Simran

******

"Try this..." Saavi handed me a glittery bangle. It was pretty, but when I put it on my wrist, it did not match my charcoal black cocktail dress I was wearing for dinner. I did not want to wear that dress either, but I had not packed many outfits, and I had not received any from my so-called future husband, who had claimed he would handle everything. I guess by handling everything, he meant forcing me into a wedding, scaring me into the woods, and not handling the things one actually needs for a wedding.

"It does not go well." I pouted and gave it back to Saavi.

"How about this?" Adya Bhabhi gave me a pair of black earrings, but when I looked closer, I realized they were more blue than black.

"It's more blue than charcoal black." She sighed, realizing it was blue, giving the impression of black.

"Something red might look perfect," Shruti suggested. She was right, red looks great with black, but bold looks suited her better than me. I never preferred it either.

"That's too bold..." I sighed, defeatedly. I slumped on the chair in front of the vanity mirror and looked at myself. I looked nothing like a woman having dinner with her in-laws, but looked more like a side character. I guess humiliating me was Kiaan's plan all along.

"Ugh... that's what happens when you're getting married faster than taking saat pheras." I couldn't help but blurt out. I didn't just stop there. Forgetting I had people around who knew nothing about what I had been dealing with, I frustratedly said, "Why can't I have a normal life?"

There was a sudden, eerie quietness after I blurted it out, and that's when I realized what I had done. Everyone went quiet. Eyes of concern focused on me. I had just blurted out my real thoughts, the ones I had been hiding, and now I had to whitewash them.

Samaira Di put her hands on either side of my shoulders and squeezed them in assurance.

"We can still stop the wedding. All you have to say is you don't want to go through with it. Right, girls?" Everyone agreed with her. My huge-hearted sister, like every time, came to my rescue, wearing her armor and ready to fight the world for me. But I did not want to pull her into my mess. This was my battle, one which I had to conquer on my own.

"Yes, just say the word, Sim," Nitya said. I knew she was not fully supportive of this marriage, considering she was the only one who knew even a little truth, which was that I hated Kiaan.

'Do you?' my subconscious instantly interrupted at the thought of my hate towards him.

'Yes, I do,' I confidently shut her up. No matter what games my mind tried to play with me, I was going to be firm on the fact that I hated Kiaan Chauhan and would keep on doing so.

"Simran, we are waiting for an answer. Do you want this marriage?" Nitya asked again, while everyone stared at me curiously.

"Yes. I am fine. I just..." I took deep breaths as I turned to everyone.

"When I accepted the proposal, I did not think much of how everything would pan out, and now I am just not liking things not going perfectly." That part was true. Even though the groom was not of my choice, I still wanted to have the perfect wedding. I wanted to look beautiful at every wedding festivity. Even if I had a different plan of not going through with this wedding, which I was not sure would be successful or not, I still wanted to look my best at every event. I definitely was not making sense, but after years, something was happening that had brought a smile to everyone's faces, and my favourite people were with me, so how could I not wish for something like that?

Repairing the earlier damage of my words, I continued, "I am the bride, after all. I need to look my best. I just don't want to look regular, rather spectacular, and not looking even a little similar to how I always envisioned myself as a bride is making me anxious now."

"Here, have this," Saavi handed me a glass full of water with concern, and I took it and had small sips. The water gave some relief to my parched throat, but did nothing for my desperate soul.

When Saavi took the empty glass back, she said, "You are the bride, and no one will outshine you. I mean, just look at you, how beautiful you look right now. Everyone is gonna admire you."

"And your fiancé will lose his mind," Shruti added.

Everyone tried to cheer me up, and if there was anything I wanted, it was not to make them feel sad because of me. I knew they could not help me, but I was not letting them feel that way. We were again back to finding appropriate accessories to pair with my dress amidst the plethora of options on the bed. Everyone then opened their jewellery boxes on the bed and tried to find something that would look great with the outfit I was wearing.

All of a sudden, there was a knock on the door, and I thought someone had come to call us for dinner. I checked my phone and found out we still had half an hour left for the dinner party to start, which was happening in the outlawn, already beautifully decorated.

Sonia opened the door, and a confused expression appeared on her face. She looked at us and informed us, "It's Enzo."

Enzo worked for Kiaan. He was like his shadow, spoke less, and was always serious. He was the chief of his security. However, I would see him do more for Kiaan than what a chief of security usually does. He highly respected the beast, and that was always apparent.

