SS: What If

What If ….

What if…. Just two words….two small words that have haunted him for so long and may forever. Two measly words that hold such an impact….significance to his happiness…to his life.

What if…. Oh how he hates these two words….how much it tortures him….drives him wild….leaving a whirlwind of confusion behind … upsetting his state of mind.

What if…. He has been reflective over this unanswered question since the moment he laid eyes on her; his mind and heart engaging into an everlasting duel with no clear victory foreseen.

What if he walked right up to her and said hello? Would she pleasantly greet him back, flashing him that dimpled, wide smile that had sent his heart into a flurry once he'd seen it? Or would she be coldly indifferent, turning her back on him? Taking in mind of their circumstances….

What if he had the courage to say that he wanted to be more than just friends? That he was taken by her the moment he met her? That she haunts him in his dreams… That she fills him with an unexplainable emotion that has consumed his entire being… That he thinks of her and only her….

What if he told her that he loves her? And has loved her for so long….keeping this secret to himself, buried deep within his heart.

What if she loved him back? That she too has secretly been longing for him just has he has been for her…

What if she wasn't engaged to be married? That her parents hadn't set the alliance to the Deb family, betrothed her to their eldest son, Aparajit Deb… belonging to the elite and high-class in the society.

What if their families, his and hers, hadn't been sworn enemies, business rivals to the end? That the Walias and Dixits had an amicable relationship? That they were pleasant, fellow business associates…

What if the Walias and Dixits didn't loathe one another so much, forbidding any interaction between them?

What if it were Jai Walia marrying Bani Dixit right about now? Taking her as his wife… To love and cherish her for as long as they lived… To keep her happy and promising to love her forever…

What if…..

"You have to let her know…. At least once…. before it's too late… otherwise you will torment yourself for the rest of your life wondering what if…."

He muddles over his sister's advising words, wondering whether he should follow them or not… There is too much risk attached to it… He won't be able to stand the rejection, the humiliation, the heart break if she doesn't feel the same way about him. He doesn't want to risk his heart in this way… But at this point, he has no other choice. He's growing desperate. He has already delayed enough as it is… If he doesn't take action now, he may never know the answers to his questions… never know if she thought the way he did… never know if she loves him equally back with the same degree of passion he does. She will become into Mrs. Bani Aparajit Deb and he'll never know after that… never have the courage to find out.

Surged with a newfound determination, knowing what he has to do, Jai Walia rises from the hood of his car parked on the outskirts of the Arabian Sea, which now gleams as the sun sets beneath the tides of water. The salty air breezes through his short, jet black hair and looking away from the tantalizing view of the sun, he reaches for his keys resting deep inside his pocket…

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She hears the drums beating in the distance….the clarinet humming away to its fullest capacity… the laughter and singing echoing… the dancing…. all bringing awareness of the arrival of her groom. He must be looking dashing in a classy sherwani with a sehra situated rightly on his head, riding on a well groomed horse, and coming to take her away… like a knight in shining armor. How she had imagined this scene countless of times since she was young… fantasizing when her groom would come riding to her balcony, marry her in front of the whole world, and whisk her away into the night. She'd be a princess for that one moment… glowing and basking in her prince charming's love… knowing that she will be having her happily ever after.

But today, on her wedding day, the day she had been dreaming for, she does not feel like a princess… not even when she is dressed like one… looking bewitchingly beautiful in a dark red and blue wedding ghagra choli, fitting her slender frame to perfection… She stares at herself in the mirror before her, seated down in front of the dresser… She gently touches the contours of her face, silently amazed on the way she looks contrasting to the way she feels at this very moment…

Her long, silky dark tresses are made into perfect curls framing the sides of her fair face…. a heavy maang tika adorns her forehead, matching with her blue choli interacted with subtle golden designs… golden jhumkes hang from her tiny ears… her creamy neck bears the weight of a family heirloom, gleaming to its fullest shine… her kohl hazel eyes stare back at her and are enhanced by the effect of her long, curly eyelashes… her rosy red lips part slightly open as she takes in soft breathes into her… Her heavy dupatta is draped neatly onto her head, fulfilling the image of a newly bride-to-be…

She looks down to her hands that rest onto her deep royal red skirt that bleeds richness… her mehendi designed hands tremble with the tinkling of her bangles following in sync….

