“Omkara! Yeh kya kar rahe hain aap?” Gauri asked in surprise feeling his arms snake around her waist, preventing her from leaving the room.
“Gauri, it’s been so many years, still you don’t know what I’m doing?” He asked naughtily while she looked at him in shock. Then trying to hide her blush, she slapped on his hand.
“Omkara, chodiye nah!” She complained trying to get his hands off her waist.
“Gauri, chodne ke liye thodi na pakda tha!” He replied with a pout.
“Omkara please!” She pleaded.
“Kya yaar tum bhi na!” He grumbled.
“Ma!” A 10 year old girl called out as she came running towards their room while Gauri with all her might pushed away his hands.
“Here comes my romance ka dushman no 2!” He grumbled while Gauri rolled her eyes at him and laughed. But the next thing that he did was totally unexpected- he picked her up bridal style and carried her with him into the washroom while she looked on in shock.
“Omkara!”
“What? Today no one’s taking you from me!” He groaned in frustration as he closed the door behind them. “I married you 13 years ago on this date so you could be with me not roam around!”
“You’re jealous of your own daughter?” Gauri asked with a chuckle. As much as Omkara loved their kids Kiara and Karan, he still had times where he preferred to have Gauri all to himself.
“Whatever!”
“For God’s sake Omkara, we’ve been married for 13 years and we have two kids, yet you’re behaving like we got married yesterday!” She exclaimed. It surprised her how even after so many years he still behaved like they were a newly married couple. But it also made her happy that their love hadn’t faded over the years, if anything it became stronger with time.
“So? That doesn’t change my love for you biwi!” He said with a husky voice which still had the same effect on Gauri even after all these years.
“Ma?” Kiara called out again.
“Omkara…” Gauri whispered, “Let me go please.”
“Kiara, ma isn’t here, you take help from Dadi.” Omkara shouted out to her from the bathroom.
“Ok papa.” She replied and went away running.
Once he was sure Kiara was out of their room, he went out of the bathroom, closed the bedroom door and smiled a naughty smile at a shy Gauri.
“You know the other day, Kiara was telling me how she too wants to grow up and marry someone like her papa.” Gauri said with a smile while he looked at her surprised. “Someone in school proposed to her and she rejected him because she believes her ma is a genius. She told him that if he is genuine, then he would cross paths with her again, just like her papa did.” She said proudly.
“Poor guy, he has to suffer for God knows how many years!” Omkara said rolling his eyes.
Gauri gaped at him and said, “He will wait only if he is another Omkara. Not everyone is as genuine as you, Mr Husband, what if he is just attracted to her?”
“Wait a minute!” He exclaimed suddenly realising the meaning of Gauri’s words. Someone had proposed his daughter! HIS KIARA! “How dare he propose my daughter?” He finally asked as realisation dawned on him.
“So you proposing Harsh Sharma’s daughter was fine? But him proposing Omkara Singh Oberoi’s daughter isn’t? How is that fair?” She asked in disbelief while he smiled at her sheepishly.
“I can’t believe our daughter grew up so much! I still remember when you told me you were pregnant. It feels like yesterday.” Omkara said with a tinge of nostalgia.
“I know right, its all so fresh in my memory. I can’t believe she’s 10 now!”
“Time flies too fast.”
“Omkara, sometimes I wonder, if I had accepted your proposal when you confessed for the first time, what would’ve happened?” Gauri asked in wonder as she played with his fingers sitting on the bed resting her head on his chest.
“Maybe we could’ve told our children we were childhood sweethearts.” Omkara said with a chuckle.
“Shut up Omkara! I’m serious.” She reprimanded.
“Hmmm..” he hummed as he got into thinking. “I don’t know Gauri how different it would be. But I’m glad that in the end we ended up together.”
“Forever grateful to mom! Otherwise you were playing the gentleman and kept rejecting the proposal that she had found with so much trouble!” She said rolling her eyes. “I honestly had given up even trying to get to you.” She said mimicking him. That was what he had said when he came to her house with the alliance.
“God, Gauri!” He exclaimed, “Trust me I had no clue how desperate you were for me to come find you! If I did, I swear this would’ve been our 19th wedding anniversary!”
She rolled her eyes at her husband’s comment and then said, “But Om, I’m glad we met the way we did, after all those years. Because it makes our love more special. And it made me realise the depth of your love. I wouldn’t want our story to be written in any other way.”
God, how he loved the moments when she called him Om!
“Me neither. Specially not when I had such a magnificent confession planned for me.” He said with a soft smile.
“I love you, Om.” She said with a soft chuckle at the memory of her confession.
“I love you too, Ri.” He replied placing a kiss on her head.
“Papa!” Karan called out in pain making both Omkara and Gauri run to the door in worry. The moment he opened the door, they were taken aback by the burst of party poppers.
“SURPRISE!!!” Kiara, Karan, Ayaan -Bhavya and Rudra’s son and Riya- Priyanka and Ranveer’s daughter screamed in happiness.
Omkara and Gauri looked at eachother in surprise and then back at the kids.
“Happy wedding anniversary Ma and Papa!” Kiara and Karan screamed.
“Happy wedding anniversary Badi ma and Badi papa!” Ayaan and Riya screamed in unison with the other two.
Before they could react, the kids pulled the two of them down to the hall with them. The moment they stepped into the hall, they were welcomed with screams of so many people! All wishing them Happy Anniversary!
