It was early morning. Early morning light emerged through the clouds, colouring it in hues of pink  orange. For a weekend, it was a lot earlier for Vinny to get up and take a shower. She usually preferred to cuddle with her little family since they will be spending some quality time together or would visit the kids in NGO home.   So Vinny was not in a hurry to head somewhere, still her pulse raced in excitement. She quickly finished her hot shower,  towel dried herself and tied the bathrobe around her. She made her way towards the huge mirror in their washroom briskly. Vinny  hummed a happy song and smiled at her reflection on the mirror. Surely she felt like a lady with a purpose today.

'Avi..are you up??'
Vinny called him up in a low voice making sure not to wake up Avni.

' Yeah... What happened?' Avi replied sleepily.
Vinny smiled listening to his sleepy voice. Usually she won't wake him up on weekends. Like everyone else, Avi loved his morning sleep but today, she was too excited to be that considerate.
So she didn't hesitate to wake him up.

' Come here na?and help me?'

' Why?? Do you want me to blow dry your hair?'
She heard him getting out of the bed and fiddling with the drawer to get the dryer.

' Yes please'

' Yeah and I am at your service ma'am ' he teased her stepping into the washroom.

' Did you even dried your hair? It's dripping wet..' Avi took a towel from the rack and started drying her hair and kept murmuring ' what are you going to do without me' while doing so.

'Stop nagging Avi... that's why you are here. You have got expert in all these  because of kiddo..' she pulled a face as he proceed to blow dry her hair.

He rolled his eyes at her reflection in the mirror as he continued with his job.

' All done.. Ready for the day ma'am ?' Avi turned her around to look at her properly.

' Yes sir. Thank you for the kind service though.. Don't know what I will do without you ' Vinny winked playfully, making it in a light tone rather than admitting the fact.

' Oh...I am flattered...' he put his right hand on his chest dramatically making Vinny chuckle.

There are days when Vinny pause for a moment and think if she hadn't met Avi , what would have happened to her and Avni. She was so grateful for having him in her life that she didn't know what to do with herself. They still bickered and drove each other crazy at times and had their fair share of arguments over the years but they were madly in love with each other. They moved back to Visakhapatnam after Avni's first birthday. Avi's business was doing well and Vinny has started working with a NGO which worked for the well being of underprivileged children.
Varun and Avi was her strong pillers of support when she came up with a plan to introduce organic gardens in anganwadis in Andhra Pradesh to provide fresh and healthy food to children. Curry tree and Varun's organic farm helped this cause a lot. This not only came as a boon to the underprivileged children but also accelerated the anganwadi workers as well as lots of families in the same direction. This initiative made a huge difference in those children's lives and even government appreciated their efforts to bring down the malnourishment rate in the state. It made Vinny so happy to do something meaningful, at the same time, it made her feel more humble and value each and everything in her life. Vinny hoped that her baby girl would grow up with a heart filled with empathy and kindness to everyone. Vinny and Avi made sure that Avni got the chance to mingle with kids in the NGO whenever they were volunteering.
Avni was bright and cheerful and made everyone around her happy. She loved to play with all of them and helped them in gardening. She was becoming an expert in recognising all kind of plants and vegetables even though she was still a little child.

' Why are you giving me that mischievous look Vinny ? What is going on in your head? It's highly unlikely for you to wake up this early on a weekend' he tapped on her head lightly making her pout.

'Why don't you brush your teeth first? Then I have a surprise for you.'

' Is that a warning sign?
You are making me worry now. Did you blow up the kitchen before I woke up?'

' That was last year Avi..and it was an accident...not funny' she glared.

' Yeah and it surprised me that you could blow up a kitchen while trying to cook breakfast.'

' Shh...I told you to brush' she pushed his brush into his hands and waited patiently for him to finish.
Vinny just loved watching him like this. His hair in a tangled mess, eyes still sleepy and a bit curious to know what she had done this time.

As he placed his brush back on the holder, Vinny grabbed his hand and placed a square test strip in his palm.

' What is this?'

Avi looked at the two pink lines on the strip for a second and then looked at Vinny. He looked confused and then his expression changed into utter disbelief.
He was holding a pregnancy test kit with a positive result.
Avi didn't know how to react to that. He looked at Vinny again searching for answers.

' Yes Avi...we are expecting..' she whispered.
Vinny's lips broke into a grin. Before she could utter another single word, Avi just wrapped her in his arms.

It was so sudden that Vinny lost her balance a little.
There was an urge the way he held her, she felt his heart beating in a crazy way.

' Your heart is beating like a drum Avi...are you alright? Are you upset?'
Vinny had a hard time in the past to convince him about even thinking about having another child after Avni turned three. Avi was adamant about not having another child after seeing Vinny in pain in the labour room. He wasn't ready to face another situation like that .
They took a lot of time to talk and Avi was just getting around to the thought of having a baby again and now she was pregnant.

His silence made Vinny's heart jump. Maybe he is upset or maybe he is not ready yet. She should not have shocked him like this...a million thoughts went through her mind and her smile turned into one unreadable  expression. She stepped out from his embrace, swiftly turned around, avoiding his eyes.

