BORN TO RULE

[Eng] Chapter 11▪ FAKE or GENUINE

Today, Gayatri's friends had come over to the palace. They were taking a tour of the house.

"Dear, your palace is really very gorgeous!" exclaimed Freda.

"Well...all credit goes to my some great-great-great grandfather," Gayatri replied unsurely and everyone bursted out laughing.

"Gayu, isn't your handsome brother home?" Payal said dreamily while others giggled.

"Hey! He's married," said Nikhil in between his giggles.

"So what? Toh kya hua? Crush can be on anyone; married or unmarried," retorted Payal.

"You are actually lucky because brothet is at home. Come, let's meet him," said Gayatri.

Soon they reached in front of Tia-Arjun's bedroom. She knocked on the door and they heard Tia shout from inside of the room, "Who's there?"

"Sister-in-law, it's me. I have some friends along," replied Gayatri.

Then the door was opened by Tia.

"Hi!" Tia greeted them.

"Sister-in-law, these are my school friends, Reema aur Freda. And you already knoe Nikhil, Payal, Yohan," everyone waved their hands one by one as Gayatri introduced them.

Tia already knew Yohan because he was also Tia's classmate from university since they were doing the same course. And she knew Nikhil and Payal because they were doing the same course as Gayatri.

"OhMyGod... Tia, you look so different!" squealed Payal gawking at Tia from head to toe. "I love your saree!"

Tia chuckled and thanked her.

"Sister-in-law, everyone wants to meet brother," said Gayatri.

"Arjun went to meet father-in-law."

"By the way, Tia, you forgot your promise," said Yohan to Tia.

"Which promise?"

"You had promised to show me the sketches you made!" reminded Yohan.

"Oh, sorry. Probably it slipped my mind. Come inside, I will show you," Tia opened the door completely to let all of them in.

Yohan and Payal went with Tia while the others went in the balcony to see the entire Goenka estate since they were not interested in the sketches.

~

Arjun came back and saw Tia laughing with a guy. Ignoring them, he walked inside. But even then Tia didn't notice him because she was too busy laughing with Yohan and Payal.

Arjun cleared his throat to catch everyone's attention.

"Arjun, you came. These are Gayatri's friends. They came to meet you," Tia walks towards him, "Gayatri!"

Gayatri appeared from the balcony with her other friends.

"Brother, these are my friends. Nikhil, Freda, Payal. Payal and Nikhil are in the same course as me," Gayatri introduced.

Arjun just nodded when everyone waved him.

"And this is Yohan. He's my friend and Sister-in-law's classmate as well."

"Hi," Yohan forwarded his hand for a handshake.

Arjun shook hands with Yohan.

"Okay, guys. Let's leave brother and sister-in-law alone," Gayatri announced.

Everyone waved them "bye" and left the room, closing the door behind them.

"Arjun... Isn't something burning?" Tia tried to smell.

"Sorry?" Arjun looked up from his files.

"No... I thought something is burning," Tia was trying not to laugh out loud and maintain a serious face in front of him. But inwardly, she was laughing like a maniac.

Arjun ignored her and continued his work.

"Agree or not, you do get jealous," she smiled to herself.

~

After leaving Arjun-Tia's room, they settled in Gayatri's room

"Gayu, Tia looks so different! I had imagined her to be wearing something western similar to what she wears to the university, at most salwa-suits like you. But she wears such gorgeous sarees and heavy jeweleries!" exclaimed Payal, "I mean, how can she carry two different looks so effortlessly!!"

"I know right. She's simply perfect. Perfect in everything. Perfect wife, perfect daughter-in-law, perfect sister-in-law, perfect student and the list goes on and on....." praised Gayatri.

"I just can't understand how can a girl, who has such a handsome husband, concentrate on her studies!" wondered Reema.

"Because Tia is nothing like you," Yohan gave Reema a light push on her head, "She's a very sincere student."

"Ya. Whatever," Reema rolled her eyes.

"Did you do a Ph.D. on her? You seem to know a lot about her," Nikhil asked Yohan in a low voice so that only he can hear.

"Seriously!" Yohan laughed it off.