Arshi FF: Love Me Forever LINK #2 pg 153 dt. 21.5.15

He sat next to her and held her hand firmly, she was keeping unwell, both her kidneys had stopped functioning and she was put on dialysis, the doctors had given up all hopes and stated that she had only a few months left. But how could he leave her like this, she was the only one who cared and loved him immensely even though he was her illegitimate grandchild.

Yes, Arnav Singh Raizada was an illegitimate son of his deceased father. He had never married his mother but had accepted him after her mother's death. For years Arnav believed that he had been brought into the house because his father loved him and had realized his mistake.

How wrong he'd been. His father had only needed someone to manage his illegal businesses. Someone who could step into his shoes and take the legacy forward. And Arnav was the perfect choice. After all he was his son. And above all young and emotionally vulnerable. He'd succeeded in molding Arnav the way he'd wanted.

The bitter truth that he had been used as a pawn by his own father had left him heart broken. Reality had dawned on him quite late. His father had passed away leaving him neck deep into their dangerous family businesses. Arnav was now a gangster, part of the underworld from where it was impossible for him to return.

However he chose to become a gangster with a golden heart. The people of his town worshiped him. He was their sole caretaker. Their godfather!

 His daadi loved him more than she did his step sisters, Anjali and Payal. He too lived for his small family without worrying about himself and showered them with all the possible comforts that were in his capacity. He was extremely close to his sisters where all of them cared for the well being of other, at least that's what he thought but his dream crashed when he saw the true faces of his step sisters who were only after his money and who didn't care whether he lived or died because he was not their real brother. That day had left him completely shattered making him realize how lonely he was. He had no one to call his own except for his grandmother and friend Aman who became his real pillars of strength.

 Soon he got Anjali married, gave away 5 crores to her and showed her the door, he wanted peace and harmony at Raizada mansion which he bought by giving her what she always craved for. Both Anjali and payal were ashamed of themselves and even tried to seek for his forgiveness which he granted them after some time. He still loved them however a part of his heart died for them. He couldn't bring himself to trust them again, the whole incident had left a deep scar on the brother sister relationship. And had taught him two biggest lessons of life, one that everything could be bought and sold even relationships and two that in this world only blood relations mattered rest were fake except for the one he shared with daadi and Aman.

" chotte can I ask you for something?" daadi asked softly. He nodded at once, he could never refuse her for anything.

 " you are aware that I don't have much time left." He squeezed her hand on hearing this, the thought of losing her scared him.

 " after much persuasion Payal has finally decided to marry. Aakash is a nice boy. I'm sure he will keep her happy. But what about you, how long will you live alone?" she paused then continued," now even you should settle down and start a family. Before dying I wish to see you happily married." She said with tears in her eyes, he wiped them off and suggested her to take rest, he would definitely think about it and left to his room.

He thought about what daadi had said while relaxing on his lazy chair, he closed his eyes and felt that the house would be empty  after Payal's marriage and if god forbid anything happened to daadi he would have no one to call his own. For long his life revolved around his sisters and her grandmother but now he too wanted a family of his own, his own flesh and blood , someone who would loved him unconditionally and someone who would belong to him and only him.

His thoughts got disturbed when his friend and right hand, Aman informed him " boss, khushi is here." He narrowed his eyes and questioned him " who khushi?"  Aman scratched the back of his neck and told " shashi gupta's daughter."

 Arnav then remembered that shashi was in their custody for misappropriating 50 lacs and when he had gone to his place to question him, not exactly question but to beat him black and blue a girl had tried to stop him by holding his hand. He couldn't forget the fire in her eyes which challenged him but when he informed that shashi had cheated on him she went all quiet.

 Arnav asked Aman to send her in and he stood near the window.  She entered the room with folded hands and plead earnestly " Arnav ji please leave my baba..don't beat him. I'll work for you and repay all the money." He didn't bother to turn and snapped back " in my line of business, girls have nothing to do." She bit her lower lip and with tears threatening to roll suggested " then I'll work in this house but please spare my baba's life.. I beg of you." She was standing far behind him, he looked over his shoulder and replied " even if you work your entire life for me still you won't be able to repay 50 lacs."

 Tears now fell from her eyes as she saw all her hopes of freeing her father crashing. He could hear her silent sobs then thought for a while before speaking " well I can release your father and you wouldn't even need to repay the money. But for that you'll have to do something for me." She lifted her head instantly as a new ray of hope flickered in her heart " thank you so much Arnav ji. I'm willing to do anything. I'll indebted to you for life."