She should be dreaming of her groom and the life that they will share together here on after… the passion and love that they will have for one another…. the happiness that will now be a part of their lives…. However, she was far from thinking about that… In fact, she had hardly given a thought about her groom since morning. The one man that has been occupying her thoughts instead is her best friend of five years, Jai Walia. He hasn't come yet and this fact has been troubling her. For the past few weeks he has been acting strangely, keeping oddly quiet and distant. She didn't bother too much on it though as she was preoccupied by the wedding preparations but the closer the wedding day arrived, the more she began to notice it. And now that he isn't here, she knows that something is truly wrong.

He will come, she reassures herself. He will surely come. He wouldn't miss this day. It's her wedding day, after all. He will be here for her alongside her family and friends, even if they don't get along with him and have grudgingly accepted her insistence of having him at the wedding. She wants him here… She needs him here. She can't go through this wedding knowing that he isn't there for her. He has always been by her side… she can't imagine him not being here on the most important day of her life.

She chides herself not to worry…. That Jai will come. He's her best friend…. he won't ever disappoint her. Instead she convinces herself to think about Aparajit… her soon-to-be husband. She had gotten to know him well these past few months… He's a likeable fellow… handsome, smart, funny, and caring. What more could she ask for in a life partner?

But how come she still felt like something was amiss? … That something wasn't right? Why isn't she overcome with joy by the prospect of seeing her groom like any normal bride would? Aparajit is a wonderful man and he will keep her happy…. She knows that she will be content with him.

Then why is she second guessing herself? Why is she allowing her thoughts to drift to places that she does not want them to go? That she has locked away and kept buried inside of her? No, she will not let herself think on them. She is going to be married to a man who will love her. This should be enough.

Yet she finds herself wanting Jai more and more at this moment than ever before. She knows that if he is here, then she will have the strength to go through this. She needs her best friend at this time and convince her that everything's going to be okay.

The knock on her door rattles her out of the trance that had been engulfing her. She lifts her gaze to her bedroom door and sees it swing open, revealing her sister-in-law, dressed in her best clothes and her hair done perfectly into a bun.  

"Bani… you have a visitor," her sister-in-law, Dhani Bhabhi, says begrudgingly. Bani seems taken aback by her Bhabhi's cold demeanor contrasting greatly to her previous jovial mood. However, she sees the reason for her sister-in-law's altered behavior in the form of Jai Walia, who emerges into view with his broad shoulders nearly taking up the doorway. He always had the ability to capture rapt attention to himself in a room through his gallant height and powerful stature. The way he carried himself with such authoritative command was enough to intimidate people around him. His striking features and rugged looks were only a bonus to his dominating presence.

Their eyes meet from across the room and Bani feels a burst of relief and happiness sweep inside of her from the sight of him. She had always marveled how Jai can make her feel so safe and collected in his company… like nothing can harm her. Her lips crack into a tantalizing smile and she watches as Jai meekly returns it. He glances at her sister-in-law and with his usual graceful conduct thanks her for giving him her time. Dhani Bhabhi simply wrinkles her nose and lets out a big, "Hmph" before turning her attention onto Bani, who had by now sprung up from her seat.

"Bani, I suggest you hurry up and say what you have to say to this man… Your parents will not be pleased to know that there is a Walia in your room… Especially your brother… He will cook up a storm…. It is enough that you have made us invite him to the wedding…  Do not push the limits," she forebodingly warns Bani, who gingerly nods her head in understanding.

"Ji Bhabhi… Thank you… You may leave us… It will only be a few minutes…," she replies docilely and breathes a sigh of relief when Dhani leaves, shutting the door behind her.

Bani doesn't waste a second to reach Jai's side, taking his hands into hers, and smiling brilliantly at him with her dimples creasing into her cheeks.

"Jai, you have no idea how glad I am to see you! What took you so long?" she demands, miffed that her best friend is late to her own wedding. She hardly notices the glum look settled deeply onto her best friend's features as she is caught up in her own frenzy. Just as Jai opens his mouth to explain, she cuts him off.

