Shree stood by the window of her bedroom, watching the night sky, smooth breezes brushed against her face as a silent tear descended down her cheeks. She tried to find solace from the starlit night sky, but her mind reverberated with his last words to her.

"Shree?" Rishabh replied in shock. "What are you- What are you doing?"

Shree's face grew crimson in embarrassment. "Rish-Rish-Rishabh- I-I-I can explain-"

"That what I just saw was a figment of my imagination?" Rishabh whips at her aloud.

"No, Rishabh. I didn't mean to-"

"You didn't mean to kiss another lover of yours, while I was talking to your family about our marriage?" Rishabh adds louder.

"Rishabh, I love you, and you know-"

"Wow! You say you love me, but you snog your boss behind my back! I don't want to marry a woman who will be unfaithful to me. An untrue bitch like yourself doesn't deserve me or even a fragment of my love."

He removed the ring she had gifted him and threw it at her face as he walked away.

She brushes away her tears as she hears the door open, but kept her eyes glued to the sky.

"Shree." Madhav said as he walked in. "I'm sorry he refused to marry you. I didn't mean to kiss you like-"

"There's no use apologizing, Madhav." Shree breathed. "It can't undo anything."

"Maybe I can talk to your fiancé, and assure him that-"

"That you didn't kiss me like that in front of him?" Shree exclaimed. "For fuck sake, the man saw you kissing me! What are you going to tell him? 'Mr. Rishabh, I think you need to consult a psychiatrist, you would have been hallucinating.' Or something like 'I was trying to pull out some remaining food from her mouth'?"

"No, Shree." Madhav said calmly. "I'm going to convince him that even though I love you, your feelings for him are true and unwavering."

"But, he won't-"

"He will. I will make him listen." Madhav said. "Do you know where he lives?"

Shree shook her head.

"What?" Madhav asked taken aback. "You don't know where he lives?"

"He lives in San Francisco with his parents. But I don't know where in India." Shree adds.

"And you've never asked him?" Madhav asked and Shree shook her head.

"Where does he stay when he comes to India? Hotel? Relative's place?"

Shree shrugged.

"Fuck!" Madhav grunted annoyed and mopped his face with his palm. "This is becoming Sherlock Holmes. How can you not know where your boyfriend lives?"

"How the hell am I to know when he never even mentioned it?" Shree exclaimed. "He never mentioned it even when I asked him! He just texts me to come to his favorite restaurant if we make plans to meet."

* * * * *

Shree walked into the restaurant the next day around noon, wearing a crimson kurta and beige leggings. Madhav, wore a black tee-shirt and denims and was seated on the seat beside the window, facing the entrance, casually looking at everyone who entered the restaurant whilst sipping a cup of coffee.

"Hello, sir." Shree said sitting facing him. Madhav looked up and smiled.

"Do you want anything to eat or drink?" Madhav asks and Shree shakes her head.

"How are we going to find Rishabh's place, now?"

"We aren't going to find him. We are going to stay here until he walks in?"

Shree stares at him for a moment without blinking. "Are you serious? What if he never comes here?"

Madhav adjusted himself on the seat and comes closer. "You said he comes here often since this is his favourite restaurant, right?" Shree nods. "If I were living alone and I didn't know how to cook then I'd buy it from my favourite restaurant."

"What if he decided to order it through Zomato or something?" Shree asks.

"I have a gut feeling, Ms. Prasad." Madhav said smiling. "Trust me. Plus, it's almost lunchtime."

Shree sighed and sank on her seat, turning towards the entrance once in a while to observe everyone who was walking inside the restaurant. Within the next hour many people walked in, a couple entered, and took the seat at the furthest corner of the restaurant; a husband and wife walked in with two children later; a businessman walked in with his coworkers and a group of college girls.

"He's not going to come." Shree said as she sighed.

"He will. I have a gut feeling, Ms. Prasad." Madhav replied causally as he ordered another cup of coffee.

"Screw you and your gut feeling! That man is never going to-"

"Hi, Madhav Bro!" a young pregnant woman smiled as she walked past their table.

"Hey, Sarah!" Madhav waved and Shree looked quizzically at him.

