|CHANDANI|

"Mumma, what is the need to meet a man, get married and have kids? I don't want to leave you!", I asked my mother. My head was on her lap as she guided her soft hands in my long hair, massaging and applying oil. This evening, when I returned from work, my father blasted a bomb on me, the bomb of meeting a man tomorrow for my marriage.

Honestly, I knew this was coming because a few weeks before, my friend got married and since then they have been coaxing me and trying to find out if I liked someone. But they didn't know that no one, I mean no one would ever like a boring person like me.

To live with a person like me, one would need to have good listening skills because once I start speaking there is no end. He would need to give me books every week because I love books, which is why I have high expectations. But let's not go on that. He should be sweet and caring. I sighed because such men don't exist in reality.

After marriage, women don't get their independence. They are expected to know what their husbands say. Modernity applies to men only, but married women are forced to sit at home, hiding their faces from other men. Yes, exceptions exist but here I am talking about most cases. One thing I don't want to experience in my life is sitting at home, waiting for my husband and cooking food for him.

"Chandani, it's nature's law, bete. It's okay if you don't like the person tomorrow, it's totally up to you. Your father said the same, but it would be nice if you let down your walls for a while and talked to the man. You'll like him, he is a good person", my mother said and I nodded.

Every man is a good person before marriage. After marriage, he changes as responsibilities increase. They can't go and gaze at other women now, they need to tell their wives where they go, which is the reason why they get frustrated and end up taking out their anger on women.

I wish I could escape from marrying anyone, but that's not how it works. I need to settle down and have kids, in my parent's language which isn't wrong but there's always one negative thought lurking in my brain.

For example, our neighbour. She is a sweet lady with a daughter whose husband divorced her for not bearing a son. Yes, such men exist. And this scares me to the core. I don't want to end up like that, nor get heartbroken.

"And Chandani? He is in the Army", my mother said before leaving my room, leaving me in complete surprise. He is in the Army? I should have known. My father would only choose an army officer for me. He was himself in the Navy years back but due to a major injury, he was relieved of duties. Our whole family went into shock after hearing it and it hurt Papa a lot. He was a dedicated officer but conditions weren't with him. We are glad nothing severe happened to him on that mission because we can't bear the pain of losing him. My father is my first best friend, he always supported me in every decision, even after I dropped out of an engineering college because I couldn't handle the stress. He only suggested that I start again as an interior designer. From my teenage days, I heard compliments for my art, designs and colour choices and what was better than working like a designer and decorating houses? I love my job, especially when I see that dreamy look in the eyes of the customers who feel contended by the way I designed and decorated their abode, where they'll nurture their families together.

I remained sprawled on my bed, my luscious thick long layer surrounding me as I looked at the ceiling without any context. Would he be rude? Will he deny the marriage? Will he like me? I turned around and switched off the lights, slipping into a deep slumber waiting for a new morning to come.

.・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

I woke up early in the morning and after completing my daily activities, I went to the dining room where I saw Papa reading a newspaper with a frown on his face and Mumma serving him tea. I smiled and wished, "Good morning mumma papa".

Papa looked up from the newspaper and smiled back at me. "Good morning bunny", he said as I groaned at the nickname. He intentionally calls me that to irritate me, knowing how much I despise the name. During my childhood, I had a weird obsession with rabbits and my dad's friend had a rabbit. One day, he brought that rabbit home and surprised me. Such an excited kid I was, I quickly took the rabbit from my papa's arms and was going to keep it in my lap when it bit my finger, my poor finger! From that day, I have just despised rabbits and therefore my father calls me bunny to tease me about the incident. He even makes fun of me by recalling that incident!

I picked a paratha and after rolling it, started munching it. Since, I was sitting in front of my parents who were thinking that I was not looking at them, but I was, I noticed them talking in signs.
I knew they were going to talk about marriage but I let them take their own sweet time even though it irritated me.

