The Cursed Princess of Suryagarh: Book 1

27. Intoxication

Shreya was stumbling in her steps at the end of the party. She had a bit too much to drink and she ate a lot of the strawberry-flavored cake. She was quite cheerful despite the clock striking three, and she somehow managed to appear sober to her parents over an audio call, lying through her teeth despite her inebriated state about her grandparents permitting her to attend a party with a few neighbors of their Mumbai house. She was a bit unhappy about the string of lies she was passing onto her innocent parents, but she needed to maintain the ruse for only two more days. Hence, she went back to drink a few more shots of the tequila the bar offered, and she ended up in a state of further intoxication.

Suyash Singh had called Meethi from the staff quarters to assist Shreya in getting back to the room once they arrived at the palace. Adya, though not completely drunk, was experiencing a throbbing pain in the back of her head and needed to be escorted too. Meanwhile, Aryan was also misstepping and fumbling with his steps which led to Suyash Singh helping him to the bed in the guest chamber right next to Shreya's on the third floor. No sooner did Aryan land on the soft mattress of the guest bedroom, than he slipped into a slumber and did not notice when Suyash Singh came back into the room with all his luggage in tow.

But even after Meethi had requested Shreya numerous times to go to sleep, the esteemed guest did not feel like doing so. In fact, she felt like defying everyone who dared issue orders to her. Especially that vexatious snooty prince she loved to hate. So, once Meethi left the room after draping the blanket around her somnolent form, Shreya found herself slipping down from the bed, holding onto the pillars of the gigantic palace, blinking often to get rid of the blurriness in her vision, and taking small steps towards the stairwell that would lead her to the upper floors.

It was a struggle. The staircases seemed to be never-ending, and she could swear they forked in different directions on every step. Her hold on the balustrade was firm enough to not slip off, and with a lot of staggering and tottering on her way, she managed to reach the fifth floor. She pressed her thumb on the screen outside the metal door, and as soon as it creaked open, she let out a puff of air and threw it apart.

A long and wide corridor, immersed in partial darkness awaited her on the other side. Rows upon rows of arched windows on her right across the length of the alley, through which moon beams flitted, and a string of shut wooden doors on her left greeted her weary eyes. She tucked her hair behind her ears as she made her way down, her gaze fixated on the extreme end where she could see the yellowish hue of artificial lights illuminating the patterned marble floor, flickering once in a while as shadows danced from beyond the open door to the home office.

Stumbling and staggering all over again, she grabbed the mantelpieces and decorative cabinets along the way, but she managed to land at the rear end nonetheless. Before she could enter the room and explore it for herself, she was surprised to find a tall figure appearing in her line of vision. It took her some time to widen her eyes and perceive what she was witnessing, and when she did, she gasped in surprise. "I have never seen you like this," she whispered. "T-shirt and sweatpants?" She gasped again when she peered at the black trousers and the crumpled grey t-shirt he had adorned. "Where did the suits and the crisp shirts go?"

The scowl on his face refused to die, and he blinked hard due to the shock he was in. He was only just wrapping up some work at his home office and was about to exit the chamber to go to his room when he found her dawdling in a very drunken state. "What are you doing here?" He frowned further. "How did you get past the secure door?"

She rolled her eyes. "Of course!" she said, slurring slightly. "I am the outsider, right?" He was about to muster a protest, but she cut him off. "You look good in black, Princey." She beamed. "I like... like the color. Not like Aryan, though. He loves black." She frowned. "Adya loves black too. They should be best friends." She squealed as an epiphany hit her, and she clapped her hands in ebullience as a glint shone in her eyes. "They should date each other."