3A/N: And I'm back with the sequel! This is just an extension of the first part of the epilogue. Aka, the recap chapter.
Warning: Auto corrects and typos are always behind my back so please forgive me for any mistakes. And please don't get mad at my attempt at typing Hindi, it is NOT my First or Second language so I am prone to make mistakes.
'They were finally married! And with the acceptance of the parents' was the only thought that ran through the head of Goggle, Kusum, Aman and Kartik. It was a cause of huge relief and joy for them as their family had at least started to accept them and their partners and not criticise them for their decision.
That relief was especially visible on the faces of Aman and Kartik as they hugged each other after Kartik had broken away from Shankar Tripathi. That one single hug with silent tears of joy and relief conveyed the intensity of emotions they were experiencing.
Goggle and Kusum just went to Chaman and Champa and got their blessings before heading towards the elder couple to seek their blessings.
"Husband bula saktha hoon na tumhe kal se?" Kartik asked as he removed his shirt, getting ready for the night. "Dekhte hain faisle ke baad." Aman said as he got into bed, followed by Kartik. (I can call you my husband from tomorrow na?) (Let's see after the decision)
"Main na... aaj bohot kush hoon." Aman said, pulling Kartik near him so that they were touching back to chest. Kartik hums, turning around so that he is facing Aman. "Kisi liye? Humare shaadi ke kaaran?" he whispered. (I am very happy today) (For what reason? Our marriage?)
"Hmmm... haan, woh bhi ek kaaran hai. Main kush hoon kyon ki mere pati ko ek family mili hai jo use accept karti hai." he said, pressing a kiss on Kartik's hai. "Main isi liye kush hoon kyon ki ab se mujhe meri family se koi baath chupane ke zaroorat nahi hai." he said, pressing a kiss to the forehead. (Hmmm... yeah, that is also a reason. I am happy as my husband has now got a family that accepts him. I am happy because I don't have to hide anything from my family)
"Main kush hoon kyon ki ab se I won't be the only one tumhe pyaar karne ke liye" he said, slowly moving downwards and kissing his nose. "Aur main bohot kush hoon ke sab kush hai aur humne kisi ka dil tootne nahi pada ek saath rehne ke liye." he concluded with a peck to the lip. (I am happy that from now on, I won't be the only one who showers you with love. And I am very happy that everyone is happy now and we didn't cause any heartbreaks just so that we stay together)
"Achcha? Ab meri baari" Kartik said, understanding what Aman is trying to say. "Main kush hoon ki mujhe tum jaisa pati mila" he said, kissing at Aman's chin. "Main kush hoon ki itne saare dramae ke baad bhi unhone hume khuli haath accept kiya." he said, kissing the collar bone. (Oh yeah? Now it is my turn. I am happy that I got a husband like you. I am happy as even after all this drama, they accepted us in open arms)
"Main isi liye kush hoon ki Goggle jaisi ek friend mili." he said, giving a quick peck at his throat. "Main bohot kush hoon ki ab se tum nahi daroge jab main tumhe publicly kiss karonga" he said and Aman chuckled as he playfully pushed Kartik away. (I am happy because I got to get a friend like Goggle. I am very happy that you won't be startled or scared when we kiss publicly)
Kartik climed back up and snuggled closer to Aman, resting his head on top of Aman's heart, listening to the reassuring heart beat and turned to give that area a quick kiss before looking at Aman. "Par main bohot kush hoon ke hum chaaron ka happy ending mili. Kaun jaata hai, aur bhi badi gadbad ho sakthi thi." Kartik said and turned back, squirming around to get into a comfortable position before he settled down and purred in contentment. (But I am very happy that the four of us got our happy ending. Who knows? It could've ended worse)
Aman just hummed in agreement before wrapping his arms around his husband, resting his chin on top of his head after giving a small kiss to his hair, whispering "Mere liye tum kaafi ho" before adjusting himself so that they both are in a comfortable position. Kartik sleepily held onto the hands around him and sighed, enjoying the peaceful silence that embraced them, lulling them into a nightmareless sleep.
Kusum and Rajni on the other were just sitting on the bed, staring at each other. "How will this work?" Goggle asked, doubt creeping into her voice. Kusum just hummed in question.
"How will this work? I mean, hum dono toh Aman aur Kartik ki tarah nahi hai jo soch samaj ke shaadi ki hai. Un dono toh at least teen saal relationship mein the. Par hum? Kuch din pehle hum dost the, kal hum lovers hue aur aaj, shaadi kiye. Maana ki it was a mutual decision par... where do we stand?" Goggle asked. (How will this work? I mean, we didn't exactly think before marking each other like Kartik and Aman. They were in a relationship for at least 3 years. But us? Few days back, we were sort of friends, yesterday we confessed our love and today we married. I agree that it is a mutual decision but... where do we stand?)
