~Reflections-SFF~ Updated Chapter8 Pg24 - Page 5

Originally posted by: salekh1

Good update

Please write more manveer scenes

But Jay's scnes were bwautiful too😃

It was a beautiful night, a cool breeze was blowing, and the air was filled with the sweet fragrance of the flowers that decorated the terrace garden of the palace, Manyata took in a deep breath of the fresh air and went to sit down on the garden swing, as she sat there, she looked up the dark night sky, it was filled with twinkling stars…what if she sees a shooting star right now? What will she wish for? Manyata wondered …she remembered the last time she had wished for something… she had done it at a wishing fountain…she had wished to become a princess, and had also wished for a prince….little did she know that her wish would come true and her whole life would turn topsy- turvy….she has become a princess, but has her other wish of getting a prince come true? Yeah it had come true but in a rather twisted way…she has always thought Akash was the Prince she had always wanted, but then she found out that she was actually betrothed to a Prince in real sense, which was Uday...almost in a cruel way fate decided to grant her wish but in return took away all her happiness….so even if she sees a thousand stars falling from the sky she will make sure that she wishes wisely now…it is said always think before you ask for something…Manyata understands the meaning of these words now.

Manyata had deliberately come up to the terrace tonight, she wanted to be at peace for some time and this was probably the only place in this Mahal that she loves the most, besides the garden off course…after the chat she had with Jay in the morning, she was feeling disturbed, not because Jay 's behaviour towards her, but because of something Jay had said to her, yeah sure at that time she had decided not to believe Jay completely, but somewhere a doubt has started to grow inside her..a doubt about Uday…has she done the right thing in accepting Uday's friendship? Is it possible that what Jay said was true? That he is just trying to make her forget Akash slowly and steadily? …coming to think about it where was Uday? He has not visited the palace at all today, and now its evening, he has still not come…has he gone to Jaigarh? Or, has he gone somewhere else? …"well this is odd, why the hell I am feeling restless?, it's alright he must be busy that's why he has not come, and it's just one day, last week also he was away for 3 days, for he had gone for that trip to Jaigarh, then I had not missed him that much, then why today?" Manyata wondered…"Well may be because I so desperately wanted him to see me wearing the bracelet he gave me, that's the reason why I am becoming impatient to meet him"…suddenly her phone began to ring breaking her trail of thoughts… she looked at her mobile on the table and hurried to pick it up thinking may be Uday has called…but she saw it was the chawl telephone booth number..Manyata felt a bit disappointed, she picked it up and said " Hello Chicky? How are you?"

"Its not Chicky, this is Akash …Moniya"

Manyata was taken aback..she felt a bit guilty, how could she not understand that it was Akash? Previously whenever any phone used to come she would just pick up and say "Akash" blindly but today she said "Chicky?" ..she did not know what made her react like that, "may be my princess training, and all those weird thoughts going on in my head has caused me to behave like this" she thought.

"Moniya…Moniya..are you there?" came Akash's voice

Oh crap, she must have been silent for too long.."Y..Yeah Akash, I am right here" Manyata replied as she found her voice.

"H..how are you Akash? Did you get a job? " Manyata continued.

"I am fine Moniya…in fact great..do you know what? I have got a great job as a Manager in a big company..and side by side I am also setting up my own business…very soon I will be rich Moniya…just wait a bit…and then I will take you away with me"

Akash sounded so happy and hopeful that Manyata did not have the heart to say that she does not wish to leave her family any more…she was genuinely happy that Akash has got back the respect he had lost and also she felt a great sense of relief to hear that he was doing well in life now, it was like a great load has been lifted off from her mind…but Akash still has to understand that the people from whom he wants to rescue Manyata, are her family now…whom she loves and cares for…may be this is not the right time to tell all this to Akash…she will tell him, but later.

"Hey Akash, congratulations, I hope you really do well in life"

"Thanks Moniya..but are you alright? You don't sound as if you are not happy talking to me…I hope everyone is treating you well?"

