Greetings all you lovely people!! Welcome to this story for one last time! I can’t even begin to tell you all how hard this is going to be for me. Well let’s save that for the end. Thank you so much for all your love! Happy reading!!
Twinj: My Lifeline: Episode 86 – The Epilogue (*Sobs*)
A quick recap: Kunj’s career begins to fall back into place, much to the relief of both him and Twinkle. With things beginning to look brighter, the Sarna family grows closer than ever, as do Twinkle and Kunj, never getting enough of each other.
“Twinkle! Look what I bought!” Kunj burst into the room, running straight for Twinkle who was sitting on the bed with her back to the headboard, mindlessly scrolling down a random fan page on social media. She looked up at him with a bright smile, having missed him too much in just the half of the day that he had gone to work leaving her at home. “A jacket?” She asked, holding up the clothing up from the package he had handed her. She glanced beyond it at him and noticed that what she held was an exact replica of the one he had been wearing, albeit a much smaller one. “Papa and baby are going to twin!” He exclaimed cheerfully, placing a gentle kiss on her evidently pregnant tummy. She smiled at him, her cheeks turning rosy when he looked up at her, locking their eyes. Their moment was interrupted by muffled giggles coming from across the room. She simply lowered her eyes at that, while Kunj snapped his head in the direction in shock to realize that Usha and Leela had been sitting on the couch next to the award that he had received for his latest superhit song. He hadn’t even spotted them in his excitement.
“Hi Ma, Leela Ma.” He muttered, his eyes looking anywhere but at them. They greeted him in return, exchanging a look and beginning to laugh. “I just thought it would be cool. I mean…” He tried explaining, but failed horribly. “We aren’t exactly opposing the idea either, Kunj. We are just happy to see our children happy.” Usha replied, bending to look at the jacket he had bought for the baby. “Are you sure about the size though?” Leela asked, voicing Usha’s concerns. Kunj quickly looked at the jacket and returned his glance to them. “Is it going to be too small? This was the smallest size they come in, Ma! Even Yuvraj and Chinki laughed at me arguing with the man behind the counter! I was worried it would be small, but the stylist insisted on it! And those two think I’m an idiot! While they are the ones unable to hold back their anxiety, making them forget that Yuvraj’s mom is bugging him to get married now, and Chinki is supposed to be helping her out!” He explained in a very matter-of-fact manner, but the women only giggled some more. Before he could question them though, he felt a tug at his hand, it was Twinkle. He raised his eyebrows at her and she beckoned him to sit on the bed beside her.
“What they are saying, Kunj, is that the baby won’t be able to wear this until it is at least a year old.” She said slowly, and Kunj looked back to his mother and mother-in-law doubtfully. They affirmed the facts with a nod before returning to their work. “This is a 1-year old’s size?” He asked in absolute awe, taking the jacket from Twinkle and scrutinizing it all over again. Like he hadn’t already done that a hundred times at the designer’s place. “The baby is going to be how small when it is born, again?” He gushed, still in a daze at all the information he was receiving. Having been an only child and used to keeping away from cousins and extended family because of his demanding career, Kunj realized that the only just born babies he could have seen would be in movies. “Oh my God! I’m going to be a terrible father, aren’t I?” He whimpered, dropping his head into his hands. But before Twinkle said anything, he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was Leela, and she had a very soft, understanding look in her eyes.
“Of course not, Kunj! You’re only worried because you are new to this. But don’t let that dishearten you. The moment you hold your baby in your arms for the very first time, you’ll know, just like that, that you will do all you can for your baby, and you will, definitely, be your best. Not for your own sake, but for the baby. I have to say that Twinkle knows better than you do in these terms, although I can’t believe my darling daughter is soon going to have a baby of her own! At least her basic knowledge will make it easier for both of you.” Leela assured him, casting a loving glance at Twinkle who smiled back sweetly. “There will be lots that you’ll have to learn, Kunj! But the two of you are never alone. You’ll always have us to help you, to teach you and soon, you’ll be experts yourselves. You won’t need any guidance next time, or the time after that!” Usha’s supporting words had begun convincingly, but the last bit left both of them blushing bright red. “Ma!” They protested in unison, while Leela and Usha laughed, embarrassing them some more.
“Look what Leela Ji taught me to make!” Usha chattered, having suddenly remembered. She proudly showed them the little socks and sweaters that she had managed to knit under Leela’s watchful guidance. Having always had maids to do every little and big task for them, Usha had never learnt the art of knitting, but the idea of doing it for her grandchild that they were expecting soon overwhelmed her, and she had got Leela to come over so she could teach her too. “My goodness, Usha is knitting?” Manohar sounded as unable to believe it as Usha herself had in the first place. He had just got home from work and walked over to where everyone else was, and the sight had almost brought him a minor heart attack. “It’s hard to rely on this! Imagine Usha, of all people, doing something so delicate, having planned and plotted like it was her hobby for so long!” He teased, making Usha groan at him while all the others looked on in absolute silence. “Papa, please. If it hadn’t been for Ma’s plans, Alisha would have thrown us all to the streets by now.” Kunj defended Usha, and now all the eyes were focused on him. “Oh, come on! You all know I’m that stupid. I might as well have done it!” He stated like it was the most obvious fact, returning the laughter and cheer in the room.
