"Sameer, yeh kya kar rahe ho? Hum din ke time road pe hain." Naina placed a hand on Sameer's chest, stopping him from coming any closer.

He held her wrist, dragging her hand behind his neck and leaned some more.

Naina frantically looked out, checking all sides. There was no one visible till the end of the street. The sudden darkness that had descended in the middle of afternoon made her glance upwards. The sky was overcast with thick, black clouds.

She looked back at Sameer, "Dekho, baarish aane wali hai. Ghar chalo na. Agar kahin phans gaye toh... ghar pe..."

His finger on her lips made the words die down in her mouth.

His voice was heavier when he started to speak, "Nidhi sach keh rahi thi. Aas paas log hote hain toh bhi meri aankhen hat ti hi nahi tumse. Hum ghar pe hote hain toh theek rehta hun lekin kahin aur jaate hi aisa lagta hai tumhe apni baahon mein chupa ke rakhun. Tum ek second bhi nazron se door hoti ho toh bechaini hone lagti hai. Koi tumhe choota hai toh... Naina, mera dil karta hai ussi waqt tumhe gale laga lun jisse sabko pata chal jaye ki tum meri ho."

She noticed the dark rims in his eyes. Her hand behind his neck threaded in his hair.

"Sameer, main tumhari hun yeh sabko pehle hi pata hai. Mere gale mein yeh tumhara naam hai jo sabko dikhta hai. Tum aaj aisi baatein kyon kar rahe ho? Aaj toh kisi ne kuch kaha bhi nahi mujhe... aur na maine tailor ko naap diya hai." Her lips curled into a teasing smile, her fingers touching the mangalsutra with their initials.

His eyes widened. The tailor thing did not cross his mind. He was too preoccupied with the colour, and later on... but she dispelled his fears by telling that the lehenga had a readymade blouse. He was still irked with the other issue though.

"Aaj jab... wahan restaurant mein..." He was sure Naina would smack his head for getting jealous of girls again, but the scene played in his mind and he squirmed.

Her perplexed voice broke his thought, "Restaurant mein kya? Aaj bhi koi dekh raha tha kya? Dekho Sameer, maine dhyaan nahi diya... aur jis tarah tumne kas ke pakda hua tha mujhe, kisi ke dekhne se kya farq padta hai jab yeh nazar aa hi raha tha ki main tumhare saath hun."

"Lekin Nidhi ne bhi toh pakda tha na, itna kas ke... itni zor se kaun gale lagata hai, Naina? Aur itni der tak... yeh nahi dikha ki main bhi hun wahan? Aise kaise woh tumhe kas ke gale laga sakti hai?" He babbled in one go, his brows knitted together with the memory of that moment.

Astounded by his complaint, Naina stared at him in silence for a few minutes. The roar of thunder outside matched the clouds in his eyes.

"Tum... tum yeh sab baatein Nidhi ke ek baar gale lagane ki wajah se kar rahe ho?" Her eyes rounded in disbelief.

He pursed his lips, and nodded.

Naina pulled her hand back from his neck and slapped her forehead, "He bhagwan! Tum kab sudhroge, Sameer? Maine pehle bhi kitni baar samjhaya hai tumhe. Nidhi toh ek ladki hai... woh apni behen samajh ke mujhe gale lagati hai toh ismein kya aafat aa gayi... iss baat ke liye tumhe bura nahi lagna chahiye."

He rested back in his seat, sulking, "Bas lagta hai... bohot bura lagta hai. Kyonki main bohot chote dil ka hun... tumhe nahi dekh sakta aise."

As if to diffuse his anger, thick drops started to fall on the windscreen. Their attention shifted to the patter of raindrops... and within seconds, heavy downpour made the view outside hazy.

Their eyes turned to each other, darkened by the same memory... their first rain in Mumbai.

"Yaad hai, uss baarish wale din bhi tum isliye aaye the mere paas kyonki woh rickshaw wala dekh raha tha... aur tumse bardasht nahi hua." Naina recalled the fury in his eyes.

She could see the same rage flash for a moment before his eyes turned darker than the clouds outside, "Sirf isliye nahi aaya tha... tumse aur door rehna mushkil ho gaya tha... dil ne dimaag ki baat manne se inkaar kar diya tha... aur aise mein tum uss green saree mein saamne aa gayi, mere har sahi galat ko, har haan na ko, door rehne ki har koshish ko baarish ke paani mein jala diya."

