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Hello all!
Here is...something. It's quite haphazard and there has been very little editing done but I wanted this up before tomorrow's mahaepisode.
Let me know your thoughts...
Vaibhav & Pooja
The phone nearly slipped out of Pooja's hand as she tried to comprehend what her to-be sister-in-law was telling her over the phone.
Vaibhav...? In an...accident...?
"Ky...kya? Yeh tum kya keh rahi ho Sanchi?"
"It's nothing to worry about Bhabhi." The girl reassured. "Bas bhaiya ko thodi si chot aaye hai. Woh jald hi theek ho jayenge."
"Woh kahan hai? I'll be right there."
Pooja couldn't remember whether she informed her father before rushing out the door or whether she called her driver or drove herself. She just remembered arriving at the hospital and asking for Vaibhav's room.
She finally felt that she could breathe when she saw her fianc laying on the hospital bed, breathing, and not too worse for wear. He lay in the hospital bed with a bandage around his forehead and was texting on his phone.
"Vaibhav, what is all this? How did this happen?"
He looked surprised to see her there but it quickly turned to exasperation. "Arrey, I told Sanchi not to call you. I'm fine. Nothing has happened."
Pooja felt her worry turn to irritation, as it often did when this bull headed man was involved. "What do you mean that you asked her not to call me? You're hurt, don't I have a right to know?"
He clasped her hand and thread his fingers through through hers. "Of course you have a right to know sweetheart. I know you worry and I didn't want to alarm you."
She huffed out a breath and sat at the edge of his bed. "Of course I worry. What if something happened to you Vaibhav? Tell me what happened. How did you get hurt?"
To her surprise her fianc turned away. In her experience Vaibhav never shied away from facts, truths, and saying it how it is. "It's nothing. It was silly."
Confused at his evasion Pooja remained silent. If he didn't wish to tell her then there would be a good reason behind it.
They sat in silence for a few minutes each taking comfort in the warmth of their laced fingers.
Finally he spoke. "I had gone over to the Sethiyas to demand an answer from Aryan."
"Oh Vaibhav." Pooja tightened her hold on his hand as her heart broke a little seeing his pain. He was such an amazing man who had put his own life on hold for his sister's future. It made her love him even more. "What did he say?"
"All he said was that his elders made this decision and he would respect that."
Well, that was that then. From what she knew of the Sethiya family they were as traditional as her own. The elders word was law. It made her wonder why the elders made this decision. But they would likely never know.
"You tried Vabhav and that's all that matters. Someone else will come along, you'll see. Someone better for Sanchi and we will help her put this whole thing behind her. I understand that this is a very tough time for her but she will get through this and come out it stronger than ever. You all will."
"Sanchi isn't the only reason I went to Aryan for an answer." He suddenly turned his deep, soulful eyes to hers and they spoke volumes to her about his anger and impatience. "I was selfish. I wanted an answer for us too."
"I already told you yesterday..."
He quickly cut her off. "I know what you said. I know you sweetheart and I know that you will wait. But with Sanchi's engagement looming I had started to see dreams for us also. When the rishta broke I was shattered for her, but I was also shattered for us. I am sorry that I am putting you through this."
Pooja brought his hand up to her cheek and rested it against the warmth of his palm. She felt tears prick her eyes, ones that she had been so successful at hiding away making a traitorous appearance. "Our time will come Vaibhav." She murmured the promise. "And the wait will be absolutely worth it when it does. You'll see."
His look spoke volumes and she saw the overwhelming love she felt for him reflected right back at her.
They both sat in a companionable silence until his family returned from the tea stall.
Sushant & Priyanka
Priyanka placed the tray down on the table between the two armchairs and handed a cup of steaming coffee to Sushant. Her husband took the mug silently, still seemingly disturbed from the day's events. He had returned home and told her of what had transpired between Aryan, Vaibhav, and himself. She knew that he was holding himself responsible for the roughhousing.
She sat on the armchair beside him with her own cup of the steaming beverage contemplating her own thoughts. She wasn't sure if now was an appropriate time to share her thoughts with Sushant but she needed to speak to him sometime and get this off her chest.
