Marrying my Opposite

41- Friendship or Something else?

Tanya's POV:

From the amount of awkward and embarassing things that happened yesterday, it was safe to say that we could celebrate it as the Most Embarassing Day of the year. I just gave the world a new day to celebrate.

Raghav's scolding, Rishi's suggestive comments, me falling in front of everyone, Raghav picking me up in his arms, him touching my ankles and last but not the least the washroom fiasco. 'Ah!! Just thinking about all thoses makes me want to go and hide myself in some faraway island'.

If all this wasn't enough then the issue  of taking bath came up. Leaving aside my embarrassment, I took Raghav's help for numerous things yesterday. But asking his help for showering was out of question.

There was no way I was going to take his help in this matter, even if I had to compromise my hygiene. I would manage with the bad smell and irritation, but I wasn't going to give in. Even if it was matter of death, this decision would not be altered.

My train of thoughts broke when Sia entered our room.

"Sia? What a surprise! You didn't even inform me that you were coming", I spoke, pleasantly surprised by her arrival.

"Like you informed me about your condition", she retorted, rolling her eyes.

"Oh, I am so sorry. I forgot to give you timely details", I exaggerated my apology, before coming to my usual tone, "Cut me some slack. It happened just yesterday".

"Yeah I know", she responded, before coming to sit near me.

"Who told you?" I asked curiously.

"Raghav", she replied simply.

"Really?" I inquired with shock.

"Yeah, he told me to come and help you take a shower. And don't worry, no one knows about this fact except three of us. For everyone else, I have come to meet you, after coming to know about your injury", Sia informed me.

I didn't know what to think. Raghav understood my worries even before I expressed them. I was really touched by his gesture.

"Let's get done with the shower now itself before anyone comes back. It would be easier as no one is home right now", Sia said as she stood up.

"When and where did everyone go? No one even informed me", I asked with a pout.

"Rishi was already gone before I came. I met Uncle, Aunty and Raghav when I came but they were just leaving. Aunt was going to school early because of some teachers meeting", Sia said, before asking, "Where do you keep your clothes?"

I pointed out my side of wardrobe. Following my directions, she took out the towel and the clothes for me.

"What about Raghav and Dad?" I asked as we descended down the stairs slowly to go to the bathroom.

"Raghav took Uncle with him to the restaurant. He said to message him after we are done. Oof!! Stop putting all your weight on my shoulders", Sia cried in between her talks.

"Sorry", I apologized.

If it was already this hard to descend the stairs with the swollen ankle, then I couldn't even imagine the horror of climbing them.

Although I was in lot of pain, Raghav's caring nature brought a smile to my face. It was obvious that he took Dad to the restaurant for me. Dad usually stayed at home because of his health. It was never a problem, but today it might have gotten a little uncomfortable for me, since the bathroom was near his bedroom. And it was not possible for me to get properly dressed in the bathroom itself because of my condition.

Sia helped me to take a bath without batting her eyes. Even if I had gotten Trisha's help, it would still have been awkward. But in Sia's case it was different. No matter how close I was with Trisha, some things were only comfortable with your sister. At least that was in my case.

I wore my top and came out of the bathroom. Sia helped me walk towards the couch and after sitting, I wore my pyjama.

"You can come home", I texted Raghav.

"Okay. Don't try to climb the stairs. I will come and help you", he texted back.

"You are saved", I told Sia.

"From what?" She asked while taking a seat beside me.

"From having to help me walk towards the room", I replied while slumping down comfortably.

"Thank Goodness!!" The amount of happiness on her face made me want to punch her.

"Don't narrow your eyes. It wasn't an easy task", she huffed.

"Yeah yeah", I waved her off nonchalantly.

"By the way, I am thinking of opening my dance academy", I informed her as we waited for Raghav to come back.

"Really?" She sat up straight after hearing me.

"Yeah. Nothing has been set yet, but...", I trailed off.

Sia clasped her hands in excitement. "So what? It will happen. You thinking about it is already an awesome news. I will provide all the help which I can".

"You look more excited than me", I commented with a laugh.

"Of course, once you start earning, slowly everything will fall on the right track. If you earn, we won't need financial help from anybody. You can also leave this marriage once we pay off all their debt. You can be free", Sia spoke, looking happy for my freedom from this marriage of convenience.

However, it wasn't the same case with me. Strangely, the thought of parting ways with Raghav made my heart ache.

Our marriage happened to help my family financially. I wouldn't have married Raghav if I could earn the money. But now, I couldn't even think of leaving him. Why- I had no answer for that.

He had become one of my closest friends. But why did my heart break at the thought of breaking this relation. That wasn't supposed to happen in the case of friendship, right? What was happening?