not now. Abhi 1 ghante pehle hi aaya hoon. Tharki." He warned her, and she stuck her tongue out at him, falling into a comfortable slumber with her in his arms, exactly like he had wanted to all this time.

.....

Raavi pulled the sheet over her naked form, snuggling closer to Shiva, blushing hard as she remembered the events that had led them here.

Shiva and Raavi were about to step out to spend the entire day with their friends, finally getting the time after he had returned, when Shiva noticed something hidden under Raavi's bed.

Raavi stepped out of the washroom and stood agape, as Shiva held the purple egg-shaped vibrator and its remote in his hand, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Really?"

"I had needs, okay? Tu 8 mahine gaayab tha." Raavi stammered, as Shiva tossed them onto the bed, and pulled her closer by her waist, smirking.

"Fair point." Shiva nodded, "But I run this bedroom. Therefore, punishment toh milegi."

Shiva leaned forward and whispered his deal in her ears, and she was left pink from ears to nose, as he grabbed the remote and shoved it in his pocket, motioning for her to grab the egg.

Raavi groaned and entered the washroom, returning exactly 5 minutes later with the egg lodged inside of her, and she jumped as Shiva tested the remote.

"This is not fair. Iska badla nikaalungi."

"We'll see. Let's go meet our friends, chipkali."

The whole day, while Raavi shopped and roamed around with Mahi and Richa, Shiva walked around the shop choosing clothes for Raavi, and Mahi thought it was so sweet, unaware that he was in close vicinity only to torture Raavi, who was now giving him death glares and squirming in her seat.

"Tu theek hai?" Mahi asked, as Raavi began to sweat.

"Bilkul." She croaked, and watched as Shiva turned up the speed from her peripheral view.

I'm going to stab him someday, she thought.

"You don't look okay." Richa checked for fever and Raavi shrugged.

"Absolutely....fine." She gritted with a forced smile, the stress lines fading on her forehead as he turned off the switch.

When they sat down to grab a bite at a restaurant, Shiva messed with the remote, having way too much fun in troubling Raavi like this, and she threw him another death glare before she lost it.

Raavi bit her lip, and stood up abruptly, deciding that she had had enough, announcing that she needed to go to the washroom and practically ran her way there, when Shiva stepped away from the table, saying he had a phone call to attend and tailed Raavi.

Raavi stepped into the thankfully empty washroom, when Shiva entered suddenly and latched it behind him, crossing her wrists above her head and trapping her.

"Din khatam nahi hua."

"I can't take it. Tu bohot sata raha hai." Raavi squirmed in his arms.

"Let me take your struggle away." He whispered, slipping his hand past the hem of her leggings, taking the purple egg out and shoving it into her purse, before entering her swiftly in one motion.

Raavi screamed, and Shiva kissed her, swallowing their moans, as she wrapped her legs around his waist and anchored him closer, chasing their peaks until they came apart in each other's arms, the tension heavy between them.

"You deserve a punishment, too." Raavi gasped, resting her forehead against his.

"We'll see about that." Shiva challenged, absolutely sure that his punishment was reserved for another day.

Oh boy, was he wrong. As soon as they reached home, Raavi grabbed him by the collar and kissed him hard, hands all over, clothes stripped away into some corner of the room as she took her time making love to him.

But, she took her revenge. Every time Shiva was close to reaching his peak, she pulled away, which irritated him after the fifth time, until he locked her between himself and the bed, making love to her over and over until she was screaming his name.

"Sata mat." Shiva groaned, as her fingers scratched his beard.

"Why?" She huskily whispered, before climbing over him and kissing him.

Shiva let his hands sink into her hair, kissing her harder finding the crevices of her mouth, and Raavi smirked feeling him harden under her.

She slid off him, propping him against the bedpost, before lining her core against him and entering in one swift motion, both letting out a gutteral moan.

Raavi grinded against him, inexperienced but making her own moves, and Shiva grabbed her waist, guiding her in her movements.

"Let me show you."

Shiva set the rhythm and pace, letting her ride him and make love to him, as she grabbed onto his shoulders and taking him deep inside her, hard and fast each time.

"God, Raavi." He moaned, as she lost control and sped up her movements, her moans echoing in his ears.

Shiva left bite marks on her chest, his teeth grazing her tender tips and she screamed his name as his hands went into her hair and grabbed them, pacing their moments.