"Let him in," I said.

Enzo, when stepped inside the room, scanned the room. His roaming gaze stopped when he found Samaira Di.

"Sir has sent a package for his wife." He was holding a huge rectangular box, and there were three more boxes on top of that huge one, but they were smaller compared to the giant one.

"Your sir isn't married to her yet..." Nitya interrupted.

"Yet..." he repeated firmly but respectfully.

"He badly wants you... so much that he's already accepted you as his wife," Shruti whispered from my right and then winked at me. She always teased me whenever Kiaan was around. Or even if he wasn't, she never stopped. I wonder if she knew about the feelings I used to have for him, but even if she did, she never asked me or said anything.

Not sure if Kiaan badly wanted me as his wife, but he surely wanted to win some sick game against me. He wanted me to be that ballerina who is trapped inside a musical box. Whenever someone turns the key in the box, the ballerina dances to the tune of the music. However, he did not know I was Annabelle, or rather, I would say Tatya Bichu, the dangerous, deadly doll of the old classic horror movie.

But wait, he was Tatya Bichu, the evil monster, and not me. Anyway, I could argue with myself over that later. First, I needed to check what he sent me.

After informing Di what he was here for, Enzo walked to me, did not meet my gaze at all, and handed me the package. His gaze had earlier focused on everyone but me, as if scared that if he looked at me, something bad would happen.

STRANGE!!

I took the box, and when I turned to put it on the empty space on the bed, I saw the curious and excited faces of everyone. I shook my head at them, acting like literal teenagers whose friend just received a package from her crush. Enzo left, and I began unwrapping the box to see what was inside. If I were alone, I would have been skeptical about opening the box. But I was with the girls, so surely Kiaan did not send me anything weird.

Eager and curious myself, I unwrapped the box, only to be shocked to find a mesmerizing golden yellow gown.

"God, look at this!" Adya Bhabhi exclaimed. My heartbeat sped up with that unexpected gift. Hurriedly, I opened the other three boxes, my heartbeat going faster with every step of unwrapping. The second box had gold-coloured, toe-pointed six-inch stilettos, the third one had an adorable gold clutch, and the fourth one had matching gold earrings.

"Wow!! Di, you definitely are going to look out of this world..." Sonia exclaimed happily, while I still could not grasp the whole situation.

"There is a note, too," Saavi said and pulled a sticky note from the big box. She smiled cheekily, looking at it and then at me.

"What does it say?" Shruti asked. Everyone, one by one, went to see the note while I was still in the dark. They all giggled like school kids, as if I had received a love letter from my boyfriend.

"What does it say?" I asked desperately.

"Read it for yourself." Saavi handed me the note, only for the butterflies to erupt in my stomach. It was a simple note that said, 'I am waiting, firefly!!' yet it felt like more because Kiaan had never done this before for me. He never had to, because we were not a thing or a couple. I was anxious, too, because he never did anything without a motive. I wondered what hidden agenda was behind all of this.

But I was not in the dark for long, as Adya Bhabhi asked me soon, "Since when are you guys in a relationship?"

Her question caught me off guard, startled me entirely.

"We are not!!" I replied instantly. I could hear my heartbeats like drumbeats, and it felt like I lied to her even when I knew I was not lying.

"I don't believe it. Didn't I tell you there is something going on between them, and you brushed it off?" Shruti asked Di.

Oh my God! All this time, she thought something was going on between me and Kiaan.

"Yeah, I... I am stupefied..." Di replied, still in shock.

"Kiaan has never done this for any woman. I mean it..." Niti, my best friend who knew I could never be with Kiaan, stared at me in confusion, too.

In one stroke, Kiaan Chauhan put a doubt in everyone's head that we had been dating behind everyone's back. I was too stunned to speak, and no matter what I would say, his gestures were too loud to silence my words.

The door was knocked again.

"It's Enzo..." Sonia replied sheepishly. Of course, she also thought Kiaan was my lover or something. When she let him in, I asked irritatedly, "What now?"

Enzo still did not look at me while talking.

"Sir wants all of you to leave his wife alone for a while. He wants his wife to be comfortable and at peace while getting ready." I could not believe what I just heard. While the girls hooted after Enzo left, I stood there in shock and crushed that fucking note in my fist. The audacity of that man flabbergasted me.

"Impressed!!" Shruti exclaimed.

"What did you do to my brother?" Di asked me.

"Now I know why Enzo never looks up at you," Saavi said.

