Fortitude ✔(Love & Military Series #2)

01 || Fortitude

Love isn't always about togetherness, it's about being strong enough to accept every aspect of your partner's life and pledging to love them with no terms and conditions.

The Engagement

"Oh! Sorry, sorry, I'm very sorry!" she apologised, holding her turmeric covered hands up in air. The look of guilt for ruining the shirt of the guy in front of hers with her turmeric covered hands, quite evident on her face.

"Aapko sorry bolne ki adaat bachpan se hai shayad, aur shayad kabhi jayegi bhi nahi (Maybe, you have the habit of apologising since your childhood and it'll probably never go)." he told her, smiling amusedly.

"Ji...ji?" she tried asking, already blushing as the guy she was standing opposite to, was the same man she was waiting for since last many days...her childhood love, her to-be fiancé.

"Oh, so aapki 'ji' bolne ki bimari bhi nahi gyi? Hmm...accha hain! (Oh, so your habit of saying 'ji' hasn't gone away either. Hmm...that's good!)" He smiled, his heart blooming on finally meeting her after seven whole years.

"Ji...?" she stuttered, unable to speak anything else, which only added to his amusement.

"Khushali, what have you done? You ruined Sidharth's shirt, that's so careless of you!" The girl, Khushali's mother scolded her.

"It's fine, I'll clean it myself." Sidharth calmly told her, not wanting Khushali to get scolded more.

Her mother tried to say something but couldn't as, he had walked inside the already crowded living area. It was his elder sister's wedding, and he had come to attend it.

Seeing him walk inside, she sighed, finally able to get a grip on her racing heart. Her mother shot her a glare, but it didn't matter to her. All that mattered was him, and the way he smiled at her. He was still the same guy, she fell in love with as a child, just a little more handsome with his army manners and discipline and his uptight yet polite personality.
"Captain Sidharth Mehra." She shyly smiled and went inside.

The wedding functions had begun two days back only. Sidharth had returned today from his army unit base in Kashmir, after taking a ten-day-leave from his field posting. The main function, the wedding ceremony was supposed to take place on the fifth day, i.e. a day after tomorrow.

Blushing, she watched him greet her father by touching his feet and call him 'Papa', which he had been doing since the time their marriage was fixed ten years ago, when she and he were 11-year-old and 14-year-old, respectively.

Their families had shared close relations since last three generations. The first generation being neighbours in Kapuri village of Punjab, had been friends with each other, before joining Indian Armed Forces, which further cemented their bond. Her and Sidharth's alliance was special in its own self as it was the first time the two army families were about to bound in a relation.

Her cheeks burned red as he glanced at her, sitting beside his father. Unable to hold herself together, she ran to the room she was staying in, blushing all the way.

He noticed this, shyly smiling to his own self. Contented, he, himself was. After all, later the evening after his sister's wedding, his 'Roka' or the traditional engagement ceremony with her was supposed to take place. It seemed relaxing to him that she hadn't changed at all over the course of time and was still, the same chirpy girl he fell in love with.

"Why are you smiling, Siddy?" asked his sister slyly.

He blushed, having been caught by his elder sister who had been observing the way he was looking at the same place where Khushali was standing some seconds back.