SS: A Second Chance at Love | Part 2; Pg 4 (21st March) - Page 2

Originally posted by: sishtyfan

fantastic,excellent,awesome ,amazing...damn sarcy!! i m not getting words to describe it.i loved it to the core 😊 👏 .pls pls continue soon.will be waiting.

Part 2

Hours later, when he returned to his quarters, it was long past midnight. His wife had changed and retired for the night. He saw her sleeping form shiver as a draft of the cold night air blew in from the window. He closed it before walking up to her side and pulling a comforter over her. As he bent to adjust the comforter, his eyes caught the trail of tears that had dried on her cheeks. She had cried herself to sleep. In that moment, he realized how pale and vulnerable she looked. He cursed himself as he thought of their argument earlier and how he had not hesitated in the least before implying that she was just another schemer in this game of marriage and money. Walking to the other side, he settled into bed beside her.

Sleep would be a lost cause today just like every other day since Sulakshana's death. He stared at the letter in his hand and sighed. A letter in which his new wife had poured her heart out before her marriage to him. As he had read the letter, he'd realized that the letter was more in accordance with the opinion that he had of Gayatri from their past chance encounters, before he had learnt that she was to be his wife. It didn't match up to his assumption of her being a scheming gold digger and title-hunter that he had been quick to form, the moment he had learnt that she was Govind Seth's daughter. He didn't have a single doubt anymore that this innocent letter had set in motion the chain of events that had culminated in his wedding today.

Her parting shot during their argument earlier had brought him out of his haze of anger and had forced him to ponder on her words as he had headed to the library in the east wing of the palace.

"I wish Papa had told me the truth before it was too late."

While his library was usually his haven of comfort, privacy and solace, tonight, there was no peace to be found here. Whatever did she mean by "before it was too late"? Was she unaware of the deal between her father and Rajmata? Was she truly in the dark about the truth of this marriage? No, it couldn't be. She was playing him. But the look of betrayal on her face haunted him and it didn't support his line of thoughts. Her words kept ringing in his ears and it was becoming difficult to think of anything else. What was the letter that she had mentioned? Had she written to him before their marriage? If yes, what was in that letter? And why had Arunoday not informed him about it?

Unable to ignore the questions whirring in his mind, Indravadhan had resorted to get some answers to them. It was late and Arunoday may have already retired for the night, but Indravadhan couldn't put this off until tomorrow. He needed answers and he needed them now.

He summoned the darbaan standing outside and asked him to fetch Arunoday. Within a few minutes, there was a knock on the door and Arunoday walked in. If he was surprised seeing the King in the library and not in his quarters on his wedding night, he didn't let it show.

"You asked for me, Ranaji?" he asked, his voice smooth, his face a blank, emotionless mask.

"Arunoday, did you receive a letter from Govind Seth's daughter, addressed to me sometime before our marriage?" Indravadhan queried without delay.

A flicker of wariness passed in Arunoday's eyes before he answered, "Yes, Ranaji."

"So I assume you must be privy to the contents of the letter?"

"Yes, Ranaji."

"Then is there a reason I was never informed about its existence?" Indravadhan asked coolly.

Arunoday knew that skirting around the truth with Ranaji would not achieve anything. It never did. He had hoped that this moment wouldn't arise, but unfortunately, Ranaji now knew about the letter and there was no way he was going to keep him in the dark about this anymore. So he decided to come clear with the truth, "I'm sorry, Ranaji. Rajmata accidentally learnt about the letter and requested it, assuring that she would hand it to you."

Indravadhan knew his mother and was aware of how her requests and assurances played out. Nonetheless, he couldn't let Arunoday off the hook for this one. "Since when is my personalcorrespondence others' business? And if my correspondence is so easily susceptible to breach of privacy, then I wonder if my man of affairs is appropriate for his current position."

"Ranaji, I apologise, and assure you that this will not be repeated, ever," Arunoday responded.

Indravadhan looked at him a long moment, "I need that letter. Now."

"Right away, Ranaji."

A quarter of an hour later, Arunoday returned with the letter. Indravadhan took the letter and dismissed him. As he pulled off the envelope, the date caught his eye. It was written two days before Rajmata had approached Indravadhan with the news of his alliance to Govind Seth's daughter. As he read the letter, he realized that it was filled with the innocence of love, the joy of wonder, and the wariness of the reaction and reception of the recipient. It reminded him of his letters to Sulakshana. Gayatri's letter was nothing but an expression of her feelings. She had referenced some of their chance encounters and the thoughts and feelings they'd evoked within her. He didn't miss the fact that nowhere was there a demand or question of him reciprocating those feelings. She just wanted to convey her feelings and was happy without wanting anything in return.

