Sneha looked at Viraj's father as if he had completely lost his mind.
Ananya only looked at her friend with a gentle smile. Meena still had to digest the news.
Before Sneha could respond, her father arrived at the scene. Even he was stunned to find the entire Khatri family at his doorstep.
"Mr Khatri?" Shankar asked politely. He understood what this was all about.
"Bajyu, inhu kao yetti be jaao.(Papa, ask them to go from here.)" Sneha spoke to her father in her mother tongue.
Shankar looked at his daughter in apprehension.
"Cheli, tu bhater naha jaa.(Sneha, go inside.)" Shankar replied to Sneha and then faced the Khatri family with a smile.
"Please, come in." Shankar invited the guests politely.
Sneha looked at her father in horror. Why was her father allowing them in when their son had misbehaved with her! She couldn't understand it.
Both Sneha and her father looked in confusion as three men entered along with the Khatri family, with hands full of baskets wrapped in red cloth.
Viraj was the last to enter as his gaze was fixed on Sneha, waiting for her to at least look at him again. But she didn't.
"Sneha..." He called for her attention again.
Sneha looked at him involuntarily, and then quickly narrowed her brows. Right now, she didn't even want to look at him. So, she quickly looked away and her eyes then fell on Ananya, who was already inside the hall. She was smiling.
'The entire family has gone mad!' Sneha concluded.
The three men placed the baskets gently on the table and then quickly left the house.
"Sneha." Shankar sternly called for her daughter, while reminding her to go inside.
She looked at her father and sighed. Nodding her head twice, she turned around to go inside. However, Viraj immediately interrupted.
"I'd like Sneha to be present here as we talk." Viraj asked while looking at his fireball.
Sneha glared at him. Now, she was even more adamant to go inside. So, she turned around again to leave.
"Sneha, my son asked you to stay. So, stay." Dev stated firmly when he noticed Sneha clearly disobeying Viraj.
Before Sneha could reply, her father spoke.
"Mr Khatri, let's not include the children in the conversation, please." Shankar requested, but Dev denied it.
"No one is a child here, Mr Bohra. And this conversation involves our children. So, they must be here." Dev said.
Shankar tightened his fist to control his own anger from resurfacing. He didn't like the way Viraj was continuously looking at his daughter without any shame. That was one of the reasons why he had asked her to go inside.
"Sit, Sneha." Dev urged. Shankar nodded while looking at her. As everyone settled down on the sofa, Priya and her mother came outside as well to see what was going on. However, Priya was quickly motioned by her mother to go inside.
So, everyone was present in the hall except for Priya. Meanwhile, Sneha's mother went into the kitchen to get them something to drink.
"Mr Bohra, we are here to ask for your eldest daughter's hand for my son, Viraj." Dev initiated the conversation.
Sneha lightly scoffed at the demand.
"No. I will not marry him." Sneha immediately plugged in sternly.
Dev and Viraj both looked at her with raised brows.
"Why not, Sneha? You won't get a better proposal than this." Dev said arrogantly.
Shankar immediately added.
"She...she means to say that she is already engaged. I had a talk with Viraj sir, and I told him that Sneha is already promised to someone else." Her father clarified politely.
Viraj looked at Sneha wondering why she hadn't informed them about Shashank's change of mind. Meanwhile, Sneha interpreted the situation quickly and decided to use it to her advantage. It was good that she had not told her father till now.
So, she kept quiet and let everyone believe that her engagement with Shashank was still on.
Dev looked at his son in confusion.
"How far has the relationship gone? Is she formally engaged?" Dev asked while looking at Sneha's ring finger to confirm.
"The date and all have been confirmed. So..." Shankar explained but Dev interrupted.
"Then there is no issue. Cancel her engagement with that family and let's confirm Viraj and Sneha's engagement date. I believe next week would be the perfect date and then we can have the wedding ceremony in the first week of March." Dev announced his plan, taking both Shankar and Sneha off guard.
