Chapter 69

Words are very powerful. When a baby first calls its mother. One word. We call out to the superior divine power above us for guidance & redemption. Words. We tell the people around us what & how much they mean to us. Mere words. But these words have the power to alleviate us & the life as we know it into such greater heights, which can only be described as miraculous. That's why in all this commotion that life is, people should make plans. Set goals. Work towards them. But every once in a while, they should stop & look around, drink it all in. & say those words, 'I love you. I don't ever wanna live without you. You changed my life forever.' & it didn't matter whether the moment they chose for it was the best & most appropriate moment or not. The words would automatically glorify the moment. But saying them is a must, because, in the blink of an eye, it might all be gone tomorrow.

So as soon as Khushi had said those words, 'That you love me damnit!', Arnav felt a nerve-weakening feeling of relief. The thing he was dreading the most since this morning, was done. He had even tried hinting Khushi about it by sending her sandal back to her, trying to convey how much she had meant to him even back then. He had hoped, that would give her some inkling of his feelings, so that she wouldn't freak out when he would actually come out & announce that he was in love with her. But here she was, announcing it like it was a universal fact or the hot topic of the day! & he was not only relived, he was as shocked as he ever remembered being through his entire life! So she knew all along what he was trying to say to her, & she had been trying to stall it! & it was beyond Arnav's imagination that, she could remain so calm even after knowing about it! She was standing there looking like a glowing bride & most worried about the garlands in her hand than anything else. Then another interesting thought came into his mind.

"Khushi!" The sharp call forced Khushi to look up from inspecting the ground under her feet most attentively, & she raised her vividly red face, her eyes not quite meeting his, & Arnav asked softly, "Since when have you known exactly?" & when Khushi looked away awkwardly, he probed, "Was it your stiletto?" & when he detected Khushi slowly backing away from him taking subtle baby steps, Arnav was upon her in two swift strides, & his hand shot out in a flash as his right hand caught her chin in a vice like grip, & he asked in a soft tone, but in a firm way, "Answer the damn question, Khushi! When did you know?!" This time he saw Khushi pout in irritation as she said in an annoyed mumbled, "The night that you came to me after you fought Karan." This time Arnav couldn't contain himself as he let go of her chin, & half yelled, "You've known since then!! & yet you let me go around in circles like a damn clueless marble?!"

Khushi had been feeling guilty enough since she had blurted it out to him like that. She should have just let him say whatever he had wanted to say & however he had decided to go about it. But no, she had been so adamant about preserving the moment for future reminiscing that she went ahead herself & ruined it for both of them! So now when Arnav yelled at her, she yelled back, more annoyed at herself really than at him, "That was for you to find out & then to let me know in a nice way & not the other way around!" & then she turned, without giving Arnav a chance to do anything, she ran away as fast as her heavy, messy Lehenga allowed her to.

As Arnav watched her run away, he felt happy somehow. She wasn't unhappy with the news, she was unhappy with the way it had come out, that's all. & she had known it since that night?! Arnav shook his head unbelievably as a completely bizarre possibility struck him, was it possible that Khushi Kumari Gupta was smarter than him?! But then he dismissed the idea as quickly as it had come. One little epiphany didn't prove anything. & if she was really as smart, then she'd have told him about it right then & saved both of them a lot of hassles afterwards. If she had told him that he was in over with her, they wouldn't have fought like that on the Haldi night, as he would have never told her to leave him. But then another voice in Arnav's head reasoned, not all quarrels have undesired outcomes. If they hadn't fought like that, what happened afterwards might not have happened too. & as Arnav remember that night; how she had asked him to make love to her, he relaxed as he felt an overwhelming rush of love for her take over him again.

So she was unhappy that she had ruined the moment, or rather he had goaded her into ruining it? Arnav thought with a slow smile spreading his lips, well, the day had innumerable moment still left, & if he had his way, he'd make at least a couple hundred of them very special for her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

When Arnav finally came out of the half-finished gazebo & made his way towards the Mandap, he saw Garima wad standing in front of Akaash & Manorama in front of Rohan with Pooja thaalis in their hands. Then he saw how Garima applied a tilak and performed the aarti to bless Akaash and to ward off any evil eyes as Manorama did the same for Rohan. But there was no sign of Khushi anywhere. He went & stood beside Akaash, who smiled gratefully at the sight of his brother. Arnav kept his hand over Akaash's shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly as he smiled encouragingly at Rohan standing on the opposite side. & just then, as he turned towards the main house over 50feet away, he saw her.

