~~ Delilah's POV ~~
The ding of the elevator brought me to my floor. I still had the file, Inder made for me in my arms. As I walked down the corridor, Theo called my name.
I turned around to face him and I kept walking. "Hi." He said simply.
"Hi." I replied, I still couldn't get over Inder's overprotective attitude, but I was still happy to see his face.
"How's your health now?"
I kept my head down like before. "Good."
There was a 5 second silence till he broke it again. "I have been trying to contact you for the past few days." That made me turn my head to face him again. "I wanted to ask whether... You're free." He gave his signature half-smile. He tried to contact me? That's a first.
I gave a half-nod. "Today?"
He chuckled. "No! For the next 80-90 years?" I thought he was being sarcastic till I realized that he was actually serious. My face dropped.
"If you're free... We can hang out... Together." I sensed the nervousness behind that sexy voice. He stopped and leaned against the railing of the library. I stopped in front of him.
"What do you-" I was totally confused and nervous too. "What do you mean?"
He smiled. "That you've trapped this IIT IIM ."
My eyes expanded in shock and I was just completely speechless. I just didn't know what to feel because everything started to flood on me so suddenly.
"I know this is very sudden." He comtinues as he takes a step closer to me making me hold my breath belfry he can hear my tensed heartbeat. "But this courage... To tell you this was also very sudden. When you went on a date that day, I didn't like it at all."
I kept my head down, trying to hide my flaming hot cheeks.
"And when you got this makeover," He kept his warm finger on my shoulders making me shudder. "I hoped you did it for me."
I looked up and smiled. I couldn't take my excitement at all. He likes me? My crush likes me? "He stroked my hand. "And when you didn't come to the library, I had realized that you, you are the one, Delilah..."
He sighed. "Will you..." I gave him a questioning look. "Will you marry me, Saru?" I inhaled and exhaled deeply, my heart beating so fast and so hard, I just didn't know what to say.
My phone rang, making both me and Theo jump. I looked at the caller ID to show the name I wasn't thinking of at that moment, Diego. I looked at Theo again and back at my phone. I looked back at Theo gave him a large genuine smile.
I could barely breathe.
***
I went to the main office in a hurry, because to Inder, it seemed like an emergency. I went to the sitting area and looked around nervously. Inder tapped me on the shoulder, giving me a jumpstart.
"What's the emergency?" I said with concern.
"Good news. Come on." Even if it was good news, he wasn't excited at all. He headed towards the lift. "The no. 8 guy from the file is waiting for you." I looked at him in surprise. "Upstairs, in the restaurant. He's IIT, IIM and MIT as well."
He pressed the lift button and looked up. "Your dad will really love him." He glanced at me and back at the lift doors with no expression, but the softness was noticeable.
"Theo came to see me this morning." I said and Inder looked back at me in shock but nodded in reply. "You mean that party boy?" Diego went into the lift while I stood my ground. "That party boy is IIT IIM as well as a religious man."
He kept the lift doors open and gave a sarcastic reply. "Seems like the answer to your father's prayers." Diego really had something against Theo.
I dropped my arms. "He had asked me to marry him!" I said out loud. "What do I do?" Inder turned back to me with glassy eyes and inhaled loudly. "Say yes." He released the hold button and the elevator went up making him disappear out of my sight.
I turned back and walked away in confusion.
I can never understand boys, it's a total mystery.
~~Diego's POV~~
The next day was Delilah's birthday. Theo came along with her. We had gone to an expensive restaurant with wine and high class food. And as they both sat together, I sat opposite filling my glass with the bottle of wine each time I finished. I just didn't know why she wanted to be with him or why he wanted to be with her, or even why I cared...
Then the cake came. Theo took a piece and fed it to her with his own hands, giving some fake lovely dove look that almost made me choke. They were so close and that party boy's fingers touched her delicate lips. Saru fed him the cake too, just with the same affection. Trying to suppress my fiery tears, I filled the glass with wine again and crushed it in my hand under the table. The weird feeling inside of me in indescribable. I felt so happy for her but at the same time, that feeling was highlighted with something indescribable.
Boys never cry, and neither will I, I thought to myself.
After the party, I followed them, Theo kept his body close to hers and his arm slowly draped across her waist. Saru looked back and saw me, with my expressionless face and hunched body. What could I say anyway? I clearly mean nothing, don't I?
After that day, I couldn't stop thinking of her. Her eyes, her hair, he body. Little did I know, the jealousy kept me awake by working out, push-ups, pull-ups, Dumbbells and more. And every morning I wake up, surrounded by empty beer bottles, on the roof to the ring of my phone to Delilah's name.
"Hey," I said.
"Diego, I want you to come shopping with me for my wedding. All the things I picked out makes me look like the old me." I heard her chuckle.
"I want to look beautiful on that day."
To keep her happy, that's what I did. I took her to all the places by I couldn't keep my head in the game. Get over it, Delilah's getting married. She's getting married. She clutched my arm as she saw the hundreds of colored chiffon saris. She noticed me staring at her but I know she'll never understand why. We looked all over, but couldn't find the perfect sari till I took her to Charlie's. He showed her a beautiful red sari with small gold designs on the border and a gold ring to match it with.
Somehow, I knew it wasn't meant to be.
This wasn't love.
The next morning, I was surrounded by beer bottles on the roof of that apartment block, awakened by the same Saru. She told me to come to the restaurant of that opposite.
