Frosted Caramel

Naina sighed and leaned back happily in her comfortable chair, clutching their photograph to her. It had been taken on their honeymoon, by a kind bystander. They were on a mountain, surrounded almost knee deep in fresh snowfall. It showed Sameer’s surprised look on being hit by a snowball by a laughing Naina. The utter incredulous look on his face, as he had turned to look at her, always had her smiling whenever she saw the picture. He looked so endearingly boyish that her heart melted with love every time she saw the picture. Of course, the fact that she too looked good, with the camera catching her best angle and her love for him reflecting in her eyes, added to the eternal charm of this picture.

The photograph in its silver photo frame stood at a pride of place on the mantelpiece in their room. She still could not believe her luck; that this picture happened only because she had followed her heart and trusted her instincts. She shivered involuntarily at the thought of what could have been and if she had not taken this road at the fork and gone the other way.

Reminiscing once again, she lapsed into the past….

Six months back…

“Welcome, Mr. and Mrs. Khanna, “the concierge smiled at them. Naina and Sameer exchanged glances and followed him into their room. They were at a small boutique hotel in Geneva, Switzerland. The room was warm with a small fire burning in the fireplace and the bedcovers had been thrown back invitingly to make them feel at home. Naina sighed and drew the curtains to see the white splendour outside. The trees were topped white, oozing like vanilla ice-cream cones and the ground was a dazzling white carpet till the eyes could see. The snow glittered like diamonds in the lights from their cabin.

Mrs. Khanna, the man had called her. She wondered what would he say if he came to know that soon she may no longer answer to that name. She stole a glance at Sameer but he was busy raking the fire in the grate. How she wished he would stoke up the dying embers of their marriage instead.

Theirs was an arranged marriage. As is common in many Indian families, they had met through mutual acquaintances. She had a big hang up about ‘nose’, maybe because she had always found her’s wanting; he had that ‘aquiline’ nose that she would have given her right arm for! Also, he was ‘tall, dark and handsome’, a pre-requisite for a girl brought up on Mills & Boons! It was a definite ‘yes’ from her side, even before meeting him. Talking to him later on sealed the deal. He was polite, soft spoken and dashing to boot. By the time the evening ended she was so moony eyed that she failed to notice his less than enthusiastic response to her talk and questions.

Matters progressed smoothly and within two months, they were married. She had found it a little bit unsettling that he seemed reluctant to talk about himself and was not too keen to talk on the phone, which she mistook as his shyness. In the euphoria of finding her ‘Mr. Perfect’ and being the envy of her friends, these niggling doubts were brushed under the carpet and she happily got involved in being the ‘radiant bride’, to her mother’s delight.

Happy faces could be seen everywhere, at the wedding. She knew they made a handsome couple and were the talk of the evening. She saw her parents’ beaming faces; happy that their daughter had found a match worthy of her, both in the looks department as also in education. They both held good jobs, came from respected families and had their blessings; had liked each other, though in her case it had been love at first sight and she was sure it was the same with him too! She was looking forward to a long joyous married life with a partner of her choice.

Considerate of their awkwardness, her in- laws had booked them in a nearby hotel for the first few days. Still shy around him, she had waited breathlessly for him to join her in the room. He came in eventually but looked a trifle uneasy and uncomfortable. Hesitatingly he had come up to her and taken her hands in his. Slightly alarmed, she had looked at him questioningly, never imagining that her idyllic world was about to come crashing down.

“Naina, I don’t know how to tell you this but then I don’t want the past to ever intrude in our future. I wanted to start our marriage without any secrets. I was in a relationship for the last five years and was set on marrying my girlfriend. We have obviously broken up now, but it was not because of me. She “outgrew” me, quote unquote”, he said bitterly. “I am still hurting as I was very much in love with her. “

She had been devastated. “Then, why did you marry me?”, she blurted through the tears flowing down her cheeks.

He looked upset too. “I married under parental pressure, as they thought a right life partner will help me heal. I have not been coerced into this marriage. I too want to give myself another chance at love. I promise that you will not lack for anything. All I am asking for is some more time. I too want our marriage to work. Am I asking for too much?”, he pleaded.

