Chapter 32 - New Morning Light
The curtains let in sunshine, and sunlight streamed through with a pale yellowish light spread over the bed room. Ayesha leaned against the dressing table, pleating the wrinkles of her silk powder blue saree, on which delicate silver embroidery sparkled in the sun. She smoothly pleated the folds and had the pallu fall on the shoulder. Her just-washed black hair, infused with the scent of jasmine oil, cascaded down her back. She added fresh jasmine flowers to her hair, diffusing the sweet aroma of jasmine around her.
The return smile was of a different kind. Her cheeks were pink in their natural color, her eyes sparkled with happiness, and her lips curved softly. She was destined to be married, she believed, as she painted a small red bindi on her forehead.
The dainty silver bangles on her arms softly tinkled as she shifted.
" This is my First morning as a wife," she exhaled, caressing the mangal sutra around her neck. The gold and black beads were strange and unknown against her flesh, yet they sent a tingling wave of home through her.
With skillful fingers, she prepared two coffees, black for Arjun and white for herself, and placed them on a small silver platter. She moved soundlessly through the house, modestly greeting relatives already awake. Her mother-in-law smiled cheerfully from the kitchen doorway.
" Good morning, Dear. You look lovely," she said.
" Good morning, Aunty. Thanks," replied Ayesha softly, still uneasy calling her mother-in-law "Ma" as Arjun had suggested.
" Send my lazy son to wake up," the elder woman ordered with a chuckle. " Tell him everyone is going to Temple."
Ayesha nodded and proceeded toward their bedroom. She held the tray in one hand as she gently pushed the door open with the other.
Within, Arjun slept peacefully, his face serene, an arm stretched across the emptiness where she'd lain. Feeling welled up in her chest as she deposited the coffee tray on the nightstand and just stood there for a moment, gazing at him.
" Finally, this man is truly my husband," she whispered, hardly able to believe the statement even as it left her lips.
She remembered each time she had pushed him away, each tear, each fight, each fear of her illness and their different backgrounds. And yet here they were now, husband and wife. The simple gold ring on her finger glinted in the sunlight.
Ayesha sat delicately on the edge of the bed. " Dear!" she called softly. " Dear! Woke up, it's already 7 o'clock."
Arjun shifted slightly, pressing his face further into the pillow. " No, Mom, I want to sleep for a little more time, please," he growled.
Ayesha hid her mouth behind her hand to suppress her laugh. He had called her " Mom!" She tried once, and then again.
" I brought coffee for us," she said, the laughter in her tone.
Arjun did not stir, his breathing slow and even. He was dreaming. In his dream, Ayesha was approaching him in a field of flowers. She wore the same red wedding saree of the day before, but somehow they were alone, no family, no rituals to follow. Just the two of them under an open sky. She was smiling, her arms outstretched towards him, the sunbeams creating a halo around her.
" Arjun," dream-Ayesha whispered, her voice a song. " Come to me."
He tried to move toward her, but his legs were heavy. She drew nearer and nearer.
" Arjun," she whispered once more. "Wake up."
The words would not register. Why would she possibly want him to wake up from this pleasant dream?
" Wake up!" The real Ayesha pulled the blanket off of him.
Arjun's lids gradually lifted, the dream disappearing. But instead of disenchantment, he experienced delight at beholding the actual Ayesha at his side, still lovelier than in his dream. Her powder-blue saree caused her to look like a piece of the morning sky, and the jasmine in her hair perfumed his nostrils with sweetness.
Instead of sitting up, he pulled her tenderly down on to the bed. He had his hands round her face caressingly and kissed tenderly on the brow.
" Good morning, my dear wife," Arjun smiled upwards.
Ayesha's face flamed red with embarrassment. Her heart pounded at the closeness, at the phrase " wife" on his lips.
" Good morning," she whispered softly, her head bent.
Arjun's thumb caressed the line of her cheekbone gently. " You are like a dream," he whispered. " I was dreaming of you, and now here you are, more beautiful than in my dreams."
He bent and kissed her lips gently. Heat spread through Ayesha's body. She had never thought such happiness existed. When they had met at the university, when she had run to him across that auditorium, she had never imagined they would be here, wed, savoring mornings like this.
" The coffee will be cold," she breathed against his lips, though she didn't stir.
" Let it," Arjun replied, wrapping his arms around her waist. " I've got something better right here."
Ayesha grinned and pushed against his chest. "Your mom said we have to get to temple at eight. We have to get ready."
Thespian sighing, Arjun loosened his hold. " Fine, fine. Because my mother will be searching for me if I am not there in a rush.
Ayesha stood up from the bed and ironed her saree, which was rumpled. She presented him with his coffee, and they sat together on the bed, shoulder against shoulder, with their coffee in easy quietness.
Ayesha's thoughts drifted back to Arjun's mouth on hers, the heat of his palms, and the way he had shoved her onto the bed. She was pondering thus, a gentle smile on her lips.
Arjun watched her out of the corner of his eye, enjoying the way morning light played on her face. The blue saree was flattering on her golden skin. The jasmine flowers wedged in her hair added to her beauty, and she looked like a queen. Her dark, expressive eyes were looking into the distance, and the smile on her lips took his breath away.
" She is my wife. my wife," Arjun whispered to himself, hardly able to believe his luck.
" Ayesha!" Arjun's voice was gentle as he attempted to beckon her back from wherever daydream had taken her.
Ayesha, lost in fantasy, recalled how Arjun had swept her up and onto the bed, wondering what might have occurred if they did not have to leave to prepare to visit the temple.
Arjun took her gently on the arm. " Ayesha."
" Huh. Arjun," Ayesha finally came back to the world, her eyes fluttering as if coming out of a dream.
