A/N-Sequel to Her Champion.Dedicated to shankythebest with a huge thanks for the lovely comments and with the hope that this is what she requested.Apologies in advance though as this is not exactly my best work
The Lake City
"Where are we going?" she asked, confused as he made his way to the main doors rather than up the staircase and to her waiting bed
He didn't reply. She sighed. He hadn't said a word after picking her up in his arms and sending those boys to their room. She could practically feel the rage coming off him , his whole body held tense and tight, his face looking like thunder
"I'm sorry" she mumbled
He didn't respond
"I'm Sorry" she repeated ,louder this time
His only response was to dump her unceremoniously on to the back seat of his bike knocking the wind out of her. Unfortunately for her, he was too angry to care and had already turned his back on her and was currently searching for his helmet
She sat up cautiously once she found her breath and stared at him. He looked at her grimly for a second before strapping on his helmet and climbing on to the motorcycle
"Hold on tight" he said curtly before revving up the accelerator suddenly. She clung on for dear life as the bike seemed to fly out of the Shekhars's driveway and into the empty road before them
She brought out her two arms which had gotten tangled up in the fabric swathing her and slowly wrapped them around his body. She would never admit it, but even now , when he was driving at what seemed be light speed , and there was a good chance that they would both end up in body bags by tomorrow, she loved this
She had always been terrified of vehicles. Ever since her esteemed ex-husband had due to the sweetness of his nature tied her to his jeep and drove around the village dragging her behind him. His idea of humour it had been. All she remembered was the heat and the painful scrape of the ground against her cheek and the smell of her blood when she had finally collapsed, exhausted.
But from the very first day the man in front of her had asked to climb up behind him she had loved this sensation. Feeling the air rushing past her face, ruffling her hair, clinging to the very solid warm body of the one man in the world who had always kept her safe ever since he had come into her life, having his beloved familiar unique scent wash over her didn't just make her happy. It made her ecstatic
She sighed blissfully and buried her face in his back. He didn't say a word but she felt his stiff posture slowly relax and that was acknowledgement enough for her. Happily she turned her head to one side and watched the world flash by
Udaipur was beautiful, she thought. She had heard people wax lyrical about the Lake City, as it was called, but seeing was so much better than hearing, she was fast coming to realize. The light from the lamp posts shone down on them benignly as they sped through the deserted roads . It was a cool night with a soft breeze, a perfect night for a drive like this. She snuggled closer to her Dr.Saab and proceeded to enjoy the sights
All too soon, the bike came to a halt. She lifted her head grudgingly but before she could protest , the caveman in front of her had swept her into his arms again and was making his way to God knows where. She let her head fall back and suppressed a groan. Honestly, what was it with men and their need to take charge? Chivalry was lovely but a little common sense was better in her opinion. They were going up a rocky steep path from what she could make out and she had an uneasy suspicion that going up like this would end with both of them on their backs. And not by choice
Thankfully they reached his mysterious destination without any mishap. He finally looked at her and said
"Close your eyes"
She blinked. The man ignores her for about an hour and now his first words to her are to close her eyes? Mentally rolling them, she obediently closed her eyes. He slowly set her down on the grass, taking especial care of her strained hand, and after adjusting the folds of her skirt said
"Now Open"
She did as he said
For a long moment she didn't make a sound. Then a tiny intake of breath escaped her as her eyes greedily took in the scene before her
She was staring at a building she vaguely remembered having seen in one of her textbooks. A building which looked as if it was made entirely of lights, glimmering ,flickering golden lights which cast shadows over and threw into prominence the great arched halls and passages of the enormous palace which seemed to rise out of the water in which it stood. About 50 feet of water separated her from this glowing home of greats, water which quivered in and reflected back the light falling on it. Water which trembled and shuddered like a living thing, with the image of the golden column of lights lurking in its depths
Ganga had never seen anything so unutterably beautiful
Nothing she had ever seen and heard of this place, the Great Lake Palace could possibly compare to the sight she was seeing now. Nothing . In this moment, in this place she finally understand why so many kings had sacrificed entire armies and their lives to protect this building and all that it stood for. Nothing and nobody should ever defile it. Never
A couple of familiar arms suddenly encircled her and a handkerchief was raised to her face. She realized with mild surprise that she had been crying. She assisted the hand holding the handkerchief in wiping away her tears before smiling tenderly up into the eyes of the owner of the hands
"Thank You" her voice wobbled dangerously
He smiled down at her and then adjusted her position so that she was now sitting tucked up in his lap, as he leaned back against a tree trunk, his legs stretched out, his arms encircling her from behind.