"Yeah... Even at events, he would evade his gaze from her, and I thought it was not intentional," Niti added.

"Lucky you!!" Adya Bhabhi exclaimed while smiling widely.

"Now, we are not taking your time. Sir has said enough." Shruti said, emphasizing the word Sir. The girls, squealing and talking animatedly, left.

Kiaan Chauhan, I will make you pay for this, I pledged in my head.

Even when everyone left, and I was alone in the room, it felt like I was not. His essence was wrapped in that dress. The note I was holding smelled of him. His fragrance was there, as if a sign or a message to me that I could not run away from him, that he owned me now. That wherever I would be, he would be there to cloak me and make me his captive. I had had enough of his games. It was time to show how to actually humiliate someone. He thought he could make anyone believe we were a couple, but I would not let him do that. I was going to play his game now if that's what he wanted.

"I won't dance to your tunes, Kiaan." A smile curled my lips as an idea struck my head when my eyes landed on the empty ring box on the bed. I picked it up, opened it, and then put a cheap plastic ring inside it, which had been with me since I was seven years old.

"This is going to work like a charm. You just wait and watch how I tame you, beast."

******

When I reached the lawn, everyone was having fun, talking, giggling, gossiping, even. The kids were squealing, running around; some of them were dancing to the music. Isn't that how I always wanted my wedding to be? Filled with smiling faces, chatterboxes speaking nonchalantly? But then I wanted my mother to be there too, and she was not. One of the biggest events of my life was taking place, and she was not there. Not because she did not want to be, but because she was not given a choice. She was taken away while I begged for her to live. My pleading, weeping face flashed in front of me from the day she left us, and I zoned out. I felt out of place and was taking steps back. I started doubting myself, questioning all my life choices, wondering if those people will ever look at me with concern rather than pity or hate.

While I was zoning out, a soft, motherly voice reached me, calling my name.

"Simran..."

My steps which were moving backwards faltered. I looked to my right in front and found Kiaan's mother, Smita Aunty, coming towards me. All the negative thoughts dispelled, and I composed myself. Glad I was not too deep into my head, otherwise, I would have made things worse. She came closer and hugged me, like a mother hugs her daughter after seeing her after a long time. Pulling back, she grinned and said, "Look at you, looking so gorgeous. No doubt my son could not say no to you. I am so very happy it's you who is going to be my daughter."

Not daughter-in-law, but daughter.

I could not help but feel overwhelmed with the love. The motherly embrace, her blessings, and her words reminded me of my mother. My emotions came rushing to me in force, but I gulped the lump in my throat. I touched her feet, taking her blessings as I said with utmost honesty, "It's so good to see you, Aunty. How are you?"

"I was doing good. But after seeing you, I am definitely doing great."

"Come with me. Everyone has been waiting for you, and I am desperate to make them meet my lovely girl."

First, she took me to Uncle and Grandpa.

"Ashok, Dad, she is here..." Aunty was so excited, like a little girl. Her bubble of excitement did not let my smile falter.

"Good evening, Uncle!" I touched his feet and then Grandpa's too.

"You should start with 'Dad' instead. I would like it better," Ashok Uncle said.

"Give her some time, Ashok." 

"Of course, I was kidding. Call me whatever you want, even Ashok would be fine." He laughed, but I knew he meant it. He was like that, always honest and never minced his words.

Grandpa gave me his blessings too, but was mostly silent. Something seemed off about his demeanour. Usually, he would be the one to talk more, make jokes, and lighten the environment. He did nothing that sort of and stood there observing me. I could have wondered why, but then I shrugged it off, thinking of it as baseless and nothing important.

Smita Aunty made me meet all her relatives who had come for the wedding. Earlier I was told it was an intimate wedding, but honestly, it did not seem like it, because there were a lot of people, not only from Kiaan's side, but from my side too. And the weird part: everyone was so kind towards me, even my relatives who had seen me with contempt after my mother's death were showering their blessings on me. It felt nice and odd at the same time, but I was not complaining about being at the receiving end of so many blessings. Honestly speaking, I needed that.

Smita Aunty then introduced me to one of her relatives whom I had met at Saavi and Dhruv Bhaiya's wedding. They were Kiaan's distant cousin, his wife and their son named Ryan. Ryan who was quite grown up now compared to the last time I had seen him seemed like a teenager now.

"Where is Kiaan?" Ryan's mother asked.

