Abhijay's POV

I ended the call that had been keeping me occupied, a smile tugging at the corners of my lips as I noticed Suhana sitting beside me, her eyes slowly drifting shut. Careful not to disturb her, I quietly adjusted my seat, trying to move without making a sound.

The place fell silent, weirdly.

It gave my thoughts some time to rush again. I'm a professional overthinker. Only if I got paid for it would I have owned the island I wanted to run to.

Soon enough, I was lost in the possibilities of the oh-so-awesome situation I'd created for myself, the voice of the air hostess harshly pulling me out of my musing.

"In case of lack of oxygen..." The air hostess sounded so enthusiastic; it made me think about how they hide their hard times in a facade. People say I have a visibly grumpy face that depicts my mood every time, but I'm sure that's not just it or maybe that's how Suhana guesses my mood always? Who knows.

"Suhana..." I remembered and turned my face towards her. She probably didn't get a chance to drift to sweet sleep after that lady started bombing the passengers with instructions.

She looked mood less when she gave me a short glance before resuming the observation of what was outside the aeroplane window.

It was just an empty runway, by the way.

I realized she had never been on an aeroplane before, and it was likely she felt uneasy about flying at such heights. Of course, I couldn't expect her to openly share her fears with me, at least not in this situation. I should have been more considerate. Perhaps it would have been better to arrange a car and take a road trip from Jaipur to Mumbai instead.

After a wait of about twenty minutes, I felt the aeroplane move, gradually taking its position on the runway from which it would take off.

The seatbelt sign blinked on, and I tightened my already-tied belt instinctively, just in case. I saw Suhana struggling with hers from the corner of my eyes and leaned towards her seat to get hold of the situation. She shot a sharp glance at me and swatted my hand away.

"I didn't ask for help." Her tone was unnaturally cold, and that was probably the first time after our marriage that she said something to me, and I realised she wasn't as innocent as she seemed. Maybe she is, but she is in a state of commotion right now, it pricked my heart.

I sighed and sat straight again, secretly observing her fumbling with the clutch and finally being able to figure out the method of tightening it. Her face emitted a contended smile and she lazed her arms on both the arm-rests, not paying heed to anyone or anything.

The plane slowly took pace, and I practically 'saw' her heartbeat quickening through every moment that passed, her face turned colourless and pure terror became evident in her orbs.

Without thinking, I gently placed my hand over hers, enveloping it beneath my larger one. It suddenly struck me how small she was compared to me, standing at just 5'4" while I was 6'0".

Suhana's POV

An unwanted fear etched my heart, making it hard for me to enjoy the moment.

It wasn’t just the fear of heights and flying, though that was the dominant feeling. It all came crashing over me like a wave—I was on the verge of leaving Rajasthan.

Who knew when I would get to step back in my state and even meet my father. Going to Mumbai was utterly fascinating; everything was awesome about that idea, but it just started sounding terrible when I thought of living there in completely unknown surroundings with people I barely knew or people I didn't want to talk to.

What if I would be left all by myself to deal with the new experience? What if no one cared for me there as my Papa did? What if they would just end up hating me? What if...what if the city of dreams would become the city of nightmares for me?

I wanted to run away. This can't be happening, I wanted to be selfish for just once in my life.

My intrusive thoughts were claiming my mind when I suddenly felt a familiar touch on my hand.

It wasn't something special but it made me feel not alone. It crept in a warm feeling of being understood in me.

I knew whose hand it was and my head instantly snapped towards that face, the unbounded anger taking over the needed sense of comfort.

I tried to pull it away back to myself but his comparatively big hand was practically hiding mine.

"Leave my hand," I whispered, trying not to disturb the quiet ambience.

He didn't budge as if he didn't even hear me.

I tried jerking it away a bit more harshly but his hold on it just tightened.

I huffed with frustration and laid my head back on the seat, closing my eyes with great ignorance for that guy.

He tangled his fingers in mine, squeezing my hand with a sense of security as if he wanted to convey the unsaid to me. I didn't want to accept, but it's still a fact, he was powerful. And I'm safe when I'm with him. No freaking matter what.

It was hard to show his action didn't matter, cause it was a big deal for me.

