chapter 25

Author's POVThuli sat on the sofa, scrolling through the photos her brother and Amudhan sent, selecting the best ones to frame...Yes, Thulir and Agathiyan's wedding was conducted simply at the registration office...As per Thulir's wish, Tisya managed to persuade the family that the newlyweds would reside alone in their grandparents' home for a while. Certainly, Innisai was not easily convinced......Innisai was the one who loved  Agathiyan and Thulir more than anyone else, yet they maintained a distance from her since childhood. Agathiyan spent most of his childhood with Magil and Tisya rather than his own parents...Thulir maintained a distance from Innisai because of the conversation she accidentally overheard when her mother was pregnant with the twins...When the conversation turned to marriage, Innisai was ecstatic, the happiest of all. She dreamed of partaking in every single ritual and fully celebrating each moment of her son and Thulir's wedding.....Innisai, being closest to Gowri, grew up admiring her. Thulir, who shared Gowri's nature, made Issai grow even fonder of her in the cousin's gang...She may have been the first to always hope that Agathiyan would end up with Thulir. She supported their relationship from a young age but never loudly voiced it or tried to force it. When it naturally happened, she was overjoyed to welcome Thulir as her daughter-in-law.....So the news of them living alone away from her upset her the most....yet she finally convinced herself new weds do need privacy...An hour had passed since Agathiyan left her at home to go to court. Thulir felt bored alone in the silent room. She had chosen this, and she knew she needed to become more accustomed to the quiet. She had to find other ways to occupy herself during Agathiyan's absence in their home. His profession demanded it, and she understood that she couldn't expect him to spend all his time with her......she already trained to be alone during her Master's and PhD years...she just has to get back those skills again...She is not Thulir Jayadev anymore she is Thulir Agathiyan now...she smiled at touched her Thali he tied on her neck a few hours before...Just then, she heard the doorbell ring. Thinking it might be the food delivery, she got up and walked towards the main door to open it.Only to find her father and brother standing with bags in their hands; the logos on them clearly indicated they were food parcels....she smiled at them got the bags from her father and asked them to come inside..."I ordered food already Paa....what is the need of you bringing all this huh??"Thulir asked passing the water bottle to Jayadev, but before he could respond, the doorbell rang again..."See the order came .."Thulir moved to open the door and this time it was Jaishankar."Thathaa..""Where are your father and brother....how can they leave me and come to meet my Kannu.."He voiced out his distress."Paa I thought you needed rest that's why I didn't call you to  join us  "Jayadev reasoned out."Exactly Thatha..."Thuyavan supported his father's point swallowing a second Gulab jamun.."See, they have brought it for you, and he is eating himself."Jaishankar said knocking his grandson's head lightly gaining a playful glare from Thuyavan...Thulir shook her head looking at the trio....before she spoke again there was a knock."Ipo yar da vathurukeinga....mothamalam vara mateingala......Delivery ah thavira matha elarum varanga  "(Who is this time.....Won't you guys come together...Except  the delivery guy I expects everyone is coming...)Thulir shouted in annoyance, but the only response was the sound of the calling bell.....Thulir looked at the men raising her brows the trio shrugged their shoulder...."Nejamave Delivery guy tha pola Kaa..."(I think its truly delivery guy this time Akka )Thulir sighed again and went to open the door... As she expected, it wasn't the delivery guy... it was Amudhan, standing there with a box full of a variety of pastries. The transparent top cover showcased the colorful and appetizing lineup of pastries....Thulir looked behind him to see if there was someone else too..."Olinjiruka elam otumothama veliya vantheingana ula viduvein...thani thaniya varaverpu venum na apdiye kelambi vetuku pora velaiya paarunga.."(Those who are all hiding please come out all together I am not going to give welcome to each one of you individually if that what is in your mind then go back to home kids)Thulir rolled her eyes as one by one, Aadithya, Shiva, Agni, and Umaiyal emerged from their hiding places. Without hesitation, Umaiyal ran towards Thulir and embraced her....Thulir picked her up and kissed her cheeks which Umaiyazh reciprocated......Her only sister-in-law, who is merely eight years old, adores Thulir very much. Thulir looked back at the 4 brothers and raised her brows.."Ena mama athai lam miss aguranga...avanga enga???"