"I don't agree with Baba-sa breaking off Aryan and Sanchi's marriage."
This statement obviously caught her husband off guard. His head snapped up and he looked near outraged at her brazen disagreement with the elders. "How can you say that Priya? The elders made a sound and logical choice."
Priyanka sighed internally. If her husband had one fault it was that he was a blind follower of his elders. Sure he was modern in his ways and mannerisms but when it came time to prove to their elders that the younger generation also had sensibilities and a good head on their shoulders he would easily back down and choose to defer to his elders. Unlike Aryan her husband was one to never set a toe out of line.
"Did they really Sushant? Think of what that poor girl and her family must be going through."
"It's better than her family having to choose whether or not they want to send their daughter into a family that might not be able to provide for her needs or even have a roof over their head."
"Don't you think that's a choice that they should have been able to make?"
He looked alarmed at this. "No. Do you think it would be easy for Baba-sa to go to the Mittals and tell them of our financial troubles?"
"So because it will be easy to not reveal our family's woes to outsiders it means that we should just break a family's hopes and dreams?"
Sushant rubbed his temple and she could tell he was starting to become irritated with her. But now that she had him on this topic she would not back down. "Thats not at all what his intention was Priya and you know that."
"I do know that Sushant but I feel that this can really come back in a bad way for the Mittals. In our society girls who are rejected, for any reason, are not looked upon favourably. You know this."
"But what other choice do we have? We can't expect the Mittals to go through something when really its our problem that we need to work at fixing. It isn't fair to them, especially to Sanchi to stand by Aryan on this sinking ship."
"Do you expect me to stand by you on this sinking ship Sushant?" She attempted to change her tactic and use his words against her.
"Yes." He responded confidently. "Or uh... At least, I hope you will." She could see the confidence waning and self doubt seeping in. "You can go to your Baba's place if you like, you don't have to be here and see this."
"Why do I get to make a choice and Sanchi doesn't?"
"Because her and Aryan are not married." He stated matter-of-fact.
"Yes, but maybe she was starting to see this family as her own also. I would never leave you to deal with this Sushant. This is my family. You are my husband. I love all of you and nothing any of you do would convince me to leave in a time like this. Maybe Sanchi wants that too. Maybe she also wants to be there for Aryan."
"So what would be your solution Priya?" He asked patiently, obviously still not comprehending her point.
"I am as educated as you are Sushant. Sanchi is as educated as Aryan is. The four of us could get jobs, and we would get good jobs with our qualifications, and we could support the family together. We can work towards some savings and set up another home business. There are ways out of this situation. We have our whole family backing us.
"Isn't it selfish of us to expect Sanchi to work like that to help us out of financial ruin?"
"That's what I mean. It's selfish for us to expect anything. Let her make the choice. If she wants to leave, let her, if she wants to stay, let her. But don't rob her of the choice at least!" Priyanka could see the cogs turning in her husband's head. Finally! She rejoiced. She wasn't captain of the debate team for nothing. "Let me ask you this. Say it was a few months later and the wedding had already happened, would you have expected her to stay then?"
"Yes, of course." He stated as confidently before.
"Why? Just because she's Aryan's wife? What difference does it make now? When us girls are firm on a life partner Sushant it doesn't take a wedding ceremony to cement how we feel. Can you imagine her pain at being turned down for no reason? It would be like you breaking all relations with me for no reason other than your elders telling you so."
He began playing with his wedding band and frowned pensively. "What would you have me do? I can't go against Baba-sa's decision. There is already so much going on. He doesn't need his own rebelling against him."
That was the question, wasn't it? How to change the mind of their obstinate Baba-sa?
She sat back and sipped the now cooled liquid in her mug slowly. "I don't know Sushant. I just wanted you to see things my way."
They both finished their drinks in silence that evening.
So why these couples you ask? I feel that these couples have so much potential and I wish we saw more interaction between them than just expositional stuff,
For people who read this only for Aryan and Sanchi scenes my apologies. I felt it prudent to leave them out of this one.
I thope this was an enjoyable read. Please let me know what you thought.
-Ally
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