As everyone cleaned up after the meal and left the room, Yagnik signaled for his younger siblings to hang back for a moment. “Guys, saaf saaf pata chal raha hain ki Bhai aur Bhabhi ke beech sab theek nahi hain. Lag rahe hain ki Bhai ab tak accept nahi kiya ki shaadi ho chuki hain unki. Hume hi kuch karna padega.”

(Guys, it’s clear that everything isn’t right between Bhai and Bhabhi. It seems like Bhai still hasn’t accepted that he’s married. We have to do something.)

Priya nodded, “Haan Bhai, mujhe bhi Bhabhi se baat karke aisa hi laga.”

(Yes Bhai, I felt the same after talking to Bhabhi.)

Akshu, Yuv and Yug nodded vaguely, already building plans in their head. “Akshu, tumhe waise bhi Bhabhi se kuch baat karni thi, na? Tum baat karo, aur uss waqt, main pehla aag lagata hoon.”

(Akshu, you needed to speak with Bhabhi about something right? While you do that, I’ll talk to Bhai. Light the first fire.)

“Pehla aag?”

(First fire?)

He grinned. “You guys trust in me, right?” “Of course, Bhai,” they chorused. “Good. We’ll meet afterwards and make a solid plan. Tomorrow, it’s going to be ‘Lights, Camera, Action’ time.” They all high-fived, then headed to the living room.

Later, as Akanksha and Vaidehi discussed her future study plans, Yagnik knocked on the door to his Bhai’s study, connected to his bedroom. “Come in.” “Bhai, mujhe aapse kuch important baat karna hain.”

(Bhai, I have to talk to you about something important.)

Raghuveer pushed down the screen of his laptop, closing it halfway, and focused on his younger brother. “Hmm, bolo.”

(Hmm, speak.)

No matter how busy he was, he always gave his complete attention when his family needed him. Yagnik knew and loved this about his brother, but why didn’t he realize that Bhabhi is part of the family, too? Alright, time to jump from the frying pan into the flames. “Aap Bhabhi ko kyun ignore karte ho?”

(Why do you ignore Bhabhi?)

Raghuveer stiffened and glared sharply at his brother. “Kya matlab tumhara?”

(What’s your meaning?)

“Jo keh diya, saaf saaf keh diya. Koi aur matlab nahi hain.”

(I meant exactly what I said. There’s no other meaning.)

“Yagnik, that’s none of your…” Yagnik held up his hand, the frustration he had been holding back truly coming out now. “No Bhai, it is my business, it’s all of our business. Because the fact that you clearly haven’t accepted Bhabhi is visible in every part of your life, and to all of us, too. You didn’t even know that Bhabhi cooks. Who do you think packs our lunches most days of the week? You even asked once if we got a new cook, but when we said no, you never bothered to think that perhaps that newest member of our household, your wife, was the cook. And this happened only in the first week of your marriage, three days after Bhabhi’s pehli rasoi.

You knew that she had cooked lunch that day because everyone made a big deal out of her pehli rasoi and Maa clearly mentioned it to you so that you could give Bhabhi her shagun. I don’t even need to ask to know that you didn’t give her any shagun. But how could you forget three days later that your wife cooks, Bhai? That shows just how much attention you give Bhabhi. And today, when Priya told you that Bhabhi got a new project, you didn’t even react. Hawa mein congratulations bol ke chhod diya.

(You just said congratulations to the air and left it.)

Speaking of her work, well…I’ll let you find out some things yourself. I don’t think you realize, Bhai, how dependent you’ve become on Bhabhi in your day-to-day life. And forget about that, have you ever noticed just how much she loves this family. She’s the best Bhabhi and bahu anyone could ask for. I don’t like to insult you, but you’re really stupid to not realize just how lucky you are to have married Bhabhi. I mean, did you know that one of her seniors from school finally worked up the courage to propose to her the day before your wedding, and she rejected him for you. A man she had only met once during the engagement and hadn’t even shared two words with. Heck, if I had the chance to know Bhabhi a little bit better before your wedding, I would have run away with her myself.”

