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Chapter 25: A Little Something

He waited underneath the tree, near the road as he glanced around at the people walking across the street in front of him.

"I must be stupid, why did I say that?" He asked himself and sighed, recalling his words few minutes before he came and decided to wait for Ragini. "It's weird. She and her family might think I'm a weirdo, especially when me and her don't get along." He added and hissed in embarrassment, gritting his teeth.

"Why would she even come? She doesn't like me, and. . ." He stopped talking after hearing footsteps approach him. He turned around and watched Ragini nervously walk towards him while clenching onto her bag.

"Why is he acting like that?" Parvati asked as Ragini stood in front of her.

"I don't even know Daadima. . . He. . ."

"I think you should go with him." Swara interuooted and earned a stare from Parvati.

"No, why should she?" Parvati argued and shook her head, "I refuse to let my Laado go with that man. He was rude to her and he barked at her like a dog while creating a scene." She told and exhaled, twisting her lips.

"But Daadi, he doesn't seem like a bad person." Swara uttered and Parvati looked at her, "please let Ragini go with him. She would feel better."

"But. . ."

"Ragini, you go get ready and go with him." Swara interrupted Parvati and Ragini looked at her.

"But, I. . ."

"He came all this way for you, he. . . I guess skipped work to check up on you. You're really going to ditch him?" Swara guilt trapped Ragini who started to feel bad and shook her head.

"Swara. . ."

"Go, get ready." Swara ignored Parvati and pushed Ragini in the direction of her room.

Ragini slowly walked towards her room, thinking about it.

"You. . . Actually came?" He sounded surprised while looking at her stop in front of him.

"Wasn't I meant to?"

"Yeah, right. . . Come, let's go. It's time to free your mind. Don't think or worry about anything or anyone right now, only focus on your surroundings. Just focus on yourself and on what makes you happy." He replied and smiled at her, tilting his head to the side for two seconds to signal her to start moving alongside him.

She nodded, starting to walk with him. "Why, all of a sudden?" She wondered and cocked her head to the side, looking up at him.

"What?"

"This. . ." She trailed off and he understood, shrugging at her. "I don't know, I just felt you needed to escape for a while and, I am the best person to help you with that." He cockily replied to her with a small proud smirk playing over his lips.

She sighed and rolled her eyes, "you're so cocky."

"I'm actually confident." He argued, "I'm narcissistic but to an extent." He added, nodding at his own reply after the two second pause.

She scoffed, "to an extent? You're full of narcissism."

"Um, excuse me?" He felt offended and gave her a stare, "what's so bad about loving yourself?"

"Nothing, but you're too proud of yourself."

"No I'm not."

"Yes you are."

"No, I'm not."

"You, are!"

"Um, no."

"Um, yes."

"What makes you think that I am?"

"You. . ." Ragini tried finding answers "you always argue with me and don't like being wrong, you don't even like me because you think I sabotaged someone's life, and. . . You think you're always right. You don't even let the other person talk."

Lakshya was appalled to hear Ragini, "I. . ." He was struggling to respond to her, thinking about it and finding what she was saying as something he tends to do. "I do let the other person talk actually." He argued.

"And about not liking you. . ." He added, looking at her while she looked at him, "you supported the girl that my friend loved. He wasn't kidnapping her or being a thug, she loved him too but I guess not, after he told her to come with him and decided to end his life by marrying her, which I'm glad he didn't cause she's a snake, in front of her parents she made him the one who was forcing her to marry him even though she was the one that called him and said she won't be able to live without him. . ." He continued, justifying himself and Ragini looked on.

"I didn't know that, it seemed like he was forcing her to come with him. I, thought he was the bad person that's why I stepped in to help the girl." Ragini explained as she flapped her eyes at him, "I genuinely thought she was helpless and being abducted by him, because he was behaving very aggressive. He was dragging her when her and her mum begged him not to." She added, and he blinked at her.

"Well. . ." He had nothing to say, "he didn't mean it in that sense. I guess he did seem like he was the bad guy in front of everyone else, but she was at fault too. She lured him on and then left him, for his money."

"Maybe she didn't love him for his money." Ragini argued back, "not all girls love guys for their money." She added and Lakshya scoffed.

"Pretty much all girls do."

"No, they don't. That's similar to saying all guys ever think about is sleeping with a girl."

"That's not what all guys think about. . ."

"And not all girls go after a guy based on how rich he is."

Lakshya sighed, "okay fine." He gave up and raised his hands, loosing against her. "You win." He added and she smiled.

"But, my friend wasn't at fault."

Ragini nodded, "I'm sorry for that. I'm sorry for jumping to conclusion without knowing the whole story."

Lakshya wasn't expecting an apology, yet reacted quickly. "It's okay. . ." He trailed off and then swallowed, finding it hard to speak "I'm. . . Sorry too. For the misunderstanding. And. . . For judging you."

