THE WEDDING DAY
*𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅 𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒌𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒎 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂 𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊.*
"Thank you, bachu!" Akruti says, pecking the child's cheek.
(Thank you, kiddo!)
"Zaroor Varun ka letter hoga. Padh lo mujhe bhi pata hai tum wait nahi kar sakti." Deepti teases Akruti.
(It must be Varun's letter. Read it, I know you cannot wait.)
"Padh leti hoon." Akruti says as she opens the letter with excitement.
(Let me read it.)
*𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒅𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒔 𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒐𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓*
"Nani ki chitti?" Akruti says, confused.
(Grandma's letter?)
"Woh kyu chitti bhejigi? Padh lo." Deepti says.
(Why would she send a letter? Read it.)
"𝑴𝒚 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒅 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊,
𝑰 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒍𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒆𝒍𝒍. 𝑰 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒏'𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒂 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝒊𝒏 𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒕 𝑰 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒊𝒕 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏. 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝑰 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒐 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒆. 𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒐𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒘𝒆𝒅𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑰 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒆𝒏𝒋𝒐𝒚 𝒊𝒕, 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒐. 𝑰 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆. 𝑰 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒆𝒆. 𝑰 𝒉𝒐𝒑𝒆 𝑰 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒗𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒔𝒐𝒐𝒏.
𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝑰 𝒂𝒎 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆.
𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉𝒚,
𝑵𝒂𝒏𝒊" Akruti finishes reading the letter.
"Tune maaf kardiya?" Deepti asks.
(Have you forgiven her?)
"Haa, jo bura hua usko yaad karke mein kya ukaad lungi, sab se important cheez hai ki mere paas Varun and tum sab ho. Aur aaj woh meri shaadi pe nahi hai woh hi unki sab se badi zazaa hai." Akruti says.
(Yes, what will I get out of remembering what happened to me? The most important thing is that I have Varun and you all. Her biggest punishment is that she doesn't get to see me getting married.)
"Haa, woh bhi sahi hai. Chalo yeh sab chhodo, baaraat aa gayi hai." Deepti says excitedly.
(Yes, that is too true. Forget all of this now. The groom's side is here.)
*𝑫𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒉 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒎 𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒆𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒋𝒐𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒇𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒊𝒕𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊'𝒔 𝒆𝒚𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚.*
"Varun kaha hai? Dikh nahi raha." Akruti says.
(Where is Varun? I can't see him.)
"Bohot badi baaraat hai.... woh dekho aa gaye dulhe raja." Deepti says, teasing Akruti.
*𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒘𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒍𝒖𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒕 𝑫𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊'𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕, 𝑺𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒗𝒊 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒎 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑱𝒂𝒚𝒂 𝒂𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒂*
"Tayar ho gayi?" Saanvi asks.
(Are you ready?)
*𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑱𝒂𝒚𝒂 𝒂𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒆'𝒔 𝒆𝒚𝒆𝒔 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒚*
"Hayyee meri bachi, bohot sundar lag rahi ho. Ek minute." Jaya auntie says, her voice crackling due to the emotions.
(Hayyee, my child, you are looking so beautiful. One minute.)
*𝑱𝒂𝒚𝒂 𝒂𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒆 𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒌𝒐𝒉𝒍 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒆𝒚𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊'𝒔 𝒆𝒂𝒓*
"Hum chalte hai, baaraat ko swagat bhi karna hai, todhi der mein Saanvi tujhe upar lene aayegi." Jaya auntie says as she pats Akruti's head and leaves the room with the other girls.
(We will leave. We also need to welcome the Groom's side. In a little while Saanvi will come up to get you.)
"Theek hai auntie." Akruti says.
(Okay, auntie.)
*𝑱𝒂𝒚𝒂 𝒂𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒓𝒍𝒔 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒎, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒌𝒔 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒂𝒍𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒚*
AKRUTI'S POV
I can't believe it. We're only a few minutes away from being married. Eeek, I'm going to be your wife. I can't wait to be sitting next to you.
