On my way to work today the song Love Story by Taylor Swift suddenly popped into my head. And along with that, so did the idea for this one! I think I'm psychic, by the way. I was just discussing Ash with Radz, and she popped up on screen. I am so awesome. 😎 I see potential for Ash-Rajveer or Ash-Harman, now that Maya's out of the house! 😆 Anyway, here's the story!
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Love Story
We were both young when I first saw you
I close my eyes and the flashback starts
I'm standing there
On the balcony in summer air
Who was that boy, Meher wondered, frowning. She hugged her doll closer to her, hiding behind her mother's dress.
The boy was doing the same, though he was hiding behind his father's leg instead of his mother's.
Meher tugged on her mother's dress. "Mama, who is that?" she whispered loudly.
Teji smiled at her. "That's Preet. He's Lalit Chacha's son."
Meher nodded. Lalit Chacha worked for them, which meant that Preet was a servant.
"Mama," she whispered again. "Will he come to my tea party?"
"Why don't you ask him?" Teji gently nudged Meher forward.
Clutching her doll, Meher moved towards him. "Do you want to come to my tea party?" she asked him.
He moved out from behind his father. "What's a tea party?"
A smile broke out on her face. "It's where we all sit around a table and drink tea and eat cookies!"
Preet made a face. "That doesn't sound like fun."
Meher pouted. "Well, you're coming anyway. Let's go!"
She turned and headed to her nursery, glancing behind her to make sure that he was following. She stopped and frowned, putting a hand on her hips. "Chalo!"
Preet exchanged a look with Lalit Chacha, who was hiding a smile. He nudged his son forward. "Jaao, beta."
Making a face, Preet reluctantly followed Meher, who skipped to her nursery. Finally, she would have a guest who would drink her tea and eat her cookies!
See the lights, see the party, the ball gowns
See you make your way through the crowd and say hello
Little did I know
Meher flopped onto her bed, tears flowing angrily down her cheeks. Thanks to that Preet-who-couldn't-catch-a-cricket-ball, she had gotten in trouble with Mama. If Preet had caught the ball she wouldn't have broken that window, and she would've been able to eat that chocolate mousse that Gayatri Chachi made for dessert.
She hated Preet. She hated, hated, hated him!
That you were Romeo, you were throwing pebbles
And my daddy said stay away from Juliet
And I was crying on the staircase begging you please don't go
A little tinkling sound came from her window. She turned her head to look at it, but from her bed she couldn't see the little pulley system that she and Preet had made. He had put a little bell at the top, so that whenever they used the pulley, she would know.
She got up and headed to the window, wondering what Preet wanted. She opened the cover that was on the basket, looking into it. An unwelcome smile made its way to her face as she saw the bowl of chocolate mousse and the spoon that sat in the basket.
And I said, Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone
I'll be waiting, all that's left to do is run
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story, baby, just say yes
She looked past the basket, and saw Preet grinning up at her from the soft yellow light of the lamp. Her smile faded. She turned her back to Preet, folding her arms. She hated Preet, and she wasn't going to eat the chocolate mousse that he had brought.
In the garden, half-hidden by the vines that grew along her window, Preet rolled his eyes. He reached for the rope and shook it, jingling the bell.
Meher was not going to break. She hated Preet. Preet, who couldn't catch a ball. Preet, who nobody had blamed because they knew that Preet threw like a girl, so he couldn't have broken the window. Preet, who had brought her chocolate mousse as an apology.
She felt her resolve slip as her mind played images of her standing by her window, the bowl in one hand, the spoon in the other, her eyes closed in bliss as she licked the creamy dessert off the spoon, a smile on her face.
Just because she was angry at Preet didn't mean she had to be angry at the dessert, right?
She turned and grabbed the bowl and the spoon from the basket, making a face at Preet.
As she turned away, she spotted a piece of paper in the basket. Sticking the spoon in the bowl, she reached out for it. She held it up and read it.
Sorry, Meher.
She couldn't help the smile that turned up the corners of her lips.
So I sneak out to the garden to see you
We keep quiet, 'cause we're dead if they knew
So close your eyes
Escape this town for a little while
Meher sat between her mother and her father, half-listening with a small smile on her face as her parents discussed the joining of their family with another's. She had studied the boy and hadn't found him very interesting. He looked like an ostrich, she thought. And 'Harman' was a rather funny name.
On second thought, he looks more like a cross between a monkey and an ostrich, Meher thought. She bit her lip hard to stop herself from laughing. She amused herself so much sometimes.
She suppressed a sigh as the giggles subsided. She was bored here, stuck inside on such a beautiful day while her parents arranged her marriage, when she could have been outside, riding on her horse with Preet next to her.
Preet was fun, she thought, tilting her head to the side. She decided that he was the only one who could put up with her crazy plans that she more often than not dragged him into. She smiled, wondering what he'd be doing now.
