11 ~ Slapped
As soon as he heard his father's voice, his trance broke whatever he was in.
For a second, his gaze shifted to Mukti but there was no softness in it.
Just... something forced like he was doing it because he had to not because he wanted to.
"Kartik." His father took his hand towards her and he pushed the ring onto her finger.
It was done, just like that. People clapped again.
But I couldn't breathe because the moment it was over his eyes found me again.
And this time I couldn't look away because in that single glance...There was a promise.
A challenge.
And something that made my entire body go still.
Everyone surged forward the moment the rings were exchanged.
Voices overlapped, "Congratulations!" "God bless!" "So happy for you!" and for a second it all felt like noise pressing against my ears instead of celebration.
I stood a little behind, watching as Dadi cupped Mukti di's face with so much affection and kissed her forehead, accepting her like she had always belonged there. She just smiled faintly, quiet, composed, saying nothing...just playing her part perfectly.
Then dadi's eyes found me.
"Aree tum bhi congratulate karo."
(Hey, you congratulate them too.)
I stepped forward, forcing my lips to curve.
I looked at Kartik, "Congratulations di... and jiju."
I said it deliberately and I saw it the way his jaw clenched.
Something inside me twisted but I didn't let it show.
I turned to leave but Mumma's hand caught my wrist before I could take two steps.
"Family photo click hone jaa rahi hai. Kahan jaa rahi ho?"
(We're about to take the family photo. Where are you going?)
Of course.
I closed my eyes for a second before nodding, letting her pull me along.
The photographer was already setting everyone up.
"Thoda side... haan... aur close... family bada hai, adjust karna padega..."
(A little to the side... yes... a little closer... the family's big, so you'll have to adjust.)
Adjust.
That word felt personal because no matter how much I tried I couldn't seem to find a place where I fit.
His father, his Dadi, then my parents. His chachu, Kavita Di with little Shrishti in her arms and beside her Seema chachi was standing with that same critical expression.
Everyone had already found their positions.
And then in the front line. Kartik stood there along with Mukti di.
He looked rigid and frustrated, like he wanted this to be over as much as I did.
I quickly moved beside Mukti di, hoping that would be enough distance but the moment I settled she nudged me away, not softly or subtly but she clearly pushed me.
"Side ho," she said.
(Move aside.)
My chest tightened. I looked at her but she didn't look back.
She just adjusted herself like I wasn't even there.
Oh, so that's how it was.
I was just standing there because leaving now would only make things worse.
She suddenly pushed her hair back, her tone snapping, "Chahat kya kar rahi ho... mere lehenge pe kyun khadi ho!"
(Chahat, what are you doing? Why are you standing on my lehenga?)
My breath hitched. "I..." but before I could even respond.
Krish stepped in smoothly. "Main bhabhi ke paas."
(I'll stand beside Bhabhi.)
He took the place beside her like it was natural.
I stepped back instinctively.
Ready to move further away anywhere just not here.
"Idhar aa jao beta," dadi called, pulling me gently.
(Come here, dear.)
I nodded and moved forward, trying to settle in front of Seema chachi but even that didn't last.
She shifted, adjusting herself for the frame, and in that movement she pushed me not harshly but enough to send me off balance.
Enough to move me exactly where I didn't want to be.
Right beside him.
For a second, I forgot how to move.
I clenched my jaw, blinking rapidly as my eyes burned slightly.
I tried to shift, to create even an inch of space but the crowd was too tight.
Dadi came and stood on my other side, smiling at the camera.
And on this side it was him, So close that I could feel the warmth of his arm brushing mine.
I stiffened immediately, trying to hold myself as still as possible, my hands clenched tightly together to stop them from trembling.
"Closer... thoda aur paas..." the photographer kept saying.
(Closer... a little closer.)
I almost laughed.
Closer?
There was no space left.
I kept my gaze fixed ahead, refusing to look at him.
The faint brush of his sleeve against my arm.
The tension radiating off him, the way he wasn't moving either like he knew and he was letting this happen.
My heartbeat grew louder and no matter how much I tried, I couldn't ignore it because standing this close to him after everything felt like standing in the middle of something I was desperately trying to escape and failing completely.
The moment the photographer said "done," I stepped away.
Like I couldn't breathe in that space anymore.
My feet moved on their own, faster than I intended, my vision slightly blurred as I walked away from the crowd, from the lights, from him.
