Gauri looked at her notebook and grinned satisfied with her work.

After talking with Rudra last night she decided to seriously give a push to herself to pick up the broken pieces of her heart, join them together and learn to love again. She made a list of things 'to do' in order to get on with life. She read the list again in her mind.

1) Accept situations and people as they are.

2) Do not become football to other's opinions.

3) Enroll herself in the short term course on content writing in Xavier's institute of communications, Mumbai.

4) Make a name for herself in the writing world.

5) Find the right person and love him in such a way that come what may he will never think of leaving her.

"Wow... what is the reason behind that beautiful smile my darling" asked Jhanvi who entered Gauri's room.

"Maami come sit... I hardly talked to you since the day I came" said Gauri smiling.

"Kya baat hai... in good spirits today?" Jhanvi said reaching her side and gently caressing her cheek.

"Nothing like that maami. I just decided to move on with life" she said and Jhanvi hugged her happily.

"Really? Did you decide to marry Gauri? Awww.....Pinky would be so happy... Let me call her to inform the good news" she said and took out her phone when Gauri snatched it away with a glare.

"Great!!! If it were in your hands, you people would get me married today...right?" Gauri asked sarcastically making Jhanvi chuckle.

"Well, we can only try" she countered and Gauri pouted at her.

"Maami, not you too... I already have a tough time handling mom at home... Don't give her ideas please"

"Are mera bacha... Okay... I am in team Gauri... you will marry when you are ready... satisfied?" she asked cajoling her "It feels so good to see you happy Gauri... never let someone else decide your happiness... It is always in your hands... understand?" she completed and Gauri grinned nodding her head.

"By the way what are you writing recently... did your hero finally propose his girl? It is about time he should Gauri. Make the confession heartwarming... I know you are the slow burn romance type...but I have been waiting forever for that proposal... You can add a kiss or two this time" she said winking and Gauri laughed out loud.

Her maami has been her number one critic till date. As much as her maami loved her, she was brutally honest, never hesitating to put forth her opinions and make her bend her rules here and there to her satisfaction. Her daadu always said that she probably got the habit of profusely reading books from her maami. 'Maami is going to be my editor' she decided long back.

Unlike many, Gauri was fortunate in having a loving family. Being the only girl child in the family which was otherwise dominated by beards and moustaches, she was the most pampered child of her daadi making her the boss baby.

Her grandparents Prithviraaj Trivedi and Kalyani Trivedi lived in Bareilly in their ancestral home along with their son and daughter in law. Her father Shakti Trivedi was their only son, looking after the family business in Uttar Pradesh while Tej Agarwal, husband of her father's sister Jhanvi takes care of their ventures in Mumbai. Though her mother Pinky Trivedi is the sister in law of her maami, they were best friends since their young age.

Rudra and Gauri have been chuddy buddies always bickering and irritating the hell out of each other. But when any third person dares to harm one of them, they unite hell and earth to protect the other.

Her family was both her strength and weakness. Though they had a few shortcomings like urging her to marry soon, they never said no to anything she ever wanted. Taking that they came from an orthodox village background the family supporting a female child to make a career choice of her own, always patting her back when she felt low and hugging her with all the love when she was happy was indeed a blessing.

Since she had a caring family, Gauri thought she never had a caring life partner. She believed that she would sound greedy if she wanted everything. 'God does not give everyone everything' was her explanation. He creates some problems so that people won't forget to pray him for better days, better future.

Falling in love with Ajay Suxena was a mistake she knew she could never erase. He was all charming, giving her moon eyes, promising to never leave her hand for eternity in the beginning only to dump her for a girl who looked better than her and earned better than her. She should have known earlier when he constantly pestered her to take up a new career, threw a jibe or two at her when they went out with common friends. But as blind as she was in love, she refused to believe that his intention was anything but her wellbeing. How wrong had she been she thought wryly.

There there Gauri.... It is not your fault... she chastised herself. You are going to move on and this time catch hold of the right man she thought determinedly.

"Gauri!!!" shouted Jhanvi breaking her thoughts.

"Where are you lost? What is cooking in that little brain of yours?" she asked narrowing her eyes and Gauri answered 'nothing' smiling.

"You seemed to be thinking too much lately... what happened to the coffee date with Omkara that Rudra was telling me last night?" she asked and Gauri gaped at her.

