It's a beautiful night, we're looking for something dumb to do.
Hey baby, I think I wanna marry you.
~ Marry You by Bruno Mars
Las Vegas, Sin City, City of Lights, Capital of Second Chances, The Marriage Capital of the World. And, in the year 2020, host city of the International Indian Film Academy Awards, more commonly known as the IIFA Awards.
A number of Bollywood stars were found in The Silver City over the three days the festival spanned, many leaving the day after it finished but a few, mainly the younger lot, remaining behind for a few days to relax and let loose, celebrate their successes and their failures too, celebrate being alive. Among those that remained were Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt, both relishing in the luck they'd had over the weekend, managing to bag best actor and actress in a leading role for their performances the previous year.
But, while they're basking in their victories, they're also trying to hide their sorrows.
He's finally ended his on-again, off-again relationship with his high school girlfriend and, while he knows that it's for the best, that the love wasn't there anymore and hadn't been for a long time, there's still a sadness in him, a feeling that only grows as he watches the people around him talk about their other halves or sit in couples.
She, on the other hand, hasn't been in a relationship for a long time. She's good with that, doesn't really care if she has a boyfriend or not, but as she watches her friend of ten years hide his feelings behind too bright smiles and short laughs, she feels a different kind sadness. Mostly she feels it for him but some of it is for her, for the way she still feels for him and the impossibility of anything coming of those feelings.
The night after the awards weekend has finished, she decides to do something to get them both out of their own heads and convinces him to accompany her to a club, telling him there's no way they're going to leave Vegas without having gone out at least once. He's reluctant but eventually agrees when she asks if he'd rather she go alone and end up wondering around the city drunk and by herself.
His plan is to stay sober the whole night but, once they're in the club and he sees the shots of tequila she's ordered lined up on the bar, he thinks of the burn of alcohol going down his throat and the giddy feeling he'll experience when it gets into his system and clouds his brain and he decides to join her, downing three out of the six shots in front of them.
Over the next few hours, he follows the three shots with a shot of vodka, a jaeger bomb and a martini, interspersing his drinking with dancing, Alia going with him to and from the dance floor to the bar, both of them more than a little tipsy before three hours are up.
She's giggly and can't barely walk straight and he's holding her up while cracking jokes and making her laugh some more. They decide to leave the club, aware that they've both reached their capacities - probably exceeded them. As they're walking down the brightly lit streets of Las Vegas, he looks at her and he doesn't know if it's the way her eyes are shining with laughter and it seems like the stars are reflected in them or the alcohol coursing through his veins or the fact that they're here in a city known as the Capital of Second Chances but he decides to throw caution to the wind. 'You know what, let's do something stupid,' he tells her, feeling completely reckless and completely correct in what he's thinking.
'How stupid?' she asks, giggling at the way he's looking at her.
'Let's get married,' he tells her in answer.
'What?' she asks, sure she's heard wrong.
He ducks out from under her arm and jumps up onto the low wall bordering the walkway, arms spread wide as he proclaims loudly, 'Alia Bhatt, we're both crazy and insane and passionate about, well, pretty much everything we do - acting, dancing, singing, rapping, performing, trying to use our influence to do some good in this completely insane world. You're the only person I know who can match me in energy, in dedication. You match me step-for-step, give me a run for my money when we're doing a scene together and, sometimes, you remind me of all the things that I let myself forget, the good things and the bad things - which, as much as I don't want to think about, are as much a part of me, an important part of me, as anything else. You, my insane, strange, emotional, wonderful friend, are one hell of an important part of my life and maybe it's the look in you eyes, maybe it's this dancing juice, who cares baby? I think I wanna marry you.'
'Where?' she asks, too caught up in the emotions rolling off of him and the giddy oblivion that's taken them both to think straight just yet.
'Anywhere. We're in Vegas baby, Marriage Capital of the World. We'll find a little chapel somewhere and we'll go in and get married, no on will even know,' he says like nothing could be easier.
She looks at him for a moment, debating what to say because, even if she's got an alcohol haze clouding her brain, she knows that this is probably not something that they should be doing, that a heat of the moment decision taken after they've been drinking isn't a good idea. 'We're completely smashed VD,' she tells him, the way she giggles after the slightly slurred words confirmation of that fact. 'Might not be the best idea.'
'Who cares if we're trashed, got a pocket full of cash we can blow,' he says, grinning at her in the way that makes her feel as though she's just downed a couple of shots of whiskey, the way that makes her feel drunk when she's sober and completely bowled over when she's as tipsy as she already is.
'Okay,' she agrees, grinning back at him. He hops down from the ledge and picks her up, spinning her around a couple of times before he sets her on her feet and grabs her hand, running as he begins to lead the way down the street again, this time searching for a jewellery shop of some sort in the hopes of finding a ring. She laughs as she follows behind him, their hands clasped tightly, the both of them high on more than just the drinks they've consumed.
