Chapter 4
(For Tessa) She woke up in hospital with a pounding headache. She saw Yash, Aaman and Mansi sitting worriedly around her. She attempted to lift her head and immediately fell back, feeling dizzy.
"Aarti" they said almost in unison.
"Aarti, how are you feeling" asked Mansi.
"Ok, I suppose. I will feel better if I can lift my head."
"I'm so sorry. Aarti. I should never have let you continue living there. Look what they did to you. It's all my fault" Aaman was in tears.
"Aaman, it's not your fault that my family is abusive. And I am not your responsibility. Look at me at me now, well not literally now, but look at what I have achieved in my life so far. Despite everything they did, I am educated and I have my dream job. And that was all you. Everything good in my life was all you. The only love I knew was all you. Please promise me you won't blame yourself for this and please don't even try and sacrifice yourself for me like you did earlier. You will only marry Mansi, do you hear me!" she said sternly.
He could not utter a word as he was still so overcome with emotion and tears still streaming down his face.
"And Mansi, please look after him for me. Else I don't what he will get up to next."
"I will" she said. "But Aarti, you can't leave things like this. You have to take action against them.
"No, Mansi. Leave them. This will be the last time that they have a chance to abuse me. And Karma is a you know what. I am will never go back there."
"I love you Aarti" Mansi said and hugged her. But it was too painful.
Up until then Yash didn't say anything. He just stood there. He wasn't even looking at her.
"I have to go" he said. "Will you stay with her Aaman. Please don't leave her alone"
"Of course"
"Yash" she said but he didn't acknowledge her, he just left.
She had slight concussion and bruised ribs, not to mention the swelling and discoloration of her face. She was to stay in hospital for a few more days. She could not move around much, he body was too sore.
After she passed out, Yash had picked her up and started to carry her out the door.
"Yash, where are you going? You can't just leave like that. It is your engagement." his father said
"I'm taking Aarti to the hospital. Please make my apologies to Arpita, her family and all the guests." and he left.
Now he would be seeing his parents for the first time after "the incident".
He walked in the door and they were all sitting in the lounge.
"Yash, finally!" his mother said.
"Yash, you walked out on your engagement, after announcing that you are marrying that girl. I hope you have come to your senses by now. The Guptas are still prepared to let Arpita marry you, even after you humiliated her like that."
"Bauji, please I meant every word that I said. I am marrying Aarti. I will go to Mr Gupta and apologise to him and Arpita. But my decision has been made."
"Yash, you are not thinking clearly!" his mother said.
"Yes, mother, I am. You talk about Arpita's humiliation. What about Arti's? She was beaten and brought before everyone here, being accused of things that she is not guilty of. And because of me. I was implicated with her and I have to make it right. And just so you know, I am in love with her. I've been in love with her for long time and she didn't want me so I settled for Arpita. So I am not walking away from her again. We were meant to be together and this is not the way it was supposed to have happened but it is clearly our fate."
"Yash, she is not of our status. She won't fit in."
"She can fit in Ma, if you allow her to. If she doesn't, then we will live somewhere else. We don't have to live at home with you. You can be part of my life or not, that is entirely up to you. I really hope that you choose to be with me because I would be lost without you, but even so, I won't give Aarti up."
"Yash, you are willing to give up your family and home for this girl? Have you gone mad? Have you even thought for a moment what Arpita is going through?"
"I haven't been thinking about anything else, Bauji. I will face her family and I know there is nothing I can do to make up for it, I will explain everything. That is my last word on it.
Aarti was discharged and went to stay at Mansi's house. She didn't see Yash again since he left the hospital. She was desperate to see him. She wanted to tell him not to call off his wedding with Arpita. She knew from what Aaman said that he still intended to marry her.
She was feeling stronger and better every day. It was her second day at Mansi's house when Arpita came to visit. She was glad because she wanted to explain everything to her and that she was not going to marry Yash.
