Soham:
Happy New Year Sailee!
This is the year I will propose (to you)
That is how my 2023 started, with a blush and a flutter.
Sailee:
Hehehe, we will see. I like your confidence! 😜
That is how Soham’s 2023 started, with a Mchh and a frown.
You put a Ted Mosby romantic together with a Hermoine Granger nerd and you get the sweet boy being thrust with a list of pre-conditions to be fulfilled before he could propose.
But Soham Please,
- Wait till our parents know and have accepted (I want to post pictures immediately 🤭).
- Don’t propose on your birthday, my birthday or any other special dates (I don’t want to combine two events)
- Oh also, please make sure I am not academically burdened! (I would like to have a free head)
- Oh and one last thing, don’t propose with a ring haan (I don’t want to re-wear it on engagement day 😉).”
Yeah, it was a long list! I promise I wasn’t trying to scare, bore or anger him into not proposing 😝 I was just trying to design perfectly the single most romantic moment in my life while expecting to also be surprised along the way 🙃. A tall order, but the problem solver that he is, Soham managed to pull it off with aplomb!
…..
24th December
The Day dawned on the dusty, sultry streets of Alibaug. We, that is a group of overworked, laid-back, desperate-for-a-holiday adults had a whole day planned out for us- lunch at Sanman, sunset at Korlai and then dinner at Varsoli beach. Perfect!
Definitely a day worthy of two outfits (as animatedly decided by us girls!) – a flowy, beachy one for the morning and a more fun, snazzy dress for the evening. The day of course did not work out as per the plan (as I had anticipated), but the two dresses mandate remained (something I hadn’t anticipated!). And as luck would have it, I had decided that this trip is the perfect opportunity to release the minimalist in me and had packed light- definitely had no fun, snazzy dress to wear 🙈.
It was almost serendipitous though, for as romantic movies would have it; my sisters (in law 😳) took it upon themselves to deck me up. Shreya let me borrow a gorgeous dress and offered me her bracelet, Pallavi lent me her necklace, Pashmina brought out her prettiest hairpin and Didi hid me from Soham till I was ready and told me I looked beautiful and suddenly I felt prettier than I had felt in a while 🥰.
And that was just the beginning!
…..
We arrived at our restaurant, clicked a bunch of Christmas-y pictures, and then as we were about to start our dinner, someone tapped my back. And there was Pushkar standing behind me, grinning like a Cheshire cat 😀
Hands down, the best kept secret of my life.
If till then I only had a tingling, seeing Pushkar just confirmed that something filmy was about to unfold.
As if on cue, the dinner turned comical, with unexpected phone calls, goofy outbursts and laughter all around. In my post-dinner fog, Didi and Pushkar whisked me away for a walk to look for ice-cream. By the time we returned from our fake icecream errand, it was officially Christmas! 😀
Back on the beach, I could see our folks chilling together at a distance. As I started moving towards them, Soham led me to the water. It was slightly chilly and windy! We could taste the salt (and anticipation) in the air. And as I felt the warmth of his hands in mine, I couldn’t believe that a nerdy girl like me, who had stopped watching rom-coms cause it hurt too much, was in the middle of a k-drama herself! And I burst out laughing- from the bottom of my heart, stomach clinching, cheeks hurting laughter- at the unbelievable, the improbable, the incredible! 🥹
Soham then started laughing too, and we were like kids then, grinning and laughing like our deviously naughty plan had come to fruition and someone had been fooled and brought to their knees! In our case, it was our beliefs – mine, that I don’t care for romance and his, that he is fated to keep searching for his Lebenslanger Schicksalsschatz.! 😌
…..
The moment started sinking in, we caught our breaths and Soham started walking towards the brightly flickering lights where our gang stood.
‘Dhalti Rahe’ was playing on his phone as I was taking in a big heart made of pink chrysanthemums and white and pink roses, lit up with golden fairy lights.
In front of the heart were the words, ‘Marry Me?’ and the yellow umbrella, twinkling with fairy lights.
They say the best moments of your life are only remembered in emotions, not details. And years later, when I look back at this moment, I might forget the words, but I will remember the joy we felt in each other’s arms as we lived our fantasy that we had dared not dream! I will remember Pushkar crying, Didi saying I love you, his sisters getting emotional, hugging us and welcoming me into the clan. It was perfect 😊
If butterflies in the stomach were real, mine that day would have created a garden worthy of records. The process we had accidently kick-started in August (a story for another day) was now gaining full speed!
….
Things had come to a full circle – we were on the same beach, the photo of which had gotten us talking; we had eaten at the same restaurant where he had told his cousins about this girl he was crushing out on, and we were surrounded by the same people whose stories had made me want to be a part of this gang!
The story-arc that had started in 2021 was coming to its fruition in 2023 and setting up stage for forever to come!
My man outdid himself! And now, every time that I see myself wearing the umbrella shaped nose-pin, I am reminded that I am loved by an incredible man, who not only appreciates my quirks; but also means it when he says ‘tuzya nakavarche sagale nakhre uchlayla mi tayar ahe’! 😊
I suppose Klaus was right, when you find your Lebenslanger Schicksalsschatz , you feel it instantaneously.
It courses through you like the water of a river after a storm, filling you and emptying you all at once. You feel it throughout your body, in your hands, in your heart, in your stomach, in your skin…
Have you ever felt this way about someone?
