Hello friends,
As always, many thanks to all who read and comment.
Part 8
Swara awoke to the most pleasant sound of Ragini singing the aarti. This was such a wonderful start to the day and she had been starting her day like this practically her whole adult life. She felt a smile come to her face as she slowly opened her eyes; however Sanskaar's smiling face made her freeze for a moment.
It took a few seconds to recall that she had insisted that Sanskaar and her share the bed since the guest room was no longer an option and the couch simply too small to accommodate her tall spouse.
Sanskaar, honourable and trustworthy Sanskaar had of course vehemently refused. It had taken a lot of pleading to convince him that she was comfortable with his presence in this proximity.
The man in question sat up and stretched languidly, his night shirt riding up a few inches. Swara glimpsed lightly muscled abs and felt a pang of desire shoot through her.
The sensation startled her for a moment. What the hell? Did she really? But he was Sanskaar.
Your husband...' an errant voice whispered in her mind. No harm in desiring your husband'.
Sanskaar glanced over and noticed that she too was awake. "Good morning," H greeted in that low, gruff voice of his. The voice sent another delicious tingle down her spine.
Swara abruptly sat up and slid out of bed to stop the progression of her deviant thoughts.
"Are you alright Swara?" She could hear the confusion in Sanskaar's voice.
"Uhhh... yeah." She pulled some clothes out of the closet and racked her brain for some kind of an explanation for her behaviour. "I-I-umm-I actually overslept. I should be downstairs with Ragini, Mom and Badi Maa."
Lame. That was so lame. She chided herself in the washroom.
The men had all just left for work and Swara was heading back into her room when she was stopped by Lakshya.
He cut right to the chase. "Why are you ignoring me?"
"I'm not ignoring you." She tried to walk past him but was stopped by his arm blocking the doorway. "Yeh kya badtameezi hai Lakshya?"
"Badtameezi? Ab tumhe yeh sab badtameezi lagti hai Swara? Where is that Swara that loved me so much she fought the world for our love?"
"That Swara died the day you refused to trust her word." She deadpanned, tired of having this same discussion with him.
Lakshya ran his fingers through his hair in a clearly frustrated gesture. "You won't even give me a chance to explain my actions! It was your sister the manipulated me. She is the real culprit, and yet you've taken her back."
"Don't drag Ragini into this Lakshya. No matter what she or anyone did, you should have trusted me. There were so many instances where I could have explained the story, but you refused to listen each and every time." She could see him gearing up to defend himself and held up a hand to stall his attempt. "The explanations shouldn't even be needed. You should have taken my word for it. When you love someone, you trust them, no matter what."
"And I am really sorry about that Swara." He whined. "I will never let it happen again. I know better now."
"It's too late Lakshya. Too much has happened. You are my sister's husband. And I am married to your brother."
Lakshya scoffed at this. "Soon I am going to be free of your damned sister. And don't for a moment pretend that you're with Sanskaar for any reason other than getting back at me. You've made your point Swara, but stop all this now." He encased her hand in an iron grip and pulled it to his chest. "Mujhe dard hota hai tum dono ko saath dekh kar."
"Choro mujhe!" Swara yanked her arm out of his hold. "The world does not revolve around you Lakshya. You might think that I married Sanskaar to spite you, but no, I only did so to expose Ragini so Maa and Baba could get back together. And just like that, I am back here with Sanskaar because he is my dearest friend and this relationship deserves a chance. I lost interest in anything to do with you the day you married Ragini, and everything I have done since has been for the sake of my loved ones, not you." She spat out the last words in disgust.
Swara ducked under his arm and slammed her door shut in his face. She rested her back against the shut door and took a deep breath. That had been their ugliest confrontation to date. She hoped it didn't get much worse than this. She hoped that he would just give up this silly notion of them getting together again, but that seemed to be asking too much when it came to pig-headed Lakshya.
