Khushi pounded at the door, yelling to let her out. To let her explain but no one responded. This was so bizarre. How had this beautiful night turned into such havoc? ‘Please, let me go. I need to get out of here. I didn’t mean to. Please. Some body, anybody, just listen to me…’ she pleaded for the gazillionth time, or what felt like that. But no one responded.
How long had she been here, she checked her watch. 7:40pm. Only, half an hour had passed. Wow, it felt like more. Ok think…the garland ceremony would be over now and Payal would have been taken in to lower her veil while the groom-side were given refreshments before they proceeded to the wedding Alter, where the rituals would begin precisely at 8:05pm, she had 25 minutes to get down there. She pounded on the door again. ‘Please it’s my sister’s wedding I need to get there, she will be a nervous wreck by now cause I’m not by her side. Let me go please!!!’ she shouted again but no one came.
Ok change of plans, no one was coming to take her out she would have to find her own escape route. Ok think Khushi what did you see before they locked you in here….you went past the elevator and then back into the suites corridor where they took you into one of the suites. So at least you are out of that maze like fashion show, all you need to do is get out of this room and then run to the lifts and go down. Ok that’s’ all fine but how are you going to get out of this room the door was locked from the outside?!! She searched for anything that would help her open the doors but her eyes spied nothing. She needed some sort of sharp object with which she could prick the lock; she explored the room again to no avail. Annoyed she slumped onto the bed and ran her fingers through her hair. This was a disaster. Jiji would be worried sick for her by now, what if, what if she held off the wedding due to her….she wouldn’t put it past Payal, when it came to Khushi all logic went out of the window for her. She had seen enough evidence of that in her fourteen years with her. Payal was extremely protective of Khushi and therefore a bucket of nerves when she, Khushi, went off her radar.
Khushi still remembered the day when she had disappeared for a mere half an hour in the courtyard how sickly pale Payal had been when she had been found. They had been playing hide-and-seek in the courtyard and it had been Khushi’s turn to hide. Khushi had chosen to hide in the shadow of the door, from where she spied the golguppa stall wheel in. Forgetting the game she had rushed out after him to have some. She had followed him two lanes down where he set up his stall and then waited while he made her delicious mouthfuls of the treat. While all this time Payal had searched frantically for her and when she didn’t find her had thought she had been kidnapped (as there was a child-napper out lose on the streets those days). Thus she had brought the house down with her wails. Bauji and Amma had panicked too and set all the neighbours looking for her. When she came home bearing a parcel from the stall for her Jiji she found her in hysterics, that day she vowed to herself and Payal that she would never disappear like that ever again. She would never put her through that agonizing anxiety again. And yet today she had broken that vow, how many vows was she going to break today. She had broken her promise to never sleep with anyone but her husband. She had broken her promise to be next to Payal throughout the wedding. She had broken her promise to never put her family through that uncertainty of Khushi’s whereabouts again. So may broken promises.
Tears began to flow down her cheeks again. This was such a mess. Oh why had she come up here? She should have listened to her mind which had told her to go down to the ballroom instead of taking this detour, but she had followed her heart and gone to see Shyam instead. Shyam. How his name stirred such grief inside of her? Why did he have to turn out to be a cheat? She had loved him so much? Why had he betrayed her, her of all people? If he had fallen out of love with her all he had to do was say it, she would have released him from the engagement, she wasn’t one to force herself on anyone and he knew that better than anyone else?
The anger she had felt against him now had dissipated, leaving only hurt and sorrow inside. This infused a new kind of loneliness inside of her. It was weird, it had been he who had found her that day and brought her back to Payal and the family. If he had not spotted her she would have probably stayed there for another fifteen, twenty minutes not realizing the anguish she was putting the others through by her absence. It was he who had brought relief to her tensed family and made her realize that she was actually important to someone. The cry that had emitted from his lips and the rest of her family’s had made her finally realize that she was part of family once again. That she was loved. That she wasn’t alone. A fear which she had been battling with for two years since her parents had passed away in the car accident. And it was him who had made her feel so alone again. Him who had isolated her from her family; how ironic?
She was prodding over these thoughts, when, ‘Ouch!’ something pricked her finger. ‘Ugh stupid hair-pin’ she muttered as she sucked at her index finger. Hair-pin!! Oh God, she had, had a key on herself all along!! She yanked it out of her hair and ran to the door. Jammed it in and set to work. Within minutes it worked and she heard the click. Proud of her accomplishment she took the pin out of the lock and put her hand on the handle only to find it move even before her fingers had wrapped around it. Before she could register what had happened she found herself staring at hard chest clad in a taught black shirt and a stiff black coat.