"She's my neighbour. Lives in my Juhu apartment, exactly opposite to mine." Madhav says as he calmly sips his fourth coffee. "Quite the scandal though. She's having a live-in relationship with her boyfriend. He lives abroad though, and he stays with her whenever he comes to Mumbai. I haven't seen him, but all I know is that he's the father of her unborn baby."

Shree looks at Sarah. She was fair with dark brown hair, she wore a multicolored frock that revealed every curve of her pregnant belly. She took the seat right near the counter, directly facing the entrance. She sat there waiting eagerly for someone. A few minutes later a man, wearing black shirt and denim trousers walks in. Sarah smiles and stands as he pulls her into an embrace, kissing her lips. Shree cringed lightly. He pulls away and turns to sit beside Sarah, facing the direction towards Shree.

Shree stands up, shocked "Y-Y-You were right, Madhav. R-R-R-Rishabh is here."

Madhav keeps his coffee down and turns, shocked to see Rishabh seated snugly with Sarah. He stands up and walks towards them pulling Shree along with him.

Rishabh stands up, seeing Madhav and Shree approach them.

Madhav greets Sarah again and asked, "Sarah is this your, boyfriend?"

"Yes. This is Rishabh Kundra, my boyfriend and my soon to be husband. We've been dating since high school and we moved in three years-" She stopped when she sensed the tension surrounding her. "Is there a problem?"

Shree was about to speak, but Madhav held her hand, gesturing her that this wasn't the right place. "No. No. Not a problem at all. But I need to borrow Rishabh for a while. To give him some brotherly advice."

* * * * *

Outside in the car park Shree held Rishabh's collar.

"Why on earth did you lie to me, you filthy mudblood?" Shree shrieked with tears, as she felt every drop of blood in her body boil with anger "Why didn't you tell me you had a relationship with someone else since you were in high school?"

"Shree I can explain. I wanted to tell you, but I couldn't." Rishabh held her cheek. "Because I loved-"

Shree's fury sprung to life.

"YOU WOULDN'T HAVE BROKEN MY TRUST IF YOU REALLY LOVED ME! YOU WOULD HAVE TOLD ME ABOUT YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH SARAH AND THAT SHE IS PREGNANT WITH YOUR CHILD! YOU WERE LYING SINCE DAY ONE! AND YOU CALL ME UNFAITHFUL!" Shree yelled angrily, her body quivering with rage. She was simmering in anger.

"Shree, leave him be." Madhav said calmly, as he held her shoulder. Shree let go of Rishabh. Madhav suppressed all his rage and turned to Rishabh "You- you should be ashamed of yourself. Do you think it's fun playing with other's feelings?"

Rishabh remained silent.

"Shree trusted you to be faithful and Sarah trusts you, even to this very minute. A foul creature such as yourself doesn't deserve Shree." Madhav took a deep breath and warned him "Sarah is like a good friend to me. If you hurt her in anyway, then I swear to kill you in the worst ways possible. I'm warning you!"

* * * * *

"They don't serve McFlurry after 11:00pm it seems." Madhav said as he came running out from McDonalds outlet and into the carpark of Diamond Garden. He got into the backseat of his car and closed the door. Shree quickly wiped her tears and plastered a smile. "You really need to forget him, Shree. You've been crying for the past few hours. You need to move on in life, you need to forget certain incidences and certain people. You really need to let go."

Shree lost all her strength as Madhav pulled her into an embrace. She sobbed inconsolably "Let this be the last time you cry because of him. That dog doesn't deserve someone who is-is beautiful and-and intelligent and caring as you are. Smile because he gave you another chance to find a better person."

Shree looked into his eyes and a smile miraculously appeared on her face.

"I don't want tears in these eyes, Shree." Madhav says as he pats her cheeks dry with his palm. A sensation unlike any other rippled through her body as he stroked her smooth cheek with his hand. Shree sighed feeling his palm against her cheek and looked into his eyes. His eyes were swimming with love and charm.

Her heart thumped aloud as he cradled her face with one hand. Shree looked at him, without blinking as his other hand pulls her closer to him. His fingers on her face curled into her untied hair. Shree placed her hand on his chest, directly above his heart as he tipped her chin up. He placed a soft kiss on her cheek, another on her nose, the corner of her mouth before planting a kiss on her lips.

