"Amma, did I ask to get married now? How can you just call someone over, without asking me first?", Nandini, huffed in annoyance. As soon as she came from her office, her mom had given her a saree and told her to drape it. Currently, she was sitting in front of the mirror as her mom brushed her hair.
"If you want to argue with someone, go talk to your dad. Why were you quiet when he informed this to you? Huh?", her mother, Geetha glared at daughter through the mirror.
"Amma, but arranged marriage? It's not my thing. I honestly just want to focus on my career.", Nandini utters, her voice soft with a sudden sadness.
"Kanna, I know. But you'll like the groom. You do know that I'm your mother right? I'm sure you'll at least be willing to talk to him. Oh, by the way, he's from your college, only.", her mother states, just as she finishes combing her hair.
At this, Nandini's face snaps up, "What? Not only do I have to deal with the embarassment of meeting someone for an arranged marriage, but now that person might be someone I know? Unbelievable."
"Why are you so dramatic?", her mother rolls her eyes.
"Because I'm your daughter!", came the automatic reply.
"Po di. At least wear kajal and lipstick so that you look presentable. I'm going down. I'll call you when they arrive.", her mother states before walking away.
Nandini huffs, swiping a layer of lip gloss and putting on kajal before calling her friend.
"Mahi, I'm scared di. You know how I am. Do you honestly think I can strike up conversation with random people. And this is for marriage no less.", Nandini vents.
"Nandu, please. Even if you weren't a complete extrovert you still talked to people. What is this actually about? Is it because of him?", Mahi asks, sighing.
"What? No. Of course not. Mahi, seriously. Just because I had a crush on him doesn't mean I'm always thinking about him.", Nandini defends herself, slightly wincing at her own words. Both of them knew it was much more than that.
"That's not true and you know it-", Mahi exclaims.
"Seri, seri. I have to go to, talk to you later.", Nandini says cutting the conversation short. She sighs, relieved that she had escaped from her friend's questions for now.
Despite the fact that she didn't want to talk about a certain part of her college life, she also knew she couldn't make any decisions keeping him in mind. It had been 3 years since she graduated, and everyone she knew had moved on with their lives. Heck, she was sure he had even gotten married to the love of his life.She herself did move on too with respect to her career. However she had left her heart somewhere behind. Far behind. And now she realized she had to bring it back.
The door opens suddenly and her mom walks in, jolting her from her thoughts.
"Here you go eat this, so you don't feel hungry. They'll be here soon.", Geetha ma says forwarding the plate to her daughter.
"Amma?", Nandini calls out making her stop in her tracks and look back.
"What is it kanna?", she questions.
"I'll give this a chance.", Nandini exclaims, her voice soft, but sure.
"Really?", her mom's face glows with happiness. Nandini nods smiling slightly at her mother's apparent joy.
" That's great.", her mother rushes over to her giving her daughter a kiss on the head before walking out. Nandini chuckles slightly turning back and looking at herself in the mirror.
She takes a few deep breaths to calm her racing heart as her eyes trace over her face. She was a tad bit proud to think that she looked beautiful. With the purple and white saree, big jhumkas and her natural face, she seemed pretty. At least to herself.
She released a breath and smiled finally. The lift of her lips accenting her face more positively.
She sits up straighter when she hears new voices downstairs. Her heart kicks into overdrive, and she sighs. So much for taking deep breaths. She stands up and paces around her room for the lack of something to do.
She hears the soft click of her door and stops looking at her mother who peeks in.
"They're here. Come down.", her mother calls out, as she gives her daughter a once over and smiles in appreciation.
"Coming.", Nandini says before following her mom.
***
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Unexpected Encounters
Romance"Unexpected Encounter" is a captivating collection of love stories that draws inspiration from real-life experiences. Written in a unique fusion of English and Tanglish (for which I will be providing the English translation), each story unfolds unpr...
