Published on 03.03.2021
● A U T H O R ●
Aarohi looked at her reflection in the mirror and smiled in approval. As told by her mother, Aarohi came to her home early in the morning and now was getting ready for the event to be followed. If it was any other day, she wouldn't have hesitated to pick up her regular jeans-top or kurta-leggings and putting it over her. Comfort above all. But looking at how her father, mother and brother had dressed well in traditional wears she knew it won't be a good idea. So she silently went and wore the dress that her mother had chosen. She was glad that the dress wasn't heavy. It was a sky blue colour churidaar with silver embroidery on its borders and some more silver work which enhanced the beauty of the dress. The bright colour perfectly complimented her. She paired it with silver earrings and left her neck bare. Her hair were naturally straight and wavy and she liked them that way. She left her hair open that reached till her mid back before bringing a small portion over her left shoulder to the front. She was grateful that Kiara had taught her how to do her makeup when they were in high school because she didn't know the M of makeup! Just as she was about to turn, her mother entered the room and a sincere smile took over her features.
"You look beautiful," she said putting a kaala teeka behind her daughter ears.
Aarohi was taken aback. "Uhh thank you?" she answered which sounded more like a question than a reply.
"Stay in the room until I call you. They're arriving here in a few minutes."
Her mother didn't even wait for her answer and left hurriedly. Aarohi stood fazed still trying to process the happenings when the realisation hit her. Her heartbeats rose. Nervousness kicked in. No, no way! So this was all a plan. Her parents lied to her because they knew she would've never turned up if they told her the marriage proposal was for her. Gosh! She could feel herself panicking. Her mind was a mess. She didn't know what to do. She wanted to cry. She wanted to run away. She had pledged long back that she will never get married. Marriage comes with responsibilities. It requires sacrifices, adjustments, time and most importantly an another person with whom you've to share your life with. This scared her. She always saw marriage as a medium to snatch away her independence. She didn't want it, not now, not ever. She wanted to live life on her own terms, prioritizing herself, taking care and responsibilities of just herself. She couldn't go and refuse the people who were coming to meet her because that would be downright rude nor could she see the reins of her life being taken away from her. She had to face it, she had no choice right now. She tried to bring her breathing to normal. Breathe in, breathe out.
Just then her mother entered with a tray of tea cups. Aarohi raised her head and looked at her angrily.
"Listen hold this and behave yourself." She said sternly." They aren't just a prospective groom's family but Mr Akash Agarwal is also a very good friend of your father. Your father used to work for their company and now Armaan works at one of their branch. So please."
Wow! This just keeps getting better, doesn't it!?
Left with no option, Aarohi took the tray and went to the living room where everyone was seated. She kept her gaze on the floor and went towards them to serve the tea and snacks. She was pissed off. Her jaw was clenched. She didn't dare look towards anyone because she didn't want to. Hell! She just wished she could be anywhere but here.
On the other hand, Vihaan just wanted to look at her once. Since the time he had heard about her and saw her picture, she had invaded his thoughts and held his interest. She looked ethereal in the simple dress which fitted her frame perfectly. Her skin had a natural radiance to them. He desperately wanted to look into her eyes but she didn't raise her gaze even for once. She served the tea and took her place opposite him. Was she.....shy? Well she didn't seem like the shy ones. As if answering his thoughts, she raised her head slightly and looked straight into his eyes. Damn! He couldn't help but stare back with the same intensity. Her eyes travelled over his entire self for a few seconds before she focussed her attention on his parents. Her eyes still carried the fire but this time they were for entirely different reason. She almost looked irate as if trying hard to keep her emotions in check. He internally laughed at himself that how just a few seconds ago he thought that she was shy. She was anything but shy.