"He must be here soon," Smita Aunty replied.

"He is already here. Look over there, making his in-laws a fan of his," Ryan's father said. When Aunty and I looked in the direction he had pointed, we found out he was talking to Ishaan Bhaiya, Rishabh Uncle and Sheetal Aunty. He was surprisingly smiling while talking.

Seriously, what is he doing? Is he planning to make himself a hero and turn me into some kind of villain?  I thought.

Decoding him was getting difficult, but I was determined to do that. To defeat him in his game, I needed to at least understand what his pattern was, what was going on in his head. I stared at him and his unusual smile. Shockingly, the infectious smile did something to my heart, like flipping a switch it was not supposed to. And then our eyes met. His smile dropped, and I stiffened. I looked away, feeling embarrassed for feeling anything for that smile. Ryan's mother was saying something, but I was distracted now. I looked at him again and found him staring at me, taking sips of his champagne, his gaze firm and unwavering. Maintaining eye contact was difficult, and decoding him without looking at him was impossible. Not sure how I was going to deal with that man, but I had no choice but to do it, anyway.

Soon enough, everyone's attention was caught by the clinking of a glass. Everyone looked at where the sound came from, and we found my dad standing in the middle, holding a champagne glass with a warm smile on his face. I had not seen that smile for quite a long time. It appeared he was about to make a speech or something. He was holding a mike, too. 

When everyone's attention was on him, he started by showing gratitude: "Thank you, everyone, for being here tonight. It's not every day you find me giving speeches. To be honest, I suck at that..." He looked at Uncle and then added, "It's mostly Rishabh's job, giving huge entertaining speeches." Everyone laughed at that, and so did I. My dad was not a fan of monologues or speeches, while my Uncle was a natural at it.

"But... tonight is different. Tonight, it's nota  usual event. It's about my hellion of a daughter. There is only one hellion in my house, so you all are already aware who I am talking about." Everyone chortled, and I could not help but feel sad remembering the last time Dad called me by that nickname.

"Raising her was a challenge..." There was a sad smile on his face, and as he looked at me, it felt like the father who loved me was staring at me, not the one who blamed me for my mother's death.

"She never listened, always asked too many questions, always rebelled, was stubborn, too reckless. But she has a heart of gold... just like her mother..." He paused, and then a quietness spread around. Mom's mention ached my heart, and it did the same to others. When my eyes moistened, Aunty rubbed my back and held my hand in hers, giving me comfort without saying anything.

Dad cleared his throat, probably gulped the lump, and hid his emotions before he continued, "I remember she broke a kid's tooth once because that boy ate Samaira's lunch. It was her favorite pasta, and when Simran saw her sad, she hit him."

"She broke his cycle too..." Ishaan Bhaiya yelled, making everyone laugh. I could not help but smile at myself, recalling that event from my childhood.

"One time, someone stole Sonia's notebook right before an exam. She had hardly any material for revision, so Simran went to his class, scared him, grabbed the collar of the kid, and took him to the principal's office..." Dad was laughing now, too.

"That poor boy had to confess in fear," Rishabh Uncle added.

"And I can't tell you what happened when a girl was troubling Ishaan because he did not accept her feelings." I chortled with those memories. That girl was annoying and troubling Ishaan Bhaiya. I had to do something, so I did the inevitable.

"She put a fake lizard in her bag, complained to her parents about her..."

"She even cut her hair..." Samaira Di said, laughing like a kid. Everyone looked at me now, surprised, smiling, and laughing. But it was the girl's fault. She blackmailed Bhaiya, saying she would cut his hair if he did not accept her feelings, so I did the same to her. And I only cut an inch of her hair.

"My daughter is a handful, and while she is reckless and stubborn, she is also kinder, softer. I used to wonder who would keep up with her? Is there someone in this world who can handle this hellion? I guess there is." He looked at Kiaan now, smiling with pride glittering in his eyes.

I wish I could tell him, shout on top of my lungs that Kiaan was not what he pretends to be. I wish I could.

"So, I suppose... It's time. Time to let her go. Time to stop warning the world about her. Time to... let someone else take that job. Someone who has the spine to reason with her, the patience to listen to her, and somehow, the heart to love her." 

Kiaan had the spine not to reason with me but to crush me, he had the patience not to listen to me but to break me immensely, and he did not have the heart to love me, he had claws to tear my heart out and crush it.

"To the bride and groom." Dad raised his glass, and so did everyone, clapping and cheering.

