gauri went up to mahir who was done talking to bela and said: i thought you would get much more maturer but no! the great mahir never changes! has shaadi and kids taught you anything or do you leave all the responsibilities to bela bhabhi?

mahir: what did you say? you are speaking too fast.

gauri: how can you make friends with a man who hits girls?

mahir: gauri, you are speaking too fast but i know that you are complaining because when you complain, you speak too fast. if you want to complain to someone, complain to dad because he actually understands you and your mind. are you from another planet.

he laughs as gauri pouted angrily.

gauri: i hate you.

she goes angrily as mahir says: the feeling is mutual. couldn't you have just stayed in America forever?

madeeha hears what he says and goes up to him.

madeeha: mahir, stop being mean to your baby sister.

mahir: why couldn't you and papa be happy with just me? what was the need to romance again and have her?

madeeha hits his arm lightly and says: yeh maat bolo that you were happy to have gauri.

mahir: i wonder why.

madeeha rolls her eyes lovingly as she leaves. om comes to mahir and says: bro, your sister is too gullible. 

mahir: now what did you do?

om narrates the entire story and once he was done with the story, he said: bro, play along and call me ayush the entire time.

mahir laughs and says: you know how much i love to prove that gauri is a fool.

om: so you are with me in this prank?

mahir: of course.

gauri goes up to them with juice.

gauri: mum told me to give these drinks to you two idiots. 

om jokingly: did you poison them? 

gauri smiles annoying and said: i wish. in fact i was going to but mum said 'don't even think about it' so no these drinks are not spiked or poisoned.

om: as long as it is not poisoned, we will have them. thank you for letting us live. here mahir.

mahir: thanks. 

gauri: meri thankoo?

mahir: English is still weak.

om laughs as gauri looked annoyed.

gauri: excuse me, my English is amazing. i was one of the top students in America for English. my 'thankoo' is the way i have said it since childhood.

mahir: joking. accha sorry miss America and thanks.

om: for not poisoning us.

gauri: welcome.

gauri goes as mahir and om laughs.

om: god this moti never changes. 

mahir: once a fool always a fool.

they laugh as they drank their drinks.

later on:

om was talking to gauri's dadi when he bumped into gauri and nearly caught her but was late by a second as she immediately fell on the ground, the flowers all over the floor.

gauri: ouch!

om: sorry. it was an accident. 

gauri: accident, my foot! 

she stands up and gets her shoe off her feet. om quickly runs as she chases him. everyone was laughing seeing this cute bond for everyone knew that ayush was om and om loved gauri a lot.

gauri: you idiot!

just then rikara came in front of mahir who said: guys why are you acting like little kids? ayush, my friend, stay with me pal. don't ever talk to this rat. she will make your life miserable. also don't even try to fight with this rat. it is a waste of your precious time. and gauri, for your kind information he is our guest. is this anyway to treat a guest?

gauri: mahir bhai, he hitted me in the afternoon. you choose someone who hits girls over your own little sister? oh yeh maat bolo the amount of times i took the blame for you during childhood and this is how you repay? 

mahir: yeah pretty much because you wrecked all my stuff when you were little.

gauri: give me a break, i was 3.

om: mahir, i thought you said that do not fight with her as it is a waste of time.

mahir: oh yeah, thanks for reminding me.

gauri: i hate you both. 

mahir: who doesn't hate you?

om and mahir laughs as gauri hits mahir's arm.

afterwards:

majaaz, gauri's father, came up to her and said: um gauri beti, mahir is busy with the kids and the servants are sorting out the guests so is it alright if you can quickly sort out some of the fairy lights near the courtyard.

gauri: of course daddy. anything for you.

majaaz: that's my princess.

gauri smiles and then goes to the courtyard where some of the fairy lights has fallen. she gets a ladder and climbs out it with the fairy lights in her hands. she starts to arrange them on the very high wall.

as she was doing this, om came into the courtyard talking to someone.

om: yeah you can get the paintings tomorrow. not today as today is Diwali and i am at someone's house. ok. so come to my studio tomorrow and you can have your paintings.

gauri heard this and said quietly to herself: paintings? omki always said that one day he will make paintings and sculptures for a living. is this ayush...no no gauri you are overthinking. anyone can be an artist. 

before gauri was nearly done with the fairy lights, she and the ladder started to shake a lot.

om: bye.

he cutted the phone and kept it in his pocket. just then he saw gauri about to fall. he ran as fast as he could and managed to catch gauri as she and the ladder fell.

the ladder was on the floor and she was in his arms staring at his midnight black orbs as he stared at her beautiful hazelnut eyes, beautifully outlined. the fairy lights slowly fell on them as they just stared into each eyes. her arms were around his necks. she felt safe in his arms and felt butteflies not just in her stomach but throughout her entire body. 

simply nothing could break this eyelock.

