Saving her (one-shot)
Uday walked into the awards ceremony, his eyes cooly observing the decorations, and the people dressed in all designer clothes, chit-chatting and flirting around.
His hand was behind Manyata's back, although it wasn't touching her, since she had glared at him the first time he had. Everyone in her house had pleaded with her to wear a dress, but she had chosen to stick with a silver sari, her hair falling past her shoulders, kohl adorning her eyes, and minimal make-up on her face.
Uday kept glancing at her every now and then, taking in her simple attire, yet he could not describe the magnetic pull he felt towards her. Her eyes widened as she took in all the decorations, and her mouth opened partially, taking in a sharp breath.
Uday's eyes fell on her lips, and he smirked. He couldn't wait till she would let him near her, till he could kiss those small lips, bring a small smile to her, watch her face fill with love for him. Not the Majnu. Just him. Just Udaybeer.
"Arey wah Uday. You all really know how to waste money, don't you?" Manyata said, not bothering to whisper it to him, garnering a few curious glances thrown their way.
Uday didn't feel embarrassed though. His smirk intensified at the attention she was getting. "What can I say Princess. We live in luxury"
"More like stupidity" Manyata rolled her eyes, as her eyes continued to take in the decorations. Uday guided them inside, careful not to touch her in any way, in case she snapped and threw insults at him. He had a reputation to uphold in the public eye.
He saw as the men in the room focussed on her, and his eyes conveyed every bit of warning to them, his lips pursing together in anger. She was his fiancee.
Manyata, however, seemed completely oblivious to the attention she was getting.
Gracefully she walked to their table and ungracefully plonked herself on the chair.
Uday shook his head in amusement. Only her. She was the only one he knew, that could do such things, and completely get away with it.
Walking towards the table, to sit next to her, Uday took in what she was wearing once more. And the simplicity, the modesty with which she had draped it around her made her more appealing than any woman in the function room.
It was then that Uday realised that he had been here for 15 minutes, and not once had he looked at any woman, other than the princess sitting next to him.
********
Uday continued to politely talk to the woman in front of him, who was wearing a dress a bit too short for her, showing a bit too much leg, and a bit too much cleavage. He smirked, as she laughed at something he said, casually putting a hand on his bicep and giving it a small squeeze.
To anyone walking past, it would have seemed like a harmless, friendly gesture. But the woman's eyes glinted with something more, and Uday smirked at that. He was used to getting attention from women, and usually he did nothing to stop it ' rather he encouraged it. But today, his eyes kept wandering about every now and then looking for Manyata.
He had promised Dadisa that he would not let her out of his sight. But sometime during the award ceremony, and when he was on stage, she had wandered away somewhere.
He had tried looking for her, but every now and then, ladies pulled him over to have a chat. He would politely end the conversation, and be on his way to look for her, when another woman would pull him over.
The lady standing in front of him presently, was at least 10 years older to him, and was married. Uday's mind reeled with frustration when his eyes could not spot the princess in the silver sari.
"Oh Uday! You are so funny" The lady giggled, leaning in close, and resting her hand on his arm once more.
"Thank you Rajkumari Ankita. If you'll excuse me, I need to look for my fiance. Do give my greetings to you husband, Rajkumar Varun" Uday said, losing a bit of the politeness he had maintained during the night, as the frustration started eating him away as to where Manyata was.
Surely she wouldn't have abandoned him and the party? With Manyata you never knew.
His eyes carefully scanned the crowd, narrowing at every woman in the party, yet he could not find her.
Taking out his phone, he dialed her, hoping she would pick up. But it went to her voicemail.
You did not do the right thing Manyata Uday thought angrily, as he started walking around, looking for her.
********
Uday had checked every nook and corner of the function room, yet he could not spot her. He had asked the waiters, the bartenders, the waitresses, thinking that she might have decided to spend the night chatting to them; yet no one had seen her.
Uday ran a hand through his hair in frustration. Worry was starting to eat at him, as the worst case scenarios started playing through his mind.
If she was with the Majnu presently? Uday grimaced at the thought, and his hand clenched up into a fist. She better not. If she knew what was best for Akaash, she would stay away from him.
Uday was close to calling up Dadisa, and telling her that he had failed. He could almost imagine the disappointment in her voice when she would get the news.
Uday flinched at that, and waited a few more minutes, staring at his phone, hoping Manyata would call him. But she did not.
Taking in a deep breath, Uday tried focussing. Where could she be? Only one answer came to his mind. The Chawl.
Uday quickly went towards the entrance of the hall, and picked up the keys from the reception. He ignored the people asking him where he was going.