She was walking, holding an ornate, gorgeous green dupatta up over the two brides' head, with Samiya holding the other end of the dupatta on the front. Payal & Khushi's other friends were holding the dupatta up at the back as all of them were needed to keep the quite wide & heavy dupatta hoisted up for such a long glide down the green carpet that was stretched out from the porch of the main house straight to the Mandap. The brides glided gracefully down the carpet, earning appreciative murmurs & smiles along the way, & taking their own sweet time, they finally arrived at the Mandap. Arnav went to help Anjali up the few stairs, while Shashi went to help his daughter up, & then both the brides stood beside their own brothers, & opposite their grooms.

The brides & grooms look so refreshingly beautiful that every eye on the crowd were riveted to them. All of their outfits had been designed by AR Designs. But while Rohan & Payal's outfits had been designed by Su, Rohan had hired his best friend to design the outfits for Anjali & Akaash, to which Arnav couldn't say no to. Not that he would say no to design the outfits, but he certainly wouldn't accept compensation for it if it wasn't for Rohan's insistence that the Gupta's wanted to pay for their Daughter-in-law's & Son-in-law's outfits. So, Arnav had designed Akaash's Sherwani to be an elaborate & flamboyant creation with deep, bold use of a dark Red fabric with heavy gold, but tasteful work on it. & to match with it, Su had kept Payal's Lehenga mostly golden & silver with the borders on the Lehenga & the Choli-Dupatta matching the Red on Akaash's sherwani.

& while designing his sister's outfit, Arnav had kept in mind the inbred elegance & simplicity that his sister embodied for him. So it was a simple, vibrant Red Lehenga-Choli with intricate golden stitch work & laces on the borders, & a full-sleeve on the Choli. & to team up with it, Su had kept Rohan's White Sherwani almost starkly bare, with only some golden embroidery on the neckline & his Red Churidar & Stole the only dash of color in the outfit.

& then all four of them took the heavy garlands up in their hands as the Jaimala ceremony began. Cued by NK, Arnav picked Anjali up along with NK, as Rohan started going backwards as soon as Anjali tried to put the garland around his neck. Anjali put the garland around his neck as soon as she was hoisted up amidst much laughter & then Rohan put the garland around her neck when she was carefully let down on the ground. When it was Payal's turn to put the garland around a very tall Akaash's neck, who made it even more difficult for her by bending over backwards slightly, making everyone gasp with pleasant surprise, Rohan swiftly went beside her, & smilingly patting a proud Shashi aside who was about to raise his daughter up, he said briefly, "Babuji, it's strictly my privilege!" & bending over, he hoisted Payal up by circling his arms around her thighs. The flowers of the garland he was now wearing got mussed & crushed due to Payal's body rubbing against them, but that didn't dull the proud, exuberant grin on Rohan's lips for a second when Payal put the garland around Akaash's neck.

When the Varmalas were done, both the pairs sat down around the separate sacred fires with two different Panditji's starting the Mantras. There was half a yard's distance between the two Mandaps on the same stage. As everyone settled down for the long stretch of Pujas & Mantras to begin commencing, Arnav surreptitiously went & sat slightly behind Khushi. He could hear her counting the ingredients of the Pooja thaal kept in front of Payal loudly to make sure nothing was amiss, leaning slightly forward, "Fresh flowers, Coconut, Jaggery & other grains, Ghee, Kumkum-" Khushi stopped midway as she heard Arnav speak dangerously close to her right ear, his breath fanning the loose tendrils over her temple, "You know, what was my favorite part of our first date?" Khushi looked around instantly to see if anyone was looking at them, & was relieved to see no one was as shortly Kanyadaan was about to take place & both her Amma-Babuji & Anjali's Mama-Mami were taking their places & everyone else were busy listening to the Mantras or their own chores. So she subtly turned sideways towards Arnav & said barely moving her lips, "What 1^st date?? We had only one date! For it to be 1^st, there'd have to be a 2^nd one, wouldn't there?" & then as her curiosity got the better of her, she asked, "What was you favorite part?"