"Never mind. You're here, that's all that matters. Is Jigyasa here as well? You did bring her along, didn't you? I'd hate to have her think I don't want her here… I would have sent her an invite, but I didn't think sending a wedding invitation to your house was such a good idea… Your father would have torn it up before it even got to her…and you know your sister always keeps her phone off, so I could not even reach her," she begins to ramble.

"She is here, don't worry… She is waiting downstairs," he answers tonelessly.  

"Wait, you left her there all alone with my family?" she questions incredulously. She is surprised that Jai, being the over protective older brother, would leave his sister amongst the Dixits by herself. The Walias and Dixits have never seen eye-to-eye… Hell, they don't see anything in similar to each other… They loath one another immensely since after Uday Walia and Nishikant Dixit had started off as business partners in the earlier days…. Misunderstandings, frauds, and complications broke off their friendship and partnership, leaving both men with a bitter taste in their mouths and causing a long lasting resentment toward each other.

Jai smiles faintly at her disbelief. "She's safe and sound with Aditya. He's not leaving her side, so relax." This eases her worries knowing that her cousin, Aditya, is standing guard for Jigyasa. She knows of his burning love for Jai's sister for years. He won't let anyone in their family taunt Jigyasa while she is here.

"Well…"

"Well, what?" he repeats dumbly with a crease in his forehead. He cannot understand why she is looking at him so intently with an enigmatic smile creeping onto her face. She steps back and raises her arms, giving a little twirl.

"How do I look? Pia insisted on me wearing this for the wedding… It's not too much, is it?" she finishes unsurely, biting down on her bottom lip. Jai's gray eyes run down her body, taking in every inch and curve of her slim body. He feels his chest constrict as his heart swells from the stunning sight she makes.

"You look beautiful, Bani… like a princess," he replies earnestly, his voice growing hoarse. He sees how she beams from his words, her cheeks tinged with a small blush. She leans forward and kisses him sweetly on the cheek.

"Just what I wanted to hear," she giggles before pulling on his arm and saying, "Come, sit." They sit beside one another on her bed, Bani's jolted eyes do not leave his face for a second whereas Jai has trouble keeping her gaze. The sounds of the groom's procession draw nearer….

"Oh Jai, I am so nervous…. Tell me that this is normal and that I'm just not weird…," she pleads for reassurance for the way she is feeling right now. She squeezes his hands tight, showing no signs of letting go. He looks down at their joined hands and observes the designs of her dark henna. He lightly traces them with his thumb idly.

"You're not weird… It's perfectly normal… You're about to get married in a few minutes… about to spend the rest of your life with a man… it's understandable if you have apprehensions….," he voices in a hollow tone… not looking her in the eye as he speaks these words.

"But everything will be alright, won't it?" she urges, the grip of her fingers around his hands growing firmer and putting an end to his tracing… He meets her doe-like eyes that seek solace from him… wanting to know that she shouldn't worry… that she is only going to be happy from here on out…

"Bani… I…," he begins in saying only to be interrupted by the approaching band that roars its arrival. Jittery with nerves, Bani rises from the bed and stares out of her open balcony doors…

"He's here… Jai… He's here… I can go through with this, can't I? I'm going to be happy, right? I don't need to worry…. Tell me that there's nothing to worry about…," she frantically demands, feeling the height of her apprehensions hitting her hard…

"What do you need me to reassure you for? You are willingly marrying him, Bani…. This is your choice, not mine….," he says rather gruffly, his heart sinking as he hears the bharat cheering in the excitement of the occasion. He imagines that Bani's parents must be welcoming the groom in by now…  

"Because Jai… call me crazy, but knowing that you believe in it will make me believe it too…. I need my best friend to reassure me that there isn't any reason to worry…"

Hearing the whooping of the groom's side draws Bani's attention back over to the balcony, where she takes step toward to see her husband-to-be… That is until she is stopped by a sudden grip on her arm holding her back….

"Jai?"

Knowing that it is now or never, Jai prepares himself to put his heart on the line… to put his everything in her hands… Or else he will never know.