"You are one lucky woman, Aunty," Ryan's mother said.

"I know..." Aunty replied while she kissed my hair.

"Go, have fun with them." She nudged me to go where the girls were, gesturing for me to come to them. I made my way to where everyone was, my sister, friends.

"Everyone has eyes on you. Kiaan will have a hard time protecting you," Saavi said.

"He is gonna be so jealous..." I did not believe Shruti because I knew he would be anything but jealous. He would hardly care if I talked to another man.

"Sim won't need protection. Didn't you hear Uncle telling wild stories about her childhood?" my best friend Niti said. She was right, though, I did not need protection from anyone. But this time, my opponent was way too strong to be crushed. He had wrecked me once, and there was no way he wouldn't try to do it again. I recalled my plan of humiliating Kiaan in front of everyone. So, while the girls were talking about the other wedding festivities, I excused myself and headed to where Ryan was. On my way, I stopped a server and took a glass of juice before going over to him.

"Hey, Ryan." I handed him the juice, and he gladly accepted, smiling, and replied, "Hi...."

"Can you please help me with something?" I had only a few hours ago been informed by Saavi that little Ryan here has a crush on me. So I was going to ask him for his help to teach Mr. Beast a lesson. Using a kid was never my intention, but at that moment, that was the only way.

"I will take you out for a pizza treat if you do me this favour."

"Pizza treat with you?" He emphasized the term you, and when he realized the blunder he had made, he tried to cover it up with, "I mean, I love pizza."

I chortled at his innocence and ruffled his hair. A small smile appeared on his lips while his cheeks turned pink.

"Of course. It will only be us, and we will have loads of fun. We will also watch that new action movie that was released last week. Now, can you please do me a favor?"

"Yes!" he agreed jubilantly. I instantly told him what I wanted him to do. Being a huge fan of pranks, he agreed, and I could not help but smile widely, waiting for the moment when I would make Kiaan regret toying with me.

Everyone began taking seats at the respective tables set for dinner. There were small round tables, and then there was this huge one on which our families were sitting. Everyone had taken their spots, while only a few chairs were empty. I was supposed to sit beside my fiancé, and it was better for my plan, too. But I did not want to take a chance doing that myself. I knew the moment I would sit farther from Kiaan, he would do something and make sure we were sitting closer, and if I tried to willingly sit beside him, he would know I had planned something. So, I acted smart and chose the empty seat between Nitya and Saavi. Saavi, who was sitting on the left side of her husband Dhruv Bhaiya, looked at me confused and then said, "I am not separating love birds," and got up. She took the seat on the other side of her husband, which was empty too. Before I knew it, Kiaan had taken the spot earlier occupied by Saavi.

Part one of the plan was quite successful, and I thought to wait a few minutes for part two.

"Too bold of you to take shelter behind others." I was taken aback by Kiaan's statement, but then what was I even expecting? If he thought I was taking shelter while sitting with others and not him, then he should have checked his behaviour instead of pointing fingers at me.

"Those 'others' you are mentioning like me and care for me. Nothing wrong with sitting with someone who cares for you, right?"

"Are you scared of me, firefly?" I gave him a look that signified I was furious, but I also masked my expression with a fake smile as I instantly realized we were surrounded by our family.

"I am not," I replied firmly.

His eyes said more than his words could. The way he looked at me intently, fiercely, reminded me of the moments in the forest a few hours ago, and my cheeks turned pink. He surely realized I recalled the moment as a sneer appeared on his face. To turn the situation in my favour, I moved a little closer to his ear and whispered, "Stop thinking of scaring me and focus on your famous fuck buddies. By the way, how are they all doing?"

He did not look fazed by my comment and replied, "I don't have fuck buddies."

There was so much honesty and sincerity in his voice that anyone who did not know him would surely fall for his lie, but I did not. I knew what no one knew.

"Yeah, right!! You have a fuck buddy..." My words hit the right chord. He knew what I was talking about or should I say, whom I was talking about. He clenched his jaw, the only display of his anger, while he still remained calm.

"Are you jealous?"

"'Appalled' would be the right term here. You guys look great together. I would love to see the union of two deceiving souls." I snapped.

"Brave of you to finally accept you are deceiving everyone here." I scoffed unbelievably. He was calling me deceiving when it was he and that vile woman he used to be with.

