^credit to Anila/creations galleryLove & War
One: The War
She felt water flick her face as someone stepped out of the water and walked past her with a rush. Her eyes opened to see her palms stuck to each other for the prayers. She turned her face around to see the man walk away. His bare back was gleaming with the water droplets and from the side of his face he appeared dazed and confused. She felt a sense familiarity fill inside her but her attention was shifted when the man turned and walked away. She heard her mother's voice call her up and after muttering something incoherent under her breath, she stood up to stand by her mother who was sitting in the corner of one o the pillars that lead to the outer porch areas of the gurdwara.
She felt her feet burn as she rushed across the marbled floors towards her mother and seated herself under the shade where her mother was sitting, waiting for her.
"Kya Maa?" Itni jaldi kyun bulaya?" her whining didn't receive the attention she had hoped for when her mother stood up with her attention fixed on her phone.
"Chalo, andar chaal ke intezaar karna hai." Leela Taneja directed her daughter curtly to which her daughter made quite a disturbing face to before following her.
**Mrs. Bhalla put out her hand forward to her son who stood holding the door of their car. She lightly slapped her son's arms after noticing his worn out expression.
"Woh dekh! Jaguar hai! Aik dafa tu damad ban gaya is ghar ka na, toh zindiagi set ho jaye gi. Lerki se tameez se baat karna!! Miss Amritsar jeet chuki hai aur suna hai Miss India pe participate kare gi!" She whispered hastily as she walked into the gurdwara, clinging onto her son's arm.
"Haan haan Ma ji! Samaj gaya na!"
Mrs. Bhalla spotted the Taneja women standing by one of the inner pillars of the gurdwara. Leela Taneja was dressed in most impeccable silk salwar suit while her daughter stood next to her wearing a cotton tunic paired with the most brightest yellow color there was. She smiled seeing the girl's head adorned with a dupatta and her face reflecting nothing but innocence.
"Daal gal jaye gi lagta hai. Amir bhi hain, shareef bhi aur zaida teez bhi nahi." Mrs. Bhalla muttered to herself as she took bigger strides towards the Taneja women.
"Leela ji!!" she exclaimed excitedly. "Tussi yahan ho! Kaise ho ji?" she threw herself on the seemingly petite Leela Taneja in front of her, into a big hug making the poor Taneja women topple and force herself to keep straight in face of gravity that was pulling her down.
"Ji theek thak. Tusi batao. Anne mein itni der kaise ho gai?"
"Ab kya bataon Leela ji.." she started off her rant but stopped short midway seeing Twinkle cover up half of her face behind her mother and rapidly blink while staring at her son.
"Leela ji, bachoon ko milne dete hain abb. Aakhir viaah tou inhe he karna hai na! Aur isi vaaste tou yahaan aye hain."
Leela looked at her daughter with a pleading look to which she gave hr a sparkling smile and cover her face back up to start blinking at the Bhalla son again. She looked at the boy standing behind his mother with his eyes downcast from confusion of not understanding what his prospective bride was up to. She walked over to him and touched his face before turning around to face his mother.
"Meinu toh Sunny bohot he changa laga hai. Agar yeh khud Twinkle naal gal karna chahata hai toh phir dono baat kar le." she resigned slowly with a sigh and a smile plastered on her face.
The mothers paved way for the children to walk away silently. Leela silently made a prayer for this alliance to work out.
Twinkle walked behind Sunny Bhalla who had taken her out to the courtyard of the gurdwara. The young man was wearing a white suit paired with a black shirt and appeared quite well built. The girls stopped to admire him in between as they walked to collect some privacy.
"Waise mein kafi straight forward hoon." He spoke abruptly, cutting out the silence between them taking Twinkle aback of a moment. The dupatta slipped from her hand and she straightened herself up and adoringly stared back at the man. "Mein apni maa ki pasand se shaadi kar raha hoon. Mujhe aap bhi achi lagein hain. Aap ko, mein kaisa laga hoon?" he hesitantly put forth the last question in his statement.
"Ji app toh aik dum butter chicken ke barabar ho! Mere sare dostoon mein sab se hot body hogi aap ki. Kya bataoon.." Twinkle started off with a bang, throwing herself constantly at her prospective husband, comparing his hotness to her favorite foods and then going on a rant on how majority of her boyfriends never worked out like they should've and she will thank baba ji everyday for not having a husband who looks like a potato. Her ferocity and the straight-forwardness was enough to freak out the calm and composed man standing before her who was trying hard to free himself from her tight grip over his jacket.