"Bani, I'm not here to reassure you… because I can't, even if you want me to…. I'm not even here for the wedding," he says in one go, his tone more curt than he meant it to be….

Her eyes widen in surprise and she gazes back at him shell-shocked… "Jai… what are you saying?" she breathes, her face shadowing with a pained expression….hurt by the bluntness in her friend's behavior and from his declaration that he will not be staying for her wedding.

"I came here to tell you just one thing, Bani… One thing only… If I don't say it now, I don't think I will ever be able to…," he continues…

She remains still in her place, her arm still captivated in Jai's hold. Bani stares back into his eyes, seeing that he looks gravely troubled over something. She nods her head lightly.

"Tell me, Jai… What's on your mind?" she softly encourages, wondering whether this has anything to do with his strange behavior recently.

She grows alarmed as he takes a hold of both her arms, drawing her close to him, and looks at her with wild eyes. He stares at her so intently, his gray eyes boring at her, that she forgets to breathe by the intensity in them. His facial muscles that had been taut from the moment he stepped into her room suddenly soften as his face crumbles.

"Bani… I love you… ," he whispers, barely able to control his emotions that threaten to spill out any second by how he chokes over his words. Bani looks back to him blankly before slowly answering back, "Jai… you know that I love you too… Now where is this going?"

He immediately shakes his head, knowing that she doesn't understand… understand the depth of his words… his feelings attached to those words…. his heart attached to those very words…

"No, Bani… I mean… I love you… I'm in love with you…. I'm so head over heels in love with you, Bani…," he speaks in a strangled voice, watching closely for her reaction. He sees how her face pales in comparison to a sheet of paper, her curvy lips part open, and her eyes staring at him awe-struck… He feels how she has gone absolutely still in his hold, rooted to her spot…. He swallows the saliva down his parched throat before carrying on…

"I've… I've been meaning to tell you for so long… but never had the courage to…. I fell in love with you from the moment I saw you enter through the university doors six years ago… when you were just a first year and I was a third-year… You were just so beautiful… I felt that I didn't deserve you… that I wasn't worthy enough… I was just so insecure of everything… I couldn't bear if you rejected my feelings… so I kept quiet… And I knew that there possibly couldn't be any future for us together with our families as rivals… Your family would never accept me and mine wouldn't accept you… so I continued to stay quiet… I've been an idiot for not telling you before… I was just so scared of rejection… But Bani, I'm telling you now because I know I'll never get another chance to…. I had to tell you at least once…. to stop torturing myself wondering what if… what if I told you what I really feel… So here I am, Bani… I'm here, telling you what I've been keeping a secret for so long, putting my heart on the line, just so I won't end up wondering what if for the rest of my life…."

A painful, stinging silence comes between them, something that is unusual for the two best friends who never had a moment of silence when together… having something always to say or share…

Jai peers at Bani, who has gotten coldly silent, hardly even breathing… He feels all hope evading him replaced with a devastation so deep that he didn't think he'd live through the heart ache…. His hold on her loosens as he concludes that he has made a fool out of himself… she doesn't love him… she never loved him…

"… Bani…," he tries one last attempt to attain her attention but is disappointed once she averts her gaze elsewhere, anywhere, but at him…. However, she did not look away quick enough for him not to notice the tears lining her hazel eyes. She remains standing rigidly in her place. His face falls when he knows what her answer is. He didn't have to hear it; her silence is enough to convey it.

"… This is the last you'll see of me, Bani… I promise… I'll never come before you again…. I will not come in the way of your happiness… I want the best for you… I always have…. I hope that you will have a blissful marriage…. My best wishes are always with you….," he ends solemnly before hanging his head low and walking away…

As he approaches the door, he halts by it and takes one last look at the back of the woman who means the world to him… who will always remain in his heart even if he isn't in hers…

"Goodbye, Bani," he whispers before leaving, his feet dragging across the floor with his shoulders dropping. He closes the door after him with a thud. Bani feels her chest constrict tightly by the hollow sound and whirls around to stare at the wide door…

She didn't know for how long she stood there, staring at it in a numb state, before her cousin, Pia, came for her announcing that the pundit ji is calling for her to come to the mandap….

