Harvest Moon

Chapter 9

The next morning Khushi stood under the shower, hoping the hot liquid would help her in calming her frayed nerves.

She thought of the nightmare that had awakened her in the middle of the night. It was about her friend Nimmi who was her colleague at school. Nimmi was from Amritsar and Khushi remembered how happy she was when her wedding was arranged with a boy from a nearby city. She had quit her job and had promised to keep in touch but they hadn't heard from her after that. A few months ago, Khushi had called Nimmi and found out from her parents that Nimmi's husband had left for Canada and after living off her dowry money, he had abandoned her to marry a girl with a Canadian citizenship. They were worried about Nimmi who still hadn't come out of her depression. Khushi shuddered in spite of the heat.

Would Arnav have gone to the extent of waiving off her grandfather's debt just for something as trivial as citizenship? That seemed highly unlikely for Arnav seemed to have wealth of his own. Anger replaced the despair she felt in her heart.

She was determined to find the motive behind Arnav going such great lengths to marry her. She would have to discover whatever it was that Arnav had over her grandfather, which had forced the old man to doggedly persuade her to get married. Only then would she be able to devise a plan to escape from this entrapment she had walked into blindfolded.

What would have happened if she hadn't fallen in love with Arnav? What would he have done then? Of course Arnav hadn't considered that possibility. A man of his experience would have been utterly confident of his own prowess. For the first time in her life, Khushi wished she had some experience with men. That way, she wouldn't have been so gullible as falling for a stranger, however devastatingly handsome he was. Her pride stung at being a pawn at an unknown game which Arnav believed he had won.

Suddenly a thought occurred to her. What if she made him believe that the prize he had won at this game was not worth it? What would he do if he discovered that the girl he had married wasn't a docile cow but a shrewish vixen? Would he regret his decision and let her go? It was a faint chance but at this point she was ready to try anything that would help her get out of this loveless marriage. If she had to beat him at his own game she would have to play one of her own.

Khushi quickly changed into jeans and a lemon yellow top and as she sat at the dresser brushing out her hair, she heard a knock on the front door. Before she could get to the door, she heard a knock coming from a different direction. She looked around and realized it came from the French doors. She hurried up to it and drew the curtains to see Arnav standing there in pajamas and t-shirt. She opened the door and let him in.

"What are you doing here?" She demanded.

"The bedroom door was locked when I tried to get in last night--" He bit out between his teeth. "Go and get the damn door!" He rushed into the bathroom.

Khushi opened the door to find Anjali standing there draped in a beautiful indigo and beige coloured saree. She looked at Khushi's attire and her eyebrows twisted in surprise.

"Khushi," she said, "you will have to change into a something more traditional. You have to come down to the kitchen and make something." It took a few seconds for Khushi to realize that Anjali was talking about the ritual where newly married brides cooked for the first time in their in-laws' house. "Don't worry – " she assured her, "it doesn't have to be anything elaborate."

Khushi hesitated briefly and then decided to be direct. "Di – since the marriage didn't happen in the ritualistic manner, do you think it is necessary to do all this?"

"Of course it is!" Anjali said emphatically. "In whatever way the marriage has taken place, the fact is that you are legally married to Arnav and that makes you the daughter-in-law of this house. All rituals that have to be performed in the house with regards to that will be followed." Her tone brooked no argument.