Sneha's mother placed the tray of orange juice on the table for everyone and then sat beside Sneha. Even she was confused over the Khatri family's sudden request/demand.
"Uhh...Mr Khatri...I really appreciate that you find my daughter worthy of being a part of your family...but, I have given my word to Sneha's fiance. How can I now..." Shankar began but Dev interrupted again.
"He is not Sneha's fiance if they are not formally engaged, Mr Bohra. And if you are concerned about them insulting you, then you don't need to worry about it. I will take care of everything." Dev affirmed.
Shankar understood what he meant by 'take care of'.
"No, no, Mr Khatri. They wouldn't insult us. It's just that...I do not want to go against my promise. Also, they are very good people and I am sure my daughter will be very happy there." Shankar said politely, yet again.
"We are also good people, Mr Bohra. And, I assure you that Sneha will be very happy with my son." Dev said with a fake chuckle. He understood that Shankar was trying to deny the proposal. And this made him even more persistent.
"Of course. I know she will be happy in your family. But, I...wanted Sneha to marry someone from Uttarakhand only. You know, it will help her to transit into the same culture more easily." Shankar gave another excuse.
Dev chuckled again. It felt like a game to him now.
"Are you serious, Mr Bohra? The times have changed, you know. If this was the case, then why did you even leave your hometown? This is such a bad excuse. Tell me a good reason for you trying to deny the proposal. This time a good one." Dev said, turning serious by the end.
Sneha felt the chill run down her body as she saw Dev's glance turning grey.
Shankar visibly gulped. He wanted his family to be alive by the end of this conversation.
"Uhh...Sneha...is not very good at household chores. I fear that your family might dislike her lack of knowledge in household work and...make her feel upset about it." Shankar said.
Sneha looked at her father in confusion. She knew he was lying. She knew all the household work. It was Priya who didn't, because she never let Priya do much work. But, she kept quiet.
"There's still time left, Mr Bohra. I am sure your wife can teach her all this in three weeks. If not, my wife will teach her after marriage." Dev said while looking at Meena once.
Shankar had no words now...or excuse.
"So, now that everything is settled, let's proceed with my planning. The engagement will be next Sunday. And the wedding ceremony will be in the first week of March. I'll ask the priest to find the best date in that week. We have ample time for planning and..." Dev started elaborating but Sneha interrupted him.
"I will not marry him, uncle." She said clearly, leaving no ambiguity.
Dev looked at Sneha with a blank expression. He hated when someone interrupted him, especially a young girl like her.
"And what is your reason, Sneha? I am sure we can sort it out." Dev said.
Viraj's brows narrowed again. He just couldn't understand why she was so reluctant. He knew he was the perfect man for her. He had the ability to give her all that she could ever dream of. He was even ready to go beyond his responsibility and help her family in becoming more financially stable.
"I do not want to marry someone who forces himself on girls. It is clear that your son doesn't respect girls, despite having a young sister." She said while giving a short glare to Viraj.
Viraj, who was till now, listening patiently to the conversation of the elders, finally spoke.
"I do not force myself on girls, Sneha. I kissed only you. And, I know how to respect the female gender." He clarified while looking at her.
"You still forced yourself on me. And, I will never forget or forgive you for it." She added with shivering fingers.
Dev listened carefully. Instead of feeling ashamed of his son's behaviour, he felt proud of Viraj. He, at least, confirmed that his son was not asexual as he never heard of him having any fling with a member of the opposite gender or the same gender. Even with Nupur, he had never seen Viraj getting too cosy. He was happy that he liked women as a man should.
"That gives us another reason to fix your marriage with Viraj as soon as possible, Sneha. What if the world gets to know that you have spent time with my son? Your honour will be in question, right?" Dev asked.
And, Sneha hated the way he said that. It was as if everything that happened between her and Viraj was her fault! Why would her honour be questioned? Viraj must be questioned for it!
