😆Sharan as requested here is the next part where all ur questions will be answered. Sorry for the suspence but I knew I would be updating soon. I think it's shorter than the others but it's all I had time for. Let me know what u all thought and sorry for any typos.
Part 5
The sudden nervousness that crossed Rani's face did not go unnoticed by Niharika who gently squeezed her hand reassuring her before letting go and grasping her arm to lead her towards the middle of the room where their parent's along with Yudi and Saksham were standing.
Rani allowed Niharika to lead her but she wasn't paying attention to where they were going. She was too busy looking down and trying to calm her speeding heart. She knew that she liked Yudi especially after seeing his kindness towards her brother but she was nervous because that was all she knew about him. She felt the urge to turn around and run away but forced herself to keep walking forward.
Yudi upon hearing the pandit had turned back towards Rani and his gaze had not wavered since. He watched as she got closer, the nervousness on her face apparent to him. He looked around but it seemed as if no one else had noticed it. The urge to take her into his arms and wipe away all her concerns took him by surprise. He didn't know why her emotions affected him so much. He continued to watch as Sumitra stepped forward and brought Rani to a stop right in front of him.
Rani looked up as her mother took a hold of her and whispered reassuringly to her. She squeezed her mother's hand not wanting to let go but knew she would have to. She refused to look at anyone else. Her mother walked her over and brought her to a stop. She could see a pair of feet encased in black shoes right in front of her and she somehow knew that she was standing in front of Kuwar Yudhister. The thought caused her heart to pound faster against her ribs and she wondered if he could hear it.
Yudi looked down at her silently urging her to look up. He wanted to see her face again as it had it mesmerized him completely. It seemed that everything around him was a blur except her.
Niharika along with the others smiled as she took in the scene in front of her. She was pleased to see that her brother liked her friend and she prayed that they would have a long and happy life together.
RC and RA looked at each other and pulled each other into a short hug before letting go and walking up to their children. RC stood next to Yudi saying, "Raja Alokh, aaj hum aapse apni beti maang rahen hain."
RA standing with Rani just said, "Woh to hemesha say aap ki hi beti thi. Humare saath jo is ne pal bitaya hai woh to humara liye Bhagwan ki aik dain thay."
Sumitra and Dadi looked on with tears in their eyes realizing that from this moment on the day that Rani would leave then was not too far away. Munna just stood next to them not realizing how much would change from this moment in his life.
CR was racking her mind trying to figure out what she could do to stop this or do something to fix her own befuddled situation but she came up with nothing. She knew that if she interrupted then RC would probably become extremely angry and not listen to anything she would say and she could not let that happen if she wanted to save Rudr from marrying Bhoomi. However at the moment she didn't know how she could stop that either. She struggled to keep a smile on her face as she stood there feeling defeated for the moment.
Yudi who realized that he had been staring at Rani looked up to see his sister and Saksham smirking at him. He blushed knowing that they had seen him and he looked away from them quickly. He turned his gaze to his father and RA who had moved to the pandit and was taking the rings from him. He looked at Rani who still refused to look up at him. He wondered how he could put her at ease. He felt the urge to talk to her and ask her if she was okay with everything but didn't know how he could do so. While he was thinking their fathers brought the rings over.
Sumitra and Dadi moved to Rani and asked her to hold out her left hand as Niharika walked over to Yudi along with CR and taking the smaller ring from RC gave it to him. Rani upon hearing her mother's request looked up finally taking in her surroundings. She saw her father smiling at her, RC looking on with a proud smile, the large amount of people surrounding them but what she noticed immediately was the lack of Badi Rani's presence. She immediately turned to look at her mother who grew concerned at her behaviour especially since everyone was waiting for her to hold out her hand to Yudi who was holding the ring and waiting.