Arnav grinned; he had known she won't be able to resist asking. He then whispered, again very close to her ear, but looking straight ahead, so that it would look to any onlookers like he was trying to get a look at what was in front of Anjali over Khushi's shoulder, "The dance in the rain.. & incidentally, it was the only part of the date that I hadn't planned to the T. Plans are overrated, Red. & planning doesn't guarantee that a moment would be memorable for a lifetime.. People & their feelings do!" Khushi knew what he was trying to impress upon her, & she knew somewhere in the sane part of her mind that he was right.

Everyone wanted fairytales, but they were just that.. Tales. But her whole courtship with Arnav up till now had been so full of unexpected surprises, that she had just unwittingly started to expect magic at every turn. But that was just she being typically silly. So sighing in a gesture of letting go, & relaxing her body happily, she bent over backwards carefully, & sat leaning on Arnav. She felt Arnav immediately press his body to her back & then they both sat watching the Kanyadaan begin.

As Panditji asked for Shashi & Garima's consent to begin the rituals, they nodded, & then Shashi gave his daughter to Akaash by putting Payal right over Akaash's right one, Khushi whispered to Arnav that it was called the Hastamilaap. & as the Panditji continued chanting the mantras, to Arnav's displeasure, Khushi lifted her weight off him, & sat upright & moved slightly away from him. As he was about to ask her, what was matter, he heard one of the Panditji ask loudly that the groom's sister should come forward to do the Gatbandhan. Khushi went, & sitting between Rohan & Anjali, knotted their stoles, & while Anjali smiled at her shyly, Rohan bent & dropped a quick, affectionate kiss over her hair as Khushi let out a joyful yelp. & then at Devyani Raizada's encouraging nod, she went onto tie the knot between Payal & Akaash too. Then she came back & sat infront of Arnav again, & as soon as she was down, Arnav whispered in her ear, "What are the next steps?" Khushi looked at him a bit amazedly, surprised that he was taking this much interest in the rituals, even if it was his siblings' wedding, & then she said with a shrug, "Well, the Agnipujan, then the Shilarohana, where they'd step on those small stones, & the Laja Homa, where they'd put the parched rice in the fire, & then the Pheras-"