"Chandani, you know ladke wale are coming this evening?", my father asked hesitantly and I nodded. He only told me yesterday and now he's asking this. I have a sharp memory, he doesn't needs to remind one thing again and again.

"You also know that you are free to deny it if you don't like him?", he asked and I nodded again. From my peripheral view, I saw mumma pinching papa's arms that made him jump a bit. I suppressed the urge to giggle and staged quiet. Why are they so scared? I won't kill them, I am a nice human. Yes, I don't want to marry but meeting the person won't hurt right? Also, what if he is actually nice and compatible?

"And please be polite, I knew his father", my father nearly begged and I rolled my eyes. They think that I'm a Dracula who'll eat everyone. But I'm such a sweet and a nice person! I can't even shout without crying.

"Ufoo papa! You don't have to tell me this, I know it. Why are you both so conscious?", I implored and they both shook their heads. My mumma enveloped her hands in mine and said, "Because you are our only child, hamare dil ka tukda. How can't we be worried?"

"Chandani, it's okay if you deny today, no one will say anything but it's our duty to tell you na", papa said and I sighed. Throwing my arms on both of them, I hugged my parents.

"Tell me again when did you both become so senti?, I asked, earning soft laughs from both of them. After the joyous morning, I was all set to go to work. I opened the door of the house and stuffed the extra keys in my purse. That was when my neighbour, Aparna, came out with her toddler daughter who was holding a soft toy in her small hands. My heart warmed at the sight of the cute girl and I greeted Aparna a good morning. She smiled cheekily as she ushered her three year daughter to say hello. Aadhya, her daughter shyly said, "Hewlo aunwty". I awed and pulled her chubby cheeks. She likes me a lot and I like her too.

"Hello Aadhya! Where are you going?", I asked in a baby voice, crouching to her level. Showing me her soft toy she replied, "Parwk. Me and mumma plway". I kissed her cheeks in awe of her cuteness. I can't believe how her father could leave them both alone! Aparna is so strong to have decided to nurture her daughter alone without any support. I remember how she first came to this colony and no one was ready to give her their home for rent. Everyone judged her for being a single mother, she was called a disgrace by many aunties around. But, it was my father who took her side and fought for her. Never have I ever seen her cry even after going through this much. She is an inspiration for everyone!

"Yayy! Park means fun! ", I cheered her as she giggled. Aparna smiled and ruffled her hair, and asked, "How's work?". I shrugged and replied, "It's fine. How's being a teacher?".
"Amazing until you don't have to check test papers", she said and we both laughed at the statement.

Bidding both of them a goodbye, I started my scooty and wore a helmet. Making my way from between the cars and heavy traffic, I finally reached my office on time. I certainly don't want to hear my boss shouting at me in front of the whole staff. He is such an idiot! Never comes on time but whenever I'm late, he will be present to yell at me. I spotted two of my friends and went inside along with them. As usual they were talking about men. I don't know why they don't have anything else to talk about.

"Chandani, what about you? Do you like someone?", again that damn same question was thrown at me and I answered the same, "No, do you?" They both shook their heads and giggled talking about random celebrities and stars.

I met a few couples and prepared their designs but my brain kept on thinking about the person I am to meet this evening. I was scared and a bit thrilled as well. Though I am not willing to marry anyone, the urge to have a loving husband keeps on resurfacing. Most of my friends are married, and sometimes, I feel the void. Whenever I see them posting their pictures on social media platforms, I crave for such a relationship too but that feeling is just for a minute or so. My rational mind conquers me and then I start thinking how better I alone am.

I took a half day and returned back home only to be shocked by the sight of my mother wearing a saree and her hair tied in a bun. I have never seen her wearing sarees except for functions but today she is! This means that the family is really important because my mother won't wear a saree unless it's really necessary. I have to say that she looks utterly gorgeous in sarees. In her bun, two red roses were tugged giving her a perfect look. Papa was wearing a kurta and was helping her set up the living room when I coughed. They looked at me and smiled.

