Hello everyone! Here's chapter twenty-three, do let me know how you guys like it :)

Remember to participate in trends for IPZN S2, mail/call/spam- Stream the videos Sony uploads of IPZN almost everyday. Help maintain the hype!! After all these efforts maybe we'll get a season 2 💛

===============================================================================
~ Flashback ~ for those wondering ke Ahaan confess karne chala kaise gaya ;)
Ahaan's room- (Before Confession & going into Ishqi's room)

Ahaan was pacing back and forth in his room restlessly, things were happening so quickly that he couldn't quite figure out what to do. He felt as if he was about to loose something his heart greatly valued but just hadn't realized yet.

Then there was a knock on his door, "come in" he yelled and Kartik swung the door open and walked in, "hey bhai, kya horhea hai?" Kartik asked. "kuch nahi horhea-I mean horaha, tu baata, tujhe koi kaam tha??"

Kartik chuckled seeing his brother's restlessness, 'hmm, kaam toh tha"

Ahaan: Phir baata, kis cheez ka wait kar raha hai...he paused and thought to himself for a moment, "ek second tu na apna time le, jitna time lena hai le, aaram se bata- Mujhe kon sa neeche jaane ki jaldi hai!"

Kartik: Aap itne hyper kyun horahe ho..Aur neeche engagements hogi...matlab aapko Rhea se engagement karne ka koi shauk nahi hai...toh kyun kar rahe ho??!

Ahaan: Aisi koi baat nahi hai...woh toh buss mein-

Kartik cut him off, "Ishqi ke baare mein sooch rahe the...pyaar hogaya hai aapko usse..haina?

Ahaan: Huh? N-nahi m-mujhe uss ladki se-

Kartik: PYAAR HOGAYA HAI!!! Aab toh maan lo bhai-

Ahaan: S-Shut up Kartik! Aur waise bhi pyaar bohot baara label hai inn feelings ke liye-

Kartik: WH-at the fudge! Feelings?!! Oh Bhaisaab!!!! Chalo, itna accept toh kiya!....Bhai, agar hum normal halaat mein hote toh mein aapse kehta ke aaram se soocho aapni feelings ke baare mein but abhi time nahi hai, aapko direct confession karna pareyga....

Ahaan: Mere se nahi hoga Kartik...

Kartik: Haaye..waise sahi kehte hai, pyaar insaan ko kya se kya baana deta hai....Humare super confident, triple "S" bhai ek ladki se confess karne mein dar rahe hai- he giggled-

Ahaan: D-Dar nahi raha mein, w-woh toh buss abhi mein khud sure nahi houn and-

Kartik cut him off, "Aap sure nahi ho toh I'm certain ke Ishqi bhi abhi sure nahi hogi...Jao aapke dil mein jo bhi hai, feelings, unsureness, jo bhi hai- confess kardo"

Ahaan: But Kartik- he tried to object-

"No- nothing, aap abhi jaa rahe ho" he said while opening the door of Ahaan's room, "Woh dekho, Ishqi ka room door bhi khula hai...god bhi yahi chahate hai bhai..go for it!"

Ahaan took a deep breath and strolled towards Ishqi's room, he went in and saw her standing in front of the mirror, blabbering to herself. He smiled and closed the door and kept admiring her until she noticed his reflection in the mirror.

(Then the part written in the previous ch happened ;)

============

====
Although it was a private & small affair that hadn't stopped the families' from going all out, the hall was decorated with fine decor and the food was being prepared by top chefs. It was an extravagant and classy event.

Ahaan walked in to the hall and soon Ishqi followed, she greeted and conversed with her apparent to-be in laws while Ahaan did the same with his. Soon, DM & Dadi instructed for both of the engagements to begin.

Ahaan stood opposite Rhea while Ishqi faced Rahul, the music started and so did the ceremony. It was Rahul-Ishqi's turn first, Rahul clutched her hand and slid the ring onto her finger while Ahaan clenched his fists and wished he could switch places with Rahul. Tara then handed Ishqi the other ring and she slipped it onto Rahul's finger hesitantly without looking at him in the eyes, followed by claps and several "congrats" - Ishqi was now engaged to Rahul!

Next it was Ahaan-Rhea's turn, he hated the moment more than anything else. He slid the ring onto Rhea's finger while looking at Ishqi directly in the eyes. Before he knew it Rhea had slid the ring onto his finger as well. Ishqi and Ahaan both were now engaged...but not to each other.