Yudi watched as Rani lifted her head and looked at everyone except him but somehow he understood that she was nervous. He could see the confusion on her face and wondered what the reason was behind it and his concern grew as he saw her turn to her mother looking sad. Then he heard it, it sounded like there were bells chiming in his ear and he wondered where it was coming from. He looked up to see that it was Rani who had spoken and what she said made him freeze in place.
"Ma, hum yeh mangni kaise kar sakte hain."
Gasps could be heard across the room as everyone took in what she had said. RA stepped forward along with RC. CR tried to stop the smile that was threatening to breakout across her face when she heard Rani's statement.
RA's voice was filled with anger and disappointment as he said, "Yeh aap kya keh rahi hain, Rajkumari Rani."
Rani who had never heard her father speak to her in such a tone hurried to explain herself as she looked away from everyone's disappointed looks which were all directed towards her. Her next sentence was said so softly that everyone had to strain their ears to hear it.
"Pitaji humare matlab hai kai'woh hum sooch rahe thay kay'Badi Rani yahan nahin hain aur hum un ke bagair yeh kaise kar sakte hain."
Yudi felt as if a great load had been lifted off his shoulders and a smile made its way across his face. All the tension that he had felt when she had started talking seemed to have been lifted. He felt his appreciation for her grow and the thought that she cared so much about his mother made his respect for her grow a hundred fold. He now felt secure in his father's choice.
The tension in the room had lifted as soon as Rani had finished her sentence and a smile spread across everyone's face except CR who was once again seething at the chance of events. RC stepped forward and placed a hand on Rani's head saying, "Aap ki yeh baat sun kar hum bohot khush huwai Rajkumari Rani. Hume pata tha ki aap say achi bahu hame kahin nahi milaygi. Panditji, humare paas thoda waqt hai jis mein hum BR ko la saakain?"
"Ji RC. Laikin jaldi ki jiye ga."
RC responded by nodding his head and sending Niharika to bring BR to them. Yudi knew that this would be the best time for his plan. He handed the ring to CR and turning to his father and said softly said, "Pitaji, hum aapse kuch poochna chahte hain."
"Boliye Kuwar."
"Pitaji, woh hum sooch rahe thay kay hum'"
"Kuwar, jaldi bataiye kay aap kya chahte hain."
"Ji Pitaji, hum chahte thay kay agar aap aur RA ko koi aitraaz na ho to jab take Rajkumari Niharika wapas nahin aati Ma kay saath tab tak hum'hum Rajkumari Rani say akele mein baat kar sakte hain?"
His words had come out quickly and he looked away from his father embarrassed. Rani had heard his question and she was surprised to hear his request. She finally looked at him as her surprise had given her enough courage to do so. She was mesmerized by the strong planes of his face and she could see his nervousness on his face as he waited for his father's response. She then realized that she had been staring and looked away but not before she saw Yudi turn his head and look right at her causing her cheeks to turn red once more. She silently wondered if she would ever stop blushing in front of him.
Yudi had seen her looking at him and seeing the blush on her face brought on a desire in him to caress her cheeks wondering if they were as soft as they looked. He was brought out of his thoughts by RC who had been surprised to hear his son's request. He looked at RA who turned to his wife and mother. They quickly agreed knowing that talking to Yudi would help put Rani at ease. RA nodded at RC who said, "Theek hai kuwar. Aap Rakumari Rani kay saath akele mein mil sakte hain. Rajkumar Saksham aap in dono kay saath jaiye."
Yudi smiled hearing his father's consent and thanked him. He nodded at Saksham who came forward to stand next to him. Turning to Rani he said, "Rajkumari Rani"
Rani hearing RC's consent felt her palms grow sweaty at the thought of being alone with Yudi. Her heart had once again started beating quickly and she almost didn't hear him say her name. She just nodded without looking at him.
Yudi seeing her nod said, "Chaliye," as he pointed towards the doors. Rani started walking in the direction he had pointed to without looking at his face twisting her fingers around the corner of her duppata nervously. Yudi and Saksham followed behind her.
Edited by sakuraa - 17 years ago