The Village Girl

Chapter Fifteen - [Seetha]

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Here's the promised second update! 

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Love, Luckycharms

---

The first month went by rather peacefully. During those days, I spent time learning. Lady Suhanya was keen on educating me, and I refused to waste that effort. Besides, I was eager to learn.

I thought about my parents a lot... I missed them so much. When they were leaving, I cried more than I had ever cried before.

It felt strange to think that I would never again go home to them. This palace was my home now, no matter how hard that was for me to believe. And though I reminded myself that my father said our home will always be my home, it didn't make me cry any less.

I only forced myself to stop crying because I think I upset Aaryan. He really wanted to keep me happy, I know he did, but it seemed that me crying made him feel defeated.

So I forced myself to stop.

Aaryan was always busy during the day. He was actually barely ever at the palace during the day, but thankfully, Aayu always seemed to be there when Aaryan wasn't.

Aayu had easily become my best friend in the palace. He understood me in a way that others didn't and he treated me like a sister. Whenever I needed to be in court, if Aaran wasn't there, then Aayu was by my side. While we were there, I never had to ask him for anything... he was constantly whispering information in my ears, like which nobleman did what and who not to trust. It seemed that most nobles were not very trustworthy.

Nevertheless, within a month, thanks to Aayu, I knew the ins and outs of the court. Every time I was asked to join, I felt a little more confident, and not like I was walking into a den of lions unarmed.

In fact... most of them seemed more like selfish pigs rather than lions, now that I knew more about them. There were only a few lions in the court. A few crocodiles as well.

The queen... was a crocodile, if you asked me. She was still cold towards me. In fact, she had not spoken to me even once since the wedding. Though the only reason I wasn't saddened by that was because the Maharaja clearly did like me.

He would often send me delicious sweets with a kind not that said he was hearing that I was progressing well in my studies. The sweets were rewards of sorts and every time I received on, I would always remember his statement of how he wished he had a daughter.

I had certainly become that daughter.

Anyways, so though I never saw Aaryan during the day, I was well taken care of and I was generally happy. Busy, but happy.

Besides, I always had something to look forward too... seeing as I always got him to myself at night.

When he returned, he always looked tired, but that never stopped him from greeting me with a smile and listening carefully to me as I recounted my day. It never stopped him from other things as well.

So I suppose... I was happy.

---

Aayu was standing outside of my teachers room when my history lesson had come to an end. He had two large pastries in his hand.

I grinned when he handed me one. "Good afternoon, Aayu," I said, taking the treat. "Is this from your father?"

"From me," Aayu said, smiling warmly before tapping his pastry against mine, "here's to one month as a princess."

I laughed. "Has it really been a whole month?"

"It has," he bit into the crispy pastry and it crumbled everywhere. "And I had the cook make this especially for you," he said, moth full.

I tried to be a little neater as I took a small bite of mine and caught the crumbs with my free hand. There was a sweet jelly inside it and it tasted amazing. "Mmmm!"

Aayu chuckled, already almost done his.

It was as I finished my own that I began to feel the light cramps. I didn't think much of it, wiping my crumb covered fingers on the cloth he brought with him. But just as he took the cloth back, I hesitated.

I felt warmth drip down my leg and I stopped breathing.

My bleeding had started.

Aayu seemed to notice something was wrong almost immediately. "Are you alright?"

I had stopped walking. "I... um..." I didn't know what to say. I usually knew when my bleeding would start. I would feel it a day or two in advance and I was always prepared. But not this time.

Maybe... I expected that it wouldn't start this time around.

Aayu raised a brow.

I couldn't move, knowing that there would be drops of blood on the floor. "You can go ahead," I said. "I'll catch up later."

"Why?" he persisted. "What happened?"

I still didn't know what to say. There was too much rushing through my mind.

"You can tell me, Seetha."

I stayed silent for a little too long before I let out an embarrassed breath. "I... I'm bleeding."

"What ?" He looked shocked, not understanding what I meant at first. But then he realized, and when understanding filled his eyes, his lips shaped into an 'o.' "Oh."

I sighed.

"Is it... on the floor?"

"I think so."

"Let me see–"

"No!" I barked, maybe a little too aggressively. But I didn't apologize, surprised by his request.

He gave me a funny look. "It's just blood. I've seen blood before."

My cheeks warmed. "Why do you want to see?"

He held up one of the cloths we used to clean the crumbs off our fingers. "To clean it, you fool. We can't just leave it there."

"No!"

"You're serious?"

"You can't clean... my blood! It's dirty!"

He was already kneeling down.

"Aayu!"

"Is there really a difference between the blood that comes out of your womb and that which comes out of a man's neck? I've cleaned the latter so yours should be fine–"

I shouldn't have laughed, but I did.

He handed me an extra cloth. "Put this between your legs and go to your room. I'll send Lady Suhanya to help with the Sari."

"But–"

"Go, before it gets on the sari."

Embarrassed, I nodded, stepping away and revealing the large drops of blood on the floor.

Aayu seemed unbothered, though I felt overwhelmingly guilty. A man was never meant to even see a woman's monthly blood.

Nevertheless, as he wiped the blood off the marble floor, I cautiously cleaned myself and put the cloth in between my legs, my back towards him. "Thank you, Aayu."

He waved it off, standing up with a slightly bloodied cloth in his hand. "Go to your room," he repeated. "I'll send Lady Suhanya." He then bent over, wiping another drop off the floor.

I nodded, rushing off.

When I left, my cheeks were burning, but not just because of Aayu...

But because this meant that I wasn't pregnant.