The starters had been served on my plate, and I felt that only those baby corns on my plate would keep me calm. When I pushed my fork into one baby corn, out of the blue, I felt a spark of electricity coursing through my entire body. My grip on the fork loosened and my breath hitched. I felt my inside dropping so law and felt the world spinning.

Kiaan was touching me. 

Not just touching me, but his knuckles were brushing over my bare back, inching closer to my waist. My nerves went haywire, my heartbeats quickened, and my pulse was out of control. And when I looked at him, he was unbothered, having his food and talking to Dhruv Bhaiya and Ishaan Bhaiya like he was not wrecking me from inside.

I could not pick up the food, so I left the fork on the plate.

"Don't touch me," I whispered to him, making sure no one listened. He did not pay attention, did not even acknowledge what I said. Only having food could keep me sane, but he closed the only gate to my sanity.

"Simran, beta, you are not eating anything. Are you okay?" Smita Aunty eventually noticed that I didn't have anything. How could I tell her it was because of her son that I was not eating? I thought it was my chance to break free from whatever the beast was subjecting me to. An idea popped into my head, and I said, "It's a little cold out here. I need a shawl." A shawl would be a safe escape from his touch, I thought. But who was I kidding?

Before I even knew it, a soft and rich fabric hugged me close. It was warm, gentle, and completely filled with his fragrance. Kiaan had just covered me with his blazer.

"Feeling better?" he asked, pretending to look concerned.

He was good at it. He was good at acting. I had underestimated him way too much, and there he was, fooling thousands of people at once.

"Woah!!" Namit Jiju exclaimed in surprise at his gesture, almost in his teasing mode.

"I am jealous!!" Dhruv Bhaiya said.

"I am feeling cold too..." It was Arjun now.

"Want a jacket, husband?" Niti asked him, causing everyone to laugh.

I could feel heat rushing to my cheeks. I could not meet anyone's eyes. Everyone teased us like we were so in love, unaware of the reality.

"Did I tell you guys about my last trip to Sydney?" Uncle cleverly averted everyone's attention to him, trying to save me from further awkwardness.

"That would be a great story to hear." Hredhaan, the man of few to no words, spoke up, surely feeling weird about this whole teasing thing.

"So that trip was actually..." Just when I thought it would be a great distraction, Uncle's words started sounding like a bland tune, and I could hear nothing because now Kiaan's hand was on my thigh. Even though not bare, his touch was making me lose my mind. He was rubbing his knuckles on my right thigh, which was covered with the thin fabric of my dress.

"You can't do that," I hissed.

"Do what?" he eventually acknowledged.

I tried removing his hand, but he clasped our fingers and put our hands on my thigh. I gave him a shocked, disbelieving look.

"You can't tou... touch me..." I shivered, not because of the cold but because of the way his hands remained on my body.

"Say it: that you don't like it and I will stop...."

"I. DON'T. LIKE. IT," I said through gritted teeth. I thought he would not stop, but he did, very much to my surprise. Strangely, my body did not like the loss of contact. As if he read the disappointment on my face, and as if he knew this would happen, he moved closer, his lips lingering over my ear. A few pairs of eyes sneaked in our direction, trying to steal glances at us, throwing sheepish smiles.

"What will make you like it, firefly? You want my bare hands on your body without any piece of cloth disrupting us?" he asked me, moved back, and stared at me like he did not just talk about us being naked.

What had gotten into him suddenly?

This was not normal. Him acting that way was not conventional. He was onto something, either drugs, alcohol, anything which had made him lose his senses. Kiaan Chauhan would not in any way talk that way, especially to me. Without wasting any moment, I asked him, "Are you high?"

And now he was angry, like I had committed a crime. My question made him look like a madman filled with rage. I could not understand his mood swings and games. One moment he was ignoring me, then touching me, and then showing his anger. I could not take it anymore and looked at Ryan. I blinked at him twice, and he nodded. It was time for part two to go into action. Ryan evaded everyone's gaze, crawled under the table, and opened the lace of one of Kiaan's shoes. If there was anything Kiaan hated, it was not being prim and proper. He had no tolerance for clutter or disorganization. An untied shoelace was definitely going to get under his skin.

Once Ryan was out from under the table, he went back to his parents and then winked at me. I smiled back at that little boy for successfully executing part two. Now, part three of the plan was to be implemented.

"The prim, pristine shoelace isn't so pristine, I see." My words did their job, and he looked down at his shoe. Not liking it one bit, he dropped to his knees. It was time for the last part of the plan. I took a deep breath, pulled out the box from my clutch, and dropped it closer to his feet. I gasped louder for everyone to hear and then stood up.