Ragini was surprised, hearing an apology from Lakshya was as if she had heard her favourite music. "It's. . . Okay." She replied, still not believing she received an apology from Lakshya, who is never sorry.

"Since we've sorted the misunderstanding out. . . Would you like to be friends?" Ragini wondered, staring at him and he gave it a thought.

"Sure, why not." He replied while curving a small smile over his lips, flapping his eyes at her and she reciprocated to the smile.

He felt slightly relaxed and at ease after seeing the smile hang from her lips, encouraging him to smile more. The two glanced at each other for few seconds before Ragini interrupted.

"Where are we going?"

"You tell me, what do you want to do?" He asked and faded his smile. She shrugged at him while thinking, "I. . . Don't know."

"Okay, let's go. . ."

"To an amusement park." She interrupted him, finally thinking of a destination and he scrunched his eyebrows, "Amusement park?"

"Yeah, I always wanted to go there but I never had the chance."

"Ragini, are you a kid?" He mocked and she frowned, "why do you only need to be a kid to go to the amusement park?"

"It's a childish thing. Opt for more adult places, like pubs, walking parks, and you know. . . Going to parties."

"You said I could do what I wanted to do. . ."

"I did." He agreed and she looked at him, "and I want to go to an amusement park." She demanded and he gave her a look, "are you serious?"

She nodded confident in her answer and he exhaled "fine, let's go there."

Smile curled over her lips and she smirked, "yes, let's go."

Lakshya slid his phone out as they continued walking down the road.

X

"Why did you let Laado go with him?"

"Daadi, I think it's for the best. After yesterday, Ragini needs a way to destress and I feel like he'll be the best distraction. Instead of remembering about yesterday and fearing, she could spend time arguing with him and letting go of what happened." Swara explained her point and Parvati sighed, making a face.

"We could've done that too."

"We could do that, but she just needs something else right now, something like him. On and off conversation, having her mind completely off thinking and flashbacks."

"But. . ."

"Daadi, you're worrying too much. Nothing will happen, he's a nice guy. I can sense a positive vibe from him, besides I met his family and if something does happen then we know where to go and who to approach. I can trust him with Ragini." Swara assured as she cut Parvati, stating her opinion and Parvati sighed, passing Swara a look.

"If something happens to Laado. . ."

"Don't worry. Trust me." Swara placed her hand on top of Parvati's, blinking at her.

Parvati gave it a thought, assuring her heart that everything would be fine.

XX

Maheshwari Mansion:

"Sujata, where are you?" Annapurna rushed down the stairs, calling for Sujata while glancing around.

"I'm here Jiji." Sujata responded back to Annapurna, heading out from the kitchen. "What happened?" She asked, walking into the hall and Annapurna stopped in front of her.

"I got a call from Mrs Lalwani."

"Pari's mother?" Annapurna nodded and Sujata raised her eyebrows, "why?"

"To move the wedding dates forward."

"What? Why? When?" Questions burst out from Sujata's mouth as she creased her forehead.

"Her mother, Pari's Naani is feeling unwell and is pressuring Pari to get married soon. She thinks she will pass away and before leaving, she wants to witness the wedding which is why Mrs Lalwani requested you get Pari and Adarsh married early."

"Oh, is her mother dying?" Sujata bluntly asked and Annapurna widened her eyes. "Sujata. . ."

"Sorry Jiji, is her mother passing away?"

"No." Annapurna replied, staring at Sujata in disbelief. "She is feeling unwell."

"Which means she will be beloved to god soon. That's why they're telling us to rush." Sujata said it in a nicer way and Annapurna shook her head in disbelief.

"Whatever it is, they asked us for the wedding to be soon. I agreed to their request and now. . . We have two choices to pick from, either this week or the week after."

Sujata gasped, "this is too soon. I'm sure her mother would be fine to at least spend 4 weeks peacefully right? How much would we do in few days or next week?"

"I need to call Ji and ask, but I need your opinion, what should we do?"

"If these two are the only options then go for next week Jiji, we can't do anything for this week, we need time to plan everything."

Annapurna nodded, agreeing with Sujata and glanced down at her phone screen which was flashing. "Ji is calling." She uttered and answered the call, Sujata slowly walked away while thinking. "Gosh, I need to do so much shopping, I need to buy new jewellery, new clothes, hire a beautician. . . Uff, so much to do and we're given such a short span of time." She mumbled to herself and stressed, hitting her palm against her other palm.

XX

Nicco Park:

"Thank you."

Lakshya faced Ragini while they waited in the queue. "Are you sure you want to be here?" He asked and she nodded. His eyes move around and he embarrassingly glanced at the parents with their kids in front of them and behind them.

"Hi, could we get two tickets." Ragini requested and the guy behind the counter nodded. "Sure, how old is your child?"

Both Ragini and Lakshya were silent. Ragini moved her eyes towards Lakshya, "how old are you?"

"I'm not a child." He whispered while gritting his teeth, covering his face with his hand, wanting to avoid attention.

