With my body wrapped in his shirt and face, smitten with the early rays of the sun, I woke up in the coccoon of Dev's arms to find a beautiful morning lying ahead.
Only some countable mornings had been as beautiful as this. Yet, I was not in a state to enjoy the beauty. Forget enjoying, I couldn't even sit straight for two minutes and thats how I learnt how ugly a hangover can get!
A dreadening pain inside head.. head, which felt like a sac of potatoes and a constant hammering inside the meninges... I didn't know if I had a way to save myself from these devils. But then this was also true that if there was hangover then its remedy was bound to be there too.
And maybe that remedy was with Dev itself! I'm sure he had arranged something before he went to sleep.
I looked at the sleeping man beside me. His carefree, sleepy face held a translucent grin that defined peace in a new light... yes, that was it- he did look peaceful..so peaceful... just like the old days when I used to live with him.. when I used to fall in love with his smile almost everyday.. when I used to treasure his happiness as mine.. those old day talks, all of which were quite invalid right now. Becoz in today's date, I didn't feel love for him anymore. It was only hatred that came out of me... whenever I watched his beautiful face or whenever he held me so close to him!
Taking a deep breath, I released myself from his grips. He didn't move even an inch though. Probably he was tired. Handling a drunk person throughtout the night was taking a toll on him and he kept sleeping on his tummy like a dead man.
Last night, he had already done a lot for me. Not wanting any more of his favours now, I just spared one last look at him and went out of our room to head for the deck.
•
The fresh air outside, worked as a coolant for my dizzy brain.
I breathed in a lungful of that air and strode towards the table where Amaya and gang were chitchatting over their morning cappucino.
Adijay, being the first one of that gang to notice me come, greeted me gently with a soft smile lingering his otherwise rough lips.
"Hey! Good morning, Star!!"
"Good morning." I smiled at him back and asked slowly- "can I have a seat?"
"Is that even a question to ask!" Kshitiz rolled his eyes dramatically as he pulled a chair from the adjascent dining setup. "Sit" he gestured.
"Thanks."
Well, it was almost inaudible and hence, was happily ignored by all.
"How are you feeling now?" Kshitiz spoke again.
"Amazing?" I chuckled slightly. And so did he.
"Amazing with that hangover of yours?"
"Ya, I meant....... fine. Just give the pill or whatever you want." I huffed to accept my defeat. It was like- why did I even try! I always knew that these verbal battles and all were not my things, especially when Dev was not my opponent on the other side!!
"Here." He handled me a tablet and a glass of juice that the waiter had served in the mean time.
"But I haven't brushed yet." Little embarrassed, I murmured with a tight smile.
"Doesn't matter." He shrugged his shoulders and offered me the glass again and this time, I couldn't refuse him anymore.
Hell, I seriously needed the medicine to stop the feeling that I was dying out of my headache!
"Feeling better?" Amaya asked a minute later.
"Hmm.." I nodded while rubbing my temple. The easening pain at the nerve endings, definitely felt better with each passing seconds.
"And what about Dev? Is he still sleeping or..." It was now Adit's term to shoot his questions.
"Ya... he slept quite late yesterday. Woh actually I was... umm.. I might had been difficult to handle all night." A deep sigh escaped my throat and my eyelids shut on their own as I shook my head with an overdose of embarrassment.
It was then when I realised that my embarrassment had no meaning until I confessed it before everbody.
"Amaya.. I need to talk with you." I opened my eyes in a jiffy and looked at her pretty helplessly.
"Yes? You want to talk in private? Shall we move to some other place then??" And there she was already ready at her feet!
Such a humble soul whom I had hated since day 1 of our morning! Uh, kuddos to myself!!
"No no..I need to talk with everyone of you actually." I sighed again. Matching my gaze with them was out of question now and hence I kept my eyes down and started speaking- "I am sorry guys.. really, really sorry."
"Sorry? Why? Am not getting you at all, Nitara." Amaya kept her hand upon my mine. And the concern in her voice... well, it did nothing other than making me feel further low.
"It was YOUR engagement Amaya, it was YOUR big day... but what did I do? I just ruined everything with my...... Raima kept telling me to stay away from alcohol.. But I didn't even listen to her. Honestly, I had intended just for one drink...couldn't understand when it turned into.."
"Five shots." Adit spoke from my side.
"Yeah...whatever." I banged my fist against my forehead, which travelled down soon to cover the rest of my face.
Facepalm I meant.
"You want to say more?" Amaya questioned after a short period of silence.
"Yes... its just that.. I seriously didn't do anything by purpose.. please trust me on that, Amaya." My other hand which was still under her clutch, crunched into a little ball.