"Oh my God!" I exclaimed in surprise, my mouth covered with both of my hands.

Everyone looked at me, confused, and then at Kiaan, who was on his knees. Surely, they got an idea of what I was insinuating, but Kiaan looked stoic and not confused. I presumed he would soon be left embarrassed, and that made me happy. He picked up the box, and I smirked at him. But my smirk was momentary when he smirked back at me. A full-blown smile appeared on his face when he opened the box, while my smile disappeared as if I had seen a ghost.

A huge, magnificent, pear-shaped yellow diamond ring was staring back at me, and not the plastic ring I had kept inside. It was so shiny that it could blind anyone.

"It might be an arranged marriage for others, but we know what it is, don't we, sweetheart?"

He started speaking, and not a word of his first statement made sense to me. The term sweetheart clenched my insides in both anxiousness and something else I could not pinpoint.

"Things might not have worked for us the way we planned, but it would be a lie if I said it's destiny that planned it all. It was me, it was you, it was us. I never said it before, Simran, because you always understood me without me saying anything. But sometimes words are of utmost importance, and I am going to say it now." I felt dizzy, so I held the chair for support, completely shocked at the scene unfolding.

"The moment I laid eyes on you, I knew you were the one for me. There is not a single thing I don't like about you, from your sheepish smile to your glittery eyes, even the tears you shed while you laugh wholeheartedly. The last three years have been nothing but bliss in chaos. I found serenity in my chaotic life. YOU."

The last three years we had not even talked properly. I was still clueless as to what was he talking about.

"The way you express yourself with every glide of your body while you dance takes away every terrible memory, every pain, heals the parts of me I never knew were broken before."

"I could not have found a more perfect opportunity to ask you this, the way you deserve, surrounded by people who love and cherish us. Simran Kashyap, will you marry me?"

By the end of it, I had tears in my eyes, not because I believed any of it, but because I was disheartened, wondering how someone could act so well and break my heart into pieces at the same time. He not only staged a proposal, but he ruined it. He lied so beautifully that everyone believed him, clapped, and urged me to say yes while I stood there in shock because the man who proposed to me does not love me. How could someone hate me so much, yet say such beautiful lines that ached my heart?

I tried blinking my tears away, but they were of no use. They rushed out freely now, as the man I hated more than ever was still on his knees. How ironic that he was on his knees... and I was the one who had already lost.

"I am waiting, firefly. Will you marry me?"

"Come on say yes..."

"Say yes..."

"How romantic!!"

"This is lovely..."

Words of appreciation for him began floating around and now I completely grasped the situation. Kiaan closed every gate which would make me reveal his true idenity to anyone. He made sure to be the hero in evrryone's eyes and no one will ever believe me if I tell them the truth about him.

"Say yes, sweetheart..." He murmured. Still shedding tears and standing there with my life falling apart, my soul torned, and holding my bloody heart I mumbled,"Yes..."  

He took hold of my shivering left hand and pushed the glorious, shining ring on, which fit me well. He planted a kiss on the back of my hand and got up. While everyone went crazy with awe and hooted for us, Kiaan wrapped his hand around my waist and pulled me into his embrace. One hand on my waist, while the other rested on the nape of my neck. It might have seemed romantic, but the truth was I was crumbling from the inside.

"You think you can bribe a child, but I can't?"

At that point, I was not shocked that he knew about my deal with Ryan. I was not sure who he bribed, but I was confident it was not Ryan. Holding me tighter, he muttered, "Don't try pushing my buttons, firefly. You are the only one going to get hurt in the end. Go with the wedding peacefully if you don't want to see the beast you witnessed years ago." As my tears kept streaming, burning my eyes, I felt myself becoming so weak and vulnerable. With no escape, I held him back, tighter, confessing my hatred towards him, "I hate you."

We seemed like two people madly in love, but we were holding each other with contempt, disdain, and resentment towards each other.

"Keep on doing that, darling. You will need more of that hatred to endure what's coming for you." Holding me close, he made me feel more helpless than I had ever felt before. He left a kiss on my hair, and then his lips moved to my earlobe softly, where he dangerously whispered like a sinner, "And don't forget... you were, you are, and will always be at my mercy..."

The round I was supposed to win was over, and just like that, I was reminded of my place, which was at the beast's mercy forever.