(Mamas and Atthais are missing ...where are they??)"Nenga vera en anni...Avangala lam samathanam pani ithu youngsters time nenga varatheinga nu soli vetula vitutu varave ivlo neram achu...ilana epovo vanthurupom......Shiva solu daa "(It took us this much time to convince them all its youngsters time and they supposed not to come here...if not the consoling session we would have came here much earlier anni....say Shiva..)Agni said patting Shiva's shoulder who is standing beside him.....Shiva to nodded his head up and down agreeing with his brother..."Yess Anni""Oh...okay Lets go inside first..."Thulir said to them and they all nodded their head and followed her...Aadhithya was carrying another bag with him to which is also food and sweets his mother, Chithi's and perima made for Thulir and Agathiyan....When they entered and saw Jaishankar and Jayadev the brothers gang was shocked and now they are glaring at Thuyavan who is trying his best not to make any eye contact....While glaring at him, they politely greeted the elders and took a seat next to Thuyavan, who didn't dare to acknowledge their presence. That guy was definitely in for a rough time with the gang if he get caught by them alone....Umaiyazh was complaining  to Thulir about her brothers insisting on accompanying her every time she rides her bicycle. They became overprotective after she fell down last week while cycling without training wheels...When Thulir was about to lecture then Aadhi came forward in defence with his points "Anni, we are simply taking precautions. We haven't stopped her from riding a bicycle, but with those training wheels, we can have peace of mind. She needs to learn to ride with them first, then we can transition to a bicycle without training wheels.""Wait....we???"Thulir asked now its Umaiyazh turn to glare at her brothers.."Yes, Aadhi Na and Shiva Na came in leave right, along with Amu Na and Agni Na, they accompany me like bodyguards to nearby park, not even allowing me to play with boys my own age...because of them I don't go to play in evening .....I  am not going to untill Aadhi and shiva na leaves "Umaiyazh expressed her frustration and stomped her feet glaring at her brothers..."Achhoooo....Why are you guys bothering her more......she will learn only after failing sometimes...let her fall and stand up  on her own...........you guys know how many "veera thalumbugal" I have""Don't even start, Akka... We all grew up listening to the tales of your adventurous life, along with Agathiyan maam's and Aadhavan naa's stories... Yes, and how you chased and fell over Agathiyan maams, along with the bicycle tumbling after him as you lost control of the handlebars while Aadhavan naa was teaching you to ride...Look Umaiyazh you can take any class from my akka except how to ride a bicycle"Thuyavan's reply made others burst into fits of laughter, earning a hard knock on the head from his sister....Marrying a cousin has its own set of advantages and disadvantages; one such drawback is the lack of new childhood stories to share, as they have already grown up hearing those tales....After much banter, they all enjoyed lunch, Jaishankar and Jayadev left after that....the boys gang helped Thulir is changing the whole set up of the room and dusting the whole house while Umaiyazh slept in one room...later they all slept in the hall while Thulir indulged herself in making snacks for them to have in evening........Around 6pm, everyone departed for home, saying goodbye to Thulir....Thulir packed the halwa and fries she made and gave them to her in-laws as well as her own family, especially for Thalir who loves sweets. Consequently, Thulir sent half of the sweets her mother-in-law had sent to her, to Thalir.....Even though she was angry she couldn't hate or left out her sister....she knows why Thalir didn't accompanied them....she didn't asked her father or brother about Thalir yet she missed her sister's banters more........After sending off them Thulir took bath and wore another cotton saree...in these month she learned to wear saree with ease.....After cleaning the kitchen and mopping the floor, she decided to cook dinner later. Exhausted, she sat on the sofa and eventually fell asleep there by herself....Agathiyan returned home around 9pm, using his spare key to unlock the door and enter, only to find his wife asleep on the sofa. He knew she must be worn out, and he was aware that to pass the time, she would opt to clean the entire house by herself. That's why he had asked his brothers and Thuyavan to assist