 He turned around and leaned on the window behind " not life. But just one year" He corrected her, she didn't understand what he had said so he continued " I want one year of your life. That particularl year shall belong to me. Wholly and solely."

An unknown fear gripped her. She had a confused look on her face and asked him curiously " and what do you expect from me in that year?" he bit the inside of his cheek and answered dryly " A child." his reply came as a huge shock to her and he noticed horror in her innocent eyes. " Relax. I'll marry you as per all traditions and customs." Her senses went numb. Her mind stopped functioning. The whole picture was still not clear to her.

 He walked toward her slowly with his hands in his pockets and head lowered " my daadi is sick.. she's dying ..and she desires to see me settled down." He circled around her making her all the more scared " I've only seen deceit in relationships because they weren't real. However now I want to have my heir. Someone who belongs to me. Completely. And you'll give me that child. After which I shall set you free from this marriage."

 After saying so he walked back to the window and crossed his arms across his chest. With hooded eyes he tried to study what was going on in her mind. Her throat went dry, for a moment she felt as if she had lost speech, she pressed her lips together and took a deep breath trying to make sense of what he had suggested.

 She closed her eyes and saw the happy times she had spent with her father although he was an alcoholic a gambler and now a fraud but he dotted on her, she was the apple of his eye, a faint smile appeared on her lips that didn't last long when she saw her mother's crying and worried face. She was very hopeful that her daughter would bring back her father some how or the other.

She opened her eyes and saw a man who had everything and everybody at his feet yet was a loner, who wanted to fulfill his dying grandmother's last wish as well as his own dream but at the cost of her father. She wondered in all these things where did she stand? Nowhere!!!

 Her own desires and wishes had no place in all this. She met his eyes which were staring back at her waiting for an answer. He wanted to marry her only to have an heir which she had to hand him over and then leave his life, this was wrong but what her father had done to him was not right either, so could one wrong act correct the other wrong act ? could a mistake be compensated only by committing another one? Her mind failed to think straight.

 After a long silence She clutched the edge of her duppata and thought, did she really have any other option but to say yes?

 She gulped the lump down her throat and replied meekly " I agree."

At first he was surprised by her reply, he thought she would refuse the proposal but like him she too loved her family a lot and was willing to do anything for them. He nodded his head and said " Fine. On the wedding day, Shashi gupta will be a free man..and one more thing this one year contract marriage thing must not be leaked out."

She accepted all his conditions quietly and he turned to face the window once again. He held the window pane firmly and looked over his shoulder " listen, in this marriage you'll get everything that Arnav Singh Raizada's wife deserves..except one. LOVE."

Although she wasn't expecting him to love her but his outright admission to the fact that he would never love her shook her. But in a way she appreciated his honesty, he didn't beat around the bush he had laid everything crystal clear before her, there were no hidden agendas. He wanted to make her aware of what she was getting into and she respected him for that.

 He gazed out of the window with a satisfied look, once again his belief that relationships could be bought and sold got reaffirmed. This time he bought his wife. No, the mother of his child, his mind corrected him.

Thanks for reading

ROSE

Chapter 2

She returned home and her mother garima asked her anxiously " what happened? Will they release your baba?" she nodded her head in affirmation, garima folded her hands to thank god " but on one condition. " her mother gave her a questioning look " I'll have to marry Arnav ji." Garima turned wide eyed and shocked, her mouth hung open.

 She saw her expressions and added " And I've said yes." She held her daughter by her shoulders and shook her " have you lost your mind? How can you marry him?"

 Khushi freed herself from her hold and replied calmly " I have to marry someone then why not him? Moreover there is no other way to get baba out." Saying so she left her room silently and closed the door leaving her mother in tears who saw her daughter sacrificing her life for the sake of her father.

She sat on her bed and brought her knees close to her chest. She thought how within a matter of few minutes her life had changed completely. She had gone to free her father's life from his clutches but didn't know that she would have mortgage her happiness, her smile , her dreams and also her would be child in return. Tears blocked her vision and the deal blocked her mind heart and soul. She felt empty and lifeless. She gazed out of the window, it was raining heavily, she always loved the rain but today the clouds were crying with her.

 She cried herself to sleep then got up after an hour.

She looked at herself in the mirror then thought how long would she cry on her destiny, if she had to bring back her father she had to get into this loveless marriage, there were no two ways about it. She had no choice but to accept her fate, the only choice that god gave her was the way to accept it, either with tears in her eyes or with a smile on her lips, she chose the latter and wiped away the tears stains from her face. Throughout her life her parents had lived only for her and if today she had to sacrifice one year for their lives then it wasn't such a bad deal.