Ragini watched the scene play out in horror, frozen in her spot behind the pillar.
She had pinched herself once just to make sure she wasn't dreaming. But no, it seemed like her sister and her husband were arguing, and she seemed to be the cause of it.
Had she actually... could she be despicable enough that she had actually stolen her sister's love?
What was wrong with her? What kind of sick person does that?
Was that why everyone hated me? Now she actually dreaded the answer to that question. Was that the extent of her actions, or had she actually gone and done something worse than this?
Ragini saw Swara slamming the door on the Man in Blue, but he was persistent, it seemed.
"Tum kuch bhi kaho, kuch bhi karo Swara, I will make you give me a chance. I will not let Sanskaar win so easily." He promised out loud. Then he stalked towards his own room and she heard that door bang shut.
Ragini made her way over to her room in a daze. What had happened in these 6 months? How could she unravel this complicated mess? To what extent had she played a part in all this?
Just thinking about it gave her an intense headache.
She paced her room rapidly and went over the conversation she had overheard again and again.
So she decided to keep track of new information that she had received. She pulled out a notebook and started to make a list.
- Lakshya loves Swara and Swara claims not to love him anymore.
- I am responsible for Lakshya and my marriage.
- I did something bad to make Swara look bad.
- Sanskaar supported Swara, they didn't marry for love.
- Maa and Baba almost broke up (because of me?).
- I needed to be exposed because I lied and manipulated.
I will figure out what happened in the past. Ragini vowed to herself. I will find out what I did and I will right any wrongs.
If Swara still loved Lakshya then she would help bring them together. If Swara wanted be with Sanskaar then she wouldn't let Lakshya stand in their way. She would do anything she could to bring happiness to her sister's life, because it seemed she was the cause of a lot of pain. She would do right by her husband. It seemed she had caused him grief and pain too.
With that resolve Ragini put the notebook away in her nightstand.
Swara absently sorted through the outfits in her wardrobe. She was still jarred by the confrontation earlier today and only had half a mind on her task, the other half mind speeding a mile a minute about the current mess of a situation.
Was it wrong of her to be here with Sanskaar? She could imagine how it might be hurting Lakshya and how it might look like an attempt at petty revenge. Maybe she was just worsening the situation rather than resolving it. What was she thinking? How could she be so selfish? Did she really think that she could start a happy new life while her ex-boyfriend looked on? He would never be her devar. He would always be the ex-boyfriend. Things would likely never be okay between them.
But what of Sanskaar? Wonderful, selfless Sanskaar. He didn't deserve her constantly changing moods. He deserved happiness. But what if she was doing wrong by him too? What if they didn't work out? Was she just raising his hopes over nothing? She knew how much he loved his brother. Was constantly going to be torn between his wife and his brother?
Swara groaned and rested her head on a shelf in the closet.
What a damned mess!
A knock at the door brought her out of her thoughts. She looked over and saw Ragini standing tentatively at the door.
"Are you alright Swara?"
Swara thought back to the morning when Sanskaar had asked her the same question, just a few meters away from where she was standing.
Oh Sanskaar, how wonderfully uncomplicated these things seemed when she was with him.
She realized that Ragini still stood at the door, the younger girl's concern growing at her now silly smile.
She could never burden this innocent Ragini with the mess her life currently was. She mentally pulled herself together and schooled her features.
"I am fine Ragini. And I am glad that you are here. I need your help."
"Of course, what do you need?" She asked curiously.
"Well, Sanskaar and I are going out to dinner. What should I wear?"
Both sisters spent the rest of the afternoon finalizing an outfit and choosing matching jewelry.
The earlier scene, not forgotten by either of them, but set aside for now, as they both relished this precious time with each other.
***
I know your all were probably expecting the date, but I felt this conversation was far more pressing. And now it is out of the way.
Thoughts?
-Ally
Edited by Allyson - 9 years ago
Anupamaa
Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon
