They had been friends for a really long time. She had no idea he was interested in her while she had just the slightest fantasy of ending up with him.
That day, when he called her up and said, "Hey, I know it is 2016, and it sounds outdated, I am having a swayamvar. And yes, before you ask, it can be a boy who chooses too. Equality, in your argument."
"Why do you want me to come?", she asked unsuspectingly.
"How can I choose a girl if you are not around", he responded and laughed.
"Okay. I will be there", she affirmed her presence in his life.
He was dressed in a bright, blue sherwani and looked every bit a groom in search of a bride.
When she reached his home, a huge, palatial home in the middle of their town, she noticed they were all of a different caste. Not that it bothered her, but it was the first time she had come to realize they were brought up differently.
There was a short puja that was performed by his parents and he was not yet in sight. Apparently, he could not make an appearance without being summoned at the right moment for his swayamvar. She was texting him all through but did not receive a reply. He was stripped off from all technology on that day to help him stay focused and not keep answering official calls.
When the parents announced the swayamvar and called forward all the girls present at the venue, she looked around, hesitated and stepped forward, along with 6 other girls. A slight hope rushed in her blood that she had the best chance today. If only he saw her as more than a friend.
She could hardly hide that smile on her face. She felt shy for the first time in her life, without even realizing it. It hit her when she heard these words from his paternal grandmother. "You do not belong here. Go away. Go back to your home and do not embarrass our family any further". Her feet reacted faster than her heart and head. She walked out in tears, realizing how much she had embarrassed herself and her friend by showing up and expecting it to turn into a romantic story that she could narrate to her kids in life.
That was the last time she ever went to his house. It was the last time she had any ties with him whatsoever, She had thrown her SIM card away and stayed away from all social media.
-----------------
It has been a year now. And she will never know what he would have done, had she been there. Would he have ever known that she was forced to leave or would he have thought she had left abruptly? He would never know. She would never know. A heartbreak sooner than later for at least one of them.
_________________________________________________________________________________
That day, when he called her up and said, "Hey, I know it is 2016, and it sounds outdated, I am having a swayamvar. And yes, before you ask, it can be a boy who chooses too. Equality, in your argument."
"Why do you want me to come?", she asked unsuspectingly.
"How can I choose a girl if you are not around", he responded and laughed.
"Okay. I will be there", she affirmed her presence in his life.
He was dressed in a bright, blue sherwani and looked every bit a groom in search of a bride.
When she reached his home, a huge, palatial home in the middle of their town, she noticed they were all of a different caste. Not that it bothered her, but it was the first time she had come to realize they were brought up differently.
There was a short puja that was performed by his parents and he was not yet in sight. Apparently, he could not make an appearance without being summoned at the right moment for his swayamvar. She was texting him all through but did not receive a reply. He was stripped off from all technology on that day to help him stay focused and not keep answering official calls.
When the parents announced the swayamvar and called forward all the girls present at the venue, she looked around, hesitated and stepped forward, along with 6 other girls. A slight hope rushed in her blood that she had the best chance today. If only he saw her as more than a friend.
She could hardly hide that smile on her face. She felt shy for the first time in her life, without even realizing it. It hit her when she heard these words from his paternal grandmother. "You do not belong here. Go away. Go back to your home and do not embarrass our family any further". Her feet reacted faster than her heart and head. She walked out in tears, realizing how much she had embarrassed herself and her friend by showing up and expecting it to turn into a romantic story that she could narrate to her kids in life.
That was the last time she ever went to his house. It was the last time she had any ties with him whatsoever, She had thrown her SIM card away and stayed away from all social media.
-----------------
It has been a year now. And she will never know what he would have done, had she been there. Would he have ever known that she was forced to leave or would he have thought she had left abruptly? He would never know. She would never know. A heartbreak sooner than later for at least one of them.
_________________________________________________________________________________
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