***
They find a shop that's still open and go in, the shopkeeper totally unsurprised when Varun tells him they're looking for wedding rings; he's been in Las Vegas for more than twenty years and has seen his fair share of couples come through looking to get married in Sin City, some sober, some drunk off their asses, but all with that same look of excited anticipation and incredible happiness. He leads them over to the counters with the rings, letting them look and tell him which ones. It takes less than two minutes for Alia to spot the ones she wants - that surprises him, usually people are more picky, especially when they're drunk - and he pulls them out for the pair to look at. 'They're perfect,' the girl states, looking at them for only a minute before turning to her companion.
'You sure?' he asks, not like he doubts her opinion, more like he just wants to double check.
'Absolutely,' she says with a nod.
'Okay, then we'll get them,' he tells her, like all that matters is what she wants.
***
They leave the shop less than ten minutes after they'd entered, rings in his pocket, their hands intertwined again. 'What happens if we wake up and I wanna break up?' she asks him as they head towards the chapel at the end of the road.
'Then it's cool, I won't blame you,' he answers truthfully.
'Really?' she questions incredulously, wondering where this completely chill attitude has come from.
'Really,' he confirms with a nod.
If she were a little more with it, she'd have more questions but her senses and judgement have both been clouded by the alcohol and Varun and so she simply accepts it, walking down the brightly lit street to the little building at the end that is their destination.
***
They stand in front of a priest and exchange vows that are a mix of traditional lines and cheesy, made up on the spot ones.
Somewhere in the back of his head, he knows that the chances of them remembering all the details of the night are slim and he's pretty sure that's why he thinks it's okay to tell her that 'of all the people that I could have ended up here with, I'm glad it's you. Because, you and me, there's just something about us that makes sense. We fit Alu, like puzzle pieces.'
She knows that she wants to remember those words so she repeats them to herself once they've both said their I do's, right up until the priest pronounces them man and wife and tells Varun that he may now kiss the bride because then her brain goes blank and all she can think of is the feel of his lips brushing against hers, soft and gentle and caring, and that she never wants to have to let go - of the moment, of this feeling of perfect happiness that can be nothing short of pure ecstasy, but mostly, of him.
And then he's pulling away and they're both grinning like idiots as they're given their marriage certificate and asked if they'd like a video of the ceremony sent to them. He agrees immediately and she nods eagerly and, once they've give all their details, they leave, walking slowly out of the building and then they're running, but it feels like they're flying, hands linked together like if they let go, they'll fall apart, the two of them matching each other step for step as they race down the streets of America's Playground towards their hotel.
***
The rest of the night passes in a blur of murmured words and soft kisses, the rustle of clothes as they're shed and the rustle of sheets as he tells her how much she means to him without saying a word and she lets him know just how much she loves him without uttering a sound. It passes them by in giggles and moans, laughter and deep, profound silences that say more than words ever could. Things that could never be said if either of them were completely in their senses, things that were supposed to stay hidden, even from themselves, for as long as they could possibly hide. Things that need to get out, that would have eventually driven them insane had they been kept in. Things that change everything, change them, irrevocably.
They fall asleep as the sun rises and wake hours later, still wrapped up in each other's arms, both of their heads pounding.
He wakes first, groaning as he sits up, fists pressed to his eyes in the hopes of blocking out the lights that make the head-splitting pain worse, and she buries her head in the pillows with a whimper, feeling like somebody is pounding on the inside of her skull with a tiny little pickaxe. 'How much did I drink last night?' he questions, voice croaky from sleep.
'Way more than you should have,' she mutters, words muffled by the pillow she refuses to lift her face from. He groans again and reluctantly moves his hands from his eyes, wincing at the light streaming in from the windows and gets up to pull the curtains closed, sighing at the little relief it provides.
It's been a long time since he's been hungover and he doesn't really remember how to deal with it, especially not with his head hurting so bad, so he's glad that Alia's there and able to at least function mildly well.
As he stumbles back to the bed and practically throws himself down onto it, she gets up and retrieves two bottles of water from the mini fridge, throwing one to him - it falls on the bed beside him and he can't really be bothered to lift his head or his arm to drink it - as she opens hers, chugging half the bottle in one go. The water helps ease the headache a little and she registers the foul taste of her own breath; deciding to brush her teeth before it makes her physically sick, she makes her way to the bathroom on slightly unsteady feet, leaving the light off as she brushes her teeth and splashes her face.
She feels immensely better after that and returns to the bedroom, looking around until she spots Varun's backpack and heading for it, knowing he'll have some paracetamol stashed in there somewhere. He says nothing as he hears her rummaging through his bag, trusting her completely; even if he didn't, he was in no state to argue about it.