"He doesn't hide anything from you... does he" she groaned and Jhanvi smiled "Beta mera hai( he is my son)" she said winking.

"Yeah..yeah ask him to stop nagging me..." she said making a face.

"Kyun? Kya kami hai Omkara mein? He is handsome, well educated, has a super cool father who I am sure you will gel up to and most of all he isn't a chavunistic pig" she concluded. After a thought she added "I shouldn't be saying this but he doesn't have a nagging mom. So no saas-bahu drama Gauri" she said conspirationally making Gauri gasp.

"Maami that is a nasty thing to say" she said scoldingly while Jhanvi ignored her "Tell me what you want more"

Gauri sighed rolling her eyes "Nothing maami I want some peace of mind can you please give me that?" she asked which made her maami give her a stink eye.

"Okay... I will leave... call your daadi once you are done with your work... she has been asking for you" Jhanvi told her and Gauri nodded.

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Two months later.......

Life has been good to Gauri after she started her classes. Every day she woke up eagerly to learn something new and better her writing skills. Thoughts of her past did come when she was alone but never made her disabled and distressed. She was happy living with her extended family in Mumbai though she sometimes missed her mom's yelling, her father's kisses of support on her forehead, her daadu's evening walks of wisdom with her and most of all... her daadi's unconditional pampering.

"Daadi... I have class tomorrow and the day after, I cannot attend any wedding receptions" said Gauri talking to her Daadi on phone.

"Gauri... the girl's father is your dad's business friend and he came to our house personally to invite us but your Daadu and your father had to go for a meeting elsewhere which leaves daamad ji. Since you said your maamu is not well, you and Rudra need to go as representation beta"

"But daadi... I don't even know them" Gauri protested. "Rudy is busy as he has exams. I will be bored to go there alone"

"Gauri... my dearest...please beta... go in your mammu's car...say a hi to them, have dinner and come back before ten...I will give some excuse to them that you have to leave early... isn't that simple?"

"No...I can't daadi" she said firmly.

Having left with no other option, Kalyani Trivedi used her most fetching weapon "apni daadi ki baat nahi maanegi meri chutki...? (won't you listen to your daadi my chutki?)" she said in her ever endearing tone making Gauri groan out loud.

"That is like my girl... I will make your favorite barfi once you come back home. Dress up well for the function beta who knows... may be you will find a prospective groom there" said Kalyani grinning.

"Daadi...." said Gauri in a warning tone.

"Umm... fine...fine... call me after the function... bye beta lots of kisses for you" she said making Gauri smile fondly.

"I miss you daadi" Gauri said and received a "miss you too" from the other side.

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Next day evening at the venue of the wedding reception......

Looking at the hoardings at the venue, Gauri couldn't help but curse her luck... 'Ajay Suxena weds Tanisha Gupta' they read with the couple smiling and looking into each other's eyes with all the love in the world making her stomach churn.

I mean...what were the odds?. Out of everyone in the world Tanisha had to be her father's business colleagues daughter. ...

Why haven't you looked at the invitation card Gauri... You could have at least asked Jhanvi maami to come with you rebuked her mind for the nth time since she reached the spot.

Gauri... get lost now to save yourself from the embarrassment said her heart from within.

No... why should you... you have moved on...haven't you... stay and keep Daadi's promise. There is nothing more wrong that can happen now... said her mind.

"Gauri beta... is there anything wrong? This is the address that madam ji told me" asked Rajiv, her maamu's loyal driver looking at her in confusion.

"No chacha... I... I don't know them at all...I am still contemplating whether or not to go in..." she answered telling him a half truth.

"It is your wish beta... you can just go give them the gift and come back. We can always lie to madam ji that we had dinner, right?" he said smiling warmly at her decreasing her unease.

Returning his smile, she nodded her head and opened the car door.

"Chachu... are you coming in?" she said hoping to get support but was disappointed when she saw him nod a no.

"I have a friend living nearby beta ... I will go meet him. Call me once you are done with... is that okay or do you want me to stay?" he asked.

"No chachu... you go... keep your phone by your side I will call you soon" she said, and he nodded.

She turned to look at the place again and took a deep breath "Come on Gauri... you can do it" she gave herself a Ted talk before walking into the gut churning event.