" What is it, Ayesha?" Arjun smiled knowingly. He could have guessed what had occupied her mind.
" Nothing," she muttered, her gaze at the coffee cup in front of her.
" Oh really?" Arjun pursued, his smile expanding.
" Eh. that one you just did." Ayesha covered her head with her hands in shame, unable to continue.
" You didn't like it?" Arjun asked, his voice turning sad, though his eyes twinkled with amusement. He was very sure she had enjoyed it.
" No. not at all," Ayesha replied hastily, then saw the implication of what she had said. " I mean, I didn't hate it. I liked it." She stuttered in speech, and Arjun laughed.
" So?" Arjun teased her.
" I enjoyed that moment you have done. I was happy," Ayesha replied sincerely, gathering courage to express herself.
" It was our first morning as husband and wife," Arjun whispered, his hand moving toward hers.
" Yes," Ayesha whispered, clutching her grip tighter around his hand.
Their moment was broken by a knock at the door. They hadn't finished opening it when it opened, and Arjun's small sister, Divya, popped her head inside.
" Oh dear!" Divya grinned when she saw them huddled together. "Am I interrupting something?"
" Yes," Arjun answered shortly.
" No," Ayesha said at the same time, blushing.
Divya giggled and walked into the room fully.
" Well, yes or no?"
She went over and sat on the bed next to Arjun.
Ayesha descended from the bed and was leaning on the post, standing next to it.
" Don't you know how to knock, monkey?" Arjun snarled, although there was a affectionate tone to his voice.
" I did knock, donkey," Divya retorted, using her old nickname for her brother. "Not my fault you were too engrossed making googly eyes at your wife to see that."
Ayesha hid her face behind her hands, her face flaming.
" Don't mind him, Ayesha," Divya said to her, bending over Arjun to touch her new sister-in-law's arm gently. " He's always been a grumpy morning man. Don't know how you'll put up with it for the rest of your life!"
Ayesha smiled, feeling embarrassed. She liked Divya's candid, cheerful nature. It made her think of her own little sister from back home in Bangladesh.
" I'll manage," Ayesha said with a smile.
" You look beautiful, by the way," Divya said sincerely. " That color is perfect for you. Doesn't she look beautiful, Arjun?"
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Arjun's jaw dropped to respond, but Divya continued without stopping.
" Though I'm sure my brother has already told you that. He may be grumpy, but he's not stupid." She playfully nudged Arjun.
" He's never complimented me on my appearance," Ayesha murmured, her voice tinged with disappointment.
Divya made a dramatic sound and slapped her brother's arm. " Arjun! What's wrong with you? Your wife is a goddess this morning, and you haven't spoken a word?"
Arjun was stunned. He had been so captivated by Ayesha's looks that he had not even thought to say to her how beautiful she was.
" I., " he began, and Divya cut him off for the third time.
" Oh! I forgot why I came. Ayesha, Mom says it's time for breakfast." Divya leapt off the bed. " And you, dear brother, should learn your manners. A lady likes to hear that she's beautiful, particularly on her first morning as your wife!"
Having delivered her words of wisdom, she danced out of the room, leaving the door slightly ajar.
" Your sister is. lively," Ayesha said with a little laugh.
" That's saying it politely," Arjun replied. " I was going to say 'annoying,' but 'lively' is fine."
They were silent for a moment, Ayesha hoping eagerly for Arjun's comments on her looks. When they did not materialize, she released a tiny sigh.
" Aunt Sita told me we have some traditional work to do," Ayesha said, changing the subject.
" Yes, I forgot. OK, I will go get cleaned up," Arjun said.
Ayesha hunched her shoulders slightly. " OK then," she said, not quite as happily.
She stood up and took the used coffee cup from him. " OK, then I will go. I will help Aunt Sitain prepare breakfast."
" That's great," Arjun replied, as if he was totally oblivious to how disappointed she sounded.
Ayesha stood hesitantly at the bedside. " I'm going. Wanted to say something?" she inquired, with one final hope.
" Nothing," said Arjun, taking a casual tone.
Ayesha saw a flash of irritation. Was he so blind? " Well then, I'm off," she announced, struggling not to put that small edge into her words.
She stepped down from the bed with the cups and turned towards the door. Powerful arms then came around her waist from behind. The cups nearly fell from her hands as Arjun pulled her into his arms.
" You really didn't think I'd see?" he gasped against the side of her head, chilling her. "You really didn't think I'd notice just how lovely you look today?"
He spun her around to stand facing him, removed the cups from her fingers, and replaced them on the tray. And then his hands wrapped around her face, and he kissed her hard on the lips.
" You look lovely today," he said to her when they finally separated. " The saree you're wearing is perfect for you. The blue brightens your eyes like stars, and the silver is moonlight on water. You are a dream come true, Ayesha."
Ayesha's annoyance dissolved at once. She bent her head, overwhelmed by his words, and inched closer to him, her arms around his waist.
" Ayesha, I love you," Arjun continued softly. "I'm lucky to have such a lovely wife and an education."
Ayesha clasped him to her, her own heart too full to talk. She pressed her face against his chest and heard the great thudding of his heart.
Their time was broken once more, this time by Arjun's mother screaming from downstairs." Ayesha!"
They jumped apart like guilty children, both looking over at the door with terror.
" Aunt is calling me," Ayesha said, smoothing her saree. "I want to go."
" Alright," Arjun replied, raking a hand through his hair.
Ayesha took the tray and rushed to the door but stopped to glance back at him with a smile that held the promise of more. Then she was gone from view, with Arjun standing in the doorway gazing after her with a silly grin on his face.
