I Don't Need Love

Part 5: Coordination

If looks could kill then Aryan would have been dead by now.

Aryan Oberoi held a creepy smile as he teased his cousin about his wedding. "I will ask Bhabhi to feed you well since you are getting way too thin" He squeezed Rayaan's biceps giving him a shoulder bump. Rayaan couldn't help but scowl at Aryan's mere existence. All of his cousins to be precise.

Rayaan doesn't share a very close bond with his cousins. He is just cordial with them but they think otherwise. Aryan being 10 years younger than him was taking full advantage.
Rayaan was tolerating them because of his mother. If it was left on him he would not even waste a single second in throwing all of his cousins out.

A full-blown laughter broke in the room as soon as Shubham draped a saree around and was acting like a newly married bride. They wanted to drag Rayaan in the middle and dance around him but his one glare told them he was off limits. Instead of him, Aryan jumped in acting as Rayaan.

Rayaan couldn't help but shake his head in annoyance looking at their mischief.

His eyes moved to the ring on his ring finger. Yesterday, he got engaged to Meera.

As soon as she ran out of the cafe, he realized maybe he was too harsh with his words. As he kept on replaying their conversation, he felt more and more guilty. He might not want to get married to her but his code of conduct was pathetic. Maybe if he would have carried out a decent conversation and told her about his thoughts on marriage, she would have refused.

But wasn't it was his plan to scare her away? He shook his head at the reminder by his concise. Suddenly the idea of scaring her into saying no to him felt childish.

He looked at his mother who was happy. Way too happy for him. She was twirling around with dreamy eyes and a lehenga in her hand. If only he could feel more guilty. He had no right to break his mother's heart like this. He was pretty sure Meera will refuse this marriage after their little encounter at the Cafe.

But when the morning rolled in and still there was no refusal from Meera's side Rayaan sighed in relief unknowingly.

In the afternoon Rayaan, along with his parents left for Meera's house. They kept the engagement ceremony small and private. Both families wanted to keep the affair private till the wedding. So they decided on keeping all the rituals before the wedding private, only for close friends and family. Meera and Rayaan didn't have a problem with it since both of them disliked large gatherings and too much attention.

With one look at his future wife who was dressed in a captivating lavender lehenga, Rayaan knew that lavender had found its place in his heart. The delicate lavender hue adorned with silver embellishments added an ethereal charm to her attire. The beautiful stone-studded dupatta was flowing gracefully on her right shoulder. The sleek waist chain was helping it to keep in place. Her hair braided cascaded down to her waist, leaving a few hair tendrils on both sides of her face that were framing her gorgeous face.

The silver jhumkas kissed her cheeks as she sat beside him on the sofa. All the while her eyes down. Rayaan didn't want to look like a creep. He quickly shifted his gaze to his mother. She was elated. He sighed and kept sitting there in silence. But not for long as his cousins along with Meera's graced them with their presence.

Aryan Whistled "Ohh! So they are color coordinating"

Rayaan looked at himself wearing a simple lavender kurta. Now he knows why his mother was adamant about him wearing this kurta. Heat crawled up to his face as he realized they were indeed color-coordinating. He tried to glare at Aryan but he quickly went to Meera's side.

Rayaan could hear her cousins teasing her, though the words they said were meant to be heard by only her. But their whisper were not whisper and he could clearly hear them.

"Your small frame will perfectly fit into his large arms"

A series of giggles and whistles were followed as they kept talking naughty.

"Imagine when he will grab you by your waist and toss you down on the bed "

He choked listening to her cousin. From his neck to all the way his ear everything was burning hot. "Here, Drink this. Though you never color coordinated with me still I can help you " Aryan blabbered giving a glass of water to Rayaan.

He drank the water in a go and glared at Aryan. Before he could even say a word, his mother joined. "Time for the ring ceremony"

The cousins cheered and quickly thrust Rayaan's hand into Meera's. A sudden jolt of electricity passed through their spine. Meera looked at him making his breath hitch. Her almond-shaped eyes gazed back at him. Her face looked heated up too.

Not even a proper minute and her eyes were again looking at her lap.
Rayaan frowned, So he has able to scare her. Clearly, she was intimidated by him. Rayaan felt guilty looking at her feared form. This was not how it was supposed to be.

Her bangles tingled when she held his rough fingers softly in her small hands making his heart beat loudly. She slid down the ring on his ring finger. It gave him a beautiful feeling. A feeling that he could not name. For the first time in life, he was experiencing something like this. He felt something sweet bubbling in his whole body. Something that was making his heart rush.

The loud cheer told him that now it was his turn to put the ring on her finger. He held her right hand as delicately as possible. Her small hand fit perfectly in his large ones as her cousin said. Taking a breath or two he slid the ring into her shivering hands. Her left hand was clutching her lehenga and her eyes shut with a might. He realized she was nervous. So he quickly started making circles on the back of her palm to ease her worries.

She did look a little relaxed but her behavior made Rayaan frown, maybe she too didn't want the wedding as much as him. All the while he was thinking that he didn't want the wedding. He should have asked her about her thoughts. She was young maybe she wanted to enjoy her life before getting hitched. Was she forced into this?

All the thoughts were troubling him. He wanted to talk to her but didn't know how to approach her. Should he just ask for her number from his mother and call her? But he didn't want to sound like a creep. Or He could take her out on lunch? But considering their previous encounter there were high chances she would not want to go with him.

"Thinking of Bhabhi, Ha? " Aryan again sat beside him squeezing Rayaan's shoulder. Rayaan gritted his teeth looking at him. He wished if he could slap him. But then his mother will give him an earful. So he settled with glaring at him and excused himself to his room leaving behind a giggling Aryan.