Shaadi Mubarak!

Chapter 12

As soon as they get out, Shaurya turns to the girl, jaw still dropped and eyes wide. 

He watches as the girl flushes, embarrassed, not looking him in the eyes. 

He huffs out a surprised chuckle. “Wow,” and murmurs to himself.

“Come on,” still not looking directly at him, Rati holds his hand and leads them to the parking lot though with each step her speed gets slow as if she is thinking deeply about something. Shaurya knows exactly what it is about.

She stops midways and turns around with a deep breath. She then looks up and gives him a shaky smile. He looks at her worriedly, every other emotion sliding of his face. 

“Don’t worry, I am not going to cry.” She says but doesn’t look like it. He wishes that he could make it clear to her that he doesn’t mind her crying one bit, she doesn’t have to be embarrassed of it though he does mind the fact that he can’t put a permanent smile on her face. 

“It’s absolutely fine if you do.” He says, stopping once the two were out pf the building, now heading towards the parking lot. 

The girl detaches her hand from his. She doesn’t look at him when she says, “It’s really nothing, you know. Singhania sir is a nice man. He recently got married. His wife is pregnant with their baby, he’s very loyal –”

It takes Shaurya a minute to understand what Rati is talking about but as soon as he does, he can’t help but grow frantic. 

“Stop, please stop, Rati.” He says, his voice echoing in the parking lot, startling both him and the girl. He is quick to realise his mistake and lowers his voice. 

“Please don’t do this. Do you really think you need to explain me or give me any clarification regarding you and your boss just because that nosy receptionist was saying so?” he asks, but instead of getting comforted, Rati just averts her gaze. 

“It’s not only her who thinks so.” She mumbles and Shaurya nods. 

“Yes, it isn’t only her. It is also all those dumb people who don’t have anything better to do than to judge people and their lives. I really wanted to give them a piece of my mind, Rati. I just stopped because it was your workplace. You’ve told how it has been three years since you’ve been working here. I didn’t want to ruin anything for you but – but I don’t understand how you tolerate those disgusting people. Have they said anything else to you? Can’t you put up a complain? I’ll – I’ll get them fired, but – but I can’t since I don’t work there – you can tell your boss, can’t you? Tell him to fire –” Shaurya is cut off from his angry rant by a string of melodious giggles. He looks at the girl to find him looking at her with a fond look in her glistening eyes. 

He sees as she looks around the seemingly empty parking lot, before she takes a step closer to him, and looks up, he, being almost a head taller from her. The angry expression melts of his face as he takes the angelic face, unable to stop himself as he gently strokes her face with his thumb. 

She momentarily closes her eyes, and the smiles. “Thank you, Shaurya,” she says, and his thumb pauses in its ministration. “Thank you for trusting me. Thank you for getting angry on my behalf, thank you for caring for me. I know it sounds weird, but I have – I have got used to all that. The gossips that come with my job. I mean, I don’t blame them entirely, it’s the doing of the entertainment industry.” She says and sighs, though not sadly. “I really like my job and have a good practice of it. Singhania sir has also always been very respectful towards me, save for the fact that he doesn’t think about it being a weekend or a weekday before he dumps the work on me, but then I also get paid overtime so it’s fine. As for today, I was – I was affected because Rekha said that to me in front of you. You shouldn’t have had to listen to all of it.” She pouts, and is yet again forced to close her eyes as Shaurya’s finger brushes the imaginary tresses away from her forehead. 

“I want to.” He says, “I want to listen to all of that, I want to know about your workplace, about your job, about how people see you and how that affects you. I want to know all of it, I want to know so that in the future whenever you come back home looking tired, not really wanting to talk to me, I would have an idea what might have gone wrong and then – and then I would personally walk up to your boss, tell him about the people who made you sad and get them all fired because that is what they deserve. Oh, and I’ll also tell him to put less workload on you.” He huffs and relishes in the way the girl once again bursts into giggles, this time resting her head on his chest. 

He feels his heart rabbiting in his chest at the action, but keeping his nervousness and elation aside, he puts his arms around the girl, bringing her closer to him until she is secured in his embrace. 

“Baby…” he says, and the girl hums, snuggling into him more. He smiles. “Please promise me, promise me that you’ll tell me if it gets too hard. You don’t have to endure all this.” He says, a bit helpless but tries to find relief in the way the girl nods in his chest. 

“Don’t worry, if any of them ever cross their lines, I would answer them myself. I know how to take care of myself, but I’ll let you take care of me too… time to time.” She says and looks up with a cheeky grin on her face. 

Shaurya smiles in pure delight as he takes in her expression, not thinking much before he kissed the top of her head. 

The action has both of them freezing. 

Though before any awkward shifting on their feet or instantly flying away from each other or something along the lines begin, Rati gives him a small smile. 

“I’m sorry –”

She shakes her head. “It’s alright.” She says voice shy. “We’re… we’re going to get engaged soon.” She mumbles, and soon as she does, she averts her gaze, leaving Shaurya to sigh the fondest he has. 

“Although,” she says then, pulling away and squinting his eyes at him. “Why can’t you just wear something like this and look like an ordinary man, why do you always have to look so –” The girl pauses as she thinks up of a right word as Shaurya watches in amusement. 

“Why do I always have to look so…?” he drawls, back to teasing her and enjoys in the way she huffs cutely. “The next time you come to see me in my office you need to – you need to stay covered up. I’m sorry if it sounds orthodox but you can’t wear things like this in my office. Believe me when I say all the staff there has hawk eyes. And you’re definitely someone very eye catching, so yes.” She nods to herself in affirmation and Shaurya lets out a loud laugh, daring to cup her face and then squish her cheeks. 

“You’re so fucking adorable.” He says that and laughs as the girl tries to say something, but the words comes out muffled. Though he takes pity on her soon enough and leaves her face. She huffs at him. 

“Shaurya!”

“Baby!” 

The endearment does its work as the girl deters. Only momentarily. 

“Don’t distract me.” She says cutely. “So, as I was saying, since I have your ring,” she shows the thumb it adorns, proudly, “it’s only fair that you also… that –” the shyness kicks in yet again as she is unable to complete the sentence though Shaurya instantly getting what she means, instead of teasing her, helps her. 

“I need to know that I am taken.” 

The girl looks at him, eyes slightly widened but doesn’t deny. “And..” he continues, “other people need to know that too so that they don’t call me hot and other racy adjectives.” He says and barely suppresses a chuckle because even though the girl’s face turns red, she doesn’t deny. 

“Well, we’re going to shop for exactly that right now, so convenient, don’t you think… baby? Buy me a snug fit for my ring finger, will you?” 

Rati gives him a cheeky smile. “Will do, love.” 

This time it’s Shaurya with his cheeks, beet red.