Chapter 23

Chapter 23: Refusal And Acceptance

Thank you for all the lovely comments... and fewer bashes...🤗

Once Arnav Singh Raizada was determined about something then there was no stopping him. He spent 10 minutes in Mami's room and she came out practically singing songs of praise for Payal. All he had to do was convince her that Payal was a very obedient girl and would willingly dance to her tunes rather than the rich Bahu she dreamt of who would be haughty and independent. When explained ASR style Mami had seen the truth of her son's love and bestowed her blessings upon him. Akash was the happiest man on earth.

Arnav then turned to his Di's room, preparing for a long chat.

"Di, can I talk to you?" He asked entering her room and sat next to her.

"Of course Chote... What is it?" She asked curiously.

He hesitated for a moment and started. "Di, I convinced Mami for Akash and Payal."

"I know, Nani and I are very happy." She smiled at her brother.

"Di... You know that girl... whose picture is on my laptop..." He trailed off.

"Khushi?" She asked now much more interested in the conversation.

"Yeah... She's Payal's sister." He said. "She used to work at AR. That's how Akash got to know Payal."

"Really..."

"Mmm... Di... There were some... incidents that occurred last year... that made Khushi leave AR..." He was having difficulty speaking now. "I... I treated her... horribly... I hurt her... She was mad at me for a long time... I hate myself Di... I've been very bad." He hung his head guiltily.

"Chote... When will you ever learn to control your temper? See what has become of you. You know why you are feeling so terrible? Because you love her. And when you love someone, that person's pain hurts you too." Anjali tried to make him understand. "If you have hurt her very much then it is only natural that she was upset with you."

"She's still very upset about it... But I spoke to her today and... she has agreed... to be with me... I want to marry her Di." He said looking into her eyes.

It was Anjali's dream to see her brother married and settled in life but after what she had just heard, she was a bit worried. "Chote? If she is still upset with you, how come she has agreed to marry you? I don't get it." She looked at him searchingly. "Chote, I hope you are not doing something that is not right. You are not forcing her right?"

Arnav looked away unable to meet his sister's eyes. "Di she has willingly agreed to marry me."

Anjali smiled. "That's fine then Chote, but don't hurt her again. Not everyone gets a chance to correct their mistakes. You are lucky to get it so don't waste it."

"I won't Di." He promised.

"Great... Then I'll speak to Nani and we'll soon take two proposals to them." She said happily.

~~~~~~

Khushi was extremely nervous to see Rohan the next day. For some reason she was feeling very guilty.

She walked towards her cabin but hesitated at the entrance. Finally she took in a determined breath and turn to Rohan's cabin.

"Rohan?" She called out from the door.

"Khushi... Come in baby." Rohan's replied at once.

She entered nervously.

"Still very tired, aren't you?" He asked with concern.

"No... Actually..." She hesitated not sure how to say this. "Rohan, I... I wanted to... talk about your proposal."

Rohan's eyes lit up with expectation. "Yes?" He said eagerly.

"I... I... The thing is..." She couldn't meet his eyes.

Rohan's smile faded. He stood up and turned away facing the window behind his desk. "It's a NO, right?" He asked seriously.

Khushi looked up at his back helplessly, "I'm so sorry Rohan."

"Can I ask you why?" He asked in the same serious tone.

Khushi closed her eyes tightly, "I have to marry Mr. Raizada." She said through clenched teeth.

He swiftly turned around in time to see the painful expression on her face.

"I see." He said observing her. "Is there nothing I can do to help you?"

"Rohan?" She opened her eyes to look up at him in surprise.

"I'm your friend Khushi, I know when you are unhappy. At least give me that much credit." He said frowning. "Look at your face and the way you said that you 'have to' marry him... 'have to' not 'want to', it's obvious that you are doing this unwillingly." He paused as he saw that Khushi was on the verge of tears. He walked to her and sat next to her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "As a friend I'm asking you. If there's anything I can do for you, I'll be glad. As I have said before, whether you accept my proposal or not, we'll still be friends."

"There is nothing that can be done in this situation." She replied sadly.

"I curse the day I promised you that I'll never ask you what happened between you and Him." Rohan said looking annoyed at himself. "I wish I knew. It hurts to see you so helpless Khushi."

Khushi stood up. "I'm sorry Rohan. I know I owe you an explanation but I can't... I really can't." She said biting back tears.

"I can't really say that I understand because I don't. But I'll always be there for you." Rohan's voice came out broken.

Khushi hugged him finally dissolving into tears. She didn't know what to say to him. She knew he would never let her know how much her refusal hurt him. Rohan had come into her life like a breeze of cool air and now as she walked out of his cabin, she felt choked and suffocated.

Rohan turned away from her to wipe off a lone tear that had dared to escape. Unable to bear, he picked up his jacket and left for the day.

