Part Four:
"A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it."
-Jean de La Fontaine
My legs stood cemented to the floor. Thoughts ceased to be constitute in my mind. Only one message stayed in place, and that was to stare bluntly at them, without any shame.
They were chatting pleasantly to each other, as if they were long lost friends reminiscing on their golden days back in college or high school. But I never heard Vikrant ever mention a Maan Singh Khurana, but franking speaking Vikrant and I never got past pleasantries or dead silence and if we did, it would be because we were fighting mercilessly.
I could care less about his life but at this moment my entire focus remained on him. Vikrant could easily become the end of me at this moment, he would inadvertently set ablaze my reason for existence if he glanced at me, for one glance would make him beckon me to him and introduce me as his fiance, a word I despised pitilessly.
All would be shattered and obliterated. A lonely life in this terrain of a world, or at least this fabricated world I wanted to live in, that I hoped would magically would come true, but magic happened in books, reality was much crueler.
"Excuse me ma'am," a voice behind me spoke out, "Are you okay?"
I was confounded by this voice and for its reason for asking me such a contemptuous question but I realized I would be looking like a fool standing in the middle of the entrance to the house for five minutes.
"Um no," I turned around, "I'm perfectly alright. Thanks for asking."
I bustled across the house and walked away from Vikrant and Maan. I squeezed my eyes shut hoping that if I didn't see them, they couldn't see me. What logic I had to adapt to?
I swerved around them in the hopes of them not noticing me, believing that I was already past them I hoped my eyes to see Maan looking at me without any hesitance. His lips moved to form a very simple smile that adorned his face beautifully. He chuckled slightly, but that small chuckle transported me to another universe that plummeted me back to earth, or rather reality. I averted my eyes and looked at Vikrant to see he was busy looking at another girl at the cocktail table. What more could I expect from such a man?
I smiled quickly as well, a smile that people would understand to be fake and unwilling, but I had a different purpose behind this smile. It was a come and go smile. It could not have any meaning to it. As soon as my smile faded, I felt a hand yank me in the opposite direction of Maan and Vikrant.
I was confounded at that sudden shock that coursed through my body as the surrounding before me began to blur waiting for me to reach equilibrium to come back into focus. The force turned me so that my back was facing Maan's. Meaning I was right behind Vikrant and Maan. This position was to close for comfort, my objective was much farther. More like half way across the room, in a corner, by a tree, and covered by branches.
"Hello Miss Handa, how are you?" a lady, who I presumed was the one who spun me like I was a merry go round, spoke up, "It's been so long."
"I'm fine, how about you?" my voice began to quiver and sounded a bit brandish, almost guilty. I tried dearly to placate it, but it was all in vain. I didn't know the object of this anxiety. Was it the fact that I had no clue who this lady in front of me was, or that Vikrant was basically two steps behind talking to Maan. I was baffled by the number of problems a sole person could have. Did I have a magnet above my head that beckoned bad things toward me?
"Oh why shouldn't she be fine, Geet," another lady next to her spoke up, "Flora just had her baby."
That name sounded so familiar. Flora'.Flora'Flora Diaz. She was the designer of the project that Vikrant had signed to invest. I remember him speaking ill of her as her designs had a serious expenditure with it. I was ecstatic at that moment. I remember her, but I still remained clueless about this new girl.
"Are you going to tell the whole world Amy," Flora blushed as she gently tapped Amy in embarrassment. Amy Dixon. She was a financial leader in the construction aspect of this project, meaning she worked for Maan Singh Khurana.
I gulped heavily as I remembered that he was standing behind me. I leaned a little back in hopes to hear their conversation, to understand them.
"Sorry about that. Where were we?" I heard Vikrant speak as he cleared his throat. Hearing his voice my entire body shot up straight. Fear now coursed through my body as it refused to cross that small little bridge to relinquish its hold upon me. It continued to flow through as I heard his voice even louder.
"We were talking about the overall cost," I heard Maan's serene voice, but that was even enough at that moment to calm my nerves down.
"Oh yes. Does it have to such a huge amount," Vikrant spoke up as he used more authority, trying to indicate that he had more power over Maan. He was half the man that my Maan was. But that didn't help my position either.
"So Geet, when's the big day," my eyes popped out as I heard those words leave her mouth.
I felt as if I was losing the life jacket I was dearly holding onto in this vast ocean. As much as I grasped onto it, it slipped out of my hands forcing me to stand on my own feet, to defend myself. If that is what it wants, than that is what I will give it.
"I have no idea what you are talking about Mrs. Diaz," I pretended to be confused by her statement to not let Maan catch onto the situation, "oh, the day the construction starts. Oh, let us get through the formalities first."
I continued my faade.
"I wasn't talking about the'" she spoke up once again, and I needed to silence her.