The noise faded behind me, but the heaviness in my chest didn't. It only grew stronger with every step until I finally stopped near a quiet corner, my hands trembling slightly as I pressed them together.
My eyes burned and before I could stop it tears gathered.
I quickly wiped them away, frustrated at myself. Not here... not now. But it didn't help. Because the moment I closed my eyes...
Mukti di's face flashed in front of me.
The way she pushed me, the way she snapped like everything was my fault.
My lips trembled as another tear slipped down because I remembered that day.
She had asked me to sit in her place, she had insisted and I had done it for her.
Only for her.
And now...when everything had gone wrong, she was the one blaming me. Treating me like I had ruined her life.
My chest tightened painfully.
I didn't stop until I reached the terrace.
The cool evening breeze brushed against my face, carrying the distant sounds of laughter and music from downstairs.
It should've calmed me.
Instead, it made me feel even lonelier.
"It wasn't supposed to be like this..." I whispered to myself, my voice breaking.
I rubbed my face again, trying to compose myself, trying to push everything down.
"Chahat."
My name echoed softly behind me.
I quickly wiped my face before turning around.
"Rivan."
He frowned the moment he saw me.
"What happened?"
I forced a smile. "Nothing."
He clearly didn't believe me. "You've been crying."
I looked away. "It's really nothing."
He stepped closer, worry written all over his face.
"Chahat."
Without saying anything, I lowered my head.
A second later, I felt his arms wrap around me, not tightly just like a friend trying to comfort another friend.
"It's okay," he murmured softly.
I closed my eyes.
Sometimes silence was easier than explaining things that even I couldn't understand.
After a few moments, I gently stepped away.
He looked at me expectantly. "Now tell me."
I forced another smile.
"I'm just upset. Di is getting married. Soon she'll leave this house."
Rivan's expression softened. "I understand."
How could I tell him that my own sister looked at me like an enemy?
That the man she was engaged to couldn't stop glaring at me?
That every moment tonight felt wrong?
He remained quiet for a while then he spoke again. "There is... something I wanted to tell you."
His tone had changed.
I looked at him. "What?"
He hesitated. "A few days ago...I saw Mukti at the mall. She wasn't alone. There was a guy with her."
For a moment, I thought I had heard him wrong.
"A guy?"
He nodded.
"I don't know who he was. But they looked close. And when I got to know she was getting engaged to Kartik...I couldn't understand. If she's marrying him...Then who was that guy?"
A hundred thoughts crashed into each other.
The possibility suddenly struck me.
Her boyfriend.
Could that have been him?
I looked back at Rivan.
"Please...Don't tell anyone about this."
He nodded. "I won't. I promise."
Before I could say anything else, his phone started ringing.
He looked at the screen. "I have to take this. You'll be okay? Call me if you need anything."
"I will."
After giving me one last worried glance, he walked away.
The terrace fell silent again. Only the sound of the wind remained.
I hugged myself tightly.
Suddenly I heard footsteps and his smell lingering in the air.
The same intoxicating perfume that had lingered around me earlier whenever he had come too close.
Every muscle in my body stiffened.
My breathing stopped for a fraction
I shut my eyes for a brief second.
Please... just leave.
Before I could take even a single step a firm hand wrapped around my wrist.
I gasped.
The next moment, I was spun around so quickly that I almost lost my balance and bumped into him.
"Kartik..."
His fingers remained around my arm.
The soft lights from the terrace cast sharp shadows across his face, making his expression even harder to read.
His jaw was clenched so tightly that the muscles ticked.
His eyes. I'd never seen eyes look like that before.
"Tumhare boyfriend ko pata hai..." he asked, his voice dangerously calm, "...tumne kya harkat ki thi mere saath?
(Does your boyfriend know... What you did with me?)
For a second, I simply stared at him.
Boyfriend?
My brows knitted together in confusion.
Then realization struck.
Rivan.
He was talking about Rivan.
I immediately pulled my arm back. "Rivan sirf mera dost hai."
(Rivan is just my friend.)
The words left my mouth faster than I intended.
He let out a short laugh. "Sirf dost?"
(Just a friend?)
His lips curved into a humorless smile.
"Sirf doston ke saath tum itna comfortable hoti ho?"
(You're this comfortable with just friends?)
The accusation hit me like a slap.
"Aapko kya farak padta hai use?"
(Why does it matter to you?)
He took a step forward.
Instinctively I stepped back.
He matched my step again and again until my back touched the cold terrace wall.