Aarohi was feeling like banging her head on a brick wall or banging someone else's head on the wall. She couldn't understand how was she supposed to behave. Was she supposed to be naive, timid and shy? She couldn't understand why the hell these people had even agreed to see her. She belonged to a middle class family, she wasn't even that beautiful, they were super rich and could've got someone who was hundred times better and thousand times prettier than her for their handsome son. Well, if they are really interested in her then so be it. Her mother had asked her to behave and she'll but she won't give them a fake impression of perfection. She'll just be her real self, she thought. His parents seemed to be nice people. Mr Akash and his wife Sandhya Agarwal talked to her and asked her questions trying to know her better. She casually answered them with her usual confidence and honesty. She saw her mother glaring at her from the corner of her eyes trying to silently convey her to keep her words in check and her answers short but Aarohi simply ignored. Since the time she had entered the living room, she could feel Vihaan's gaze on her. He looked at her intensely not in a creepy way but as if he was genuinely interested in her. The way we look at something we want to intently study. The way she looked at her patient's reports while diagnosing them. Similarly. This agitated her more. She had even glared back at him feeling that this action of hers will snap him back to reality and make him divert his attention but instead he challenged her by continuing to stare at her. She took in his appearance and scoffed internally. Their parents continued the conversation and she couldn't care less about it. Vihaan was handsome, way too handsome. Tall with fair tanned complexion, black coal eyes and black jet hair which were perfectly gelled. His features were sharp, body was precisely sculpted, she could tell that he gave adequate importance to his fitness, he had slight beard on his face that made him appear intimidating. He was such a fine specimen and she was nothing but ordinary. He screamed of money and authority and everything powerful. He was charming enough to get any woman he wanted then why her!? Did he just like her didn't know the person he was going to meet? Did he not know anything about her just as she didn't know anything about him? For heaven's sake she didn't even know his name until her father called him to ask some questions. Her myriad of thoughts was broken with the ringing of her phone. She excused herself to take the call.
"Hello Dr. Sharma."
"Yes, Dr Mehra."
"We need you here. It's an emergency. I know you'd been granted a two day leave but we need you right now to make up for Dr Ahuja's absence. His mother had an attack a few hours back and hence he couldn't be here. He has some important appointments lined up that can't be delayed. We've other doctors in the paediatrician ward but they aren't as experienced and capable as you two," Dr Mehra explained.
"No worries doctor. I'll be there. I hope Dr Ahuja's mother is okay now."
"She's out of danger. Don't worry. I'll mail you the necessary information."
"Sure! I'll try to reach as early as possible." She hung up the call.
She went back to the living room where everyone was chattering happily. "Excuse me," she spoke gathering their attention.
"I'm really sorry but there's an emergency and I need to be at the hospital. I know it's rude to leave in the middle but I really can't help it. I hope y'all don't mind," she bit her lip anxiously, her voice soft and sincere.
"But you'd taken a leave of two days, didn't you!?" her mother questioned.
"I had. But duty calls. I'm sorry. I need to leave." She hurried to her room, got changed quickly into a peach top and black jeans, washed her face, braided her hair, grabbed her purse which had all the necessities, put on the wrist watch and left the house muttering a quick apology once again.
"I like her. She's really dedicated towards her work which says a lot about her. She's the best we can have for Vihaan." Sandhya seemed genuinely pleased.
Vihaan was slightly disappointed not because she left but because she didn't even spare him a second glance throughout the time she was here. He had even offered her to drop her since she really seemed in a hurry but she turned him down saying it would take her less time if she travelled through the local train than in a car. Even then she didn't look at him being busy in tying the watch on her wrist. He knew why his family liked her. They looked satisfied with the meet. She was exactly what they wanted. Someone who was bold, confident, spoke her mind, intelligent and real. She didn't behave as if she'd to impress someone. She held her ground. Even if his parents didn't agree with her thoughts at times, they appreciated her honesty. She knew how to carry herself and she sure as hell had an extremely headstrong personality. Honestly, he was looking forward to get to talk to her. But guess this had to wait for another time. His family had said yes to the marriage and so did her family. His mother had asked them to talk to Aarohi before fixing everything but they convinced his family that it was definitely a yes from her side. They exchanged numbers before leaving and he got Aarohi's number from Armaan who said that since she had taken a two day leave, they can personally meet and talk tomorrow if they wanted.
Being rich and famous had its own pros and cons. The unnecessary attention and hype, people being interested in his personal life was something he definitely didn't enjoy. He always found himself being the centre of attraction especially among women when he just wanted to get away from all of it. And today he felt annoyed when she gave him practically no attention while his entire focus was on her. The audacity though! Anyways, he'll make up for it. Tomorrow he'll meet and talk to her no matter what. After all he was Vihaan Agarwal who never liked to keep anything incomplete.