"I am happy and fine Akash…its just that I was not expecting your call, we are not supposed to keep in touch for 3 months remember? And I don't know about you, but I do plan to keep my promise" Manyata replied a bit irritated….she did not know why but Akash's asking if she was happy with her own family comment made her annoyed with him.

"Why are you talking to me like this Moniya?…I called you after so many days and you are not even happy to talk to me?..Udayveer and Jaynandini must have said something to you that's why you are behaving like this isn't it?

" Akash, for heaven's sake please don't bring Uday or Jay in our conversation…they have got nothing to do in making me behave as I am…you of all people should know that nobody can influence me..I think it's enough talking for today…and I have a request, please don't call me within these 3 months…I don't want to break my promise…I hope you will respect my decision..bye and good luck" saying this Manyata cut the phone.

Just moments ago she was lamenting how cruelly her fate separated her from her love Akash…and how she had lost her happiness …but now she has surprised herself…Akash, whom she loved with all her heart, had called her, and she cut him off before even letting him complete the conversation? She was mean, she knows, she has behaved atrociously, but she could not help it, for the first time since she has known Akash she did not feel like talking to him…she must have hurt him a lot…she felt guilty about it, but she did not want to call back and say sorry to him…it was like she wanted to avoid him… now the million dollar question is..Is she happy or not? …err no she was not unhappy, she liked being here, she has also started to like her princess training in bits and pieces though, and she is happy the way her life is now…if she thought carefully, she has hardly thought about Akash, or her Chawl friends Chicky and Soni in these three weeks, it was just sometimes that she remembered them fondly…she did not miss them too much anymore…"what's happening to me? Wish somebody could help me out on this confusion" Manyata thought and placed her hand on her forehead.

"Hi…Moniya" said a voice, which made Manyata look up…and the person she saw standing at a distance from her, made her face break into a smile of delight.

"Oh my God!! Unnati?" cried out Manyata and ran upto her..she hugged her and said, "How was your trip to London? Did you enjoy your friend's marriage? Oh I missed you so much…I have got loads to tell you"

"Hold on Moniya…you are going off like a bullet train" Unnati laughed.

"Ok fine…just got a bit over excited …seeing you after such a long time" Manyata replied.

"hmm…The marriage was awesome…it was so much fun there…met my friends after a long time..but I kind of missed you there…next time I go to London I will make sure that you come along with me…you will love it.."

"Sure I would love to go with you"

"By the way I have brought something for you..but I have kept it in your room…went there to look for you and then forgot the present there"

"Its fine …I will see it when I go to my room" Manyata replied…then she hesitated a bit and continued " Umm ..Unnati….you are here, so ..uh..well..has Uday also come?"

Unnati looked at her in surprise and said " Oh Dada?..no he has not come, actually he has been busy all day, you know he is opening our chain of hotels in New York..and he has been busy in a meeting about this matter"

"Oh..I see "Manyata replied looking disappointed…so he will not come today…she has wasted the entire day waiting for him.

"Moniya…are you alright?" Unnati said looking concerned

"Yeah I am fine…its just, nothing…but I have a request" Manyata tried to change the subject

"Yeah sure..tell me"

"Please, can you call me Manyata?…you see I since I am training to become Princess Manyata…I thought its better if I accept this name finally…and I have accepted it"

Unnati looked surprised but happy…"Oh sure…Mon..sorry Manyata"..she observed Manyata for sometime and then said…"Oh God …Mon…Manyata…how come I did not notice before…your clothes.."

"well yeah…yesterday Jay, me and Uday …we went for shopping …and this is my new wardrobe…I have decided it's time I leave my old clothes behind" Manyata replied blushing a bit ,she was wearing a simple but beautiful white and pink embroidered Salwar suit and its dupatta was equally beautifully embroidered…though simple, this suit was one of her favourites.

"This suit is awesome Manyata and you are looking so beautiful…nice choice" Unnati replied…looking at Manyata in an entirely different light.