her. The arrival of Jayadev and Jaishankar was unexpected; had they known the group was planning to clean the house, they would have stayed to help. Not wanting to burden them, Thulir claimed she had no such plans and abandoned the idea upon seeing everyone together.The boys claimed they were only going to watch movies, which is why the father and son duo departed. However, once they left, the boys began working on their own, surprising Thulir, who didn't want to impose work on them. Nonetheless, they are hell bend on completing the task assigned by Agathiyan.Agathiyan gently touched her cheeks, rousing her from her slumber. She opened her eyes and gazed at him.."when did you came???""just now.."He responded to her. Thulir glanced at the clock, sat up lazily, and patted the space beside her, gesturing for him to sit down....Agathiyan took a seat beside her. Thulir shifted in his lap and embraced him, closing her eyes once more....Agathiyan chuclked and secured her in his embrace and kissed her head......after sometime..he called her.."Yeiii Theeni""hmmmmm""Adiyee""hmmmmmm"Thulir just hummed snuggling more into his chest..."Avlo thookama"(That much sleepy)"Hmmmm"again just hmm...he chuckled...."Aren't you hungry dii??"""Hm hmm....I ate alot today and I am full.....leave that how did the case went....is the judgement favorable to your side"Thulir asked looking up at him while her fingers drawing pattern in his clean shaved jaw.....Agathiyan held her hand and kissed her palm nodding his head..."Yes, it was favorable for our side... the accused did not get bail as our arguments and proofs were strong.""isn't final verdict ??""These kind of cases  takes years for final judgement Thulir...that too when then accused have both money and political background....they would appeal in Supreme court after this...till that hearing we have to look after other cases and the routine goes on"He spoke... Thulir simply nodded her head, and as she was about to stand up, he pulled her back and embraced her....Thulir smiled and kissed his chin, then his jaw, and slowly made her way to his forehead, planting kisses that made him giggle at her actions....Agathiyan gently held her chin between his thumb and index finger, halting her series of kisses....Thulir glared at him with a pout...he shook his head lightly and pecked her pout....Thulir playfully slapped him. Agathiyan simply gazed at her, his eyes filled with such admiration and love that it inevitably made her blush..."Are you Happy now ???""More than happy Agathiya.......because today I became your wife......and you my husband only mine.......are you happy Agathiya??"Thulir asked him back who is now examining the Thali....Agathiyan just nodded making Thulir narrow her eyes at him....she  gripped his hair in fist and made him look at her...."Enayaa...huh....happy irukiya nu ketta mandaiya mattum attura....vaila ena kolukatta vachirukiya....vaya thronanthu sona ena koranjida pora nee huh??"(What huh....I asked you are you happy ...open your mouth and say it instead you are just nodding your head....why is it something stuck in your mouth stooping you from speaking )Thulir said  angryly....Agathiyan instead of answering he furrowed confusing her..."Thulir... are you sure you are not pregnant...""Ehhh""just answer me dii""I am not pregnant at all Agthiya last week I had my periods...don't you know my dates.....wait...why did you asked that question??"With a puzzled expression, Thulir asked him.....he bit his inner cheeks to control his smile....composing himself he pulled her more towards him....his hand gripped her bare waist accelerating her breath.....His other hand cupped her neck and His thumb traced from the end of her ear to her jaw, pulling her face closer to his....he leaned to her ears and muttered in his deep husky voice..."Remember, We did "it" exactly one and half month before...."Her face flushed more hearing that...he further continued making her toes curl by his next question.."Today we  got married...That means Tonight is our first night... apo inaiku Kedaikumaa"(can I get it today?)He asked licking  her earlobe making her Squirm in his embrace.....he planted open mouth kisses on her nape gaining soft moan from her....."Ahhh...Agaah...aga..thi..yaa....""hmmmm" he hummed moving to her cleavage while his hand unpinned her pallu....before it feel down she held it making him look up at her......"....paasikalayaaa??"(aren't you hungry )he chucked and his palm pressed her Bosom over the cloth making her eyes roll back.... Thulir bit her lower lip to prevent herself from moaning....."Pasikuthu thaa dii....ana sapadu vena....nee venum...."(Indeed I am hungry.....but I don't want food but you...)......