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End Game

Ajabdeh had walked out of the office and checked her watch. It was late, and the financial year-end was tough. She felt stiff in her neck and shoulders and wanted to go home. The thought of home made her smile. She looked up as the cars moved across the busy roads, and she waited at the signal for them to stop. She looked up and she could spot him on the other side of the road, waving at her with a smile. The shirt she had bought him on their last anniversary looked good on him. She waited for the signal to turn red before she ran across the road, almost into his arms.

“What are you doing here?” She asked, surprised. “I thought you would be home.”
“I knew you would get off work late, so I thought of surprising you.” He smiled sheepishly, “How was your day?” He held her hand as they started walking down the empty pavement.
“Tiring, yours?” She asked eagerly.
“Well, I am getting a promotion next month, and we can look at the cars.” He shrugged. 
“We don’t need a car.” She frowned. “The bike and scooter are just fine.”
“We will need one soon.” He made her blush. “I told Shakti that he is going to be an uncle.”
“And?” Ajabdeh asked, raising her eyebrows.
“I think he is planning on buying the entire Little Shop store.” He made her chuckle. “And…?” She made him stop and sigh.
“I told him not to tell her.” Ajabdeh narrowed her brows at her husband.
“Come on now, it has been three years since you two stopped talking. One of you has to start…” She knew it was in vain because her husband was the most stubborn human being on the planet, next to his mother. 

She had secretly sent a wedding invite to his mother, only to receive congratulatory flowers and a note that said “Take care, best wishes.” Shakti had tried to convince them to meet in vain, even after she named him the CEO of the company. Somehow, all the turmoil made Ajabdeh closer to her parents. Her ever-supportive father was expectedly cool about them starting a life together, but Mrs. Chauhan surprised her with her Nani’s wedding saree as a gift.

“I know it is rare to find love, and I know I have wronged you. Let me make my amends.” She had said, and to Ajabdeh’s surprise, her father supported the stance that whatever differences they had had should not make Ajabdeh hate her. At Pratap’s suggestion, they went for couples counselling much earlier in their relationship, and somehow he taught her not to hold on to things that hurt her, grudges, bad memories, and past traumas. She had learnt to move on from holding things against her mother and forgive her eventually. Everything she wished he would do himself. 


Pratap handed her the extra helmet as he took the ride and waited for her to sit behind him before he put on his helmet.

“What do you want to do? Go for a movie or a nice dinner?” He asked as she smiled, holding on to his waist from behind and hugging him before she put the helmet on. “I just want to go home, have some takeout dinner and fall asleep on the couch beside you.” She made him smile.

“Happy Anniversary, by the way.” He held her hand from his waist and kissed her palm as she smiled, putting the helmet on.

“Happy Anniversary.” She nodded as he put on the helmet. “I love you.”


When Pratap decreased the volume of the TV, he found his wife snoring as she placed her head on his shoulder and slept soundly. He used his free hand to pull the quilt over her body and leaned back to sigh and stare at her sleeping figure before kissing her forehead. It made her stir as he patted her gently and smiled at her sleeping figure. Just like the moon found calmness in the serene silence of the night sky, he found a sense of belonging in everything normal, mundane, and everyday he shared with Ajabdeh. Pratap had never imagined love was this simple, boring, stable feeling of peace that he felt at the moment.


The End





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