The Bride Trilogy - Part 1 - The Chosen Bride

Prologue

The restaurant was quiet and hushed, as befitted its classy, 5-star status. Considering they were going for their 7-star rating this year, reservations were hard to find. But the corner table was always booked for the third Saturday every six months. The wait-staff vied with each other to get that table added to their list. With only three occupants, very few demands and a very hefty tip from ALL three occupants at the end of the meal, it was usually a very profitable night for the servers.

The main draw was not the money though – it was the chance to see the three men who inhabited that table, from up close. Celebrities all in their own right, handsome, wealthy beyond measure, and with an attitude that melted female hearts everywhere (and some male ones too), the "Heartthrob table" as it was dubbed was a very sought-after commodity for the servers.

And the men who inhabited it like clockwork every six months couldn't care less. They were served good food, given the privacy they asked for, and were left alone to converse and laugh without the paparazzi hounding them. They paid handsomely for that privilege, and gladly.

Right now, one of them was sitting at the table, annoyed at the other two.

Shivaay Singh Oberoi was a fanatic about punctuality, and he hated waiting for anyone. He glanced at his watch for the third time in two minutes, and tapped his foot impatiently.

"Hi, sorry! Got caught in traffic!", Arnav bustled up to the table.

Arnav Singh Raizada was always on time, but only in Mumbai did his punctuality desert him. Nobody had figured out why that was. Shivaay just raised his brow at him.

"What?! It's the truth! I hate your city. Takes four times as long to get anywhere. I don't know why you guys live here", he muttered as he took his jacket off.

"Oh sure! And Delhi traffic is such a peach, isn't it? At least we can breathe the air in Mumbai", Shivaay grinned at him.

This was the standard first topic of conversation among the friends. The bashing of their respective hometowns.

"Hey guys! You're here early!", Rohit commented as he walked up casually, and flung his jacket onto the stand provided just for that reason, a stark contrast to the two other jackets hung neatly.

The other two looked at the newcomer. Dr. Rohit Sippy was invariably late, except when he was working, so that was not a surprise. They just shook their head at him, as Shivaay took the haphazardly thrown jacket and hung it neatly on the stand.

"We're not early. You're late, as usual!", Shivaay muttered as he sat down again.

"So what's the topic of conversation?", Rohit asked as he pulled out his own chair next to Shivaay.

"Traffic", Shivaay grinned at him.

"Is he complaining again?", Rohit shook his head at Arnav, "Arnav, the traffic in Delhi is much, much worse than in Mumbai, and that is a statistically proven fact"

"In that case, I hate this city even more, because that means it does it only to me... just to annoy me and make me late everywhere", Arnav grumbled, "Why can't we meet up in Delhi?", he complained.

"Because we like to breathe?", Rohit asked him.

Arnav just waved him off with a disgruntled glare.

The server walked up with their pre-ordered lunches, arranged everything swiftly and left just as quietly.

As soon as he was gone, the three dug in, talking over each other and pulling each other's legs.

After 30 minutes of laughter, talks and the sound of cutlery clattering on china, the food was packed away behind three sets of six-packs, and the coffee was wheeled in and served.