Arranged Marriage ✓

Chapter - Twenty-Four.

[Nishita]

Darshan made absolutely perfect coffee. Not too strong, not too sweet, just my type. “You have to make the coffee, every morning, please”, I begged. He smiled as he jumped next to me on his bed. “I’m afraid, I’m not a morning person”, he told me.

“You don’t have to do that everyday, you know”, I said, leaning back against his pillow. He turned to my side and his hand reached up to press my head. Aw. “Damn, you are so good at massaging”, I said, “Ani must be so pleased with you”.

His smile faded away. “We don’t do these things. We barely talk...”, his voice trailed off. “Why? Are you both more of physical beings?”, I teased, winking. “Not that, as well”, he rolled his eyes. “Aw, you guys are no fun!”, I said. He again rolled his eyes.

“We are nothing, just nothing... We don’t talk, we are not even in physical contact. We’re not even in a relationship. It was long since we were. I have broken up so many times with her, I’ve lost count. But then, she would be adamant and we somehow got together but it never worked or works”, he said, “Anyways, chuck it. I’m anyways going to end things with her after our wedding”.

“Why not now?”, I said. He looked taken aback by what I said. “Huh?”, He asked. “Nothing”, I shrugged, struggling to sit properly. Darshan still didn’t stop massaging my head, can’t say I wasn’t feeling relieved because the hell I was.

I have no idea how I gathered this much courage to take his hand in mine, but I did. His another hand caressed my cheek and my hand reached for his face. I traced his cheekbones with my thumb. Slowly, he leaned in. His eyes, never leaving mine. His nose was inches away from mine. I flinched as they touched. And then his lips landed on mine. Licking, tugging and pulling my lower lip.

My breath had hitched. He smelled like coffee and milk and probably chocolate and vanilla too. I didn’t know. I was too much devoured by the way he was kissing me. With all those courage I had in me, I kissed him back. Yes, I did. I fucking did it and he again looked taken aback. He then smiled, chewing my lips.

We both fought for domination but I finally gave up. He smirked, and savoured every corner of my mouth. And when done, he let me have the acces to his.

We finally got breathless and parted away. Breathing and panting heavily, “I, uh, that—...”, shit I had no words to say. I probably looked like a fucking idiot. What do you expect? He was my first! The first person I had kissed, was Darshan. Damn!

“That was fun, right?”, he said and I grinned wildly, receiving a wild smile from him. Damn, he’s so cute! I licked my lips that now had the taste that he had on his lips. ‘Mhm, he tasted good’, I thought. What’s wrong with me?

“I, er— you’re not angry, or feeling awkward, right?”, He asked, his eyes searching for answer in my eyes. “No, not at all”, I shamelessly said. Here we go, again! He smiled. A genuine, sweet smile.

D I N G !

My phone rang and a message popped up. My eyes fell on the time, 11: 34 in the morning. “I think, I should go… it’s almost twelve and so many things are going on at home”, I told him. He nodded in agreement. “Why isn’t anyone here? I mean, where’s papa?”, I asked. We had started to call each other’s parents mom dad.

“Uh, I guess he’s in Ahmedabad. You know, a week more for the wedding so the guests need to come over”, he said. “I understand. The same thing is about to happen at my place, too”, I said. He nodded. “Darshan?”, I called out his. “Mhm?”, He looked at me.

“Do you want to tell me something? It feels like you want to say something but you’re holding it back.”, I told him. He had his gaze fixed at me. “You can tell me”, I assured. He grinned, sheepishly. “What?”, I asked.

“Nishi… you need to know this. I and my dad, we don’t have a good relation. We pretend like, everything’s fine between the two of us, but deep down, it’s not”, He confessed, still smiling, “You know, I don’t give a fuck”. I rolled my eyes.

“And I know it’s sort of same with you”, he said. I nodded and smiled “Sort of”. He pulled me in a hug. And damn, was he not the warmest! He put his arms around my waist and I covered his neck by my hands. He felt somewhat like... home. Warm, sweet and lovable.

“I need to go”, I murmured against his chest. “I know”, he murmured back. Why I was loving this? We parted away and I clutched my purse and phone and left Darshan’s room. He locked the main door of his apartment as he came to drop me.

When we drove off to my place, he waved at me and I waved back and soon after grinning sheepishly, he had disappeared. I took a deep breath in. And said to myself,

‘Six more days for me to get married. Six more days of me staying at my parents’s house. Let’s live it a little?’

Saying this, I took the lift which led me straight to my apartment. I rang the bell that revealed Ma. “Finally you’re here. You are not going to step out of this apartment untill the wedding, alright?”, she asked, giving me a warning. And I nodded.