But she was stopped as Arnav asked urgently, "Are you or I needed for any of these?" As Khushi shook her head in the negative confusedly, not sure where he was getting with this, Arnav said commandingly, "Meet me at the Guesthouse in 10minutes!" Then getting his phone out of his Kurta's pocket, he feigned taking a call & walked away from the stage leaving a baffled Khushi behind. Khushi debated the merits of giving into every command of his for the whole of those 10 minutes. & then she saw stood up with a jerk, & started to step down from the crowded stage. But she was immediately stopped by her Buaji, who asked her with glaring eyes, where the hell was she going off to in the middle of her siblings' wedding? Not being able to think anything else, Khushi said the only thing that came to her mind, "Buaji, leave me na!! I have to use the restroom.. like now!!!" Madhumati instantly let go off her hand, astonished at her craziness yet again & Nani's failed attempt at hiding a giggle told her that she had heard about Khushi's need to use the restroom too. Coloring vividly at that & cursing the sudden lack of functioning of her brain when it came to that wretched Laad Governor, Khushi clutched her heavy Lehenga slightly up, & then ran off the stage towards the Guesthouse.

~~~~~~~~~

When she entered the unlocked Guesthouse, that she was sure her mother had locked behind her, Khushi found Arnav lounging in one of the armchairs in the main hall drinking water straight from a bottle. As he saw her enter, he immediately accused, "You are late!" Khushi fixed him with a narrowed eyed gaze & said like a shrew, "Because of you, everyone in the Mandap now knows, I need to use the restroom.. even the Panditjis!" Arnav let out a short laugh at that, & said innocuously, "Did I ask you announce that to everyone?! Tum paagal ho??" ("Are you mad??") Khushi gave him a fake, meaningless smile, & said hotly, "Bachpan se! Kyun aapko pata nahi tha?!" ("Since my childhood! Why? You didn't know?!") While she was talking, Khushi had unconsciously strayed close towards him, & suddenly, without any warning, Arnav grabbed her left hand & hauled her with a jerk towards him, so that she landed on his lap in an undignified & very unladylike heap.

& as Khushi tried to gather her bearing & set herself in some sort of a position resembling a shadow of grace, Arnav smirked & said arrogantly, "Well, what do you know? It your lucky day! I have recently found out that, I have a thing for a crazy-from-the birth, babbling-round-the-clock, frequently-giving-me-demos-on-what-comes-after-'What the-?', innocent-by-the-day-&-seductress-by-the-night chick, who constantly keeps changing her colors from a baby to a lady as the mood takes her over!" Khushi's jaw fell open so widely that, anymore & Arnav feared it would get forever hinged that way & then abruptly she circled her arms around his shoulders & said against his neck, "I am sorry. I ruined.. everything.. by obsessing over the right moment! I am so sorry! Hum bhi na! Bilkool buddhu hain.." But she stopped in her self-berating rants, as Arnav hooked a finger under her chin & tilted her face up, & then he said sincerely, "But you were right!"

As Khushi just looked at him expectantly, she knew, this was it! It was about to come. He was about to say it. Arnav! Arnav Singh Raizada, who hadn't even been aware of her existence in a significant way till a few months ago, & with whom she had probably been in love with subconsciously till the day he had went away from India, was going to profess his love for her. & although she had known it for almost 5 days now, Khushi knew, she'd never in her life forget the moment those words would leave his lips, no matter how he said them.

But as it happened, like always, Arnav mystified her once again by the sheer sincerity of his words. His left hand came up to cup Khushi's cheek as he talked as if trying to explain something complicated to a child, "I love you so much.. I can barely hold it in.. & I am sorry, I was being so impatient back then.. But I am in love' with silly you!" & then as Khushi just continued to stare at him intently, expectantly, he shrugged & continued, "People fall in love, Red.. But I rose in my love for you!.. My Di is getting married outside, right now!.. This is like heaven for me, you know? The biggest day of my life.. & suddenly none of it matters, if you're not there!.. I don't know about heaven & hell, Khushi, but if there's something called heaven.. I don't want any of it if you're not there to share it with me. I mean, I swear, if I could go back in time, I'd include you in every game Rohan & I used to play, that you so wanted to participate in, & I didn't let you.. & I would never leave for Boston.. & I'd watch every little thing that you did, all the freaking time &-" He had to stop his flow as Khushi suddenly threw her arms around him & hugged him tightly, very tightly to herself. & after a couple of seconds, Arnav decided he'd have to let the rest of the word-flow out sometime later, as she felt just too good wrapped up in his arms.

After sometime Khushi spoke up against the crook of his neck, "You.. watching me do everything, all the time while I was growing up.. would've been super creepy! & I'd have to report you to Babuji & Bhaiya! Thank God you went away!" Arnav chuckled with a gurgling sound reverberating inside his chest as he said unbelievingly, "Seriously?! Out of all that I said.. you found only that worth commenting on??!.. I so love you, Baby Gupta!" & as Khushi felt the silent laughter shaking his whole form, she understood something that she would remember for the rest of her life, the most memorable moments in life are those, that we never took the time to plan.

As Khushi sat down gloomily in her place behind Buaji, she thought, in her defense, she had said 'I love you' back to him he minute he had said it, albeit silently in her mind. & she said 'I love you' to him in her mind so frequently these days, that she hadn't even noticed until she was climbing up the stage to the Mandap that she had actually said it silently again today! She shrugged & tried to concentrate on the weddings happening before her. The Pheras were done, & now the Panditjis were giving the brides & grooms Aashirvaad. After that the grooms put the vermillion on the brides' parting & tied the Mangalsutra around their necks. & then after some more Mantras, both the Panditjis together announced that the wedding rituals were completed, & the now the brides & grooms should stand up & take the blessings of their elders. As Payal-Akaash went to Shashi & Garima to take their blessing after taking Devyani & Manohar-Manorama's blessings, Khushi saw with a sudden overwhelming melancholy that, both her Amma-Babuji were crying, although Shashi was trying his best to blink away the moistures in his eyes, although he wasn't very successful as Payal, after briefly hugging her mother & wiping her tears away, hugged her father, & then started crying in earnest.

Khushi sniffed loudly, & then suddenly halted when she saw a hand extend in front of her from her back with a white hanky on it. Khushi looked around at Arnav surprised, & then seeing his twinkle with a teasing gleam, she looked ahead again & said fumblingly, "Wo.. Jiji.." Arnav came closer still to her, bumping her back with his chest, & said in a sudden gentle voice, "I know. Your sister is getting married. She's leaving you guys. & you're upset. Par Khushi, har baat pe rona jaroori hain kya?" ("But Khushi, is it necessary to cry at everything?") It was said with just a tiny little hint of teasing in his voice & Khushi ended up breaking in a giggle.

Part 67