"Well…this was actually chosen by Uday" Manyata replied feeling embarrassed ….she did not know why but she felt her face burning….she saw Unnati was staring at her with her mouth slightly opened.

"Ahem..Manyata..you are blushing…what's the matter with you? I have been away for just a week and you have changed so much? No, I am not talking about your clothes only…you know for the first time since I have known you , you have asked about Dada, then you are blushing taking his name…err …is everything fine between you two? Should I be worried?" Unnati looked confused, worried and bewildered at the same time.

Manyata sighed.."I don't know Unnati, you are right, I have changed..and I don't know if I should be happy about my change or sad…please help me…one part of me is happy that I am finally becoming the princess that everyone wants me to be…and on the other hand I can just feel that I am slowly forgetting my past..Forgetting my friends, my old family…and it hurts me, that I am becoming so mean…forgetting those people who had loved me and cared about me when I was nothing…how can I do this? I don't want to forget them…"

"Manyata, just the thought that you feel sad for forgetting them proves that that you still remember them.…what you are feeling is a very common thing...it has happened with me too…for so many years I have stayed at London, completing my education.. my entire life , my friends, everything was there…but then I had to come back to India after I completed my education…when I came here, I also used to feel sad…missed my friends, the days that I spent at London, but slowly I made some new friends here, got busy in my life..and one day I found out that I am not unhappy anymore, I did not miss my old friends any more, though I still remembered them…they became a happy memory to me…this is life Manyata and you have to accept it. You are now living a new chapter in your life…this life will give you a lot I am sure…and the unhappiness you are feeling will go away soon..trust me" Unnati smiled at her.

"I can understand what you are saying Unnati…but I am behaving atrociously too…you know I banged my phone on Akash before he even got to complete his conversation…how could I do this? He was just sharing his news with me and asking about me.."Manyata replied looking worried.

"well…err..now that's shocking, but you must have had a reason…did you call him back and said sorry?" Unnati said looking a bit surprised that Manyata had behaved in such a way with the person she loved so much.

"No Unnati.. I did not call him back, and I don't want to..I don't want to break my promise to Dadisaab..also I forbade him to call me for 3 months…Yes, there was a reason why I was annoyed with him, he kept saying weird things about my family and Uday, and I just could not take it"

"Well, you getting angry because Akash said weird things about your family is understandable, but you getting angry because he said something about Uday, that's really hard to digest" Unnati said smiling .

"That's what's bothering me Unnati, why should I get annoyed with Akash if he says something about Uday? And why am I pushing Akash away from me? This whole 3 month promise that I made, was to get Akash, I wanted to be with him, that's why I promised Dadisaab that I will become a princess…but the very reason of my promise is fading away so fast, that I am getting scared…what if I forget Akash? My friends? My previous life? …I don't want to." Manyata suddenly felt tears in her eyes, and looked away from Unnati trying to hide them.

"Hey Manyata, don't be upset..you will not forget anyone..remember ,always believe in yourself" Unnati said and kept her hands on Manyata's shoulders.

Manyata held Unnati's hands and said " Thank you for hearing me out"…Unnati was about to say something when she noticed the bracelet Manyata was wearing …"Manyata whats that you are wearing? It's beautiful, sapphire and diamonds silver bracelet…when did you buy this?"

"Well actually Uday gave it to me as a token of our friendship" Manyata replied smiling.

"you two have become friends?" Unnati said softly and her face glowed with happiness…"you know this is the best news that you have given me…two people whom I love the most have become friends…I don't need anything else…"

After a few moments silence, she felt Unnati was observing something..she saw Unnati was looking at her wrists…then Unnati said, "you were worrying without any reason Manyata, on one hand you have worn the watch Akash gave you and on the other you are wearing Uday's gift…see , you have already solved your problem…you have remembered your past , but also accepted your present, and both your past and present will take you to your future.."

"But what if I have to make a choice between my past and my present? "

"You won't have to…for you will know the choice when the time comes…as I said believe in yourself"

"err …may I ask you something Unnati"

"Yeah sure, go ahead"

"Do you think Uday is playing some game with me?" Manyata did not know why, but she just had to ask this question which was bothering her since morning.

