Maitri's POV
"Diamond biscuit diamond biscuit jab bhi mood ho khalo, mummy papa jab bhi laate saare bache khush ho jata. Diamond biscuit diamond biscuit, healthy swaad ko paalooooo" Divi and I were singing loudly until we were sure that the khadoos aunty living across the street could hear us.
Basically Divi had no college today and as of me...am on vacation.
"Aab coconut..." I said trying to copy Abhay Deol but before that mum's flying chappal hit my hand.
"Maa yaar" This is absolute harassment. Harassing a poor, lonely, sweet, innocent child who is 24 year old is absolute crime.
"Am not a kid mummaaa" I looked at her holding the chappal with a frown.
"Na hoi!!! Your stupid antics still make me wonder whether Dev is older than you or you are older than him" Okay so backstory, Dev is my jaan ka dushman who's no more than 5ft and is no where near to be even called a teen.
Saara faasat ki jaad hai yeh DEV.
He is this boy who lives below us, looks like an innocent child but from within is devil's incarnation.
"Compare me to a potato but don't compare me to that evil child" Throwing the chappal back at her, SOFTLY... Can't throw it back hardly or else she'll throw me out of the window.
"Haan haan, how can I compare these 2 queens with Dev when all you do is sit and use the phone like potatoes" Divi and I shared a proud look at each other and hi-fied.
One thing you should know, Divi and I are never shameful of anything in the world. You can throw as many insults as you want but as long as we have each other, we will simply laugh over it and make you feel insulted.
Its our super power. Sshhh
"You two will sit there and grow yourselves fat or even come and help me" Mum screamed, no yelled from the kitchen banging the utensils, proving her point that we were being completely useless to her.
"But am on vacation mumma! I cook in America, wash my clothes, wash dishes, clean house, am ot doing any of it here" I sat on the sofa tiredly, crossing my arms at my chest.
"So? You shouldn't lose practice. Divi, arrange the table, Mayu take this file and his lunch and go give it to your dad" Mumma again went into the kitchen grumbling about how ungrateful we were. BUT AM ON VACATION YAAR! Divi threw the pillow on my face and walked towards the dining table, arranging the mats as mumma got the hot food. Till then I took the file from her and Divi's scooter keys. Mumma gave dad's lunch wrapped in a bag.
"Oye, you'll go like that?" Divi asked as I quickly took instructions from mumma on what to tell him.
"Yeah, what's the problem?" I looked at my chiffon saree and then at her. Don't judge me but I love wearing sarees when am not working. Even in America, I wore sarees to work, I am comfortable in them. To many people I understand it is uncomfortable to walk around and stuff but am fine with it. Plus I wear the light weight sarees so they are easy to handle.
"One day am going to burn all her sarees. At this age all girls roam in shorts and frocks and then there is this one, wearing sarees. What will I do of this girl?" Mumma hit her head sighing.
Roz ka drama, nothing new
I drove to papa's company, which is the same company as I, just that I work in the New York branch and he works in the main one. Parking my scooter I stood infront of the gate, wondering how to enter in. Not my fault guys, it only allows entry upon scanning employee I'D.
Let's call papa. Where's my phone but?
The only time I hate wearing sarees is this, I forgot my phone at home. Kaise jau andar.
"Uncle, can you please let me go in? I have to give this file to papa, his name is Akshit Rathore. Please uncle" I gave my best puppy eye look so the watchman uncle can allow me to go in but he refused.
"Please uncle. If you want, you come with me or send someone with me but I really need to go in" Uncle is not listening at all to me. Khadoos uncle.
"Excuse me" I felt a tap on my shoulder. Looking behind I saw an almost 6 foot 3 inch man, towering my little self.
"Yes" This man's jawline is sharp, let me tell you that. He can have a competition with a knife, who is sharper?
"You want to go in?" He asked bending a little. Insulting me... am small but this behaviour is unacceptable.
"Yes" I nodded my head as he straightened. That is when I saw him wearing a light blue polo t-shirt along with jeans and sneakers. WHITE SNEAKERS.
Can I please step on them Mr. Sharp Jawline, please?
"Miss" He clicked his fingers at me, bringing me back to the main point.
"Who do you have to meet?" Papa duh! Oh wait, you don't know him.
"My papa...Sorry, Mr Akshit Rathore, he works as an accountant here, Am his daughter and I have to give him this file and his lunch which he forgot at home" Shut up, shut up shut up Mayu, no one is interested in knowing what you have to give to your dad darling.
"Avii" Mr. Sharp Jawline and I both turned towards the other voice. There stood Rishav Ranawat, still looking devilishly handsome in his three-piece suit. Don't ask how do I know, I work for them guys, he comes sometimes to our branch with his wife.
That reminds me, his wife... complete bombshell. Aunty doesn't look like an aunty. I can die for the glowing skin she has. Frankly speaking, the couple are like these characters we read in novels, Grumpy X Sunshine.
"Coming papa" Mr. Sharp Jawline said turning his attention back on me. I saw sir coming towards us. Am I lookin...WAIT!