Kusum just considers her question before taking her hand. "Maanti hoon ki sab jaldi se hua hai humare beech main but aage ke raasta hum slowly lenge, step by step. Rush karne ki koi zaroorat hi nahi hai ab humare paas kyon ki humari shaadi ho chuki hai." Kusum reassured. (I agree that everything has happened very quickly between us but we will take everything slowly in the future, step by step. There will be no need to rush as we have all the time in he world as we are already married.)
"Tumhare maa baap?" Goggle asked. She had seen them trying to have a conversation with Kusum, on the verge of hitting her and then left in a huff. "Mujhe koi regrets nahi hai. Tumhari family ne hume accept kiya na? Bas, mujhe aur kuch nahi chaahiye. And anyways, usko toh mera kanya dhaan karke chhod ne wale the, this is no different." Kusum said. (Your mom and dad?) (Is don't regret anything. Your family accepted us no? That is enough for me. And anyways, they were eager to give me away, this is no different)
"Jaanti ho?" Rajni asked as she moved closer. "Main sirf ek cheeze regret karoongi. Humara toh transition phase hi nahi mila ek doosre ko aur achcha jaanne ke liye. Haan, patha hai ki hum ab kar sakthe hai, par... shaadi ke pehle woh ek bohot alag sa experience hogi na?" Rajni said. (Did you know? I will just regret one thing. We didn't get our transition period to get to know each other well. Yeah, I know that we have our whole life to do it but... doing it before marriage is another experience no?)
"Shaayad, mujhe nahi patha. Maine is tarah pyaar nahi kiya hai na kisi se. Sab toh ek date par chalenge aur bas, that's it." Kusum said. (Maybe, I don't know. I haven't loved anyone like this ever. All were just one date experiences, nothing more than that)
"Meri toh ek boyfriend tha kuch saal pehle, Rahul. Hum ek doosre se pyaar karte te. Par ek din... Hum terrace mein the jab usne meri chashme uthaar diya. Shock se peeche jaakar gir gaya. Jab maine usko hospital mein ek aakhri baar milne gayi, usne kaha ki woh dar ke kaaran peeche nahi gaya. He hadn't expecting that level of damage. Examine karne ke liye peeche gaya, yeh bhoolkar ki woh toh edge par hai, aur gir gaya." Rajni said.
(I had a boyfriend some years back, Rahul. We loved each other. But one day... we were on the terrace when he removed my glasses. He took a step behind in shock and fell off. When I met him in the hospital for one last time, he told me that he took a step back not because he was scared of the eye. He hadn't expected that level of damage. He wanted to examine the eye and stepped back, forgetting that he was near the edge)
"Thank you for sharing the story. Isi liye tum thoda gabra gaye na jab maine tumse tumhara glasses nikalne ke liye kahi thi?" Kusum asked, connecting the dots. She put her hand around Rajni, rubbing slow circles on her back. Goggle just sighed and leaned into the touch. (That's why you got scared when I asked you to remove your glasses no?)
"Hum sab work our karlenge. Ab tum so ja, kal hume jaldi utna hai na? Supreme Court ke faisle sunne hai" Kusum said as she laid back on the bed. Goggle just laid down facing Kusum, watching as her breaths evened out before going to sleep herself, thinking that maybe... her life will go uphill now. (We will work it out. Go to sleep now, we need to wake up early tomorrow no? To hear the Supreme Court's verdict)
The next morning, it was complete chaos in the Tripathi household. Everyone were running around, trying to get ready or wake up everyone before gathering around in the courtyard. Some were still in their pyjamas, sone of them were rubbing the sleep out of their eyes but all their eyes were glued to the iPad Keshav was holding, waiting in anticipation for the decision to be announced.
The silence was dense as everyone held onto their breaths as the reporter started to talk about the verdict. The tension and anticipation surrounded the gathering, thick enough to be sliced by a knife. Then came the verdict. The Supreme Court declared that Section 377 was abolished. Same sex relationships were decriminalised. And the uproar in the house was massive.
There was a lot of laughter, exclamations and squeals as everyone started hugging each other, distributing sweets around and non of them could be compared to the level of joy Aman and Kartik were experiencing.
Well, not to say that Rajni and Kusum were not as happy as the other couple but... The intensity and the level of relief that oozed out of the male couple couldn't be matched. After living in fear for their whole lives about the society's reaction, the family's reaction, hiding their relationship from nearly everyone for past 3 years, all the hesitant touches, the fear of being outed... everything just started vanishing as they hugged each other right now. Years worth of tension and fear, all gone in that one moment.
