Iknoor sighed as she came out of the bathroom in her comfy pyjamas.She felt super cosy now.

The whole day she had been wearing the saree with all the jewelry,plus she had really been tired with the day now.She had woken up around 5 am for the Mangala Snanam and now it was 5 pm in the evening.

The wedding was done, pictures were clicked,the families had lunch together,a few other rituals were also done and then Nirvair's family had left,so had the guests.

She hadn't gone with them because of course,the bidaai would take place after the Punjabi wedding.

Honestly,she was dreading the Punjabi wedding now,this one wedding had only made her tired and she can't deal with another one.

The same process of getting ready, wearing heavy jewelry and getting married to the same person twice seemed a lil absurd to her but she can't voice it out.Her nani and nanu would feel bad,so would her in law's.

She was just glad they would just have the wedding and not the pre wedding rituals,she can't do all that haldi, mehendi again,it is very tiring after all.

Right now,she just wanted to sleep,she felt too drained and a good nap was the only solution to all her tiredness,plus it was fucking cold in Vishakapatnam and she wanted to just snuggle into her bed in her cosy blanket.

She literally became a teddy bear as she covered herself with a thick,warm blanket and drifted off to sleep.

After a good nap she woke up after 3 hours.She freshened up and went downstairs to have dinner because she was starving.

"Puttar,ready ho jaa jaldi se,bahar khana khane jaa rahe h hum sab"Iknoor's nanu said and Iknoor looked at her confusedly.

Why?

"Nanu,mujhe bahar nhi jaana h ab,thak gayi hu mein,ghar pr hi order kr lete h na please"Iknoor pleaded making puppy face but her nani and patti shook their heads at that.

"Uṅkaḷ māmiyāruṭaṉ iravu uṇavu, cīkkiram tayārākuṅkaḷ( tere sasural walo ke saath h dinner,ready ho jaa jaldi se)"Her Patti said and she made a confused face hearing that.

Why?

"Arre unhe woh kal ke baare mein bhi batana h,phir woh Amritsar mein shadi h toh uski bhi kuch baatein krni h, isliye socha face to face hi kr lete h, isliye unhone kaha ki unke hotel hi chale jaaye dinner bhi kr lenge saath"Her nani said and Iknoor sighed hearing that.

She just wanted to eat and sleep again.

"Pr jaldi aayenge wapas,mujhe sona h"Iknoor said and they all chuckled at her antics but nodded.

"Kanna,Anta iḷañcivappu puṭavaiyai aṇiyuṅkaḷ, nīṅkaḷ mikavum aḻakāka iruppīrkaḷ(Kanna,saree pehen lena woh pink wali,bht sundar lagegi tu)"Her periamma added with a hesistant voice and Iknoor looked at her.

"Saree kyu?"Iknoor asked.

"Ēṉeṉṟāl uṅkaḷukku iṉṟu tirumaṇam naṭantatu(Kyuki aaj hi teri shadi hui h)"Her chittamma said.

"Ataṉāl?(Toh?)"She asked.

"Nāṅkaḷ uṅkaḷ māmiyāruṭaṉ iravu uṇaviṟku celkiṟōm, uṅkaḷukku tirumaṇamākiviṭṭatu, nīṅkaḷ puṭavai aṇiya vēṇṭum(tere sasural walon ke saath jaa rahe h dinner krne,shadi ho gayi h teri,saree peheni chahiye tujhe)"Her periamma said and Iknoor sighed.

"Oye chal ab behes krne mat beth jaana,saree mein toh tu wese bhi kitni Soni lagti h, please mere liye hi pehen le"Her nani said and Iknoor looked at her and the then at her Patti who too stared at her hopefully.

"Fine"She said and left.

Soon enough they all got ready,Iknoor did wear a saree as asked by her periamma and took a pashmina shawl along with her because it was cold,she hadn't done anything with her hair,they were tied in a bun because she wasn't in any mood to style them,she hadn't wore any jewelry either except for small golden jhumka along with her thali (mangalsutra).

"Yeh kya pehena h?dinner pr jaa rahe h sirf"Ikbir asked staring at her she she immediately pointed her finger at her Nani and Patti.

Ikbir didn't commented anything after that.

They all left towards the hotel after that.

"Nirvair nhi h?"Iknoor's nanu asked.

"Woh uske friends ko jaana pada kuch kaam ki wajah se Mumbai,toh woh unhe bas airport tak chodne gaya h,aa hi jayega thodi derr mein"Mahir said and the Iyer's nodded at that.

They all then settled down on the huge table arranged for them,the elders sat on one table while the youngesters all settled on other one cracking jokes and having fun.

"Badi maa,aapne baal khule kyu nhi rakhe?"Iti asked as she sat on Aayat's lap who sat beside Iknoor.

Iknoor looked at her who looked like a lil teddy bear because of the puffed jacket she was wearing a long with the beanie,she was all covered up because of the cold weather and she looked too cute.

