~ Always Besides You ~

2. Intricacy

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They had a silent drive to Baadi. Fiddling her fingers' her mind continued a quick playback of last 2 days while the car came to halt.

Stepping down, she walked to her home fidgeting. Finally, her heart was starting to feel relieved.

The satisfying warmth of homecoming, she couldn't holdback herself and stepped into home calling for her mother

AND SHE FREEZED.

Not able to control the tears making way down her cheeks, she ran and hugged her sister, her dear sister.

"Swara" Ragini murmured in between her sobs. She felt the tight hug and her sister's tears making her shoulder moist.

"Swara! You didn't call me. You broke the promise. Here I, I meant you, you messed up everything. You had to stay by me always." Ragini blabbered frantically.

Swara hugged her once again, assuring her sister that everything is better now, might be. She loosened the hug looking at the person at the doorstep looking her shockingly. Again, her tears cheated her and made way down. She looked at Ragini, touched her forehead which adorned sindoor, and her mangalsutra and then at Laksh.

Swara, Ragini, Laksh - Three names, three lifes continued getting entangled in a web from where they're not being able to unlock the knots and free themselves. Again, all three are in pain.

Sharmishta came to hall with a plate of food and was surprised as well as shocked to see Ragini and Laksh there at that moment. She was quick to call Shekhar from inside.

They had thought to call Maheshwaris home and manage the matter in a better manner, a little later, may be by the evening.

"Maa, you didn't inform me that Swara came back. You called me today morning also, still you..." Ragini couldn't complete her words.

"You and Laksh got married?!" Swara asked, rather stated, in her slightly trembling voice even though she knew the answer.

"Swara, woh.." Sharmishta thought of calming the situation but ---

"You didn't wait for me?!" Swara again shot her question, in a defeated voice, towards Laksh who felt himself losing his cool.

"Swara? This bandage on your head... You seem so weak Swara." Ragini couldn't contain her worry seeing her sister pale and weak.

Swara glanced and smiled a bit at Ragini.

"You didn't wait for me, Laksh!" Swara accused as a tear escaped from her eyes. "Are you trying to change the topic, Ragini?" She asked softly.

"Change topic? No, even I need to talk on that topic but your health is more important. Where the hell were you? What had happened to you?" Ragini spoke out as she sensed the irregularity of their conversations.

"She came couple of hours before, Ragu" Sharmishta stated. "Police brought her here. She was admitted in hospital from drowning in the river and was found on the shore the other side. They brought her after she regained consciousness yesterday."

Ragini's eyes watered as she glanced back at Swara and ran her hands softly examining Swara's wounds.

"Sorry Swara! I shouldn't have left you there. Its all because of me. I'm sorry." Ragini couldn't control the sob that escaped as she felt her heart heavy.

Things have messed up between the three. Again!

She looked at Swara and then at Laksh who was staring at Swara with mixed emotions.

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"The auspicious time is here. Call the bride" Panditji said to Annapurna.

She went inside Shekhar's home to bring Swara and was confused to see Sharmishta, Ragini, Shekhar, Daadi and Dadaji distressed.

"Swara hasn't returned from the temple" Sharmishta told Annapurna the truth holding her tears back.

"What do you mean by saying that you couldn't know anything? It's her marriage today. Please Sir. Help us." Shekhar talked helplessly over the phone and sat on the couch rubbing his forehead.

"Ragini had gone with her to temple, right?" Annapurna asked with disbelief.

"We were talking for sometime. Then I left for pooja and asked her to accompany me. She even came with me. But later I found her nowhere. Thinking that she would have returned home, I also returned. I didn't to take my cellphone to temple to confirm once with Maa." Ragini reasoned her helplessness with cracking voice.

"Swara is missing" Shekhar revealed to Durgaprasad.

Laksh sat down with the shock of his life.

Sanskaar quickly gazed Ragini. She quickly nodded her head in a 'NO' worried.

'Then where did Swara go?' He wondered.

Sekhar and Durgaprasad had a short dicussion with Police and then had a conversation along with Ram Prasad.

"The marriage is called off" Durgaprasad declared and the guests returned from Baadi.

"But where did that Chori went?" Exclaimed Sujatha. Ramprasad glared to stop her blabber something ahead.

"Shekhar Ji, you could have told us if you felt any hurry in the marriage. Such an incident just before the muhurat, we didn't expect that." Durgaprasad expressed his disappointment. "Leave all that, now we should search for Swara. We can't just waste time by assembling and discussing things."

Suddenly Laksh's phone beeped. It was a message. The name of his screen made his eye go wide. "Swara!!" He exclaimed. Everyone had a feeling of relief listening her name knowing that they got some clue about her.

But what came next was least expected by them.

"THIS MARRIAGE IS NOT THE BEST CHOICE FOR US NOW, LAKSH. I THINK I'M NOT READY FOR THIS. LAKSH, I REALISED JUST A WHILE BEFORE THAT WE COULD HAVE TAKEN A LITTLE MORE TIME. TODAY I CAN'T LAKSH. I'M SORRY"

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Hey Hi!!!

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