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After the formal hellos and fake smiles, she was led to the first row of guests to witness her ex-lover and his wife sweetly smiling at the guests and posing for the camera.

She told herself not to look at them and play with her phone to pass the time. Yet, scrolling through her phone she couldn't help but steal glances at the happy couple. Fifteen minutes felt like an eternity and she rose from her place moving away to the dinner area to gulp food and run from the place.

As she was hastily pushing the tasteless food down her throat taking care not to retch and vomit, he heard her name being called.

"Gauri? is that you?" said an unfamiliar man probably in his late forties smiling at her making Gauri look at him in confusion.

"Do I know you Uncle?" she asked smiling at him carefully, not wanting to hurt the feelings of the handsome man who seemed to exude warmness which successfully loosened the knot of discomfort in her stomach.

"No... I am Kaali Chowdary your maamu's friend. I work for him" he said smiling at her lovingly and she couldn't help but lift the corners of her lips into a wide smile.

"I guess you met my son Omkara" he asked her and Gauri widened her eyes "You are Omkara's father?" she asked with a look of disbelief and Kaali laughed.

He definitely didn't look his age. Now looking at his features carefully which resembled Rudra's friend, she uttered "You don't look your age uncle"

"Well, thanks for the compliment Gauri...I am pleased" he said with a wink making her laugh.

"Are you alone? Rudra has his exams right? I talked to Tej today" he said and Gauri nodded a yes.

"Dad...where do you disappear to all of a sudden? I don't know a living soul here" said Omkara walking towards his father not noticing Gauri beside him.

"Om... come see who I have met" said Kaali pointing at Gauri when he took a glance at her and sucked in a breath.

Dressed in a lemon yellow lehenga paired with a light blue blouse embroidered with red and orange flowers, she looked radiant. Her neck was left bare and glowing in the yellow lights, while her ears wore blue jhumkas whose length reached her neck. Her bangles jingled with movement of her hand and her hair wavy, was left open, resting on her right shoulder. Adding to her beauty were her hazel eyes and a warming smile which always managed to sort of draw him towards her.

Gauri looked at Omkara dressed in a greyish black sherwani with a matching scarf, the sherwani fitting him at the right places making his muscles prominent. His hair was tied into a half pony and a tiny stud adorned his ear.

God this man looked hot with his oblong face, rugged Jaw and light stubble...hope she isn't drooling she prayed. She shifted her gaze to his eyes to note the intensity and blushed involuntarily.

Kaali carefully observed his son's reaction and grinned satisfied. He found his daughter in law he mused stopping himself from throwing a fist pump into the air.

He cleared his throat making them conscious of his presence. Gauri looked at her plate with great interest while Omkara avoided his father's eyes.

"You know each other right?" he asked Omkara making him widen his eyes at his father. How the hell did he know?

"Hi Omkara" greeted Gauri and he smiled back in return.

"See... you were not going to come to the party saying it is my business colleague's function and you don't know anyone here but we met Gauri... didn't we? Moral of the story is to never say no to good food and high end parties" said Kaali jokingly and Gauri chuckled while Omkara rolled his eyes.

"Dad stop being cheap... I can always stay at home and order delicious food"

"Why waste hard earned money? Who do you think eats all the food served here Om... Come on let us dive... the menu looks yummy" he said rubbing his hands in glee making Gauri smile at his eagerness.

As they had their food, Kaali pestered Gauri with questions about her family and hobbies. Gauri thanked heavens for the distraction she found to temporarily mask her perturbation. Once she finished her meal, she excused herself to dispose her plate and Kaali turned to his son.

"So, when should I talk to Tej?" he asked making his son freeze.

"What talk?" he spoke acting ignorant when Kaali gave him a don't give me shit look. "You were drooling at her sometime back Om...I hope you realize that yes?" he said unapologetically making his son choke.

"Dad!! She is a mere acquaintance. Don't get hyper... If you talk like this in front of her she would be embarrassed"

"If I let you handle things, I won't live to see my grandchild" he said dramatically and Omkara as a reflex imagined Gauri with a pregnant bump with his child inside it.

'Fudge.... Blame his father for putting ideas in his head'

He was about to retort when Gauri returned to them "Uncle... I guess I should leave now" she said and Kaali vehemently denied.