Did Mr. Sharp Jawline just call sir 'PAPA'? Yeh kab hua?
"Who are you talking to?" Sir asked Mr. McSteamy. Yeah new name, the other one was too long and it suits him.
"Umm she says she wants to meet her father who works for us" McSteamy replied McSIir, shit what am I saying, replied sir.
"Who's your father?" Sir asked looking at me, keeping his phone in his pant pocket.
"Mr. Akshit Rathore, he works here as the firm's chattered accountant. I need to give him a file he forgot at home" I said holding myself confident infront of him. So sir is like this super boring and cold man who hates it when people stutter. If we think about it, nervousness is good. One should be able to intimidate someone but not to the point the self-confidence is thrown into garbage can. What say?
"I didn't know Akshit had 2 daughters" A smile formed on sir's face as he motioned me to walk with him in.
"Yeah, actually am here for vacations so that's why you haven't seen me much" I replied smiling.
"Where do you live?" This time McSteamy asked.
"New York. I am interning in the New York branch of Ranawat Enterprises. Its my last year as an intern there" I replied, realizing that I forgot to ask mumma on which floor papa works.
"Which files are you holding?" Sir asked guiding me to the lift.
"There are some files papa forgot at home. I swear I haven't peeped in. I understand that they can be confidential" I replied quickly before a doubt crosses his mind.
"Its okay kid" Sir laughed a little.
"Avii...Stop ogling at her, she might have a boyfriend" Sir scolded McSteamy who was staring at me with a super weird smile. Not the kind of smile someone gives when they like you but the smile when they are upto a mischief, that's the smile he was giving me.
"You have a boyfriend?" This shameless McSteamy asked forgetting he was standing with his father. Looking away, I shook my head.
Why is it so hot inside here?
"Why? You look so pretty, you should have like 2 right now" Sir said suddenly interested. Have we still not reached papa's floor? Why?
"Found no one who can compare to papa. Papa has set some very high standards. No one's being able to reach upto his standards" I replied truthfully since there's nothing to hide.
"I don't understand why all girls set standards according to their fathers" McSteamy said complainingly looking very cute.
"Simple reason. For a girl, her first love is always her father, then her brother/ sister and then comes her sapno ka rajkumar. Same way goes for guys, first comes mum, then brother/sister and then the Queen of his heart" I replied smiling widely finding comfort in papa's warmth.
"She's true Avi. 100% true. Your mother still refuses to make me her no.1 man. Atleast am Aaru's no.1. And you know what the great part is, there's no man who can be like me. Aaru's going to stay with us till death" Sir said smiling a little bit too widely. Its getting awkward guys, hello, am there too. Am lost on the subject we are talking about.
"Forget all that, what's your name? We know Divi, what about you?" McSteamy asked asking me to take a step out of the lift as the two men then followed.
"Maitri...Maitri Rathore" I replied smilingly, looking around to find papa.
"Maitrii" McSteamy and Sir both called out my name almost as a whisper. Before I could say anything, papa spotted me and quickly came over.
"Papa" I hugged him smiling and gave him the file and the tiffin, telling him word to word about what mumma instructed me.
"Your both daughters are beautiful Akshit" Sir said patting papa's shoulder before they disappeared somewhere.
"How was your day?" Papa said taking me to his cabin.
"It was going good until your wife happened. Who is the person who poisoned mum's head with my marriage? Am just 24 papa, I don't want to get married now. Abhi meri umre hi kya hai. Am still a child, who can go and play in the parks" I tried explaining papa and almost had him until the last sentence where he looked at me with raised eyebrows.
"Fine am not that small but yet. Words ko choodo emotions ko pakdo. She's behind my life. This time she's made it her motive to get me married before I leave for America. She doesn't get the point even after 15 guys have rejected me. Am not saying that I had some hand behind those decisions but I don't want to get married. Do something and stop laughing at my misery" How dare my best man laugh at me while I cry to him about my problems.
"What's the problem in getting married?" He opened the tiffin and forwarded it to me to have.
"You tell me papa... How do I just agree to spend my entire remaining life with a man I don't even know. I don't know a single thing about him. Marriages are supposed to be out of love" I argued, sitting on the chair cross-legged.
"But your mother and I fell in love after marriage" Papa said eating his lunch.
"Not everyone can be as lucky as mumma to get a man like you" I am sure now, this man I call my father, doesn't want me to use his surname anymore. I know its my mum who's got this thought in him or else, my father, is sweet and cute. He'll never want me married. He was the one who told me that he'll come with me as my dowry if I get married and look at him here. trying to change my mind about marriage. Not so soon papa, until I don't turn 26, am going to use your name behind mine, do whatever you want to do.
Without saying much, I left for home plotting schemes on how to make guys reject me because my mother won't allow me to reject them. Am crazy, I know. Bring something new.
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Aryaman's POV
"Dil se Delhi ho woh dhadkan se ho London, dhoondo mein dhoondo mere brother ki dulhan" Ugghhh, not again. The door to my cabin opened with a bang and my dearest twin Aviraj uff Avi entered dancing... Yeah, dancing. Ignoring him I continued my work until papa also joined him.