"It's okay. Hopefully everything will work out in the end." I continued on my track on the business venture.
"She doesn't know we are talking about her love life," Amy hushed into Mrs. Diaz's ears. But it was loud enough for me to hear it. My teeth gritted in response. 'Love life'.
I heard an echo behind me say 'love life' as well. I froze in place thinking it was Maan. I shut my eyes abruptly forcing the horrid thoughts that were now embezzled in my mind to shun out. I clutched my chest as it continued to heave up and down. If the 'love life' could make me shudder in response than 'engagement' and 'marriage' would surrender me into an abeyance were return would not only be a satisfactory need but an audacious one as well.
Titling my body around to find the source of the voice I bumped into something rock hard. I hoped my eyes to this sudden mixture of a sweet scent with a hard coating around it.
I looked up to notice the object but soon realized it to be a something worse. Maan. I just crashed into Maan. I looked up at him and halted at those coconut shaped eyes that bared a brown fruit in the middle that seeked my attention as I seeked its.
I bore into his eyes to find something, not knowing what I was seeking, I looked endlessly at everything. He looked back causing me to fluster involuntarily. I was shocked at my response to him, but that did not prevent me from continuing to stare at him. I found the much coveted solace in those eyes. It seemed as if the world could go on as it pleased, I was not an essence of this world, I was his. So who was I to care for this world?
My hand slowly rose from my chest to reach for him, to stroke his face, to touch him. However, my wish was not granted. A noise broke our unbreakable gaze, a noise that came from his phone.
I stepped back from him and looked away to hide the redness that adorned my cheeks. I peeked from under my lashes to see that he was equally embarrassed. I looked around him at the cocktail table to see Vikrant talking to girl clad a very short and revealing dress that was strapless. I squinted my eyes and noticed it was the same girl he was checking out earlier.
I wanted to laugh and scream at the same time at the situation around me, but I was unable to as Maan spoke up.
"Whaat?!?" his yell rang through the entire house yet he was not embarrassed, "How high?"
I tired to make sense of his conversation to understand why he was in so much despair. But understanding a one sided conversation was foolish for me.
"How long?" he waited for a response, "why didn't you inform me earlier?"
Every eye in the entire room was looking at him, as was I.
"I'll be there in 10 minutes." He stated the little detail and shut his phone immediately.
From the look in his eyes he planned to leave at this moment, saying no closing statements.
"Maan, what?" I asked him as he brushed past me. He didn't let me finished as he turned and spoke in a flat tone to hide his feelings.
"Poonam has a fever."
He spoke, he turned, and he left.
All of sudden I could feel the emptiness around me cloud up and cocoon me in misery. I was abashed.
"Well, continue the party," a very menacing voice spoke boorishly. I grunted softly at the familiarity of the voice, and than sighed as I felt the arm slithered around my waist and yank me toward him.
I turned to face as I swallowed my grief of Maan leaving and Poonam's health issues. I wanted to ask him more question. What, when, how everything happened, but I didn't not receive a chance.
"Come with me," he firmly spoke.
"What if I say no," I countered, trying to use my new found confidence.
"Do you want a repeat of last night? A kiss upon your delectable lips," his finger rushed to my lower lip as it grazed it and pulled it down.
I struggled to get out of his hold but his strength physical was stronger than mine.
I tried another feeble attempt to break free but all he did was mock me.
I grunted and coldly told him, "Let's go."
"Now that's more like it."
He walked to the center of the room as he made sure he had a fastened hold on me.
"Ladies and Gentlemen," Vikrant's voice breeched the whole room, "Thanks for coming to this small gathering. I just wanted everyone to be familiar with each other when we are all sober," a small chuckle erupted in the room as I looked away in disgust, "but that is not what I want to talk about."
Where was Vikrant going with this talk? I was once again dumbfounded. A feeling I has become a close friend since the day started.
"I'm hear to talk about my girlfriend, oh wait. Fiance," he looked at me and winked, trying to be discreet. I plastered a fake smile as he leaned down to my ear and whispered, "Remember your father's contract and our deal."
He just threatened me once more. My eyes welled up as he reminded me of the restraints on my hands that were bound by him. He slipped my wings and I could no longer fly.
"We have finally set out our wedding date. The 19th of May," he exclaimed as the crowd erupted in applause and congratulation at my death sentence.
I shut my eyes as hot tears stroked my face, the path I had to tread was now in front of me.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Friends.. So So SOOO Sorry for the delay. My laptop was
facing many techniquical problems..but all is well...i hope...
It is pretty short and i am sorry. I stopped at the next
avail cliffhanger, and 2 weeks till school. I have a lot
to do. Life...
Next one will be longer...and when the update will be...time will
tell..
Have NOT edited. Please Ignore.
Please Comment, Hit the Like Button, or Both
Love
Isha
Edited by PurplePetal - 12 years ago
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