Published something after 3 years on Wattpad, hope you guys like it ---- 🤞

Aanya stood before the full-length mirror, her fingers trailing over the elaborate fabric of her lehenga. The deep red hue, paired with the gold embroidery, made her look like a royal straight out of a history book. Or, more accurately, a reluctant extra in her family’s never-ending saga of duty and tradition. Her reflection seemed almost comically foreign, as if the girl staring back at her was someone else entirely—someone molded by expectations, not dreams. Sure, who needed dreams when you had a list of family obligations longer than the Great Indian Wedding guest list?

A soft click of the door snapped her out of her reverie, and in came her mother, her voice a bundle of nerves wrapped in forced excitement.

“Aanya, they’re here,” she announced, her tone bordering on the kind of reverence reserved for the arrival of royalty—or maybe just a particularly esteemed deity.

Aanya’s stomach did a little flip, one that felt more like a pre-exam jitters kind of flip than a butterflies-in-the-stomach romance one. But she managed to plaster on a smile, one that said, *I’m totally ready to meet my future husband whom I know nothing about*. After all, her mother had dreamed about this moment for longer than Aanya had been alive. “They” were the Raichands, the illustrious, practically mythic family, and Veer Raichand was the man she was supposed to marry—without so much as a first date, let alone a swipe left or right.

Bracing herself like a gladiator stepping into the arena, Aanya adjusted her dupatta and stepped out of her room. The marble floor was cool under her bare feet, and she made her way down the grand staircase with the grace of someone who’d practiced this walk since childhood. The whole scene was drenched in opulence, with chandeliers twinkling overhead and golden carvings reminding everyone just how rich they were. It was all very *Sanskari*, yet somehow felt suffocating, like a gilded cage.

The hall was full of people, family friends and relatives buzzing with the excitement of a high-stakes cricket match. Aanya had half a mind to take bets on how soon someone would ask if she was nervous. She tried to focus, but then she spotted him.

Veer Raichand. He stood there at the far end of the room, exuding a kind of confidence that was borderline unfair. Tall, broad-shouldered, and dressed in a black sherwani that probably cost more than her entire wardrobe, he looked like the embodiment of a Bollywood hero—minus the melodramatic entrance music. His dark eyes met hers, and she swore the air in the room got heavier, like he was carrying some kind of atmospheric power along with him. Great, as if she needed more pressure.

Their eyes locked, and Aanya couldn’t help but feel like he was peeling back every layer of her perfectly constructed facade. It wasn’t the dreamy, slow-motion moment she’d once imagined. Nope. It was more like being mentally interrogated. *How’s your day going? Oh, just being silently analyzed by my soon-to-be husband, thanks.*

He finally cracked a half-smile, one that felt like it came with a disclaimer: *Proceed at your own risk*.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Aanya,” he said. His voice was low and smooth, the kind that could probably command armies or, at the very least, win arguments effortlessly.

Aanya’s mouth went dry, but she forced herself to respond, her own voice a miraculous semblance of composure. “The pleasure is mine,” she managed, even though her brain was currently busy screaming: *Who is this guy, and why does he feel like both a prince and a puzzle box I can’t solve?*

As their parents launched into discussions about wedding dates and ceremonies, Aanya’s attention kept drifting back to Veer. He was unreadable, his eyes observing the room with a mix of disinterest and something more—something she couldn’t quite pin down. The mystery wrapped around him like a shadow, and for some reason, she felt drawn to it, even if she’d rather be anywhere else, like binge-watching K-dramas under a cozy blanket.

Veer’s gaze briefly met his father’s, an imposing figure who seemed like he could crush small countries with a single stare. The exchange between father and son was brief, but something about it made Aanya’s skin prickle. *Oh, fabulous,* she thought. *Family drama on top of everything else. Just what I needed.*

Her father guided her and Veer to a pair of ornately carved chairs in the center of the room. As Aanya sat down, she could practically feel the tension crackling in the air between them. Veer’s presence beside her was impossible to ignore, like standing next to a controlled fire—thrilling but equally nerve-wracking.

*Welcome to your new life,* she told herself, as Veer turned to her with that same enigmatic smile. And somewhere deep down, Aanya realized this was more than just a marriage. It was the beginning of something she hadn’t asked for, something that felt like stepping off a cliff and into the unknown.