His Arranged Bride

Chapter 68

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Nitya

I smile, seeing my parents, along with my brother, step inside the house and excitedly greet them.

"You are finally here," I say, hugging my mother.

Maa's eyes light up when she sees me and hugs me back. "I was so eager to see you." She lovingly cups my face when we lean back from the hug.

Then, turning to Babuji, I am about to hug him too, but he stops me by raising his hand. He is not smiling. His face is set in a slight frown, his gaze critical as he looks around the house, and I can practically hear the disappointment in his sigh.

With a dimming smile, I take a step back, hugging Bhaiyya instead, who subtly shakes his head. I know he is silently telling me not feel disheartened, and I nod at him.

"I'm not at all happy about this marriage," Babuji mutters. "I wanted to choose a bride for Yash myself."

"Dhritiji is a good person. You'll see it after you meet her. She's really a good match for Bhaiyya," I tell my father.

Before he can say anything to that, Dhritiji and Shrutiji also step inside the living room, and the moment they enter, Babuji's gaze snaps to them, and his eyes widen. His expression shifts from surprise to something closer to disapproval on seeing Dhritiji.

"In our days, the boy and the girl were not even allowed to see each other until marriage. And this girl has shamelessly come here? Doesn't she know she should not meet Yash until they are wed with proper rituals?"

Shrutiji steps forward, her gaze steely as she eyes my father. "Fortunately, your days are long gone, Uncleji. That's why you should not call Dhriti shameless just because she's going to stay here for a few days.

Babuji seems stunned, his eyes narrowing as his gaze darts between Dhritiji and Bhaiyya. "You're really not expecting me to let you two stay under the same room before marriage, are you?"

Bhaiyya squares his shoulders, ready for the backlash but unwilling to relent. "Yes, Babuji, Dhriti, Shruti, and Nitya will be staying here with us for a few days."

"Absolutely not," Babuji roars. "I won't let an unmarried couple stay together in the same house. Not under my watch."

Before anyone can respond to that, Dhritiji begin to speak. "If that's the case, Uncleji, then there is a solution for it." She folds her arms, undeterred by Babuji's imposing glare. "There is an empty cowshed outside. I can prepare for you to stay there, so you won't have to watch Yash and me staying in the same house."

For a few moments after Dhritiji says that it's only silence that hangs in the air. I'm stunned by, and I can see others are as shocked as me. Whereas Babuji's face has gone red with anger.

The silence is broken by Shruti's half laugh, which she quickly tries to stifle it. She pretends to cover it with cough. "The dust in the house is bothering me," she says with an edge as she looks at Babuji. "I think it needs to be cleaned properly."

Babuji ignores her and continues glaring at Dhritiji. "How dare you speak like that with me? How can you even suggest that I stay in a cowshed?"

Dhritiji shrugs. "If cowshed doesn't work for you, there's an empty pig pen too. Perhaps that would be comfortable for you. What do you think?"

Getting worried due to where this argument is going, I look at Bhaiyya to see if he is also tensed as I am, but when I do, I catch him grin just as he lets out a laugh. Like Shrutiji, he also quickly covers it with a cough.