Amends In Your Arms

OS: The Academy

There were only a few days left before the grand opening of Akshu's academy. Over 50 students had enrolled for classes already, and more were reaching out with inquiries. Abhi kept reassuring her that it would be the most successful arts center in town, that everyone would love her and her programs...but she could not help the anxiety she was feeling. She would spend her entire days making sure that every corner was in order, that everything was neatly in line. Abhi would come see her directly after work, assisting her with whatever she needed. Oftentimes he would find Nishta there, admiring the way in which she admired Akshu. But, once he arrived, he wanted his wife all to himself...so he would send his sister away, telling her that Manjari was waiting for her at home. Nishta knew exactly what Abhi was up to, but she never complained nor resisted. She would smile and shake her head, telling Akshu that she would see her tomorrow. 

On this particular day, Abhi walked in to see Akshu standing on a ladder, trying to reach the ceiling with the her blue paintbrush. He saw splatters of paint all across her face, unable to control his giggle at how utterly cute she looked. He stood in the corner, watching her for as long as possible...that was, until she began to lose her balance, screaming at the top of her lungs. He got to the bottom of the ladder just in time...just as she opened her eyes. "Meri girija kilye me aagaya", he smirked. 

"Tum kitni der se yahan ho?? Aur tum kya dekh rahe the?" she asked teasingly as he set her on the ground. 

"Bas koi thi...ek ladki..." he teased back, pulling her into his arms and taking in her the scent of the lavender coming from her hair. 

"Acha, Abhi...please meri help kardo...dekho woh upar mera haath nahi jaa raha hai..tum kardo na please?" 

"Of course, meri jaan." He responded, grabbing the paintbrush from her hands and quickly climbing up the ladder. Akshu passed him the bucket, which he rested a few steps beneath where he was standing. She watched him in awe, seeing him squinting his eyes to focus, trying to make sure that every stroke was coordinated, that every stroke blended in perfectly. She was startled out of her trance when she felt the bucket fall onto her, all of the paint splattering across her white dress. "ABHI!", she yelled, wiping the paint off of her face. 

Entirely confused, he looked down to see that he had accidentally kicked the paint off with the corner of his foot. He could not help but burst into laughter as he came down, looking at his wife drenched in his favorite color, frowning at the thought of what had just happened. 

"Abhi, tum hans rahe ho na? Ab dekho..." she said..smirking and taking a few steps towards him.

"Akshu nahi...nahi...Akshu stop..." he yelled, running away, trying to take shelter behind a pillar, telling her that it would take hours to clean up all of this paint, that they would have to spend the entire night here wiping it all off if she did not stop dripping everywhere. But, she did not care. She was determined to get her revenge, chasing him through every room of her academy. Abhi was exhausted from the five surgeries he had completed earlier that day, but he had not seen Akshu this relaxed in a while...he wanted to do whatever he could to take her stress away, to help her feel at ease. And so, he let her follow him into every corner, smiling after hearing her every giggle. 

When she finally could not run any longer, she sat down on a white chair, yelling at herself seconds after, realizing that she would now have to throw this one away and get a new one. Abhi calmed her down from a distance, not wanting her to take advantage of the opportunity to cover him in paint...he reassured her that he would bring her a new chair first thing in the morning on his way to work. Seeing the concern on his face, she got up as quickly as she could, tossing herself into his arms, kissing every inch of his face with her blue lips, rubbing her cheeks against his. 

"Oops...sorry Abhi..accident tha..." she laughed, seeing his blood boiling in playful anger. 

Unable to resist how beautiful she looked even in this state, he embraced her, drenching his own white shirt in paint. "Koi baat nahi Akshu...karlo jo karna hai...liken ganda tumne kiya hai....toh saaf bhi tum hi karo gi..." He smirked.