...The next day many guests had arrived and were roaming around the palace enjoying themselves and the lovely wedding atmosphere. Shanaya, Rhea and Priyanka were sat near the pool after they had their henna patterns applied to their hands; it wasn't long before they were joined by Vijay who as usual couldn't stay away from his fiancé.
He sat very close to Shanaya on one of the benches while the girls shared the other bench; he moved one of his arms around her waist and held her close while with the other hand he inspected her henna patterns.
"Wow Shanaya...this is beautiful..." he whispered to her.
"Thanks..." she replied quietly.
"I don't usually like henna...the smell is horrible but looking at it on your hands...it really is beautiful..." he told her.
She didn't know how to reply to him; instead she stayed quiet but her phone rang suddenly and she fished it out of her pouch which hung loosely at her waist; quickly excusing herself she walked away and he turned his attention to the other girls; "You girls have had yours done as well....can I have a look?" he asked.
Priyanka held her hand out to him and he held onto it; "Wow...again this is really beautiful..." she noticed how he was slowly caressing the back of her hand and she straightened her posture but he didn't realise and continued.
"Thanks Vijay..." she pulled her hand away from him and gave him a fake smile in return.
"So...why don't you girls tell me a little more about yourselves..." he asked both of them.
Instantly they realised that he was a flirt but instead of taking it negatively they noticed that they could use this to their advantage and continued to speak to him nicely and string him along...
...Khush and Nikita were spending a lot of time together as good friends; Nikita had introduced him to some of her old friends and they were all having a good time playing a game.
After some time Khush felt a nudge at his side and he turned to see Nikita looking at him eagerly with a slight blush on her cheeks; he raised his eyebrow at her; "What's up with you?" he asked.
"I saw you speaking to that guy last night...how do you know him?" she quizzed.
"What guy?" he said turning around looking in the direction she was.
"The tall guy in blue jeans and gray shirt..." she pointed out to him.
Khush turned back and noticed Abhimanu standing around with Vicky, Kabir and Veer; he sighed knowing what his answer to her would be.
"That's Abhimanu...one of my sister's friends..." he told her.
"Could you please introduce us...he's so cute..." she squealed and he shook his head at her with a small smile.
"Sorry Niki...there's no point...he's taken..." he told her.
Her smile was washed off of her face instantly; "No way...really?" he nodded his head at her sympathetically; and she sulked; "...why are all the cute guys taken..."
"Not all of them..." he replied.
"Name me one cute guy who's not..." she said a little hopeful.
"Khush Kapoor...single and ready to mingle..." he replied cheekily; "...who's interested...apart from you..." he teased and she smacked him on his arm playfully...
...Shanaya found her way back over to her friends and was surprise to see her fiancé sitting in between her two best friends. She watched from a distance as he laughed away with them and looked like he was having a great time; she suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to see Abhimanu standing there along with the guys.
"What's going on over there?" Kabir asked with a frown.
"Looks like your fiancé is having a gala time..." Vicky smirked.
Before she could reply Veer took a step forward; "What the hell...why is his arm around my Rhea?"
"Let's go and find out..." Vicky said and they walked ahead.
"Are you okay?" she felt a slight squeeze on her shoulder and turned to see Abhimanu standing there.
"I'm fine...I just don't know how things are going to work out..." she whispered to him.
"Don't worry about it...leave that to us..." he replied; "...come let's catch up with the guys..."
Shanaya nodded and they walked ahead and caught up with the boys before they reached Vijay, Rhea and Priyanka. Noticing the gang approach them Vijay dropped his arm quickly and played it cool by walking over to Shanaya and placing his hand on her bare waist.
"Where did you go...I was waiting for you?" he asked her; he noticed how close she was standing next to Abhimanu but stayed quiet.
"I received a phone call from my relative back home who couldn't make it...I just got off of the phone..." she told him and he nodded.
Abhimanu sat down on one of the benches and the other guys followed his lead sitting beside their girls.
"If you don't mind...that was our seat..." Vijay said to Abhimanu; Shanaya looked at Vijay with a slight frown but Abhimanu stood up and allowed them to sit.
Shanaya refused to move but she had no choice as Vijay pulled her to sit in his lap; he wrapped his arms around her tiny waist and leaned his chin onto her shoulder. She felt uncomfortable and he loosened his grip to take his phone out of his pocket; he held it out to Abhimanu.
