Title : Stuck - The Coronacoaster

Author : Mmillie13

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Living room

Shantivan

March 24, 2020

After the 21 day lockdown announcement

Lockdown. An eight letter word that had managed to silence the otherwise chaotic space, bringing the whole family to a standstill.

The brothers, Arnav and Akash looked at each other, their eyes speaking volumes of the magnitude of effect that this announcement would bring for them and their company. Even without words, they could see that they were on the same page.

They had just finished a fashion show, launching their designs for this summer and had given their staff a well deserved break for working their asses off to make the event an even bigger success than last year. The prospects had seemed promising but this news was bringing in new developments, and none of them sounded great. This whole thing was now brought to an unforeseen halt for at least 21 days. And even after, there was no telling if everything would be back to normal.

The astute businessman that he was, Arnav could sense the vibes changing, his gut telling him that this was not all, that there was more to come. Although, he was not exactly sure what to make of it.

The sixth sense that had made him what he was today, was tingling. Although the logical mind of his refused to accept it, he inwardly knew he had an uncanny way of circumventing the danger line and turning things around, even when the odds said otherwise. And all this was due to his intuition, one which he would never admit he had, aloud.

Shaking his head, he came out of his thoughts and looked at his brother to answer his unvoiced concerns, "Looks like we're on an unplanned break, Akash. Time for some damage control. Both here and at AR." He motioned his head towards the still shocked family of his. And his brother just nodded, understanding what he meant, even in the few words.

Putting the business concerns aside for now, knowing they would need to regroup and strategize later, the brothers started towards their crazy family who had been uncharacteristically silent until now, given the unusual announcement.

Just as they had made a move, the comically struck expressions started to unfreeze one by one. And back was the mayhem.

"Lockdown!!! Sachhi!! Arre waah! I was just pestering Arnav ji to spend some time with me and Devi Maiyya seems to have heard my ardent prayers. Now this Laad Governor can't budge even if he wants too.", Khushi jubilantly screeched, jumping all over the place.

The usually self assured Mami was unsure if she should be happy or sad at this unexpected revelation. On one hand, there would be no kitty parties for her to attend, no one to show off her designer sarees that she had just purchased, to. On the other, she would have all the time in the world to nap and spend on her various beauty treatments. Also, her aankhon ke taare , her Ram and Laxman like Arnav and Akash bitwa would be in front of her eyes for days and days. Drowning in perplexity, all she could utter was a confused, "Hello hi homewa, bye bye going outwa."

Nani, the experienced matron, just closed her eyes and prayed to the Almighty for the health and well being of everyone. Her faint murmurs told the tale as she prayed for everything to become normal and safe once again and soon, while at the same time thanking God that all her family was here with her under one roof and not scattered physically as it usually was owing to business.

Mama, the ever so silent spectator was already imagining his plight in the days to come. Stuck in the house with no escape, he could only fathom what would become of him as a henpecked husband with an overly dramatic wife. Although he loved her to bits, his Manu was best taken in small doses with loads of breaks in between, the reason behind his rather frequent business trips. 'Duri pyaar banaye rakhti hai!' was the motto behind the success of his marriage.

"Maybe this would give us some time together, Akash ji.", Payal blushed happily looking at her husband who looked her in the eyes, smiling back assuringly.

Anjali and Aarav, the mother and son duo, looked forward to spending some bonding time together, creating some more memories together.

Even NK was a little excited at the prospect since he would be able to spend hours talking to his long distance girlfriend, Naina. He had been previously preoccupied with some photoshoots and campaigning for the fashion shows since he had joined his cousins at AR. And now, he would have hours filled with talking and listening to Naina, and the rest would be spent Netflix and chill style, enjoying the small reprieve before his brothers pull him back to work.

While most had mixed reactions, there were some who were positively trembling at what the future would bring for them. The latter consisted majorly of the Prakash brothers who dreaded the 24/7 presence of their Arnav bhaiya and hoped fervently that they stay out of the way of his outbursts, something they didn't predict high chances for.

But out of these, there was one who was rather neutral, Laxmi, who happily mehed undaunted, secure in the knowledge that come what may, her daana paani is not going to be affected.

Each of these members had outlined their 21 days. Planning to catch some moments which they wouldn't have had otherwise. Finding a small slice of togetherness after ages of being busy and away for one reason or the other. And for this unexpected opportunity in the most unlikeliest of situations, they thanked their stars.