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Jai left from there as fast as he could and walked as far as his feet took him…. He had urged Jigyasa to come with him, but she refuted… saying that Bani is like a sister to her and that she wants to be here for her on her most important day. He didn't bother arguing with her. The faster he got out of there, the better. Besides, Aditya was there to take care of her. He didn't want to see more than he was already seeing. He'd probably snap if he saw his Bani sitting down beside Aparajit in that mandap. If he saw them take those seven rounds… see him put a mangulsutra around her neck… fill her maang with sindoor…. He left from there with moist eyes, not daring to look back once.

He didn't know where he was going so late in the night… nor did he care. All he knew was that there was now an emptiness creeping inside of him that probably would remain there for the rest of his life…. He had put his heart on the line and what did it give him? Nothing but heartache…. He shouldn't have told her… He should have kept silent…. At least they'd still be friends…. At least their friendship wouldn't end like this….

Not realizing it, he arrives at the nearby coffee shop Bani and he loved to come to whenever they had time. They'd share coffee, sitting at one of the tables outside the shop, and talk about anything under the sun. It's only when he pays notice to his surroundings that he finds himself at the entrance of the coffee place. He didn't know what possessed him to step inside and order a cappuccino for himself. Maybe it was because of the memories attached to this place which he wanted to soak up, wanting to feel that happiness he once shared with her…. wanting to feel any kind of happiness right about now… to get rid of the coldness settling inside of him.

He sits at their regular table just right outside the shop and sees that he is the only one there. He fiddles with his cup, not drinking it once despite that he had paid good money for it. He just needed an excuse to stay… a place to sit and wallow in his own self misery… He couldn't go home… He didn't want to. He felt like he didn't belong anywhere anymore…. The one woman with whom he did feel like he belonged is now probably married and off to her new home with her new husband about to start her new life… with no trace of him in it.

Perhaps he should not beat himself too much over what happened… perhaps instead he should be relieved… relieved that he finally got the burden off his chest… the burden of lying to her, hiding his feelings from her…. He will no longer have to think of what if… He got his answer. He's now free of the two words that had kept him bounded in its intangibility… He now knows the answers to his once pondering queries…

Some hour or two later, Jai feels a tap on his shoulder, drawing himself out of the claws of his distressed mind. He sees the owner standing tall next to him with a set grim on his face.

"Son, I'm sorry… but you will have to leave… It's past closing time…"

Jai nods his head and apologizes for taking up his time. He throws away his drink, having no need for it, and digs his hands deep into his pant pockets just before walking off. He decides that he will find a local bar and remain there till he is kicked out from there too. From then on, he will decide where else he wants to go.

He had just left the premises of the coffee shop when he hears a voice in the distance. He halts in his tracks and wonders whether he had imagined it or not, but hears it faintly once more. It is distinctly familiar… too familiar… and suddenly Jai hears the voice loud and clear, footsteps approaching from behind him…

"Jai!"

He catches his breath and feels his slow pacing heart beat erratically from the sound of his name coming out from those lips… those lips which he had dreamed of kissing thousands of times….

He looks over his shoulder and sees her slow in her steps just as she is about to reach him. He remains stunned in his place, unable to move, unable to believe what is in front of his eyes. She stops a few feet away, trying to regain her breath, and their eyes meet in a full-fledged lock. He takes notice of her eyes that shine brilliantly at him, gleaming with a fierceness in them he had never seen in there before. As if determined by something, she takes a hold of her long skirt into her hands and takes the last steps to him, never taking her eyes off of him. Seeing her move breaks him out of his stupor…

"Bani…"

He's dumbfound, however, when Bani shoves him hard, placing her small hands onto his chest and pushing him back, causing him to stumble.

"You jerk!... You swine!" she shouts fiercely, her screams echoing into the stillness of the night. She continues shoving him backwards as Jai grows more and more bewildered by her unexpected behavior. He had never seen her this angry since he had known her.

"You b*st*rd! You damned j*ck*ss! You a**h*le! You-you-you--"

Recovering from her brutal attacks, Jai takes a hold of her flying arms and holds them into a tight grip as she struggles to release herself.

