On a large and soft bed sat a girl dressed in a bridal wear looking her best. She peeped up to see where she was after the girls had left her in the room. They had been giggling and teasing her all through and her cheeks had gotten blood tinged hearing them. She had been anxious about this night since the day her marriage was fixed and the apprehension was way too much at this moment for her. She looked up to take in the beauty of the room. Her bed was decorated with flowers and there were candles lighted all around the room. In the centre there was a water filled golden vessel which had floating petals and exotic smelling candles lighted. The room was a beauty, not much she could make out about the colour of the room but she could see alternating blue and white around the room. She imagined how the room would look in bright sunlight when it would filter through the large windows.
She remembered how her mother had been happy about the relation when Radha Aunty had proposed her son for Madhu. Oops... Not Aunty anymore. Mom as she said RK calls her. RK.. The successful businessman.. Not many people reach the heights that he has reached at his age. She remembered her mother telling her while trying to coax her to agree to the proposal... she remembered the only time she had met him before. He was a beauty to be seen. Like a Greek God he had emerged through the bright sunlight in that beautiful beach side restaurant. The man sure has a taste, that she had decided that day itself when she had stepped into the beautiful serene restaurant. And when she saw him coming she felt that he had chosen this place to match his personality with the background for sure. She envied the looks he had been getting as he entered the place and when he sat down in front of her, only then she realised that it was not her dream.
"Madhubala, I suppose..?" The deep voice shook her out of her dreamland.
She nodded her head nervously.
" I guess you know why we are here?" He asked in a business like tone but still Madhu blushed indicating that she knew well.
"Well Madhubala, I dont want to know much except... Do u have a boyfriend? Or had in the past?" He asked a little awkwardly but not ashamed of his question.
Madhu looked at him in gaping shock and shook her head in a negative.
"See.. I dont want any kind of secrets coming out afterwards so lets discuss it in the open.." he said looking at her intently. She just looked at him not knowing how she should respond to such a question.
"I hope you can speak?" He asked getting suspicious as she hadnt uttered a word and just talked in gestures uptil now.
"Yes Ofcourse..." she hurried her tongue to spit out.
RK took a sigh of relief.
"I have not been in any relationship before... though there was a guy in college who approached me but I was adamant on being married arranged. Seems he was not interested in marrying because he didnt send any proposal to my parents." Madhu said looking down at her hands.
"Ohh.. Good.. well I had been in an arranged relationship.." he said non chalantly. Madhu looked at him confused. What does he mean by arranged relationship. She had heard arranged marriage but this was strange. She looked at him curiously.
"I didnt understand" she said not getting an answer.
"Oh.. My marriage was fixed qith this girl Dipali... but after 2 months it was broken because she wanted to marry someone else.." he said firmly.
"Oh.. thats bad..." Madhu said showing sympathy though she was happy about it.
"No.. its good... It would have been bad If she would have done that after marriage.. Apparently her parents had forced her... " he said in a non affected tone.
