The Great Indian Wedding Romance

26. Moving On

Delhi had always been home for Siddharth. 

No matter how far he had gone or what he had achieved, once the wheels of his plane hit the familiar tarmac at Indra Gandhi International Airport he always relaxed a little. 

He had napped most of the flight which wasn't very long. Now he was looking forward to sleeping in his own bed after a very exhausting and eventful week. 

The upcoming reception nagged at the back of his mind but he tried his best to shut that off. 

Everyone was tired and wiped out from their lack of sleep so the goodbyes were short. His mother approached them and gave them affectionate hugs and pats on the heads. 

"I hope you know you are all invited to the reception tonight," she said as they approached the topic. 

They all swivelled their gazes to Siddharth to gauge his reaction. 

"Yes, you're all invited." 

That was all he said before grabbing both their bags. 

As they walked outside together his mother looked at him with concern in her eyes. She didn't understand what her son was going through and she knew better than to confront him. He would come to her of his own accord when he was ready to share. 

That was Siddharth. He would rather suffer in silence than share his burden with people who loved him. 

"Damini has sent Kamal to pick us up," she informed him referring to the driver in her sister's employ. 

"That's nice," he said digging his phone out. 

Absentmindedly he loaded their luggage in the car before Kamal could get out to help them. They were seated inside the car in minutes. He stared out of the car for the rest of the ride. 

***

An unsettling amalgam of anticipation, anxiety and dread pooled in Siddharth's gut as he laced his shoes. They were both ready to head to the reception. 

He knew it was hard for his mother too. The reception was at the Rajput residence. They would both be heading there after all those years. 

Siddharth's last memory of the place was dipped in his feverish delirium. All he remembered was how damp his mother's tears were on his forehead and how nice the cold air felt on his burning skin. 

His mother emerged from her room looking graceful as always. 

"Ready?" he asked. 

"Yes," she gave him a brave smile. 

They walked towards his car and he opened the door for his mother. Once seated she asked,

"Are your friends coming?" 

"Yug and Angad might drop by but I'm not sure," he replied. 

He had texted with them briefly so he knew these two would come. He also had to reassure them that the invitation was, in fact, real. They were no strangers to the relationship Siddharth had with his family so they were understandably surprised at being included in the invitation. 

As he neared the place he hadn't seen in nearly ten years he realized that he wasn't dreading the place itself but who he would see there. 

He had thought of skipping the event but he knew that wouldn't be possible. He had even considered that Chetna might skip it but he realized her parents wouldn't take no for an answer. 

They would inevitably meet here and this might be the last time. 

***

His first thought as he entered the place was how brightly lit it was.