Nalani and Hridyanshu sat on the deck that faced the sealine. The only light that is illuminating is the one from the above floor. They could hear the guests' voices.

They sat there in silence— processing the truth that they were getting married. "You know. . . I cannot believe I'm getting married in three days— To you." Hridyanshu chuckled. "Is that too hard to believe?"

Nalani hummed; she was staring at the sealine. The house is far from the sea, but sometimes, in the silence of the night, they could hear the sounds of the waves.

"I— Never in my life I thought we would have a normal conversation. It was weird when we had a normal conversation at Akshaya's wedding." Nalani glanced at Hridyanshu. He was already looking at her.

"I went home thinking about how we grew up without realising it. We argued every time we crossed paths, and at the wedding— I was happy to see your presence. I was pleased to see you. And. . . That was the first time I realised that I had missed you."

"I accepted that I missed you and missed arguing with you. I was happy that you have moved on from what has happened. I was happy that we were able to meet and talk. I was happy that we didn't argue."

Nalani took a shaky breath. She was drunk, and she wanted to talk about how she felt about Hridyanshu. She could feel the emotions surfacing as the wedding madness hit them with every force possible.

"I— Never in my life thought I would end up loving you." Hridyanshu could feel his heart hammering. It was a good kind of hammering. There were a thousand things he wanted to tell Nalani, but his voice was stuck in his throat.

There was this ugly fear and voice that kept knocking at the back of his head. Whispering things that tell him Nalani would end up leaving him. He is scared— he is worried about the future, but he is ready to face it with Nalani beside him.

The thought of losing Nalani made his heartache. He couldn't bear the idea of being away from her. He would go to great lengths to keep her by his side. Whether it was crossing oceans or climbing mountains, he was ready to do whatever it took to be with her. He knew their relationship was worth fighting for, and he was determined to make it work. Nothing was going to stand in the way of their love.

Hridyanshu kissed her knuckles as a smile played on Nalani's face. "But I'm glad that I fell in love with you. I'm glad that I decided to pursue you. I'm glad that I made you go on those four dates. Glad that I didn't give up on you."

They looked into each other's eyes before Hridyanshu gently cupped Nalani's face in his hands as he pulled her face closer. Nalani placed her hand on Hridyanshu's hand as they leaned to share a kiss.

Hridyanshu smiled into the kiss as Nalani put pressure on it. They shared a slow kiss before pulling away. They couldn't help but chuckle before sharing another kiss.

*

"Where have you been two?" Atulya asked as he looked at flushed Hridyanshu and Nalani. Who laughed in return before patting his shoulders as they approached the food court.

"What do you want to eat?" Nalani looked at the starter's menu. "I will go with the kababs first." Hridyanshu grabbed a plate for the two of them. He then placed the different kababs on the plate.

Atulya pulled his phone out and checked his message box. Except for the Airtel spam messages— There weren't any new messages that he was waiting for. He sighed before finishing his drink.

He looked to his right side; Aadya was shaking her head at what Peter had said. He approached them, and Aadya's eyes met his. She mouthed 'save me'

Lord knows what Peter has been saying. "Hey, Peter. Jessie is looking for you." Peter looked around before looking back at Atulya. "Jessie? Where is she?"

Atulya stood beside Aadya, "she is on the guest floor. She has been looking for you, and she's drunk." It wasn't a lie, though; Jessie was drunk and falling every moment. Peter looked alarmed. "Oh, I need to go now. It was nice talking to you, Aadya. Hope we will continue this conversation the next time."

Aadya gave a fake smile. "Sure." Peter felt. Aadya and Atulya shared a look before Aadya chuckled. "Thanks for saving."

"What has he been saying?" Aadya snorted. "The same white boy bullshit." Atulta gave a sad smile. "Peter sucks at times."

"He sucks all the time. I have met him before, and he was spitting the same bullshit."

Aadya stared at Atulya for a minute. "You know, I was in Gokarna last week." She watched as Atulya's hand shook. "Oh, you were?"

Aadha sighed. "I have been sighing a lot. Let's cut the bullshit. I saw you with the woman wearing a green summer dress at the beach."