"Jala diya ya baha diya?" She corrected him.

He held her hands, pulling her closer to himself, his voice gruff, "Jala diya. Uss din paani nahi aag baras rahi thi... baaki duniya ke liye shayad baarish hogi par main paani mein nahi bheega tha... tumhare saath jal raha tha. Pehli baar bheegne ke baad bimar nahi pada... warna hamesha mujhe bukhar aa jaata tha. Uss din paani ke naam pe barasti aag ne mere har faisle ko ek jhatke mein jala diya."

Her throat went dry at the raw emotions in his voice, "Agar... agar main... agar uss saree mein nahi aati toh kya... agar baarish nahi hoti toh kya... agar woh rickshaw wala mujhe nahi dekhta toh kya... agar main ek baar andar jaake dobara hostel se na nikalti toh kya..."

He took the flower from her hand. She shuddered as he touched the soft bud to her temple, and slipped it slowly over her cheek, rubbed it lightly on her lips, and moved down over the neck till it reached the neckline of her kurta.

His voice was deep and throaty when he spoke, "Toh Naina... shayad uss shaam ko... ya agle din... ya usse agle din... ya kisi raat ko pipe se chadh ke tumhare kamre mein... main tumhare paas aa hi jaata... tumse alag rehna namumkin ho gaya tha. Humein toh ek hona hi tha, Naina, kyonki hamari jodi ka mukaam jeevansathi banna tha. Meri bewakoofi ya tumhari mayoosi iss ahsaas ko zyada din baandh nahi sakti thi. Uss samay ki Naina Agarwal ko ek din Naina Sameer Maheshwari banna hi tha."

The loud sound of rain on metallic roof of the car turned into music... his words were lyrics of the most beautiful song for her... her eyes could see only the pools of love in his dark orbs, oblivious of the puddles outside... her heart knew only the melody of his racing heartbeat.

"Jis din tum behosh hui thi aur maine tumhe uthaya tha, ussi din samajh gaya tha ki tum mere liye kitni zaroori ho. Tumhe apne seene se lagaya toh aisa laga jaise ruka hua dil phir se dhadakne laga hai... tumhare chehre ko itne paas se pehli baar dekha tha, lekin dekhte hi ahsaas ho gaya ki ab main aur kuch nahi dekhna chahta... tumhe khud ke kareeb laake jaana main adhoora tha tumhare bina... tumhe apni baahon mein liya toh laga main ab jaake poora hua hun... Naina, ussi din main samajh gaya tha ki agar Sameer Maheshwari hai toh uske liye tumhe Naina Maheshwari banna zaroori hai... tum nahi toh mera wajood nahi rahega, meri zindagi nahi rahegi... tum mera woh hissa ho jiske bina main hun hi nahi."

She drew in a deep breath... there was no scope of their fate taking any other turn. They were meant to be together... they were always for each other, waiting for the right time... which arrived with a heavy downpour, like today.

She shifted to the edge of her seat and put her head on his chest, wrapping one arm around his neck, "Aur main tumhare bina kuch nahi hun."

He gathered her in his arms. There was a rainy day when a mere touch of her back had lit up a fire in him... her closeness was even more efficacious now, heating up the blood in his veins as visibility outside turned low, hiding them in the cloak of privacy.

"Sameer, humein... humein chalna chahiye." She tried to move back when she sensed the urgency in his grip.

"Bahar itni baarish hai, kuch dikh nahi raha toh main kaise drive karunga?" He murmured against her neck, tightening his hold to keep her pinned to him.

"Sana... Sana royegi." She gulped as his hand found the slit of her kurta, and slipped behind her to make circles on her lower back.

"Maine restaurant se phone kiya tha nikalte time. Mummy ne bataya woh khelne ke baad bas ussi waqt soyi hai. Itni jaldi nahi uthegi, Naina." He had an answer to everything.

When his lips traced her ear, her excuses melted away. He gloated in the cognizance of changed equation... from that rainy day to this one... a journey from burning in the fire individually to burning together.

Naina dragged herself away from the deep, intense kiss, breathing heavily.

"Akele mein apne pati ki ek kiss se aise sharma jaati ho... aur wahan restaurant mein, sabke samne Nidhi ko itni der tak gale laga ke bhi tumhare gaal aise nahi the." He teased, flicking a finger across her scarlet cheek.