"I don't care what the world thinks of me. I will not marry him...not in this life...or ever." She said dramatically and then stood up to run into her room.
A momentary silence prevailed in the hall as Sneha vented all her anger.
"I guess...your daughter is really very hot-tempered, Mr Bohra. How about you try to calm her down and help her in changing her decision. Confirm your final answer by evening so that I can plan accordingly. We should go now." Dev said with a small smile, but the warning was clear in his tone and words.
Shankar and his wife immediately stood up when the Khatri family stood to leave. Dev was the first to exit followed by his wife, Meena.
Viraj stood but his gaze shifted towards the room where Sneha ran to. He was upset that Sneha thought so low of him. Why can't she believe that he wanted only her and that he had never touched any woman inappropriately in his entire life! He wondered.
"Uhh...Uncle..." Ananya called for Shankar's attention.
"Yes?" Shankar asked hesitantly.
"These two boxes contain something for Sneha. Could you please ask her to open it later?" She asked softly.
Shankar nodded awkwardly so that she'd leave quickly as well.
Finally, Viraj was the last one to exit.
.
.
.
"Quick, Sneha. The train is about to leave in an hour." Shankar shouted from his room as Sneha wore her jeans.
"Just two minutes, papa." Sneha answered and then took her backpack. She glanced at the wall clock. It read 1 PM.
Coming out of her room, she came face-to-face with her little sister. She knew she was going to miss this irritating girl a lot.
"Didi!" Priya mumbled lowly.
"Don't worry. It's just for a month. I'll text you from Suresh bhai's phone, okay?" Sneha consoled her.
"But..." Priya was about to complain when her father's voice boomed again.
"Sneha!"
"Coming, papa." She said and then quickly hugged Priya.
"Will miss you. Study properly, okay?" She told Priya and jogged towards the hall where her father was ready with another small bag.
"Let's go." Her father said and then her mother came out from the kitchen with two lunch boxes.
"Take care, Sneha, okay? Eat properly and help your cousins and elders there. Okay?" Her mother said lowly but in her voice too, Sneha could hear the pain of separation.
'It's only for a month, Sneha.' She reassured herself.
Hugging her mother too, she finally followed her father out of her little home. She turned around and waved at Priya and her mother.
'I hate you, Viraj.' She mumbled as for her, he was the reason for her separation with her family.
"Sit, Sneha." Shankar said and opened the door of the taxi that he had called for.
Sneha sat quickly and waved at her mother and sister as the taxi drove her towards her next destination, with her father sitting next to her.
.
.
.
The taxi stopped near the bus stop of the train station. They will have to go inside on foot. So, Sneha and her father unloaded their luggage. As her father paid the driver, she looked at the huge building of the station.
"Come." Shankar said and they both started walking in the direction of the station.
However, within seconds, both of them shouted in surprise when out of nowhere someone placed black clothes over their head and started dragging them towards another vehicle. The passersby attempted to help but the kidnappers were skillful at their work.
"Who are you?" Shankar and Sneha screamed but within twenty seconds, both Sneha and Shankar fainted into nothingness, owing to the strong concentration of chloroform.
.
.
.
Sneha heard the sound of a splash followed by some gurgling. It came again and again. It irritated her. So, finally, she opened her eyes and tried to make sense of her surrounding.
'Where am I?' She wondered in utter confusion.
She was sitting on a metallic chair with her hands and legs tied to the chair firmly. Her eyes fell on the luggage bags that were thrown randomly across the gloomy room.
Another splash resounded which caught her attention. Sneha looked in that direction.
A scream left her mouth when she saw the sight in front of her.
"Papa!!!!!!" She shouted in fear. All the dizziness left her body in a flash as she saw two bulky men forcing her father's head into a drum of chilled water.
.
.
.
(Hey all! So, who do you think kidnapped them? Make your guess and let's see who wins!
Next update: Coming soon)