Chapter 7: chapter 7

SRUTHI“Had any dreams about me?” asks my fiancée on the phone. There are still two whole days left for the marriage and I can’t wait for the day to arrive. The day when I am paired with this man for the rest of our lives.“No, I didn’t have any dreams about you,” I answer honestly.“Oh! That is sad. I did dream about you,” he says making my heart flutter. “What was the dream about?” I ask curiously.“It is a dream that I don’t feel comfortable talking about before my ten-year-old niece,” he says with a chuckle. “The moment I can get alone, I will whisper it in your ears.”“Someone is in a mood,” I comment with a smile.“You have to take responsibility for it Sru,” he says in a low voice. “I can’t wait for our wedding night. Gosh! I still remember that kiss we had.”A blush colors my face and I hide my face in my hands at the memory of the kiss we shared after the wedding shopping with his family. I had gone to the trail room but Praveen followed me there and he backed me up against the trail room door. There was no one around us. We were flirting and having a wonderful time together. He whispered how beautiful I looked and leaned down. Our lips touched and magic exploded. Our first kiss was in front of a trail room door. It is not the most romantic place to have your first kiss and I never envisioned my kiss to happen there but it did and that was the best memory of my life. “Stop with the dirty talking,” I chide him.“Aww! You have no idea the things you do to me in my dreams,” he teases back and my skin turns redder than a tomato. I have to keep reminding myself that Praveen is not a virgin like me and he is not uncomfortable talking about it. But I am still not comfortable with discussing these things. He is going to be my husband and I shouldn’t hesitate to talk to him about matters regarding bed and baby but I can’t still bring myself to even joke about it to him.“Anyways, send me the pic of you in that hot lehenga that you purchased for the ceremony,” he says. “Ma is calling me for the ceremony. I have to go. See you in a day.”“Yeah! Bye,” I say and hang up the call. A stupid grin stays on my face even after the call is disconnected. I gaze up at the sky which is a clear shade of blue today. I take a deep breath. For the first time in my life, I feel content. Things are going smoothly in my life and I hope they stay like that. I don’t want the kind of adventurous life my brother lives. I want a safe and happy home. I am one hundred percent sure that Praveen would provide me with it. I am quitting my job as a teacher in the pre-school since I am moving away to another city. It was wistful to leave those kids who were always up to something but I will get over it soon. But it is worth the future I am going to have with Praveen.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥The whole backyard of our mansion is in a party setup. Complete with disco lights, a dance floor, and a buffet. The wedding is tomorrow and we are having a small get-together at my brother’s mansion. The whole mansion is decorated with fairy lights and the security guards are quadrupled. Guests from friends and relatives fill the house. I still feel uncomfortable with all the attention on me. My brother is usually the center of focus at parties like these but for a change, today, I am the subject of their attention. It is overwhelming to answer their silly questions and survive the judgment looks. Of the eligible bachelors in the country, Praveen was one of the most sought-after. There are a lot of stories on the internet that say women and girls have tried their luck with him only to be turned down bluntly.When Praveen first confirmed the rumors about us spreading on social media, the netizens went crazy. They can’t wrap their mind around the fact that Praveen is marrying a preschool teacher. Who would be a  nobody without her family name or her brother. I hate that people always see me as my brother’s sister rather than the individual me. To the world, I am the defense minister’s younger sister. The media keeps saying that ‘The Business Magnate Praveen will wed the Defence Minister’s sister’. I want to be seen for who I am. I have no exceptional brain to make defense strategies like my brother. But I have my own merits and I wish the world wouldn’t always put me under my brother’s shadow. Praveen was one of the people who saw me as I was. He knew I wasn’t my brother and was okay with it. He saw me for who I am and loves me like that. I have a fragile heart and he understands that. Most people who know me think that I have a strong heart because I am from a family who have been defending the country for centuries. I beam at my future mother-in-law as she introduces me proudly to her other relatives. I try spot my fiancee in the throngs of the people. I saw him at the start of the party and  we never got a lone moment together. The guests are sure to keep us busy. My eyes roam around the room and I spot some familiar faces and give them a smile when our eyes meet but nowhere is the man I am searching for. My eyes do land on an unwanted guest. Madhav! What the hell is he doing here? Sure, he is the best friend of my brother and has every right to attend the party but he has never once bothered to join in these things. He is always out of the city on the secret missions that my brother assigns to him. I have no idea what work he does for my brother but I have guess that it is not legal.For some reason, after that car drive, I kept spotting Madhav in the least expected of places. If I didn’t know better, I would think he was stalking me. He seems to be everywhere I go. Whenever I look at him, he stares back at me for a moment before turning away and surveying the place we are at. Strangely it seems like he is looking out for something or someone to pop out of nowhere. I did ask my brother about it and Vikram replied that Madhav was doing a job he assigned him and I don’t have to worry about it. I wanted to question him further but with the wedding and my shifting to another city, I have my plate full of troubles. The last thing is I should be bothered about him.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥“Are you perhaps searching for my brother?” Shalini asks giving me a knowing look. She is the twin sister of Praveen. They both are fraternal twins and have very different looks from each other. Something about her always scared me. Maybe it is the fact that Praveen's ex-girlfriend was her best friend. I am not sure what. But, when I am around her, I become uneasy and uncomfortable.“I..uh..no,” I reply but the coloring of my cheeks should give me away.“Try to lie better next time,” she says with a laugh. That only makes me blush even more.Swallowing my pride, I ask, “Where is your brother? I haven’t seen him all evening.”"He left the party.""What?"“It seems trouble broke out in one of our offices all of a sudden and he have to be there to deal with it. Didn’t he message you?” she asks with a raise of her eyebrow.“I didn’t check my phone. I will go get it now,” I say turning in the direction of the house to find my phone which is who knows where.  I take two steps when I am stopped by a hand on my wrist. I turn back to see Shalini giving me a look filled with gratitude and affection. My heart warms.“Thank you for coming into my brother’s life. You made him whole again,” she says in a sincere tone.“No, I am the thankful one for having your brother in my life,” I answer honestly.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