He reached between then to find her nub, to weaken her defenses, and she rolled her eyes back, her movements slowing down in pleasure.

He grabbed her waist and entered her harder and faster, pulling her onto him, until she screamed his name and came apart in his arms, holding onto him and kissing him, biting his neck until he let out a gutteral moan in frenzied motion and finished within her, their gasps and pants the remnant of their activities.

"You still think you run this bedroom?" Raavi whispered, nipping his nose.

"I'll settle for 50-50." Shiva slid her off him, pulling her into his embrace, as she dozed off him his arms, spent from their activities.

......

Shiva grabbed her suitcase from the train and stepped onto Veraval platform, Raavi following suit as they took their luggage and seated themselves in a cab, after spending 20 minutes finding one that would take them to Somnath.

The decorations were in splendid grandeur, and why wouldn't it be. After all, the festival of Diwali was quite the celebration in Gujarat, all cities and streets decked in colourful rights to celebrate the victory of good over evil.

"I can't believe hum finally ghar aa gaye Diwali ke liye." Raavi said, her eyes misting over. "Maine kitna miss kiya hai ye sab."

"Ghar se door rehke ye sab ki ehmiyat samajh aati hai." Shiva looked outside the window, the familiar roads bringing a different kind of joy to his heart.

They sat in comfortable silence, just watching the roads they grew up around, every person working to either adorn their house or the streets with lights, some kids running around with their pataka-guns, others making sweets for the occasion and the women buying new clothes for their families.

Oh, how they had missed the joy of celebrating functions amongst family, friends and relatives. Not being able to see family had really sucked the joy out of happy days, but they had each other and that was just enough for them.

"Shiva?"

"Hmm?"

"Tu kaise woh bacche ko ghoor raha tha. Bechare ne kuch bhi nahi kiya tha."

Shiva raised an eyebrow at her, when Raavi started snorting and laughing in memory of Shiva's reaction a few hours ago. A small boy of about 1.5 years old, who was seated with his family on the birth opposite to theirs, was continously giving heart eyes to Raavi. When she noticed and waved to him, his cheeks got pink and he smiled shyly, before making grabby-hands at her.

Raavi smiled and seated the baby boy on her lap, who was playing with her hair and poking her cheeks, pointing at her eyes, ears and nose to show her that he was a smart baby boy. When she praised him, he giggled and gave her a kiss on her cheek, to which everyone melted.

When Shiva tried to tie her hair because it was flying over her face, the baby boy made a pouty-grumpy face and pushed his hand away, yelling 'no', which made everyone laugh except Shiva, who stared at the baby boy because the kid would not let him as much as touch Raavi until he was in her arms, not even when Shiva had to check if she was catching a fever.

To add to it, the elder sibling, who was about 7 years old, told Raavi she was very beautiful, and handed her a small white flower, which she asked him to tuck behind her ears, nodding and kissing him on the cheek for making her look even more pretty.

Shiva stared at the kids, and the only thing he could think was 'men will be men'. But, he couldn't complain, his chipkali was indeed very beautiful, and he wouldn't be surprised if another kid or teenager came up to her and flirted with her.

The baby boy eventually snuggled himself to sleep, and Raavi handed the baby back to his parents, teasing Shiva about how everyone loves her, and he just rolled his eyes as she put his arm around her shoulder and cuddled up closer to him, his phoolkumari feeling chilly from the air conditioning of the train.

"Flirting kehta hai usse."

"They were not flirting!" Raavi laughed at her pouty Shiva, kissing his cheek, "They were just very loving kids!"

"Loving kids? Loving ki maa ka-" Shiva grumbled, which made Raavi only laugh some more. "Chune tak nahi diya tujhe woh baccho ne."

"Kyu, tujhe kya karna tha?" She wriggled her eyebrows suggestively, and he nudged her face away, asking the driver to park on the left.

"Le. Mami ka ghar aa gaya."

"Wow, mujhe pata hi nahi tha." Raavi sarcastically said, before getting down to take her bag.

Shiva helped her with the suitcase and promised her that he'll take her out somewhere, hopefully if they get the time in 2 weeks, and hugged her before asking the cab to take another route towards Pandya Nivaas.

Raavi entered her house and was greeted warmly by Prafulla and Jagat, immediately taking her bags to her room and sat her down to ask a million questions, as Prafulla convinced her to go shopping and meet her 3 cousins in the following days, until she eventually had her lunch and fell asleep for the afternoon.

