A palette of yellow hues painted the sky as the sun slowly rose to its humble abode above the horizon. A certain someone sat with their legs crossed, face resting on his hands; waiting for his partner to wake up. He saw his phone for the seventh time in the past minute before deciding to go ahead and wake her up.

"Sivu ma, time achu! Riiiiseee annnddd Shhhine!" he sang out loud after gently shaking her. He received no response except a shift in her position from left to right.

"Sivaanya, Sivuu! Korangu, Karadi, Cutie pie....wake up!" he tried once again. His attempt was partially successful, as she slowly opened her eyes.

"Wake up..Wake up! Unala mudiyum! Come on! Thookum podhum! Come onnn, Sivuu!!" he repeated, trying to get her completely awake.

"Ada, vaaya modu! Time enna?" she asked, her hair in poking out in different directions and her voice - heavy and groggy.

"Time vanthu 4:30! Evalo late parru." he spoke just to receive a smack on his face with the pillow.

"Paithyam, ethuku midnight-la elupura!" she spoke in anger, fighting to keep her eyes open.

"Unaku surprise iruku... please enthri...please enthri... pleasee!" he repeated continuously, making her sigh and get up.

"Una patha enaku adikanum pola iruku, and hug panni, kiss pannanum pola iruku! Yetha first panrathu."

"Yen surprise pathutu nee yenna panra-nu pakalam" he abruptly stood up and received another pillow smack on his face.

"Modhala shirt and pant-a podu! Dirty Fellow!"

"Yen T-Shirt than neenga potrukinga, madam! Remove pani kodu ipo." He spoke, winking at her to which she glared at him and walked to the wardrobe to grab him a T-Shirt.

Walking behind her, he grabbed the T-shirt and wore it. Within few seconds, he lifted her in bridal style, making her let out a loud yelp. He placed a kiss on her cheek and nuzzled his beard on her cheeks, making her giggle loudly.

They slowly walked towards their store room. As they approached closer to the room, he made Sivu close her eyes tightly and refused to answer any of her questions.

Once they stood outside the room, he placed her hand on the knob and asked her to open the door, while keeping her eyes close.

"3....2....1..ippo door open pannu!" she heard him countdown to zero.

Opening her eyes, she arguably had one of the biggest shocks of her life. Her pupils dilated in surprise while her eyes opened wide. A beaming smile that put her cheeks and jaw in pain, but she couldn't control her smile from growing further. Every feature of hers reflected happiness. An unexpected surprise took her in a rollercoaster of delight.

Leaning forward, she placed a long kiss on his forehead; while he closed his eyes in response. He slowly placed her on her feet, as she took a second to observe the room in front of her- happiness and delight engulfing her completely.

The intoxicating scent of fresh paint was omnipresent, as she walked into the room. On the walls, she saw some of her artworks. In the shelves were bottles of paints in different colors, along with other equipment like paintbrushes, canvas holder, and canvases of multiple sizes.
There was a white mat that laid on the floor which she knew was there because of how clumsy she can get. A little chair was put beside the canvas, making her laugh at his thought process- he certainly knew she was a 90 year old in the body of someone who is 20.

Turning around, she saw him leaning against the doorframe. His eyes glistened in admiration for her excitement and actions. In no time, she crashed her thin frame into his large ones, repeating multiple 'thank you!'. He placed a kiss on her forehead and squeezed her tightly in a hug.

"Epdi theriyum unaku that I am interest in painting. These artworks were in my house. Anga poniya?"

"Un annan enaku best friend, ma. Namma love pannum podhey unoda interest in art as a career pathi neraya vatti pesirukan. Namma vetula unoda dream-ku supportive ila nu sonna. Athan oru chinna first step, unakaga! Aprom antha rendu paintings madam, namma first date-ku aprom paint panirukinga. Un annen sonnan, na avanuku oru dosa vangi koduthu, paintings eduthuten."

"You know na semma excited-a vettuku vanthen namma meet panna aprom! Ana vettuku vantu orey sanda. Aprom anna than white flag katti, enna room ku poga sonaru. Appo oru 10 irukum night-la, apo paint panna start paninen, almost morning 6 ku finish pannen. Whenever, I see these painting I feel so happy and shy. I thought I lost it, but it found its way to the rightful owner!"

"Intha curly, messy hair oda ne Bob Ross mari iruka! My very own Bob Ross!"

"Bob Ross-a? Seri vidu, next enoda plan! So quick-a brush panitu, change panitu... let's goo!"

Within the next hour, the couple got dressed and left their house. With Aravind in the driver's seat, Sivu asked him to follow her blind directions and asked him to keep slow as she wasn't great in giving directions. In the next 4 hours, they had reached Trichy; where Sivu insisted on taking a lunch break because her stomach was making obnoxious noises. They resumed their journey after a heartly meal.

