Contrasting Hearts: The Two Worlds Intertwined

CHAPTER-33"Shadows of the Sheer"

Raman sets out, his mind grappling with the disbelief of whether this day is real or a mere dream. He has all the information about Ciashi at his disposal.

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Ciashi, lost in thought, gazes at a fruit basket and a knife placed on a wooden table near her bed. Her attention is solely on the gleaming knife. Ciashi extends her hand, lifting the shimmering knife with her palm, lost in contemplation and summoning the courage to take action.

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"Ting... Tong..." Raman presses the doorbell switch. Mamiji opens the door with a smile, "Oh, it's you! Please come in, Ramanji."

"Namaste. Um, are you Ciashi's aunt?" Raman asks with a gentle smile.

"Yes, I am her aunt. Please come in," Mamiji responds with a welcoming smile.

Raman enters the house, and Mamiji points towards Mamaji, saying, "Ciashi's uncle."

Raman greets with a nod and a gentle smile, "Namaste, Mamaji."

"Please, have a seat. Would you like something cold or tea, coffee?" Mamaji recognizes Raman.

"No, no, nothing," Raman replies as he takes a seat on the couch. Mamaji also sits in front of him.

There is silence for a while. Raman is unsure of what to say, and Mamaji and Mamiji are deep in thought.

Finally, after some time, Mamaji attempts to break the silence. Just as he starts speaking, Raman interjects, "I want to talk to Ciashi before the wedding. Can I do that?" He says it all in one breath.

Mamaji and Mamiji exchange glances, trying to understand what Raman said. Mamaji speaks first, "Of course, why not? Now, Ciashi is as much yours as ours."

"The room next to the one beside the stairs is Ciashi's," Mamiji points towards the stairs.

"Thank you so much," Raman says, and without wasting any time, he dashes towards the stairs, effortlessly crossing three steps in a single jump.

Mamaji looks at Raman a bit strangely, while Mamiji exchanges a secretive look.

"Tuk... Tuk..." Ciashi, still looking at the knife in her hands, hears a knock on the gate. She turns to see.

"Ciashi, I want to talk to you for a while, can I?" Raman says this while looking at Ciashi through a white sheer curtain,

Ciashi recognizes the familiar voice and quickly places the knife back before turning towards Raman. Without moving the curtain aside, Ciashi and Raman are looking at each other through the sheer fabric.

"I know, Ciashi, that you must be thinking about how my grandfather came to your house seeking a relationship, even though I had told you that if you don't message me, I won't bother you. But I am telling the truth; I had no idea that my grandfather would reach your house for the proposal. I also found out about it this morning that your family has agreed to the relationship."

Raman looks towards the floor and chuckles a bit, "Let it be; whatever happened is for the best. What do you think about it?"

Upon Raman's question, Ciashi is puzzled, and she starts looking around, not sure what to say.

"Ciashi, are you listening?" he asks, looking at her through the sheer curtain.

Ciashi replies, "Umm, yes."

As Raman hears Ciashi's voice, the corners of his lips lift, and his eyes start to glow. This is the same voice that has been echoing in Raman's ears for the past few days, the one he longed to hear.

Ramans scratches his head once, "So, do you approve of this relationship?"

After a couple of seconds, seriousness fills Raman's face, "I want to ask directly if you agree to this relationship. Is there any pressure on you? If so, there's no need to worry. I will take all the blame; I will say that I don't want this marriage."

With these words, Raman falls silent, waiting for Ciashi's answer.

Tears glisten in Ciashi's eyes,

Ciashi's point of view,

"Ramanji were right that if I don't message them, they won't bother me, and they didn't even know that his Dadaji came to our house with a marriage proposal. So, should I disagree to the marriage? no, no, I can't do that. Mamiji warned me that she won't spare me this time. So, what should I do? I have to say yes to this marriage. On the other side of the curtain, there is he, who won't marry me if I refuse once, even after liking me. On the contrary, I, who don't want this marriage, am still going to marry him. There are so many barriers on both sides of this curtain. We are so different from each other.

On the other side of the curtain, there is he, who won't marry me if I refuse once, even after liking me. On the contrary, I, who don't want this marriage, am still going to marry him. For him, it should be the moment of happiness that my family agreed to this marriage, for which he asked only for one chance. But instead, he came here just for me. I am cowardly unable to take a stand for myself."

Ciashi presses her wet eyelashes to her cheeks as she speaks, "I want to marry of my own will, without any force on me."

Listening to this, it seems like there was so much of joy on Raman's face. He felt like he wanted to jump in happiness or even cry and pick Ciashi up in his arms and spin her around, but he didn't do that. He controlled his emotions.

"I knew you would say this, but I wanted to hear it from your own lips."

Ciashi turns away as soon as she sees that Raman has grabbed the curtain with his palm and is about to remove it, and just by removing the curtain, he will come in front of Ciashi. Ciashi did not want Raman to see her tear-streaked and sad face. It was clear that Raman, by looking at Ciashi, would understand Ciashi's heart.

"Trinngg.. tringg." But destiny had other plans. As soon as Raman removes the curtain and tries to see Ciashi, Raman's phone starts ringing.

"Okay, Dadaji, I'll be there in a moment." Raman says as he picks up his phone.

After cutting the call, Raman bids farewell to Ciashi, "Alright, Ciashi, I'll leave now." He moves towards the stairs, and as he goes down, the sight of Ciashi is left incomplete for Raman.

Quickly finishing the conversation with Mamaji and Mamiji, Raman leaves the house in a hurry. Mamaji and Mamiji also feel strange that going up the stairs felt so awkward and nervous, and coming down, he seemed so happy?