A step closer

Sarika, without even looking at him, says, "You don’t have to bother, I’ll do it myself," and walks away from there.

Adrijay, filled with guilt, watches her leave.

A little later, Sarika begins washing the feet of all the young girls and our dear little Langoor, while Adrijay wipes their feet and helps them sit on the mat.

Then, Devansh and Vishakha apply kumkum and akshat (scared rice) on the foreheads of all the girls and Langoor.

Adrijay ties sacred threads (mauli) on everyone’s wrists. After this, Sarika and Vishakha serve puri, halwa, black chickpeas, and some fruits on everyone’s plates.

All the girls chant praises of Goddess Durga and begin eating their food. Once they finish, they get up to leave. Sarika and Vishakha, covering their heads with their dupattas, give them some money and gifts, making them all very happy. Even Tanishq beams with joy upon receiving his gift.

After distributing the gifts, everyone bows down to touch the feet of the young girls and Tanishq. In return, the girls and Tanishq shower them with blessings. Then, Sarika gives them a little akshat (sacred rice) and asks them to sprinkle it at home before leaving.

The young girls, along with Tanishq, sprinkle the akshat and leave. Tanishq, still holding his plate, quickly follows them.

Watching him go, Adhik shakes his head and asks, "Mumma, when will Tanu grow up? Why does he still sit for Kanya Pujan?"

Sarika smiles slightly and says, "Because he likes it. And you already know how much he loves gifts, right? That’s why he goes."

Adhik, with innocence in his eyes, says, "Okay, Mumma, now please give me something to eat. I’m really hungry!"

Sarika asks him to sit down and quickly brings a plate of black chickpeas, puri, and halwa. Sitting beside him, she starts feeding him with her own hands. Watching this, Adrijay smiles. His eyes then land on Yamini ji, who is staring at him. When he realizes she’s watching him, Adrijay sighs deeply, shakes his head in denial, and sits next to Devansh to chat.

Meanwhile, Vishakha goes to her room as soon as the Kanya Pujan ends. Now, only Yamini ji remains, glaring at Sarika before heading to her room as well.

Around noon, Tanishq returns home, excitedly showing his money and gifts to Adhik and Sarika.

Adhik watches everything as Tanishq says, "See, Bhaiya, I told you to come! Look how much fun it was!!! And I got so many gifts too!"

Adhik frowns and replies, "I don’t like sitting with girls alone. You go if you want!"

Tanishq, annoyed, says, "Oh, Bhaiya, you don’t know that even Sneha comes for Kanya Pujan. That’s why you don’t go, right? If you knew, you wouldn’t have made excuses!"

Hearing this, Sarika quickly turns to Adhik and asks, "Adhu, who is this Sneha?"

Adhik, flustered, stammers, "Mumma, no one! Tanu just likes to say.... things like that… She’s just my.... friend, Mumma!"

Tanishq immediately jumps in, "No, Mumma! Not just a friend—she’s his crush! Bhaiya told me once!"

Sarika, shocked, looks at Adhik and says, "Adhu, you have a crush? I could understand if it were Tanu, but you?"

Blushing, Adhik protests, "Mumma, Tanu is lying!!! There’s… nothing… like… that…."

Sarika, amused, shakes her head, gently cups his cheek, and says, "Adhu, having a crush isn’t wrong. But right now, your focus should be on your studies. Keep it at just friendship, okay? When you grow up, get a job like your father, then you can think about all this. But for now, concentrate on your studies and career."

Understanding her words, Adhik nods.

Just then, Tanishq scratches his head and asks, "Mumma, what do you mean by ‘about all this’?"

Sarika lightly taps his head and says, "I’ll tell you when you grow up a little. For now, go and put all your things away properly."

Making a face, Tanishq picks up his gifts and rushes to his room, with Adhik following behind him.

Sarika finishes her kitchen work and then goes to the children's room to spend time with them. After a while, she ends all the fun and falls asleep with them.

On the other hand, Adrijay waits in their room for Sarika for a long time. When she doesn’t come, he gives up and starts looking for her.

While searching, he reaches the children's room and sees Sarika sleeping peacefully, curled up with the kids. He smiles and walks in, kisses all three on their foreheads, and watches them for a moment. Then he makes space beside Adhik and lies down.

As soon as he lies down, Adhik, still asleep, holds onto him, making Adrijay smile as he closes his eyes.

In the evening, Adrijay wakes up when Tanishq shakes him and asks,

“Papa, you said you would take us to see Durga Puja in the evening. When will we go?”

Adrijay sits up against the bedrest, yawns, and says,

“We’ll go, beta, (son) but after a while…”

Tanishq pouts and insists,

“No, Papa, I want to go now, not later! I will go now, and you should get ready quickly! I will ask Mumma to get me ready, and then we will leave!”

Saying this, he rushes out of the room excitedly.

Adrijay shakes his head and mutters,

“This boy is so stubborn! I wonder whom he takes after… But his mischief and stubbornness are what keep this house alive. Otherwise, without him, the house feels like a mourning ground. Anyway, I should get ready, or this boy won’t let me be!”

Saying this, he gets up and heads to his room.

In the room, Sarika asks Tanishq,

“Did your Papa tell you to get ready now?”

Tanishq nods eagerly, so Sarika takes out his clothes from the cupboard and places them on the bed, saying,

“Okay, first go wash your face, then I’ll get you ready.”

Tanishq quickly runs to the washroom. Just then, Adrijay enters the room, and as soon as Sarika sees him, she starts to leave. But Adrijay holds her wrist, stopping her.

“You should get ready too. And make Adhik ready as well,” he says.