Shiva had barely reached the entrance of the house when Dhara and Gautam came to the entrance to greet him and welcome him back home, as Krish jumped on him and demanded his Diwali gift as the youngest, to which he got a slap at the back of his head as he stepped inside the house, happy to be home.

Over the 2 weeks until Diwali, Shiva and Raavi spent quite a lot of time apart, even though they were 4 streets away, either going to the movies, catching up with old friends and relatives, or simply helping around with Diwali shopping and cleaning.

One of the nights, Raavi sneaked into Shiva's room, just to steal a kiss from him, which ended up with Shiva trapping her in his arms and almost taking her against the bathroom wall.

'Almost' being the keyword, because they weren't in the comfort of their home, surrounded by 6 other people of his house, including one nosy Krish who was snoring on the sofa outside. Which left them both quite high and dry, resulting in Raavi dragging Shiva back to her house and having their way with each other in the privacy of an empty house, thankfully.

Raavi absent-mindedly smiled quite a lot thinking about Shiva, when her friends or family would talk about her marriage, which made Prafulla quite suspicious of a possible love affair. Raavi had decided to tell her Maasi and Mausapa about her and Shiva's relationship before they left, she was just waiting for the right time.

"Kal Diwali hai." Raavi said over the phone call.

"Pata hai." Shiva said, holding the phone between his shoulder and ear, packing sweets into a box.

"Humari pehli Diwali hai saath mein. Last time tu nahi tha."

"Pata hai."

"I want to celebrate our first Diwali together."

"Pata hai."

"Kya pata hai, pata hai laga rakha hai!" Raavi fumed over the phone, "Tu sunn bhi raha hai ki sirf mundi hila raha hai."

"Gussa kyu ho rahi hai?" Shiva kept the bag aside, and stepped aside from his family, who didn't know yet about his relationship, except his mother. "Mai kya kar sakta hoon? Families ke saath bhi celebrate karna hai na?"

"Mai family nahi hoon?" Raavi asked, her voice going small.

"Drama mat kar. You know the answer to that."

"Toh aa jaana mere paas bhi. Pure family ko leke aaja. Par aa jaana na?"

She called him so cutely, he couldn't believe he'd ever fall for someone trying to butter him up like this.

"Tu mere paas aaja. Phir sochunga." Shiva smirked, disconnecting the phone urgently to help around with the lights.

Evening dawned, and all the members of the Pandya Nivaas were decked up in their best attire, a year of prosperity for them and especially Shiva, who was currently adjusting the sleeves of his navy blue kurta and setting his hair, when his phone pinged.

Come outside.

Shiva looked around and found his family busy, and sneaked out of everyone's watchful gaze, only to be countered by the most beautiful sight.

Raavi stood out there in the lawn, her hair in a beautiful braid that was no match for the turquoise blue lehenga that she was wearing, the most delicate jewellery adorning her ears, neck and wrists, her eyes lined with a bit of kohl, her lips coloured in the the darkest shade of pink.

Shiva walked towards her in a daze, awestruck how he could never get over her beauty, as she forwarded two mud diyas with pride.

"I made these." She beamed, and Shiva took one of the simple yet elegant mud diyas in their true colour into his own hands.

"It's lovely."

"Mujhe humare pehle Diwali ke diye saath mein jalane the." Raavi set the diya on the porch of the Pandya Nivaas, pulling out a matchbox from her pocket.

Shiva looked at her, as she lit a match to light the diya and he covered the diya with his hand, and Raavi smiled at her own belief of lighting a diya together: one brings the light while the other protects it, a bond thriving on the people who wish to protect it from the darkness engulfing it again.

They stepped back and watched the two diyas burn in its glory, and Raavi felt something being slipped onto her finger.

She looked down, as Shiva slipped a beautiful ring onto her finger, a ring she had adored since he had shown it to her over the video call so many weeks ago.

"Happy Diwali, darling." Shiva wished with a smile, his fingers caressing her skin gently.

Raavi beamed, holding out Shiva's hand and slipping a watch on his wrist, his eyes widening in surprise.

"This is a Rolex." He whispered in surprise.

"Just the one you wished for." Raavi giggled, and he looked at her with pride.

"Mehenga hai."

