Anupama dared to look up and gazed at herself in the mirror. The person who stared back looked alien to her. She didn't know when she'd looked so beautiful. She'd never found herself pretty. In her opinion, she was average-looking; she had a rather straight jawline, no curves on her cheeks, pale skin that stretched under her eyes, straight flat eyebrows, and thin hair that seemed to stick to her scalp at all the odd spots.

As a result, over the years, she'd barely made an effort to take care of herself or dress up. And she'd ended up looking much older than her years.

That too had changed after she'd moved in with Anuj. Once GK had walked into her room while she was watering her Tulsi plant and had told her that human beings were just like plants. They too needed the right amount of water, sunshine, and love to grow and flourish.

"You take care of everything and everyone else but yourself, Anupama," he'd said. "But you forget that you can only give what you have. You can only make others happy if you're happy yourself."

While Anupama had paused to take that bit of wisdom in, GK had continued: "The only way you'll be able to spread joy and happiness in Anuj's life and take care of him is if you enjoy your life first. You are very important. And it's high time you start treating yourself like that."

Anupama had smiled and nodded, but it had been GK who'd asked Anuj's secretary to book a spa treatment for Anupama. He wanted her to feel pampered. He wanted her to realize how special she was.

When Anupama had walked out of the spa treatment, her skin was glowing. The treatment had been followed by a visit to the beauty parlor, a routine manicure, pedicure, and facial. A hairstylist had curled her tresses and styled them to accentuate her features. As she looked into the mirror after having spent nearly an entire day in self-care, the person who stared back didn't resemble the woman she knew. She looked different, she looked younger. She felt younger.

That day, another piece of her soul had fallen into place.

*****

Knowing Anuj's preference for not celebrating his birthday party, Anupama had decided to keep the celebrations intimate. She'd given the staff time off work and had requested that GK spend the weekend at one of his relative's places. GK was only too glad to oblige, taking Kinjal with him.

As GK made his way out, Anupama bowed to take his blessings. "May I come back to my family," he said. When she looked at him quizzically, GK smiled. "You, me, Anuj, we're all living under one roof, but we aren't a family yet."

Anupama considered then telling GK about the progress in Anuj and her relationship. But what could she say? Anuj hadn't proposed to her as yet, and Anupama, she was too scared to ask, afraid that asking for more would jinx and ruin this beautiful bond she shared with Anuj.

So she'd kept quiet, as GK and Kinjal made their way out.

*****

As soon as Anuj entered the house, he sensed the change in the atmosphere. He couldn't see the difference, but his sixth sense told him that nothing was the same.

"Mohan," he called. No response. "Madhav," he called. Still no response. Loosening his tie, he shrugged out of his blazer and called once more, "Mohan, can I get a glass of water?"

"The word I believe is please."

He turned to look at Anupama as she handed him his glass of water. The water didn't exchange hands for Anuj continued to look at her mesmerized.

Dressed in one of his mother's favorite saris - the bottle green and orange patola, pairing it with his mother's precious meenakari jewelry, Anupama looked like an angel descended from heaven. But that wasn't merely all.

This wasn't the first time she was wearing one of his mother's ensembles. She'd worn one on the day of the press conference, and then another time while visiting him at work. But something about her today was different.

Anuj continued staring at her, taking in her new avatar, her hair held in a loose bun, with curled tendrils that outlined her beautiful jawline, the eyebrows, that seemed to lead him to her shimmering bindi, the eyeliner and kohl that highlighted her brown eyes, the lips, glossy and inviting, a hint of peach or was it red, the earrings, that dangled from her lobes.....

Anupama cleared her throat to break his reverie. When that didn't work, she forcefully slammed the glass down on the coffee table.

"Anupama?"

She smiled. No one had ever reacted to her like this. She was a woman. She loved the attention and she was getting plenty of it right now.

*****

Anuj stood transfixed looking at Anupama. Draped in his mother's patola silk, matched with her emerald meenakari jewelry, she looked ethereal. Her hair was held in a loose bun with a wooden stick pin. She looked too formal. Walking up to her he pulled the pin out of her hair. Her curly hair cascaded around her face lighting it up.

Leaning closer to her ears, he whispered, "You look better with your hair open," before placing the pin in her hands and walking into his room to change.

If Anupama was happy then, she was smiling like an idiot now.

*****

His room looked different. His papers were neatly stacked on his desk, artwork from the floor had found space on a wall, the dusty bookshelves had been cleaned, his audio system had finally been unpacked and hooked up, the speakers proudly on display at either end of the bookshelf.

He walked up to the bookshelf and pulled out a brown leather diary that looked out of place among the works of Tagore.

It had the words Anuj Kapadia embossed on the cover. As he turned it, he saw Anupama embossed in small letters on the back. He smiled and placed it on the bed and noticed that his change of clothes had been laid out - an orange kurta with a black sleeveless coat and white pajamas. He changed and made his way out, smiling. Love was definitely in the air.

*****

The two sat down for a beautiful candle-light dinner. The table had been arranged by Anupama, with all of his favorite dishes that his mother cooked. He tasted each one of them and at the end had a tear in his eye.

"Why?" asked Anupama.

He simply got up, took her hands in his, and kissed them.

"Thank you for doing this. Thank you for letting me relive my mother's memories."

She was touched. She herself wasn't so close to her family but she understood what his mother must have meant to Anuj. It was strange that both Vanraj and Anuj were close to their mothers. While one was a spoilt brat because of that, the other had been raised to be a good and kind man. Love could create and love could destroy. Such was the power of love.