"I don't know why you are asking this, but since you have, I must tell you…Dada is a very complicated person, no one knows what he feels or what he thinks…but I know I thing…all his emotions are intense…if he loves someone he will make sure no harm comes to the person, he can do anything to make that person happy…and if he hates someone he will make sure that the person is destroyed…yes , he likes to manipulate people, likes to play games as you said…but with you its different…I am almost sure of it he will never do anything to hurt you"

"W..why will he never hurt me?" Manyata found herself stammering

"I cant tell you why Manyata, but I know…ever since he has met you and has been spending his time with you, I have noticed he has changed…in many ways he has changed..yeah he is still my same old Dada, but I think you have unlocked a part of him which he had himself closed long time back..while I am happy with his change…I am also worried because of this change."

"Why are you worried?" Manyata asked curiously.

"I hope this change won't hurt him…" Unnati continued thoughtfully

Manyata was just about to say something to Unnati when suddenly she heard a voice saying " Hello Princess…hope I did not disturb you two?"

Both Unnati and Manyata turned around, and smiled when they saw the person standing near the doorway…Unnati said" Dada? Now this a pleasant surprise..I thought you are still busy with your meeting"

"I was, but I have wrapped it up and thought why not pay a visit to Devgarh Palace, so here I am " Uday smirked..then he continued.." By the way, Unnati , aunty Komal is looking for you, I think you should go and see why"

"Yeah sure Dada..err..I am just going…bye Manyata..see you later" Unnati smiled and left the terrace, leaving Manyata and Uday alone.

" Hmm, so finally you did get time to come here " Manyata said deciding to break the uncomfortable silence that seemed to have erupted after Unnati left them.

"Why Princess, were you missing me?" Uday said smirking

"Uday, you know Unnati was shocked when she came to know that we are now friends" Manyata replied quickly changing the subject.

"We are friends? Really? Uday said coming to closer to her.

"uh..yeah ..we are, have you forgotten this?" Manyata said lifting her hand and showing the bracelet she was wearing.

Uday lightly touched the bracelet and said softly" So you did not throw it away"

"Why should I? It was gifted to me by my friend Uday" Manyata replied playfully

"Oh I see..then we must seal our friendship" Uday said giving a naughty smile and came even more closer to Manyata…as he moved forward, Manyata felt her heart skip a beat she could not understand the feeling, involuntarily she took a step backward and she stammered out "H..how ..d..do you seal this ?"

"Umm..there are many ways of sealing a deal…but this deal we seal like this.." Uday then stretched out his hand towards Manyata gesturing for a handshake.

Manyata was thrown off guard, all sorts of weird ways of sealing deals were going on her head, and she did not expect Uday would do something so simple and safe as handshake to "seal their friendship"…she quickly grabbed his hand and vigorously shook his hand feeing relieved. Her look of relief must have reflected on her face since Uday was quick to notice it…he said …"Guess you were not expecting a handshake..what did you expect Princess?" Uday asked teasingly.

Trust Uday to hit the nail in the head…he always did..Manyata thought as she saw that he had again correctly guessed her feelings.

"I was not expecting anything…just got confused as to how one seals a friendship" Manyata replied firmly.

Uday then smiled and continued "Ok then Princess as you say…but you know something, I am hurt"

"Hurt? Why? How? " Manyata replied looking concerned

"Princess you hurt me"

" I?...but how?" Manyata looked bewildered…"well you have still not answered my first question…ignored it…that's what hurt me" Uday replied and took another step towards Manyata

"Which one?" whispered Manyata

"Did you miss me Princess?" Uday asked his voice husky…Manyata saw he was now standing so close to her that she can almost feel his breath on her face…she felt herself rooted to the spot …and as she looked into his eyes she felt herself drowning in those dark mysterious pools…her mind screamed at her to step away from him…and her heart refused to let her go…but then she felt her mind taking control over her heart and she found herself stepping away from Uday…when she was at a safe distance from him…she replied in a calm voice "why should I Uday? Are you my boyfriend?"