"You know what Nitara?" Her deep, soothing voice was soooo compelling in nature that I was made to look up at her while she continued stating- "We already knew that we were about to face severe repercussions if YOU TWO were made to stay together!!"
Was that an insult? Or just a simple statement?? Not understanding how to react to it, I gulped aloud and kept gaping at Amaya's flawless face.
"Believe it or not, but we have taken a HUGE step to get you guys together again.....we have literally kept our wedding at stake for this!!" She added next.
"But we aren't saying you anything.. I mean, we are not accusing you. Its just that we knew there might be innumerable accidents when Dev and you are together.. and now, when those accidents are really happening, you DON'T need to apologise for them at all!" Said Kshitiz.
And now I was gaping at him, wandering if he was really that good since always or not.
No.... might be Amaya had changed him over the times. One heck of a charismatic girl she was.
"But I am still feeling guilty." I murmured with a damp sigh accompanying my drooping eyelids.
"Please don't... you have better things to do, Nitara." Amaya's clutch on my hand tightened. "... Like- going to your daughter!"
Oh fuck!
I had got so engrossed in my personal problems that I completely forgot about my baby who had been missing me since what? 12 hours approx??
Yes, that was it. One single fact, just enough to describe what kind of worthless mother I was!
"Where is she now?" I asked Amaya in a panic striken voice.
"In the playing arena.. Raima is there with her." She pursed her lips together while I bit mines in dismay.
"I must go. Bye." I got up from my chair and ran towards the stairs..... only to get interrupted by a moutain in the middle.
-"What the!"
And well, the mountain could speak too!!
I took two steps back and looked up again. Not to my great surprise, I found Dev standing infront of me. He was cladded in a trackpant and loose vest and with that disheleved hairs of him, he looked totally like an irresistable yum ball!
-"What the hell, Tara! Why were you running like that? ..And why did you even come here? Without informing Me?? You know na you weren't supposed to leave the bed without having your...."
"I had my medicine." I replied, cutting him short.
-"But..."
"I need to go. Excuse me." I blabbed quickly and walked past him, feeling a tad bit proud about myself for being able to resist this man atleast once in my life!
[Writer's POV]
Dev stood at his place motionless as he watched Nitara walk away with an attitude like she didn't know him at all.
He wandered what had gone so wrong last night that she behaved in such a way. Becoz as far as he remembered, Nitara had softened to a great extent after that soulful kiss they shared in the solitude of their bedroom.
Heck he remembered this too that Nitara's ever_so_beautiful smile never left her face when he was tagging along with her all throughout the engagement ceremony!
It was such a bliss to witness that smile of hers! It surely felt like eternity, to say the least!!
But what happened after that, that changed such a gorgeous smile into frowns of ignorance? Dev kept thinking when he was called from the back.
"Dev....come here please." Kshitiz was the one, yelling.
-"Hey" Dev waved his hand and hurried towards the table to join the rest of his pals. "Good morning guys." He greeted thereafter, quite oblivious to the fact that he was being given cold stares in return.
"Dev, we need to talk." Amaya spoke in a while.
Taking the cue, Kshitiz grumbled back too- "....and its important."
-"Shoot. I am listening." Though maintaining a steady expression, Dev reclined to his chair and gasped inwardly while trying to figure out what exactly what coming in his way.
And so it came like-
"Bro, do you remember the day when I had left Nitara for you?" Kshitiz asked with his eyes fixed on Dev's face. The intensity of that gaze was severe enough to make Dev shiver to his core.
-"Yes.... it was your wedding that day." Dev sluttered slightly.
"Right." Kshitiz nodded with a sarcastic grin. "And why do you think I did so? Handover my bride to my bestfriend on my wedding date??"
-"Becoz your bride was in love with ME....not with YOU." Dev spat as a matter of fact.
Kshitiz grinned shamelessly once again and replied-
"More than that, I had thought you loved her way more than what I did!"
-"Which is true infact."
"Clearly not. Becoz had that been really true, Nitara wouldn't have drink so much yesterday!"
"Most importantly, she wouldn't have left your home in the first place!!" Adit blabbed to notify his presence in this venome errupting session.
-"You mean to say I don't love or value Nitara anymore?" Dev cringed his brows at the very thought of it. His interiors had already started burning by then, as his best friends went on accusing him with the facts that he wasn't even aware of existing.
"Look Dev, we are no psychiatrists that we will get to know whatever happens in that smart brains of yours!" Kshitiz huffed with sheer annoyance before resuming back- "The main thing is that, we have taken enough risks to get you two together. Now if you don't behave yourself or try to show your moronness all over again, then mark my words, we are definitely not going to spare you for the second time!"
