Amar Bail

4. marigold

A/N:

Hi people. To anyone who is interested, here is another chapter ^^ Vote and comment if you like it. The story pace is slow and many things have not been revealed and touched yet, they are kept that way on purpose. They will get better in later chapters.

Just curious, who is your favorite character yet and why? Tell me after reading the chapter. O.O

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Marigolds are extensively used in Pakistani weddings where they symbolize happiness, bright colors of life and vibrancy.

Azlan knew he had the ability to have his way with things. He knew how to handle people, which buttons to push and how to manipulate them to get his work done. But he also knew that when it came to Mrs. Rashida, who lives a floor below him, he could never resort to that.

The woman had seen him moving in his apartment and other than very affectionate cheek pats (mostly cooing over his dimples) and hugs, she would also very frequently send him dinner, accompanied with kheer or 'jalabee' he had once accidentally slipped about liking. The woman was like a grandmother he never had.

So when she invited him to attend her daughter's mehndi he could not say no, even though it was clearly a very female dominant occasion and he was the sort of person who would not attend marriage ceremonies of his own relatives.

So there he was – dressed in a maroon kurta, obviously borrowed from Taha, hair neatly styled and wearing the khussa he only just once tried on Eid – in front of their door with all the nerves and shyness of a teen trying to propose to his crush.

He could hear the commotion of girls laughing and music playing behind the door and wondered if anyone would be able to hear the bell. He was startled by the door opening so suddenly in his face and looked at the boys who came out.

He was rushed inside, a yellow dupatta draped around his neck by someone unknown who was probably assigned to do this task for every male entering and he was completely baffled as to where he should be.

The apartment was packed with people, there were girls dancing, music playing, food and drinks being passed around. Azlan came to the conclusion that Mrs. Rashida was probably way too busy to tend to her guests so he would meet and congratulate her later.

He sat in a corner where he found a seat empty on the couch, while also grabbing a soda from the open-style kitchen counter. He noticed that the house looked completely different from the few times he had been invited in due to all the decorations and lighting. A huge throne like chair, very carefully decorated with marigolds, was placed in the lounge after moving the couch set aside to make space for both the chair and the girls dancing and singing in the middle.

He was on his second glass of soda and third brownie when finally Mrs. Rashida spotted him and thanked him again and again for coming. He could not be more embarrassed.

"What are you doing alone in the corner? Go hang out with some boys." She motioned to the guys adjusting the lighting, and he noticed one of them to be the one asking each and every one if they needed something every other minute. He was probably some cousin who took on to be the bride's brother and do everything in their wedding.

He nodded respectfully and lied that he was fine that way. Mrs. Rashida left after asking him to not leave before dinner. Little did she know that he was full from the sweets he had been devouring the past hour.

He found himself to be utterly bored 10 minutes later as he had memorized every face and every dance move of the dancing girls and decided he should at least get up and discover the rest of the apartment with the excuse of finding the bathroom, not bothering with the fact that he would look stupid finding bathroom with a glass of soda in his hands.