Everyone clapped and congratulated the two new couples but not everyone was elated about this entire thing. Ishqi & Ahaan both felt downcast while Tara and Kartik were disappointed with the two. "How could they've gone through with this?! I was confident ke aaj yeh dou engagements nahi hogi!" Kartik mumbled to Tara- "I can't believe them!" she whispered back, clearly let down.

Meanwhile Ahaan and Ishqi had completely different things going on in their heads...one moment...they just needed a quiet and uninterrupted moment to talk, to clear things out because right now their thoughts were all over the place.

So much had changed in just a matter of five minutes, their feelings were now partly confessed making the engagement a worse decision than it already was. Ahaan and Ishqi had kissed and it wasn't just a kiss- for them it held deep meaning and confirmation that their feelings were reciprocated.

Soon dinner was served, everyone sat at the big rectangular table that had a charcoal coloured table cloth spread across it, the dining table had been decorated with several candles and matching cutlery and plates. Ishqi sat with Rahul, opposite Ahaan and they both smiled as soon as their eyes locked.

Ahaan sensed the worry and stress on Ishqi's face, he squeezed his eyes in a reassuring manner, without being noticed by anyone except Kartik and Tara. A sense of relief gushed through Ishqi's body, she knew that with AVM by her side, they'd fix this mess.

Fast Forward: Everyone ate dinner and then dessert, after a few hours of mingling they all went into their respective room's to rest.

----
Ishqi was very exhausted, both mentally and physically, today had been an extremely draining day. She changed into her sleepwear and flopped onto her bed and slid her diary out of her bag.

To Ishqi, her diary was like a friend she could tell anything and oh boy! she had a ton of tea to spill today. She flipped open a clear page and started writing her entry, "Oh. My. God....Today was an "hzbghshdvhd" type of day..I may have gotten engaged to Rahul and all that BUT aaj mujhe aapni feelings realize hogayi...AVM ke liye...AND GUESS WHAT?! Woh bhi wohi feel karte hai jo mein karti houn!! We shared our first kiss today....bohot saara feel kiya and tab realize hogaya ke this is it. It was the love I've always dreamt of...But aab aage kya karna hai yeh samaj mein nahi araha...AVM ke saath baat karoungi tab pata chale ga...Jald se jald kuch karna pareyga...Rahul ko cheat nahi kar sakti...But anyways, aaj ke liye itna hi.."~ Ishqi ❤︎

Ishqi put her diary in her side table drawer and laid down on her bed, her heart was urging her to go talk to Ahaan right now...well, not only talk but she just wanted to catch a glimpse of him. The restlessness she felt was unreal! What the fudge had love done to her! She felt her heart pounding just at the thought of him, it was really late and she'd had a very exhausting day but still felt bursts of excitement and energy in her body.

"AVM ke room mein jao kya? samne hi toh hai."
"Nahi Ishqi...woh tehre Mr. Sanskari, kya sooche ge tere baare mein..subah baat kar lena"
"Par subah saab jaage hue hoge...jab se hum mile hai interruption ke bina toh humari koi baat nahi ho pai, ek toh AVM itni ghuma phira ke baat karte hai, main point pe aane se pehle hi koi ajata hai!" she contemplated-

"Chal chod Ishqi, lekin agar jaa nahi sakti toh call toh kar hi sakti houn na...haan yeh theek rahe ga..call kar leti houn" she decided as she grabbed her phone and dialled his number. "ring ring" but no answer..."AVM phone kyun nahi utha rahe!" Ishqi wondered as she put her phone aside, rather disappointed.

Just then she heard mummers outside her room, "Iss waqt kon ho sakta hai?" she thought as she wore her slippers and advanced towards the door. She swung the door open and there he stood, just about to knock, "AVM aap?" Ishqi exclaimed-

Ahaan chuckled, "woh w-waiter sahi keh raha tha...h-hum dono ka dil to dil connection h-hai. Meine k-knock kiya bhi nahi aur tum aagyi kholne" he slurred as he fell into her arms.

"A-AVM, aap theek toh ho na?! Kya hua hai aapko?!!" Ishqi asked him, concerned- Ahaan giggled, "Ishq" he replied and in that moment Ishqi figured out he was drunk.

oh boy it was going to be a very very long night! ✨

//To Be Continued//

Next: Drunk Ahaan! 🍺

===============================================================================

That's all for today guys, hope ya'll enjoyed it! { Word Count: 1600 } Next part'll be updated soon! 💛

Suggestions are always welcome ⚡️

Pls ignore any mistakes 😚

Lot's of love and stay safeee ❤️

~ Vera 🌸