Her heart gave a wild jump, as if someone had used the charged resuscitation gear on her. She was standing before her imprisoner. She stepped back as her chest began to heave.
Her breath was short and raspy. She was afraid. Good. She should be. Thought Arnav as he stepped inside the room, he eyed her properly for the first. Studying her in order to decide his best form of attack. She was a petite, fair complexioned girl. Her hair, long and black. Disheveled. She was dressed in an elegant green lehenga that hugged her body in all the right places, enhancing her figure. She was wearing very heavy jewelry as if she was coming from a wedding. Her bare arms and neck were covered with red blotches, had the guards hurt her?! If so then he would deal with them too, afterward’s, he had told them only to imprison her not touch her. Her eyes were big, caramel brown, with a hint of green, or may be that was the lehenga that gave it that tinge. They were red rimmed as if she had been crying profusely, probably because she had gotten caught and hoping that the tearful look would evoke some sympathy. Well there she was mistaken, her tears would have no impact on him whatsoever, she was his criminal and she would suffer no matter how many tears she shed.
He stopped advancing towards her and in fact took a step back, to take her whole image in before he let his wrath loose. Her whole frame was quivering, her full red lips and delicate fingers included. Something caught his eye near her fingers; they were wrapped around a short black rod of some sort. A bobby pin. She had been trying to escape. ‘Thinking of going somewhere?’ he asked in a deathly calm voice as he motioned with his eyes towards the pin that was in her hands. Instantly she dropped it. His mouth contorted into a twisted smile. She was terrified of him. He was going to enjoy this. And why shouldn’t he? She had dared to ruin Lavanya’s dream, he would ruin her!!
‘I asked you something….’ He baited her dangerously.
She mumbled something incoherent. ‘I didn’t quite get that, you want to try again?’
‘Please…please let me go.’ She pleaded.
‘And why should I do that?’
‘Please, I need to go…’
‘You need to….you need to….well you know what I need…I need to know how you can possibly stand here in front of me after daring to cross me?!! That is what I need to know!’ his voice was now louder and he was standing inches away from her. She cowered under his anger.
‘Do you have any idea what you dared to do? Do you have any idea who you have crossed? Who sent you?!! What could they have possibly paid you to make you cross Arnav Singh Raizada?!!!’ hollered Arnav in her paling face.
‘Please…I...I didn’t mean to….it was an accident.’ Tried to explain Khushi.
‘ACCIDENT?!!! ACCIDENT!! How on earth does someone accidently arrive on a platform?!! You would have to be blind to not read the signs or realize that what you were walking was a freaking ramp!!! And you clearly are not!!’ he thundered upon her.
Khushi whimpered. ‘Please. Please I didn’t mean to….just let me go please…’ her eyes were flowing now too.
But her pleas and tears just aggravated him more. He yanked her by the arms and made her look into his face. ‘You want to leave…fine, then just tell me who paid you to ruin my show!! Then you will be free to go!’
‘Please…no one paid me…I told….it was a mistake….I didn’t mean to…’
‘Mistake!! Mistake!!’ spat Arnav, ‘really?!! Well if so then you should have been more vigilant, before you committed this mistake!! Because no one can afford to make a mistake with Arnav Singh Raizada and live to tell the story! Mistake!!’ he hissed as he shoved her and turned his back on her, disgusted by her presence.
Khushi slumped to the floor. Massaging her arms she eyed his back. She could see him puffing. He was enraged with her and was in no mood to listen to anything she had to say. He wanted blood. Her blood. For the first time since he had entered she feared for her life. This man was insane with rage, who knew what he would do under its’ white hot blind haze. She thought about crying out for help, but feared her voice may infuriate him further. She hoped for someone to come save her. But no one knew where she was. She wasn’t even sure where she was. All she knew was that she was still on the 10th floor, but had no idea in which room. She needed to get away before this man did something to her, but how could she with him blocking her way. He was muttering something which she couldn’t quite make out; she concentrated and found her hand and body turn cold with fear as her ears caught his words.
‘Mistake! Yes I will make sure you pay for this mistake!!’ as those words escaped his lips he was back in a flash by her side and was dragging her up from the place she had squatted on the floor. Alarmed she began wailing again, hoping her words may get through to him and he may let her go.
