SWEETHEART DRAUPADI (INNOCENCE OF THE FLAME)

MEHENDI

"NOTHING HAPPENS WEAR IT LADO." SHE SAID. EVERYBODY WAS FROZEN HEARING HER VOICE. DRAUPADI WAS HAVING A TSUNAMI OF EMOTIONS. "WEAR IT LADO ACCOMPANY YOUR BHABHI." HE SAID. DRAUPADI QUICKLY STOOD UP AND RAN TOWARDS THE TWO FIGURES AND THREW HERSELF HUGGING THEM. THE 2 FIGURES DID THE SAME. THEY TOO EMBRACED HER TIGHTLY THEIR ONLY CHILD, THEIR DAUGHTER. "WHY DID YOU COME SO LATE?" DRAUPADI SAID IN THE VERGE OF TEAR. "MAIYA? BABA?" SHE CONTINUED. AFTER YEARS OF PARTING THE PARENTS AND CHILD HAD MET. "JUST YOU KNOW HOW YOUR MAIYA IS. ALWAYS FORGETTING THINGS IN LAST MINUTES." SIDDHARTH SAID. "SERIOULY YOU WILL NEVER STOP BRAINWASHING MY DAUGHTER ABOUT ME." APARNA SAID. "THIS IS NOT CALLED BRAINWASHING THIS IS CALLED TELLING TRUTH. THANK GOD MY DAUGHTER TOOK AFTER ME." SIDDHARTH SAID. "WHO SAID SHE TOOK AFTER YOU? SHE TOOK AFTER ME. SHE IS MY DAUGHTER." APARNA AND SIDDHARTH STARTED BICKERING WITH EACHOTHER RIGHT AT THE SPOT RECEIVING A WATERY CHUCKLE FROM EVERYBODY. THEN THE COUPLE WENT TOWARDS SIDDHARTH AND APARNA TOOK THEIR BLESSINGS. THEY HAPPILY BLESSED BOTH THE COUPLE.  THEY THEN WENT TO THE PANDAVAS AND THEIR FAMILY. THE CHILDHOOD FRIENDS HAD FINALLY REUNITED. THE PANDAVAS TOOK THEIR BLESSING AND THE FUNCTION CONTINUED. "OKAY BUT ONLY MY PALMS." DRAUPADI SAID AS SHE FINALLY AGREED. "BUT MAIYA YOU HAVE TO WEAR AS WELL." DRAUPADI SAID AND APARNA AGREED. "SOMEBODY PASS THE MEHENDI HERE AS WELL." SIDDHARTH SAID. "WHY SO?" NILGYANT AND DAU ASKED. "BECAUSE YOU GUYS HAVE TO WEAR AS WELL." SIDDHARTH SAID. "WHAT WHY US?" NILGYANT AND DAU SAID TOGETHER. "WELL IN OUR MARRIAGE WE HAD WORE AS WELL." PANDU SAID. "BUT HOW CAN WE?" NILGYANT AND DAU THE BESTFRIEND GROOM DUO WHINED. "JUST THEIR NAMES DON'T WORRY. WE UNDERSTAND YOUR HORROR VERY WELL. SO DON'T WORRY YOU GUYS ONLY WON'T BE THE ONE SUFFERED THIS HORROR." SIDDHARTH SAID BRINGING MEHENDI TOWARDS THE BOYS. "WHAT HAPPENED IF WE WEREN'T IN HALDI. WE ARE IN MEHENDI AND WE WILL WRITE THEIR NAME ON YOUR HAND." APARNA SAID COMING TOWRDS THEIR SIDE. SIDDHARTH AND APARNA BOTH WROTE THEIR BRIDE'S NAME ON THEIR HAND. THE FUNCTION WAS FULL OF FUN AND HAPPINESS.

AFTER THE FUNCTION,

"GOD I JUST TOLD THE PALM. I KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN SO I DIDN'T WANTED TO WEAR. NOW HOW WILL I DO THE WORKS?" DRAUPADI SAID TO HERSELF.