"What do you mean by leave... we hardly talked... did you meet the couple?" he asked and Gauri nodded a no stiffly.

"Aree... you came this far to attend the function and plan to go without wishing them? Not done... Let me take you once I finish" he said making her violently shake her head her nausea returning with vengeance.

"No uncle" she almost cried out making Omkara look at her questioningly.

"What no... just wait for a few minutes I will take you myself" said Kaali and continued to enjoy the delicacies.

************************************************************

Despite her protests Gauri was dragged to the stage her hand firmly held by Kaali while Omkara followed them smilingly.

Ajay was surprised to see Gauri standing before him accompanied by a handsome man and his father. What was she doing here? Normally, she would break down to pieces on the mere mention of his name in the same sentence as his now wife. Did she move on? That was fast... for a girl like her... Does the man behind her have a hand in it? he thought to himself.

"Congratulations and happy married life Ajay" said Kaali in his booming voice breaking his thoughts and Ajay forced a smile.

Omkara along with Gauri copied Kaali and Ajay gave a smirk to Gauri making her squirm in place while Omkara raised his eyebrow at the exchange unnoticed by Kaali.

"Oh...Kaali... thanks for coming" said Tanisha's father engulfing the former in a friendly hug.

"I see you met Gauri" the man asked and Kaali smiled.

"Of course Girish, my son and Gauri are friends already" he said and Omkara turned to his father looking at him in warning.

"Omkara... meet Ajay my son in law... he is a dermatologist" said Girish and he shook hands with the groom.

"Ajay... Omkara is a neurosurgeon and works with Rudra" her father in law informed Ajay making him nod at Omkara formally smiling.

"What does Gauri do uncle?" asked Tanisha in a tone of ridicule, pointedly looking at Gauri who has been silent during the exchange.

"She is an upcoming writer" Omkara answered for her when Gauri failed to form words.

"I am asking for her career choice Omkara... not a hobby" throwing a jibe making Omkara and his father angry.

"Unfortunately for ignorant people like you, i need to explain that writing is a career choice Tanisha" said Omkara in a cold tone.

"I mean no disrespect uncle" she said turning to Kaali who gave her an equally cold look "I meant...hoping to write is something different from actually writing a story. Isn't it... I was merely curious...you know how kindhearted and soft spoken I am... I would never do that" she said dramatically.

"She is Ajay's friend do you know? He has mentioned a word or two about her and I was worried she was whiling away time" Tanisha completed.

"You don't need to worry for her then Tanisha... she puts her time to good use every day. You keep posting pictures and quotes on Instagram about humanity and helping children right, you should contact Gauri because she works in conjunction with NGO s who take care of children. Acting kindhearted is different from being kindhearted isn't it" Kaali said proudly making Gauri as well as Omkara look at him in surprise and Tanisha shut up.

Girish sensed the tension in the air and trying to diffuse it he said, "Very good Gauri... Tej used to tell us about the NGO s... by the way how is his health now?"

"He is well uncle... he is recovering from fever" she finally answered finding her voice.

"Good that you have Kaali's company. You might have got bored coming alone" he smiled.

"Don't worry Girish... Gauri bahu jaisi hai meri (she is like my daughter-in law) I will not leave her unguarded" Kaali said making everyone look at him in shock while Omkara groaned mentally.

"I mean... I will be happy to have her as my bahu... who wouldn't want a girl who is beautiful in mind and at heart Girish" he clarified looking at Gauri with a smile making her overwhelmed.

This was the first time someone out of her family was giving her unabated support. She felt her eyes fill with grateful tears and she looked away trying to hide them.

"Right... let us take a picture Kaali... shall we?" asked Girish and they nodded.

They posed for a picture with the couple in the middle, Girish and his wife by the side of Tanisha while Gauri stood between Omkara and Kaali on Ajay's side.

As the Photographer asked them to smile, Kaali put a protective arm over Gauri's shoulder who appeared to be lost in thoughts making her look at him. He gestured her to look towards the camera and when she nodded her head with a smile obeying him, he too smiled at the camera.

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End of chapter 3....

How did you like it...

As I already said, keep the prologue out of your heads and read the story as you would normally do. Only then would you understand Omkara, Gauri and enjoy the love story.

Until the next update... signing off.... Yours Soujanya.