END OF AKRUTI'S POV
*𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒊𝒔 𝒘𝒆𝒍𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒗𝒊 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒄𝒌𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒐𝒓*
"Chalo dulhan ji." Saanvi says.
(Let's go Bride.)
"Saanvi, bohot nervous feel kar rahi hoon." Akruti says.
(Saanvi, I feel very nervous.)
"Arrey bachu, shaadi ho rahi hai teri, koi baat na, tum uske paas beht jaogi na tab sab nerves khatam ho jayenge. Abhi mera haath pakadlo aur chalte hain neeche." Saanvi says, reassuring Akruti.
(Oh kiddo, it's your wedding, no worries, when you get near him, all these nerves will go away on their own. Now hold my hand and let's go down.)
*𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒗𝒊 𝒈𝒐 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒓𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒗𝒊 𝒇𝒊𝒙𝒆𝒔 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊'𝒔 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝑹𝒆𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑺𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒗𝒊 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒏 𝒆𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆, 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒔𝒕 𝑫𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒂 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒐𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒔𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒚 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒑 𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒌𝒔 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒊𝒔𝒍𝒆, 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒑 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒖𝒑𝒐𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒈𝒆*
"Bohot sundar lag rahi ho." Varun says, admiring Akruti.
(You're looking very pretty.)
*𝑯𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒔 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊'𝒔 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒍𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒑𝒂𝒍𝒎𝒔 𝒔𝒍𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒍𝒚 𝒔𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒔𝒐 𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔*
"Oh, partner ji, jab Varun is here. There is no need to fear. Kyu itna daar rahi ho, ab mere saath ho na?" Varun says, reassuring her.
(Oh my partner, when Varun is here, there is no need to fear. Why are you so scared? You're with me now, no?)
*𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏'𝒔 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕𝒍𝒚, 𝒂𝒔 𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂 𝒔𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒔𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒄𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒂𝒂𝒕 𝑷𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 (𝑺𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝑽𝒐𝒘𝒔), 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊’𝒔 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒔 𝒖𝒑, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒂𝒂𝒕 𝑷𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑷𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒕𝒋𝒊 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒔 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒊𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏.*
"Ab Saat Phere toh ho gaye, par yeh Saat Phere ko nibhana koi asaan baat nahi hai. Yeh vachan hote hai saari jeevan ke liye." Panditji says.
(Now the Seven Vows are done, but fulfilling these Seven Vows is not easy. These are promises to be kept for a lifetime.)
"Haa, Panditji-." Varun gets cut off.
(Yes Panditji.)
"Haa toh bol rahe ho, hamesha kyaal rakhna padega." Panditji says.
(You are saying yes, but you will always have to take care of her.)
"Haa Panditji, hamesha kyaal rakhunga, har sukh mein, har dukh mein, jo bhi ho mein uspe aanch nahi aane dunga." Varun says confidently.
(Yes, Panditji, I will always take care of her, in every happiness, in every sadness, whatever happens I will never let her come in harms way.)
"Mein bhi Panditji, har dukh aur har sukh mein, jo bhi ho uska saath hi dungi, ab tak diya hai aur aage jaake bhi dungi. Uspe aur mere ghar pe kisi din aanch nahi aane dungi." Akruti says.
(Me too Panditji, in every happiness and in every sadness, no matter what I will always be by his side, I have done so until now and will continue to do so for the rest of my life. I will never let him or my family come in harms way.)
"Chalo, yeh sunke achha laga. Ab sindoor lagana ka waqt aa gaya hai." Panditji says passing over the vermillion to Varun.
(That's good to here. Now it is time to put the vermillion on.)
"Bhabhi, abhi bhaag na ho toh gaddi bhaar khadi hai." Rehan says, teasingly to Akruti.
(Sister-in-law, if you want to make a run for it, the car is waiting outside.)
"Mein toh bhaag rahi hoon Jija ji, par iske bina nahi." Akruti replies back to him laughing as she looks deeply into Varun's eyes.
(I am running away brother-in-law, but not without him.)