I sat down in front of her, as she was signing the invitations for the wedding day. As I sat down I noticed a small bandage on her right arm. "What's that?" I asked her with concern.
"Oh, Theo's new job placement is in Turkey, as well as the wedding." She looked at me with an apologetic look. "Blood-test was compulsory for the visa."
I looked at her and tried to blink away the tears that threatened to fall. "You're going to Turkey?" I asked, choking on the words. She nodded in reply. She finished signing the envelope and handed it to me.
"First invitation, for you." I looked at her, I can't go for the wedding in Turkey because I couldn't even afford it and she knew that.
She read my mind. "There's a ticket there too."
I guess it wasn't an excuse but how do I tell her that I do not want to see them together to become official till death do them part.
"Please, Diego. If you don't come, there'll be no one of my own at my wedding." I grabbed the invitation and walked out of the building, scoffing on the way out.
As I looked at the gold decorations of the printed card, I saw from the corner of my eye, Delilah's father getting into a public bus. I haven't seen him since that night...
An idea clicked so, I ran.
I ran fast, past the vehicles and caught up to see him sitting on the window seat."Sir! Sir! Delilah's wedding has been fixed." He ignored me. "Sir, if you don't come. There shall be no one of her own at the wedding in Turkey!"
He glared at me and grabbed the invitation from in between the bars and then threw it out of the window again. I slowed down and picked the crushed invitation from the road and straightened it out, the best I could.
I should have know that all parents are the same, selfish and heartless.
The next morning, I had to take Saru to the registrar of marriage to get legally married before the main wedding day next month. As I went up the stairs of that house, I saw Saru standing there, looking as beautiful as ever. She wore white lace gloves on her hands and that same beautiful white floor length gown that was given to her by Charlie. She was wearing red lipstick, which I have never seen her wear.
She looked like a princess. Absolutely beautiful.
I took her hand and led her into the sleek black Mercedes. As she slipped into the back seat, I grabbed a rose from the bushes and placed up at the front of the car for her. I saw her give a big smile as I got into the front seat.
"Ready?" I asked.
She nodded in reply.
We got down at the office and went into the registrar of marriage certificates. As we went in, the witnesses were present as well as the registrar but Theo was missing, it was for a good reason and we both knew why.
The girls from the office asked Saru mockingly. "So where's the groom?"
Just before she replied, I sat her down in front of the desk. "He's gone to pick up his parents, he'll be here soon." I glared at them long enough to shut them up.
"I'll call him." I whispered to Delilah. She nodded again before I went out to make the call. When I dialed the party boy's number, it just went straight to voicemail. I called numerous times with the same result.
Already an hour had passed by and still no sign of him.
was feeling frustrated and annoying so I stayed outside waiting for him but Delilah came and called for me. "Diego, the registrar's calling." Her voice seemed to be unusually soft, as if she was about to cry.
I went in to see an annoyed registrar. "Sir, where's the groom?! I've been waiting for over an hour here and I can't wait any longer."
I tried to stay calm. "He's probably stuck in traffic, he'll be here any second now."
He shook his head. "There's a line of people, I need to marry. Please, just step outside so I can marry off the people who's groom has arrived!"
I knew Delilah heard that so I turned around to see her gone, I went outside but it was too late. she had already sped off.
It was definitely to Theo's house. Shit.
~~Delilah's POV~~
I was so furious. I was humiliated by those office girls because he didn't arrive. I was so angry, I could break a wall. I went to Theo's house and rang the bell many times impatiently and there was no answer. I knocked on the door just as many times as I rang the bell and the door opened to reveal him, at home, in his suit, with no sign that he rushed to get married.
I glared at him with tears in my eyes. "Did someone die for you not to come?"
He looked at me with his stupid speechless face. "I-"
"Why, Theo? Huh? Are you serious right now?" I said.
"My parent have not agreed to this wedding. I'm sorry."
I stepped back in shock. I couldn't contain what was going on. I held my aching head and fell back into Diego's arms?
I looked at him with my wide eyes and choked on my tears. "He doesn't want to marry me." I was waiting for some thing physical to happen.
He just looked at Theo. "If there's a problem, we can sit down and sort it out, please."
I grabbed him. "There's nothing to sort out!" I said with anger boiling inside of me. He asks me to marry him and then humiliates me in front of everyone?
"Punch him!" I pushed his arm to try to punch him but he just dropped it. "Punch him! Punch him! Punch him!" I needed to show that disgusting man his place.
Then an old man, probably his father, came out. "Wait a minute, Theo." H e directed to him before he glared at me.
"A girl whose funeral rituals have been performed by her family who is still alive? We can't accept such a girl in this house!"
I almost fainted at his words. Does everybody know about this? My life is ruined. Now what? What do I do?
My legs shook beneath me and I clenched my fists.
"We are not so liberal minded!" He continued. "When Theo told us about it at the airport, we made it clear to him, this marriage cannot continue! If he went along with it, we can't be a part of it."
I stepped closer to them and face him. "You-you said their approval is just a- a formality." I sobbed. "You said, if you say yes, they will say yes."
I took two steps closer and closed the door myself and walked back to the car.
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Dear readers! Now we have a new chapter! I have school holidays so I can update sooner and one day is more than enough for a break for you guys.
QOTD: what were the different impressions of Theo before and after the wedding?
So don't ever ever forget to vote and give a lot of comments because I'll definitely reply to your comments without a doubt!
See you later Alligator!
~Imperfect Perfectionist~
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