Beyond Love: The beginning

1.The Meeting

"Khushi....wake up, you have work to do!"

Khushi rubbed her eyes sleepily, and looked into her mother's frowning face.

"Now get up, you lazy brat! Your sister's wedding is in three days, and you have to manage the kitchen today for the guests."

Khushi sighed as her mother left hurriedly, to attend a telephone call.

It was Meera, her arrogant younger sister's 'haldi rasam' (an indian pre-wedding ritual involving turmeric) today, and she was in no mood to prepare food for the fifty guests, soon to be crowding her house.

But, unfortunately, this was her life. She was supposedly 'thrown' into this family, at the tender age of five, when her real parents had abandoned her. Her adoptive father had been 'kind' enough to give her a roof, and a name, as she had been told. So she was asked to be grateful and giving in return.

Which meant she had to hurry up right now at 6.00am in the morning, after four hours of disturbed sleep, and rush into the kitchen to start with the cleaning.

After getting dressed up in a vibrant floral kurta and skinny blue jeans, she was about to step inside the kitchen when something struck her mind.

"Happy twenty first birthday Khushi," she smiled at herself and decided no matter what, she would first visit her favourite place before starting with her regular chores.

******

Khushi sauntered on the empty roads draping herself with a chocolate brown leather jacket, to protect herself from the brutal wind.

The town of Sadhnapur was labelled to be a mysterious and spooky one, after the sudden deaths of two of the most influential people, the Ratnakar couple, fifteen years ago. They were survived by their only son Veer, to whom Khushi's younger sister, Meera, was getting married to.

Veer and Meera met in college, and soon fell in love. Her parents, initially were hesitant to accept the relationship. They did not wish to associate their name with the Ratnakars after the mysterious tragedy, but ultimately had to give in for their daughter's happiness.
Veer was an intelligent man, who was studying at a medical college outside Sadhnapur. His kind and respectful nature, contrasted with Meera's selfish attitude. But, the phrase 'opposites attract' aptly applied to them.
Khushi only hoped that Meera would imbibe some of Veer's praiseworthy qualities and evolve into a better person.

Khusi waved the thought off as she arrived at her destination. The wrought iron gates opened for her, by Govardhan Kaka, who worked at the place, as a security guard.

The old man, with a scruffy white beard, beamed at her, "Khushi beta, the children have been impatiently waiting for your arrival."

"Namastey Kaka," Khushi bent down to touch his feet as a mark of respect. The old man was in his late sixties, and had been extremely fond of Khushi since she was a child.

Touched at her gesture, Govardhan Kaka muttered a series of blessings, as he placed his frail hand over her head.

"Happy Birthday beta. I don't have enough money to buy you a present beta, but I promise to always pray for you. You are a bright, intelligent young lady, and I only wish goodwill for you," he replied in a thick voice.

Khushi doubted the old wan was going to weep if she stayed longer, and rose up to meet his weary grey eyes. "There's nothing more I want, thank you Kaka," she said with genuine gratitude.

As she paced inside to approach a multicoloured two-storeyed house, she was met with a chorus of giggles and wishes.

"Khushi didi is here!!" A seven year old shrieked with happiness as she ran to her with open arms.
"We knew you would come didi, happy birthday."

Khushi smiled. She leaned to kiss the child's head, and glanced at the small crowd of children at the orphanage, who were clapping with joy, and eagerly waiting for her.

As she advanced towards the small group of cheering kids, her shoe got stuck over something rough, setting her off balance. She flung her arms across her face, and squeezed her eyes shut, as the ground rushed up swiftly.
But the impact never occured.

Khushi realised she was grasped across her shoulders, with firm hands. As she straightened up, her eyes collided with stark black eyes. A jolt of familiarity rushed through her, and she kept staring at the young man who was still clutching her shoulders.

"Are you okay miss?" The young man asked, as he withdrew his hands after a moment of hesitation.

But Khushi kept staring at him tongue-tied.

"Well madam, I have heard I can charm women pretty quickly, but you here are certainly making me uncomfortable with that continuous staring."

Khushi's jaw dropped as sense knocked into her. She blushed furiously breaking eye contact from him and hurriedly looked elsewhere.

"I ...I just thought I have known you from somewhere," Khushi murmured in her defence.

"That is a very cheesy pick up line," he sighed.

Khushi's face shot up in shock, " I wasn't---"

"I get that often," he interrupted casually, waving his hands to dismiss her, "I am Shaurya, now you know the name, but let me be precise, I am least interested in women at this point."

The next instant, the arrogant man, with a hint of familiarity, turned his back, and marched inside the orphanage doors leaving a furious Khushi behind.

*****

Hello everyone, I know this is a short chapter, but I sincerely hope you liked it. And I promise upcoming chapters will be longer, and will slowly shed light over the characters and their lives.

Do forgive me for any grammar errors, I will try to keep editing the mistakes out if I find them. Feel free to vote and give your precious feedback on what you like and dislike. Thank you for taking your time out and reading my story ❤️
~Love RubyRed~