 With the word deal she pondered over the conditions Arnav had laid over, which reflected his views about this marriage, he had made himself amply clear as to why and what he wanted from this relationship without concealing anything from her. He was honest and forthright with her and that she appreciated. He was a powerful man if he wanted he could have abandoned her after getting the child without informing her before hand but he explained her everything also if he wanted he could have had a child out of a wedlock there was no need for him to marry her, after all who could question him but he wanted to fulfill his grandmother's wish. By deciding to marry her he was giving respect to her and to this relationship.  He didn't believe in love and he stated that clearly in a way warning her not to give and expect love from him. When everything was known to her then it was easier for her to get into a relationship with no emotional strings attached to it and that too just for an year.

 She took a deep breath and felt all was not that bad as she was making it out to be, if god had written this for her then she would accept it bravely and if possible with a small smile too.

 No one was perfect in this world, everyone had both a good side and a bad side if she overlooked his bad side and concentrated only on his honesty, sincerity and commitment toward his family then living with him for one year wouldn't be difficult.

 It had stopped raining she glanced out of the window and saw the dark clouds, she smiled and thought every cloud had a sliver lining and she would find the silver lining of her relationship as well.

She opened the door of her room and of her new life with peace in her heart, now there was no confusion in her mind with respect to her decision, she would discharge all her duties with utmost sincerity without worrying about the future. She took out a box of sweets and went to her worried mother. "oh maa, now quit worrying and sweeten your mouth." She offered her a sweet. Garima gaped at her and held her hand to stop her "khushi beta, do you realize what you're doing? don't do this."

 Khushi sat next to her and asked " your daughter is getting married. Aren't you happy?" garima with tears in her eyes replied " how can this forceful marriage make anyone happy? This is a compromise. A deal." khushi held her hand in hers and tried to calm her mother down " maa, nothing is happening by force. In fact all this is Bappa's wish. And you know bappa loves me a lot. He won't let anything bad happen to me. And I don't see this marriage as a compromise." Garima peered up as her daughter continued," everybody is aware of how much arnav ji loves his sisters even though they aren't his real sisters. Now just think if he dotes on them so much then how much he'll love me." She tried to reassure her mother with all honesty except for the last part but then if a small little lie could bring relief to her tensed mother then she didn't mind lying.

Her daughter's encouraging words did sooth her a bit and she cupped her face in her hands lovingly, khushi was glad to see her feeling better and said " maa don't get worked up. With you by my side I've nothing to worry about ." garima had tears in her eyes , she nodded her head in agreement, it was true both mother and daughter always supported  each other through thick and thin, she kissed khushi's forehead softly giving her consent for the marriage.

Arnav didn't want to delay the wedding proceedings so all the necessary arrangements were done in a hurry. Daadi was more than happy to see her grandson settling down, she wanted the house to be repainted. Payal and Aman took over the task to revamp Arnav's room, the bed was replaced by a teak wood king size bed a carved dressing table matching well with the bed was also placed. A new almirah was put to accommodate khushi's clothes because they both knew that Arnav would never share his wardrobe with anybody. Anjali too was delighted to know that her brother was getting married, she bought some exquisite jewellery sets for her sister in law as she had a good taste when it came to jewellery. She also shopped for designer sarees for khushi and the wedding sherwani for her brother.

Soon the wedding day arrived all the rituals were to be carried out in a temple. Aman was on cloud nine and was dancing his heart out in the baraat, at the same time he was throwing money here and there for the crowd that had gathered. Anjali's husband shyam had nothing better to do so he began collecting and pocketing those thrown away notes.  Arnav looked nothing less than a royal prince in a beige colored sherwani while khushi gave him full competition in an orange silk saree.

 The pundit ji asked them to exchange garlands, khushi who had kept her head lowered through out the time now dared to look up but she couldn't hold her gaze as he stared back at her. She held her breath and put the garland around his neck as he bent down for her then he too did the same, the only difference being he wasn't nervous at all. After which Payal came forward to do the gatbandhan and then marital vows were exchanged, khushi folded her hands and prayed silently asking god to give her strength to face the future events with intelligence and maturity.

 Pundit ji asked Arnav to fill khushi's parting with vermillion, while doing so little bit fell on her nose she raised her hand to wipe it but Anjali interrupted saying " no bhabhi, don't wipe it. Let it be. It's a good sign. It means chotte will love you a lot." Making khushi smile shyly, she gazed into his eyes in response but was disappointed to see them blank, without any emotion reminding her once again that this was a loveless marriage. He was then asked to tie the mangal sutra around her neck he leaned over making her heart skip a beat this time again he seemed unperturbed about the whole thing. His hard cold exterior succeeded in not giving away any kind of emotion he was going through.