Now, as he watched her sleep, he realized how wrong he had been in judging her without even allowing her a chance to explain herself or put forth her point of view. He had charged at her with his scornful words, words full of disdain arising out of the belief that in this whole sham of a marriage, he and he alone was the wronged party. He hadn't for a single moment believed otherwise. He was too caught up in self-pity and misery at having been forced to give Sulakshana's place to another that he didn't even spare a moment to think how Gayatri would be affected with his words. He had only thought of inflicting hurt and pain, the pain that he was going through without his Sulakshana.

Even after six whole years, her death still pained him. The thought of not having her around still filled him with a pain that he couldn't overcome. The hurt and the sadness, the loneliness, had become a part of his life. While his duties and responsibilities as King kept him busy through the day, Sulakshana and his memories of her kept him awake through the night. Sulakshana had been his beacon of light, the love of his life.

Growing up in an aristocratic family hadn't been easy. Right since childhood, he'd been groomed to take on the responsibility as King, someday. Duty, responsibility and expectations formed the center of every interaction in life to the extent that he'd sometimes found it all stifling. His parents, with their formal relations, didn't make things any easier. He'd often felt like he wanted to run away somewhere. But of all the training that he'd received if there was one thing he believed in wholeheartedly, it was the fact that running away never solved any problems. And so he'd stayed and lived each day as it came. But after a point, he'd realized that he'd become an automaton. Doing things that were expected and not thinking about his own feelings, wishes and desires, he felt his was an empty existence. Until Sulakshana waltzed into his life. Literally!

It was during one of the royal balls that he had first laid eyes on her. She had been a vision in her gorgeous blue gown, her hair tied in an elaborate coiffure. He was in a conversation with a couple of princes from the nearby kingdoms when suddenly she'd whirled towards him, stunning him into silence as he was forced to hold her to avoid taking a tumble.

"Excuse me, Ranaji!" her voice was breathless and her face flushed.

He was mesmerized speechless. As he continued to hold her, she blinked her eyes and said in a small voice, trying to break his trance, "It was an accident."

"A beautiful one, I'd say," he'd responded with a smile.

She'd blushed and looked away and had her dance partner not intruded with his apologies, he didn't know how long he would've held her in his arms. He'd released her but not before finding out her name and where she hailed from.

Learning that her family had a palace in the vicinity only made it that much easier for Indravadhan to see her. Before long, they'd become the best of friends and he'd soon proceeded to wooing her before asking her father for her hand in marriage. Life had suddenly become a beautiful dream. Until the fateful day that it had all crashed horribly.

Her death had been too much to handle. There wasn't a single corner of his palace that didn't evoke a memory about her. Her tinkling laughter echoed off the palace walls wherever he went. Her smiles haunted him and her sweet words echoed in his ears. Nothing he, or anyone else, did could make her death easy. His heart had shattered and in its place was a large, gaping void that would never be filled, ever. So he had done the one thing that he had promised himself he would never do in his life. He ran. But it wasn't to banish Sona's memories to some deep, dark recess of his mind. Rather, it was to embrace a fate that Sona had - one that would unite them forever. That's how he'd found himself leaving behind his family and his kingdom as he left for the war.

Each battle they fought, he went to it with a new sense of hope, wishing that maybe today, the Angel of Death would favor him, but he always returned dejected. He'd formed a few friendships - few and rare but had lost them all to the war. He'd seen his close comrades succumb to the blows of war on the battlefield. Young men who wanted to live, people who had dreams, hopes and aspirations for the future but whose lives were snipped off as swiftly as blowing off a candle. He'd watched in horror and disgust as his comrades breathed their last in his arms when all the while, all he wished was for a way to trade places with them. Seeing the blood, gore and the heartlessness of the war had only hardened him more. He didn't care much for this life and there was no one that mattered. His was a bleak and mechanical existence, devoid of any feelings. Soon, the war was over and it was time to return home.

But returning home hadn't meant peace. He'd soon learned that his kingdom was in shambles with a massive debt over its head. His anger at the financial status of the kingdom and the lack of its appropriate management had soon turned to resentment when to save the kingdom, he was forced to marry again - putting Sona's memories in jeopardy.

If he had thought that he would live with a grudge towards his new wife and be cold and withdrawn towards her all his life, that illusion was shattered on the first night of his wedding itself when he realized that she was as much a wronged party in this whole wedding business as he!

He would apologise to her first thing in the morning. While he would never reciprocate her feelings, he could at least treat her with cool civility.

***

A while back, I'd written some Drabbles on Raga. If any of you would like to check it out: Drabbles ~ From RaGaland .

Do not forget to leave your thoughts on both!