As expected Siddharth received an earful from his mother for not waking her up in time for High tea. He took it silently and once she was done he gave her an account of what had happened. 

"Siddharth I think you should sing," she said once he had related that encounter. 

"But Ma I don't want to," he said simply.

"Siddharth what did we agree on? This is a new beginning. If they are extending a friendly hand then the least we can do is shake it." she said. 

Siddharth stared at her frowning. He had several arguments but didn't speak any of them out loud. It would only sour both their moods before the upcoming dinner. 

She got dressed with care for the dinner and soon it was time to head to the dining hall. His mother kept up her facade of strength but he knew how tense she really was under that calm exterior. He squeezed her shoulder and then hugged her from behind. He placed his chin atop her head gently. 

"You're going to be okay, Ma."

"I know." she agreed softly.

"Come on, I am going to be right next to you the whole time."

"You are a good son," she smiled warmly at him.

Together they walked to the dining hall and before they could meet any of their relatives they were accosted by none other than Chetna. 

"Can I do anything for you, Siddharth Ji ?" she asked. 

Siddharth glanced at his mother who seemed confused by this special treatment. 

"Ma this is Chetna. She is Chaarvi's sister," he informed her. 

"Namastey aunty," Chetna said folding her hands and giving his mother a genuine smile. This was different. She usually reserved the sickening fake smile for him. Siddharth had noted she was pretty but that smile made a world of a difference. 

"Namastey Chetna." his mother smiled back at her. 

"Could I get you both something?" she asked. 

"No thank you. That is very kind of you Chetna," his mother said. 

"Actually, I wouldn't mind a glass of water," Siddharth interjected. 

"He can get the glass of water himself," his mother spoke to Chetna but looked at him with a glare.

"It is no trouble at all, aunty. It is my job to take care of our guests. You are after all the groom's side."

"Nonsense, we don't believe in those orthodox thoughts. We are all family here. In fact, Siddharth will go get us both some water. Right, Siddharth?" his mother asked. 

He wanted to protest but knew better than to say anything that might irk his mother. 

"Of course, what would you like?" he asked. 

Chetna looked at him with what could only be described as a triumphant look. The tables had turned. But Siddharth honestly didn't mind it all too much. He was happy to be of service. 

"Thank you aunty but if I make Siddharth do one more task for me my parents will disown me," she said shaking her head. 

"One more task?" his mother asked.

"Long story, Siddharth will be happy to explain," she said and with another nod to his mother she left.

"What was that about? Have you been troubling that young lady?" she asked sharply.

Siddharth was quick to shake his head in denial. 

"Not at all, Ma!" 

He gave her a brief account of Chetna's honest mistake and what had followed. He didn't know why he had kept that part from her before now. 

"You better not bother her anymore," she chastised as they neared their relatives. 

He didn't have a chance to reply or defend himself as the shrill voice of his aunt called out,

"Yamini! Oh my god. It has been so long."

Siddharth gaped at her. She was greeting his mother like they were old friends and not estranged relatives. 

His mother bore all of it very graciously. She greeted everyone with a smile and even hugged his aunt. She congratulated them on their son's marriage and apologized for being absent for High tea. 

There was no hint of any previous animosity, like the way they had treated his mother just a few years ago had been a dream. He wasn't expecting tearful apologies from them because he knew they hadn't changed a bit. They were not sorry for what they had done to his mother. This was for appearance's sake. 

It disgusted him. 

He excused himself when his aunt was showing his mother the array of silk sarees they would be gifting to Chaarvi's female relatives. 

All he wanted was to get away from this shitshow and smoke in peace. But he couldn't leave his mother alone. She seemed to be holding up better than he had expected. If he hadn't seen first-hand the way she had treated her, he would have believed they were a close-knit family. 

That was the goal, he supposed. The Haldar's would think they were a big happy family. 

"Bro," Veer said waving his hands in front of Siddharth's face.

"Yes, Veer?" he said patiently.

