Betrothed

15 \ Is she falling?

Divya woke up in her bed alone with the comforter draped over her form. It was strange what marriage had done to her. Earlier, she made it a point to wake up to an empty bed. All her nightly adventures usually ended with either her sneaking out or throwing the guy out after sex. And now, waking up to an empty bed seemed like the most unusual thing.

She sat up against the head board, pushing the locks that framed her face behind her ears. Everything came rushing back to her. Her parents' decision, her reaction to it, Vikram comforting her. Everything.

Before she could mull over it, the door to their bedroom opened to let Vikram in.

"Hey" she said, her voice hoarse from having cried herself to sleep.

"Hey, you are up?"

"Yeah. Thanks for calming me down earlier."

"Pfft"

He settled down on his side of the bed. It was almost 3pm. He had just concluded lunch with his in laws who kept talking about anything and everything without addressing the elephant in the room. He had bid them good bye for their trip and explained that Divya wan't feeling well so had slept.

"Did they leave?" she asked once she saw him get comfortable in bed.

"Yes."

"What did you tell them about me?"

"That you weren't feeling well and were napping."

She hummed in response. The feeling of loneliness, of being all alone had taken over her ever since her parents announcement. But she was so grateful for having Vikram by her side. He had not left her side when she was vulnerable. He had handled the situation for her.

"We are going to make this work." she said, her eyes shining with determination.

"We are." he echoed.

-

Vikram swirled the wine unconsciously, taking in the gorgeous pink the sky had turned into. It was one of those evenings where he could sit and stare into the infinite forever. Einaudi played in the background adding to the beauty of the evening. He was seated in one of the west facing balconies thinking about the afternoon that had passed. His feet shook to the tempo of the tune while he sat deep in thought.

"Isn't the setting too gorgeously serene to be disturbed by one's wife?" he heard her speak from behind.

He chuckled turning backwards. He pointed to the sun lounger next to him for her to get comfortable on.

"It is but alas! That's life." He teased.

Divya sunk into the lounger, exhaling softly. It was a stunning view. No thoughts of the separation floated in her head in that moment. She had been purposefully trying to keep them away. She needed some peace and quiet.

"I don't know if I told you this, I attended this Harry Styles concert a long time ago back in London. There was this surprise gift. He had organised this coffee meet up with a lucky fan. I had attended the concert with my girlfriends."

"And you got to have coffee with him?"

"Yes, I hacked into the system that was supposed to randomly generate the ticket number of the fan." she smile deviously quoting two fingers in the air when she said the word 'randomly'.

"You hacked what?" he spluttered.

"Oh yes, I am wonderfully brilliant at hacking." she said as-a-matter-of-fact-ly.

Vikram stared at his wife wide eyed. Every single day, this woman seemed to surprise him.

"So, how did you remember that out of the blue?"

"Because that happened 6 years ago on this very day."

Vikram nodded mocking a salute to her.

"Is that wine?" she asked peeking into the glass in her husband's hand.

Vikram lifted the glass up, holding it out for her. The princess pinched the stem between her fingers and brought it to her lips, her eyes trained at the brilliant pink vine of bougainvillea swaying carelessly in the wind.

He switched his glance to her. She looked ethereal in the pale lavender dress, the silk draped her curves delicately. The setting sun cast a warm glow on her face making it all the more radiant.

"What?" Divya began telling him about something with a smile playing at her lips only to find out that he was already looking at her.

"You are breathtakingly beautiful, you know." he said as if in a trance.

"I know." she teased smiling at him mischievously.

He rolled his eyes at her and reached for her fingers. He let his fingers trace her knuckles slowly, steadily turning her hand around to stroke her palm. He saw her set the wine glass down on the side table next to their loungers. He got up, pulling her up by the hand too and quietly yet quickly made his way to their quarters. He knew there were way too many helpers in the adjoining lounge.

He pushed her against the door and closed it shut trapping her between his arms and the door. His eyes glanced at hers, absolutely aware of his pulse racing. His hands left hers and settled against her midriff, the warmth from her body seeping through the fabric. He could feel her pulse quickening too.

Divya let her palm linger midway in the air for a few milliseconds before settling on his neck. She could breathe his cologne from this close.

"You just want to stare?" she teased when she saw him look at her with awe in his eyes.

His eyes sparkled with mischief immediately.

He lowered his lips, meeting her halfway. The kiss was nothing like they had shared before. It was raw. It was passionate. It was as if they were holding on to each other for their sanity. Vikram tugged at her lips carelessly before swooping his tongue in, dedicatedly conquering every crevice. 

"Harry Styles doesn't know how you taste, does he?" Vikram asked breathlessly between the kisses.

Divya pulled back briefly confused at the words that had left his mouth two seconds ago, dazed with his lips on her neck. When they finally made sense to her she let out a heart chuckle before pulling him back up to kiss the hell out of him.

Oh she was falling.