Mahira Khan as Ridhima

Karan Singh Grover as Karan Singhania

Ileana D'cruz as Ishika Singhania

Varun Dhawan as Varun (Karan's best friend)

Mikaal Zulfiqaar as Ayaan (Karan's other best friend)
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It has been an hour since the guests have started to arrive. All of them were immaculately dressed in their finest attire.

It was a shock, that Karan wanted to introduce me to his colleagues and business partners as his wife, considering his hatred for me.

I have thrown a big fit, when he had so suddenly slapped the news at my face. But he had ignored me at that time and had gone to sleep, again.
When I woke up next day, I made sure the first thing Karan heard after waking up was my complaints.

I stalled the complaining, when the credit card was handed to me. Rushed to my room, and immediately went out of the house, asking Karan to inform the driver

The driver took me directly to a boutique owned by an Indian woman.
Finding the perfect dress was no chore, but it still took me an hour in the boutique to get the altering done. It was a little loose here and there. And a little tight here and there. So had to get that fixed.

Over all the dress was perfect and I loved it. There were some other really nice dresses too, I didn't hesitate to buy them.

The dress I am wearing right now, a beautiful dress made entirely out of a mixed net/chiffon material, with sparkly sequences all over it and around the waist making a belt.

Under it a silk cloth was attached around the torso and the upper thighs part of the dress so that my privates were well covered. It came with matching trousers. And looked absolutely gorgeous. The beige colour, made my wheat-ish complexion look a lot more fair.

Nude lipstick, smokey eyes, mascara, eye liner and pearl earrings to go with the look and I was ready for the party.

Karan had not left my side for too long tonight. According to him it was because, he didn't want me to make a fool of myself, which will lead to me making a fool of him.

I disagree though. I reckon, his reason to keep me on his arm tonight is that, he didn't want other guys to try and flirt with me. His jealousy is as obvious as the pregnant belly of Kim Kardashian.

"This is Jordan Hershey. The chief organiser of my event company. A very good friend and a business partner too." Karan introduces another one of his guests to me. I hardly remember any names though.

Just a few like ,
Prakash Puri , because he is Indian.
Charlie McPhee , he was a creep, kept coming back to talk to me. He also had too much hair around his ears and nose. EWW.

Ayaan Malik, because he called last night , and kissed the back of my palm right in front of Karan too.

Varun Malhotra, because he is a creepy flirt. He hugged me so tight, and then rubbed his hand all over my back. Super creepy. But then he apologised and told me that it was to rile up Karan. He was funny too.

Karan, Varun and Ayaan are best friends. Ayaan has the best looks, by best I mean he is gorgeous. Ayaan is also very quite, he likes to finish his sentences in minimum words.

Varun is the humorous, dorky, jock kind of a person. Even though he was wearing a suit, I could see the impression of six pack abs through it.

Karan being the brooding one. Boring. But he has abs too so I don't mind.
Out of these three I liked Varun the most. I appreciate good humour. Period.

"I'll be back. I need to use the bathroom" I whisper in Karan's ear and leave him conversing with Jordan Hershey.

When I am done with my business, I first head to my bedroom. It is really sad that Karan gave me different room. It hurt initially but then I accepted the fact that our relationship is not normal. This marriage was forced on me. And then it was forced on him.

A forced marriage can never work out.

"You don't even share a room! why are you even bothering to introduce her to everyone!" A woman's screechy and yelling voice reaches me through the slightly ajar door of Karan's room.

"No matter what she is to me and how we live, it doesn't change the fact that she is my wife. I married her in front of hundreds of witnesses. I have to suffer for my one big mistake now. Can't get rid of her. I want to make her life hell." I peek through the cracked open door to see a woman dressed in a silk dress, obviously expensive, and very beautiful standing in front of Karan. His back is to the door so I can't see him. But I can see the woman. Her white complexion giving away, that she is American.

"Oh, Karan! Why not just leave her?" She asks him. And I don't need three guesses to know whom they are talking about.

I thought I was getting through him, I thought he was slowly accepting me in his life. All this jealousy, protectiveness, all of it.....

My throat clogs up, it becomes extremely hard to gulp down the heavy cotton ball ,which has materialised in my throat, down.

"Too much, hassle. We didn't have any prenup signed, so after my divorce she will have fifty percent of my bank balance. She'll be a billionaire. I don't want that."