Twinkle’s eyes followed Kunj’s movements as he softly shut the door after Leela, Manohar and Usha had left. He turned to her and smiled, holding her glance as she returned his smile with a brighter one of her own. “How are you doing today?” He asked, sitting beside her such that he was facing her. “I’m fine” She replied with a nod and both of their eyes gazed at her tummy. “The baby” They said together, so used to his routine questioning that she already knew what he would say next. She looked at him with a content smile and blinked reassuringly. “The baby is fine, too.” She said, picking up the jacket that he had bought for the baby which was now lying on her lap. “I’ll return this.” He said immediately, forwarding his hand to get it, but she refused. “No, you won’t! This is the first piece of clothing you’ve bought for our baby, Kunj! We’ll keep this safe until the baby is old enough for it!” She spoke, brightening his mood instantly. “You’re the best!” He whispered and she acknowledged it with a nod and an ‘As always!’ making him laugh. “You are pretty good too.” She teased, watching him lovingly as he laughed wholeheartedly.
“Kunj, there is one problem though.” Twinkle remarked suddenly, and Kunj looked up from her feet that he had been gently massaging. “Are you alright? Any discomfort or pain?” He quipped in, placing her foot on the pillow and shifting quickly to her side. “I’m fine, I’m fine!” She said, placing her hands over his. He sighed, now looking at her more observantly. “I was just saying, what do we do of this jacket if the baby is a girl?” She asked, genuinely worried that he might end up saddened with his unfulfilled desire. “What does that have to do with the baby being a boy or a girl?” He shot back, confusing her. “I was also kind of hoping we would have a girl you know? Sweet and pretty like her Mumma! And a jacket on her would look so good!” He added, brushing a loose strand of her hair away from her face. He had now inched even closer. She leaned forward and rested her head on his shoulder, exhaling slowly. “Were you looking forward to a baby boy?” He enquired, wondering if that was the reason she had asked that absurd question.
Twinkle looked at him blankly, realizing that she had never thought about which one she wanted. In all honesty, all that she had always prayed for was the baby’s well-being, never a particular gender. He somehow found that unbelievable when she told him so though. “That can’t be! How come you never had an inclination to one side? Don’t they all say, Dadda’s princess and Mumma’s prince?” He pondered out loud. She had never told him so, but his innocence in the matter was always adored by her. “They do, Kunj. You haven’t even heard half the things people say. But nobody knows how much of any of that is true.” She explained patiently, and he nodded understandingly. “But I’m still allowed to wish for a teeny tiny princess, right? Although now that I think of it, having a prankster baby boy to team up with against you would be awesome too!” He prattled, making her laugh. She couldn’t wait for the baby to arrive anymore. Just like him.
“But there is one thing that I think is really important, Twinkle.” He said seriously sometime later, and she just hummed, an indication that he had her attention. “It doesn’t really matter whether we have a baby boy or a baby girl, we must raise our baby the same way in either case. We should never impose restrictions on a girl, or have unnecessary prejudices if we have a boy. We’ll be really gentle and tolerant, or a little strict at times if required. We’ll remember to never force our dreams, expectations and aspirations on our child’s shoulders.” His list of do’s and don’ts was interrupted when he heard a quiet sob. “Twinkle?” He reached out, making sure she was doing good. She shook her head, reassuring him that she was just fine, she had only gotten sentimental by his words. She pulled him to her side and directed his arms around her while he went along with her directions.
“I may not know many things, Kunj. But I am sure about one thing. That you will make a terrific father.” She whispered and felt him smile against her cheek where he had been placing gentle kisses. “You’ll be a brilliant Mumma too! And I will always make sure that I do all that I can to keep the two of you happy and safe. Always!” He responded, to which she cooed gladly. “I love you!” She said softly, returning a feathery kiss on his cheek. “I know.” He stated, making her narrow her eyes at him. “I love you too! Goodness, do you have to scare me that way?” He added quickly, laughing along with her. As he rested his forehead against hers, they both knew, for a fact, that life may not always be a bed of roses, but with each other’s company, they would manage just fine. In each other, they had found their very lifelines, and nothing seemed unbearable as long as they were together.
And … it’s a wrap! I would like to thank each and every person who’s been a part of this journey with me, no matter how long you were here for. Each one of you have contributed to it, and perhaps that is one of the reasons this story is so incredibly dear to my heart. I may or may not write other stories, which may or may not be good, but I do know for a fact that none of them will ever be what this was. It was all that my heart defines true love by and so much more than that as well. It’s such a hard goodbye to say, this story means so much to me than I’ll ever be able to express. It’s been a long, long one, with several breaks in between, but you guys – seriously the best – kept me and the story going always. The story has given me so much to learn, so much love from you all that if I really had my way, I would never ever let it go. But all good things do come to end, don’t they? I’m going to miss this story, I’m going to miss looking forward to writing it, to think of ways to make it better, to bring up new plot twists. All such priceless memories and experiences that I’ll always carry dear to my heart. Also, in this episode, I’ve intentionally not included any time frame, I now leave this Twinkle and Kunj to you all, it’s up to you to decide when you would want this scene to be, a few months later, a whole year later, or perhaps even later. Thank you all!
P.S. This is to answer the question about the other story that I had hinted at writing some episodes ago. I really want to take it up, but recently the responses have been poor so I haven’t taken a final decision on that yet – as of the day I finished writing this part, over three weeks ago that is. Let’s see what happens. Much love!!