YOURS TRULY

Part 13

A\N Firstly I am very sorry for not updating this story in the last few weeks, you guys have no idea how much. But thank you so so much for being with me. I love you guys for reading this bearing my irregular posting.
Anyway, here is the part. And if I get enough votes I will post the next part Wednesday...

Hence one fine day, just after the Puja-holiday Abhijit's family came to the RoyChoudhury home and giving Ipshita and Abhijit their blessings and good wishes for the new life, concluded the discussion of the probability of their marriage affirmatively. The Bengali families turned towards a bit of modernism as the couple in the question exchanged rings with nervous smiles.
Bride and groom were seated together at the ritual. "We are in 2k19 now! Besides as if Abhi will stop seeing each other after this until they get married! Hahaha." The family said explaining their way of modifying the traditions.
"Yeah! Hahaha. Whoever now days follows those old traditions anyway. Hahaha." The relatives replied. "Bride and groom can not see each other! Hahaha."
They laughed without laughing fulfilling with the sound of 'haha' the void of actual laughter and chatted without telling and giving away their actual thoughts to others. So, like a perfectly scripted family function, the rituals got over followed by a delicious luncheon.

"Like the non-Bengalis. Hahaha. What say ShubhroBabu!" Mr Sanyal, an uncle of Abhijit said putting up his scotch's glass to toast. "We must embrace the western cultures. Haha." He spoke with the trained chuckle that could not be held as genuine for the sound of 'Haha' came out as four expressionless words than the sound of laughter. Everyone that was part of the conversation and gathered around the sitting arrangement of Shuvro's house's living room replied with the same humourless sound of a chuckle. Shuvro sitting beside him just nodded with a smile on his face not knowing what else to say.
Just the nostrils of Rubel flared up again overthrowing the narrow allotment of annoyance.
"Why must a Non- Bengali be only the westerner though? Japanese don't speak the tongue either nor our neighbours of Bihar-" The question came out in his ever so arrogant tone as he tiredly looked at the man sitting over the couch and laughing humorlessly. The humourless smug laughter that made the men's body shaking was making Ratul's son crunching his nose and instantly he realised how must of a dumb question he had raised bringing the dumbness of the situation further down. Oh, he could beat the daylight of everyone present in this room. Full of shithead morons. 'Except for Ipshita though!' The back of his mind coined. 'Specially Ipshita!' His mind growl. 'Stupid girl!'
While his mind battled over whether to beat Ipshita or beat all for her, with great exhaustion and annoyance Rubel heard Abhijit's uncle reply.
"You know what I mean-"
Saying the man again chuckled in the same way. Shuvro kept looking at Rubel counting his breath. He knew the boy was grown into the exact shape of his father in body and mind and thus inherited the very gift of uttering anything without minding the place and time.
A thousand responses kept popping in Rubel's mind as he stared down at Mr Sanyal's face and then muttering a five-letter curse in Bengali under his breath he stood up and withdrew himself from the area. Amit who till then was sitting beside him and looking watching the whole thing while sipping his lime water, ran his gaze through all the faces just to cherish the squirming un-comfort in the older for being called out on the repetitive topic of the lofty pretence.

*

Rubel entrapped Ipshita as she was about to get out of the washroom.
"Sekire! It's your engagement and you are spending times in the bathroom?" Putting his hands either sides of his waist Rubel stood in front of her.
"Ei Davai, don't you start again man!" Making a face Ipshita moved to dodge him.
"Start?" Murmuring the question Rubel's one hand held her shoulder and the other one hand roundup in a ball and started knocking on her head like he was knocking on a door. Meanwhile, Amit had come and stood beside Rubel. He started chuckling as Ipshita started fanning her hand in front of her face to slap Rubel's hand.
"What the damn hell are you doing-" she shrieked.
"Waking you up to knock some senses into you! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!!!"
"Rubelda yar!" Amit's laughter roared.
"Davaaiiii! Stop it!"
"Wake up! -"
The scenario would have continued for a bit more time if Abhijit wouldn't have joined the conversation. With a polite and amused smile, he stood beside Ipshita running his gaze on the cousin-duo and they broke apart with subtle irritation for this somewhat uncalled intrusion.
"Here comes the groom!" The exclamation echoed quite a bit forcefully in Amit's voice. As if he was to aware the other two with the announcement of Abhijit's presence.
"Haha. What are you guys councilling about here so secretly! Haha." The same sound of awkward laughter coming out of Abhijit spread a bad taste in Rubel's mouth. He was sure about the unsuitability of this person for his precious little sister. He threw a glare as Abhijit put his hand on his shoulder as he said, "And would be brother in law, how are you?"
Ipshita ran her gaze through the faces of the men in question cautiously and Rubel just managed to smile through his glare saying, "Striving! What about you?"
"As you can see -" Abhijit threw a smile at Ipshita meaningfully and she replied with the same. "How is Renuka aunty? How's she doing?"
"Well, she is - here. You can ask her."
"Oh! Right, yes I will, I must, you guys carry on, excuse me!"

With that, Abhijit walked away heading the seating table where Renuka, Tuli and many other women were chatting. Three pairs of eyes stared at the direction he strolled away, with great confusion. Until Rubel's face turned at Ipshita's with a jolt and a hiss came out,
"You are just Twenty four!!!"

*

The ceremony got over after they fixed the date of the wedding on the very second week of December.

***

Both the families so started picking up the speed in making arrangements of the approaching day of the wedding. Meetings, plannings, shopping, deciding on the venues, food items in the menus - everything was getting checked in the lists rapidly in the expected haste.
October lost its page in the calendar and the page of November started being anxious about its permanency. Quietly counting breath it kept the ears perked up anticipating the footsteps of the day. But the page of the month was not all alone in this journey. A girl holding her breath kept on accompanying it.
With each day passing the quieter she became. Every moment of her was overwhelmed with some idee fixe which, cannot be traced in one glance of a mare acquaintance or a stranger. But a known and keen gaze could detect it. Although all of them dismissed it as the quintessential premarital pink-obsession of a bride to be.
But only if Ipshita was like any other conventional bride, whom one could put in a category. Only if! Maybe then the catastrophe, that was approaching towards the life of Roychoudhury family like sneaky creeping invisible iceberg hidden behind the thick curtain of fog, could have been dodged. Only if Ipshita was a shallow ordinary girl or the conventional good girl everyone took her as one, who was easy to read, things would have been easier.
But Ipshita was not so. She was not an open book neither was she shallow. Her mind's depth one cannot fathom. To discover the base of it even a diver would get tired, for the way to it is filled with storms, tsunamis and hidden labyrinthine even unknown to her. Although from the surface nothing of that horror could be anticipated.

So when her relatives or colleagues asked her about how was the planning going, or how she was feeling, she would smile like herself and answer just like she was expected. The shadow she was fighting in her head, the storm that was going inside her head could not inflict a mark on Ipshita's outer world...

So here was the part. Hope you liked it. Now please comment and VOTE!!!...