Atulya looked around for his siblings. Thankfully, they weren't near him. He scratched his left eyebrow. "Hmm, have you told anyone about this?"

Aadya shrugged her shoulder. "I wouldn't. I— saw her arguing with you. And Nalani mentioned that you were in Mumbai as there was an emergency. I figured they didn't know anything about the Gokarna."

"I don't want them to know about the Gokarna thing." Aadya gave a slow nod. "Figured."

"She isn't my partner— She's. . . She is my bestfriend."

"Atulya, you don't have to tell me. I get it, and things happen. Sort it off before it fucks up everything." Atulya gave a nod.

*

"Why are you nervous?" Hridyanshu glanced at Vidha in the mirror. "Why can't I be nervous?"

"Brother, even if you are going to mess up the steps. No one is going to figure it out. Don't be nervous and fuck up the surprise before the time."

"Woah, calm down. Why are you raising your voice at me?" Hridyanshu was taken aback. Vidha took a deep breath and exhaled as she looked at her reflection. "Nothing; I need to refill my caffeine intake."

Before Hridyanshu could reply, Vidha left the room. Vedanth entered the room with Hridyanshu's tea. "Here, calm your nerves."

"Thank you. Is everyone ready?" Vedanth gave a nod. "The sangeet will start in ten minutes."

"Is Nalani ready?" Vedanth chuckled. "Yes." Hridyanshu exhaled. "I can't wait to see her."

"She is beautiful in her Pishwa lehenga frock." Hridyanshu couldn't help but smile. He got Nalani's Sangeeth outfit from a Pakistani designer based in London. He loved her fashion show that he had visited in London and couldn't stop imagining Nalani in the bridal collection. He got the dress immediately and shipped it to Hyderabad.

"Finish your tea. We need to hurry up." Hridyanshu nodded and finished up his tea.

Vrishali hurried as Padmanabh buttoned his salwar suit. "How long will you take? You need to be the one talking with the guests."

"Two minutes." Vrishali shook her head and walked out of the room. She saw Akshaya, who was holding an umbrella. "Why are you holding an umbrella?"

"I don't know; Ankit asked me to hold it. Maybe they have a performance and need an umbrella." Vrishai and Akshaya shared a look before laughing.

"Have you seen your brother?" Vrishali asked. "He was with Will and Atulya."

*

Nalani was puzzled as Hridyanshu whispered something and left. She was taken aback as her cousins hurried backstage.

"Well. . . Well. . . The bride's cousins planned a big surprise for the bride. Bride, be ready to be shaken away by the surprise," Vedanth, who has the mic, announced.

"Okay," Nalani muttered as she looked at the stage. The lights went off, and everyone was taking position. The music began, and it looked like a male figure was standing in the middle.

As the beat dropped, lights focused on the people on stage. "What?!" a surprised yelp left her mouth as she watched Hridyanshu in the centre with her cousins, Vidha and Aadya, around him.

Hridyanshu winked at Nalani as he danced to the beat. "Wow, this is my first time watching Hridyanshu dance on stage," Padmanabh said, pulling his phone out of his pocket.

"Yes! He looks so handsome on stage. Look at him dancing for his woman," Vrishali said. She was already recording it on her phone.

Nalani jammed to the music as she cheered for her man and girls onstage. It was the best surprise for her. She had never thought she would be watching Hridyanshu dance. She planned to surprise him, but because of the ankle sprain— She didn't want to put pressure on her.

Everyone started cheering and vibing to the song mix. Hridyanshu decided to keep his focus on Nalani as he would freak out if he looked at others.

There was a massive smile on her face as she jammed with them. She kept yelling his name in happiness. Thankfully, he didn't forget the choreography or Aadya would have his head.

Once the mix came to an end. He winked at Nalani before getting of the stage. "Oh my god! You girls were lit, and Hridyanshu! I love you!" Nalani immediately hugged Hridyanshu.

"I love you." Hridyanshu kissed her forehead. He became slightly shy as everyone's attention was on him. Nalani chuckled as she looked at Hridyanshu's cheeks.

"You were fire on stage. Don't be shy. . ." Hridyanshu gave a smile as he held her hand in his.