"I sure wish I was, but alas you still consider that Majnu Akash as your boy friend" Uday said placing his hand on his heart and mocked a hurt face.

"Please don't call Akash, Majnu…its not right" Manyata replied feeling irritated.

"As you wish Princess…but lets suppose Akash was not your boy friend..then what would have happened" Uday said suddenly looking serious.

"Huh? What are you saying? " Manyata said surprised.

"Princess, lets play a game"..Uday replied coming near her

"what game?"

"Imagine for a moment , that you never met Akash..and…" before Uday could complete the sentence, Manyata cut him off, and said "why the hell should I play such a stupid game…why should I imagine such things?"

"Hey Princess, relax, its just a simple game, I used to play this with Unnati when we were kids…and even we used play this game….you and I , when we were kids…I guess you don't remember it" Uday said adding the last words softly, almost like a whisper.

Manyata shook her head, and felt a little sad that she could not remember any of her childhood days that she spent with Uday or her family... she said .."what is this game called?"

"Its called 'What If' " Uday said coming near her

"Ok…lets play" Manyata replied back

Uday took Manyata's hand and said " the rules are simple, we have to imagine, what if a certain incident or a person, did not happen or did not come in our life, then what would have happened"

"Since you don't remember the game, I am starting it…What If Akash did not come into our life…What If you met me when Akash was not there…let us go back to the day we first met" Uday said

"I was sitting on rocks at the beach, wishing I did not have to leave my friends and go to some unknown place again….I was tired of moving from place to place..for once I wanted a place which I could call home"..Manyata replied

"And I was standing near the beach, troubled with my own problems…and so started to throw stones"..Uday continued

"You hit me with those stones"

"I tried to keep your mouth shut by giving money…what if I did not offer you money..instead apologized ?"

"Then I would not have yelled at you or hit you…I would have accepted your apology… and then perhaps I would have left …also I guess I would not have hated you then…"

"Our second meeting…how would it have happened If Akash was not there?" Uday asked

"May be we would have still met at your hotel club..or may be somewhere else..nope..we were meant to meet at the club…fine suppose I would have gone to the club with my friends "Manyata said warming up to the game.

"May be I would have asked you to dance with me there…for you did leave a lasting impression on me in our first meeting"

"Hmm..I think I would have accepted the dance with you…as I did not hate you"

"So we start to dance" as Uday said it…Manyata saw he has placed one of her hand on his shoulder, and has placed one of his hand on her waist ,then with his free hand he held her other hand…she was so engrossed in the game that it did not even occur to her that they have started to dance for real, there was no music but she felt that she was hearing some unknown tune….it was beautiful, enchanting …she looked into Uday's dark eyes and felt an odd sense of attraction…Uday then said softly " As we kept dancing…suddenly your friends comes and tells you to go with them as you are late…I see you leaving…I wanted to stop you..Wanted to ask your name… but you leave …I try to follow you but you disappear"

"I also wanted to spend some more time with you….but my friends did not let me…I did not know your name…but my friends tell me you are Prince Udayveer of Jaigarh…I say to myself 'wow' I have found myself a Prince" Manyata replied feeling hypnotized..she felt Uday was holding her close to him now, very close…she can feel his breath on her face and it was intoxicating her..Somewhere far inside, her brain seemed to scream something like 'watch out', but she ignored that.

"I try to find out who you are…I ask everyone, use my contacts …do whatever I can to find you…but it was like fate did not want me to find you again…but then…"

"Then..we meet again…may be this time at the market place...you were looking for me..and I oblivious to the fact was shopping for my home…we bump into each other"

" I exclaim Cinderella , I have finally found you"

"Huh ! Cinderella ? who is that? "Manyata asked

"Its just a name of a Princess in a fairy tale…will tell you later" Uday said smiling…looking at Manyata who was quiet lost in the make belief world .