She shook her head to rearrange her thoughts. She wasn't going to think of Vanraj and ruin these precious moments.

"What's the occasion today?" he asked.

She coughed, unsure of whether to let him know that this was to celebrate his birthday. Or would that revelation ruin this perfectly magical evening? Undecided, she picked up a glass of water to distract herself.

Anuj sensed her dilemma. "Is this my birthday celebration?" he asked. Anupama coughed, not wanting to admit or deny. He smiled.

"Anu, can you please pass me the thepla?"

She got up to serve him and he used the opportunity to pull her onto his lap.

"You've worked so hard to make my birthday special," he whispered, as he tucked a curl behind her ears. "Aren't you going to wish me?"

She looked at him then, her eyes speaking volumes. She held his hand, brought it up, and placed it against her heart, allowing him to feel her emotions. She bent close and placed her lips on his cheek. "Happy Birthday", she murmured before kissing him and getting up.

*****

Anupama was fast, but not faster than him. As she got up, he held her hand and pulled her back on his lap.

He turned her head, so he could look into her eyes. And what he saw there, stilled him.

He gently guided her to stand, before standing up himself and making his way to his room, leaving her unsure as to what had happened.

She looked at his retreating figure, her heartbeats escalating their rhythm. Was he upset that she'd celebrated his birthday? She hadn't done anything ostentatious. She'd even made sure that it was just the two of them. Was he still offended?

She closed her eyes, unwilling to let her tears spill. She loved Anuj Kapadia and she wanted to do something special for him on his birthday.

Still, it wasn't something he'd done in a very long time.

Had she overstepped her boundaries? He would've said something if he was upset, her mind said. When has he said anything, her heart asked? When it came to her, wasn't Anuj the embodiment of chivalry?

What should she do next? Should she follow him to his room? Or should she stay? She didn't have to wait long for an answer as he came out of his room just then.

Anupama's eyes that had grown accustomed to reading his realized he'd been crying.

Taking two steps at a time, she reached him.

"I'm so sorry Anuj, I had no intention of making you cry on your birthday. I am so sorry. I am so so sorry. GK Kaka had told me that you don't like celebrating your birthday. But I wanted to. I told him I would take care of it. I wanted to do something special for you. But I didn't want you to get upset. That's why I kept the celebration between just the two of us. I didn't know even this would upset you. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. Please don't cry. I will never forgive myself if I'm the reason behind your...."

He pressed his mouth against hers to stop her tirade. And she leaned in, kissing him back with all the love in her heart. She was truly sorry and she wanted him to know that.

Several moments later, as they came apart to breathe, Anuj led her to the couch and sat her down.

"Why are you sorry?"

"Because I made you cry."

"What made you think..."

"Don't lie to me." He chuckled at her stern disposition.

"I wasn't crying because of you...well at least not because you celebrated my birthday?"

"Then?"

"Because nobody has bothered to shower me with so much love since my mother passed away."

Anupama was shocked to hear those words. Never in her wildest imagination had she thought that this strong, suave, significant, celebrated man would feel deprived of something, least of all love.

"But GK..."

"Don't get me wrong. GK loves me. He loves me like a son and I love him like a father. But GK has never pampered me. The only person who ever pampered me was my Mom. And now, YOU."

The word hung between them for a moment, while Anupama collected her rattled thoughts and tried to piece them together to make sense of them.

She had never imagined that this world-class business tycoon was actually attention starved. Funny, how she'd assumed he had everything he needed because he always had everything she'd needed.

She'd always leaned onto him, and he'd always supported her. His strength gave her the courage to explore aspects of her life she'd never dared to think about. The thought that he could be lacking something never even crossed her mind. And yet, he'd admitted....

Lost in her thoughts, she didn't realize when Anuj had moved from the couch to sit on the floor near her feet.

"Anuj, what are you doing???" Her hands moved towards his shoulders.

"Shhh..."

"Anu, I have completed 48 today. I am not getting younger. But in the last three months, dreams and wishes that I believed to be dead and buried have seemed to come alive. I found you. I would've been happy with friendship, but surprisingly I also found love.

"I'm no poet, and years of business dealings have taught me to come straight to the point. So, without beating around the bush, I want to ask, will you marry me? Three months from now?"

He waited with bated breath for her answer. She'd accepted her love for him. But was she willing to go through marriage all over again? She definitely didn't have any great memories from her first one and he was well aware of that.

As tears began streaming down her face, Anuj got up, quietly dejected with the unsaid refusal. She held him and forced him down, unable to say anything, the enormity of the question preventing a coherent response. But her head was nodding. She was ecstatic. Her wish had been granted. Her dream was coming true.

He was relieved. Getting up on his knees, he gently flicked her tears away with his index finger. And then from the breast pocket of his coat, he pulled out the anklets he'd brought for her in Mumbai.

"May I?" he asked and she nodded once again, lifting her sari to allow him access to her ankles. He bent down and placed one anklet on each foot, kissing her feet, worshipping her for accepting his love.

And then she got up and twirled, the tiny bells tinkling to celebrate the momentous occasion. She pulled him to his feet and hugged him. And he hugged her back, sealing this engagement with another kiss.

It didn't matter that no rings were exchanged, that Anuj Kapadia was engaged to Anupama Joshi in the most unusual of ways. Because  theirs was an unusual tale.