"I thought you would like it" he said softly
"I do. A Lot" she choked out
He tightened his grip around her and they both enjoyed the scene in front of them in silence. After a minute he cleared his throat
" I found this place when I came here on a trip with my friends 3 yrs back" he said in a reminiscent voice
" Since then I have come here every time I came to Udaipur but each time...each time I experience the same feelings of awe and disbelief when I see it. It humbles me, so much beauty..."
She understood what he meant. She didn't think she could ever get used to this, even if she came here a 100 times
" I wanted to bring you here the very day we came to Udaipur. But your busy social life didn't give me many opportunities" he teased her
Ganga frowned and punched him gently
"Fine , I was an idiot. I was trying to rise up to your level and I ended making a complete fool of myself" she said
His chuckles suddenly stopped. Slowly he tilted his head so he could face her
"What do you mean you were trying to rise to my level?" he asked , his voice and face unreadable
She stared at him blankly. She had thought that statement was perfectly self-explanatory herself
"Well, I am not exactly the bride you fantasied of , am I? We both know the reason you agreed to this marriage was because you didn't want to disappoint your family. But I am not an idiot to believe that given a choice Dr Saab, you would have picked an illiterate gawar village girl whose life ends and begins in her small town for a wife" Ganga shrugged matter of factly as she said this , trying to ignore the pain she felt at hearing herself spell out the bitter truth
He still stared at her, his face not giving a clue what he was thinking, his eyes boring into her. She shifted uncomfortably
"You think I don't care for you?" he asked
She hastened to correct him
"No, No I know you care and like me and that you sympathise for me. I have always known that you are a good man who cares for people who depend on him Dr.Saab" the words rushed out of her. She would not have him think of himself as an uncaring emotionless individual
He sighed at that. Then slowly, enunciating each word carefully , as if he was speaking to a child he said
" Ganga, I am not a good man. No, let me finish" he said stalling her hot interruption at that. She would defend him against himself too, if she had to, with her dying breath
"I admit I've been trying to be one, atoning for my past mistakes, trying to be a better person. But I am afraid I haven't reached that stage yet where I would agree to marriage with a girl I sympathise for just to please my family" he said , his voice growing amused
She stared at him. And stared. And stared. And finally managed to get her jaws to work enough so that they could force out the question that was currently dominating her brain
"Why did you agree to marry me then?"
He sighed again, this time half amused, half resigned before saying
"Because I love you, of course"
She gaped at him, her mouth opening and closing like a fish. He saw the giant question mark on her face and continued
"Not because I pity you or admire you. I did pity you for your sufferings and admire you for your courage Ganga. But I didn't fall in love with you because of that" he said
" I love you because you are the first woman I've seen who openly enjoys SpongeBob. I love you for your determination to restart your studies and make something of yourself. I love you because despite having given birth at a very young age, you still managed to become the best mother I've ever seen. I love you because you love to climb trees and you are damn good at it. I love you for your offkey singing when you think no one else is looking and your secret craving for spiced mangoes. I love you because you are the fiercest, sweetest most adorable little woman in the world and you are all mine. You are my Ganga and you are a million times better than any highly educated, sophisticated woman. A million times better than what I deserve"
She stared at him, tears clouding her vision. He had said everything she had ever dreamed of hearing from him and right now all she could do was cry. Pathetic
" I know I am not the best choice for you and that's the understatement of the century. What I have done in the past makes me unfit to be a partner for any woman, least of all for you. But I can't stay away from you, God knows I've tried , so for better or worse you are stuck with me darling and I'm sorry for it" he whispered
She opened her mouth to protest and closed it again. After all she had a whole lifetime with him to correct his skewed perception of himself.
But right now she would lean back into his arms and enjoy her first taste of The Lake City. Years later she would remember happily of how this magical city and it's lakes had removed the last barrier between her and her adored husband and she had finally heard the one sentence that she would treasure forever in her heart
"Because I love you, of course"
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