"We won't even think twice before tieing your limbs and throwing you out in the ocean!" Adit added.
-"Thats ridiculous! The way you are talking.. and thinking...." Dev tried to speak something but Adit stopped him midway and blasted upon furiously.
"Have you looked at Nitara, Dev? Have you seen what mess she had turned into? Do you realise that all these is just becoz of YOU??"
-"But Adit..."
"She is my sister dammit!..... And you managed to wound her beyond extremes! God!! I can't even describe how much I hate you for this!!"
"And I have been hating him since the day he came to know about Nirvana's existence in Tara's womb and denied it straight then and there!" Came the third voice from behind.
Ofcourse it belonged to Raima.
"This was so cheap and unexpected from you, Dev!" Mumbled Amaya, alongwith.
"You are seriously hopeless, man!" Adijay chuckled at last, thereby marking an end to this discussion finally.
[End of POV]
•
I was telling fairytales to Coco when Raima burged into my room in a breathless condition.
"Relax woman...why are you huffing like that?" I puckered my brows questioningly.
Raima smiled to this and dropped herself upon the mattress so that it sank deep under the impacts of her weights.
"When are you planning to go the deck? The mehendi ceremony has already began over there." She informed in her excitement dripping voice.
Point to be noted, when Raima was excited about something then the matter ought to have been BIG for sure.
"I...." I looked at my baby who had lying flat upon my tummy, waiting for the continuation of my story pretty eagerly. I ruffled her hairs lightly and completed my sentence- "I am not joining the function Rai!"
"But why?" She was...umm.. worried? Yeah, maybe.
"Becoz I am spending some quality time with my child, which I hadn't done since the entire day yesterday!" I reasoned strongly. But Raima being her, had to refute that again!
"You can always spend time with her after the ceremony gets over." She said to me, blinking her eyes really quick.
"No, I can't." I shook my head to her adamance.
"But..."
"What is a meyendi, mommy?" Nirvana's innocent question popped up from the middle to pull our attentions towards it, quite in a jiffy.
"Baby, mehendi is the paste with henna plant's leaves and it is drawn in patterns over hands and feet of pretty females like us, on special occassions like weddings and pujas." I told her and she nodded to it like an old granny.
"Uh huh... and what appens after that?"
"The paste dries and falls off while the pattern in which it was drawn, remains imprinted on our hands quite for sometime."
"Just like a tattoo?" She squealed with the sudden rush of excitement. Perhaps she had been infected by Raima already.
But then whom was I kidding! Didn't I always know that Coco had been fascinated with tattoos ever she came to know about its concept??
"Yes. It is a kind of tattoo, but temporary in nature... its stays in hands maximum for one week." I answered shortly.
And there she squealed back again.
"Mommy, can I have one in my hands? Pleash mommy..." she made the best of her pouts to earn my approval.
While on the hand, Raima kept giggling at this supposedly funny mother-daughter scene of ours.
"Ofcourse Nirvi. Both you and mommy will have one mehendi tattoo each." She said few minutes later.
"Yeaaay..... I love you maasi" coco wriggled down from my body and went ahead to clasp Raima's neck, which she returned with equal favour.
"Maasi loves you too." Raima kissed on top of her head and wrapped her tiny figure within her long arms.
Clearly they had started bonding rather well after spending one night together with each other.
"Maasi loves her bestie too... so I hope she can now agree to come to the deck?" She rolled her eyes dramatically as she looked at me.
Do I have an other option? I wanted to ask. But ended up asking something else instead.
"You know right that I am least interested for this function?"
"I know. But you should also know that one function won't spoil your mood.. infact it will only uplift the mood and I am sure you'll definitely feel way better after that."
Her confidence in me made me smile inwardly... if only she knew that Dev's presence over there would sicken me further instead of improvising my mood! Huh, such a silly girl she had to be always!!
"Fine. I'm coming."
•
Struggling with the flow of my heavily worked chiffon pallazo, I came to the deck to find all the ladies deeply engrossed in carving beautiful designs over there palms with the tip of their mehendi cones.
A smile crept to my lips as I realised that I had really started feeling better. The sight of all pretty woman drapped in white and the pungent smell of henna rummaging in thin air, knocked a sudden sense of euphoria in me and I couldn't be more obliged to Raima for the same.
Raima, as I had seen before, was dressed in a front slit white kurti and looked like a doll. While Amaya being the certified diva of the year, looked gorgeous as usual in her indo- western white gown and multicoloured applique
worked net dupatta, designed exclusively by ME!
Yes, she had asked for a lahenga in this ceremony too but as you all must have guessed it by now; I ignored her demand royally and the results I got in return, was absolutely mindblowing.