"Bani, what the hell?!" he finds himself screaming back, demanding to know why she is attacking him in this manner and what is she even doing here in the first place?

"How dare you! How could you do this to me?!" she shouts back, her eyes sparkling with ire.

"What did I do?!" he snaps, not knowing how to handle this fierceness in her that is new to him.

"You always do this! You always do this, Jai! You put your feelings before mine! You think of yourself always! Never considering my feelings! You're selfish! I hate you! I hate you so much!" she bellows and roughly snatches her arms out of his hold. She begins to pound on his chest with her fists as she breaks out into tears.

"Bani, what are you even doing here? Why did you come here? You should be with your husband!" he shows his frustration, hating to even imagine the fact that she is married to someone else.

"You stupid moron! How could you think I could possibly get married after you drop that bomb onto me!" she sniffs loudly, dabbing at her eyes with her arm. Jai staggers back as he hears her through her tears.

"What?..."

"You heard me!" she yells, becoming aggressive all over again. "You drop such a big bomb on me! On my wedding day! Telling me how much you love me and then—and then just leave! Just like that! And you expect me to get married after all that?! Who do you think you are, huh?!" she demands angrily, proceeding to shove him.

"Well what else was I supposed to do!" he finds himself roaring back, aggravated by the way she's pushing him around continuously.

"I put myself out there, telling you how I feel, and you don't even say anything back!"

"What was I supposed to say?! It all just came out of nowhere, I didn't know how to react!" she defends herself hotly.

"Well an answer back would have been nice! I felt like a complete fool!" he seethes bitterly. He rubs at his temples before carrying on. "Just go back, Bani! Get married and move on with your life! I don't give a damn! Just leave me the hell alone! Leave me to my humiliation!"

He turns to walk away but is held back by Bani who grabs onto the lapels of his coat.

"Don't you dare walk away from me! You can't just walk away after what you've done to me! I was vulnerable, Jai! I needed support from my best friend and you took advantage of that vulnerability and dump this on me?! How could you be so insensitive?!"

"I didn't take advantage of anything!" he thunders back.

"Yes you did! You knew I was having second guesses… that I was having doubts… and you took advantage of that by telling me something that I've wanted to hear for the past five years! And guess what?! It worked! Are you happy?! I'm here, with you, instead of where I'm supposed to be, married and with who was supposed to be my husband!"

Jai stares at her, astonished by what she has confessed, and becomes nearly breathless. Bani hides her face into her palms, succumbing into loud sobs.

"What… What do you mean by 'wanted to hear for the past five years'?"

Bani glances back up at him, wiping away her rolling tears, and snaps back, "Do you really not understand?! I love you, idiot! I've always had!"

Jai doesn't know how to handle what she has thrown at him. She loves him? She's loved him all this time? A sudden exhilaration sweeps inside of him, filling each nook and corner inside of him. However, he grows angry on the thought that she's kept this away from him for so long… if she had given any indication that she loved him, they wouldn't be where they are right now…

"If you love me then why the bloody hell were you going to go and marry that imbecile, Aparajit Deb?!" he insists on an answer.

"He's not the imbecile, you are! Besides, I wasn't going to waste my life waiting for you to love me back, Jai…. I have more pride than that!"

"To hell with your pride! You should have told me!"

"Oh, you hypocrite! Here you are shouting at me for not telling you when you've done the very same!"

"I had a reason!" he defends himself quickly.

"So did I! You never showed any signs of wanting more than just friendship from me! How was I supposed to know that you loved me?! I controlled my feelings for you, thinking that you didn't feel the same way, and convinced myself not to love you!" she cries. She dabs at her eyes once more and looks to him with sorrowful eyes. She takes a hold of his collar, pulling him to her.

"Jai… why didn't you just tell me? All of this could have been avoided… we could have been together long ago…," she whispers to him, her wide eyes shining… He meets her troubled gaze, his previous anger simmering down and replaced with a limitless amount of love for her…. He tenderly pushes aside a curl from her face and takes a hold of her chin…

"Would you have left your family for me, Bani?..." he questions her softly, probing her eyes with his…

She reaches out to place her hand onto his face, cupping his cheek lovingly…

"Jai… I will leave this world behind just for you… just to be with you…. I love you," she says without any inhibitions, putting across her innermost feelings simply, stating it as a well known fact.