Sunny Bhalla ran rushed out while Twinkle rushed behind him and pulled his mother away abruptly from Leela Taneja who shouted off apologies from behind while being dragged away.
"Twinkle!!!" Leela turned around, weary of the reactions she had faced by her prospective son-in-laws till date.
"Maa!!" Twinkle threw herself, tears streaming from her eyes on the floor. "Aur kitne rejection milein ge mujhe? Kahan galte ho gayi!"
"Uth foran!"
She sat up, wiping the tears away from her face and readjusting her dupatta. "Mera dil itne rejections nahi handle kar skata Maa!"
"Haan haan sab pata hai! Aik number ki Drama Queen hai tu. Koi khayal nahi hai mera tujhe! Kya kia tu ne uss munde naal? Aisa kyun bhaaga woh?"
"Maa!" She crooned, catching up to her mother's steps and holding onto her arm.
"Tujhe andaza bhi hai Twinkle ke tere bare mein loog kitna bura bhalla bolein ge? Amritsar ka koi khandan chora nahi hai tu ne jis se tere baat tiki ho", Leela's voice held concern and worry for the events that had followed in last few minutes.
The mother daughter duo seated themselves inside the car, the doors held open for them by the chauffeur. Leela dismissed the driver with a wave to follow behind her and seated herself onto the driver's seat. her anger and disappointment was slowly dissolving seeing the happy state of her daughter who had a secret smile adoring her face.
"Tu aise kyun karti hai Twinkle. Abhi tak unchaas/forty-nine larke tere samne rakhe hain mein ne aur tu aik aik kar ke har aik ko aisa bhagaya hai ke kuch larkoon ne tu aaj tak na bolne ki wajah bhi nahi boli hai!"
"Maa aap meri shaadi ko peche kyun pari ho!" she interjected frustratedly
"Kyun na karoon mein teri shaadi ki fikar? Bol? Tu ne aab kon se teer marne hain? Parahai puri ho chuki hai teri. Business paraha hota tou tujhe apne saath kam mein laga leti. Bacha hai shaadi. Aur aik baat tu sun le Twinkle. Duniya bina baap ke larkiyoon ko assani se accept nahi kartein hain!.." Her trail of statements came to an halt when the intersection was blocked by a black colored car.
She blared on the horn, warning the next car to back away but instead a familiar face stepped out of the car. A woman of fierce stature, wearing an overly embroidered suit for the heat of Amritsar and a face that depicted such hatred stood tall besides the car, provoking Leela Taneja to step out as well.
"Tu!" Hearing her mom's anger escalate through her tone, Twinkle stepped out from her side as well to stand behind her mother.
"Gadi peeche le."
"Kyun? Yahan hum, pehle thee!" the lady barked back, her tone dripping with a flickers of challenge.
"Rasta rokna hai na tu ne. Rokh. Meinu bhi raste banane aate hain!" Leela retorted back.
"Raste banane toh tujhe khuub aate hain. Iss mein koi shaak nahi." she taunted, "Par rasta tera mein ne nahi, iss bar teri khud ki beti ne roka hai! Kitnawa rishte ne teri beti ko reject kiya hai?"
"Panch din mein apni kudi ka rishta teh kar doon gi mein!" she replied challenging Anita's words right back towards her. "Kisi raah chalte ko thori na apni beti ke saath bandhoon gi mein. Heera, asli heera chunoon gi apni kudi ke vaaste! Abb haat raaste se!"
"Baatein toh tu hamesha bari bari karti hai! Gadi peeche kar apni aur time na waste kar mera!" The flickering taunt was more boldly present in the woman's tone.
Twinkle pulled out the pin from her hair and silently proceeded towards the black car opposite her when her hand was held back by a familiar person. "Yeh tu ne solid panga le leye Taneja!"
Yuvraj Luthra stood tall before Twinkle Tanja. "Meri Maa ki gari roke gi? Anita Luthra ke gari ke aaree aai gi tu?"
"Haan aaon gi! Shakal dekhi hai apni! Loogon ka bilawaja rasta rokte ho aur pher ulti dhamki dete ho?" she screamed up in his face, getting her hand out of his grip.
"Abe khud ke shakal dekhi hai! Pakore jaise toh teri naak hai!" he yelled imposing his exterior over her upon which Leela pulled Twinkle back however before Leela could interject two-police officers walked in, putting there sticks in between Twinkle Taneja and Yuvraj Luthra.
