They looked at each other, deeply, for a couple seconds before Pallavi fully woke up from her dream.
"Oh shit, saat bhaj gaya. I have to get ready, I have to finish breakfast, Amma wanted me to help her get some things ready for a puja she's doing at the temple, and then I have to get to the shop—" Pallavi said all this really quickly, and before she could finish or fully get up, Raghav put his finger over her lips and said "shhh, calm down. itna stress subha subha body ke liye accha nahi hai." His finger lingered on her lips, until she looked down, and backed out of bed, almost tripping over the sheets. Raghav laughed, and Pallavi, glaring, "ah yes, your wife almost falls down and you laugh." And she grabbed her pillow and threw it at him. It took him by surprise, and he almost fell over backwards.
"Yeh kya tam, tum apnea hi pathi ko mar rahi ho?"
Pallavi grinned, "Jaa ke apne police force se FIR likhwaalo," and before Raghav could pull her back into bed, she dashed into the washroom to shower.
Raghav tried to go back to sleep, but as soon as he fell into Pallavi's pillow, Saanki Baba's voice echoed in his head, "Woh Pallavi ke liye teek nahin hain. He's not trustworthy, he will destroy her." Was Amma right, did he destroy everything that came near him. He caused his father's and his brother's death. Because of him, Amma and Keerthi spent most of their lives angry, scared, and alone. And Pallavi, just because he married her didn't mean he deserved her. He stared at the washroom door, willing it to be the door to Pallavi's mind. What was she thinking, did she feel anything for me? Or was her trust and faith once lost, unretrievable? He got up, and decided on a workout before a shower. He had to win Pallavi's trust, somehow. She thought he ruined her family, so maybe he could fix it. His workout was rough, every time he hit the tire, he imagined it as someone else who he needed to hit, but couldn't anymore, he promised to Amma that he would stop acting like a Don. He also realized, if he didn't stop living in his anger all the time, then maybe Pallavi wouldn't be able to stand it anymore. His thought went back to that day when he caught her dancing in the studio, the fear, the worry in her eyes when she saw him. He hit the tire again, and again, over and over again until his shoulders ached.
"Anna, stop, what are you doing?" Farhad jumped in and tried to pull the hammer from him.
"Farhad, how many times have I told you to not bother me when I'm exercising. Mereko mere concentration nahin khona."
Right then he heard humming from the dining room. Keerthi were humming along to a song, a Telugu melody he remembered from when he was a child, but the voice wasn't Amma's, it sounded like, Pallavi's.
"Tum toh bahut acchi gaathi ho, Pallavi," Amma said walking in the room, "but where did you learn this song?"
"I heard from a mother one the street one day, and since then I couldn't get it out of my head, you know half the time I'm trying to learn Telugu, it's because I want to be able to sing this song perfectly."
Raghav dropped the hammer, barely missing his foot, whatever happened, he had to try to win Pallavi's trust, and the only way to that was through her family.
"Amma, I'm leaving for the showroom, today's our new season's photoshoot, I'm very excited. I kept all the puja items you needed in the mandir room." She started to walk out the door, and before she left she turned to look for Raghav. She saw him standing in front of that tire, his eyes catching hers. She smiled and waved goodbye, he smiled back, his hand automatically raising. When she left, Farhad started snickering.
"Shut up, Farhad," Raghav left to shower, grinning on the way up the stairs thinking about Pallavi's goodbye wave and her smile.
Farhad prayed, "Allah, I pray to you with every fiber of my being that Pallavi and Raghav finally understand each other. You've already given us many miracles in their relationship, but just one more..."
