Gautham and his family were on their way back home; his parents had a goofy grin on their faces.
"I take it you liked Sindhu..?" He asked. It was more a rhetoric question than an actual question.
"So how did you like her parents?" He asked again. He did not get much time to talk with them to actually make an opinion.
"Well, they were polite. Her mom tried to sell me how much a goody two shoes her daughter was. But I know those eyes. She should have been quite the troublemaker. And if I judged the girl right, she will tell you as to how much trouble she has actually made. And she is going to be quite the addition to our family" Gautham's mom, Renuka, said, totally amused.
"Whoa whoa whoa. Nothing is decided just yet. So, slow down your horses."Gautham exclaimed panicked.
"Oh cut the crap Gautham. I am your mother. You and I both know that you like that girl way too much to let her pass through your fingers. When was the last time you even talked to a girl for a full 2 hours?? Try something like 'Never' that's how many times." Renuka said with that know-it-all smirk on her face. Yup, his mom lives her life to annoy the crap out of him.
"You are soo annoying, you know that??" Gautham asked his mom, sarcasm dripping out.
"Yup and you love me more for that." She sassed.
God, she was annoying but then she was also right. If not for her craziness, he wouldn’t be who he is today. And now that he thought about it, it should be because he had gotten so used to her craziness that he couldn’t appreciate any of the girls he previously saw… they were all proper. And for the same reason, he found Sindhu so much more attractive and amusing.
"Anyways I think this month I will be able to see a new drama. Because obviously, as we all know, you like to get what you want. And Sindhu doesn't seem like the girl who is going to take your crap with her heads down. She is rather feisty if I could say. So I better keep my popcorns ready for some good old family drama" and this was his dad, Govind.
"Oh! Not you too dad. Sometimes I feel like the only adult in the family. You guys act like high school kids most of the time" Gautham said irritated at his parents.
"And you love us more for it" His parents chorused.
Yup this was his crazy family.
My mom, Mrs. Renuka Govind. She used to be a lawyer but she quit a few years ago. So she is a homemaker now. Well, she is Gautham's best friend and loves annoying him just about all the time.
My dad, Mr. Govind. He is a practicing lawyer and runs a firm. He loves his mom and me to bits. And most of the time, he will be the front row audience to their bickering. And he will be thoroughly entertained.
And lastly, himself, Gautham Govind. He was also a lawyer like his parents. Seem to run in the family. Currently, he was working outside. But one day he will have to take over his dad's firm.
And he, being a bachelor at 29 years is the biggest concern of all my good for nothing relative of his. So the bride hunting started.
And his mom is now taking revenge for all the annoying comments Gautham passed on the other girls she chose to show him before. The fact that he could not hold a conversation for two whole minutes with them pretty much decided his answer.
And then there is Sindhu... Let's just say he had no clue how two hours passed by.
It was a whole different scene in Sindhu's house. Her mom was shooting daggers at her while she just gave a nonchalant look.
"Mom I told you before itself. If I am to say yes to this marriage crap, it's going to be on my terms and nobody else's. So stop trying to burn me already." Sindhu said and took her car keys and strode out of her house.
God, why is it always so hard to make mom understand anything?
She let out a frustrated groan and headed towards her car.
She took off in her car at a lightning speed.
She parked her car at a McDonald's near their house.
Sindhu took her orders to a corner table and gobbled off the burger in a few minutes. She sat back and let her thoughts wander about today. Her mom being her mom reacted just the way Sindhu predicted. And her dad, as always kept his mouth shut. God, they drive her crazy half the time.
Don't get her wrong. She loves them very much. It's just... She just doesn't fit in.
Her mom... Mrs. Aruna Srinivasan. She is your typical Indian mom whose aim is to get Sindhu married off to some nice guy. She loves Sindhu and Sindhu knows that. But Aruna never really understood her. She wants Sindhu's life her way. She never even made the effort to know what Sindhu wanted out of her life.