"Arpita, I'm so glad you came. I'm so sorry that you're engagement was ruined because of me. I never thought that my uncle would do something like that."
The look on Arpita's face astounded her.
"You can fool Yash and Arpita and Aaman. But you can't fool me. I know exactly the kind of person you are. I know you planned all this to steal my man!"
"Arpita" both Mansi and Aarti said in shock.
"Don't Arpita me. I know you always wanted him. You are exactly what your uncle said. You are a little s**t. You staged it all so that you could have Yash. After all I have done for you. I befriended you, you low class b***h when no one would touch you poor ass with a stick when we were at school and this is the thanks I get."
"Arpita, you know that's not true. Do you really think that I would allow myself to get beaten up like this just to get Yash. Please, I love you, I would never do anything to hurt you."
"Love? Love? What does a bas***d know about love? Your mother was cheap like you and that is probably why your father didn't want to marry her.
"Arpita, not another word about my mother. I can forgive you anything, but not that!"
"What are you going to do?"
"Stop it Arpita" Mansi said.
"You think I don't know what happened that night that we met Yash. Do you think I don't know where you were when you pretended to be sick? You were with him. From that first night, you threw yourself at him. And that night you spent with him. Try and deny it?"
"Arpita, you knew?"
"Of course I knew. And that is why I told you how I felt first before you could tell us about your night. You are so pathetic and so desperate for my approval and my friendship that you gave him up. You played right into my hands."
"You knew" Aarti said again softly.
"You manipulative b****h" Mansi said and she wanted to go for Arpita.
"No Mansi", Aarti, held her arm and she continued.
"Arpita, if you knew about that night, then you must surely realise that he came after me. He came after me when I was outside and asked me to dance. He came after me when I left. I tried to get away from him and that was why I left. He followed me. How could you do that Arpita. How could you manipulate the situation to your advantage like that when you knew that we were interested in each other? I thought we were friends."
"Friends. Yes, it suited me to have low class friends. You people are so much easier to manipulate than my own class."
"I suppose you are right. We are easy to manipulate because we have values and morals, we value things because it doesn't come easy to us. We have to work for it. So now you have one all of this and you have still lost. I fell in love with Yash that night and he with me. Do you know he asked me to marry that very first night, but I stepped back for you. I thought he would be happier with you, that you two were a better fit. And you let me believe that I was right. So now tell me Arpita, tell me how it feels to know that you lost to the bas***d daughter of a poor family with no status. How does it feel to know that Yash fell in love with me the first day we met? How does it feel to know that after 5 years, despite your manipulation and scheming, he still loves me and wants to marry me? You are the one who is pathetic. Running and scheming for a man that doesn't love you and doesn't want you."
"You b****h," Arpita screamed and advanced towards Aarti, but suddenly her arm was held from the back. No one had noticed that Yash and Aaman had entered the bedroom.
"Yash, did you hear how this low class thing is speaking to me. She is manipulating you. She always wanted you and now she has finally found a way to make you hers. Yash, don't fall for her tricks. Please."
"Arpita, I heard everything. EVERYTHING. Because of our past relationship I will let go that you raised a hand to my wife. And if you try to do anything to stop this marriage or to harm Aarti, I will ruin not only you but your entire family and you know I can and will do it. Now leave before I change my mind. Aaman, please see her out."
"My pleasure" he said. And Mansi followed them.
Yash and Aarti stared at each other.
"How are you Aarti?"
"Fine."
"I've come to tell you that the wedding will take place as soon as you are well enough and you face has healed. I'm sure you don't want to have wedding pictures with your face bruised and swollen."
"Yash, you don't have to do this. I will be ok."
"Dammit Aarti, we are getting married and that's it. I won't accept any more excuse from you."
"Your parents? Surely they are not happy with this. I have no dowry."
"Anything else?"
"What?"
"Any more excuses you'd like to give."
"Prashant..." she said
Edited by B-onesie - 9 years ago
Advocate Anjali Awasthi
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