True Side

Chapter 9

One week. Though it looked very far away I realized that sometimes time flies. Today is the wedding. I wake up at 5.30 in the morning. I keep staring at the wall of my bedroom. Lifeless. Still. Just like me. 

I wipe away a tear in my eye and go and fresh up. I dress up in the sari Mrs. Revathi gave me for pre wedding rituals. I come down stairs, where everyone is buzzing. Mom comes rushing to me and says "You look beautiful dear". I smile and say "Thanks mom". She kisses me on my forehead and I hug her.

The rituals start. I sit patiently and obediently all through the rituals. I go into my room for breathing space. I get a call from Deva. I pick it up and say "Ya Deva, what is it?"

He says "I am at your house. Where are you?"

"I am in my room. Come there, it's the only place where we can talk". 

"OK sure". In a minute he comes up into my room. He says "You look beautiful".

"Thanks" I say with a smile. He sits on the chair. He says "I think no one would do such a thing."

"No one has to do such a thing" I snap at him. He nods in agreement. I say "I need to find out what's in that safe, if it is anything useful."

 He nods his head and says "All the best". He gets up and goes out. he stops at the door and says "Remember that I am always there to help you". I nod my head and say "Thank you". 

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People are getting me ready. All looked happy, except me. I look at myself in the mirror. I looked very great but not like myself. My face was lacking something, happiness. 

I have to do this to expose Siddharth and get Rishi justice. My mother comes inside and says "Enough of dressing up. You guys leave now I have to talk to Nitya". Everyone left the room obediently. Mom pulls up a stool and sits before me. She pulls my hands into hers and kisses them.

"I am really very happy for you dear. At least after what has happened in your life you got a good man in your life". She wipes my eyes when I realize that I am crying. I hug her tightly and she too hugs me back, her hands stroking my hair. 

She says "I won't say it's alright because I know that it's not. But you need to forget the past three years, probably the best three years of your life but you need to carry on."

I lift my head,smile at her and say "I will carry on mom. I will forget the past. It's over".

I hope I can tell you that it's not over and that it is the starting. I hope I can tell you how evil your husband and would be so called son-in-law are.

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I enter the wedding premises. I couldn't make out the exact feeling I am having right now. Maybe anger, grief, impatience or frustration. The wedding rituals start and I do them obediently. I feel everything as a blur but one. I could see Rishi smiling at me from a distance and showing me a thumbs up. I too smile back.

I look at up to see Siddharth's face. He looked very beautiful in the bride groom's dress his beautiful features highlighted . He too looked up and smiled at me. If I didn't know what he really was I must have started loving him by now. I push that aside.

The wedding rituals continue. Finally the priest asks Siddharth to tie the holy mangalsutra marking marriage in my neck. And now it has begun with the marriage. The marriage I thought would happen with someone else.