 All the rituals were done and now was the time for khushi to bid farewell to her family. Shashi was more than happy to be the father in law of such a powerful man, his eyes glittered with greed at the prospect of enjoying this new found status on the other hand garima being a mother was worried about as to how her daughter would adjust in such an affluent family. But Khushi reassured her through her eyes that she would take care of everything.

 When Arnav and khushi came out of the temple the whole town had gathered to share this moment, they were cheering for both of them. For the first time khushi realized the extent of influence her husband had on the crowd that had assembled, she knew he was popular but didn't know that people loved him so much, they bowed in front of him not out of fear but out of respect. They were rejoicing and celebrating their marriage as if it was a festival. Arnav folded his hands to seek their blessings and waved out to acknowledge their presence. He then slowly descended down the stairs with khushi to meet them. Before the crowd went wild with happiness Aman took away the married couple to Raizada mansion safely.

Daadi welcomed khushi with open arms and embraced her, khushi for a moment felt she was being hugged by garima, the warmth of a mother touched her. Soon she was escorted to Arnav's room while he stayed back with aman and his brother in law.

The room was perfectly decorated for the wedding night with dim lights and fragrant candles burning at the corners. She sat on the huge bed covered with rose petals. She looked around it was the same place where few days back she was standing helplessly before the man who had held her father captive and now this room was hers  and the man was her husband holding her and her life captive for one year.

 Slowly the reality that she would have to spend the days and nights with him began to sink in making her panic. A few minutes later she heard the sound of footsteps approaching the room, she grabbed the bed sheet tightly in her fist as her heart started beating rapidly with each step he was taking.

Thanks for reading

ROSE

         He took each step slowly and carefully which was now proceeding toward accomplishment of his long cherished dream. Ever since he had proposed to her, no ever since he had struck the deal with her, his heart and mind were at loggerheads. His heart said that what he did was not right, he shouldn't have taken advantage of her helplessness while his mind defended that he didn't force her to marry him, he simply laid down the conditions to free her father. But then his heart revolted that he had no right to ruin her life just to fulfill his wish, that was not fair , well then when was life fair to him asked his mind? He had always worked hard to give his family what they wanted despite of the fact that they were his step family. Even when he came to know that he was not their real brother his dreams, his life focused only on them, his sisters meant the world to him, he could sacrifice his life for them but when they showed him their true faces reality struck him hard. Now if after so many years if he dared to dream just once for himself and tried to fulfill it was he committing a crime? Was he not entitled to happiness? His mind questioned. Moreover everything was fair in love and war. He smirked at his own thought, he neither loved her nor was he at war with her then how could his actions be fair? With all this confusion he reached the door step of his room, he opened it slowly and entered.

         She was sitting on the bed with her head lowered, he took a deep breath and dragged himself to the edge of the bed. He gulped the lump down his throat, his palms were sweating out of nervousness. He cleared his throat and spoke in his heavy voice," khushi, my heart longed for something and I did whatever I could to attain it. I might have been unreasonable but I never wished to keep you in darkness. I told you everything truthfully..." he paused and picked up a pillow to sleep on the couch " and I'll never force you for anything ."

          He was about to move back when she held his wrist, her eyes still downcast, she could feel the remorse in his voice " we both are aware of the exact reason behind this marriage. Like any ordinary person your eyes saw a dream and you tried to realize it. Perhaps your means may not right but ..." She left his wrist then lifted her head and met his eyes "even you're entitled to dream and you don't need to justify it."

         He dropped the pillow on hearing this and slowly sat next to her while she continued " in life it's not always about white and black or right and wrong. Somethings are beyond all this. They say what happens as per your wish is good but what doesn't it's even better because it has the will of god. I've accepted everything as Bappa's wish. And I have no complaints ." her each and every word was soothing him in such a way she didn't know, with every passing moment she was making him feel less guilty about his actions and more proud of his decision that he had chosen her to be the mother of his child.

          For the first time she could see innocence and vulnerability in his eyes, she gave him a faint smile " you didn't hide anything from me. You were open and honest. I really respect you for that. That was one of the reasons why I agreed to your conditions." money could never repay what she was going to do for him he thought with tears of gratefulness threatening to cloud his eyes , he managed to push them back.

         She licked her dry lips, took a deep breath and spoke " willingly or unwillingly we are into this relationship. The truth is that now we are married and I shall fulfill all my duties. But I can't do this alone. I you're your support." She moved her hand forward and asked " will you?" she had managed to lift a heavy burden of guilt off his heart, he couldn't have wished for more. He held her outstretched hand and nodded in agreement.