"Let's talk about her after this" she tells him, and moves closer to him.
"After wha-" Karan's words are swallowed by her lips and she kisses him, in the privacy of his bedroom, with his wife, as a witness to it.

I wait for him to push her, because I don't want to be the cliche girl who misunderstands a situation and ruins a beautiful relationship.
But he kisses her back, I see his hands slide up her behind and towards her shoulders as he smashes her body to his. I still wait for him, to break out of it and realise that he has cheated on me, he has kissed the wrong woman. But he continues kissing her.

A dull throb has surfaced in my skull, I thought it was the heart which ached when someone hurts you. I was wrong, because when a person, for whom you try so hard to change yourself, improve yourself, pays no heed to your actions, heart goes numb, tear leak out like the fücking Niagara Falls and all that hurts is your throat and head.

Your palm itches to slap someone, and your feet tingle to make you run away, away from the disaster. Away from everything that is negative in your life.

They break out of the kiss. I can't see Karan but I see the woman's grin.

"Now what would your wife say if she sees that you are hooking up with your ex -girlfriend behind her back." She asks him teasingly, running a finger down his chest and then back.

"I don't give a shit." Is Karan's brilliant reply. And then they are back to kissing. I close the door properly and re-join the party, smiling my heart out.

"Ridhima!" I turn around to see Varun catching up to me.

"Yeah? Do you need something?" I ask him, smiling politely.
"No I was just wondering, if you have any idea, where Karan is?" Varun' s question falters my smile, my eyes start to itch because of the oncoming assault of tears but I hold them back. I gulp once and tell him, " I think he went to the washroom, he'll be back soon."

" cool." He stands with me near the snacks table in an awkward bubble.
"So... Ishika is still in India?" He asks.

"No she moved to the university of arts and design in Paris." I tell him. It is true, she left for Paris last night. She called Karan to inform that she is boarding the flight, and then we talked for a while.

Apparently, my blabbering didn't fall on deaf ears and Karan did pay attention to some of the things I told him during our tea-talking sessions in his office.

"She is really good at designing." Varun comments.

"I know that, she is brilliant." I add.

"What are you guys talking about?" Hands fall on my waist and I stiffen when I recognise the voice as Karan's.

"Nothing. Ridhima was just telling me about Ishika." Varun answers Karan.

"Hey boys!" I immediately recognise the woman who joined us now as the one who was in the room with Karan. Her voice is irritating, and she pronounce boys by extending the ' zzzz' sound at the end of 'boys'

Karan and Varun looks at her, smile and give her side hugs.

Ayaan also joins us but doesn't indulge in any kind of physical contact with the woman. He just nods at her and she nods back.

"Hi! I am Rose. You must be Ridhima" Rose extends her hand to shake with me, I take it smile at her politely and return the usual greeting.

Conversations and chatter flows throughout the main hall of ou- Karan's house, it is not my house, I'd be delusional if I bothered myself with such fantasies.

Ayaan, Karan, Varun and Rose talked about people and things around them, and I observed them. Varun, Karan and Rose had a glass of wine each. Ayaan and I had soft drinks, because Ayaan's religion deems drinking 'haram' and I am alcohol intolerant. I can get drunk by just sipping any alcoholic drink.

"Ridhima, did you know that these three had this period going on, in which they only dated girls named after flowers, months and weather." Rose tells me and gives out a screechy laugh/giggle and the boys join her chuckling.

"Really?" I try to sound interested but all I want to do is get out of these clothes, lay down on my bed and, cry then sleep.

Sleep sounds so much better.

"Yeah. Karan dated girls named Jasmine, Lilly, and me, that is Rose. And this doof here, Varun, he dated April, May, and June"
She tells me. In a different situation where Rose was not ruining my life by cheating on me with my husband, I would find her a very nice person. But right now I hardly cared about anything.

"Augustine too, she has August in her name." Varun adds.

"And Ayaan here...,he dated, summer and Autumn" and all three of them laugh. I could only manage a smile though. Some other time, some other day, I will find the courage to laugh at it. Maybe tomorrow, I will laugh along with them.

"Are you alright?" Ayaan asks something, he is looking me, but I was too out of it to make sense of it though.

"Huh?"

"You look a little pale, are you feeling alright?" He repeats.

"Yea-" I start to reply but Rose interrupts me.

"Oh! Let it be Ayaan, it must be all the layers of clothing she is wearing. It must be making her feel hot."