THEN SUDDENLY SHE WAS PULLED BY WAIST IN THE PANDAVA'S ROOM. "GOD! ARE YOU GUYS PLANNING TO GIVE ME A HEART ATTACK?" SHE ASKED TO THE PANDAVAS WHO WERE JUST SMILING AT HEARING HER WORDS. "WHAT HAPPENED?" SHE ASKED THE PANDAVAS. "NOTHING" KARN SAID. "NOTHING?" SHE ASKED. "YEAH NOTHING." YUDHISTIR REPLIED. "THEN WHY YOU PULLED ME IN?" SHE ASKED. "JUST" BHEEM SAID. "JUST?" SHE ASKED. "YEAH JUST." ARJUN REPLIED. "SERIOUSLY?" SHE ASKED AND THE PANDAVAS JUST NODDED. "CALM DOWN." NAKUL SAID. "YEAH CALM DOWN. DON'T THINK ABOUT WORK RIGHT NOW, WE HEARD YOU SPEAKING TO YOURSELF. TAKE IT AS A REST TIME." SHAHADEV SAID MAKING HER CALM DOWN. "OKAY I WILL GET GOING THEN." SHE SAID AND AS SHE WAS GOING TO GO. "WAIT!" THEY SAID MAKING HER STOP AND TURN AROUND. "YEAH?" SHE ASKED. "DID YOU WRITE OUR NAME?" THEY ASKED. "WHERE?" SHE ASKED. THEY SIGNALLED HER HAND. "I WANT TO BUT I DON'T WANT TO DIE BY THE HANDS OF DADISA AS SHE WILL KILL ME IF SHE KNOWS THAT I DIDN'T TELL HER ABOUT OUR SOMEWHAT MARRIAGE." SHE SAID AND EXITED. SHE JUST QUICKLY RUSHED TOWARDS HER PARENT'S ROOM. SHE HAD MET THEM AFTER SUCH A LONG PARTING. THE WORST NIGHTMARE OF A CHILD AND A PARENT IS BEING APART FROM EACHOTHER. THOUGH THEY MADE FEW SMALL VISITS OVER THESE YEARS. THEY WERE VERY SHORT AND FEW. SHE REACHED THE ROOM OF HER PARENTS AND OPENED THE DOOR FROM HER ELBOW. APARNA AND SIDDHARTH HAD SENSED IT AND OPENED THEIR ARMS AS SOON AS THEY HEARD THE DOOR BEING PUSHED. DRAUPADI JUST RAN RIGHT INTO THEIR ARMS. "DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I MISSED YOU?" DRAUPADI SAID BREAKING DOWN IN THEIR ARMS. "WE KNOW DEAR. WE TOO MISSED YOU." APARNA SAID AS SHE COULDN'T HOLD BACK HER TEARS. THE PARENTS CHILD HAD CONTROL AND HELD THEIR TEARS BACK DURING THE FUNCTION BUT COULDN'T HOLD IT BACK ANYMORE. "IT WAS VERY HARD NOT HAVING YOU HERE WITH ME. IT WAS REALLY HARD AND DIFFICULT TO CONTROL THESE NAAGA POWERS. I ALWAYS THOUGHT ABOUT WHAT AND HOW WERE YOU GUYS DOING IN NAAGLOK." DRAUPADI SAID. "WE KNOW MY CHILD. WE KNOW. IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT FOR US BEING AWAY FROM YOU AS WELL." SIDDHARTH SAID. "PLEASE STAY A LITTLE LONGER THIS TIME." DRAUPADI SAID WITH CRACKED VOICE. "DON'T WORRY CHILD WE WILL RETURN SOON TO YOU AND STAY WITH YOU FOREVER." APARNA SAID. "SO THAT MEANS YOU ARE LEAVING ME AGAIN?" DRAUPADI ASKED. "NO DEAR NO DON'T THINK THAT WE ARE LEAVING YOU." APARNA SAID. "JUST THINK THAT WE ARE GOING AWAY FOR SOME WORK AND I PROMISE THAT THIS PARTING WILL BE THE SHORTEST AND THE LAST PARTING." SIDDHARTH SAID. "AFTER THAT WE WILL BE WITH YOU FOREVER TILL THE END OF TIME." APARNA SAID. "NOW STOP MAKING MY DAUGHTER CRY." SIDDHARTH SAID. "WHAT ME?" APARNA ASKED. "YEAH YOU HAVE A BAD HABIT OF CRYING IN HAPPY MOMENTS." SIDDHARTH SAID. "LOOK WHO IS TALKING. HE HIMSELF IS CRYING AND BLAMING ME." APARNA SAID AND THE COUPLE AGAIN STARTED TO BICKER MAKING DRAUPADI LET OUT A WATERY LAUGH. THEY THEN AGAIN DID A FAMILY HUG AND DRAUPADI SPENT THE NIGHT IN HER PARENT'S ROOM. LITTLE DID THEY KNOW THAT THE PANDAVAS AND THEIR FAMILY WERE WITNESSING THEIR FAMILY LOVE FROM FAR APART FROM THE DOOR.