Moments of Togetherness

Yamini ji sarcastically says, "Wow, just wow! Going to see the Durga pandal, huh? And not even bothering to inform anyone at home. Your mother has passed away, right, beta (son)? There's no elder in this house except you, so why would you need anyone’s permission, right?"

Hearing her words, Adrijay looks at her in shock, while Sarika, startled, grabs Tanishq and Adhik’s hands tightly because she knows what is about to happen.

Adrijay, still looking at Yamini ji in disbelief, says, "Maa, what are you saying? I could never even think this way about you! This house exists because of you. Please don’t say such things. And as for permission, I didn’t ask because we go to see Durga Puja every year. You know that, so what’s the need for permission?"

Yamini ji, making a face, glares at Sarika and says, "But you don’t take her every year, do you? Then why is she going now?"

Before Adrijay can say anything, Tanishq, placing both hands on his waist, looks at Yamini ji and jumps in, "I’m taking Mumma with me… because I want to go out with Mumma! And Dadi, when Papa was little, didn’t you take him out? Or did he only go out with Dada ji? You must have taken him too, right? Then why can’t I go out with my mumma?"

Hearing this, a faint smile appears on Adrijay’s face, which he quickly hides. Meanwhile, Yamini ji, furious at Tanishq’s words, says, "Did you hear that? Look at how your son talks to me! I have no respect left in this house anymore… Everyone just does as they please, no one listens to me…" Saying this, she places her hand on her forehead and sits down on the sofa.

Adrijay looks at her and lets out a deep sigh before saying, "Maa, we’re leaving now. We’ll talk about this when we return." Saying this, he turns and heads toward the door, but then he stops in his tracks. Turning around, he sees Sarika standing there with her head lowered. Shaking his head in disapproval, he walks over to her, takes Adhik’s hand in his, and then holds Sarika’s hand, leading her toward the door.

Sarika, surprised by his actions, looks at him and thinks to herself, Sometimes, in a moment, you seem so good, and at other times, so terrible. Whom should I trust—you or my mind, which tells me to stay away from you?

Lost in her thoughts, Sarika follows Adrijay as he walks ahead. When they reach the car, Adrijay unlocks it, lets go of her hand, and opens the passenger seat door, motioning for her to sit inside. Sarika snaps out of her thoughts and quietly takes the seat.

After shutting the door, Adrijay helps Adhik and Tanishq settle in the back seat, where they immediately start chatting excitedly about the Durga pandal.

Seeing them happy, Adrijay smiles, then gets into the driver's seat, starts the car, and drives ahead.

Throughout the ride, only Adhik and Tanishq were talking to each other, while Sarika sat in complete silence, staring out of the window. Noticing this, Adrijay turns on the radio.

A song starts playing, and as he listens to it, a small smile forms on his lips.

इश्के दी गलियां तंग हैं,

शर्मोशर्मी में बंद हैं,

खुद से खुद की,

कैसी ये रूत हैं,

पल पल ये दिल शर्माए,

पल पल ये दिल घबराए,

कुछ कहता है,

और कुछ कर जाए,

Adrijay looks at Sarika with love while the song continues playing in the background.

कैसी ये पहेली,

मुआ दिल मर जाना,

इश्क़ में जल्दी बड़ा जुर्माना,

Just then, Tanishq looks at Adrijay and says, "Papa, look ahead, or there will be an accident!"

Hearing his words, Adrijay, embarrassed, quickly shifts his gaze to the road. Meanwhile, Sarika glances at Adrijay for a moment before turning back to look out of the window.

हौले हौले हो जायेगा प्यार छलिया,

हौले हौले हो जायेगा प्यार।।

A little while later, Adrijay stops the car a short distance from the Durga pandal and gets everyone out before going to park the car.

Sarika and the kids wait for Adrijay to return. Within moments, he arrives and leads everyone forward.

As they walk, Adrijay tells Tanishk and Adhik, "You both hold onto Mama's and my hands. It's crowded here, and there's a risk of getting lost, so stay with us and keep holding our hands!"

Tanishk and Adhik respond together, "Okay!"

Adrijay and Sarika visit several pandals with the children to seek the blessings of Goddess Durga. After the darshan, Tanishk insists on going on the rides, so Adrijay and Sarika take both kids to enjoy them.

After the rides, Tanishk points toward a toy stall and says, "Mumma, Papa, I want that bubble machine gun! Look, they have it over there."

Adrijay takes him to the stall and buys him the bubble machine gun, while Adhik picks out a remote-controlled helicopter for himself.

Just then, Adrijay looks at Sarika and says, "You should get something for yourself too!"

Sarika lowers her gaze and softly says, "I don’t need anything."

Adrijay shakes his head in disagreement and starts looking around. Soon, his eyes land on a stall selling earrings, and a smile appears on his lips. He then tells the kids, "Tanu, Adhu, you both go and enjoy that ride over there (pointing toward it). Mumma and I will be back soon. And remember, stay near the ride, don’t wander off! Okay?"