For not only Amaya was in love with her dress but the way she was flaunting it before everyone, I knew my success had found a name for itself!
One beautiful feeling it was. Another beautiful feeling was to watch my near and dear ones dolled up for the occassion. But then there was an unwanted feeling too. And it was none other than watching Priyanka sit infront of my eyes and apply mehendi over her palms....without the least trace of guilt to be seen anywhere near her face.
Forget guilt, her face was literally beaming with joy. And about her voice? Well, it was merrily chirpy and was ordering the mehendi artist to write the letter 'D' in her design.
Not to mention, the 'D' was meant for MY Dev, who was soon going to become hers.. legally and officially!!
The previous euphoria that had just settled inside my brain, turned into a strong nausea and I took my steps back to leave the place as fast as my legs permitted.
But way before I could have done that, a strong hand held me from the opposite direction and pulled me to a secluded side of the deck, such that I wasn't even given the chance to shout or fight against the implented strength.
And guess what? The hand belonged to Dev!!!
"What the hell you think you're doing?" I shouted aloud once he let me go off his hands.
-"I was just trying to talk with you." He informed with a loooooong, sad pout; something that was totally capable of melting my insides into jelly.
Quite aware of this hopeless side of mine, I straightend up my face and replied-
"But I don't want to talk with you!"
-"I know.... and thats why I had to bring here like this!" He chuckled at his so_called achievement.
I just rolled my eyes.
-"Look Tara, I have seriously no idea of what exactly has gone wrong. And unless YOU tell me about it in details, I don't think I can even comprehend a single part of it!" He spoke fluidly, geniunely and ofcourse with lots of intensity that me feel pukish all over again.
Tell him about it! Tell him about what huh? About his own marriage that he was discussing with Priyanka last night! Jerk!!
"I have nothing to tell you. So please just get lost and leave me in peace instead." I crossed my arms across the chest and focused my eyes upon the sea.
And with this rude gesture, there came down an impending silence upon both of us.
Needless to say, the silence had lasted only for a few seconds and Dev was the first one to break it with his nonchalant talks.
-"Fine. Don't say anything. Just let me apply the mehendi on your hands and that will be more than enough." He said to me.
"No way... You better go and apply mehendi on your Priyanka's hands."
-"Your Priyanka? What does that even mean Tara??" Ouch, he appeared shocked.
Must had joined the Ram-Leela members to take these acting lessions. I chuckled sarcastically as I thought about the possibilities.
-"Why that chuckle now?" He appeared dumbfound now.
"Nothing... I was just wandering ki with that innocent face of yours, it must be very easy for you to play along with everyone that happens to cross your path.. isn't it Dev?"
-"What rubbish! Playing and all...why would I do such things Tara? Why do I even need them for??" Frustrated beyond measures, he shouted at me for the explanation.
"You know that better." I shrugged my shoulders and turned back to leave. For final ofcourse.
But Dev had already grabbed my arms by then and to utter surprise, he pushed me against the ship's wall and pinned to it with my hands held above the level of my head.
-"You are going nowhere till I apply this mehendi on your palm." He said as he took out a cone from the back pocket of his jeans.
"You asshole, just leave me for god's sake!" Sensing the coming danger, I kept struggling to wriggle out of his clutch, which just like always, turned out to be a major failure once again.
-"Not any time soon darling." Dev smiled to it and whispered in my ears while hands continued their alloted task of writing his name on the flat my palm. "Here." He pointed out, once he was done with his mission.
"Its......" words dried out at my lips as I checked out his name. 'DEV' the three lettered word was written with such precision that I couldn't help but gape at it unabashedly.
And holy god, it looked too good upon my palm, to say the least!
-"Its?" Dev asked to break my reverie.
"Its...."
"ITS RUINED COMPLETELY!" Came a horrible scowl from the background.
With our senses shot alert, we ran towards the deck where the mehendi ceremony had been going on with full blinge uptil now.
And as we reached there, we understood who was the actual owner of that scowl.
Any guesses who it was?
Well, it was Priyanka ofcourse!!!
And the second question, that why was she shouting like a maniac?
Err.... apparently it was Coco's mischief that led the white anarkali of Priyanka get spolied with her own mehendi!
Heck, thats how it went- I got smitten with Dev's love while Priyanka's dress got smitten with the mehendi patterns of her dreams!
____________________________________
Author's note :P
Hey guys, meeting you after a long time. Hope you haven't forgotten me yet.
So here it was, another of the problematic chapters from Dev-Nitara's life. Do comment your views about it and make the star at the bottom of your screen turn orange RIGHT NOW.
See you in the next chapter then.
Spoiler alert👿- Next chapter would unfold all those happenings that brought Dev-Nitara to where they are standing today.
~