The smack he was expecting earlier landed on his chest now.

"Ahh Naina, lagta hai." He howled dramatically, pressing his chest where she had hit him.

"Fir se kabhi aise bologe toh aur marungi... Nidhi, Preeti, Swati, aur baaki koi bhi rishtedaar ya dost hon, main jab chahungi unhe gale lagaungi... agar tumne kuch bola toh..." His big palm clasped over her mouth.

"Hamesha bolunga. Aata hai gussa. Nahi dekh sakta toh nahi dekh sakta. Bas. Aisa hi hun main. Kaha na, chote dil wala hun." He huffed, gazing into her eyes.

"Aur tum jab Rohan ko gale lagate ho... Munna, Pandit, Rahul se aise milte ho jaise saalon bichandne ke baad mile ho... maine toh kabhi kuch nahi kaha, na gussa kiya." She pulled his hand away, speaking with fake anger.

He recalled how Munna Pandit jumped on him, taking him in their bone crushing hugs... or how Rahul, or even Rohan, warmly took him in their tight embrace.

His face broke into a smile, "Tumhara dil bada hai isliye toh main tumpe marta hun."

"Hato. Har baat ko apne hisaab se palat dete ho. Chalo ab, baarish kam ho gayi hai." She moved back in her seat, a faint hue still on her cheeks.

Sana was still sleeping when they reached home. Vishakha was relieved to see them.

"Mujhe laga kahin phans na gaye ho tum dono. Itni tez baarish yahan kabhi kabhi hi hoti hai isliye darr lagta hai." Her voice was laced with concern.

Sameer gave a side glance to Naina before replying, "Humein Mumbai se baarish ki aadat ho gayi hai, mummy. Wahan ki baarish alag hi hoti hai."

Naina's face was red even before he could finish his sentence. He smirked. Thankfully, Vishakha didn't notice as she was busy sorting out the shopping. Rohan had called up that he would leave Nidhi's house only after the rain stopped completely because her parents didn't want him to take the risk of getting drenched two days before marriage.

"Sana ne pareshan toh nahi kiya, mummy?" Naina asked, trying to divert her mind from Sameer's piercing gaze.

Vishakha looked at the sleeping baby fondly, "Badi seedhi hai tumhari beti. Bilkul tang nahi kiya. Deepika iske saath khelti rahi. Gubbare dekh ke itni khush ho rahi thi aur thodi der mein hi thak gayi. Bas bottle se thoda sa doodh piya fir so gayi. Tab se aaram se soyi hai. Maine woh saare gubbare tumhare kamre mein rakhwa diye. Sana khelti rahegi aaram se. Aur haan, tumhare naye kapde bhi wahin rakhwa diye."

It was another hour before the little one got up. The moment her eyes fell on Naina, she raised her arms, letting out a cry. Naina picked her up instantly, kissing her and whispering softly in her ear. Sana rested her head on Naina's shoulder, clutching her hair with one hand and her kurta with another. A few hours away from her daughter had made Naina feel incomplete. She again trembled at the thought of joining office... which was just a few weeks away now, since Sana had crossed six months.

"Isko gale laga sakti ho, mujhe gussa nahi aata." Sameer mumbled in a low voice, taking advantage of them being alone in the living room.

He had misinterpreted Naina's lost look, thinking that she was still pondering about what he had said. She glanced at him, pushing back her own thoughts, and flicked up her brows in question.

Sameer stroked his daughter's back, lightly holding the tip of her nose when she raised her head to look at him. He opened his palms and she lunged at him. Taking her in his arms, he kissed her plump cheek.

"Meri beti hai yeh, toh mera hissa hui na... jab tum ispe pyar lutaogi toh woh pyar mere liye hoga... isliye baby ko gale lagane pe koi sazaa nahi milegi." He winked at her.

Naina chuckled at his theory, "Sazaa? Baaki sabke liye tum mujhe sazaa doge? Aur woh kya hogi?"

Sameer looked around to make sure there was no one within hearing distance, then leaned towards her, whispering next to her ear, "Time aane pe bataunga. Aaj ke liye bas itna yaad rakhna ki baarish mein sirf bheegte hi nahi jal bhi jaate hain."

One more time, her face was adorned with the colour he so loved to see on her.

Due to heavy rains in my place, my mind went back to rainy memories... and marriage had to be postponed for a day 🤷‍♀️

Next update Sunday evening