“Ri!” Anika came along with Shivaay and their daughter Shivani and hugged the two wishing them.
Dhruv followed in along with Pooja- his wife whom he had married a few years ago. She was a lovely soul that filled love in both his and Kabir’s life completing their family. And she was that one friend Anika and Gauri needed to complete their trio.
The Sharmas, the Oberois, all came one after the other with gifts and wishes.
Once the party was over and everyone had left, Kiara went up to her parents who were standing together.
“Papa, was it love at first right for you when you saw Ma?” Kiara asked Omkara while Gauri looked at her curiously.
Omkara looked at his daughter dumbstruck by her question, then composing himself he replied, “Papa ko nahi, aapki Dadi ko hui thi.”
“Dadi ko Dadu se?” Kiara asked with confusion. Was her Papa so dumb that he couldn’t understand she had asked for her parents’ love story, not her grandparents?!
“Nahi, aapki ma se. Kisi party mein unhone dekh li thi aapki Ma ko aur unhe pehli nazar mein hi pyaar ho gaya tha!” He said dramatically while Gauri rolled her eyes at him. Then going down to Gauri’s ears, he whispered huskily, “For me it was love at every sight!” He finished with a wink making her cheeks heat up.
Later, Omkara came out from the bath to find Gauri sitting on the bed looking at him dreamily.
“Like what you see?” He asked with a smirk.
“I love who I am watching.” She replied instead. “I could look at you forever!”
“Hayeee!!!” Omkara exclaimed keeping his hand on his chest, “Looks like someone is in a romantic mood today!”
“What can I do? Every year I realise just how lucky I am that I ended up with you!”
“Really?” He asked smiling while she hummed in response.
“And just how lucky you are, that you got someone like me, who will bear all your tantrums!” She said flashing him a smile.
“Don’t you think you’re boasting a little too much?” He asked with a smirk.
“Ankhiyan de kol reh jaane de
Kehna hai jo keh jaane de…” She started singing surprising Omkara. “Tere khayalon mein beete yeh raatein, Dil mera maange ek hi dua. Tu saamne ho aur karun main baatein, lamha rahe yoon thehra hua.” She got up from the bed and took the towel from an utterly surprised Omkara’s hand and placed it aside. Then taking his hand in hers, she started to sway around with him, taking him back to their first anniversary when he had dedicated this song to her. “Pehle toh kabhi yun mujhko na aisa kuch hua, deewani lehron ko jaise saahil mila…O… Ek ladke ko dekha toh aisa laga, ek ladke ko dekha toh aisa laga.”
“O mere sohneya ve, chhad saari galiyan main, naal tere tur chaleya main. Le chal mujhko duniya se tu door. Chori chori jad tenu takkeya main. Khud ko sambhal na sakeya main, chadh gaya sajna tera yeh fitoor…” she sang as she danced with him.
She raised her eyebrows at him asking him how it was to which he blew a kiss at her.
“Aapki manzil hoon main, Meri manzil aap hain. Kyun main toofaan se darun, Mera saahil aap hain.” Omkara sang holding her closer to him. Gauri looked at him in surprise as the memories of how she had confessed her love to him came into her mind filling her with warmth. “Koi tufanon se keh de, Mil gaya sahil mujhe, Aapki nazron ne samjha … Oo Aapki nazron ne samjha pyaar ke kaabil mujhe, dil ki ai dhadkan theher ja, mil gayi manzil mujhe, Aapki nazron ne samjha…”
Once they finished dancing, they looked into eachothers eyes with a soft smile adorning their lips. Then, Gauri placed her head on his chest and listened to her favourite music- his heartbeat. Had someone had asked her 25 years ago if she could see her future with Omkara, then she didn’t have an answer but now she was living every bit of it beautifully. He was a wonderful human, a caring husband, a superhero dad, a loving son, a supportive brother and an amazing lover for it was the lover in him that made her believe in love.
And had someone asked Omkara whether he saw his marriage with Gauri coming when he confessed to her then he didn’t know either- but he wished and hoped for it to happen. And like how Shahrukh Khan quoted Paulo Coelho in Om Shanti Om, “When you truly wish for something, the whole universe conspires to get it to you,” the Universe had helped him get her.
It was the 25th year since they met. Silver jubilee indeed.
“Jis pal tu saath mere,” Gauri and Omkara sang together and then looked at eachother surprised. Then with a knowing smile, continued. “Uss pal mein zindagi hai, Tujhe paake paaya sab kuch, Koi khwahish ab nahi hai, Mmm.. main toh bas tujhse hi bana hoon, Tere bin main bewajah hoon, Mera mujhe kuch bhi nahi, Sab tera, sab tera..Sab tera, sab tera..”
“I love you Om.” She whispered.
“I love you too Ri.” He replied kissing her forehead.
The end….
So like all good things come to an end, this story too has reached its conclusion. It’s been quite a long journey and I express my sincere gratitude to each and everyone who read and commented on this story. Without all your support, I don’t know what it would have been. Thank you so much everyone!
Very soon, I’ll be coming back with new stories. Please do welcome those stories with the same warmth as well.
By the way, I have a few unpublished chapters in this story which I didn’t think had much of an importance. It could be considered as bonus chapters that has nothing to do with the original story, just showing some relationships between the characters. Do you guys want me to publish those?
Thanks for reading!
Stay safe!