*~*~*~*~*

Arnav and Khushi's bedroom

Shantivan

"Bas na, Arnav ji. Please let me go now. You have had me locked up here in the bedroom for two days. What would everyone say? You know na how Mami ji is? She would start teasing me about giving her a grandchild soon, since you seem to treat this time as another mini honeymoon." Khushi tried to push him away, not allowing him to unwrap her saree that she had finally managed to dress in after numerous efforts, what with him trying to pull her back to bed.

"Relax, Khushi. I'll handle Mami. Anyway, it's just been two years since our marriage. Akash and Payal have been married for two and a half and still seem to be in no hurry to start a family. So for now, we don't even come in that picture. Anyway, there is Aarav to take care of their grandparent desires for now. No need to hound us.", Arnav snuggled her from behind, admiring the picture they made together in their dressing mirror.

"On second thought, maybe we should get out of the room. I need to check in on a couple of works. I have been away from work for two days. I know Aman and Akash are there to handle it but I would still like to make sure. Anyway, I would take over from Akash and give him his two days. He needs time with Payal too. And then, we would switch back.", he mused out loud stepping back from her.

Khushi looked on in disbelief at her husband, "This man. Ugh! Only two things on his mind, me and work. This Laad governor is hellbent on making his work my sautan. Just now he was being romantic and what not, but no. That mood of his doesn't really last for long. Work always has to come in between. Now even I should go and help jiji out."

Khushi started towards the living room to find where the rest of the family was, thinking about how these days had passed for the family. The two brothers had quickly come up with a plan in their shatir dimag to make the most of this bizarre situation and spend some quality time with their better halves in this lockdown while at the same time not compromising on the work front.

Two days of the week, Arnav would manage all the work giving Akash time together with Payal and then, Akash would return the favour the next two days by handling everything. And one day of the week, mostly a Sunday, was reserved to spend time with the whole family, playing games or just chatting, among other things.

This unique arrangement had worked well for the couples. The family knew to leave the couple undisturbed for the two days that they took for themselves. Even Akash, who had finally shed some of his shyness, had jumped eagerly on the prospect, grabbing the opportunity to add a new spark to his marriage while Arnav had finally managed to strike a peculiar work life balance, devoting time to his beloved wife.

The lockdown had almost passed. They had even reached the end of extensions. They were on the cusp of saying goodbye to 2020. There had been times of sanity and times of aggravation all at home. All of their time together was littered with arguments and frustrations at the lack of control this made everyone feel, owing to being prisoned in the house as well as the rather extended work from home, to enjoying the feeling of having loads of time surrounded by family.

They had discovered a new sense of togetherness, a renewed appreciation for their loved ones. Each of their bonds as a family had strengthened given the large investments of time that had never before been possible.

The times ahead were still tough. All was still not right. Neither had the virus gone nor had the danger. Life had to resume. It had been at somewhat of a pause for too long. And even with so much uncertainty in the future, they all were sure of one thing, the memories that they all created would tide them all through the times ahead when lives would once again become busier, trying to get back to the previous normalcy and they would not be as lucky to steal such moments together, be it as a family or as a couple.

With such negativity around amidst the pandemic that had struck the whole world, these small bits of happiness were all the silver lining some needed to reinstate that all was not lost. There was still some good to come out of it. And that, no matter what, it would all be okay one day.

*~*~*~*~*

Translations:

Sachhi? Arre waah! - Really? That's amazing!

Aankhon ke taare - The apple(s) of her eyes

Duri pyaar banaye rakhti hai! - Distance keeps the love alive.

Dana pani - Food and water (sustenance)

Bas na - That's enough

Sautan - The other woman

Shatir dimag - Shrewd brain

Khatti meethi - Sweet and sour

*~*~*~*~*

P.S. The timelines are a little different here. At the time of the lockdown announcement (the first scene), it had just been two years to Payash's marriage and a year and a half to Arshi's remarriage. And the second scene is set somewhere around Christmas. Also, Aarav had been adopted by Anjali rather than Arshi.

Hope you all liked the rather different lockdown experience that Arnav and the other Raizadas had. Well, nothing is the usual with them, is it? Or maybe this brought back some of those memories of your own lockdown experiences.

And with the ending of this khatti meethi OS, I would like to reinstate the need for being even more careful now as the world has started to open up once again, in spite of the presence of the virus. As we have started to step out of our homes once again, we need to be a little more cautious to ensure our own safety and that of our loved ones. That being said, I wind up at last and take your leave, wishing you all to stay safe, maintain positivity while still testing negative.