Overwhelmed by the intensity of the love in her eyes for him and the love he possesses for her, Jai leans down and presses his lips onto hers… kissing her sweetly and leisurely as if he had all the time in the world to do so…. The small moan of approval was all he needed to hear for him to take her by the waist and pull her close, pressing her frame against his taut body… He rains kisses all over her face, which he cradles gently in his large hands…

"I love you… I love you so much, Bani…," he breathes. She throws her arms around his neck, pulling him close, wanting to feel every inch of him, and never wanting to let him go.

"God, I'm sorry… I'm so sorry… I've been an idiot… And to think, I would have risked losing you if I didn't tell you now…," he says into her long tresses that he buries his face into, inhaling the smell of jasmine and flowers…

Bani simply kisses him on the opening of his shirt and rests her head against his chest as he holds her tight in his warm, soothing arms.

"Tell me something…," he says a few long moments later in which they say nothing but bask in each other's love for one another.

"Hmmm…," she dreamily replies, lifting her head to stare up at him…. He runs his fingers through her hair…

"How'd you find me here? How did you even get away from there?" he asks these two questions that have suddenly come to his mind. After all, how did Bani manage to get away? Do her parents know she came after him, breaking off her marriage?

"Finding you was easy… I just thought of the one place that was special and meant a lot to the both of us and I knew right away that you would come here…. As for my doomed wedding, … Pia helped me escape from my bedroom window… and said she'd take care of everything after I was gone…," she responds casually as if it is no big thing. Jai stares at her, wide-eyed.

"You climbed out of your bedroom window… in this?" he gestures to her bridal outfit. "How'd you manage to do that?"

She shrugs lightly. "Love makes you do crazy things…" Jai smirks at her before kissing her gingerly on the top of her head. Bani places her head back onto his chest, tightening her hold around his neck.

"How do you think Pia's holding up your family then?... Your family must be furious … I'm sure they are looking for you by now…," he words his thoughts…

"Not till awhile… Pia said that she'd lie and tell them that she's pregnant to distract them for a bit… so we have some time…"

"Time for what?"  

"Time for this…," she says coyly before standing on her tiptoes and kissing him fervently. Jai releases a low growl before lifting her off her feet and ravishing her plum lips to his satisfaction. Breaking his lips from hers, Jai looks at her with his eyes brimming with passion and says rather huskily, "Marry me, Bani… I don't want to wait anymore… Right now… right this second… I want to make you mine and only mine…"

"Yes, yes… I want to marry you, Jai… only you," she replies earnestly with an equal desperation of her own to be his… Jai grins before twirling her around, burying his face into the crook of her neck….

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 "Right here…" she indicates, pointing at the small, lone temple off to the side of the abandoned road. He follows after her as she climbs up the steps all in the meanwhile dragging him with her. They reach the top of the steps and see Aditya and Jigyasa standing before them with smiles of their own accompanied with a pundit ji who carries auspicious belongings in his hands. Jai stares, amazed, at the sight of his sister and friend here, each holding garlands in their possession.  

"Ah, there you guys are… we've been waiting…," Aditya greets them with a warm smile.

"Waiting… what do you mean?" Jai asks, puzzled. Before either Aditya or Jigyasa can offer an explanation, it registers immediately to him. He glances over at Bani, who unsuccessfully suppresses the wide smile emerging on her lovely face.

"You planned this?" he questions in pure amazement. He chuckles as he sees her blush, shyly looking away. He pulls on her hand, drawing her close, and stares at her with warm eyes.

"This is why I love you…," he declares openly….

"Alright you two loves birds… We get that you are madly in love… Now will you get married already? We've done the liberty of getting everything organized for you… Now let's hurry through this before either of our families come to know of this," Jigyasa interrupts the couple's gazing, reminding the two of their situation.

"I'm ready whenever you are," Jai tells her. Glowing more so than usual, Bani squeezes his hand, her cheeks turning pinker by the second. "I'm ready….," she affirms.