‘No…No…No. Please. I’m sorry....’
‘Yes you will be sorry….’
‘Please…look I came here by mistake, its’ my sister’s wedding, I was heading there, I entered the wrong event…..please you have got to believe me…..I was in hurry, I didn’t look where I was going….please….’
‘Believe you?! Hah! After all this, do you really think I’m stupid that I would believe you!’ he had her pinned against the wall of the suite now.
‘Please my sister needs me, I have to go to her…..please…’ she begged.
‘Shut up! Don’t try the emotional track with me….cause I’m not buying it! There is no wedding on this floor, so you can just shut up about your little sob story of entering the wrong hall. I know girls like you, who would do anything for money: lie, cheat and ruin peoples’ lives just for some hard cash. Girls like you are sickening. Who have no morals and are willing to stoop to any level just to get their hands on the green!’ he slammed his hand hard on the wall next to her, as he uttered the last causing her to shudder violently.
‘How do you live with yourself, when you are the cause of people’s grief? When your unprincipled behavior leads to so much destruction in people’s lives…how can you sleep at night after committing such heinous sins-‘
‘ENOUGH!!’ shouted Khushi. Her fear had now transformed in to rage. How dare he suggest such disgusting things about her, judge her when he knew nothing about her?! ‘Just because I’m quiet doesn’t mean you can lay such atrocities on me! I have done nothing you have blamed me for! I told you It was an accident, I entered you’re event by mistake and I was trying to find my way out of it when I landed on the ramp. That was my fault I should have looked before I stepped out, I agree but it was unintentional and a mistake! That’s all! You have no right to make such profane assumptions about me or judge me when you don’t even know me!’ she blared in the face that was inches away from hers’.
Her outburst took him by surprise and he relaxed his hands as he pulled back fractionally. Could she be saying the truth? Had she really done it all unintentionally? Well even if that was the case….so what? She had still messed his event up, which meant a lot of cover up for him. And if this had been one of his events then he may have even thought about letting her go, but this was Lavanya’s dream, her last wish and she had wrecked that, intentional or not she would have to pay!
As he moved back she saw his face mull over what she had just said. The rage in it lessened as he thought it over. His stance relaxed somewhat, if she was going to escape now was her chance. He had lowered his guard. Time was ticking, she couldn’t be sure whether his verdict would be in her favour, Payal was waiting for her downstairs, she needed to go now. Her mind made up that it was now or never, she pushed him back and broke for the door. Wrong move. If he had thought about letting her go that thought was now out of the question.
Her push had caught him off guard, but he bounced back fast and had stretched out his hand to pull her back just as she tried for the door. Only his hands yanked onto something hard and cold, not her hands. Next thing he saw was something small and white falling towards the ground. As he turned to face her he saw what his hands had done. He had pulled on a line of beads that adorned her back and fastened her blouse, causing them to break and her blouse to loosen. SH*T. He hadn’t meant to do that. As the realization hit her at what had happened a tremor escaped her lips just as she turned to hide her back against the wall. There was terror in her eyes. He could see it. She thought he was going to rape her. The sight of her disarray brought him back to his senses and he shuddered at what he had done. He had intimidated this nothing- of- girl to such a degree that she thought he was capable of such a monstrosity as rape. What was wrong with him! All he had wanted to do was interrogate her! Find out who had sent her, how the hell had they end up here with her whimpering against the wall and him enacting the role of a fiend. He was disgusted with himself. He stepped away from her and turned his back to her; he couldn’t look at her anymore and see the ugly image of himself that he had conjured in her eyes.
Once his back was to her, she calmed herself. He wasn’t about to do what she feared. In control of her paranoia she turned her attention on the door, the path to which was no longer guarded by this tyrant. This was her only chance, while his back was turned as he recollected his thoughts. Working fast she unfastened her hair, to let it cover her back, hoisted her skirt and ran for the door. Her bangles and anklets jingling as she ran, crap, he will know she is escaping and will be by her side in any minute, she worried as she went. But he didn’t come. No iron fist grasped her this time. Startled by this she actually stopped in the doorway to see why, she turned cautiously, to find his eyes boring into her and his jaws clenched, but he didn’t move just watched her go. There was something in his eyes that made her heart stir, the anger had gone and instead there was pain. How could that be? Why was he in pain? No time to think over his sorrows Khushi you need to get to the wedding! Khushi snapped herself out of his hypnotic stare and proceeded towards the elevators before her captor changed his mind and stopped her from leaving.