' It's okay Avi. Don't worry about anything. We will talk and decide okay?'
She tried to hide her disappointment and walk out of the washroom.

' Hey...Vinny... Where are you going after giving me such a great news? '

' Is that so?Then why are you looking so sad... almost crying?'
Vinny met his welled up eyes.

' Oh Vinny...I am so happy that I could cry... This is huge. Give me a second to process this. It is a shocker you see.. I am so so happy'
Vinny sighed in relief and didn't hesitate to pinch him with all her might.

' You stupid...I got so worried' Vinny aimed for his arm to pinch again.

' Ouch...that really hurts Vinny. When you are mad, it's like your energy center shifts to the fingers. It really hurts!!! ' he talked from experience.
Vinny clenched her fingers fighting the urge to smack him again. 

' Let me ask you now Vinny.
Are you happy? I know you are so busy with the NGO and projects moreover you enjoy doing all the work. You have to take it easy for a while and you are in for a lot of changes.. again.
Are you alright?'

Vinny smiled brightly. She loved it whenever he asked her about her feelings. They were honest with each other from the beginning. They valued each others opinions as well as emotions.

' I have you with me Avi. Why should I be worried?'
She pulled his cheek.

'We will join the pre natal classes Avi, this time we will be prepared. Don't worry too much.'

' I hope so too' He was doubtful that anything could prepare him for another baby. However, Vinny looked so confident, he just wanted to enjoy the moment.

They couldn't stop smiling. It was like they both got their favourite sugar treat in  their hand and could not wait to taste it. It took them for a moment to collect themselves, still the goofy grin lingered on their lips.

' Do you know who is going to be the most happiest person now?'

'Who else?  I thought it was you' Vinny rolled her eyes.

' My kiddo..' Avi replied like a proud father, that's what he exactly was.
' Do you know what we were talking while playing the words game last night?'

' Don't tell me you were finding words in the back of cereal box again '
Vinny shook her head lightly.
Dadda and kiddo was a pair. Inseperable, extremely cuddly and fan of each other.
Often people came up to her telling how Avni is a carbon copy of her Dadda.
Which made Vinny happy but couldn't help feeling a bit of jealous too.

' Of course we were. That's a fun game. You should try some time Vinny'

'That is so silly Avi' Vinny pretended to be unaware of the fun part even though she used to follow their game silently whenever she was around.

' Okay. Tell me what did she say?'
Vinny took her jeans and t shirt from the cupboard and turned around.

' Kiddo asked me to buy her a baby soon. At first I thought she was talking about a doll or something. When I asked which one she wanted, she told me that to buy her one like Arhaan. One who could laugh and cry or she could play or sleep with'

That got Vinny's attention. Arhaan was Varun and Samriddhi's four month old baby.

' What did you tell her?'

' Poor kiddo..she was thinking that we could buy babies like toys from the shop. She was so earnest about it Vinny. So I told her that we can't buy babies just like that. We have to talk to Mumma first then we have to wait. That's what I told her..'

Vinny chuckled a little.
' Looks like we are going to sweat a lot with this topic Avi. She won't let it go just like that.
Probably will ask loads of questions. Anyway, it's a releif that she is going to be happy to have a little brother '

' Brother? How do you so sure about that?'

Vinny changed into her denim jeans and beige shirt.

' I know everything Avi and I want a boy who will have eyes only for me ' she made a dramatic sigh and Avi laughed.

' Someone is so jealous I see.
Why? I have only eyes for you. Isn't that enough?'

' Who? You? You love kiddo a lot Avi and she does the same. I want a little boy who loves only me'

Vinny looked over at him for a response. Avi was trying hard not to laugh still his eyes crinkled in amusement.

'That's some another level of jealousy... Seriously vinny? Don't you know that I love you the most. Kiddo is my baby. You can't compare my love for both of you. That doesn't make sense at all!!'

Vinny patted on his floppy hair with a reassuring smile
' I know I know..but it feels great when you tell me that again and again... I am petty that way'

Vinny knew in her heart that how much he loved her and that's what made her strong. However she loved it whenever he confessed that again and again.

Avni and Avi made such an adorable dad and daughter duo, people always said to her how much they resemble with each other. It was true too. They were a pair bonded with love and it showed. Vinny was nothing but happy about the lovely bond they shared.

' That's not about being petty Vinny. It's good to say things like that often I guess. We all need a little bit of affirmations and reassurance. If I lacked in expressing my love to you in words, just remind me okay?
I am happy to oblige always'

Vinny chuckled playfully.
' Yeah yeah...will do that. You know what? You are the best!!'
Even though she said it in a mocking manner, she meant every single word of it.

' Yeah..and I love to get hugs for that as a pay back'
The morning was still a bit cold. The orange and pink  glow of the morning was still lingering in the horizon, Vinny let herself enjoy the warmth of his arms. It felt warm, blissfully calm and exactly like home. 

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Hi
It took me this much time to write this epilogue.( So sorry 🥺)
Maybe forever was such a beautiful journey...and I really enjoyed it.
I am truly grateful to all of you who read this story and encouraged me to write so far
Thank you once again 💕❤️
Stay happy n Stay safe.