VARUN'S POV
My heart is beating so fast, I can't believe we are forever going to become one, I can't believe that this is happening, and now you've just looked deeply into my eyes and the world feels like it has stopped and fully immersed into your eyes, you are so priceless to me, the most treasured possession I have, I can't wait to do so many things with you, travel the world, start a family, buy a home. I just want you to know that I am forever lucky and so grateful that I have you.
END OF VARUN'S POV
*𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒂 𝒃𝒊𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒎𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒔 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊'𝒔 𝒎𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒕 𝒂𝒔 𝒂 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒃𝒊𝒕 𝒈𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊'𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒔𝒆*
"Baki sab Holi khel rahe hai, mein sindoor lagaunga." He whispers, as a smile appears on his face.
(Everyone else is playing Holi, but I will put vermillion on you.)
*𝑯𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒌𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒔 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊'𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒅*
"Ab meri Chaand, chaand se bhi zyaada cheesy pickup lines mein tujhe poori zindagi sunata rahunga." Varun says.
(Now my Moon, I will tell you pickup lines cheesier than the moon itself.)
"Sun ne ke liye tayar hoon." Akruti says.
(I am ready to listen to them.)
*𝑨𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒂 𝒇𝒆𝒘 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒅𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑷𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒕𝒋𝒊 𝒅𝒆𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒂𝒔 𝒉𝒖𝒔𝒃𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒊𝒇𝒆.*
"Ab yeh Shaadi sanpand hui, aaj se aap dono pati aur patni hai." Panditji declares.
(This wedding is now complete, I now announce that you are both husband and wife.)
*𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒖𝒑 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒑𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒎𝒈𝒔 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒍𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑽𝒊𝒅𝒂𝒊, 𝑺𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒗𝒊 𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒂 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒂𝒍𝒊 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒊𝒕 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒅, 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒉𝒖𝒈𝒔 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒖𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒅𝒔, 𝒄𝒓𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒑𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒔 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒚, 𝑴𝒓𝒔 𝑩𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒘𝒂𝒋 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊*
"Akku, hum kitne kush naseeb hai ki aaj humko ek bahu nahi beti mili hai." Mrs Bharadwaj says.
"Jaya auntie, mein Akruti ka hamesha kyaal rakhunga." Varun reassures Jaya auntie.
*𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒈𝒐 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒆𝒔*
"Arrey mere joote kahan gaye?" Varun asks searching for his shoes.
(Oh where are my shoes?)
"Bhai aapne joote sambhal ke nahi rakhe?" Rehan says.
(You didn't keep your shoes safe brother?)
*𝑨𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒔𝒖𝒅𝒅𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒓𝒐𝒘𝒅 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒔 𝒍𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒖𝒑 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒆𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒅𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒂 𝒅𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒂'𝒔 𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒅*
"Hum humari didi ko jaane nahi denge." Deepti and Disha say.
(We are not going to let our sister go.)
"Arrey joote do, iske." Akruti says.
(Give his shoes.)
"Di, aap Jija ke side mat lo-" Disha gets cut off.
(Sis, you don't take brother-in-law's side-)
"Yaar ek lakh ek rupee le lo aur chalo, mujhe sunset mein photoshoot karna hai." Akruti argues.
(Yaar take one lakh and one rupee and let's go, I want to do a photoshoot in the sunset.)
"Di ese kaise-" Deepti says, disappointed.
(Sis, how can we-)
"Mujhe kuch nahi sun na, chalo yeh deal ho gayi hai, jaldi jaldi joote neeche karo, mera sunset waala photoshoot miss hogaya toh mujhse bura koi nahi hoga." Akruti says.
(I don't want to hear anything, this deal is done, quickly quickly get the shoes down here, if I miss my sunset photoshoot, no one will be worse than me.)
"Bhai aapko negotiate karni ki zaroorat hi nahi thi." Rehan says.
*𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒍𝒂𝒖𝒈𝒉, 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒔𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒖𝒏𝒔𝒆𝒕 𝒑𝒉𝒐𝒕𝒐𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒕, 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒉𝒐𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒑𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒉𝒐𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒑𝒉𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒐 𝒕𝒐 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒅𝒘𝒂𝒋 𝑹𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆, 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒉𝒂𝒓 𝑷𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒔𝒉 𝒄𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒅𝒐𝒏𝒆*
"Aajao beti." Mrs Bharadwaj says.
(Come in child.)
"Beta ab tum aur Varun upar jaa ke tayar ho jao kuch der mein hume reception waala venue tak bhi ponchna hai." Mr Bharadwaj says.
(Child, you and Varun go upstairs and get ready we also have to leave in a few hours to reach the reception venue.)
*𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒈𝒐 𝒖𝒑𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒄𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒗𝒆𝒏𝒖𝒆, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒅𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒅𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒈𝒐 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒈𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒔, 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒖𝒎𝒑𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒂𝒏 𝒆𝒍𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒚 𝒍𝒂𝒅𝒚*
"Sorry auntie. Aap theek ho?" Varun asks, ensuring she is okay.
(Sorry auntie. Are you okay?)
"Haa beta mein theek hoon. Pechana?" The woman says, her eyes glimmering with hope that Varun will recognise her.
(Yes child, I am fine. Did you recognise me?)
"N....nah..nahi, auntie ji. Sorry." Varun says awkwardly.
(N....noo.n..no, auntie. Sorry.)
"Kaha se pechano ge, itne bade jo ho gaye ho. Chalo koi baat nahi. Tum itne se te jab meri ghod mein khel rahe the." The woman says taunting Varun.
(How are you going to recognise me, you grown up now. No worries. You were this small when you would play in my lap.)
"Auntie ji, yeh itna bhulakad haina usse toh kal ka dinner bhi nahi yaad, aapko kaise yaad rakehga." Akruti says sarcastically.
(Auntie, he is so forgetful, he doesn't even remember what he ate for dinner yesterday, how is he going to remember you.)
"Tum toh yaad mein reh gayi na." The auntie says taunting Akruti.
(You stayed in his memories no?)
"Mein kaafi special hoon na, iss liye. Chalo Varun, Maa bula rahi hai." Akruti replies and winks at the auntie as her and Varun walk away.
(I am very special no, that's why. Come on Varun, Mom is calling us.)
*𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒃𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒘𝒂𝒍𝒌 𝒂𝒘𝒂𝒚*
"Thank goodness Akku, tum waha thi, kitna awkward feel ho raha tha mein." Varun says, his face relieved.
(Thank goodness Akku you were there, I felt so awkward there.)
"Yeh chhodo auntie ji ka chehra dekha kya?" Akruti says.
(Leave that, did you see auntie's face?)
"Haa woh toh mujhse bhi zyaada awkward feel ho rahi thi." Varun says laughing.
(Yes, she was left feeling more awkward than me.)
*𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒈𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒔𝒎𝒐𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒍𝒚 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒕 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒏𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒏𝒅 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒎𝒂𝒋𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒖𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑽𝒂𝒓𝒖𝒏 𝒃𝒊𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒇𝒂𝒓𝒆𝒘𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝑺𝒂𝒂𝒏𝒗𝒊 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑹𝒆𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒏𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒏*
"Dishu, where is Saanvi and jiju?" Akruti asks.
"I don't know, I just gave them a call and neither is answering, I'll go and have a look around." Disha says.
"Okay, give Deepu a call if you find them." Akruti says.
*𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒉𝒂 𝒈𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒎 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒂 𝒇𝒆𝒘 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒔 𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒕𝒊 𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒂 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒉𝒆𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝑨𝒌𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒊*
"Di, we need to get upstairs now." Deepti says, urgency visible in her eyes.
"Okay, what has happened? Has Dishu found Saanvi and Rehan?" Akruti asks.
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Author's note-
Hey there 👋🏼,
Hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you did, please leave a like and comment on the chapter! I would really appreciate any suggestions/improvements.
See you in the next chapter!
- Author Ahmeli 🤍