MIRAGE OF HEARTSTRINGS

INTERNAL APATHY

"a little bit more up"

"here?"

"more up"

"here?"

"yes! There"

"give me the red flowers"

"okay"

The preparation of grand wedding is going on in full swing filled with excitement and happiness with everyone giving their best in it.............except for the groom.

Arjuna walk around the palace, eyes trailing the workers who are hurrying from here to there cause of unstoppable workload of the wedding which is about to happen in two days.

The way his whole family got happy by knowing that the most good day for wedding is after two days, making the preparation start in hurry yet everything is going so smoothly that it can be mistaken for being planned from months, especially when the topic of wedding came one week ago.

It is all a happy moment yet the groom can't help but to feel dizzy by many things happening so soon, not dropping the fact that he is still all numb towards his own wedding and not to forget about about the soon-to-be-bride about whom he is still all blank. Beside taking about the bride, when was the last time he saw her?

Don't know but he still feels it is the only reason his breath is stable cause it is not like he can just say that he does not want to get married, infact he can but he himself does not know the reason why he doesn't want to get married? Why his heart is numb for his own wedding? Why isn't he feeling any emotions like his family and the people around the palace are feeling? It feels wrong without any reason, despite the fact he tried so hard to come up with atleast one reason that tells him why it is making him guilty to get married.

After two days he will be married, a committed man to his wife only who his cousin sister............is it because of this? Is this why-

"Arjuna"

Looking beside he found his jyeshth standing with a concerned expression, the person who took care of him from childhood, the one with whom he shared everything yet right now he can't and it is just making everything more worse and more guiltier.

"Ji bhratashree"

"are you okay?"

"hmm-" Can he tell his elder brother about him not wanting to get married when the whole Dwarka know about this? They decided to do the marriage between the family so that they all can share the great moment together and his family has no problem with it nor his mamashree's family has any problem instead everyone is happy, so "-ji" No, he can't tell, he can't ruin the moment, call him whatever but he just can't wipe the happy smile off their face.

"you know you can share everything us, right Arjuna?"

The increase of guilt was too much that it only brought bitterness inside making his throat dry and heavy as he nodded while looking down which of course yudhishtir didn't buy but still let it go.

"come, Maa is calling"

Walking behind his brother Arjuna went inside the room where his brothers are standing with their Maa who is looked at Arjuna with such expression that only made his chest tighten up more.

"you called...maa?"

"yes Arjuna. We need to get the clothes ready too so, we are going to check your wedding clothes"

Arjuna let out a small smile at his mother's excitement filled voice before following his mother outside with his brother who immediately started teasing him but yudhishtir stopped them. He knows he can't get out of his elder brother's eyes so easily when he has already caught arjuna's discomfort.

They both walk towards subadhra's room but stopped when they hear a yell from the other side of door followed by voice of the former Maharani of Dwarka "what are you saying putri?" to which they hear subhadra's reply making their heart stop for a moment.

"I don't want to get married to bhrata Arjuna"

They didn't realised when Kunti pushed the door in shock with creak sound, taking attention of the people inside the room who look at them in shock.

"kunti-" Devaki started but Kunti also spoke out at the same time, cutting devaki's sentence subconsciously.

"why putri subhadra?" Kunti asked, looking at subhadra who is gripping her lehenga tightly from both side until her knuckles turned white as her eyes wander around vigorously only to hear same question from balram, calm yet demanding making subhadra blur out "cause I love someone else"

The drop dead silence is too painful to ear even as the soon-to-be-bride kept looking down while biting her lips anxiously before she hear a calm voice.

"can we know who that person is, whom you like?" Looking up she found it is her other brother who is also the best friend of the groom yet he there is no trace of anger or anything as she expected, instead the eyes around are also calm, just filled with curiosity.

"subhadra, we need to know who that person?"

Subhadra felt her vision blurring while her heartbeat increasing with her ear drums banging continously, many voices surrounding her yet none of them are coherent before she squeezed her eyes shut, speaking out "Nishadha Raj Ekalavya" which seemed like yell but the silence followed made her open her eyes as she look up only to realise what she did.

"but he is already married" "why didn't you said that early subhadra?" "yeah, you could had said it, we wouldn't had forced you" She heard her eldest brother spoke out followed by the curious questions of her cousins while the elders stood silent until krishna broke the tension in the room "how about we talk about this with Nishadha Raj, since it includes him too?"

After everyone's agreement to that, they all stand until krishna tell Arjuna to send emergency letter to Ekalavya by arrow which Arjuna did before they all left the room leaving subhadra alone who look at the birds chirping outside the window with freedom.

Freedom.................Only tomorrow will tell, what will happen.

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