Chapter 1
Suman was sitting at her dressing table, adorned in a peacock blue kameez with a fuchsia border and salwar. Her dupatta was also fuchsia with a peacock blue border. Her ears had blue teardrop earrings hanging off of them, her face had little makeup. She looked at herself in the mirror, seeing her reflection the reality of the situation dawned on her. Her mami's words came back to her, "I've looked after you for fifteen years Suman, just like my own daughter. I've fed you, educated you, raised you and I asked nothing in return. But today, I need something in return, please for my sake, for your mamaji's sake, accept this proposal so that I can go to my son, he needs me, much more than you do." She had accepted the fact long ago that although her family loved her, she was still a burden to them. The only two people that didn't think of her as a burden was her beloved Nanu, and her best friend Shravan.
She met Shravan when she was fourteen. He was fully engrossed in solving his rubrics cube to the point he didn't realise where he was walking and bumped into Suman. A small smile appeared on her face as she reflected on the memory. The way she had shouted at the geeky, skinny Shravan for bumping into her. His flushed face, and the way he apologised, his voice laced with anxiousness, was something she could never forget. As soon as he had bumped into her she had looked down at his cube, intrigued by it, she demanded him to give it to her, but he had declined, telling her that she didn't have enough brains,' she had taken offence to his statement, and he challenged her he would be her servant for the day if she could solve the cube in 24 hours. Although she may have failed the challenge and over the years the cube became a decorative piece for her room, she gained a very dear friend out of it. From that day on Shravan and her had become inseparable, they went to tuition together, went to school together, played together, solved their problems together and were always together. There was a time when they had referred to themselves as a unit, they wouldn't do or go anywhere without each other. Everyone had thought that eventually Shravan and Suman would get together, but that wasn't the case. Shravan had left to go and study Law at Oxford and Suman stayed in Delhi getting a MBA from the most prestigious university. She was still in touch with him, through social media and made it a ritual to call him at least 3 times a week. However, love was something both of them didn't have the time for. Suman was well aware of the fact that love was something that fortunate people receive, and it was something that she couldn't even dream of because in the end, it'll be her who'd break; she didn't want to bring shame upon her family who had given her everything they could and she put all her time and energy making a name for herself, running her restaurant, Priraj'.
A car screeched into the driveway of Tiwari Killa. Suman ran her hairbrush through her hair one more time and gave herself one last glance in the mirror, before walking downstairs into the kitchen. She heard mami, mama and nanu greet the guests inside. "Tiwari-ji, can you please call Suman, after-all we should also see how pretty our future daughter-in-law is." At that moment, Suman's sister Preeti, came inside to kitchen to escort her out. Suman and Preeti went inside the sitting area with trays of food and tea in their hands. Upon her entrance, she was asked to sit on the sofa in front of her prospective groom, Aaryan Singhania, a businessman by profession. His almond shaped eyes hinted towards his kind aura, but the blackness within them suggested something else. He had a tall, lean frame, his face was round, with a straight nose, small but plump lips and a beard, covering his chin, upper lip and cheeks. He was dressed in a navy blue sweater, with a black blazer and black slacks. Suman found him to be attractive, however, there was something unsettling about his demeanour. "Suman beta, take Aaryan to your room and talk to each other to get to know each other a bit better," Suman flashed a small smile at him, while slowly getting up and led him to her room as she was instructed.
"Hey," Suman said hesitantly
"Hi," He said energetically, Suman found his voice was deep and chirpy, "Suman, I feel in this bit of time we have, let's play a game of 20 questions, but we will both answer each question we ask. Is that okay?"
"Yep, I was thinking the same thing, you can start,"
"What is your favourite colour? Mine is grey,"
"I like the colour yellow a lot, what do you do in your free time?"
"Well, I like to go clubbing, party, and pretty much enjoy life, you?"
"I like to travel, read and talk to Shravan...," Suman instantly stopped talking, realising her mistake.
"Shravan?"
"Umm, sorry, Shravan's my best friend from childhood, he lives in London, so we try our best to keep in touch,"
"Ohh, he's just a friend right?" His voice slightly interrogative
"Yeah... just a friend," Her voice dropping an octave and becoming hesitant
"How do you feel about our marriage?" He said, purposely putting emphasis on our'.
"I like you, I feel if we try, we can have a beautiful relationship," Suman said earnestly
"We definitely can, I promise you Sumo, to give you a life of luxuries,"
"Umm, Aaryan, I wanted to ask you something..."
"Yes?"
"I own and run a restaurant, Priraj, I know the profit it makes is nothing compared to your company or anything, but cooking is the way I express myself. I have worked day and night to take this restaurant to where it is today. I would like to continue to work and take my restaurant to greater heights,"
"Suman, I am really proud of you, but my parents wouldn't be too happy if their daughter-in-law worked and I don't know if I can allow you to work,"
"Please, I need to do this for my parents, it's the only thing that keeps me connected to them. I don't even need your company to invest in my business, I didn't start it for the money, I started it in memory of my parents,"
"Okay, if it means so much to you, I will allow you to continue to work, but I have two conditions, my company will never invest in Priraj, and secondly, you will not go to work on the days that my mother might need your help with housework, if you aren't able to balance work and the house, you will have to get someone else to takeover," He said in an authoritative tone
"I agree to your conditions," She agreed in a small voice.
Aaryan and Suman came out of the room and sat back down with their family. Both families continued to chat, and decided that Suman and Aaryan can have a day to make their decision. After cleaning up and bidding her family a goodnight Suman retired to her room. Aaryan Singhania; the name on her mind. He seemed perfect for her but she knew for one that her independence bothered him and that if she went into that household, it would be a matter of time that'll she'll be asked or rather forced to quit her job. They made it clear, they wanted a housewife, but her restaurant was everything to her. It was her identity and a way to commemorate her parents. She wasn't going to let it go easily. She wanted to reject him, but she knew, she had no choice. She decided message Shravan before she called it a night...
"Shravan, I'm getting married"
***
I hope it was up to your expectations. Please like and comment, I'll try to make the next update as soon as possible and I hope you all have a very nice week ahead and keep those OSs coming I'm enjoying each and every one of them!!
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