"We are having a party on the rooftop later. You wanna come?" 

"No thank you. I think I'm gonna get some sleep," he said faking a yawn.

"There's gonna be booze!" he said with gleaming eyes. 

"Tauji is okay with that?" Siddharth asked.

"Of course," he said confidently then he faltered, "Okay. He doesn't know."

"You should be careful," Siddharth said and patted his shoulder before walking away. 

***

The dinner wrapped up without incident and Siddharth was making his way back to their room with his mother. 

"See, that wasn't so bad?" she said to him once they were on their floor. 

"Yeah, I guess this is okay. I was just bored out of my mind," he admitted.

His only source of entertainment had been Chetna lately and she had made her escape early on. He hadn't seen her the rest of the time. Only his annoying cousins surrounded him. Riya and her brother Hardik would not stop pestering him for details about his tours and the upcoming show. He had tried to be as polite as possible but the tenacity of teenagers was unending. 

Soon after his mother settled in her bed, Siddharth grabbed his cigarettes and walked out in search of some solitude. 

He walked out of the first-floor balcony and lit one. Not even two drags in he heard sounds of conversation approaching his spot. He groaned internally and stood as far from view as he could, wishing whoever it was would pass him by. 

"... know what you're doing," said a voice. 

"Whatever you think I am doing is not true," a second voice pleaded. 

Siddharth instantly recognized Chetna's voice. He peeked in from the glass doors to see Chetna speaking to an older woman. She still hadn't changed out of the gown she had been wearing at dinner. 

"First you make the ladke vaale do work for you and now the missing jewellery? Stop trying to sabotage your sister's wedding. You have a right to be angry but this is too much," the woman said angrily. 

"I am not trying to sabotage Chaarvi's wedding. Please. I am not angry. I am trying my best to make it up to them. I don't know where the necklace is. It is my sister's wedding for god's sake, I am happy for her," Chetna called out after the woman who had walked away from her. 

She sighed and then kicked a potted plant that was at the threshold. The pot was huge and didn't even budge. She on the other hand cried in pain and cursed. 

Siddharth stood there with mixed feelings. He was amused, sure, but he also felt bad for what Chetna was having to hear. He knew he didn't have all the facts but there seemed to be more to the story than this. 

Chetna walked out into the balcony and froze when she spotted Siddharth. 

"Of course!" she said in frustration, "You're here."

"I didn't mean to eavesdrop," Siddharth said raising his hands in surrender. 

"So you heard everything?" she asked. 

The expression on his face was confirmation enough. She exhaled deeply and then walked up to where he was standing. She snatched his cigarette from his hand and took a big drag. 

Siddharth stared at her mutely unsure of how he should react. 

"You're not going to ask what that was about?" she asked. 

"I'm listening if you want to talk but companionable silence is on the table as well," he said lighting another cigarette for himself. 

A minute passed as they smoked together. 

"You could have said something, you know?" she said suddenly. 

"About?" he asked.

"When I asked you to get the bags. You could have said, I don't know, like 'I am actually a guest here.' or 'I don't work here.' or anything that might have told me that you are the groom's brother," she ranted. 

Siddharth felt the corners of his mouth turn up in an amused grin. 

"Yeah, I could have. But I didn't think it would turn out to be such a big deal," he said. 

Then after a pause, he sobered up and added,

"I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused you. It wasn't done maliciously. I was just having some fun. This isn't exactly a picnic for me either."

Chetna sighed and flicked the butt away. 

"It's not your fault. It's my family that is driving me crazy."

"Trust me I can understand that better than anyone here," he assured her. 

"They think I resent them for getting Chaarvi married before me or something when it was me who said no to marriage. They know I need to focus on getting my degree before I think of all this," she said. 

"Chaarvi is younger than me by almost a year and a half," she explained a second later. 

Siddharth nodded in understanding. 

"Come on," he said.

"Where?" she asked.

"You need something stronger," he said with a grin.