"No, actually I don't feel good. I think I need some rest." I smile at her, which to my surprise was very easy. I just had to will myself, look at her in the eye and turn my lips upwards.

"If you are feeling sick, then you should leave the party, and be in your room" Rose mocks but conceals the rudeness by adding "....and sleep off the sickness."

Karan has left our side to attend some other guests,not even trying to feign concern.

"I guess I'll go, then. Thanks."

••••••••
It is midnight and I can still hear chattering going on. Someone had turned the music system kept in the main hall, and now there was chattering of people with loud background music.

It has been an hour since I left the party and have been holed in my room. At first I didn't change and plopped directly on my bed, stuffing my face in the pillow I cried for a long time. But then the dress started to make me feel uncomfortable so I had to get up and change.

I cried a lot because, I now know what is worse that having a husband who hates your guts, it's having a cheating husband who hates your guts.

•••••

Loud hooting and thumps of music woke me up. It is the middle of the night, I am surprised the neighbours have not called the police yet.

My thirst forces me to go out of my room and hunt for water, seeing that the jug kept in my room was empty.

I weave through the hoard of grinding bodies and move towards the kitchen.

"Ridhima? You're up..." Varun says from the kitchen counter, he is sitting on.

"I was thirsty and needed water." There are people with him, and my husband is also there and he is glaring at me, like I killed his pet or something.
Ignoring him and his group of friends I move towards the fridge to retrieve a water bottle.

"Hey! We meet again!" I turn around to see Siddharth.

" Oh! Hi! What are you doing here?" I greet him surprised to see him here.

"A friend of mine is friends with the host and asked me to come along, what about you? What are you doing here? especially in clothes like these.." Sid gives me a once over and I copy his movements and look down at my self and belatedly realise that I am only wearing a spaghetti strap camisole with cotton shorts, which don't even cover my thighs.

"...not that you don't look hot, because you look ravishing, but it is not the appropriate outfit for a party. I don't mean ravishing in a dirty sense, I mean it in a polite kind if a dirty sense, but dirty is never polite........ Urgh you get it, right?"

I laugh at his discomfort , because it was really cute. Lately I don't get compliments as much "I live here , actually. I was sleeping but I was thirsty so I came out."

I tell him and grab the first bottle, I could get my hands from the fridge. It was a cold drink bottle.

And chugged huge gulps of it down my throat. But the first gulp had indicated me that it is not a cold drink.....it was cold but the taste of that drink was not fit for drinking.

"What is this? Pumpkin juice?" I grimace.

Sid  laughs at my expense. "Isn't it supposed to be a cold drink.....the bottle covers says so"he says as he himself takes a sip from my bottle to confirm, but then coughs and wipes his lips from the back of his hand.

"It is some hard core liquor in there.....who put it in there?"

"Hardcore? I am a hardcore walnut" I laugh at my own joke. It was hilarious. I am hilarious.
Sid looks concerned though. Maybe he is constipated. Constipation does that to people. But Sid being constipated is so funny. I laugh more at the thought.

He is saying something ,but he is swaying a lot. Like a lot. Like a lot lot lot lot a lot.

I move forward to hold him but stumble on air.
"Shït! are you alright?" He asks me.
I look at him and give him my brightest smile, to reassure him. "No, I am Ridhima. Ridhima is against people leaving stray air lying on the floor like this. Someone else could have stumbled on this piece of air, you know they can get seriously injured." I tell him seriously , but he grimaces. Maybe he is lacking a few of his brain cells, that must be the reason he can't comprehend my words of wisdom.

He starts directing me out of kitchen "let's get you out of here." He says.
While going out I see karan and Sid too stops to look at him. At that moment I realise that I am gifted with an 'auto zoom in' feature in my eyes because I can feel Karan's face getting bigger........and it looks a lot closer.

"What are you doing out here? That too in such revealing clothes." He looks at me, from top to bottom, more like glares at me from top to bottom.

"I came here to find Narnia" I tell him and then giggle at my own joke because fridge is cold and Narnia is cold.

Karan looks at me worriedly and so does Sid. Maybe be they both are constipated. 
I giggle again , which turns into muffled laughs, and then it turns into full blown out laughter.

"Are you drunk?" Karan says ,heatedly glaring at me.
Oops.

I hiccup.

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Thank you for reading.

Thank you everyone for such an overwhelmingly awesome response. I have never imagined in my wildest dreams that this story will be liked so much by the readers.