AMARANTHINE

Act II (i) : Just Like Heaven

"The greatest happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved; loved for ourselves, or rather, loved in spite of ourselves."

~Victor Hugo~

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Aabha stood against the closed door of her home, flustered and happy. 

She was glowing, partly out of happiness and partly on account of the lovely dress she was wearing. Her dress had an ecru coloured silk-lined net top which smoothly and seamlessly merged with the red silk of the voluminous skirt. The bodice was embroidered all over in hues of red peonies, which continued along the net sleeves. A pair of deep ruby earrings was the only accessory she wore and she had left her hair loose, gently curled, just the way he liked it. 

However, she was flustered because of her family.

The moment they had heard Shaurya's car in the driveway, Ishaani had pushed Aabha onto the veranda and shut the door behind her. Aabha stumbled and straightened with a slight grimace, she knew that the three of them, Ishaani, her mother and Dadi would be standing behind the curtains of the large window beside the door, trying to be as unobtrusive as possible, while they tried to watch her; she could hear all the three of them giggling like school girls. Her father, who was sitting with her grandfather in one corner of the veranda, suddenly seemed to have discovered earth-shattering news in the week-old newspaper and her grandfather was staring fixedly at the money plant creeper as though it had just appeared out of thin air and needed his absolute attention.

It was at times like this that Aabha wished she had a slightly normal family who did not act crazy, though all thoughts vanished the moment she caught sight of Shaurya looking at her. He was dressed in a formal suit, brilliant white with a pale yellow shirt, the perfect fit of the suit emphasising his toned and trim build. 'Looking that good should be made illegal,' thought Aabha, 'it could cause accidents'. 

He stood leaning against the car passenger door, his legs crossed at his ankles and his hands in his pockets as he waited for her to walk to the car. When she saw the look of deep longing and adoration in his eyes, the world around her faded to nothingness even as she felt heat flush through her. 'He also has no right to make me melt,' she thought, as she took small steps towards him, hoping that the short walk would steady her errant thoughts and her weakening knees. When she reached him, she smiled and asked, "So where are you taking me?"

He gave a smile, which furthered weakened her knees, and replied, "Aabha, I said I would be there with you till infinity, can you simply not come for a ride with me, without asking any questions?"

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She nodded and settled herself in the passenger seat, sitting in silence for the time it took Shaurya to drive out of the city. Unable to guess where she was being taken and too excited at the anticipated surprise, Aabha looked at Shaurya and in an attempt fill the silence said, "how can you brave white, I only have to think about a white dress and I will end up staining it." 

In reply, Shaurya simply pulled her into a quick hug before he answered, "Miss Practical, in the normal course of things, if you find the man you love, dressed up and looking very dapper you compliment him, not mention the obvious or state your faults."

Aabha smiled, "Alright, I agree that you are handsome, you look dashing and cool, as refreshing as mint on a summer day, but how do you manage it?"

Shaurya did not answer, he knew that some of her questions actually needed no answers as they were a little like backhanded compliments. Throughout the drive she kept up an incessant chatter, not making much sense which was her way of dealing with the curiosity and the anticipation of the surprise planned by Shaurya. She did not want to ask him questions and spoil the surprise but was finding it increasingly difficult to keep a hold on herself; she knew that anything she imagined would fall short of the actual one.