Bengal, Choudhury House

Anirban firmed his lashes, feeling the opportunity going down the drain as he cussed in his mind. Saudamini gasped, but tried to control herself from panicking as she crouched below and allowed the bed to conceal her petite self. 

"Maa..." She signaled him and blinked, peeking from the side of the bed to check whether she was gone or not. Mrs Choudhury creaked open the door, "Saudamini? Are you there?" She waited for a response, but both of them held their breath. 

"Oh God, this girl will be the death of me someday!" She huffed and closed the door, walking out. 

Saudamini heaved a sigh of relief, straightening herself, while Anirban bit his lips to control from snickering again. 

"You would have got us screwed today!" She scoffed, her eyes widening seeing him trying to hold back his laughter. 

"But I was just trying to prove my statement," He shrugged, pressing his lips together. 

"What statement?"

"That I am....charming?" He raised a brow teasingly, causing Saudamini to shut her mouth, recalling what was about to happen a few moments ago. Her cheeks flushed back, both in irritation and embarassment, and maybe slightly due to reminiscing how his thumb caressed her cheek and lips in a feathery manner, instantly making tingles shoot in her core. Anirban squinted his eyes back, a smirk landing on his lips again, "So? I am charming, right?"

Saudamini was about to speak but not a single word was allowing to be escaped from her lips. She blinked at him firmly, "Maa....Maa is waiting you know."

A nervous smile spread on her face, "We must leave. You come after I depart from here, okay?" She quickly mumbled them and stood up, taking short steps. She tried to open the handle asap, but it seemed like luck wasn't in her favor as her palms had turn sweaty and the nervousness wasn't helping it either.  And almost instantly, she felt a firm grip on the handle on the door as it unlocked. She spun around at Anirban briefly, who was having the same victorious smile on his face. 

She shot him a look and quickly sprinted out from there. 

"She's much innocent than she shows herself to be...." Anirban couldn't help but chuckle at himself. 

.

.

.

"Oh God, where did you vanish both of you?" Saudamini's mother walked over to to them with furrowed brows.

"Oh actually he was looking for," Her eyes trailed up towards him, not knowing what to answer, "Actually my earring was lost, so he was helping me search for it." She smiled at her, making Anirban sigh in relief. He was thinking that she might've uttered everything, for a moment. 

"Okay....but come fast you both!" Her mother caught her wrist and dragged her towards the couch, where all the family members where waiting for the ceremony. Subhankar raised his brows at Anirban, their cryptic sign language way of talking was only known to them. Both of them parted ways, as Saudamini was taken away for a while by the women; Anirban walked up towards his friend. 

"So? Did you kiss her?" Subhankar folded his arms.

Anirban freaking knew that whatever he can do but he couldn't lie in front of him.

"No, I was about to....but something or the other definitely interrupts!" He exhaled, looking away a bit irritated. 

"Interrupts? Rather confess that she only dumps you everytime!" Subhankar wrapped an arm around him and tried to hold his chuckle. Anirban deadpanned at him, "Laugh, but it's only me who knows the truth, alright?" 

"Keep bragging...."

"Be delusional," Anirban squinted his eyes at him. 

"But seriously, she must be the first girl who is resisting you so much!" Subhankar glanced at her, who was know sitting on a couch with a soft smile on her face. 

"It's nothing like that!" Anirban argued, "I told you right we were interrupted?" 

"I mean," He tried to purse his lips from chuckling,  "You're getting your actions back, man. I had told you not to go about and break hearts of women, are you now looking at the results my dear friend?"

Anirban gazed at him, frowning and rolling up his sleeves, "Shut up."

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.

.

A woman blew the conch shell as Anirban sat beside Saudamini, who was glancing down demurely. He stole a glance at her figure, beautiful as always. And then for a moment, the thought which had been ruminating in his mind for days subtly, began to crawl in again.

What else did he find in her enamoring other than her beauty?

He licked his lips subtly as he tried to fight the truth with his senses.

It was true. In his entire life, he was barely bothered about the character of a girl; he could be going and flirting randomly with anyone he found attractive externally. He rarely had feelings for them, for it was just very casual, it gave him a sense of confidence to lift himself up and understand things better.

But there was also a side which none other than Subhankar knew.

He wanted to give his wife the only right to be physically involved with him. Though thoughts of kissing and situations erupted, he would back away at the right time as conscience clicked in him at the correct moment; always.

But it was that he was deeply attracted to Saudamini, and desired her; maybe this time much more than he did for other woman, making it the sole reason to marry her. Her resistance only intrigued him further about her, knowing well what kind of a husband she had previously. He heard how she rejected offers through word of mouth, and he wanted to try his luck too, given that he was already in a pressure from his household to get married.

His trying had led to some kind of determination to win her heart.

Always, the urge for doing the impossible intrigues. That may be the reason too, but the bottom line was, he was still physically attracted.

He might not have even wondered about proposing to Saudamini, if she wasn't that attractive.

That made him feel a bit uneasy for a while, but he brushed it away in a jiffy.

.

.

.

Saudamini glanced at Anirban meanwhile, who was as if lost in some thoughts. Was he feeling nervous? Could that guy be nervous too?

"God, you two just look so good together!" Someone squealed, making both of them look at her.

"Isn't it? It seems like they are made for each other!"

Saudamini inhaled a deep breath. Same were the words they had spoken about her and Satyakaam, but everyone by now had known the outcome, she knew very well that they didn't mean it at all, just saying for the sake of it. Of course, why would they bother? Even she knew they might be speaking behind her back about everything.

She felt her grandfather's finger pressing a saffron paste on her forehead, and then on Anirban's; followed by Anirban's father who smiled at them softly and repeated it. Her mother was standing away in a corner, watching them with a smile. And gradually by every elder who were present there. This was followed by blowing of a conch shell, and draping her head with a holy netted cloth.

Repeating everything again.

Just that the person beside her was different.

For a moment she felt blank, as memories of the past began haunting her again, but before she could delve deep inside it, she felt a nudge on her shoulder. She peered at him, and he was in his usual form as he blinked playfully at her again.

And even if she didn't want to admit, it suddenly made her relax, even for a while.

Tapas's wife walked over and smiled at them, rotating the plate with incense stick and candles and a few florals, around them; lifting a sweet and feeding them individually, "May God bless you...." She smudged the collyrium from underneath her eyes beneath their necks.

She would be carrying expectations with her.

To a new household, where she knew none. Everyone would expect her to be a good, dutiful wife to Anirban and a daughter-in-law of the Chatterjee residence.

New in-laws.

She recalled the fact that Anirban had told her how much he had to persuade his father regarding the marriage, which was a clear indication that she had to work a lot to win everyone's heart.

Her being a widow, even though from a wealthy family couldn't diminish the fact that she had spent a part, maybe only a tiny one with another man previously. One mistake and she may have had to hear taunts regarding her previous household and so on. Very much possible.

And a lot of other memories which only infiltrated a sense of baggage for her.....

How was she going to do justice to everyone now? 

★★★★★★★★★

A/N

Koot couples U.U

Accha, so I would like you all to imagine the side characters of this book as the follows:-

Ranveer Singh as Subhankar Das

Vikrant Massey as Satyakaam Chakravarty

Signing of for today!

Nushkie