Tanishk and Adhik happily reply, "Okay!" and head towards the ride. Once they are seated, Adrijay takes Sarika’s hand and leads her toward the earring stall.

At the stall, Adrijay carefully examines the jhumkas (earrings) before picking out a pair and holding them near Sarika’s ears. Looking at her lovingly, he says, "These look great on you. You should take them!"

Sarika, still looking down, softly replies, "But I don’t want anything."

At her response, Adrijay glares at her slightly and firmly says, "I told you to take them… so take them. They look really good on you!"

Hearing his tone, Sarika thinks to herself, He has never bought me anything before, and now that he is, he’s acting like he’s doing me a favor… Anyway, I don’t want him to regret this later, so I won’t take them.

She then firmly says, "I don’t want them. Don’t you understand?" and turns to leave.

Just then, Adrijay gently grabs her wrist and softly says, "Please take them. They really suit you. I want you to wear them—for me. Please."

He said it with so much warmth that Sarika couldn’t refuse, even if she wanted to. She simply nodded, making Adrijay’s face light up with a broad smile.

Quickly, he gets the earrings packed, paid the vendor and holding Sarika’s hand, walks back toward the kids.

By then, the children had finished their ride and came running to hold Adrijay’s and Sarika’s hands.

Tanishk then says, "Papa, we didn’t take any photos! Let’s take some photos!"

Adhik excitedly adds, "Yes, Papa! Let’s take some pictures together!"

Smiling, Adrijay takes them to the last pandal and clicks a few pictures with Sarika and the kids.

Adhik then says, "Papa, we should have a family photo too! Come on, let’s take one!"

Handing his phone to a passerby, Adrijay stands with everyone for a family picture. Then, after thinking for a moment, he turns to Adhik and says, "Adhu, your mumma and I don’t have a solo picture together. Will you click one for us?"

Adhik nods with a smile and takes the phone. Adrijay then places his hand on Sarika’s shoulder and moves slightly closer to her.

Sarika’s heartbeat quickens, and for a moment, it feels like her breath has stopped. For the first time, Adrijay himself was posing for a picture with her. To everyone else, it was a normal moment, but for Sarika, the emotions she felt at that moment were indescribable.

As she gazes at Adrijay, lost in thought, he leans in slightly and whispers in her ear, "I know I’m very handsome, but that doesn’t mean you should keep staring at me instead of looking at the camera. You can admire me all you want once we’re home, but for now, look ahead!"

Hearing this, feeling flustered Sarika quickly shifts her gaze to the camera.

Seeing this, Adhik says, "Mumma, smile!"

Tanishk adds, "Yes, Mumma! You need to smile for the picture to turn out nice!"

Hearing them, Sarika smiles, and at that moment, Adrijay, instead of looking at the camera, turns to look at her. Seeing her smile, a soft smile appears on his lips as well.

Click! Adhik captures the perfect picture.

As soon as the photo is taken, Sarika steps away from Adrijay and looks in another direction. This action stings Adrijay a little, but he hides his feelings and cheerfully asks the kids, "Who wants golgappas?" (Pani Puri) (Water balls)

Tanishk excitedly jumps and shouts, "Me!"

Lifting him in his arms, Adrijay tells Sarika, "Sarika, hold Adhu’s hand and let’s go!"

Holding Adhik’s hand, Sarika walks with them.

A short distance ahead, they find a golgappa stall. Normally, Adrijay didn’t like street food, but Tanishk loved golgappas, and his love for them came from Sarika—though Adrijay was unaware of this fact.

At the stall, Adrijay orders two plates of golgappas. Seeing this, Tanishk asks, "Papa, you’re not eating?"

Adrijay playfully pulls his cheek and says, "No, you eat!"

Tanishk pleads, "Oh, Papa, at least try one! They’re really good! Please, Papa, just one bite!"

Adrijay thinks for a moment before a mischievous smile forms on his lips. Hiding it, he says, "Okay!"

Tanishk happily hugs him.

The vendor hands a paper bowl to Sarika, and she takes a golgappa and feeds it to Tanishk.

As Tanishk struggles to fit the big golgappa in his small mouth, he chews and exclaims, "Umm… spicy!"

The vendor then places another golgappa in Sarika’s bowl. She extends it toward Adrijay, but he smirks mischievously and says, "I’m holding Tanu in my arms! You feed me."

Sarika stares at him in surprise, while Tanishk enthusiastically agrees, "Yes, Mumma, feed Papa like you fed me!"

Taking a deep breath, Sarika hesitantly lifts a golgappa to Adrijay’s mouth. As he takes a bite, he deliberately lets his lips brush against her fingers.

Feeling the touch, Sarika shivers, her whole body reacting instantly. Blushing, she quickly turns away and focuses on the stall, while Adrijay smiles to himself, enjoying her reaction.

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