She didn’t stop running until she got to the lifts. There she jammed at the going down button and kept her fingers on it until the lift finally came. Inside she pressed for the 1st floor, where the Ballroom was, the venue of the wedding. As the lift jolted into life and began its’ descent Khushi began to calm herself. She had escaped that beast. She was safe now. She had to get a grip on herself, for if she went in the hall shaking from head to toe people would know something awful had happened. She would have to explain her absence as it was but if they saw her all panic-stricken than they would know she was hiding something. Ok breathe Khushi, its’ ok you have made it out; you’re going to your family now. It’s ok….oh this was no good she was still hysterical and there were only two floors to go now. She needed to get a grip over herself. She jabbed at the emergency stop button, bringing the lift to a halt in between the second and the first floor. Then crumpled to the ground allowing her frenzy to take over her, for the only way she would be able to control her emotions would be by letting them out first.
After pouring her hearts grief out on the filthy elevator floor, she finally got up and surveyed herself in the mirrors that covered the three sides of the lift. Oh she looked awful!! For the third time tonight she got to work on her appearance to hide her scars and make her look presentable. She tied back her hair in a half braid, that pulled back the bangs from her face, but let the bulk of her hair continue to curtain her bare back. Next she adjusted her dupatta to cover as much of her arms and neck she could manage to cover without making it look like she was using it as a shawl. Then she patted down her lehenga and blouse and turned to look at herself in the mirror. Ok better. But her face was still ghostly white bar her eyes which were red with all the crying. There was no time to go back to the room and apply make-up she was late as it is, they were probably in the middle of their Pheres. She pinched her cheeks hard bringing some red into them. There, at least she didn’t look like a spectre. Checking herself one last time, she took a deep breath and released the emergency stop button. The lift blinged as she reached the 1st floor, she stepped out checked the sign outside the Ballroom – it read Payal Weds Aakash – ok right venue, last thing she wanted was to end up in another event. Exhaling loudly and squaring her shoulders she walked in, a bright smile on her face and with an air like nothing was out of the ordinary. She fussed and fretted over the refreshments being served, greeted her relatives as she made her way to the centre of the large hall where the Pheres were about to begin. She had made it, before she was officially required to tie the knot for her Jiji and Jeejaji.
How long had she been here, she checked her watch. 7:40pm. Only, half an hour had passed. Wow, it felt like more. Ok think…the garland ceremony would be over now and Payal would have been taken in to lower her veil while the groom-side were given refreshments before they proceeded to the wedding Alter, where the rituals would begin precisely at 8:05pm, she had 25 minutes to get down there. She pounded on the door again. ‘Please it’s my sister’s wedding I need to get there, she will be a nervous wreck by now cause I’m not by her side. Let me go please!!!’ she shouted again but no one came.
Ok change of plans, no one was coming to take her out she would have to find her own escape route. Ok think Khushi what did you see before they locked you in here….you went past the elevator and then back into the suites corridor where they took you into one of the suites. So at least you are out of that maze like fashion show, all you need to do is get out of this room and then run to the lifts and go down. Ok that’s’ all fine but how are you going to get out of this room the door was locked from the outside?!! She searched for anything that would help her open the doors but her eyes spied nothing. She needed some sort of sharp object with which she could prick the lock; she explored the room again to no avail. Annoyed she slumped onto the bed and ran her fingers through her hair. This was a disaster. Jiji would be worried sick for her by now, what if, what if she held off the wedding due to her….she wouldn’t put it past Payal, when it came to Khushi all logic went out of the window for her. She had seen enough evidence of that in her fourteen years with her. Payal was extremely protective of Khushi and therefore a bucket of nerves when she, Khushi, went off her radar.
Khushi still remembered the day when she had disappeared for a mere half an hour in the courtyard how sickly pale Payal had been when she had been found. They had been playing hide-and-seek in the courtyard and it had been Khushi’s turn to hide. Khushi had chosen to hide in the shadow of the door, from where she spied the golguppa stall wheel in. Forgetting the game she had rushed out after him to have some. She had followed him two lanes down where he set up his stall and then waited while he made her delicious mouthfuls of the treat. While all this time Payal had searched frantically for her and when she didn’t find her had thought she had been kidnapped (as there was a child-napper out lose on the streets those days). Thus she had brought the house down with her wails. Bauji and Amma had panicked too and set all the neighbours looking for her. When she came home bearing a parcel from the stall for her Jiji she found her in hysterics, that day she vowed to herself and Payal that she would never disappear like that ever again. She would never put her through that agonizing anxiety again. And yet today she had broken that vow, how many vows was she going to break today. She had broken her promise to never sleep with anyone but her husband. She had broken her promise to be next to Payal throughout the wedding. She had broken her promise to never put her family through that uncertainty of Khushi’s whereabouts again. So may broken promises.