Iknoor gently pulled her cheek and asked her why she wanted her hair to be open.

"Aapke baal Rapunzel jese h na"Iti said and Iknoor smiled hearing that.

Well she has received such comments for her long hair and she felt happy hearing them always.

"Rapunzel inki favourite Disney Princess h"Aayat added and Iknoor now understood her fondness for long hair.

"Woh kya h na,mere baal itne lambe h na ki baal banate banate mere haath dard krne lag gaye,toh meine bandh diye"Iknoor said and Iti thought for sometime before saying.

"Aap buddy se kahiyega ki woh aapke baal banaye,woh hamare bhi baal banate h kabhi kabhi,aur hamare buddy bht strong h,woh nhi thakenge"Iti said and everyone started teasing Iknoor with that while Iknoor tried to act nonchalant.

"Abse toh Bhai sab kuch karenge,hrr woh kaam jo krne se pehle bht natak krte the,kyu bhabhi?"Aashi teased her and Iknoor yet again tried to ignore it.

"Wrna,bhai ki class lag jayegi"Shivansh said and everyone laughed hearing that.

"Aap inki baaton pr dhyan mat dijiye,yeh sab aise hi sabko chedte rehte h bhabhi"Hriday said and Iknoor smiled at him.

He was a gentleman,that she had noticed in him.

"Bhui aur chachu bad h"Iti said narrowing her eyes at Aashi and Shivansh who plucked their tongues out at her teasing her.

"Badi maa,inn dono ko sui de do!"Iti said and Iknoor laughed hearing that.

She couldn't help but pull her in her arms,making her sit on her lap and lightly squeeze her tiny body in her arms.

"Bilkul,pakka se de dungi"Iknoor said and Iti nodded at that then.

"Acha yeh batao,aap yeh teddy bear banke kyu ghum rahi h?"Iknoor asked and Iti pointed at her mother at that.

"Mumma hamari baat nhi sunti h,hame itne saare kapde pehna diye"Iti said and Iknoor laughed at her antics.

"Acha,mumma baat nhi maanti?koi nhi mein aapki baat manungi"Iknoor said as she further wrapped her shawl around Iti too,making only her face visible to everyone.

"Yrr yeh kitni cute h yrr!mera mann krta h iske gaal khaa jau"Iknoor said kissing her beanie covered head.

Hriday and Aayat smiled hearing that.

"Yeh bataiye bhabhi,kal ka kya scene h?"Abeer asked.

"Kal tirupati jaana h,darshan ke liye,phir finally sab khatam"Iknoor said with a sigh of relief.

"Phir Amritsar jaana h,Punjabi wedding ke liye"Shivansh said and she sighed.

"Mat yaad dilao yrr,ek hi shadi mein band baj gayi h,pr mere gharwalon ko kon samjhaye!"Iknoor said and they all chuckled at her misery.

"Pr kitna maaza aa raha h"Abeer said knowingly teasing her.

"Tumhe jab itne heavy jewelry aur kapde pehenkr mandap mein bethna padega na beta,tab dekhti hu kitna maza aayega"Iknoor said and they all again laughed.

There bhabhi wasn't less,she knew how to tease the other person back.

They enjoyed their meal with light conversation,Iti kept sitting with her badi maa the whole time enjoying her company.

"Excuse me"Iknoor said as she received a work related call and she went away to receive it.

It was a call from the gynaecology department of her hospital,so she talked to the other doctor and while talking she didn't realised when she went towards the hotel swimming pool.

She ended the call and was about to go back when she realised that one of her payal was missing from her foot as she didn't heard the sound when she walked.

She pulled her saree a lil up and found that her left foot's payal was missing.

She instantly panicked and started searching for it.

Where the hell had she lost it?

She had walked all the way from the dining area to the swimming pool area,she walked back towards the dining area and started searching it but couldn't find it,she came back all the way towards the swimming pool area but still couldn't spot it.

Shit!

Tears started to pool into her eyes.

It was her mother's payal.She couldn't afford to lose it ever!

She again started looking around the swimming pool because she had been walking around it while she was talking on the phone.

How can she be so irresponsible?

How can she lose her mother's payal?

Out of all things she lost that!

Tears started falling down her eyes thinking that she might never be able to get it back.

It was her mother's.

She had worn them today because she wanted to feel her mother's presence around her,it was stupid of her to think that her mother was with her by wearing her payal but she was happy and felt good after wearing them.

She was sure she hadn't lost it at home because when she had came to the hotel she knew she had both of them.

Where had she lost it?

Without thinking of anything she called her brother.

"Bhai....me..mera payal kho gaya h!....dhunda pr...nhi...mil raha h"She said over the call to her brother,she couldn't contain her tears.

"Mumma ki payal..thi woh....mere se khoo gayi"Iknoor said as she talked to her brother.