That was absolutely not true. Yagnik loved his Bhabhi as a sister, and he could never ever imagine anything like that, but he was trying his best to get a reaction out of his brother. “Shut up, Yagnik! She’s my wife and your Bhabhi!” “Oh really? So, you do remember that you have a wife?” Yagnik sighed as Raghuveer just continued to glare at him. “Just remember this, Bhai. We often don’t understand the value of what we have until we lose it. Don’t bring the situation to that point. We love you and Bhabhi both, and we only want your happiness.” With that he walked out of the room, letting his brother ruminate on his thoughts. His work was done for today.

Raghuveer stared out the window of his study, laughing humorlessly at the irony. Yagnik thought he was ignoring his wife, when really, he was failing spectacularly at that.

“Maa, aap abhi tak soye nahi. Bohot der ho chuka hain.”

(Maa, you didn’t sleep yet? It’s very late.)

Chandrika entered Raghuveer’s study, closing the door behind her. “Haan, lekin aaj kal main zyaada nahi so paa rahi hoon.”

(Yes, but I haven’t been able to sleep much these days.)

Raghuveer shut his laptop, dragging his mom over to the couch by the window. “Aap zyaada tension lete hain, har chhoti cheez ko lekar. Kal hum doctor ke paas jayenge, aur yeh need ki problem theek karwadenge.”

(You take too much stress, over every little thing. Tomorrow we’ll go to the doctor’s, and we’ll get this sleep problem fixed.)

Chandrika chuckled, smoothing her son’s hair. “Jab mere bacche itne samajhdaar hain, toh mujhe kis baat ki tension. Bas ek baat hain, ki tum apne kandon par pura duniya ka bhoj uthana chahthe ho.”

(When my children are so understanding, then why should I take stress? But there’s one thing, that you take the weight of the whole world on your shoulders.)

“Maa, aisa kuch bhi nahi hain. Main yahan aap sab kaam kam karne ke liye koshish kar raha hoon, aur aap hain ki mere hi tension le rahe hain. Aur aap ko doctor ke paas jaane hi padega. Sehat ka khayal rakhna hain aapko.”

(Maa, there’s nothing like that. I’m working to make sure that you all have less tensions, and here you are stressing about me? And you must go to the doctor. You must take care of your health.)

“Issiliye toh chinta karti hoon. Har waqt kaam, kaam, kaam. Tumhara kaam, humara kaam. Agar Abhiram ya Yagnik tumhe ghaseet ke nahi le jaate, toh tum aaram karne ki naam hi nahi lete ho. Aur meri sehat bilkul theek haun. Bas jab umr hone lagta hain, toh kuch cheezein, jaise theek se sona, badalte hain.”

(This is why I worry. 24/7 work, work, work. Your work, our work. If Abhiram and Yagnik didn’t drag you away, you wouldn’t even think of taking a break. And my health is absolutely fine. It’s just that as you age, some things change, like being able to sleep properly.)

“Maa, phir bhi, check-up toh-”

(Maa, but still, a check-up…)

“Arey! Jaldi mera six-month check-up hain, tum chinta mat kar itna.”

(Arey! I have my bi-annual check-up soon. Don’t worry so much.)

“Theek hain. Lekin aap yeh baat karne itne der aaye hain?”

(Fine. But you came to talk about this topic at this late hour?)

“Nahi, main tumhe yeh dikhane aayi thi.” She handed him her phone, opened to a photo of young woman.

(No, I came to show you this.)

“Tumne haan kaha na, shaadi ke baare mein sochne ki. Toh hume yeh rishta mila. Rupali aunty ne isko rishtedaaron ke ghar pe dekha, aur turant laga tumhare liye sahi hoga. Unke family abhi rishte nahi dekh rahe the, lekin Rupali aunty ke baat sun kar woh raazi ho gaya details bhejne ki.”

(You said yes, right? To think about getting married. So, we found this match. Rupali aunty saw her at a relative’s house, and immediately thought she would be perfect for you. Their family isn’t actively looking for matches, but after Rupali aunty spoke to them, they agreed to send her details.)

She took the phone back and typed off a quick message. “Photo aur details bhej diya tumhe. Ek baar dekh lo, aur aaram se soch kar batana, hmm?”

(I sent you the photo and details. Look at it, then take your time to think about it and let me know, hmm?)

Patting his cheek, she got up to leave. As she was about to close the door behind her, Raghuveer stopped her. “Haan.”

(Yes.)

Chandrika turned around, blinking in shock. “Kya bola?”