"So as I exclaimed Cinderella, you look at me in surprise.." Uday continued

"I say …I never thought I will meet you again"

"I finally ask you your name and then I ask you to spend a day with me"

"I happily agree ..and we spend the entire day together..walking on the beach..eating kulfi…chaats…and then"

"As time approached for us to part ways again…I kneel down on my knees, pull out a box which contains a diamond ring and ask you…will you be my Princess forever?"

"I take the ring and perhaps… I say…yes" Manyata said softly..she felt Uday was pulling her more towards himself, and she was now engulfed in his arms…subconsciously she felt that she must stop herself now, she must turn around and run…but something did not let her, she felt rooted to the spot.

"I lift your chin, and make you look at me", as Uday said that he did the same with Manyata for real….he continued "and then…"

"Then…" Manyata whispered, as she found her heart beating wildly …and then she felt Uday's lips softly touching hers….as his lips touched her, she felt , she was losing herself…. But suddenly, she became aware of what was happening and with all her strength she pushed Uday away from herself, thus breaking the magical moment…Uday staggered backwards as he was caught off guard by Manyata , he looked as if he had been woken from a spell…he looked around disoriented, and then saw Manyata looking at him livid…"Uh..err..I am really sorry, Princess, I did not mean to do that…I swear, it was just a game…but when it became real I just don't know.." Uday replied sincerely.

"That's it Yuvraaj Udayveer Singh…a game..thats what its always has been isn't it?" Manyata said angrily'….she continued.."I can't believe it, Jay was right…what kind of a game are you playing do you think?... 'lets play a game Princess, lets suppose Akash is not there', Manyata quoted him…"That's what you wanted isn't it…that's what you were doing isn't it?..trying to make me forget Akash and then trying to take advantage of the situation, kissing me…how could you be so sick?...and I considered you to be my friend.."Manyata was shaking with rage, she could not understand with whom she was angry more, with Uday for making her vulnerable, for kissing her, or with herself for getting carried away by such unknown feelings, for letting Uday kiss her…and all these confusions came out in the form of an uncontrollable rage, which she lashed out on the only person she could see in front of her…Uday.

She saw Uday 's face.. his face looked like a mixture of utter disbelieve , and may be rage..as he approached towards her…Manyata felt an odd sense of fear…though she was still seething in anger…When he spoke his voice had a hard edge to it " You think whatever is happening is some crap Game? All the moments I spent with you? all the time I laughed with you, all the time I cared about…all was a game? ..Listen Manyata…I don't deny that I am cruel, evil, manipulating…whatever you think me to be…I don't deny that I feel like strangling Akash, whenever I see him…I don't deny that I want you to forget him ….you are free to think what you want about me….but just think once, whatever happened today, did I force you into doing it? Did I force you to imagine the things we did? Did I force you to be with me? Did I force anything on you?..."

Manyata knew whatever Uday said was true…she cannot deny the fact that Uday did not force her into doing anything, and that's what upset her more perhaps…she was doing everything on her own accord , and whats shocking is that she had enjoyed every moment of it…but that kiss complicated everything….that kiss brought her out from the dream world she was transported into…she wished that kiss never happened..as she looked at Uday's hardened face she knew he was also angry with her, for he had called her by her name, and not "Princess", did she hurt him when she said all those things to him? But she could not help it…he was at fault…but so was she…wasn't she?, which she preferred to ignore..she knew, she must reply Uday…she whispered "No"

Uday just looked at her for sometime after hearing her reply, and then said "I must leave now…but before I go …you need to know one thing Manyata…I am sorry if I hurt you…but , I am not sorry that I kissed you" then in quick strides he left the terrace .

Manyata kept looking as Uday disappeared down the stairs…

**************

PS: Next part will be Holi special 😉...do you think the festival of colours will bring Uday and Manyata closer? or will this rift between them cause them to go away from each other? 😊

PSS: All my silent readers, I would be glad if you comment , as I want to read all your suggestions and criticisms , so that I can improve this FF 😳

Here is the dress that Manyata was wearing 😉

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