Whenever she was upset or she thought thinks were out of her hand she would always ask her brother's help,he always makes sure that things go right,he would surely find the payal.

She can't loose it after all!

She heard footsteps behind her and turned thinking it was her Bhai,but was surprised to see her husband.

He frowned seeing her teary face.

What was she doing here alone?

Why was she crying at the first place?

Did something happen?

He walked near her and stopped infront of her.

"Kya hua h?"He asked as he stood in front of her staring at her teary eyes.

"Me..meri payal kho gayi h"Iknoor said as more tears fell down her eyes.

He sighed.

Sure he didn't want this marriage but she was his wife now and anyways he didn't like her crying.

"Relax...mil jayega,mein dhundta hu"He said as he started looking for the silver pagal she had worn during their wedding.

A flash of light reflected from the swimming pool and he sighed in relief when he spotted the silver payal upon a close watch.

Without waiting for any second,he straight away jumped into the pool.

Iknoor gasped at his actions.It was freezing cold in Vishakapatnam and he jumped into the icy water.

He emerged out of the pool,water dripping down his body,his biceps flexed as he moved his shoulder length hair back and walked towards her, holding the pagal in his left hand.

Iknoor forwarded her hand to take it from him but she gasped for the second time that night when instead of giving it to her he bent down in front of her.

Slowly lifting her saree a lil above,he tied the payal on her left ankle.

"Dubara mat khona isse..... it's getting cold get inside"He said and left leaving behind a very surprised Iknoor.

What just happened?

Did he really jumped into the icy cold water at this temperature just to get her payal for her?

Did he really do that?

"Noorie,kya hua?"Ikbir's voice broke her trance and she looked at her brother who came there.

"Tu chinta mat kar,mein abhi dhund deta hu teri payal,roo mat mil jayegi "He said as he walked towards her and wiped her teary face with his handkerchief.

"Mil gaya"Iknoor said looking at him.

"Mil gaya?"He asked.

"Haa woh yahi gira tha,mein aise hi darr gayi thi"Iknoor quickly said not wanting to reveal that her husband had gotten it for her by jumping in the swimming pool.

"Chalo,acha h,ab chal,hum jaa rahe h ab"Iknoor said as he gently walked with her wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

They went to the dining area and both the families then wished eachother good night and left to their respective ways.

Nirvair was shivering as he entered his hotel room trying to make sure nobody saw him,he didn't want to get scolded by them for being wet and shivering in this cold weather.

He went and immediately took a hot shower to feel warm and then changed his clothes,he didn't have the energy to dry his wet hair so he just decided to leave them for now.

A sudden knock on the door made him curious as to who had come to his room at this time.He opened the door and found his mother with a plate of food for him.

He sighed but a smile appeared on his face.

"Dinner kr le"Bela said as she saw him.

"Pagal wagal h kya??baal kyu geele rakhe h??thand lag jayegi na Nirvair!"Bela said as she pushed him inside and entered the room and placed the plate on the table and fetched a towel and tried to dry his dripping hair.

"Woh aise hi bas shower le liya tha"Nirvair said trying to defend himself.

"Jhootha!...dekha tha meine tujhe pool mein khudte waqt.....koi toh keh raha tha usse uski biwi se farak nhi padega"Bela said teasing him at the end and Nirvair sighed hearing that.

"Aisa kuch nhi h"Nirvair said.

"Toh kesa h?pool mein kyu khuda tha?"Bela asked.

"Uski payal girr gayi thi pool mein"Nirvair said.

Bela still didn't change her expressions so he sighed.

"Uski mumma ki payal thi woh, isliye pareshan ho gayi thi jab woh khoo gayi toh,rone lag gayi thi,mujhe pool mein dikhi toh nikalne ke liye khuda tha"Nirvair said and thought his mother would still scold him for jumping into the pool in such icy cold weather.

But Bela smiled instead.

How could she ever doubt her son?

He was just like his father after all, spewing nonsense in anger but never even thinking of hurting anyone.

He had a heart like her's,his heart would wrench too seeing others in pain.

"Acha kiya,de diya na usse uski payal?"Bela asked and he nodded his head at that.

"Chal ab dinner kr le aur so jaa"Bela said and he nodded and she left his room.

Nirvair took the plate and started eating his dinner.

He couldn't help but think about his wife.

She was a good girl,really kind and well-mannered, everything he didn't deserve.

He couldn't help but remember her crying face.

If she was so sensitive that she was crying because she lost her mother's payal,how will she live with him?

He wouldn't promise but he could hurt her because of his job, because of the lies he would have to tell her like he does with his family.

She didn't had her parents,only had her brother,well she did had her paternal and maternal side of family but they didn't live with her and now she was going to leave them too.

She was going to live with him.

A man who couldn't keep her happy, couldn't give her the time and companionship she deserves.

He sighed deeply.

He shouldn't have married her.

Things were going to be difficult for them from now on and no matter how much he tried he couldn't stop them from happening.