Tewari & Sons, 23, Chandni Chowk

Chapter 7: Past Imperfect, Future Tense

He spotted her first, standing next to a pillar decorated with marigold flowers. She didn't see him, of course and he was glad for that, because he expected her to bolt if she did. The wedding venue was absolutely packed and if Khushi wanted to stay lost, it would be easy for her to. Plus, she had a ton of practice of doing just that for so many years. As he walked closer to where she was, he realised that she looked very different from the recent couple of encounters that he had with her. When he saw her at Tewari & Sons for the first time in years, when she refused to recognise him, she looked much like the same girl whom Lavanya had introduced to him at New-Ons; very much the young, wide-eyed schoolgirl. But today, the schoolgirl was gone and in her place was a rather.. he couldn't put his finger on it.. but she looked like a rather weary woman. Of course, she looked very beautiful. Red was certainly her colour. The sari looked like something of a vintage piece, it was simple, but even from the distance he could tell that it was not kind of design that got woven today. The silk of the fabric wrapped around her snugly, almost as a second skin and it accentuated and flattered her almost perfect body. But the blouse that she had teamed up the sari with was a rather old-fashioned one and really stood out among the sea of backless ones that hinged on flimsy doris. Khushi's blouse had a rather matronly and conservative neck and schoolgirl puff sleeves. But there was no denying, she was a beautiful woman. He had of course considered this notion on more than one occasion in the past, but today was when he acknowledged it to himself. But what stood out to him about Khushi at that moment was not how arresting she looked, but how fragile she seemed. Not weak, but fragile. Like she was barely holding it all together to keep up appearances. Was he being fanciful, he wondered?

He needed to stop overthinking everything about Khushi. Even he could see why NK and Payal would think he obsessed over her. It was probably the sari that she was wearing that made her seem different. Somehow this brought the memory of another time, long ago when she had worn a sari and how it began a series of.. well, unfortunate incidents. Not today though. Nothing would go wrong today. He was glad that she was alone and not with Aakash or any other New-On-Ite. He could handle only so much of awkwardness at the same time. He was barely four feet away from her when he saw a young man walk up to her and begin a conversation. Seeing how uncomfortable Khushi looked, it was not difficult to guess that it was an unwelcome impingement. The stranger in question was dressed like a Bollywood hero, an elaborately layered kurta with so much bling that he was reflecting off several surfaces and lights around the venue. He would perhaps break into a song and dance anytime soon.

"Main Major Anand ka cousin hoon. Third cousin hoon. Aap ladki walloh ki tarah se ho?"

He heard Mr Bollywood say, even as a now alarmed Khushi looked around for an excuse to escape. Third cousin, he thought amusedly. That did not even make any sense. He wondered if this was the right time for him to approach her. Would Khushi think that the known devil was better than an unknown one? He was unsure. The only thing he was sure about what was the devil part. And while he stood there contemplating what to do, their eyes met.

The decision was made and he walked up to Khushi and Mr Bollywood.

"Hi, Khushi. I think the others are there, next to the mandap," he said pointing in the direction of several men with pink turbans. He was being cautious, giving her an out from third cousin of Major Anand and it was upto her now.

"Oh yeah, I was looking for them," Khushi agreed and offered Mr Bollywood an apologetic look before she stepped towards him. While he did not plan this, Arnav offered his arm for Khushi to take. It was a reflexive action and he immediately regretted it as he did that. But it was too late to retract. Khushi did take his arm, was it out of politeness or because of the heels that she was wearing, he wasn't sure. They walked in the direction of the mandap, but obviously not to the mandap itself as it was too crowded. When they were near a table next to some kind of floral shower, Khushi stumbled and he grabbed her, making her sit down on one of the chairs. She grimaced, possibly in pain.