Tears began to flow down her cheeks again. This was such a mess. Oh why had she come up here? She should have listened to her mind which had told her to go down to the ballroom instead of taking this detour, but she had followed her heart and gone to see Shyam instead. Shyam. How his name stirred such grief inside of her? Why did he have to turn out to be a cheat? She had loved him so much? Why had he betrayed her, her of all people? If he had fallen out of love with her all he had to do was say it, she would have released him from the engagement, she wasn’t one to force herself on anyone and he knew that better than anyone else?
The anger she had felt against him now had dissipated, leaving only hurt and sorrow inside. This infused a new kind of loneliness inside of her. It was weird, it had been he who had found her that day and brought her back to Payal and the family. If he had not spotted her she would have probably stayed there for another fifteen, twenty minutes not realizing the anguish she was putting the others through by her absence. It was he who had brought relief to her tensed family and made her realize that she was actually important to someone. The cry that had emitted from his lips and the rest of her family’s had made her finally realize that she was part of family once again. That she was loved. That she wasn’t alone. A fear which she had been battling with for two years since her parents had passed away in the car accident. And it was him who had made her feel so alone again. Him who had isolated her from her family; how ironic?
She was prodding over these thoughts, when, ‘Ouch!’ something pricked her finger. ‘Ugh stupid hair-pin’ she muttered as she sucked at her index finger. Hair-pin!! Oh God, she had, had a key on herself all along!! She yanked it out of her hair and ran to the door. Jammed it in and set to work. Within minutes it worked and she heard the click. Proud of her accomplishment she took the pin out of the lock and put her hand on the handle only to find it move even before her fingers had wrapped around it. Before she could register what had happened she found herself staring at hard chest clad in a taught black shirt and a stiff black coat.
Her heart gave a wild jump, as if someone had used the charged resuscitation gear on her. She was standing before her imprisoner. She stepped back as her chest began to heave.
Her breath was short and raspy. She was afraid. Good. She should be. Thought Arnav as he stepped inside the room, he eyed her properly for the first. Studying her in order to decide his best form of attack. She was a petite, fair complexioned girl. Her hair, long and black. Disheveled. She was dressed in an elegant green lehenga that hugged her body in all the right places, enhancing her figure. She was wearing very heavy jewelry as if she was coming from a wedding. Her bare arms and neck were covered with red blotches, had the guards hurt her?! If so then he would deal with them too, afterward’s, he had told them only to imprison her not touch her. Her eyes were big, caramel brown, with a hint of green, or may be that was the lehenga that gave it that tinge. They were red rimmed as if she had been crying profusely, probably because she had gotten caught and hoping that the tearful look would evoke some sympathy. Well there she was mistaken, her tears would have no impact on him whatsoever, she was his criminal and she would suffer no matter how many tears she shed.
He stopped advancing towards her and in fact took a step back, to take her whole image in before he let his wrath loose. Her whole frame was quivering, her full red lips and delicate fingers included. Something caught his eye near her fingers; they were wrapped around a short black rod of some sort. A bobby pin. She had been trying to escape. ‘Thinking of going somewhere?’ he asked in a deathly calm voice as he motioned with his eyes towards the pin that was in her hands. Instantly she dropped it. His mouth contorted into a twisted smile. She was terrified of him. He was going to enjoy this. And why shouldn’t he? She had dared to ruin Lavanya’s dream, he would ruin her!!
‘I asked you something….’ He baited her dangerously.
She mumbled something incoherent. ‘I didn’t quite get that, you want to try again?’
‘Please…please let me go.’ She pleaded.
‘And why should I do that?’
‘Please, I need to go…’
‘You need to….you need to….well you know what I need…I need to know how you can possibly stand here in front of me after daring to cross me?!! That is what I need to know!’ his voice was now louder and he was standing inches away from her. She cowered under his anger.
