Beyond The Palace Walls| ONGOING

Chapter - 06

Agastya walked out of the kitchen to deny the proposal when he saw that his dad was already bidding them bye.

He could hear his dad's voice, "It was nice meeting you, Gupta ji. We'll be in touch soon."

Agastya's mom appeared beside him, a hint of a smile on her face. "Beta, did you say?"

Agastya shook his head, "No Maa, they're leaving"

Archana gave him a look of assurance, "Kal baat karenge. Even your grandparents will be back by tomorrow from farm house"
(We will talk tomorrow.)

Agastya nodded and went to his room.

-----------------

Next day, during breakfast.

"Agastya, beta, is there something on your mind?" Archana asked, her voice soft.

Agastya knew that she asked this purposely. "Maa, mujhe Rakhi ke saath shadi nahi karni."
(Mother, I don't want to marry Rakhi.)

The tension in the room escalated as Sanjay's voice rose in anger. "Agastya, tum pagal toh nahi ho na? Tumne ye kal kyu nahi bola? We've already agreed to the marriage and now you're telling us you don't want to do it?"
(Agastya, why didn't you say this yesterday?)

Agastya looked down, feeling frustrated.

Sanjay's face turned red with rage. "Tum kisi ke baareme nahi sochte ho, haina? Tujhe sirf Teri padi hai. Ab mein Gupta ji ko kya mu dikhaunga? We can't just deny the marriage at this stage. Bohot deri ho chuki hai."
(You don't think about anyone, right? You are only concerned about yourself. Now what should I say to Gupta ji? We can't just deny the marriage at this stage. It's too late.)

Karishma who had been quietly observing the conversation, spoke up. "We can't just deny the marriage now. Mrs. Manisha Gupta is a good friend of mine and she has a good reputation in the community. If we deny the marriage now, she's going to be really upset with me."

"Karishma, you're worried about your friend's reputation, but what about my son? Agastya ne haa bola sirf Sanjay ki Khushi ke liye. He didn't even think about his own feelings or desires." Archana spoke up, her voice laced with frustration.
(Agastya said yes only for Sanjay's happiness)

Sanjay's expression turned defensive, but Archana continued, her voice firm. "Aur Sanjay, kya aapne guptas ko bulane se pehle Agastya se pucha tha?"
(And Sanjay, did you ask Agastya before calling Guptas?)

Sanjay shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Well, I...I didn't think it was necessary. Maine unhe bol Diya tha Ghar aane ke liye, toh mein piche nahi hat sakta tha"
(I told them to come home, so I couldn't stop them.)

Archana's eyes narrowed. "Mein yahi toh keh Rahi hu. Aapne Agastya ke baareme socha hi nahi."
(I'm saying the same thing . You haven't even thought about Agastya.)

As the room fell silent, Armaan and Smriti exchanged a concerned glance.

Just then, Kavya, her voice filled with curiosity. "Kya chal Raha hai?"
(what's going on?)

Rudraksh also asked, "Wahi toh, kya hua?"
(That's right, what happened?)

Agastya took a deep breath and began to recount what had happened. "Agastya ke shadi ke baareme. Karishma told Sanjay about the Gupta family. He didn't even ask Agastya if he was okay with the marriage before agreeing to talk to them."
(About Agastya's marriage.)

Sanjay's face turned red with anger as Archana spoke, but Karishma just looked down, her eyes fixed on the floor.

Kavya's eyes widened in shock. "What? Tumne Agastya se puche bager faisla le liya? Tu aise kaise kar sakta hai?"
(What? You took the decision without asking Agastya? How can you do like this?)