The two of them forgot that they were surrounded by the family, revelling in the feeling of safety and security they felt right then in that hug. Kartik broke the hug first, pulling back slightly as he saw the pure love and relief in Aman's eyes, which he was sure was reflected by him also. He just placed a gentle kiss to his forehead, trying to pour in all of his love in just that one gesture.
Before Aman could respond, Shankar Tripathi broke them out of their trance. "As much as I am happy for you both... thoda..." he said, pointing out the fact that they were shirtless and standing in the middle of the house.
The two of them blushed and immediately ran off upstairs, causing an uproar of laughter among everyone. Goggle and Kusum just slung their arms around each other, revelling in the affection of the family.
In the following days, everyone fell into a new routine. Shankar often took Aman aside to have small talks with him along with Chaman, the ladies got used to Kartik helping them out in the kitchen (i.e. wandering around and nicking pieces of food, rarely contributing to the cooking process)
In the evening, everyone got together for either a friendly banter among themselves or just sit around and talk around and play games. Today, the males have decided to have a small sciencey chat among themselves while the women were having a game of tambola, making Kartik the one to call out the numbers and be the mediator.
As Kartik took in the scene in front of him, a small smile lighting up his face. He felt overwhelmed from the amount of love and affection he was getting from everyone. Yeah, there were stilled some rough patches between them all but... the sense of belonging he had been longing for since he was young, something that he was getting now, it felt surreal, like he was living in a dream, and if it was a dream, he wanted it to be in it forever and not wake up at all.
The "Kartik beta? Idhar aa" Shankar called suddenly. Kartik went and stood in front of him, wondering what was going on. "Maine us din ke liye maafi nahi maanga tumse... Us din jo bhi maine kiya, woh galat tha. Nai, kuch math bol" Shankar said, cutting off whatever Kartik was about to say. "Tumhari koi galti nahi hai. Hum hi nasamaj the. Bolne ke wajah danda liya. Mujhe uske liye maaf karoge ya nahi, mujhe nahi patha. Par yaad rakh, yeh tumhara bhi ghar hai aur tum humara beta. Kal waapas Delhi jaane par hume bhool math jana." he said with a smile.
(Kartik? Come here. I didn't apologise to you that day... whatever I did that day was wrong. No, don't say anything. It is not your fault. We didn't understand that love is love. Instead of talking it out, I took the danda. I don't know if you will forgive me for what I did. But remember, this is also your house and you are my son. Don't forget us when you go back to Delhi tomorrow)
Kartik just stood there, speechless before he ran and hugged him, sobs escaping his mouth before he can stop himself. "Badon ko chotay se maafi nahi maangni chahiye" Kartik said in between sobs. "Par agar badon ne galti ki, toh maafi maangna buri baath nahi hai." Chaman said from the sidelines, patting at Kartik's back. (Elders shouldn't apologise to people younger than them) (But if the elders are wrong, then apologising is not wrong)
Aman slowly moved away from the duo, wanting to give Kartik some time with his father but Kartik, sensing Aman move away, pulled him into the hug, kissing the side of his head. Sunaina joined in the hug, causing Rajni to scream "Family hug time!" before dragging in Kusum for the hug. Soon, there was a dogpile with Shankar and Kartik in the centre of it, Keshav secretly taking a photo of it from the corner.
The next time Kartik and Aman came to visit, they could see the picture framed and captioned 'The Family is Finally Complete! '
Leaving the family was hard and emotional. Talks were going around about calling home often and visiting soon and all those sappy stuff and it was hard to keep tears at bay. Shankar had offered to drop them off at the station and there was quite a banter, with Kartik wanting to ride the bike and Shankar gave in, compromising by sitting in between the couple. It was quite awkward, but they managed to reach the station safely.
The 3 of them hugged for one final time before exchanging their parting words and left their own way, silent tears flowing. Kartik just pulled Aman to his side, slinging an arm around him while waving at Shankar. Vacation was over, back to work.
Aman was just wondering about how quickly the days had gone by with the drastic changes they brought along when the train's whistle cut through his thoughts.
"Arey! Train nikal rahi hai!" he cried out as he started running, pulling Kartik along with him. Kartik overtook him and dashed forward, getting on the train and stretching out his hand. Aman just smiled and reached forward, catching hold of Kartik's hand and got into the train, barrelling into Kartik, who caught him and held him there, laughing out loud as they remembered how it all started. (Arey! The train is leaving!)
A/N: And that's the wrap up of the prologue! Honeymoons up next! Hope you all like this chapter! All comments and criticism accepted and appreciated! This fic is betaed by girl. with. passion! Any prompts are welcome!
Thank you all for reading!
Rasnak signing off :) ;)
UPDATED ON 10 March 2020
(Happy birthday appa)