"Alright then, let's start this wedding, shall we?" Aditya cheers, furthering the smiles already plastered onto Jai and Bani's faces.

The pundit ji instructs the bride and groom to garland one another to which Jigyasa and Aditya step forward, eagerly handing each their garlands. They step back and witness the marriage of two people who they love and who love each other. Jigyasa's eyes water as she sees how her brother's face beams---something she hadn't seen in a long while. She wishes that she too will have a passionate love affair as Jai and Bani's…

Looking to her left, she sees Aditya standing close and meets his eye… Just as Jai and Bani stand, taking the seven rounds around the fire, promising to love and cherish one another till death, Jigyasa reaches for his hand and breaks out into a shy smile when he squeezes hers back….

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"Walia, forgetting something?" Aditya questions after him just as Jai and Bani begin to walk down the steps of the temple, now officially married under the eyes of God. Jai, holding Bani by the waist, pulls her to his side and turns to meet his friend's gleaming eyes. Before he can answer, Aditya throws him his car keys which Jai catches quickly into his hand.

"Take care of her… she means a lot to me," his friend warns. Jai smiles warmly at him before turning to look at his wife, who meets his eyes lovingly---looking more beautiful than he has ever seen her with her parting filled with sindoor.

"She means more to me," he murmurs to her, making her blush and look away. Just as they approach his car, Jai opening the passenger door for Bani to get in, Bani looks behind and runs back to Aditya and Jigyasa. She throws her arms around her cousin and pecks him on the cheek.

"Thanks Bhaiya… Thank you, Jigyasa," Bani adds, taking her sister-in-law's hand into hers. Aditya affectionately places his hand onto her head. "Go on and be happy, Bani…"

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Awhile later, Jai and Bani lay in each other's arms in bed, reveling in the aftermath of their lovemaking. They had booked into the nearest hotel they could find and barely made it to their room with how they could hardly keep their hands off each other.

"What if …. I married Aparajit Deb?" she inquires slyly, tracing light circles onto his broad chest. With his hand tucked beneath his head, Jai stares up at the ceiling of their room, his other hand playing with his wife's curly hair.

"Then I'd have killed him with my bare hands and take you away with me…"

Bani snorts. "Uh-huh… sure you would have," she ends in a chuckle in which her husband joins in. "Hey, I may have," he says defensively. His hand moves down to her long, curvy back, marveling at the creaminess of it.

"What if… my family accepts you?…," he puts across cautiously while throwing her a careful look. Bani seems unmoved by this idea, merely snuggling in closer to him.

"That's a long shot and you know it… Your father would rather accept a dog as your wife than me…. And my parents would rather have me remain as a spinster than marry you….," she states lazily.

"Hmmm… touch…," he agrees to her words. Bani raises herself onto his chest and peers down at his handsome face, running her fingers tenderly through his velvety hair.

"What if… we had a house right by the sea?….," she proposes with such hope that has Jai grinning at her.

"What if…. I find a job and place to live first before we think about that?…. I think I'm right to assume that I've lost the job in my father's company once he hears I married the daughter of his business rival….," he suggests while pulling on her nose affectionately.

"Right… I forgot about that," she says glumly. However, her eyes sparkle instantly. "What if… I got a job too?…. We could both work, save up, and then move next to the sea?" Jai laughs throatily at her excitement.  

"What is this fixation of yours with the sea?"

She lounges across his chest, gazing at him seductively, and slowly runs her fingers up his built torso. "I think it's just so romantic… don't you?" She bends down and places a soft kiss onto his lips….

"Hmmm….very romantic…."

 "Listen?"

"Hm?"

"… What if…… we had two children… one boy and one girl….the boy like me and the girl just like you… with your long hair….your eyes," he says whilst dropping kisses onto each of her eyelids…. "your small nose….," his lips trailing to the bridge of her nose…. "your lips…," he finishes with claiming her lips with his for a brief, yet passionate kiss….

"… Then I'd say, Jai Walia…. that I have finally gotten my happily ever after…" she whispers to him before releasing a giggle once Jai turns her over and showers her with never ending kisses….

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The End