(What did you say?)

“Haan, Maa.”

(Yes, Maa.)

“Are you sure? Aur nahi sochna?”

(Are you sure? You don’t need more time?)

He hadn’t looked at the photo, not when his mom handed him the phone, not when she sent him the message. But scrolling through her details, she seemed good enough. Well-educated, a few hobbies, a fairly modern family. If his family liked her, that was good enough.

Little did he know then that taking his first look at his wife, he would lose a piece of his heart. An instant attraction that he had never felt before in his life. He’d thought it was only because he was seeing his soon-to-be fiancée at their engagement. But when he placed the ring on her finger, he felt as if there was truly some invisible bond connecting his heart to hers. When she looked up at him, their eyes met for an electrifying moment before she turned away her gaze. He felt proprietary, possessive. Because she was going to bear his name, that was all. It would fade with time. The hell it would. It was months into their marriage, and he couldn’t even look at her. One look, and he wanted to drag her over to the couch, pull her down into his lap, twine his hands into her luscious hair, and talk to her for hours. And spend the next few hours kissing the words from her lips. On their wedding night, he’d told her that he was a busy man, but his family was his priority. And he hoped that she would feel welcome and make her place within his family. Changing, he’d left to his study and opened his laptop. All that did was waste the battery, because eyes open or closed, all he could see was his wife in picture-perfect clarity. Dressed in her wedding finery, that bittersweet smile on her face and the hopeful glint in her eyes, she seemed like a blessing from heaven.

Aankhen khuli ho ya ho band, deedaar tumka hota hain…

(Eyes open or closed, I see your image…) **a popular Bollywood song

Since that day, Vaidehi had integrated seamlessly into his life, respecting all his unspoken boundaries. And for the first time in his life, Raghuveer Malhotra ran away from his fears. He ran and hid in his safe space, his work. And yet, when Sunday rolled around every week, he cancelled his usual plans with Abhiram and stayed at home. Locking himself away in his study, his open laptop was just a cover. If he focused, he could hear his wife moving around in their connected bedroom - cleaning up, murmuring to herself as she solved her beloved sudoku puzzles, on the phone with her family, and laughing as she read her favorite books. Then one of his stupid, or so they seemed in that moment, siblings would disturb his focus and drag him along to hang out. There, he would observe his wife with quick, sidelong glances. Because he was afraid if he looked at her completely, he would never stop staring. Still, he did learn a few things about Vaidehi. How she plays with her earring when listening intently or lost in thought, how she always drinks chai from a certain spot on the cup, how she jumps in to calm any escalating argument. How she made her place in the family, made everyone fall in love with her, yet always tries to blend into the background. How she finds comfort, a place to disappear, in his exuberant, hyperactive family.

He had always avoided the idea of marriage because he felt that it came with so many emotions and expectations, in other words, additional distractions to his already busy life. Because he was Raghuveer Malhotra, a revered businessman and a man of extreme discipline and control. He always told his siblings to face challenges head-on, yet here he was, running away. He married Vaidehi because he had to get married at some point, so it was better that he married someone his family approved of and liked, because she would be spending most of her time with them anyway. There was no possibility of divorce, because he would likely have to end up marrying another woman who may turn out to be far worse. Rather than gamble with the unexpected, it made sense to accept what he had. If they were to spend the rest of their lives together, they might as well learn to maintain civility.

No, she deserves better, you duffer. And don’t you dare deny it. Sighing, he turned away from the window and slumped into his chair. She did deserve better. ‘Beta, rishton ki buniyad dosti se hi banaya jaata hain, khaas karke jab woh pyaar ke rishte hote hain.’

(Beta, the foundation of relationships is made from friendship, especially when they're relationships of love.)

Surprisingly, it was not his mother, but his grandfather who had given him that advice. 'Badlav se daro mat jab woh badlav apne dil ke baandhe dor ko keech rahi hain.'

(Don't shy away from change when that change is pulling on the string to your heart.)

The very thing that he feared, being lured in by his wife, was beginning to look like his solace.

“Heck, if I had the chance to know Bhabhi a little bit better before your wedding, I would have run away with her myself.”

Fucking hell no! Raghuveer leaned forward, placing his elbows on the desk and steepling his fingers. Nobody was going to sweep in and steal his wife.