"Chalo, she's back home. Malini ji called, they will be here anytime soon", my mother said.

"That is what we call a perfect timing!" My father exclaimed enthusiastically, making us giggle. Mumma pulled my hand and ushered me to my room. There I saw a blue anarkali kurta with palazzo pants kept on the bed,neatly ironed. I looked at my mother with raised eyebrows and she said, "Wear this quickly and here are the matching jhumkas. Keep your hair open, they'll look nice. Wait! You didn't forget to wash them, did you?"

"Mumma! I did wash them after you dumped the whole oil container on my head", I replied, rolling my eyes. She scoffed and said, "Yeah yeah! Keep saying that. Jab Maa banogi tab Pata chalega tumhe".
(When you'll become a mother then you'll know)

I rolled my eyes at the line which she uses every time to justify herself. I am not even married, and she's talking about becoming a mother. Mothers are so dramatic. She went after giving me an earful and I changed into the dress mumma kept. She's so nice to keep it all ready for me. I don't know what I'll do without her. My eyes teared up with the thought of leaving my parents after marriage. How will I live without them? Their sweet talks, silly fights and scoldings are the ones which keep my heart beating. How will I manage after marriage? It will be a new house, new members and a new place to adjust in. I wiped my tears with the back of my hand. Why am I getting emotional? I'm not getting married now! I'm just meeting a man and there is a 50-50 chance that I'll deny.

Giving myself last touches, I sat on the bed and opened Instagram. I scrolled randomly when I heard the doorbell ring. My heart beat fastened as I realised that they were here, they were here to talk about my marriage! I heard the sounds of greetings and all and then my mother called me.

I rushed outside quickly, my hands fisting the kurta in nervousness and my head down, looking at the marbled floor which was shining so brightly that I could see my face in it. I felt a strong gaze upon me but I still looked down, because I was too nervous. I'm an introvert! You can't expect me to go and start blabbering in front of everyone yaar.

"This is our daughter, Chandani", papa said and I looked up. My eyes met with a dark brown eyed tall man who had an army cut and was looking all formal. Of course, he would! It's a formal meeting. I'm so stupid hehe. He continued gazing at me which made me more nervous and that was when I realised that he was handsome, very handsome and young. I expected a boring person with no looks at all but here it was the complete opposite. He had a tall build, a very muscular body and his eyes were definitely beautiful.

Papa coughed breaking our gazing session and he looked away, maintaining his stoic expression. He is acting as if he didn't do anything, criminal! I smiled and greeted his mother and was going to touch her feet but she held my shoulders and said, "Daughters don't touch feet, their position is much higher". I felt warmth in my heart when she said this. She gave me a motherly feeling, just look mumma does. Her eyes were filled with warmth and love as she made me sit beside her on the sofa.

As the evening progressed, his mother kept asking about me, making sure not to make me uncomfortable while he stole glances. He thought I wouldn't notice but I did. At one instant, our eyes met again and this time I looked down with a blush. How is he having such an effect on me? Never in my whole life any man made me this nervous! He is definitely one of a kind.

"Before we jump into conclusions, let the kids decide if they want the marriage", his mother proposed and both of my parents nodded in agreement. I looked at mumma who nodded and blinked her eyes, trying to convey, "It's alright, go and talk". He glanced at me as I stood up and walked towards the garden. I felt his presence behind me as I took slow steps. My heart was beating so fast that at an instant I thought that he could hear my pulsating heart too.

I opened the door to the verandah and stepped outside. He followed me, bending his head a bit down so that he doesn't hit himself with the door. Problems of being tall haha. It was already dark as winters were approaching and cool winds were flowing. He stood beside me as a comfortable silence surrounded us both. For the first time, it felt nice to be in the company of a man. He stuffed his hands in his pocket as the winds turned cooler and I rubbed my hands. I turned to face him, trying to attempt to talk but at the same time, he asked, "What is your name?"