Aarohi reached the hospital in a little more than two hours. She steered her mind clear of all unnecessary thoughts and focussed on the task in front of her. It was almost 8 in the evening when she got done with everything and started to leave. Since she'd taken a two day leave, Kiara had been to her boyfriend's place for that time period. She waited to scream, shout, cry and simply give her emotions an outlet. She had earlier decided to stay at her parent's place for these two days but after knowing how they went behind her back, all she wanted to do was be away from them as far as possible. She had numerous calls from her parents but she didn't care. She needed her best friend near her. She wanted to tell her everything but she didn't want to stress Kiara with her issues when she should be enjoying her time. She already does a lot for her. Aarohi booked an Uber and went back to her apartment. Taking a sufficient amount of time to freshen up, she went to the balcony, sat on the swing and called her father.
"Papa."
"You didn't come back?"
"I didn't want to." There was no emotion in her voice. She could hear her father sigh on the other side.
"Aarohi, the marriage is already fixed so better accept it," her mother who was also on the phone piqued in. Her voice soft yet stern.
"You both knew that I don't want to get married then why?" She felt tried. She could feel herself on the verge of crying.
"I don't understand what's your problem? Why don't you want to get married? What's the harm in it? If you had told us that you want to wait for a few more years to get married, we would've waited surely. But you plan to never get married." Her father's voice was filled with frustration. "Do you've a boyfriend and that's the reason you don't want to settle down?"
"No Papa. I don't have any boyfriend. And another thing, I'm already settled!" She said determinedly. "I've a good job. A good house. Education qualifications and I'm capable enough to handle myself. I don't need to get married for that. I thought you both actually understood me and hence didn't budge me for this stupid thing since last two months. But nope. Like always you did what you wanted."
"Although you're 27, you still can't take the right decisions. You're stubborn for all the wrong things. We're just protecting you and helping you secure your future. Vihaan is a nice guy and his family is well to do. We've good relations with them since past many years. And this is the best you can get. So better accept it because you've no other choice." She knew that voice. There was no ifs and buts. Even if she argued it won't help. Her father was trying hard to not lash at her.
"Aarohi. I know you're not happy but trust me, we're giving you the best. We're your parents and care about you and your future. They themselves had asked your hand for their son when they came to know about you. We've raised you up, provided you with everything you needed and wanted. Took care of you, have always fulfilled our responsibilities as parents. Please don't make it hard for everyone and yourself and accept it." Aarohi rolled her eyes when her mother said this. She knew this was coming. Emotional blackmailing. It always worked on her. Eventually she succumbed to what her parents wanted always.
"Fine. It isn't as if I have any other choice. I'll get married. Good night." She hung up the call and a sob escaped her lips.
More than the fact that she was getting married what pained her is that her opinion didn't matter. It was her life right. Then why wasn't it her choice how she wished to spend it? She knew her parents cared for her. They were protective of her, maybe even overprotective. She loved them, she really did. But she hated how they took her life decisions. They would agree to her choices if they felt it was right. Their decisions were based on what was better for their daughter while Aarohi craved for happiness. She didn't care about what she's doing or what she's getting in return till the time she was happy. They were right at their place but she wasn't wrong either. She always thought that if she was successful enough where she wouldn't depend on her parents for her needs, she could finally lead her life the way she wanted. Take her own decisions, make her own choices and in this process she wanted to embrace everything that came in her way. The mistakes, the failures, the highs and lows everything because it would be hers, solely hers. For some other person this might sound stupid or silly or maybe a very trivial thing but not for Aarohi. The thought of being free, independent of everything and everyone motivated her every single day. But now she again felt that she has let herself down.
She wanted to escape. This feeling of once again being denied of the right to make her own choice for her ownself tugged at her heart. She felt too tired to even cry. She convinced herself that it is what it is and there's no point in sulking. Skipping the dinner, she made her way to her room, laid on her bed and slept clutching the blanket close to herself and pulling her knees up.
***
Second chapter is up!
Do vote and comment.
Next update on 07.03.2021
• Thank you for reading •