She wanted Sindhu to be someone successful with goals and determination. Well, Sindhu never got to know the "g" of goal or "d" of determination. It's not like she doesn't want to be successful but it was not exactly a priority either. So she was your typical lazy bum while her mom was the typical perfectionist- very disciplined and focused. And that right there was their problem.
Her dad. Mr. Srinivasan. He is a Chartered Accountant. He has a firm of his own. Well, he is this silent audience to everything that happens in the house. Sometimes Sindhu takes comfort in his silence even when she knows he doesn't understand her.
And then lastly herself Ms. Sindhuja Srinivasan. She is a Chartered Accountant. She worked in Earnest & Young for three years as far as everyone was concerned. She did earn a hefty sum for her needs. Now she runs her Dad's firm. And on top of it, she was a painter by hobby. But she does sell her paintings. And she even painted a rich guy's house back in Bangalore.
Wait there is one more person in her family.
And that's her brother. Mr. Aarav Srinivasan. Well, he is in Pune right now with his family. He is a big-shot businessman. He owns a company. He is married with two kids. Her sister-in-law is Mrs. Anitha Aarav. She is a fashion designer. And her niece is Anuradha alias Anu. She is quiet and a cutie pie. And then her nephew is Vikram. Let's just say he is not exactly the innocent little kid though he does pull off an innocent face very well. He is the little devil of the family. But she loves him so much for his antics. Those kids are the two people in her life who can make her smile- not the plastered one Sindhu gives everyone but a genuine smile.
Sindhu pulled away from her train of thoughts when it started raining again. She felt its presence before even she heard the downpour. She quickly gobbled the rest of her meal and scramble out.
God, it was raining cats and dogs... And the timing was just perfect.
Wait she forgot. There was one other thing that can bring a smile on her face apart from her niece and nephew and she was staring at it right now. And let's just say she was going to reach home looking like a lost puppy drenched head to toe.
Gautham stood there outside a building that looked like an office but the only problem was everyone inside was talking and laughing around. Not a single person was actually working. There were about ten people just hanging around and making fun. One of them was even munching on snacks as he laughed around joking. Gautham looked around confused not knowing whether to go in or not until he saw a room with a signboard Ms. Sindhuja Srinivas. At last, he was sure that he was in the right place. He knocked on the door tentatively and a faint "come in" came from inside the room right after. He opened the doors and peaked in. There she was, wearing spectacles that were clutching onto the top of her nose; brows frowned from concentrating and she seemed frustrated as she signed some papers. Gautham cleared his throat to get her attention but Sindhu was already too into the work to notice it. So he had to knock on her table standing in front of her desk which finally go
"And Arvind your salary will be on your account on the 1st of every month along with your exam fees okay" "But mam, you don't have to do that. I will manage." "Arvind, I know I don't have to do it but I am doing it. God, what's with you guys always arguing with me. I am seriously getting confused about who the boss is" Sindhu bickered. "Thank you, mam. I won't let you down. I promise. I will be back in a year." He said. The kinda respect he has for his boss is very evident in his voice. "I will hold the fort till then. You just focus on your exams. And if any of these dumb heads call you with doubts, just ignore them. Even they have to learn. Anyways I am going out for lunch, make sure the dumb heads don't set the office on fire okay" she said taking her bags. "Yes, mam," Arvind said with a salute jokingly and walked out of the office with a grin. At last, Sindhu's attention turned to Gautham and he was looking at her amazed. "
After 2 hours of driving, they reached Mahabalipuram Beach. Gautham staggered from the back of the bike and he looked pale as if he might faint any moment. On the other hand, Sindhu had no expression on her face. After taking a few deep breathes, the darkness on her face evaded. Sindhu plastered a smile and turned to face Gautham and in an instant, her expression changed to concern and slowly to guilt. Was she that rash while she was driving?? Sindhu thought to herself. You probably drove like a maniac as always, you idiot! Her subconscious scolded her instantly. The next second she rushed to Gautham's side and held his arms for support and hurriedly explained. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I mean, in all the excitement of being behind wheels after soo long that I utterly forgot about you sitting behind me. Was it that bad??" Sindhu gave him her best puppy dog face filled with regret. Gautham just glared at her and said gritting his te