I felt it was an offence! This mister here is coming to meet me but doesn't know my name! I think he became aware of the fact that it hurt me so he blabbered, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it to be like that. It's just-"

I shushed him off by saying, "Chandani, Chandani is my name". He smiled for the first time in the whole evening and man, that was beautiful! There is no way he is boring. He is tall, muscular, handsome and look at his smile! I'll die by just looking at his smile.

"I am Abhi-

He started to introduce himself but I completed "Abhimanyu Gupta, I know".
I wanted to add unlike you but didn't because I don't want him to scurry away. He is perfect and who would leave a perfect man? One with a sane mind of course, because I won't. He sighed and trying not to make the conversation more uncomfortable said, "As you know I'm in the Army and there's no guarantee that I'll return back or not."

I nodded and replied, "I am aware".

"Are you still willing to marry me? Will you be able to spend the next 7 lives with me? Will you be able to live with a man whose death can come knocking at your door anytime?", he asked sincerely, looking at my eyes the whole time. I took a deep breath and answered, "The question is, are you willing to marry me? Will you be able to manage a stupid woman who just loves books and craziness? Will you be able to live with me without getting mad?"

He looked at me bewildered and with a smile said, "You are one of a kind". I smiled back at him as silence enveloped us again. Together we saw the birds retreating back to their nests and small children laughing and playing together.

"I'm ready", he whispered after some time. I looked in his eyes and repeated, "I'm ready as well Captain". This time, we looked at each other with tenderness and readiness to begin the new stage of life together.

"Shall we?"I asked, breaking eye contact. It was getting late and I was terrified of what my parents would think. They only sent me to talk and we had taken a lot of time. I was scared. What if they start thinking that we are doing "stuff" when we definitely aren't? For me, my parent's trust is everything.

"After you Madame", he said and with a smile I walked back to the living room where his mother and my parents were present. When they saw us, they smiled warmly but my mother raised her eyebrows seeing me smiling like idiots. I'm such an idiot! I showed her a thumbs up, hiding it from the sight of the other three people present, trying to give my mother a message that everything went well. She raised her eyebrows as if asking, "You liked him?". I nodded and blinked, which resulted in her smiling widely. We both sat at our respective places, still sneaking a few glances at each other. I noticed that now he was smiling freely. Before, he had maintained a stoic expression and was looking like an alive statue.

"So?", my father started.

"It's a yes from my side"
"Yes"
We both said together and looked at each other for the synchronised answer. He passed me a gentle smile and I looked down with a small blush. My mother who was sitting beside me teased me by hitting her elbow lightly on my arms. I passed a glare at her but she only smiled teasingly infuriating me more.

"Are you both sure?", my father asked seriously. At that moment he was looking like my high-school Maths teacher who used to say "Are you sure this is the answer?" in a menacing voice. I vouch my father is the most soft hearted person you'll ever meet but right now he looks nothing like that. He looked like a strict teacher threatening his students. I gulped and nodded looking at papa and Abhimanyu ji did the same.
Suddenly, my father's lips broke into a huge smile and he said, "We should start preparing then. Vrinda, bring the sweets, what are you doing?"

My mother nodded with a grin on her face and rushed to the kitchen and brought ladoos. She fed one to his mother, and hugged her. Then moving towards him, she brought a ladoo near his mouth, he took a bite and then bent down to take her blessings. Such a gentleman he is. My mother patted his head and blessed him with the words she rarely used with me. My father engulfed him in a hug and that was the moment I knew that my parents love him more than me, their only daughter. They are not even paying a single glance at me! His mother smiled from the corner and then hugged me.

"I'm so lucky to have found you for my son", she whispered, making me smile in response. She broke the hug and kissed my forehead in motherly affection.

"We should talk to Pandit ji and get the dates finalised as soon as possible. I can't wait to have Chandani as my daughter now", his mother exclaimed, making me shy. Thank God, she's not like other mother in laws who like to suppress