It takes Alia about two minutes to find the medication and she pops out four tablets, taking two herself and making her way over to Varun with the other two. He protests feebly as she makes him sit up but allows her to put the pills in his mouth and gratefully swallows the water she helps him drink.
He closes his eyes and leans his head back against the headboard as she calls room service for coffee and food, not opening them again until after he hears the knock at the door and the sound of it opening and closing.
'Here, black coffee, it'll make you feel better,' Alia tells him as she presses the warm cup into his hands. He takes a sip and grimaces slightly at the bitter taste but doesn't say anything, choosing instead to take small sips.
Breakfast consists of plain toast, fruit and dahi and they eat it silently, both of them still working on getting their heads to function properly.
Once they're plates are clean and their - third - cups of coffee have been emptied, he voices the question that's been running through his mind since it began to function somewhat normally, the bits and pieces of memory that he can catch painting a vague and confusing image of the night before. 'What the hell happened last night?'
'From what I can remember, which isn't much by the way, we got completely and totally smashed, walked around Vegas and I think... well, I think we may have gotten married,' she says, speaking slowly as though that would make the words easier to digest .
'That uh, that would explain the rings. And why I vaguely remember standing in front of a priest,' he tells her, playing with his fingers.
'So... ab kya? What do we do now?' she asks, unsure of where they go from here.
'I don't know. I mean, we could go get it annulled if you want?' he offers, not entirely sure that that's what he wants but if that's what she thinks they should do, that's what they'll do.
'Do you want to?' she questions, thinking the same as him.
'Honestly, I don't think so, no,' he confesses quietly. 'But do you?'
'No, I don't really,' she admits.
'Then I guess we're not getting it annulled,' he states. 'Which means we're married.'
'Right. We're married. And we have to go back to India in like two days. And let our families know about this,' she says, mildly panicking at the thought of having to inform her family of the fact that she went to Vegas single and came back married, to Varun Dhawan no less.
'Oh yeah, imagine slipping that into casual conversation; what's new? nothing much except, oh yeah, by the way, me and Alia got married while we were in Vegas,' he jokes, pulling a laugh from her despite her slight panic.
'Seriously though VD, what happens when we get back home? I mean, if we're married... there's things to be considered,' she points out.
'Well, I say you move in with me for the time being and then, if the time comes that we need it, we can look at getting a bigger place down the road,' he says like their living arrangements is the only thing that needs to be considered.
'Are you sure about this Varun? I mean, we weren't even dating and now... we just signed up to spend the rest of our lives together, it's a big deal.'
'I know but... Alu, what I said last night, I don't remember much of it but I do remember telling you at some point that this makes sense. That still holds. I don't know why and I don't know how but I know that this... it may not exactly have happened the way I thought I would get married but it just feels right. You and me, there's something inexplicably...' he trails off, looking for the word to describe his thoughts.
'It's like magic sometimes,' she offers, knowing what he's feeling. 'The two of us, the way we are together, it's not something that can be explained, only something that can be felt.'
'Got it in one Bhatt,' he agrees.
'That reminds me, if we're really doing this, do I have to change my name?' she asks, genuinely curious as to what he thinks.
'Up to you. I mean, personally, I kinda like the sound of Alia Dhawan but if you don't want to, I'd get it,' he tells her with a shrug.
'It does have a nice ring to it,' she admits. 'I'll have to think about it I guess.'
'So, we're definitely doing this then?' he asks, worried she might have already changed her mind.
'Yeah, I think we definitely are,' she answers with a nod.
For a minute, they sit there in silence, both of them trying to process what they've just agreed to and then she breaks the silence. 'My God, this is insane,' she laughs. 'We got married last night. Like, actually freaking married.'
'I know, I was there,' he tells her.
'And we're acting like this is perfectly okay, I mean, I'm not even freaking out. Well, I am, but only because I wasn't freaking out,' she says, deciding to ignore his entirely unhelpful comment.
'Alia, there's nothing to freak out about,' he says, taking her hand in his.
'VD, we got married last night, while we were drunk. Generally, that's something to freak out about,' she points out.
'Generally, yeah. With conventional people. But, I don't know if you've noticed, we're not exactly the most conventional people on the planet,' he counters.
'You have a point,' she concedes. And then she laughs again. 'You know, I would say I can't actually believe this, that we're sitting her discussing our future together calmly, like it's something we do all the time, but if this isn't us in a nutshell, I don't know what is.'
'What d'you mean?'
'Like you said, we're unconventional. It seems like, where the two of us are involved, normal is just so overrated.' And, he has to say, she's right; that pretty much sums them up.
A/N: So, I got Bruno Mars' Marry You stuck in my head and thus this little one shot was born.
Also, I've been thinking, would you guys prefer shorter one shots that (may be) updated more frequently or lengthier ones that take longer?
Anyways, that's all from me today, hope you enjoyed and I'll see you soon.