He felt every contour of her little mouth as he continued relishing their kiss and the sound of her breathing. Shree whimpers and the sound of her whimpering against his lips is like a perfect piece of music.

His hand moves from her hair to her back and pulls her onto his lap. He started placing kisses down her neck. Shree moans at the feeling of his stubble scratching against her neck. The burning path of his lips began at the tiny hollow just beneath her right ear, awakening exquisitely sensitive nerves as he traced the line of a delicate vein with his lips. His fingers slid over the top of her shoulder, his thumb finding the wing of her collarbone, his open hand exploring the fragile architecture of her body.

Her fingers grabbed fistful of his dark hair as she felt his hand slip inside her kurta to feel her waist. His touch set her on fire, every cell sizzling with the craving to be touched, loved, kissed, and to be held. As Madhav touched her, she found she yearned for it. Her heart was racing, and he could feel it pounding.

Madhav inhales her rose scent. "Shree, will you marry me?"

* * * * *

"OMG! That's khidkithod amazing!" Devi squealed happily as Shree told her mother and sister about Madhav's proposal after mentioning the incident at the restaurant.

"What did you tell him?" Mrs. Prasad asked curiously as she came from the kitchen wiping her hands.

"I-I-I-I asked him for some time to decide." Shree said shifting on the sofa. "And-and-and he told me to take all the time I need."

"You should have said YES, woman!" Devi exclaimed excitedly.

"Shut up!" Shree said annoyed. "He's my boss!"

"Dude, he's everything a girl wants. He's rich, handsome, well educated, has an amazing accent and above all, he loves you! What more do you want?"

"Devi is right, Shree." Mrs. Prasad adds and sits beside Shree "Maybe God didn't want you to end up with Rishabh because He had made plans for you and Madhav. Madhav is better than Rishabh if you ask me. He's responsible, caring, rich and he loves you! Isn't this enough to marry him?"

"I don't know whether I really love him, Ma." Shree said looking at her palms. "Is Madhav, really the right man for me?"

Mrs. Prasad thought for a moment. "When I first saw your father, I didn't know it was him. You really don't hear violins or a cheesy tune when you see your loved one. You just feel certain emotions."

Devi inched closer and sat cross legged on the floor. "

Your father and my brother both were in the army. They were best friends since school. Every time your Maama came home, your Nanna would accompany him. I didn't harbor any feelings for him initially, but something in me changed, and I eagerly awaited the day both of them returned from camp. I realized I was blushing every time I saw him, and I couldn't talk to him properly without stammering."

Mrs. Prasad wiped the tears that gathered in her eyes. "Soon I grew so eager to meet him every time he got a break. I was happier to see him more than my own brother. I cried endlessly when he went back to the border. When he came back on July 1985, I confessed my feelings for him and, he too confessed that he loved me. I still remember how he confessed, he said 'Lakshmi, I never loved anyone the way I loved you. I want you to stay with me, forever, as my wife. Will you?'

We told our parents and they agreed to get us married. We moved to Bombay and we brought a home for ourselves. He loved me so much and we had two beautiful daughters."

Devi rested her head on Mrs. Prasad's lap. She stopped the story midway, because to go any further would break her.

Shree pressed her forehead on her mother's shoulder, the second half of the story echoed within her head. The memory, though it was old, was like a freshly painted canvas with every small detail captured accurately.

The eventual last time Shree saw her Nanna board the train along with his colleagues. He planted a quick kiss on her chubby cheeks, held the three-year-old Devi in his arms for one last time.

"Take care of yourself, Lakshmi." He said as he pressed a quick kiss to her lips.

"When will you come back, Nanna?" Little Shree asked. "Promise me you will be there for my tenth birthday?"

"I promise my darling" he said caressing her head.

Several months later a few weeks before her tenth birthday, he returned, but dead.

To be continued

Glossary

Nanna- Father

Maama- Uncle

Khidkithod- a term equivalent to 'Amazing'

Kurta- a loose shirt falling either just above or somewhere below the knees of the wearer worn by women.

Express all your views and thoughts about this chapter through your comments. Also let me know the about following:

-How was this chapter?

-What was your favourite part of this chapter? The one where we discovered Rishabh's secretive affair? Madhav and Shree's romantic moment? or Mrs. Prasad's flashback?

-What will happen next?