Gautham looked at the girl who was still tirelessly playing in the waves. Sindhu was fully drenched by now but that did not seem to faze her. Her laughter made him feel things he didn't know how to describe. He was not a sappy person and for him, the term ‘love’ relates to people he understands deeply and after spending a lot of effort and time together. He does not believe in sudden magic and sparks. But looking at that girl playing in the water, the sun descending behind her with crimson bleeding throughout the sky and her laughter ringer in his ears- he knew he was happy at that moment. And that happiness came because of her presence without her ever doing anything. But that was all he needed to know. He knew he could be happy with her. He knew if it was with her, he can make a family. And that is what he was looking for in a marriage…On an impulse, he stood up and sneaked behind Sindhu. But before he could scare her as he planned, she turned around and
Sindhu and Gautham continued to banter. But after a while silence filled between them. Sindhu started to walk along the shore and Gautham followed suit. After a while, Gautham reached out for Sindhu's hands and made her look at him, and asked in a soft voice, "Why did you panic??""You just caught me off guard I guess. Moreover, just the term "Marriage" scares me shitless." Sindhu brushed off Gauthams hands and walked away from the shore and sat on the sand. Seeing that Gautham was still standing, she patted the space next to her silently asking him to sit near her."As I said, you don't know me well Gautham.", Sindhu said looking sideways at Gautham.Gautham once again reached out for Sindhu's hands and held them in his. He looked at their joined hands and then looked up at Sindhu and asked in an earnest voice, "Then tell me about yourself because I wanna know everything about you."Sindhu let out a loud sigh. Her whole life flashed past her in a matter
Sindhu woke up to traffic noise. She dozed off 5 minutes into the ride. Seeing that Sindhu had finally woken up, Gautham asked her, "Where do you want to eat??"Sindhu looked around her and she recognized where they were, quite easily. She thought about it for a minute and asked, "Do you like Maggie??" Gautham said, "Yes, why?"Sindhu did not answer but instead, directed him to drive to an apartment building near where they were. It was on the outskirts of the city. They were about half an hour away from her home.Gautham gave Sindhu a confused look. "Where is this exactly??""Oh, this... This is my apartment of sorts, I guess. My parents don't know about this place. Come on. Let's go." Sindhu said in a matter-of-fact voice."Well, that explained everything. Thanks for nothing." Gautham said sarcastically following Sindhu inside the building.The strong stench of paint and thinner hit his nostrils as soon as he stepped inside. Now that explains ev
Gautham went into the kitchen and stood beside her. He could see the guilt and regret eating her up. He could feel her barely holding on. He felt as if one wrong move from him and she will break to pieces.Gautham carefully rubbed her head first and he tucked a few stray hairs behind her ears. He took the vessels from her hand and closed the taps. He gently pulled her so that she would face him. What he saw tugged at his heart. For once Sindhu seemed vulnerable. It seemed like she was showing her true self to him. The person she had hidden behind cold stares and cheeky grins."Hey... look at me," Gautham said softly.When their eyes met, her eyes told them all -her pain, her despair, her guilt, her regret, and her insecurities. Gautham knew he cannot be careless so he chose his words carefully."I am not going to stand here and trivialize your mistakes to make you feel better because frankly, I don't really know half of it and I have not been in your shoe
To Gautham's surprise, when he entered his own home, he actually found his mother still awake. She was sitting in the living room with a book and specs. She looked up removing her specs as soon as she heard Gautham come in. You can see she was tried and pissed."Where were you today?? I heard you took half a day off from the office. You should have called to let me know that you were going to be late home", Renuka asked and scolded with an underlying concern."I was with Sindhu.", Gautham replied simply but came and sat beside his mum and leaned on her shoulders. The unease in his mind was visible on his face. Gautham was pretty close to his family, particularly to his mum and Renuka knew Gautham as the back of her hands."Don't tell me you have a problem with Sindhu's drinking habit. Then I will have to call my own son a male chauvinistic pig and I know I raised you better than that.", Renuka asked jokingly but her eyes were actually serious.Gautham let