Vrishali's lips pulled into a straight line when the strange lady took long steps towards Padmanabh and hugged him tightly.
"Harika?" Vrishali heard Padmanabh.
Padmanabh was surprised seeing Harika but he was more surprised when she hugged him, she clearly knows that he doesn't like physical touching which is why they never hugged in their eighteen years of friendship.
"What are you doing here?" She asked him. Vrishali stood there watching them both with a frown on her face.
"I'm here with my family, what about you?" Padmanabh asked her finally stepping away from the hug.
He just feels weird and uncomfortable whenever people step into his comfort zone even when he knows them. He only feels comfortable with a few people. Those few people include his sister and her kids. He keeps his distance from others.
"I'm here for some work, I didn't know that I would be meeting you here."
"When did you return from London? I thought you were in London," Padmanabh spoke looking at his close friend.
Harika and Vijay were his close friends. They were friends since childhood, he met Harika through Vijay. He doesn't talk much but they were close, he used to hang out with them.
Harika loved playing golf or going on a horse ride with Vijay and him.
"Because my dear Pacho the last time you called me was a year ago when I was in London. Anything can happen in a year and right now I'm here for work but I will be going somewhere."
Vrishali bite her lip when she heard the lady call Padmanabh as my dear Pacho. She felt the frustration and anger building up...
Padmanabh's eye twitched when he heard Harika say that. For some reason, her way of talking with him or addressing him is changed. He wants to point that out but that would be rude so he kept quiet.
"You came here with your family? It's been so long since I met them. Where are they?" Harika asked.
"Kamma gani sa, kaise ho nana sa, nani sa? (Hello, how are you grandpa and grandma?)" Harika asked Sawai Bhawani Singh and rajmatha Falguni Singh. She bent down touching their feet and taking blessings.
"Gani kamma, we are good. How are you beti? Bahut din hogayi dheke thumhe ( it's been so long seeing you) "Sawai Bhawani Singh said.
Vrishali stood behind them silently looking at the lady. She is tall, fair and got shoulder-length hair which made her look beautiful.
She is a beauty for sure and that made Vrishali uncomfortable and insecure. Diya Kumari and Narendra Singh entered the room, Harika greeted them.
Vrishali's eyes met Diya Kumari's. Vrishali felt a bad feeling when she watched the sick smile playing on Diya Kumari's face.
"Pacho, who is this? I never saw her before. Is she your cousin?" The lady finally asked looking at Vrishali. Vrishali badly wanted to punch the lady in the face or gut when she heard her say that.
Sawai Bhawani Singh and rajmatha Falguni Singh laughed thinking it as a joke. Harika looked at Padmanabh in confusion.
Padmanabh shook his head, "no Harika beti, she is Vrishali. Pacho's sagi patni (pacho's wife)," rajmatha Falguni Singh answered.
Vrishali felt like punching something. It wasn't Padmanabh who said that, she really thought Padmanabh would be introducing her to his close friend as his wife but no! He stood there like a current pole watching the scene.
Vrishali is now frustrated and angry. "Hello, I'm Harika. Padmanabh's friend." Harika introduced herself to Vrishali with a smile and a look that Vrishali didn't like.
"Friend? She is Padmanabh's close friend. She has been with Padmanabh for eighteen years now," Diya Kumari butted in making it worse for Vrishali.
"Hello, I'm Vrishali Mewar," Vrishali replied shaking Harika's hand.
"Mewar? Isn't Padmanabh's last name Singh?" Harika pointed out. Vrishali felt so dumb, she forgets that her last name is not Mewar anymore.
"They were married recently and it's common to forget the surname or last name," rajmatha Falguni Singh said patting Vrishali's hand gently.
"Aren't you from here? Your accent is different," Harika asked.
"Raised and lived in New York," Vrishali answered blankly. Padmanabh looked at Vrishali in confusion of why she answered blankly.
"Oh, you must've known nothing about Pacho then. He doesn't like western clothes and western accents," Harika said bluntly giving a quick check on Vrishali's clothes.
Vrishali stuck her tongue to the roof of her mouth tightly not wanting to say something sassy to the lady. Instead, she gave a tight smile.
"Harika... As you said before, anything can happen in a year and things change," Padmanabh spoke out.
"Are we going to stand here all day and talk?" Sawai Bhawani Singh said.
"Let us go to our rooms and sit."
"Padmanabh why don't you join me for lunch? Vijay is also going to be there. Ugh, I miss those days. Let's catch up... You, me and Vijay." Harika said.
"Sure, let me go and get freshen up," Padmanabh replied.
"Perfect." Vrishali almost... Almost rolled her eyes.
They all entered the lift, Vrishali stood to a side in a sour mood. They reached their floor and walked towards their respective rooms.
Vrishali waited for Padmanabh to unlock the door. She entered the hotel room to see how huge and high-class the room is. The living room is big, she sat on the sofa while Padmanabh went to the bedroom probably to get freshen up.
"Catch up... My foot..." Vrishali whispered to herself. She waited there in bad mood for Padmanabh to walk out.
Padmanabh washed his face after using the washroom. He changed his clothes and walked to the living room where Vrishali sat staring at the television with a blank look.
"Hmm, will you join me in meeting my friends?" He asked not sure of how to ask Vrishali. He never asked someone to join him when he is going to meet his friends.