Soon enough, the plane took flight, soaring higher and higher in the sky, and my anxiety reached newer heights as if it was syncing with the plane. My body trembled, both cold and fear being the reason and my other hand instinctively went over the seat and got hold of his forearm.

I tried to breathe shallowly, my hand tightening the grip on his relishingly perfect biceps, but my eyes weren't shutting close; rather, they kept stealing sight of the world outside the window, narrowing themselves. They wanted to view the scenery outside and I'd be lying if I said it's not goddamn amazing. But doesn't mean it's not goddamn crazy and scary.

It wasn't long before we were completely in the air, floating effortlessly as if this aeroplane didn't weigh more than a hundred elephants.

I realised what I was clutching onto for dear life, and my eyes met him again, and I felt a rush of embarrassment in my system. I pursed my lips tight and awkwardly let go of the tight hold. I kept my hand to myself and eyed him to leave the other one which he stubbornly denied.

It was angering me more now; he thinks I need his support, but I don’t. I'm brave. I can be by myself.

But, I mentally chided myself,
"You would've ended up being a crying mess if you didn't have his hand to hold on to—"

The journey further was smooth; the clouds looked dreamy, just like I'd imagined them to be. It took me a while to seep in the fact that I was flying above the land of my dreams, the imaginary land of mine that existed just on clouds.

Papa used to tell me a story of the 'Badal ki rani' who had her vast kingdom on the soft clouds. The stories sang of her valour and kindness, and I always wanted to be like her. That's what my papa told me, that the real queen isn't the one who wears a crown but is the one who deserves it. And the one who deserves the crown is the one who proves they deserve it through kindness and true strength. This shaped my childhood self so much that I carried it with me to adulthood, and I don't regret a single time when I decided to be selfless.

Everything was just so perfect, I wanted to make a home here. I wish.

After we landed, which I swear was a much more terrible experience than going up in the sky, plus it was already nighttime, we walked out of the airport without luggage. The peace we left when we entered the Jaipur airport was subtly exchanged by the hustle of Mumbai. Everything seemed to be fast here.

Anandita walked me to the cars that were waiting for us. I was made to sit in a KIA, a poster which screamed newly wed stuck on its back-glass. I didn't like it, it was weirdly too red and catchy, not my type.

Wait, why do I even care?

The whole ride was silent, my mind mingling itself in the long thoughts of my unplanned future with someone so unpredictable and the day that I wanted to completely discard from my life. I felt an urge to cry, sob breathlessly in the comfort of my papa but at the same time, I couldn't feel any tears forming in my eyes. My chest was heavy with unreleased emotions, but the place wasn't appropriate, and maybe, the person wasn't too.

It took us about an hour to reach the final destination, a sigh escaping my lips as I kept my foot down from the car, but what stood in front of me was even more overwhelming and vast.

It wasn't a house, not even a bungalow, it was a mansion. My eyes travelled up to realise it had three floors and a terrace covered with glass railings. The structure looked smooth and was visibly polished white, which shined even more under the few scattered rays of moonlight adorning the pearl-like walls.

The guards royally opened the gate, and my mother-in-law, royally ignoring the gesture, walked inside hastily. She was followed by her husband and then Anandita who rushed inside the house.

Wait, I was in for some rituals, wasn't I?

Oh god, no. Please.

I was tired enough. Embarrassed enough and the person who was my 'groom' was a whole freaking different problem. Not once in my whole life I'd seen such a big house up so close, the thought of living in it was far more unthinkable. But my destiny, what's wrong with my life?

I should be happy, right?

But I was not a girl who would sassily sing "Paisa Gaadi mehenga ghar, I need a man who can give me all that-" like no, I'd seen a lot of happiness with my Papa, enough to know that that was not at all what I needed to keep my originality for myself. But I was getting all this, I wondered how I would adjust to such a posh environment. I'd heard tales of the comfort of this house from my so-called husband; it all sounded awesome till today, but it just wasn't me.

I took a deep breath, ready for the next step, as I saw my mother-in-law, gripping her saree pallu and walking outside the house.

---

So, do vote and comment, it will mean a lot to me ♡

Also, I won't update till 2nd October. My exams are going to start the next Thursday and will end on 30th September. I'll need some time to relax and start writing so I’ll probably update in the first week of October.

Till then, bye ♡

Esha