'Cause you were Romeo, I was a scarlet letter
And my daddy said stay away from Juliet
But you were everything to me I was begging you please don't go
As soon as that thought had crossed her mind, Preet came into the room, carrying a tray of biscuits and cakes. His eyes met hers, and he stole a wink at her. She blushed slightly, smiling at him. He smirked at her as he set the tray down on the table. They silently teased each other, flirting with their eyes.
The air felt heavy as Preet left the room. Meher sighed, her shoulders slumped.
"Meher, do you agree to this marriage?" her father asked, turning to her.
"Hmm?" Meher blinked, looking at her father blankly.
He frowned slightly in annoyance. "Do you agree to this marriage?" he repeated.
"Oh. Um," she looked at Harman, who looked at her expectantly, a half-smile ready on his face. "I guess?"
Her father raised an eyebrow at her.
"Yes," she amended quickly. "Yes, I do."
Harman broke into a grin as Meher's chest tightened, leaving her wondering if she had made the right choice.
And I said, Romeo, take me somewhere we can be alone
I'll be waiting, all there's left to do is run
You'll be the prince and I'll be the princess
It's a love story, baby, just say yes
Meher felt sick. She felt like she was about to throw up. She looked at herself in the mirror.
She was surprised she didn't look green. She was instead very pale, her lips painted red and her black hair pulled into a bun, loose curls framing her face, giving her a Snow White look. Her wedding dress was a creamy white, and she held a bouquet of pink roses in her hands.
She paced around the room, her white shoes clacking against the marble floor as she waited for her father to collect her and lead her to the altar.
Romeo, save me, they're trying to tell me how to feel
This love is difficult, but it's real
Don't be afraid, we'll make it out of this mess
It's a love story, baby, just say yes
Meher had always known that she would get married to someone her parents would choose for her, so now that it was about to happen, why did she feel like she couldn't breathe? Oh, god, I can't breathe! She set her bouquet down and gripped the edge of her dresser, doubling over and gasping for breath.
Maybe it was because she had always thought her Prince Charming would be funny, charming, sweet. That there would be sparks the moment their eyes met. That when their hands touched, there would be electricity.
She had spent some time alone with Harman, and she hadn't felt anything like that with him.
She looked at herself in the mirror again. She straightened, composing herself just as the door opened. She turned to see her father stepping into the room, smiling at her.
"Are you ready, dear?" he asked.
Meher forced a smile and nodded.
I got tired of waiting
Wondering if you were ever coming around
My faith in you was fading
When I met you on the outskirts of town
"Does anybody object to the marriage of this man and this woman?" the pastor asked, looking around the church.
Meher bit her lip. She wanted to look around the church too, to find a sympathetic face, one that would object and save her from getting married to Harman. But she kept her eyes fixed on the floor.
"Anybody?"
And I said, Romeo, save me, I've been feeling so alone
I keep waiting for you but you never come
Is this in my head? I don't know what to think
"I do."
Meher frowned, looking up. She turned, wondering who had been the one to speak. She gasped as Preet rose from his seat in the back row. He made his way to the aisle.
"Meher, please don't do this," he pleaded. "This is going to sound absolutely crazy, but…I love you."
He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said
Her eyes widened. All of a sudden she could breathe again.
"I've loved you since the day you took me to your nursery and served me water and sugar and chocolate chip cookies."
She smiled, remembering their first tea party.
"Meher, do you think this duffer standing beside you – " (From the corner of her eyes, Meher saw Harman get ready to protest, but she hissed a 'shut up' at him before he could open his mouth) " – could put up with all the crazy things you do?"
Meher teared up.
"Please don't do this, Meher. You know you don't want to spend the rest of your life with this…this…"
"Fuddy duddy?" Meher offered, giggling as she remembered the phrase that Preet had used to describe all her imaginary suitors.
Preet grinned. "Fuddy duddy."
They shared a moment looking into each other's eyes. Then Preet reached a hand out to her silently.
Marry me, Juliet, you'll never have to be alone
I love you and that's all I really know
I talked to your dad, you'll pick out a white dress
It's a love story, baby, just say yes
A grin lit her face.
Both of them knew he didn't have to say anything; she knew what he wanted of her.
She turned to Harman. She thrust the bouquet at him. "Have a nice life, Harman!"
With that she gathered up her skirts and left the altar, running to where Preet was. She grabbed his hand and pulled him out, laughing at the horrified stares she was getting.
So what if she was eloping with the servant boy? Meher knew that everything was going to be perfect now that she was with Preet.
'Cause we were both young, when I first saw you
-|end|-
Eck. I'm sorry that the time frame thingie is all over the place. It was supposed to be set in the older times, something like HMT, but then the 'fuddy duddy' thing came in (BtVS FTW!) and the time frame just flew out the window. 😆 Somehow my endings never seem to come out right, but whatever. Hope you guys liked it! 😃
Love,
Bhav (:
Mannat Har Khushi Paane Ki
Cricket