~~~~~~

Anjali had tried for ages to convince her brother to get married and now that he had himself expressed the desire, she wasted no time. Nani and she got to work immediately. The next day evening the entire Raizada family visited the modest Gupta household with proposals for both their daughters.

Payal's proposal was put forth first by Mama and Mami. The Gupta's were expecting it and accepted it gracefully. But when Anjali proposed for Khushi's hand in marriage for Arnav, Shashi and Garima Gupta were stunned. Flashes of the past played in front of their eyes like a film. Khushi's traumatic state, her waking up night after night, screaming Arnav's name and the fact that she was still not fully recovered made them tongue tied.

"Is there a problem?" Nani asked when there was no response for a while.

"N-no, we were not expecting a proposal for Khushi bitiya actually." Shashi tried to save the situation. "If you don't mind, we'll need time to think about it."

"You need time to think about a proposal from the Raizadas?" Mami spoke rudely.

"Manorama..." Nani warned her. "We understand. Of course you can think about it."

"Thank you so much." Shashi said with relief. "We'll let you know in a couple of days.

After the Raizadas left, Khushi immediately returned to her room, and sat by the window, gazing at the cloudy sky. Her phone beeped and she checked the message. It was from Arnav.

"Make sure that your parents agree OR ELSE..."

She shuddered and deleted the message instantly.

"Khushi?" She turned to see her parents and sister standing behind her.

She turned back to the window and sighed. "I knew they were going to propose for me. I'm fine with it." She said emotionlessly.

Her mother came forward and placed a hand on her head. "Are you sure bitiya? I mean what you went through after working with him..."

"I know Amma..." Khushi interrupted. "But that was a long time ago. We've worked together after that and... and we have... gotten over our differences."

"If you don't have any issues then we are fine with it." He father said. "At least you and Payal will be together."

Payal waited for their parents to leave the room. She had been very happy until her marriage was being discussed, but the moment she heard about Arnav's proposal for Khushi, she was shocked. Her sisterly protective instincts had kicked in.

"Gotten over your differences have you?" She asked flatly.

"Yes Jiji."

"May I know HOW?" Payal asked folding her arms across her chest. She saw Khushi hesitating and continued. "Khushi whatever Akashji might be but his brother is not like him. I have seen what you went through because of him. I know you have lied and not told me the entire truth. But now if you are agreeing to marry him, it's too much for me to digest. You better start speaking."

Khushi buried her face in her palms. The burden was too heavy to handle any more. So she decided to share some of it.

"Fine Jiji, he said that if I agreed to marry him, he'll convince Akashji's mom for you." Khushi said in a flat tone.

"What?" Payal gasped. "Are you serious? And you agreed? Khushi you idiot, is this, what you think of me? Do you think I'll let you sacrifice yourself for my happiness?"

"Jiji... calm down." Khushi said softly. "Your marriage was just one of the reasons I agreed. There is a lot more to this. I had no choice actually."

Payal didn't know what to say, "Khushi but..."

"Please don't ask me anything more. I'll not be able to answer and I don't want to lie anymore." With that Khushi got up and walked away to the kitchen to make Jalebis.

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