"Mohabbat ki ho woh google jo dede har question ka hai
Nazar ke ek hi click se" Avi closed my laptop and spun me in the chair as papa removed his blazer and called someone who sounded more like mumma and Aaru singing loudly. Till now only Avi and Aaru were mad, dad got infected with their mental disease.
"Walk pe sunti ho gaane brother ko khush karna jaane
Jo sabke dil mein dua si basse" Avi continued singing from where papa stopped. I could hear mumma and Aaru going crazy on the other hand. Avi knelt down infront of me and started doing Chaiya Chaiya hook step.
LOST IT!
MY FAMILY HAS GONE MAD!!!
"Who's she? What was Aryu doing with her?" Mumma is officially declared the person from where Avi gets his madness.
"Arey no Kayu, she wasn't with him. Avi and I saw her infront of our company. Guess who is she?" Dad asked overexcitedly. I don't think he was this excited when I graduated.
"Our Akshit's daughter" He said smiling too widely.
"Divi!!!" Mumma, Aaru and I looked at him shocked. Divi uff Divya was the age of Aaru, he wants me to marry a kid? This is limits now.
"Noo guys, his other daughter. Maitri. Can you hear how well the name sounds? Aryaman and Maitri, one means companion and the other mean friendship, aww" Avi said jumping into the screen. Not a bad name guys but WTF!!!
"Am not getting married anytime soon guys. Keep dreaming" Ignoring them, I reopened my laptop and got back to work. After a few minutes of whispers, papa kept the phone.
"Here we go son, this is your mother and my joint decision" Dad came and sat infront of me in complete business mode. Pushing my work away I looked at him.
Something is not right. I have a weird feeling that whatever is going to leave his mouth, am not going to like it at all.
"If you do not go and meet Maitri, both of us vote you out and you begin your journey of CEO from all the way clerk again. Pick wisely son" Dad just dropped a Hiroshima bomb on me with so much ease.
All the hardwork, patience and efforts I'd lose because of that girl I've not even seen once. What is it that dad is choosing me over some random girl.
"If she rejects me or I don't like her?" Its a possibility that she can reject me, its 99% impossible but a little bit possible. And there's a 100% chance I refuse her.
"I see you Aryu. Don't forget the game you are playing, am the coach" Do you know times when you hate the world because everyone seems to be against you? Yes this is that time. Without saying much, he left from the cabin.
I peeked out to see him talking with Akshit uncle. He's so serious about this, ugghh!
In anger I dropped the glass of water on floor. I'll fucking make that girl reject me so bad.
EVENING
RATHORE RESIDENCE
Maitri's POV
"Mayu, sit here" Red alarm! Red alarm! My brain continously screamed as papa asked me to sit on the sofa beside him. I was simply going to my room after cleaning the kitchen until this not so cool vibe kicked in when papa called.
"Yeah?"
"If I ask you to do something, will you do it for me?" Papa is doing emotional blackmail. Definitely marriage proposal!
"Papa, point is what?" Cutting down his drama I asked straighforwardly. He placed a piece of letter in my hands.
"Give this one a try for me, please" He said trying to look cute but it didn't suit him at all. Seeing mumma so ready that I'll reject, I accepted it.
No hard feelings for anyone. Am that kind of a person to whom if you'll say don't jump in the well, I'll jump. I don't take orders. When given, I do complete opposite. If told go right, I'll go left and then I'll go right.
"You'll give him a chance?" Mumma and Divi asked shocked.
"Yeah, not like I have much of an option. But I have a condition"
"What?" Everyone looked at me like if they'll complete the condition, I'll get married the next second.
"I want to meet him in person before the families meet. If possible tomorrow for lunch" Step one to get rejected, successfully launched.
"Done done done. I'll give them a call and ask them" Dad...betrayer, cheat. You are supposed to find a way out for me not a way in. He called the 'potential' groom's family and spoke in hushed tones.
"Tomorrow lunch at Madhvan. Am so proud of you Mayu" Dad hugged me so tightly that I nearly choked.
Plan Failed!
Taking the letter with me, I saw the image of the groom.
Okay he looks hotter than McSteamy, much more hotter. But guys looks aren't everything na? It might be difficult to reject this one if he's got a good personality with this hot face and body.
Ignoring all the dirty thoughts, I threw the letter in the dustbin and slept, trying his name on my lips.
"Aryaman...Nah, Maan! Perfect" Smiling I slept.
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Ranawat Palace
Aryaman was forwarded a few photos of Matri which he thought he'd check after dinner but unfortunately, the women of the house were too excited.
Aryaman's POV
She looks like an angel. Innocent of the world's cruelties. How will she survive me?
Anyways, looks aren't everything. A person's nature and personality is also important. Looks will fade with time but the person's nature remains.
Ignoring the commotion in the living room, I thought to sleep when dad came and informed me that am supposed to have lunch with his 'potential' daughter in law.
Great, now I have no say in this!
Fuck it, I'll figure out how to scare away this Maitri girl tomorrow.