‘Do you have any idea what you dared to do? Do you have any idea who you have crossed? Who sent you?!! What could they have possibly paid you to make you cross Arnav Singh Raizada?!!!’ hollered Arnav in her paling face.
‘Please…I...I didn’t mean to….it was an accident.’ Tried to explain Khushi.
‘ACCIDENT?!!! ACCIDENT!! How on earth does someone accidently arrive on a platform?!! You would have to be blind to not read the signs or realize that what you were walking was a freaking ramp!!! And you clearly are not!!’ he thundered upon her.
Khushi whimpered. ‘Please. Please I didn’t mean to….just let me go please…’ her eyes were flowing now too.
But her pleas and tears just aggravated him more. He yanked her by the arms and made her look into his face. ‘You want to leave…fine, then just tell me who paid you to ruin my show!! Then you will be free to go!’
‘Please…no one paid me…I told….it was a mistake….I didn’t mean to…’
‘Mistake!! Mistake!!’ spat Arnav, ‘really?!! Well if so then you should have been more vigilant, before you committed this mistake!! Because no one can afford to make a mistake with Arnav Singh Raizada and live to tell the story! Mistake!!’ he hissed as he shoved her and turned his back on her, disgusted by her presence.
Khushi slumped to the floor. Massaging her arms she eyed his back. She could see him puffing. He was enraged with her and was in no mood to listen to anything she had to say. He wanted blood. Her blood. For the first time since he had entered she feared for her life. This man was insane with rage, who knew what he would do under its’ white hot blind haze. She thought about crying out for help, but feared her voice may infuriate him further. She hoped for someone to come save her. But no one knew where she was. She wasn’t even sure where she was. All she knew was that she was still on the 10th floor, but had no idea in which room. She needed to get away before this man did something to her, but how could she with him blocking her way. He was muttering something which she couldn’t quite make out; she concentrated and found her hand and body turn cold with fear as her ears caught his words.
‘Mistake! Yes I will make sure you pay for this mistake!!’ as those words escaped his lips he was back in a flash by her side and was dragging her up from the place she had squatted on the floor. Alarmed she began wailing again, hoping her words may get through to him and he may let her go.
‘No…No…No. Please. I’m sorry....’
‘Yes you will be sorry….’
‘Please…look I came here by mistake, its’ my sister’s wedding, I was heading there, I entered the wrong event…..please you have got to believe me…..I was in hurry, I didn’t look where I was going….please….’
‘Believe you?! Hah! After all this, do you really think I’m stupid that I would believe you!’ he had her pinned against the wall of the suite now.
‘Please my sister needs me, I have to go to her…..please…’ she begged.
‘Shut up! Don’t try the emotional track with me….cause I’m not buying it! There is no wedding on this floor, so you can just shut up about your little sob story of entering the wrong hall. I know girls like you, who would do anything for money: lie, cheat and ruin peoples’ lives just for some hard cash. Girls like you are sickening. Who have no morals and are willing to stoop to any level just to get their hands on the green!’ he slammed his hand hard on the wall next to her, as he uttered the last causing her to shudder violently.
‘How do you live with yourself, when you are the cause of people’s grief? When your unprincipled behavior leads to so much destruction in people’s lives…how can you sleep at night after committing such heinous sins-‘
‘ENOUGH!!’ shouted Khushi. Her fear had now transformed in to rage. How dare he suggest such disgusting things about her, judge her when he knew nothing about her?! ‘Just because I’m quiet doesn’t mean you can lay such atrocities on me! I have done nothing you have blamed me for! I told you It was an accident, I entered you’re event by mistake and I was trying to find my way out of it when I landed on the ramp. That was my fault I should have looked before I stepped out, I agree but it was unintentional and a mistake! That’s all! You have no right to make such profane assumptions about me or judge me when you don’t even know me!’ she blared in the face that was inches away from hers’.
Her outburst took him by surprise and he relaxed his hands as he pulled back fractionally. Could she be saying the truth? Had she really done it all unintentionally? Well even if that was the case….so what? She had still messed his event up, which meant a lot of cover up for him. And if this had been one of his events then he may have even thought about letting her go, but this was Lavanya’s dream, her last wish and she had wrecked that, intentional or not she would have to pay!
As he moved back she saw his face mull over what she had just said. The rage in it lessened as he thought it over. His stance relaxed somewhat, if she was going to escape now was her chance. He had lowered his guard. Time was ticking, she couldn’t be sure whether his verdict would be in her favour, Payal was waiting for her downstairs, she needed to go now. Her mind made up that it was now or never, she pushed him back and broke for the door. Wrong move. If he had thought about letting her go that thought was now out of the question.
