Not Her

Epilogue

The overcrowded Gandhi Chowk was driving Abhay nuts after his peaceful visit from the Khajjar Lake and the Rock Garden of Dalhousie.  They were  sitting at a coffee stall, taking a small break on their way towards St. Francis Church. 

Khusi was standing a bit far away from the father daughter duo, enthusiastically making a video of her surroundings with a wide beam on her face. Abhay tried to help Yuti, blowing away the heat from her cup of coffee but she swatted away his hands with a scowl.

"I am not a child, papa. I can blow air off my coffee on my own," she chided and turned away from Abhay. 

Abhay shook his head and looked away, his gaze halting at Khusi and her infectious smile , making his heart miss a beat. It's been 5 years since they knew each other but every day he felt like he was falling for her more and more.

Heaving a dreamy sigh, Abhay grinned at an over-excited Khusi who was recording a video of their tour. Everything else zoomed out for him as his eyes glazed all over Khusi, her hair flying in all directions because of the breeze, the tip of her nose red from the freezing cold, her lips pale pink. Was it possible to fall for someone all over again, everyday? Abhay wondered.

In the meantime, Yuti jumped down from her seat and dashed towards something which had caught her attention. 

Khusi waved her hand in the camera, and shut it out, taking a deep breath. Her eyes stilled at Abhay who was gazing at her with so much adoration that she couldn't help but blush. With a shy smile on her face, she ambled towards the stall and took a seat beside the love of her life, who was still gazing at her with a gentle smile on his lips.

"Stop it, will you?" Khusi groaned and covered his eyes with her palms making Abhay chuckle at her shyness. 

"Why should I? I have every right to stare at my wife," he whispered near her ears, sliding his fingers through her neck and leaving a small kiss below her ears. Khusi's neck warmed at Abhay's intimate gesture. He was so much into PDA that it drove her crazy sometimes.

Pulling away Abahy sipped his coffee as if he didn't just make Khusi flustered. "You are impossible," Khusi murmured before leaning into him and kissing his cheek, making Abhay grin at her.

"But you still love me."

"You bet I do."

Both of them laughed out loud at their interaction, totally unaware of Yuti who was striding towards them with a tiny creature in her arms.

"So, when are you planning on uploading this video?" Abhay asked, running his fingers through his hair, which was stiff, pointing towards her camera, making Khusi pursue her lips. 

"I need to edit it first. There are so many raw clips on it and I look idiotic in some of them, babbling too much nonsense," Khusi grumbled, kicking at invisible pebbles. 

"Vlogs are supposed to be raw." 

"I know, but I feel like I am too camera conscious. I need a lot more practice to become more confident," she complained, leaning her head on Abhay's shoulder, hugging his arm.

"That's fine. You're not making the videos for competition but because  you love posting stuff out there. And recording your daily activities makes you happy," Abhay mumbled, kissing Khusi's temple, making her glance up at him with a small smile. 

Out of nowhere Khusi's eyes widened and she sat up straight "Where's Yuti!?"

Abhay's eyes widened and panic flooded in his nerves  "Shit!" Before both of them could fret, a loud shriek reverberated around them.

"Khusi Ma, Papa . Look whom I found!" Yuti exclaimed, catching the duo's attention. Their head snapped towards Yuti who had a wide mischievous grin on her face, and a tiny pooch in her arms, who was constantly wagging its floppy tail.