"Take a picture of us..." he ordered Abhimanu.
Shanaya looked apologetic at Abhimanu who smiled at her; but inside he was breaking apart; he couldn't bear to see the love of his life in someone else's arms; he clicked away at the camera taking a few pictures before giving Vijay back his phone who continued to take a few more selfies.
After some time Abhimanu decided to walk away; his heart was torn apart and he didn't know if he could take any more of their public display of affection any longer. Their friends all knew what he was going through and Shanaya felt the worst but Vijay was oblivious to all that had just occurred...
...Later on that night Shanaya decided to take a midnight stroll around the gardens to take her mind off of the other functions that were going to take place and the amount of time she had to spend with Vijay.
As she walked further into the gardens she noticed a group of men sitting in the shaded porch area; they were all laughing and having a good time as they drunk. She noticed her father and Sanjeev Uncle along with some other family members and to her surprise Abhimanu was with them; she stood from afar and watched as Ram threw his arm around Abhimanu as they told yet another joke.
A smile appeared on her lips as she watched them get along so well; she continued watching them until her eyelids felt heavy and a tired yawn escaped from her mouth.
"Come on Shanaya...time to hit the sack..." she looked over at them for the last time and smiled happily before walking back through the gardens.
Just as she neared the building she felt a sudden tug at her elbows and her eyes opened wide; she was about to yell for help but a heavy hand covered her mouth making it impossible for any sound to come out. She was dragged to a corner not far away and was put to stand with her back against the bushes; she was afraid to open her eyes and she stopped struggling not wanting to injure herself.
"Simran..." she heard his gentle voice and felt his lips near her earlobe.
Her eyes snapped open and she found him standing very close to her; "What are you doing?" she asked roughly when she got her voice back.
He grinned cheekily at her; placing his hands around her he whispered again; "What were you doing?"
"Huh?"
"You were spying on me?" he answered his own question and her eyes widened as she was caught.
"Uh...umm...I...actually..." she stammered and noticed his grin getting wider; she frowned; "...I was just out for a walk and I saw you drinking with dad and the other men..."
Abhimanu nodded with the silly grin still on his face; "It's okay...you can tell me that the truth...you were stalking me..." he moved his face closer to hers.
Shanaya realised how close they were standing; she looked down at his lips and then back up to his eyes. His eyes were fixated on her luscious lips and he moved closer; she closed her eyes as her heart thumped madly against her chest.
She felt his lips brush against hers; "Abhi..." she said a little frightened; "...someone will see us..."
She wanted this as much as he did but she was too afraid that they would get caught and things would turn out for the worst which they could not allow to happen. Abhimanu pressed himself closer to her and his fingers found its way into her hair; he touched her lips ever so slowly with his and she was too intoxicated by him to refuse. A few seconds later they were exploring each other in a new experience and he pushed her even further back through the bushes and against the wall and they enjoyed each moment of being in each other's arms.
When they finally decided to pull back and take in some air Abhimanu leaned his forehead against hers; "I love you so much Shanaya..."
"I love you too Abhi...and I can't stand another day without you..." she replied tearfully.
"I'm really sorry Shanaya...we have to go through with this act for a few more days..." Abhimanu apologised.
"I can't Abhi...I can't stand another minute with that guy...I hate being alone with him...I hate that his hands are always on me...and I hate that I can't even tell him to stop..." she cried.
Abhimanu felt terrible to see her like this; tears rolled down onto her cheeks and he hugged her close; she buried her face in his chest and cried silently. There were quiet for a while as they realised how difficult this was going to be; Abhimanu rubbed her back gently then moved her away from his chest; "Look at me..." he whispered to her; "...I know what you are feeling because I feel the same way...I hate it when he touches you...when he's so close to you...but there is nothing I can do about it..."
She nodding in understanding but stayed quiet and he carried on; "But I promise that it's only for a few more days...after that it will be just you and me...and no one else..."
"How are we going to get through this...?" she asked looking into his eyes.
"Do you trust me Shanaya?" he asked.
"Of course I do..." she nodded.
"Then stop stressing about it and keep smiling...please do this for me..." he told her.
"I love you Abhi and I can do anything for you..." she replied.
"I love you more..." he pulled her closer to him once again...
Hey guys...how was the chapter...hope you are enjoying it...please comment and let me know what you like/don't like...and please vote!
Roze x