"No," Vrishali said roughly.
"Pardon?"
"I'm actually tired. I want to rest for some time, you go and catch up with your old friends," Vrishali said.
Padmanabh looked at her face not understanding the reason why she is in a sour mood. Padmanabh doesn't have any idea of what Vrishali is feeling. When it comes to understanding other people's mood swings Padmanabh is the ultimate failure guy.
He really doesn't understand or catch what others are thinking because of his lack of socialising and talking with others.
"You sure?" He asked her.
"Yes." Vrishali gave a tight smile telling him to go. She watched as he walked towards the door, he opened it and soon he was out of her sight.
She waited for five minutes before standing up and going over to the bedroom. She grabbed the pillow, put it in front of her face and shouted out loudly letting her frustration out.
"Pacho? My dear Pacho?"
"Why the fuck did she hug him?! Why! Why!" Vrishali shouted into my pillow.
"Are they close? Wait a minute, were they a thing in the past?"
Vrishali thought about the lady she met before. She knew she saw the girl somewhere.
"Where is my fucking phone?" She asked herself. She threw the pillow on the bed and went to the living room where her handbag and luggage is laying.
She pulled her phone from the bag, unlocked it, opened her gallery. She searched through her photos. Finally, she found the picture she clicked when she went to Padmanabh's room. There were photo frames of him with his two friends.
"Haha... So she is the girl."
Vrishali's shoulders slouched down in disappointment. She really thought she is going to spend alone time with him and know him better but no...
Fate had other plans, shaking her head she pulled her luggage into the bedroom.
"Let's take a nap and forget about these things." She muttered to herself switching on the AC before getting under the fresh bed covers.
*
"Like seriously? Did you get married? Sawai Padmanabh Singh who didn't even have a crush all his life got married before me?!" Vijay asked in astonishment.
Padmanabh rolled his eyes eating his food. He looked at Harika who is looking at him. He raised his brow at her.
"Tell us why didn't you invite us to your wedding?" She asked him.
"I didn't have time to invite everyone. It happened in a span of thirty days," Padmanabh answered her question.
"But how did you meet her? I mean she is from New York and you..."
"What? She is from New York? Man, you out of all people who are very traditional married a lady from New York?" Vijay asked.
Vijay can't believe that Padmanabh got married when the girl isn't from India. Vijay and Harika know what kind of person Padmanabh was and is.
While they adapted and wanted more from Western countries as seasons changed. It took a lot of years for Padmanabh to adapt or use western products.
He was more on the traditional and Indian cultural side. Vijay truly believed that Padmanabh would be living as a bachelor all his life or until he gets married.
When Vijay and Harika went on dates with other people, Padmanabh used to lock himself in his apartment and help his father. They only saw him without working when they went to play golf, horse riding or to play cricket.
"She was born in India but raised in New York. It's an arranged marriage, Vijay. Grandparents fixed the marriage," Padmanabh field the details for Vijay.
"So you nodded your head and agreed to the marriage? Are you happy with this marriage? I can see the distance between you two," Harika spoke looking straight into Padmanabh's eyes.
He doesn't like to answer anything but they are his close friends. He can't sit quietly without answering their questions.
"We both are new to this relationship. Vrishali is still a kid who needs to concentrate on her dreams or aims. It wasn't her decision that she married me. I don't want her to stand in a situation where she has to choose her career or her married life. You see the distance between us is because I'm respecting her space and I don't plan to enter into her space yet."
"Wow, Padmanabh, where do I get your version of partner?" Vijay said.
"So you saying you won't try to get close to her or take a step in your married life?" Harika asks.
"Her name is Vrishali, mention it. In my eyes, she is still a young kid with dreams to fulfil. I will be staying beside her as support. I don't want to complicate things between us."
"Ohoh, what's Vrishali's age?" Vijay asked eating his food.
"Twenty."
"Ah? That's a lot of age gap between you two bro," Vijay commented and Padmanabh rolled his eyes.
"Why are you here?" Padmanabh finally asked Vijay.
"I was here on work with Harika. She is helping me with the construction site, will be returning back home in three days."
Harika is an architect. "Aren't you working for London & co?" Padmanabh asked her.
"Used to, decided to come back to India this year. When I landed this idiot called me saying he needs me there for a project so here I'm."
"Haha, her mother is pasturing her to get married or to find someone, Padmanabh. To get away she agreed to my project," Vijay spoke.
Harika rolled her eyes placing her spoon down. She is done eating, she is two years younger than Padmanabh. She was seven years old when she met Padmanabh in their primary school.
From then on, they studied together till their college. For masters, they went to different universities for the first time and that's when they became busy with their lives. They spoke about the matters they missed out on.
*
Padmanabh returned to the hotel room and looked around for Vrishali. He doesn't know if she ate her dinner or not.
He slowly knocked on the bedroom door. When he didn't get an answer he opened the door and entered to see Vrishali sleeping on her stomach.
His gaze shifted to the plates on the nightstand. He watched her sleep for a few minutes. Her hair is a mess, with her mouth slightly open as she held on to the blanket in a tight grip as she slept peacefully.
Padmanabh slowly took the plates and the tray away. He took the pillow and went to sleep in the living room on the sofa.
*
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