Chapter Ten
Not letting Mayank in was not an option; she wished every millisecond spent with him in the room that there were other options too. She sat at the chair quietly, as if wanting to exasperate herself even more against him. Like almost every time she met with him, she found his face expressionless and whatever trifle his eyes poured was remote for her understanding, unreadable.
He walked about in the room, to and fro wanting to get things rightly phrased that formulated in his mind. Taking his seat, he finally decided to make a conversation. However, there was nothing the two could have talked about but Nupur's health. Again as he arose and started to move here and there in the room, Nupur shook her head in disbelief. 'How can a man as busy as him have so much time to walk about in my room like a zombie?' she thought.
'Well, Nupur,' he broke the extremely uncomfortable silence that had been prevailing.
'Yes,' she responded, looking everywhere but toward him.
'I have struggled in vain, and I take it, it won't help. I have always very ardently loved you,' he confessed. 'And I don't wish to conceal it any further.' He added.
Nupur's astonishment to this was beyond expression. She stared, colored, doubted and was silent all throughout. In spite of her deeply-rooted dislike for him, she couldn't be insensible towards affection, of a man like himself. He, at this considered being encouraged and continued to speak.
'I believe, there are umpteen misunderstandings which have been there between the two of us,' He started. 'And I have answers to all, I can explain. I tried hard, but I couldn't help feeling this way.'
'There's no explanation that I require, Mayank.' She replied in not more than a whisper. 'I haven't ever wished to think beyond the level of acquaintance as per you are to be concerned. And in matters such as this, one must not be very hasty.'
'Does that mean I am rejected?' Mayank questioned, leaning over the bright red wall at the corner.
'I would want to enquire,' she continued, indifferent to his question. 'Why am I being subjected to an insult in place of an offer? I believe; you chose to fall in love with me against your will and character. Why would I or possibly any female adhere to some proposal as such?'
'You and Suhaani have ruined the happiness of my sister, possibly forever. Everybody thinks ill of you and I, in specific have every reason in the world to think ill of you,' she asserted. 'What you did to my sister, and with Rannvijay's account of you, I have been forced into considering my prior opinion about you.'
Mayank's face's color changed but for a while he preferred to keep mum. He read her eyes for long, which held disgust. 'And what was that?' he asked.
'I reject your proposal, Mayank.' She stated and got up to leave but he fastened his hands on her shoulders hard, and she seemed to be toiling so as to get his grip loosened, but it did not help much. She shuddered looking into his eyes; she noticed them for the first time. Was all that passion always there or today was something special, she wondered?
'I said I can explain.' He said looking square in the eye, his hands softer on her shoulders now.
'And do you think that would tempt me?'
'Figuratively,'
Throughout the explanation that Mayank had gotten to offer, Nupur had her eyes fixed in his. She struggled not to maintain a contact but her eyes just did not seem to get off his. They held sincerity, truth and passion. She was bewildered and for once, she did consider believing Mayank's version of the issue with Rannvijay. However, what he did with Gunjan brought her to senses and also reminded her she should not trust him that easily.
'What do you have to say about turning my sister into a piece of trash?' she mouthed; anguish pouring out of her eyes.
'Piece of trash,' he repeated, musing.
'Nupur, I do not regret that. And yes, I and Suhaani did take Samrat away but I had no intensions to doing that to your sister. Her love never reached her eyes, and that always scared me. I feared Samrat's aggression and madness that I had seen inculcating in him at least once every year would not only hurt her, but break him too. For he did feel she was special. I am not sorry.' He said, without any resentment.
They did not realize when it got dark, and Nupur had started to consider his words. Ironically, that night happened to be the night she and Armaan made it official. She laughed humorlessly at the irony of life she was being subjected to and climbed down the staircase, disappearing into the night. Mayank followed her.
It was easy to catch her pace, she was not very fast. He walked at her side, noticing that she turned colder and number every second. He offered her his blazer but she did not respond, he asked her to return home, yet she just did not respond. She silently mourned and continued to walk. Dilemma and anguish took over, and for the first time in life, she did not know what to do.
They'd come quite far walking, just as Nupur turned around to leave – Mayank pulled her to his direction and asked,' Where are you going?'
'I am going back home,' she bleakly replied.
The following instant, they incredulously gazed at the night sky as it had started to rain cats and dogs in a matter of minutes. The wintry breeze was replaced by thunderous roars in the sky, and water cascaded down the dried fountain. Such humongous amount of downpour in winter was a first witness to both.
Mayank turned to face her. Raindrops had wetted her face, but he could easily make out the tears out of them. Her bitter sighs were audible; he stood only an inch apart from her. Since she did not object the proximity, he had had a clearer view of her eyes and could see disgust washing away. There was something now he couldn't name but he certainly knew what opportunity fate had offered him, he grabbed for it.
It happened all too quick, when she blinked the water from her dark eyes, she felt his lips moving gently on hers and when she had her eyes open, he had already broken apart. Her heart thudded in the throat and she could hear something rumbling in his chest, the moment passed by swiftly. He distanced a trifle and gripped his fingers around her wrist. He traced the rays on her palm with the finger and measured her thumping heartbeats in the wrist, he laughed softly. Probably at the coincidence of two hearts breathing this close to each other and at a relatively similar pace!
'Will you marry me?' he questioned, breathing into her hair.
'Will think,' she mumbled.
The downpour slowed down, and it was now drizzling. He smiled so wide that it felt he'd gotten everything he ever wished. The shimmering stars glowed brighter than usual; the velvety sky was crystal clear once again and the paces of their heartbeats slowed. Some silent promises were made and the pallid woman standing next to the hefty young man could never figure out how it all happened. It happened all too quick . . .
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