Tying The Knot With Ex's Brother

LIES AND PRETENSE

"See, I'm not gonna force myself on you. Unless and until you're ready and willing to give in, I won't do anything to you," said Sparsh while they were in their bed at night.

Earlier in the evening, Jeevika suggested that they should go to Switzerland for their honeymoon and when neither Sparsh nor Ragini retaliated, it was finalized. Hotel reservation and tickets were taken care of immediately.

He continued, "I think this will be a great opportunity for you to get to know me, for us to get to know and create a bond with each other."

Ragini nodded and affirmation from her brought a smile to Sparsh's face and she was hit by the realization that Sparsh had already developed genuine feelings for her. She was anxious as neither could she bluntly tell him to forget about the honeymoon nor did she want to go for it.

Human beings are very complex and it's impossible to completely understand them, forget about others, even understanding oneself is a difficult task. Ragini got married to Sparsh because she wanted to make Sid suffer and regret his decision and now that she knew that Sid was in a melancholic state, he didn't eat, didn't talk to anyone, stayed out mostly and his dark circles and the fine lines on his face were the proof that he was not getting enough sleep which means she was already successful in her mission. Sid was suffering within.

"All this seems to be a huge mistake on my part. I don't know why I did what I did. I'm clueless. What exactly do I want?" thought Ragini to herself while Sparsh slept soundly beside her.

She didn't give it a thought as to what she would do with Sparsh while she avenges Sid. What was the maximum limit of her revenge? What was she going to do? What will she do when she realized that she got what she wanted? She had not even once thought about all this, she made up her mind in a hurry and now she regretted. She didn't love Sid anymore but Sparsh could have no place in her heart either. Her brain was a whirlwind and she had no control over it. But there was one thing she was sure about and it was her unwillingness to go for the honeymoon trip.

"I've cancelled the tickets and hotel reservation," announced Jeevika to her parents and brothers who all sat in the living room.

"Sparsh, go and see if she's okay. Take care of her and don't let her step a foot on the floor. The doctor said she needs to rest," said Ma with a worried face.

Sparsh nodded and left for his room upstairs.

"I'm a little upset that their honeymoon is cancelled but I'm more grateful that she was not badly injured. It's not even been ten days since their marriage, what if something serious happened? Thank god Sparsh saw her falling and saved her at the right moment! Thank god, she was not severely hurt!" Ma seemed worried and thankful both at the same time.

"Are you feeling better?" asked Sparsh.

Ragini nodded.

"Does it hurt too much?"

She nodded again.

"You should have been careful. What were you even daydreaming about that you didn't notice the stairs? Do you even know what would have happened if I was even a second late? Things would have been worse than this fracture," said Sparsh while pointing to the cast she had on her right leg.

"Sorry!"

"What are you apologizing for?"

"The honeymoon's cancelled because of me. You must be disappointed."

"Yes, I'm disappointed. I'm disappointed because you think honeymoon was more important than your well-being to me. I'm disappointed that I couldn't rescue you on time and now you're wearing a cast and lying on the bed like this."

Sparsh got up and was about to leave when Ragini grabbed his wrist. He turned around to see tears in her eyes. He immediately sat down again and cupped her small face in his warm hands.

"Why are you crying? Did I hurt you by my words? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I was just worried about you. I really didn't mean to hurt you in any way. I'm so sorry, darling. Please stop crying." Seeing his wife's tears made Sparsh want to cry as well.

"I'm sorry," said Ragini through her tears.

Sparsh couldn't see her crying, he hugged her tightly, patting her head and telling her not to cry again and again but in no vain. Her sobs became louder and the number of sorries she said also increased.

"I already told you, your health is the priority here. You don't need to apologize for something so trivial like cancellation of honeymoon. If you are well and healthy, we can just go for it anytime, don't bother about it," said Sparsh while he caressed Ragini's hair with so much love and care.

"Get some sleep, you will feel better," said Sparsh and covered her with the sheets.

"You need to get well soon. Everyone's worried for you." And he kissed her on the forehead. She fell asleep in less than two minutes, thanks to the gentle movements of Sparsh's touch on her soft silky hair.

Sparsh left her in the room to enjoy her peaceful slumber and went downstairs where he informed his parents that she was okay and was sound asleep.

"Ragini, wake up." Sparsh's voice woke her up from her two hours long sleep.

"Is it morning already?" asked Ragini rubbing her eyes and trying to sit up.

Sparsh giggled and pointed toward the clock on the wall. It said 2 o'clock.

"Did I sleep until it's afternoon? How many hours did I actually sleep for?" Ragini murmured while her eyes were still half closed.

"I guess you slept quite well." Sparsh laughed at his wife who was a little dumb but cute. "Are you hungry?"

Ragini thought for a few seconds and then nodded.

"Okay! Then I'll bring your lunch here. Stay put and don't move at all."

Sparsh came back with her lunch, adjusted a small table on the bed to keep the plate on it and watched her while she ate her meal.

Ragini noticed him glancing at her and asked while wiping her face, "Why are you staring at me? Is there something on my face?"

"Were you thinking about honeymoon when you fell down the stairs?" Sparsh asked with his eyes focused on hers.

"I..." Ragini was speaking when she was interrupted by Sid's sudden entry into their room. To Ragini's surprise, Sid looked perfectly fine or even better than she expected.

"Bhaiya, you need to go downstairs. Ma's calling you," said Sid.

Sparsh glanced at Ragini and then said to Sid, "I'll be back soon. Till then, take care of her."

Then he said to Ragini, "Finish all of this and ask for more if you want "

And he left.

"You can leave. I can take care of myself," said Ragini.

Sid giggled and sat on the bed beside her. His sudden behaviour change was strange for Ragini to decode.
She wondered what was up with him. He neither seemed worried for Ragini, nor did he look sad watching Sparsh and Ragini together.

"I know it all," said Sid with a smirk.

"What are you talking about?"

"I saw it all this morning. Your anger toward me doesn't nullify the fact that you still love me because if you didn't, you would not go to this extent to avoid going to your honeymoon with my brother."

Ragini fidgeted with the spoon in her hand and watching her getting nervous brought a bigger smile on Sid's face. His eyes shone brighter and he said, "Why don't you confess that you still love me?"

"No, I don't," said Ragini with her face burning hot.

"You're lying. You do love me and your broken leg is the proof. I know it was not an accident, I know you did it yourself so you could avoid your honeymoon."

Ragini's skin looked pale as if she was lifeless. Her face lost all its color and the spoon in her hand fell on the floor as she lost the strength to hold even a trivial object.