Prem Vivah

• Baat Pakki •

Everyone rose from their respective chairs, staring at Nishikant as if he had grown two bull tails.

"You are not kidding, Nish, are you?" Sarita asked her husband with a timid expression, and Nishikant slightly shook his head, saying gently - "I wouldn't ever crack such a humorless joke Saru."

"Baba, aap emotions me aake kuch bhi faisla mat lo." Prashant's disappointed voice boomed in the living room.

"Beta, woh baap hi kya jo apne baccho ki khushi chod ke khud ka swarth dekhe," Nishikant replied to his son with a derisive smile, and Prashant was burning in fury.

Naina burst into peals of tears, running to her father to embrace him tightly. She buried her head in his calming arms, her hands wrapping around his ironed gray blazer. Nishikant held his delicate doll securely within his palms, silvery liquid gleaming in his eyes as he hugged his daughter after ages. He felt her closer to his heart after days of struggles to not get drawn into the emotions. Naina dampened his pristine piece of cloth with her untrammelled tears containing unfathomable happiness and joy, and her sobs continued to ring in his ears. He didn't know how he managed to stay away from his princess as if he was a stone-hearted person and made her so weak that she stopped fighting with him for her True Love.

Sarita felt cathartic watching her favorite duo of Father and Daughter basking in the unadulterated delight of embracing one another almost after one and a half months, and their tangled feelings flew through their drenched eyes. Naina slowly moved back, her nose mildly red as usual due to cries, and Nishikant lovingly ran his thumb under her soaked eyes, brushing away the drops of crystal liquid she was supposed to shed on the Vidaai. Both of them stared at each other, expressing their obscured emotions with silence in the room. Naina could feel her lips trembling to even utter a phrase of Gratification to her father for approving her relationship with Sameer, and Nishikant deciphered unspoken words of his daughter with a hazy smile corrupting on his lips.

She still couldn't believe the man for whom she prayed since day one to get for her entire life was finally going to be her husband.

"Thank You!" Naina almost whispered, her lips finally moving.

"Tum khush hona bahut?" Her father asked her with a sweet smile, and it didn't take her a second to positively nod her head.

"Bahut zyada," Naina said throatily, tears drenching her cheeks as she felt tremendously blessed when she reckoned she finally won the battle of love with patience.

"Baba, you are doing wrong. Aap jante hai woh Sameer ka khandaan..." Prashant couldn't complete his sentence as his father interrupted - "Haa, sab kuch janta hoon main ki Sameer ka past accha nahi tha, uski maa dusro ke ghar ke kaam karti thi, uski behen phool wagera ya roadside food sell karti thi, uska baap womanizer tha. I know everything about them but now they are settled. Sameer ek good position pe hai apne hard work se, he earns well, my daughter earns well, phir dikkat kis baat ki huwi?"

"Seriously? Aap bhi us ladke ke jaal me aa gaye? I can't believe it. I just can't. Kya ho gaya hai aap sabko." Prashant exclaimed shockingly, clenching his chiseled jaw while swirling his burning gaze at his sister, who responded to him with an austere countenance.

"Main kisi ke jaal me nahi aaya hoon Prashant, main nahi dekh sakta apni beti ko rote hue. Tumhe pata hai itne dino me woh kitni baar royi hai Sameer ke khatir." Nishikant spoke with a stern look, his voice though calm, and he added further while stroking his palm on Naina's silky hair - "I never saw her so weak and deeply hurt. Aaj kal toh woh smile karna hi bhool chuki thi, kal raat bhi she slept on the couch while crying...tumse bhi us din jab argument huwi thi Naina ki tab bhi woh waha rote rote so gayi, kitni baar jab bhul se uske kamre ka darwaza khula rehta tha toh main dekhta tha ki woh Sameer ki photo ko gale laga ke soyi huwi hai. Mujhe kabhi nahi laga tha ki meri beti ko kisi se itna gehra pyaar hoga ki woh khud ke liye jeena bhul jayegi."