Second Chance

Chapter 16 "I'll Wait"

Savitri leaves the study. Dev thinks deeply about the conversation with his mother. After finishing up his work in the study, he walks up to his room. 

When Dev enters the room, he notices the lights in his room were dim. Only a small lamp lit next to the other side of the bed. He sees Mahi asleep, curled up on the side. Since she had already tired her eyes from all that crying, it didn't take her long to doze off. Dev walks up to her side. He looks at her sleeping. He sits down on his feet next to where her head is. He stays there for the next couple of minutes, gazing at her sleeping face quietly, with folded hands on his knees. While he intently looks at her breathing softly, he resolves not to give up on her so easily. He thinks back about the morning interaction with her. He did notice something off about her eyes and facial expressions when she denied having any feeling for him in the morning. But now, after listening to his mother. He becomes resolute to stay next to her and to believe her eyes more than her words until she accepts her feelings truthfully. 

With the tip of his fingers, Dev caresses her forehead lovingly. He gets up and switches off the lamp. He then opens the blanket at her feet and drapes it gently over her. 

The next day, the house starts bustling with all type of noise. A kid is running around in the living room with a lot of energy to stream off. 

'He was in a 12-hour flight. Right?' says Mahi seeing the kid, amusingly. She is wearing a yellow cotton salwar kurta as she sits in one of the chairs in the living room.

'Oh! Yes, where he slept like a rock. I am the only one who is recovering from jet lag,' says Nivriti in an exhausted voice. She is having tea in her hand as she is seated on the sofa next to Mahi, wearing printed white kurta and salwar. Nivriti is Savitri's first and eldest daughter. She seemed wide awake yet exhausted from a long flight from Norway. 

'Let him be. Don't disturb my favourite grandson,' says Savitri catching the running Veer. She pampers him as she picks him up playfully. 

'He is your only grandson,' says Dev giving his mother the reality check, seated across the room on the dining table having his late breakfast. 

'Yeah! Only till someone gives us another good news,' says Nivriti with a teasing smile at Mahi. Mahi raises an eyebrow at her poking. 

Dev picking up the hint of what his sister means, replies,' Why? Are you expecting again?'

Nivriti throws a small cushion in Dev's direction as she says,' I was talking about you two, idiot.'

Mahi chuckles softly, seeing the playful teasing of the siblings in front of her. Savitri changes the topic by asking,' Where is the star of the event? Doesn't she know that it's her engagement tomorrow?'

Everyone chuckles at Savitri's accusation for her youngest daughter, Anukriti. 

'She should be here anytime. Her flight landed an hour ago,' says Mahi informing everyone about her friend slash sister-in-law's arrival.

'Looks like I am gonna live another hundred years,' says the lean, average height girl at the entrance, wearing a denim jacket with a pair of black jeans. In the next moment, she screams,' Nivi Di!!' And then, she runs towards her sister and wraps her in a hug affectionately. She greets her mother next and then hugs Mahi with the same excited affection calling out her name. 

'Bhabhi bol (Address her sister-in-law),' says Nivriti hitting playfully on Anukriti's arm. 

'No. We are friends first,' says Mahi wrapping an arm around her waist. 

'Yeah? Right, buddy,' says Anu, putting her hand on Mahi's shoulder and high-fiving her.

Nivriti gives up, knowing how both always have been. Since the time they were kids. Anu then goes to her brother and hugs him, greeting him. She says,' Bhai, I hope she is not troubling you much,' teasingly.