gauri in mind: his eyes....they look exactly like omki's. since childhood, he would always look at me then, his black eyes drilling into mine. i couldn't help but think - i'd never seen such dark eyes with so much light in them. is this man...no gauri he can't be.

just then, they heard madeeha calling gauri's name. they quickly broke the eyelock and just out of the position they were in.

they were now standing up trying to get out of the fairy lights.

gauri: let me get us out of here. you are taking forever.

om: oh moti, stop complaining.

gauri: moti?

only her omki would call her 'moti'. no one else in this entire world has ever called her 'moti' expect for him.

gauri: mr ayush whatever the hell your surname is, do not call me 'moti'. the only person who is allowed to call me 'moti' is my best friend in the entire world.

om: and i am your best friend.

gauri: what?

om: you don't believe me?

he brings his left arm out and rolls his sleeve till it reached his bicep. there it was rewritten 'gauri' in a beautiful cursive writing.

om: remember when we were kids, with a pen i would always write your name with in this handwriting, same arm, same place?

gauri: and now you got a permanent tattoo?

om: yeah and see this bird?

gauri saw a tiny bird next to her name, beautifully drawn and it was sea blue, one of her favourite colours growing up.

om: i would also call you 'chiraya' when i didn't want to call you 'moti'. and i am your omki because i always keep your first letter from America wherever i go.

he reaches for his kurta's jacket front pocket and brings out a folded piece of paper and hands it to gauri. gauri unfolds it to see that it was her handwriting, everything was the same, she slowly read the letter to make sure it was definitely her letter she wrote to om:

'dear omki,

this is my first letter from America. so now you know the address. anyway i really miss you. America is horrible. all the girls are mean to me. they say to me to go back to my country and they are really mean to me in the dorms. they poured water on my bed and said to the boarding school person that i wetted the bed when i didn't. that person beated me up a lot because of that. i don't like these girls. i want to go back to India and stay with you, mummy, daddy and even that brother of mine. 

i love you a lot.

love from,

gauri.'

gauri cried and kept the letter near her heart.

gauri: i was really miserable in America for the first 2 years. eventually those girls accepted me but even then i still missed you. i would complain to you all the time through these letters.

om: and i would imagine you actually talking to me as i read your complaint list. i remember you said you would come back one Diwali but i didn't know which Diwali so for all these years, i would come to your house on Diwali and you would never be there but i never gave up hope. but gauri, soon you stopped writing to me.

gauri: voh actually i had to focus on very important exams and then uni came and that was really important.

om: i understand but still it pained my heart.

gauri: it pained my heart too but why did you hit me at that place today?

om: i thought you were a guy.

gauri: kya?!

om: you were wearing a helmet.

gauri: i guess i overreacted a bit too much. sorry. also sorry for calling you shit guy.

om: and i decided to mess with your mind, i said i was ayush just to have some masti with you and maybe to get revenge for you calling me shit guy.

he cups her face and says: i am your omki and i am your shit guy, i am that omki who would happily pour paint over you to annoy you.

gauri giggles at that memory.

om: gauri, i have a question. will you not kill me if i ask?

gauri: go ahead.

om went down on one knee (yes they are still trapped by the fairy lights) then he took out something for his pocket and it was a tiny velvet black box. he slowly opened it revealing a beautiful rose gold with with a diamond rose in the middle.

om: your love is something that i can't control. you are on my mind and heart all the time. before i met you, I was not familiar with the feeling of love. but now I came to know what love is. my heart misses its beats when i come closer to you. during these years when you were not with me, i realized that i love you. i don't know whether you feel the same way for me but if you do then will you marry me?

gauri's eyes had tears in them as she said: in America, boys would want to go out with me and i would always turn them down. i went to my first prom without a date. i would turn every boy down just because as these years passed by, i realized that i love you a lot. i always felt somethign with you when we were children but as they say distance is very powerful and it is true because i realized that it was love i felt for you. and yes i will marry you and i want to be mrs omkara singh oberoi as soon as possible kyunki i can't live without you.

om: English on point.

gauri giggles and says: voh toh hai.

om stands up and places the ring in gauri's finger.

madeeha came outside only to see rikara kissing.

madeeha: oh my gosh! she agreed!

they heard her and broke the kiss. then finally they got themselves out of the fairy lights. 

gauri: maa, you here?

madeeha: i called you and you never came so i got annoyed and thought to see what you were doing and haaye! meri beti is going to marry her childhood bestie. everyone needs to know RIGHT NOW!

before gauri could say anything, madeeha already ran inside and rikara could hear her excited voice. just then om's phone beeped and he checked it.

om: your papa already has sent me a death threat saying that i better take care of you or else...

gauri laughs and says: at least he accepts this rishta.

om: voh toh hai.

he kisses her forehead and both go inside, hand in hand.

the end

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hope you all liked this ss❤️❤️❤️❤️

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