"I know." She held his hand and stepped closer, wrapping her arms around his torso. "Diwali pe sabko kuch milna chahiye, so I bought everyone something from my savings."

"Happy Diwali, bhoothnath."

Shiva cupped her face and tenderly kissed her forehead, pulling her into a tight hug, as they swayed in the darkness of the verandah, the diyas of the streets their only source of light.

Someone cleared their throat loudly, which made them jump apart, only to see Krish standing there with a mobile phone, smiling, the rest of the family at the entrance with a smirk on their face.

Raavi hid her face in Shiva's shoulder, and he chuckled impossibly, kissing her head as he led her to the entrance of Pandya Nivaas, standing hand in hand while Dhara brought out the aarti ka thaali.

Shiva and Raavi stood at the door, as Suman came forward and warded off evil, showering then with blessings as they stepped in.

"Waah mere bhai, tu toh chupa rustom nikla. Ladki pata li, oho!" Krish teased, and Shiva shook his head.

"Lagta hai agla bakra yahi banega, Gaumbi." Dev said, which earned him a laugh from Gautam and stares from their wives in return.

"Ye hua kab?!" Dhara asked, wanting to be privy to details.

"Bas, ho gaya Dhara Di." Raavi blushed, and everyone hooted teasingly.

"Mai toh bohot khush hoon." Suman said happily, "Mujhe toh ye chokri bahu pasand che, jab se Shiva me bataya-"

Everyone turned to Suman, and she looked away towards the ceiling, while everyone stared at her.

"Aapko pata tha?"

"Shiva ne bataya tha mujhe, London gayi thi toh." Suman kept a hand on his head, smiling, "Mujhe koi dikkat nahi."

Raavi excused herself to being some sweets and snacks for the family, and Rishita followed her to the kitchen.

"Raavi!" Rishita whispered, helping her with the plates.

"Bolo na Rishita!"

"Ab jab mujhe finally ek partner milegi iss ghar mein," She said and Raavi chuckled shyly, "toh ek baat puchu? Girl talk?"

"Pucho!"

"How's Shiva in bed?"

Raavi spat the water she was drinking, coughing up some of it until she had to drink some more to ease her throat.

"Kya puch rahi ho, Rishita?" Raavi widened her eyes, mortified.

"See," Rishita set the plate of snacks down and stood next to Raavi. "Ghar se door rehti ho, mere devar ke saath ek ghar mein rehti ho, toh I expect you two to have a little action."

"And this nice little mark," Rishita pointed at the plump mark right in the dip of her chest, which was now visible as her dupatta shifted, "is proof enough of how good he is."

Raavi covered her dupatta, swearing internally to buy a better foundation, and wondered what Rishita is going to blackmail her with.

"Okay fine." Raavi raised her hands in defeat, "He's great. Okay? Isse zyaada details nahi dungi."

"Mera ek kaam karogi?"

"Haa?"

"Shiva se kaho ki Dev ko bhi kuch tips dede!" Rishita groaned, and Raavi almost dropped her jaw to the ground.

"That idiot doesn't know anything!" She punched her own dress, "2 minute! 2 minute bhi nahi tikta. Naya kuch try hi nahi karta! Useless hai woh!"

Raavi snickered at her plight, but what could she do if Rishita married the first guy she met, and didn't get the chance to be with a hunk.

"Have you tried supplements?" Raavi handed over a glass of juice to Rishita, "Matlab, Shiva doesn't need them, but maybe tumhare kaam aa jaye?"

"Dev se kaho ki Shiva jaise bore uthaaye dukaan mein, please!" Rishita pleaded, and Raavi looked at her appalled.

"Rishita, mai kaise-"

"Khaane mein baatein khilaoge dono?" Shiva entered the kitchen and grabbed a gujiya off the plate.

"Nahi, woh toh hum aise hi." Raavi muttered, grabbing a bowl and serving some of the banana sheera she had made, with toasted cashews, just how Shiva liked it.

Rishita watched adoringly, as Shiva stepped towards Raavi and she fed him a bite of the sheera, and fed him a few more as he discreetly placed a kiss on her temple and grabbed one of the plates to help her.

Raavi smiled and took the tray of juice, when Rishita pulled her back gently with a look of adoration, giving her a side hug.

"You got so lucky, Raavi. I think I'm a little jealous of you."

I think I got lucky, too.