Posted:
DISCLAIMER: I am not exactly famous for completing my FF's😆 so this SS will be max 4-5 parts and I'll try to finish it as quickly as possible so sorry if i flood you with pm's.😆
Index
part 1, pg 1
part 2, pg 5
part 3, pg 9
part 4, pg 12
part 5, pg 15
part 6, pg 17
part 7, pg 20
In the Closet
It had begun with a letter, an emotional entreaty from an emotional mother begging her elder daughter to come back to her home. And now it ended with Raajkumari Maanyata Singh finally returning to India after spending 16 years in London.
At first, Maanyata had been adamant on staying put in Oxford until she completed her management degree. Even now that she had finally succumbed to her mother Komal's relentless emotional blackmail, she was determined to spend a maximum of two months at the royal palace in Mumbai before going to IIM-A to do her post-graduation.
Even though she was 21 years old, Maanyata looked like a child, innocent and full of fresh hopes and dreams. Staying in London, however, had got rid of all her childhood baby fat as the spicy, fattening curries were replaced by bland dormitory food. Even then, one could see glimpses of the 5 year old rosy-cheeked girl she had been, the country's darling, much like 'Beti B' of current times.
As she looked out of her car and at the skyscrapers, street side stalls and garbage heaps, she felt a little heartache flare up in her chest. God only knew how much she had missed the city, even though she remembered very little of it. Maanyata's relationship with the place where she had been born was much like her relationship with her royal family-a love/hate relationship, full of misgivings as well as immeasurable affection.
Finally the car pulled up by the palace, its walls freshly whitewashed and spotless, even after bearing the brunt of the city's polluted air. As she had expected, a crowd of journalists was camped out by the gate, their cameras clicking away even though she hadn't even got out of the car. Even though she couldn't hear what the news reporters was saying, she could very well imagine her monotonous speech in her mind: After 16 years, Raajkumari Maanyata of the Devgarh royal family returns...after the incident that shattered her family years ago, the young princess had been exiled to London...however she can no longer resist the pull of her country. How does Raajkumari Maanyata look after 16 years? To find out, stay tuned to...
"Move away people!" someone shouted. Maanyata's heart skipped a beat, for it was a voice which she recognized well, and which she had often encountered in London.
The driver opened the door and bowed in respect as she stepped out. She instantly closed her eyes to shield them from the flash of the cameras. A warm, rough hand gently grasped her wrist and pulled her away from the intimidating mob into the protective shade of the doorway. Maanyata opened her eyes, and the hand let go.
"Hello Princess." Maanyata felt a slight swoosh in her stomach. Yuuvraaj Udayveer Singh, the prince of Jaigarh, and her childhood best friend, smiled at her, his aviators tucked into his shirt so that she could look into those chocolate brown eyes that were a burning hazel in the light of the sun.
The last time they'd met had been three years ago, Uday having completed his degree at Oxford, and Maanyata having just started her term. Uday, just like her, had preferred to continue his studies in India, though his reasons had been different- his father Maharaj Giriraj had been facing certain problems in his hotel business, and hence Uday had been forced to leave England early.
Even then, they had been the way they were now-physically less than one metre apart, mentally, even more so. There had been a time when they had been inseparable, and no article about Maanyata was complete without a mention of 'her naughty friend' Udayveer. Not to mention that their families had planned to get them married in the future, and even conducted a roka for the same.
But then, things had changed. Both of them had flown off to England, albeit to different boarding schools, and both of them had developed different interests in life. Udayveer had chosen to progress exactly the way his parents had wanted-into the perfect prince, intelligent, handsome and popular. But Maanyata had always been, well, different.
There were times when both of them happened to meet at farmhouse parties or at pubs and discotheques, and each time, both of them preferred to hang out in different groups. If Udayveer had preferred to stay with the swish set, the sons of whisky barons and the daughters of movie stars, Maanyata had preferred the artsy and intellectual types. At first it had been just a social schism-but now, it had reached a point where Maanyata couldn't be sure this was the boy she had learnt swordfighting with.
Even then, Maanyata could see a hidden fondness for her within his eyes, especially in the way he touched her, as if she were some extremely fragile object. It was this which had irritated her the most about him, and she could feel a familiar surge of irritation as he stroked her hair.
"Wait here," he said. "Komal Aunty is coming here with the aarti."
Maanyata fidgeted nervously on the doorstep, trying not to think about what would happen if the journalists managed to break through the barricade of security guards outside. They were still there, pushing and fighting like a horde of animals wanting to see their newly-crowned lion king, except that she was only a princess. She kind of pitied them for being so interested in someone who had done nothing more than wear a tiara once for her naming ceremony.
But then, it's not just your "princess tag" something spiteful inside her reminded.There's something else about you Maanyata, something else that they will never forget.
"Maanyata?" Komal called out, her voice choked with emotion. Inspite of herself, Maanyata felt tears prick her eyes as her mother stepped forward with the aarti. She silently rotated the thali and then applied tika on Maanyata's forehead. Maanyata instinctively reached out to touch her mother's feet, but Komal immediately stopped her, and hugged her instead. Maanyata burrowed her head in Komal's embrace, wondering how could she have been cruel enough to resist her mother's arms for almost two decades.
Maanyata looked behind her, and there, aligned like school kids waiting for lunch, were the other faces of her family. Her paternal aunt Menaka, her favorite red lipstick making her look every inch the drama queen that she was. Her cousin Vijay, his hair neatly gelled back, darting uncomfortable glances at the ceiling. Jainandini, her younger sister, a fake smile plastered on her face. And finally her father Brijraj, a stern expression on his face, and her beloved Dadisa, with benevolence and wisdom shining in her eyes.
Blatantly ignoring the first three, she immediately went and touched Dadisa's feet first, and then Brijraj's, who let out an uncomfortable laugh. That was what they all are feeling, she realized, uncomfortable. With the exception of Komal and Dadisa, no one really seemed that happy she was back. If anything, they were behaving like she was a two-headed alien who had landed on Earth for the first time.
Still, stifling her urge to say something that would inevitably get her into trouble, Maanyata offered stiff hugs to all of them. Only Dadisa hugged back tightly, the rest preferring to say a cliched "Welcome Back" and then stepping back into their assigned places.
She sighed as she scanned her family members. Now is the time, she thought. Udayveer seemed to have disappeared somewhere, which made it inconvenient for her to make her announcement. She took a deep breath, trying to recall the things she had learnt about keeping calm in yoga classes. Say it slowly, but firmly, she thought. Don't say it too happily, or too hastily. Keep a sober face.
"Maanyata, who's this?" Udayveer's voice came sharply from behind.
All of Maanyata's self-advice froze in her throat as she turned around and looked at the person Udayveer had called "this". She was aware of her family's curious glances burning into her back, and she immediately knew that this was the time.
"Maanyata, I'm sorry, I know you told me to wait, but this guy here...," the new arrival said, a guilty expression on his face.
"It's okay," she breathed. She turned around to face her family. "Okay everyone. So this might give you a bit of a shock, but anyway, I did intend to surprise you'll. This is Aakash-my boyfriend."
---
Preview of 2nd part: "I have no problems with your relationship Maanyata," he said softly, his face turned towards the night sky. "But it's just that, does your boyfriend really know you?"
"Of course he does," she said indignantly.
"And what about your past?" he asked, turning around to look at her, so that the full impact of his words hit her in the face. "Does he know about that?"
please press like button if you liked this and notify me if you DON'T want any PM's.😆
Current Affairs
Ye Hai Mohabbatein
