Second chapter!

Have a good reading❤️

*****

Anaika

"You were the waiter who ran into me that day." As soon as I said it, his eyes went double in size. The same fear taking place and he immediately looked away.

"I-I...am not."

"Do not lie. I know it's you." I insisted, crossing my arms over my chest.

"I could recognize your beautiful eyes in no time." I mumbled under my breath, briefly clearing my throat.

"So who are you, Aditya? A waiter who's from a well-known family or is it a....disguise or something? We need to talk, you know. Our elders are preparing us for a marriage down there." I asked my mind out at him and his gaze went up at me as fast as the lightning at the mention of marriage.

"We should.....not be married." He had some sort of unsureness behind his confession.

"Why?"

He looked into me with his brows raised. "W-What why?"

"Why can't you marry me?" And there goes, the looking away.

He went quiet and begin fidgeting his fingers in anxiety, I see.

"We can be honest to each other, right? I'm a very straightforward person and I don't like beating around the bush. If you find my questions....overwhelming, just say so." I said and he sighed before seeing me in the eyes.

"Please, I can't say why. B-But we can't be married." It was almost he's begging me to not marry him.

"I need a reason, Aditya. You're here with your family downstairs, giving hopes to my family and relatives that you're interested for my hand in marriage but now, your saying otherwise?"

His eyes turned sympathetic and for once I could say that those eyes held a lot more unreadable emotions than it already have.

"I...." He lost his words and begin looking away.

"Do not look away." I can't help it when my sentence came out stern and quick. I just can't tolerate his looking away phase.

His eyes steadied on mine and his breathing was heavy paced.

"We will wait here, until you give me an acceptable reason. Okay?"

It's been few minutes, he did looked away but to think, I assume.

I sighed, getting frustrated of all the waiting. I can be quite impatient some times but it depends and right now, it's going out of my hands. He's hard to be read and I'm really lacking on my intuitiveness.

"Is it because I'm fat? You're just like that guy who prefer their woman to be thin and....I don't know, maybe remarkably beautiful." I spoke up instantly, with the sarcasm that I couldn't stop from coming.

If I don't get to understand him then we should get this over straight away.

He gasped when he heard me. It does hurt to think that the one man, who I thought I felt something for is really like every other men outside. Their only preference of a wonderful wife is beauty, or should I say, the outside beauty. But this is the indigestible truth for most women like me.

Now, I don't even want to look at him.

"No." It was loud and clear, it's as if he's trying to say otherwise. My gaze got back at him and he looked determined. This is indeed a surprise for me. So does this mean he find me desirable?

"That's....not the reason."

"Then what is it?" I doesn't mean to pester but I couldn't hold back and it was the unbearable hesitancy again from him.

"Aditya, please." I pushed him as I had enough so I suggested. "Okay, fine. If you don't think of me that way, then is it because of your sexuality? Are you gay?"

I could sense the small chuckle that he swallowed back in and he shook his head. "No."

"Fine...." I begin thinking of any other possibilities but one struck me with weighing heart.

"Are you seeing someone?" I didn't even know that I could speak that quietly. It's more as if I don't want him to hear me.

He, though on the other side, saw me indifferently and I could feel it. My breathing quicken as if my lungs are going out of air and I regretted asking that question when I saw him nodding slowly.

He has another woman in his life.

I couldn't stand there anymore and started walking away.

"Wait!" I heard him saying and I halted for a brief moment.

"W-Where are you-"

"I'm going to stop this arrangement. Either you like it or not." I thanked for my voice to not to break even though I feel like crying now. I don't know why, I rarely know this man and I should be dusting him away like nothing.

But I couldn't, did I really just grew fonder on a man who I talked and knew lesser than an hour?

"Okay." It was his soft response and that easily got on my nerves.

"Okay? Is that all you wanted to say, after everything that you did by giving everyone a false hope. You knew you're into someone else, then why wasting everyone's time? Do you know that you're the first suitor who said yes and came all the way to my house? My parents were in heaven, thinking that finally their ill-fated daughter is getting settled down. And here you go, telling me that you're in love with someone else." I was mad angry and even few tears escaped my lids.

A brisk of emotion as I was astounded when he had his head low. Body curling to hug himself. "I-I'm so sorry." His voice quavering which it seemed like he was crying as well.

My feet moved on its own towards him and when I was about to caress his face, I heard my father calling for us. I stopped myself from doing anything further and went to my parents. Seconds later he came down after me and we were surrounded with so many expectational eyes.

"I'm sorry to all of you because I'm not anymore interested in this arrangement." I let out after inhaling and exhaling a breath. I can't give anyone anymore hopes, especially my parents so extending this will only worsen for everyone so I acted upon my mind.

"Dear, what are you saying?" My mother tried to manage me with a question.

"I'm sorry, ma and appa. I can't do this, not when he's...." I looked at him and coincidentally he was watching me as well. "....in love with someone else."

"What? That can't be true." His mother said with a fading smile. Everyone stood up from their seats to acknowledge the situation and their family were covered in red.

"But it is the truth. I think you guys haven't talked to him well about this. It's the right thing if he's united with his beloved woman." I persuaded them for his being. I thought that he's more of a pleaser, who's not able to express his feelings against his family's wishes.

The mother stared somewhere for a moment before directing at him with burning rage. She walked to be in front of him and slapped him across his face. "You ungrateful brat. Such an useless burden since birth." She gritted with spite before stomping away. Everyone else following right behind her.

His face was red and he was on the verge of tears. Closing his eyes and opening them back again, he took a deep breath before making his way out. What comes next is his father's reaction, that old man looked like he's half-dead from the situation and melancholy his hands were tied. He gave me final look with a sad smile and nod before stranding out of here.

"What a terrible mother she is. The boy looked so poor and sad." My mother said to my father.

"Yes, thank God, our daughter dodged a bullet." My father replies.

Yet my brain was far, far away. Reeling back at what had happened? Did I do the right thing? But then, why it feels so....wrong?

I returned to my room afterwards and collapsed myself on the bed, but sleep is in so much distance.

Can a mother be that way? I just started reminiscing that her other children looked more fancy than Aditya does. Something is fishy with this family, especially the father and son. Who seemed to be sharing the same pain.

The slap. My brain was that close on slaughtering the woman alive for hurting him but I controlled myself. It was neither motherly or out of anger. It was filled with such resentment and hatred. It looked like it's an usual occasion for him to have her behave that way as he wasn't shocked but only embarrassed. He was flinching just by my yelling at the cafe and that got me thinking, was he always being yelled at?

I couldn't sleep at all because as soon as I close my eyes, I could see him. I can't get over him and one thing was set in my head that for whatever I had done today, I need to get to the bottom of this.

First stop tomorrow morning, is arranging a meeting with Mr Khanna. Aditya's father.