Sarika, in a low voice, replies,

“I have household work. You and the kids go ahead.”

Adrijay gives her a piercing look and asks,

“Are you done? Or do you have more excuses for not coming with me?”

Sarika looks at him in surprise and questions,

“Since when has my going out become so important? You never took me anywhere before! It was always you, the kids, Maa ji, and Devarji. So why this sudden insistence on taking me along?”

Her questions strike a chord in Adrijay’s heart. But what was his fault? He had never stopped her from coming along. It was always Sarika who made excuses and didn’t go. So he never forced her. Was it his fault that she stayed behind?

While he was lost in these thoughts, Tanishq came out of the washroom, happily saying,

“Mumma, I washed my face! Now get me ready quickly!”

Seeing him, Sarika gently freed her hand from Adrijay’s grip, smiled lightly, and went to change his clothes.

Adrijay stood there, watching her intently. Suddenly, an idea clicked in his mind, and a sly smile appeared on his face. Hiding it, he put on an innocent expression and asked Tanishq,

“Tanu, don’t you want Mumma to come with you?”

Tanishq innocently replied,

“I do, Papa! But Mumma never goes out with us. She only goes to Mohit Uncle’s house, Nishchay Mama’s house, and a few relatives' places. Nowhere else…”

His face fell as he spoke.

Adrijay, pretending to be serious, said,

“Then shouldn’t you take your Mumma with you? If she truly loves you, she will come along. Otherwise, she won’t.”

Sarika glared at him from the corner of her eyes, but Adrijay ignored her and looked at Tanishq with a feigned innocence.

Tanishq, now sad, turned to Sarika and asked,

“Mumma, don’t you love me? Is that why you won’t come with us?”

Sarika, trying to explain, said,

“No, Tanu, it’s not like that! I love you so much. But I have to take care of the house too. Someone has to be here—”

Before she could finish, Adrijay interrupted,

“But Tanu, today everyone is at home, so your Mumma can come, right?”

Hearing this, Tanishq brightened up and said,

“Oh yes, Mumma! Everyone is home today, so you can come with us, right? Please, Mumma! Please come! It won’t be fun without you!”

He looked at her with hopeful eyes.

Sarika couldn’t refuse and smiled, nodding in agreement.

Tanishq cheered and hugged her, exclaiming,

“Yay! We’ll have so much fun! I’ll go call Bhaiya! He must be in the courtyard!”

Saying this, he quickly ran out of the room.

As soon as he left, Sarika sighed and looked at Adrijay, who averted his gaze, pretending to look elsewhere. Without saying a word, she took out a beautiful saree from the cupboard and went to the washroom to change.

As soon as she left, Adrijay, like a teenage boy, jumped in excitement,

“Yes! I finally convinced her to come with me! Looks like Mrs. Chaudhary has underestimated me. But don’t worry, Mrs. Sarika Adrijay Chaudhary, I will show you all my colors—colors you are unaware of, colors that will bring happiness to your life, colors that will make you realize my feelings! Just like I convinced you to come today, I will convince you in other ways too. One day, I will take seven vows with you again, making all the promises I failed to keep before. But this time, I will set everything right, Sarika. I promise you.”

He smiled as he spoke.

A while later, Adrijay, fully dressed, walked into their room and was left mesmerized.

Sarika had worn a dark pink Banarasi saree, her long hair neatly braided, deep black kohl lining her eyes, bold red lipstick on her lips, and pink bangles adorning her wrists—the kind she always loved.

Adrijay stood still, admiring her.

Just then, Sarika finished wearing her earrings and turned around, startled to see him. Quickly composing herself, she lowered her gaze and asked,

“Shall we go?”

Adrijay snapped out of his trance and said,

“Hmmm…”

As Sarika walked past him, he stopped her, gently wiping a bit of kohl from her eyes and placing it behind her ear. Looking at her fondly, he said,

"Bahut Pyaari lag rahi ho, kahi tumhe meri hi nazar naa lag jaye".

(You look beautiful! I wouldn’t want even my own eyes to cast a shadow on you.)

His words made Sarika’s heart race, her breath quicken, and butterflies flutter in her stomach. But she didn’t dare meet his eyes. She knew that if she did, she would get lost in them. And she wasn’t ready to let her heart break again.

Adrijay's gaze suddenly slipped and settled just above Sarika's lips, where a tiny mole rested, which he found incredibly endearing. On Sarika's sweet and innocent face, that mole was nothing less than a protective charm. Adrijay had noticed it before, and it was this mole that had first drawn him closer to Sarika.

Their moment was broken when Tanishq and Adhik entered, excited about going to see the Durga Puja. And why wouldn’t they be? After all, Kolkata and Lucknow’s Durga Pandals were famous across the country.

The four of them walked downstairs towards the gate when suddenly, Yamini Ji’s voice stopped them. “Where is the grand procession heading to?”

Adrijay sighed, turned around, and said, “Ma, we are going to see the Durga Puja.”

Yamini Ji scoffed,

“Oh wow! Going to Durga Puja without even informing anyone at home! I suppose your mother is dead, right? Since there is no elder in this house except you, why would you ask for anyone’s permission?”

Her words shocked Adrijay, while Sarika, fearing the upcoming storm, held onto Tanishq and Adhik’s hands tightly. She knew exactly what was about to happen.

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

How was the chapter? Tell me in the comment section.

Guys I updated this chapter because of so many negative and abusive comments. Seriously if you don't want to read the story further then please stop it right now. But don't criticize me in the comment section. I had already said that you can criticize story as much as you want not me. So please at least respect me a little bit. I am so disappointed with all of you.

Next chapter target:- 500 votes and 120 comments.