Marry Me

Chapter - 22 THE PRESS CONFERENCE

The afternoon passes in a blur after I land in Mumbai without going to my apartment; I head straight at the studio where almost everybody was running left and right in upheaval for preparation. I meet Mahira, who gives me gooey sorry eyes, and then takes me to the editing room where I check upon the trailer again.

"Cool" I say to my editing team and high five them each. "Lunch is on me," I inform and head out to my office where the main leads of my film are waiting.

Prisha Suri and Rohit Kapur looked like sophisticated Bollywood actors on the front, from inside they were gossip mongering aunties with a hundred year old dramatic traits bestowed by God. I enter my office, a plain matt white, beautiful simple room filled with sunlight, plants and movie posters, occupying an overdramatic peach sequin wood table, a white leather chair(which okay I will accept, was very comfortable.) with an over bright, out of the place orange velvet lounge, gifted to me by those devils occupying the space right now.

Prisha grins and gets up from the lounge dressed in rocker damask dress in black and silver, her eye shadow gives 'don't mess with a devil' kind of vibe and she looks insanely beautiful with her natural curls and easy smile, she hugs me as soon as she is near me, (a secret to tell you, she would have been my best friend if not for Kiyansh) so you can say, I love this woman with my heart.

Rohit joins her as soon as she leaves me, he gives me a smirk dressed in floral Gucci shirt and I am sure in Gucci denims(since he is an Gucci ambassador) and announces, "You'll work yourself out to a derelict." Before hugging me and filling my nose with a perfume that is thank god, not Gucci.

I smile and hug him tight, "I just have to check up with our PR team once."

"No." Prisha decries, "Look yourself in the mirror, you look your eyes will be gauged out any second. You are straight going towards the changing room and getting dressed with my designer."

"I don't need any designer." I argue, "I have work to do, remember you are the actress."

They both form a troop together, and I know what is coming, God Please save me from this! "Babe" Prisha smirks, putting her arms around Rohit, "Do you even know how much famous you are? especially with your childhood boyfriend that came to America, don't you remember your photos being viral?"

My cheeks turn pink, she is talking about Emmy awards when Rohit was my friend date for the awards night and Kiyansh called me before the awards and told me he was in America and asked me to tell Rohit to back off. Just before the red carpet I asked him to buy me ice cream because I was freaking nervous, and the ice cream spilled on my dress, I became so neurotic that he took out his suit jacket and put it on my shoulder and started to bend down and clean my dress with napkins. Some photographer captured the images and it became Viral.

I try to stifle my face into a normal expression and pray, pray to not stutter, "He is not my childhood boyfriend, he is my childhood best friend" and fiancé. The thought dangles me on my feet, and picks up my heartbeat, as if to make sure it's all real, my hand goes to the pendant he gave me in the morning.

Prisha smells the reaction like a hound dog and points to the pendant, "Oh my gosh! where did you get this?"

My chest burns and I stifle the urge to hide the pendant under my t-shirt. They will never leave me alone now. "I... I got it, got it from my...father."

"You liar!" They both say at the say time, their eyes meet, and they both hump at each other, lunging for me at the same.

I step back and clutch the pendant in my fist, "I have to get changed, the conference is in thirty minutes, see you." As soon as I complete the sentence I waltz off outside the office, leaving their accusing eyes.