         His heart was now relieved thanks to her, he placed his other free hand on her cheek and leaned over to press his lips on her forehead softly. She smiled shyly and he lowered her to the bed slowly. For the first time he watched her closely, her doe eyes, her sharp nose, her milky skin which was glowing in dim light, she was indeed beautiful. His gaze stopped at her lips, her eyes travelled his gaze, she bit her lower lip and closed her eyes. He slowly dipped his head down and her arms wrapped his back in response bringing him closer. The candles extinguished as the night progressed and the room fell into darkness.

         She woke up to the chirping of birds, she squinted her eyes and felt a heavy weight around her waist. She opened her eyes fully and saw him sleeping next to her with his arm around her. A blush decorated her cheeks when she remembered the night spent, her body still felt ticklish to the way he had touched her. Even though he portrayed himself as a hard iron man but he treated her like a delicate flower, scared to harm or hurt her in any way. He was nothing but soft and gentle with her last night and she admired him for that. She turned her neck slightly to look at him he was still in deep slumber with his hair falling on his forehead, she had a strong urge to push it back but didn't do so. She carefully freed herself from his hold not wanting to disturb his sleep and walked into the bathroom quietly.

         After having a long shower she stepped out with the towel wrapped around her wet hair and pulled the curtains. Arnav moved at the sudden sound, she then opened the door to the poolside and sun rays lit the room, Arnav cringed as light fell on his eyes. He loved his early morning sleep and no one dared to wake him up. He opened his eyes partially and saw her back facing him, she rubbed her wet hair vigorously with the towel to dry it as a result a few droplets fell on his face, he cursed under his breath and turned his head to the other side and covered his face with the pillow.

         She looked back and saw him sleeping, she thought of getting his morning tea. When she left he felt something vibrating , he clenched his jaw firmly and cursed loudly the person who was calling him. He moved his arm around the bed and found his mobile, it was Aman " what is it aman that you couldn't wait." he barked.

          Aman rubbed the back of his neck nervously and replied " I'm sorry boss, I didn't intend to disturb you but the meeting with the dealers is two hours from now." Arnav lazily sat up and placed his head on the head rest " and you are telling me now. By the way who told you to fix the meeting this early?"

          Aman again apologized for ruining the first day after his marriage, arnav disconnected the call before saying ," keep the phone down. Let me get ready." He pushed away the blanket in irritation when his hand touched something sharp, he picked it up, it was her earring. He looked at it carefully and thought even though they didn't love each other but still what transpired between them last night seemed so right as if it was meant to happen. He remembered her shy glances, there was hesitation in them in the beginning but later on her eyes reflected no regrets. Even he didn't feel guilty or awkward it was all so pure and sacred just like her smile that played on her lips.

         The vibration of his mobile jerked and brought him back to reality, he read Aman's message regarding the place of meeting and proceeded to the bathroom to start his morning chores.

         When he stepped out he saw his clothes, wallet, watch and car keys already laid out. He was a careless man and used to keep away his things here and there, then would ask Hari Prasad ,his servant to find them for him in the morning. His gaze fell on the bed side table where tea was kept in a flask, he poured it out, it smelled of ginger and thought she must have done all this. So she was well organized unlike him, he was impressed. He sat down to have tea which tasted great.

          She came with the tray of breakfast and placed it on the table. He continued to sip in the tea and said " You didn't need to trouble yourself. Servants are there to do all this." She knew he didn't need her help but felt that this was her duty and moreover she liked doing it so replied casually "there's a difference between a wife and a servant. Some chores are best suited for the wives to do." He didn't want to argue, if she wanted to do all this then he was fine with it, moreover this wouldn't affect him.

          She began to brush her now a little dry hair in front of the mirror then stopped suddenly and started looking at the floor and then around. He watched her for a moment then went near her and opened his palm in front of her " here." she looked at her missing ear ring and took it from him in relief and asked innocently " where did you find this?"  he rolled his eyes at her question then saw her still expecting him to answer, he indicated with his eyes towards the bed. She immediately turned around to fix her earring actually she didn't want him to see her cheeks turn pink.

          She saw him walking out of the room through the mirror " Arnav ji, your breakfast?" he paused at the door and answered " I'm not a breakfast person"

          She was disappointed seeing him not touch what she had made for him and tried to convince him " But my maa says that one should not leave the house without..." she couldn't complete her sentence as his mobile started vibrating, he picked it up and said " yeah Aman, I'll  be there." And left the room before she could stop him.

         Thanks for reading

         Rose