Laksh and Ragini exchanged rings and were taking
everyone’s blessings. Sanskar walked towards Swara and stood beside her. She
blushed and made it a point to avoid eye contact. “You look different, from the
last time I saw you” he said “You’ve become more beautiful” he said, she
blushed harder. “Thank you” she said without looking at him. She was afraid;
her eyes would convey her feelings to him. “So you talk to everyone like this?
By not looking at them?” he teased, she looked at him and he held her gaze “No,
it’s nothing like that” she said hesitantly. He laughed and said “Relax, I’m
just joking” and she blushed harder. Laksh and Ragini noticed them talking
“Lucky, is it my imagination or do you sense something between them?” she
asked. Laksh gave a knowing smile and said “I saw something between them the
first time they met”. “WHAT” she glared at him “why didn’t you tell me
something before” she asked, “You were clearly not comfortable with their
relationship and you spoke to bhai, what would I have told you” he said. She
looked at them “I’m still not convinced, but I can read in Shona’s eyes that
she has feelings for him”; “Let them figure it out on their own, let’s see
where their destiny takes them” he said.
The day of haldi arrived, entire Gadodia house was
decorated in tones of yellow and white. Ragini was made to sit in the centre of
the hall and the elder started the rituals, the happiness was evident on her
face, she was glowing. Sanskar entered Gadodia house with the Shagun haldi,
Shramishtha greeted him “Thank you very much Sanskar. I would ask you to come
in but this is a ladies function, I’m afraid I cannot invite you in”; “Please
aunty, don’t be so formal, I’m aware of the rituals” he smiled; he bent to
touch her feet and take blessings. Just as he was about to leave, a kid stained
his shirt with haldi. “Sorry bhaiyya” the kid apologised, “No problem kiddo,
you go and play” he patted the kid’s hair and smiled. “Sanskar, honey go and
wash of this stain, the washroom is in the room towards your right” Shramishtha
said; “Thank you, aunty. I’ll take a few minutes and leave” he said and went to
the room.
When Sanskar came out of the washroom, he saw a girl
struggling to tie strings at the back, “Shona, come quickly” Shramishtha’s
voice came from the hall, “I will be there in 2 minutes Ma” the girl replied.
As he moved closer, he saw her face in the mirror. He went closer to her,
mesmerized by the way her yellow dress complimented her, her hair was loosely
braided and strands of hair framed her face. As he moved closer, she felt
someone moving behind her, then she saw Sanskar in the mirror and froze, he
kept coming closer, she could see the intensity in his eyes, it matched the one
in her eyes. He took the strings in his hands and started tying, while staring
at her. They both held each other’s eyes, through the mirror. She could feel
his breath on her nape, and he realised how close they were. Suddenly their
chemistry erupted in the air between them, he brushed his finger on her nape
and she shuddered, her breath became heavier, so did his. They lost every bit
of control they had on their actions. He held her shoulders and kissed her
neck. Her heartbeat increased and her legs went jelly. If he wasn’t holding
her, she would have fallen. He turned her around to face him. He could see the
coyness in her eyes, he brushed his thumb over her collar bone and she
shuddered again, he saw her lips quivering, and had an overwhelming urge to
kiss her. “Shona, are you ready yet?” came a voice. They came to their senses
and realised what just happened. She got embarrassed and ran out. He also left
without getting noticed.
That night, both of them could not sleep. They kept
thinking about what had happened. Next day the families met to decide about the
sangeet. Swara and Sanskar avoided each other as much as they could. “I think
we should have a combined sangeet” Laksh said; “Everyone will dance in pairs”;
“I think that’s a good idea” Durgaprasad said. “The couples will dance with
each other, and others will be paired according to their relation to Laksh and
Ragini” Shekhar suggested. Sanskar and Swara looked at each other. I can hardly control myself when I am around
her, now dancing with her is going to push me over the edge he thought. Being close to him messes my sanity, how
will I dance with him without losing my senses she thought.
Swara and Sanskar were paired together, and the
theme of their dance was to portray Laksh and Ragini’s love story. They decided
to dance on the song A thousand years. They weren’t aware of the fact that
Laksh and Ragini had chosen this for them on purpose. They wanted to see their
chemistry. Every time Sanskar and Swara danced together, their chemistry grew
stronger, and it was visible to Laksh and Ragini. “I think have still not
acknowledged their feelings” Ragini said to Laksh. Laksh nodded in agreement “I
know and it’s frustrating me”; “sometimes I feel like shaking them and make
them realise that they love each other”, then he gave a grin and said “if only
they were smart like us, to realise it sooner” Ragini blushed “Stop it Lucky”
she said.
The day of sangeet arrived. As the time for their
dance came closer, their hearts started beating faster. Laksh and Ragini danced
on You Belong With Me, their performance reflected their love for each other,
it mirrored their feelings and everyone could see how happy they were. It was
time for Sanskar and Swara’s performance, they came on stage and looked at each
other and everyone disappeared. Looking into each other’s eyes, like always,
they felt complete, nothing else mattered. They started dancing, and their
chemistry sparkled, the air around them sparkled with their intimacy. Everyone
could see they were bound together. Their performance ended and there was
silence all around. Laksh and Ragini smiled. Before it got more awkward, Laksh
and Ragini started clapping. It was their claps that got Swara and Sanskar back
into their senses. While everyone clapped, Annapurna and Shramishtha came to
Laksh and Ragini. “So kids, what are you both smiling about” Shramishtha asked
them. “Ma, their performance was so good” Ragini tried to cover up. “Yeah, the
performance was very good, and a very believable too” Annapurna said. “How much
do you both know?” Annapurna asked. Laksh and Ragini looked at each other “if
you both don’t tell us, your late night dates which you sneak out for will be
banned” Shramishtha blackmailed them, while Annapurna laughed. “You both know
about that?” Laksh asked them. “Yes, and now tell us. What is going on between
both of them?” Annapurna asked. “They both haven’t acknowledged their feelings
yet” Ragini said “But as you can see. They both definitely love each other”.
Annapurna and Shramishtha looked at each other and said “Leave that to us.
We’ll make sure they confess before you get married”; “but till then, no one
should know about it” Annapurna said.
Laksh and Ragini grinned in all glory. “Nobody will
know” they said in unison. Meanwhile Sanskar and Swara who were fighting their
feelings and felt that they were losing control of themselves. The entire night
their eyes were locked with each other. They were not aware of what was going
around them.
I need to tell
her that I love her he thought. I need to confess to
him that I love him she thought
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