"Preeto ji?" the ladies exclaimed seeing her stand behind the police constables.
"Mrs. Luthra, pheeche karo apni gaadi ko. Aur apne bete ko kaabo mein rakho." the first of the two police officers spoke directing the Luthras back into there car. "Yeh bar bar aap galat raste pe kyun aati ho? Agli bar aap ne galat raste se gaadi nikali toh bhaari ticket likh doon ga app ke naam par!" He exclaimed warningly before turning around to spot the Taneja girl smiling at the Luthra boy.
The police officer turned around towards the old lady, brushing aside the smiles exchanged between the children behind him and thanked her for calling him and his partner on time before traffic would've started to get compromised.
Anita threw a dirty look towards the old lady, Preeto ji; who had a habit of intervening at the wrong moments. This time she had Leela by the ends in the confrontation but her untimely intervention caused her to be the one to be threatened by a ticket. She restarted the car and accelerated past the Taneja's car. Leela mouthed a thank you to the old lady who after nodding, walked off towards the her home.
Twinkle Tanjea stepped out of the car just as her mother parked the car inside the doors and rushed upstairs towards her room without paying any heed to her name being called by the servants and family members. She pushed the door shut of her bedroom and jolted the girl sleeping with her mouth open with a magazine on her face on her bed.
"Chinky!! Utho!!"
The girl muttered something incoherently letting the drool fall out of her mouth.
"CHINKY!" Twinke scream was enough to overlook the sound of sudden rush of cars that had filled the street.
The girl sat up with groggy eyes and looked at her friend blankly. "Yaar sun, yeh magazine na kaafi sophisticated hai. Kuch TWIST magazine type ka magazine nahi hai there paas?"
Twinkle stared at her friend gruntled and threw herself at the flower chairs placed on the other side of the bed. Chinky turned around and blankly continued to stare at her friend until she felt hers senses coming back to her. She yawned and understanding Twinkle's angry stare towards her, sat up straight.
"Tu tou larka dekhne gayi thi na? Kiya hua?"
"Pooch kiya nahi hua! Wapas aate hue Anita Luthra ke gaari hamari gaari ke aare aa gai! Mera bechara Yuvi! Uss ko police ne dhaka diya!" she lamented over dramatically.
"Aur larke ka kiya hua jisse tu dekhne gai thi?" Chinky reemphasized her question, stifling the yawn and pushing the magazine away from her.
"Kuch nahi hua. Bhaaga diye hamesha ki tarah." She answered dismissively before shifting the tone of her voice again, "Par era bechara Yuvi Chinky! Uss ko call karoon? Nahi abhi call nahi kar sakti. Abhi tou apni Mom ke saath tha. Aaj raat ko na milne chali jaon gi!"She exclaimed excitedly in the end clapping her hands in joy as if the problem and worry from earlier had faded away. Twinkle pursed her lips before falling back on the bed and smiling to herself.
"Sun Twinkle! Jeet ke saath mera rishta pakka ho gaya!" her voice was dazed and dreamy enough to shift twinkle's attention.
"Pakka? matlab asli wala pakka? Roka wala pakka?" she questioned leaning towards her friend.
"Haan!" Chinky replied shyly. Seeing the blush on her face, Twinkle got up and picked up a glittering tiara from the shelf and placed it on Chinky's head. She pulled out the petals from the flowers planted in the balcony that was attached from her room and threw over her Chinky's head. The girls giggled in midst of there own until Chinky placed the tiara on Twinkle's head and they rushed downstairs to tell Leela of the good news.
**Anita Luthra had parked her car inside her own gates before she proceeded to eye the house opposite to see Mrs. Kaur stepping out of the car with a big basket of sweets. The Tanjea mansion seemed to be celebrating a joyous occasion once again and from her sources, Twinkle Tanjea had successfully rejected the Bhalla family as prospective alliance.
Her trail of thoughts was broken off when a Bentley drove past into the house in the middle that has been vacant for previous twenty years.
Manohar Sarna stepped out of the car, after a butler rushed out of the house to pull open the door. The man had an arrogant stature and grim smile adorning his face. His eyebrows were bushy and his eyes were devoid of any emotion besides pride. His steps towards the house were followed by a man who appeared to be pandit or a priest.
A woman, short and stout with full face stood at the doorway with a traditional that in her hand. Her eyes gleamed with happiness but the gleam shifted just as soon as Manohar Sarna took halt over the steps and checked over at his wrist. He lifted his other hand before his wife over towards him to welcome him inside the house.
"Guru ji ke leye khanna nikalo." he directed towards his wife before marching up the stairs towards the roof. His steps were sturdy and bold. He unbuttoned the coat of his suit as he stood straight n the roof, overlooking the the most posh resident colony of amritsar that overlooked half of the city.
"Guru ji, aaj mein yahaan tak agar phoncha hoon tou sirf aap ki wajah se. Agar aap ne sahi waqt pe direct nahi kiya hota mujhe tou mein aaj tak yahan nahi pohanchta." He spoke still facing the landscape of the city.
"Arre Manohar, yeh sab tumhari mehnat ka sila hai. Mein ne sirf tumhare decisions pe apni approval ki mohar lagai hai." Guru ji replied solemnly.
Manohar turned around towards Guru ji after breathing in the fresh air of Amritsar. "Guru ji aab yeh battery ke agala kadam mis taraf uthana chaiye? England mein hameri foundations cafe mazboot hain." he started off hesitantly to which the Guru ji raised his hand to abruptly stop him in the middle.
"Manohar, abhi tumhe apne chote bete ki shaadi ke bare mein sochna hoga. Tumhare iss ghar ki lakshmi hi tumhare yahaan ki jaroon ko mazboot kar sakti hai."
"Kiya aap kisi larki ko jante hain Guru ji jo iss ghar ki lakshmi ban sake?" He questioned.
"Nahi. Par mein yeh keh saakta hoon ke lakshmi iss hafte mein he tumhare samne aai gi aur anhoken roop mein aai gi aur seedha tumhi se takrai gi. Yeh lakshmi tmhari Amritsar ki jaroon ko aise jor sake gi ke tumhe wapas jane ki zaroorat bhi na pare."
Manohar listened carefully to every word uttered and nodded thoughtfully. He had handed the reigns of the England head office in his elder son's hand however the land that provided much of the capital for the business was present here in Punjab and Guru ji had warned him that stabilizing the roots in Amritsar would be a good idea however the connection between his son's wedding in the business left him wondering how to makes sure that Guru ji's words are implemented to there full affect.
He was sure that his son would oblige to his commands however the support of his wife for his son and the predictability that his wife silently opposed all of his decisions made Manohar furious of the days that would follow.
His attention was shifted when he noticed Mrs. Kaur stepping out from the neighboring household and handing in an envelop to the butler to the security guard at the door. He saw her ceremoniously leave right after by walking back towards the neighboring household and sitting in her car to drive off. A woman whom he recognized as Leela Taneja had stepped out to wave a goodbye before walking back inside.
He turned around to walk back into the house. His steps back to the stirs closely followed by the shadow of the pandit.
**"HAMARI CHINKY KA RIHSTA PAKKAA!!!" Twinkle screamed putting the drums over her neck.
The family members stepped out of there rooms sensing the festivious atmosphere. The first to join Twinkle on the dance floor that she had turned the living room into was her Mamu and Nana ji while her mother stood in the corner feeding Chinky all kinds of sweets.
The sound of the drums and music filled the atmosphere making Leela forget about the atrocious behavior of Twinkle in front of the Bhallas and rejoicing in the happiness of his daughter and her best friend.
"Chad, Twinkle. Sun!" she called her out after an hour of senseless dancing.
"Chinky ki engagement party hum host karin ge. Chinky ki maa naal meinu gaal kar li hai. Tum dono apne jin jin friends ko bulana chahte ho, un ki list bana ke mujhe de denna!" she spoke putting the sweet that Chinky had just eaten from into Twinkle's mouth which she was quick to gobble down.
Once the excitement of the news wore off, Twinkle's Mamu moved towards the platter of sweets his sister was holding to attack on the food. Finding a window of opportunity, Chinky pulled Twinkle away from her family.
"Chaal na Twinkle. Ab tere kapre bhi tou decide karne hain!"
Twinkle sensed the urgency in Chinky's tone and forgetting that she had to sneak out of the house, the girls giggled there way to her room and continued to cherish the new moments of love that were filling there lives.
A/N; I know the update was late and some parts have been super abrupt but I tried my best with this one. I have exciting stuff in store an the next update would be by next Monday since I'm traveling this weekend. I really hope that this chapter lives up to the expectations and builds up some excitement for what awaits next. The readership really is a main motivation for me so please do stick by!
Edited by areeba_blossom - 7 years ago
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