Only one person was occupying his mind ' Manyata.
He was going to find her, and bring her back home. He would punish her, surely. But first he needed to find her, and put his mind at ease.
He hated to admit it, but he was scared. Scared that something had happened to her. He could not shake the feeling away, and his hand twitched with nervousness.
Running outside, Uday was greeted with the cool air of january.
Had Manyata walked in such freezing weather? Anger took over him again. How could she be so careless? She could fall ill!
And if she had taken an auto? She was a Princess! She was meant to travel in cars, planes. Not Autos or trains.
Running a hand through his hair once more, Uday waited for the valet to bring his car.
Why was it taking so much time?
As he was waiting he heard someone give a grunt, and then a hiss. Frowning, Uday slowly walked closer towards the noise. It was coming from the side of the building, and it was completely dark except for the moon's light that was lightly illuminating the area.
And then he heard something that chilled his insides with fear, made him want to dance in joy with relief yet shout in fury with what he was hearing.
"Abey saale. Let me go!"
Uday quickly turned the corner, and what he saw froze him in his tracks.
Manyata was pressed against the wall, her arms held above her head by the person in front of her, as he tried to kiss her.
Manyata was struggling with all her might, twisting her head back and forth, not allowing him to come too close, her body kept struggling, and the stranger kept pushing her back into the wall with his body.
Mine Uday's mind screamed. Anger was coursing through his veins, making his hands curl up in fists, as he ran towards Manyata.
Grabbing the stranger by the shoulder, he put in all his weight, into pushing him off Manyata.
Manyata let out a gasp as she was released, and Uday came to stand in front of her, his back facing her, as he glared at the man stumbling to find his balance.
He didn't want Manyata to look at the cold hatred on his face. He wasn't sure how scary he looked, and he didn't want to upset Manyata any more than she already was.
He felt a surge of protectiveness wash over him, as the stranger stood up, and looked at Uday, and then Manyata.
"Don't you f**king look at her" Uday hissed, and his arm went behind him, to pull Manyata securely behind him, and away from the stranger's eyes. Manyata obeyed and stepped closer to Uday, her hand coming to rest on his shoulder, as she put her forehead on his back, and he felt some drops soaking into his shirt. She was crying.
He wanted to kill this man.
"R-Rajkumar" The guy stuttered as he looked down, his body shaking in fear. Uday's muscles flexed as he got ready to have a go at the stranger in front of him. He could smell the stench of alcohol till where he was standing, and the stranger kept swaying from side to side.
"How dare you?!" Uday hissed, as he made a move to punch him in the face, but Manyata's hand held onto his arm, not allowing him to complete the action.
Uday briefly looked over his shoulder, and he saw as Manyata looked at him with tears in her eyes and she slowly shook her head. A helpless feeling took over him.
He slowly lowered his arm, and nodded his head to let her know that he won't beat him up.
Manyata let go of his arm, and Uday grabbed the stranger by the collar of his shirt, and pushed him against the wall. His grip tightened on the collar, and he glared at the stranger, his nostrils flaring in anger, his muscles tense, and his jaw clenched tight.
"You will leave Mumbai. If you ever step foot in here again, I will hunt you down, and not spare you. Do you understand me?" Uday hissed. He had recognised that the uniform worn by the stranger belonged to the people working in the hotel, which meant he was part of the staff.
It won't take Uday even a day to find out all his personal details.
Despite the inebriated state, the stranger nodded fearfully, as he tried to pry Uday's hands off his collar. Uday briefly tightened his grip and pushed him forcefully against the wall, banging the stranger's head against the wall in the process.
The stranger let out a cry of pain, and Uday felt a small sense of relief of causing him some pain. He wanted to do more damage, but Manyata's tear-filled eyes took over his mind, and he slowly let go of the stranger.
The anger had yet to dissipate, and Uday took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. Grabbing Manyata by the elbow, he briskly took her away from there, and to the car that had been waiting for them at the entrance.
Sitting in the car, he took a few more breaths to calm himself down, as he closed his eyes so Manyata would not see the anger that was still blazing in them.
His eyes slowly opened as he felt a soft hand rest upon his. Looking to the side, he saw Manyata looking at him with her big eyes, a small smile on her face as she stared at him with gratitude.
"Thank you" She whispered. Uday nodded, put his hand upon hers, and thanked his stars for not letting anything happen to his princess.
As for the stranger. He would deal with him later. Manyata did not need to know the gruesome details. But no one touched Manyata and got away with it. No one.
I hope you liked it!
Please, please like/comment if you did!
~Sweety
Kabhi Neem Neem Kabhi Shahad Shahad
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