"Coimbatore thana porum! Nee thungu, na kita reach anadhum, I'll wake you up! Aprom unoda surprise ku direction kudu!"

"Happa, ne oru smart person! Epdi than map pakurangalo, enaku semmaya thukam varuthu."

The sun had begun to set and it was almost 8 hours into their drive. Throughout the drive, Aravind kept thinking about her surprise. He thought they were going to spend the day at the orphanage. Once they had reached the borders, Aravind woke Sivu up to give him directions. She told him to drive till the orphanage and then made him blindfold his eyes after they had parked the car outside the place.

Reaching their destination, Sivaanya held Aravind's hand tightly and whispered that she would always be there for him. The minute she opened the blindfold- she visibly saw Aravind's face lose all its color. The grip on her hand began to get loose, but she immediately held on to it.

He could feel his throat parch, as tears pooled in his eyes, gradually rolling down his cheeks. He voluntarily left her hand and began talking slow steps towards the entrance, with Sivu trailing behind in slight regret of her decision to bring him here.

His hands trembled as he struggled to get hold of the rusty, iron grill gate in front of him. The familiar screech in the gate that was once his favorite melody made shivers run down his spine today. A wave of nostalgia hit, as he remembered how he used to swing on the doors while his mother used to chase him around with a bowl of his favorite curd rice.

His teeth shivered with more tears caressing his cheeks as he saw the withered flowers and plants that surrounded him. He remembered how luscious they looked two decades back. Saturdays for 7 year old Aravind was gardening with his father. They would be drenched in water and covered in soil- he let out a bitter laugh, remembering how his mom would never let them inside until their feet were clean.

His memories, in this house, were very vague but he could hear the laughter, fights, fun; they always had together.

The main wooden door creaked open in a gentle push. He was welcomed by a gush of dust and some creepy crawlies. He attempted to switch on the lights, but they didn't work. Opening his phone's flashlight, he kept taking small steps into the house. It was the same house he had always known, but now it felt different. It felt haunted by the memories of that one incident that changed his life completely.

He took a deep breath and stepped inside. The air felt heavy and the tension around was thick. He slowly walked to the living room, eyes tracing every piece of furniture. They were all covered in dust and had a rusty wooden smell, but he couldn't care less about it.

Internally, he felt proud about himself for keeping his emotion intact so far. He didn't want Sivu to come inside with him because her presence allowed him to be comfortable with his emotions, expressing more than what he would want to. He genuinely feared a breakdown would open up all the emotions and memories he had done a good job of burying deep inside.

His moment didn't last though, as his eyes feel upon a photo frame on the walls. It was a picture of him on his 7th Birthday along with his mother and father. A little piece of Kesari was present on a small plate. He remembered how he fought with his parents to get him a cake, not understanding their financial position, so his mom made his favorite sweet and made it look like a little muffin.

It felt like his buried memories and wounds opened up, looking at the picture perfect moment until it all crashed in a minor second. He fell flat on the ground and broke down crying loudly. His shoulder shuddered, while his cries echoed in the small 10 x 8 living room.

Sivu, who was crying while standing outside the house, rushed inside hearing his cries. Her heart shattered to see him on the ground with his face buried in his hands. She ran to him, enveloped him in a hug and caressed his back. She remained silent, waiting for him to speak, completely aware that no words she says could give him comfort as much as a calming silence.

He slowly broke from her embrace and pointed towards the picture before he started stuttering, attempting to speak to her.

"Ma...Am...Amma.." "Ap...Appa" he spoke slowly, repeating the same words multiple times.

His voice cracked, before he started having difficulties to breathing. His eyes dilated, while he tried taking as much air as he could with his long gasps. His condition put Sivu in a state of panic. She immediately pulled him closer but gave him enough distance to breath.

"Inga parru, Aravind! You will do exactly as I say! On the count of three, let's smell the flowers together, and then let's blow your birthday candle."

"Smell the flowers"

"Blow the candles"

In the next few minutes, he was able to get his breathing back to normal and immediately hugged her, wanting to be closer in her embrace. After a silent half an hour, he pulled back and looked into her eyes.

Her mind captured the look on his face and without realizing drops of tears rolled down her eyes. His face was swollen- his eyes were in the deepest shade of red- dried tears settled on his cheeks. The collar of his T-Shirt was partially soaked, while his hair was disheveled.

"Thank you!" he looked into her eyes and said. He may have not expressed himself in paragraphs, but the depth of emotions his eyes carried and the tone of his words expressed much more than what a few extra words would have.

Sivu, who previously sat in front of him, crawled to sit beside him. She patted on her shoulder with a small smile, after which he inched closer and placed his head on her shoulder, while she caressed his hair.

"Namma vetta nalliku clean panalama" he asked in a feeble voice. For which she replied with a gentle nod and smile.

xxx
Happpyy Diwaliii 🪔 I hope you have a fun and colorful year ahead.