Her push had caught him off guard, but he bounced back fast and had stretched out his hand to pull her back just as she tried for the door. Only his hands yanked onto something hard and cold, not her hands. Next thing he saw was something small and white falling towards the ground. As he turned to face her he saw what his hands had done. He had pulled on a line of beads that adorned her back and fastened her blouse, causing them to break and her blouse to loosen. SH*T. He hadn’t meant to do that. As the realization hit her at what had happened a tremor escaped her lips just as she turned to hide her back against the wall. There was terror in her eyes. He could see it. She thought he was going to rape her. The sight of her disarray brought him back to his senses and he shuddered at what he had done. He had intimidated this nothing- of- girl to such a degree that she thought he was capable of such a monstrosity as rape. What was wrong with him! All he had wanted to do was interrogate her! Find out who had sent her, how the hell had they end up here with her whimpering against the wall and him enacting the role of a fiend. He was disgusted with himself. He stepped away from her and turned his back to her; he couldn’t look at her anymore and see the ugly image of himself that he had conjured in her eyes.
Once his back was to her, she calmed herself. He wasn’t about to do what she feared. In control of her paranoia she turned her attention on the door, the path to which was no longer guarded by this tyrant. This was her only chance, while his back was turned as he recollected his thoughts. Working fast she unfastened her hair, to let it cover her back, hoisted her skirt and ran for the door. Her bangles and anklets jingling as she ran, crap, he will know she is escaping and will be by her side in any minute, she worried as she went. But he didn’t come. No iron fist grasped her this time. Startled by this she actually stopped in the doorway to see why, she turned cautiously, to find his eyes boring into her and his jaws clenched, but he didn’t move just watched her go. There was something in his eyes that made her heart stir, the anger had gone and instead there was pain. How could that be? Why was he in pain? No time to think over his sorrows Khushi you need to get to the wedding! Khushi snapped herself out of his hypnotic stare and proceeded towards the elevators before her captor changed his mind and stopped her from leaving.
She didn’t stop running until she got to the lifts. There she jammed at the going down button and kept her fingers on it until the lift finally came. Inside she pressed for the 1st floor, where the Ballroom was, the venue of the wedding. As the lift jolted into life and began its’ descent Khushi began to calm herself. She had escaped that beast. She was safe now. She had to get a grip on herself, for if she went in the hall shaking from head to toe people would know something awful had happened. She would have to explain her absence as it was but if they saw her all panic-stricken than they would know she was hiding something. Ok breathe Khushi, its’ ok you have made it out; you’re going to your family now. It’s ok….oh this was no good she was still hysterical and there were only two floors to go now. She needed to get a grip over herself. She jabbed at the emergency stop button, bringing the lift to a halt in between the second and the first floor. Then crumpled to the ground allowing her frenzy to take over her, for the only way she would be able to control her emotions would be by letting them out first.
After pouring her hearts grief out on the filthy elevator floor, she finally got up and surveyed herself in the mirrors that covered the three sides of the lift. Oh she looked awful!! For the third time tonight she got to work on her appearance to hide her scars and make her look presentable. She tied back her hair in a half braid, that pulled back the bangs from her face, but let the bulk of her hair continue to curtain her bare back. Next she adjusted her dupatta to cover as much of her arms and neck she could manage to cover without making it look like she was using it as a shawl. Then she patted down her lehenga and blouse and turned to look at herself in the mirror. Ok better. But her face was still ghostly white bar her eyes which were red with all the crying. There was no time to go back to the room and apply make-up she was late as it is, they were probably in the middle of their Pheres. She pinched her cheeks hard bringing some red into them. There, at least she didn’t look like a spectre. Checking herself one last time, she took a deep breath and released the emergency stop button. The lift blinged as she reached the 1st floor, she stepped out checked the sign outside the Ballroom – it read Payal Weds Aakash – ok right venue, last thing she wanted was to end up in another event. Exhaling loudly and squaring her shoulders she walked in, a bright smile on her face and with an air like nothing was out of the ordinary. She fussed and fretted over the refreshments being served, greeted her relatives as she made her way to the centre of the large hall where the Pheres were about to begin. She had made it, before she was officially required to tie the knot for her Jiji and Jeejaji.
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