 

Her world had collapsed around her. There was no one she could turn to; talking about it to anyone was too painful to contemplate. She blamed herself, ostrich like she had buried her head in the sand, oblivious to read the writing on the wall and now it was too late.

She looked at him through the blur of tears. He looked so woeful, as if genuinely upset with the turn of events, her heart melted at the sight. She decided against her better judgement, to give him a benefit of doubt. After all, she had nothing to lose and everything to gain. She had read somewhere, “Stay patient and trust your journey.” She decided to do just that.

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They were on a delayed honeymoon, from which neither could backout. This was Sameer’s parents wedding gift to them. This was the first time since their wedding they were alone with each other, without their families about them.

A little later, in the lounge he relaxed over the drinks served by an attentive waiter. The liquor, true to its name, worked its magic and he slowly opened up about his past. Turned out that his girlfriend had cheated on him with his best friend; the humiliation and hurt he felt on being deceived by them had completely devastated him. She had found his friend more dashing than him, had found him ‘staid and boring’ and had promptly changed course. It had been a shock to him to see her in this new light; a relationship of five years , settles down after the first giddy flight of exhilaration, but she craved excitement and so ‘outgrew’ him , so to say. Once the dam broke, then there was no stopping. She let him talk; she knew that this catharsis was important if they had to have a chance. Over dinner, they discovered their common likes; they loved coffee after dinner; their favourite ice-cream was salted caramel; both loved crime thrillers; were avid readers and Saturday nights were reserved for binge watching, And, the clincher-DDLJ was their all-time favourite! They both looked at each other with renewed eyes!

Naina was an eternal optimist to her friends’ despair. She always saw a silver lining in any situation and had gone through a lot of leg pulling from her dear ones about that. Staying positive in whatever the fate deals us with had always been her strength and she could never understand the merits of being realistic, as against an optimistic. She firmly believed in ‘whatever rocks your boat’. This belief in herself and her ability to rise over any setbacks now came to the fore and she promised herself that she will give her marriage her best shot for she loved Sameer with all her heart and losing Sameer was too despairing to contemplate.

As the pale winter sun heated the days that followed, she could see Sameer slowly warming up towards her. He appeared relaxed and the strained look around his mouth melted into softer lines. His eyes twinkled with good humour and many a time she found him chuckling at her rejoinders. Sameer was finally letting his guard down and seemed to get over his past. She sent a silent prayer of thankfulness to her in-laws, who in their wisdom may have sent them on this extended honeymoon, knowingly.

On their last day at the resort, they went on a long hike; a picnic hamper thoughtfully provided by the kitchen staff. Tired and happy, as they trooped into their room in the evening to freshen up Sameer suggested they stay in and order from room service.

Sensing a change in the atmosphere, she felt a sliver of excitement run through her. Her senses were fully heightened and aware of Sameer’s every move. She felt, rather than saw him come close and put his hands over her shoulders. She shivered involuntarily. Gently he turned her around and raised her face to look at him. Love and a slight embarrassment gleamed in his eyes. She felt herself tearing up. He gently wiped her eyes and hugged her close. Caressing her face, he said, “Naina, I am so sorry for being such an idiot. I was chasing an illusion, when in reality I had what I had pure gold with me all the time. These few days together have made me realise that you are someone whom I was searching for all my life. You complete me. I love you, my darling. I can’t thank you enough for not giving up on me. Can you please forgive me for causing you so much heartache and for being such an insensitive brute? I promise never to hurt you again.”

She smiled tremulously up at him. Before she could reply, he added tongue-in-cheek, “We have our parents to thank for this, don’t we? Sending us on this honeymoon, they sure knew what the outcome would be”, he smiled down at her, impishly.

Tears flowed down Naina’s eyes unchecked and she felt her heart swell up with love. She clutched him closer and burrowed deep into his arms. He picked her up and gently laid her on bed. As he went to draw the curtains, she could see the frost thawing outside, as if to mirror the thaw melting in their relationship and signalling the warm loving days to come. “Thank you, Mama and Papa” she whispered softly as Sameer hugged her fiercely to himself and pressed his lips on hers in a throbbing kiss.

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Naina felt someone gently shaking her shoulders. Looking up drow