"He's above 20." Ragini replied while looking at the guy behind the counter, passing the two a look.

"Aah, this is so embarrassing. I could literally faint right now." Lakshya complained in a low tone.

"Hahaha. . ." The guy faked a laugh, "is it just you two?" He asked and Ragini nodded her head, "yes, there is no child with us here. Two adult tickets please."

The guy nodded while passing them a look and started tapping on his screen. Lakshya slid some cash out of his pocket and Ragini stopped him, "I'll pay."

"No, it's fine I'll. . . Pay." He took his hand down from his face and looked at Ragini.

"No, it's fine."

"Are you sure?" Ragini nodded and Lakshya nodded too, putting the money back into his pocket.

"I'll go wait near the gate." He uttered and she nodded, approving while he wasted no time in walking away.

"Are they kids that they're coming here." Ragini heard a whisper from behind her and scoffed, deciding to ignore the comment.

Lakshya waited near the gate, watching little kids walking around with their parents. "This is so embarrassing, why here out of all the places in this city!"

"He's too young to be a Dad, no?" He heard a woman speak in Bengali, understanding what she had said to her husband while brushing by him with her son and daughter.

"Yes, he must have been a reckless teen." Her husband replied back in Bengali and chuckled afterwards.

Lakshya grit his teeth, feeling offended. "Now I regret learning Bengali from Nick. It would've been better if I didn't understand what they said. It's making me uncomfortable."

"Come, let's go." Ragini stopped in front of him and he looked at her, she noticed his expressions and scrunched her eyebrows "what happened?"

"Nothing. . . A man and woman that walked by think I'm a young dad. That man had the audacity to call me a reckless teen. . . Assuming I had a kid young."

Ragini chuckled, "really?" He nodded with irritated expressions and she continued laughing.

"You'll get that a lot. . . Don't worry. Come, let's go."

The two start walking inside and Lakshya sighed, "out of all the places, why did you decide to come here?" He sounded slightly annoyed as he spoke and Ragini curled a faint smile.

"I. . . This is my first time in an amusement park." She honestly told while turning her head to the side.

"What? Your first time?" Lakshya was shocked as he watched her nod her head positively to his question. "My father. . . He was going to take me and my sister to the amusement park, but on the day he passed away in an accident. So, my wish remained a wish until today, it's never too late to tick off your bucket list is it?"

He started to feel bad for her as he watched her continue to smile despite talking about something so emotional. She learnt to hide her pain behind her smile and he could sense the eagerness of hers to change the topic before she teared up.

"No, it's never too late." He replied, calming himself down. "It's better to tick it off than regret not doing it."

"True." She agreed and glanced around, he shook his head while thinking to himself 'I can't believe I'm doing this.'

"So, which ride do you want to go on first?" He asked while curving a smile over his lips and she pointed at a ride with a grin curling over her lips.

XX

Maheshwari Mansion:

"What did Bhaisa say?" Sujata asked as she spotted Annapurna walking.

"He said next week too as that will give us time to. . . Deal with Lakshya and his behaviour." Annapurna sounded sad while revealing this to Sujata, lowering her gazes as thoughts occupied her mind.

"Oh, does he want Lakshya to be aware of everything before doing it?" Annapurna nodded and Sujata continued, "that's good, now Lakshya will also be involved in the rituals and ceremonies."

"I doubt it. Maybe he'll send Lakshya away for some days until the wedding is over." Annapurna concluded with distress and Sujata shook her head, "I don't think Bhaisa would go that far. How can he make Lakshya miss his brothers wedding?"

"I pray Lakshya stays with us through this time. He's always missing out on festivals and functions, however this is a big day for his brother and I don't want him to be absent."

"Don't worry too much Jiji, we will sort this out. I'm sure Lakshya will understand this time what his importance is for this wedding."

Annapurna nodded her head, feeling assured by Sujata's words yet Sujata felt slightly confused saying all this, unsure if Lakshya will be part of the wedding or not.

XX

Office:

"Are you sure you're okay with this decision?"

"I don't mind." Adarsh spoke while nodding his head positively in front of his father Durga Prasad.

"That's good, now we have enough time to worry about Lakshya and plan for the wedding." Durga Prasad spoke sternly while proudly glancing at his son Adarsh who lowered his head after nodding.

"Congratulations Bhaisa, Adarsh. You're finally getting married." Ram happily expressed while patting Adarsh's back.

"Thand you." Adarsh replied shyly and smiled, avoiding eye-contact.

"Congratulations. I can't believe the wedding is next week." Sanskaar congratulated in a happy tone, grinning as wide as he could with blinking excitement from his eyes.

"Thanks."

"Has anyone tried Lakshya's phone?" Durga Prasad asked and Sanskaar looked at him, "I did but he's not answering."

"I can't believe he blocked you Bhaisa." Ram spoke in disbelief, shaking his head while thinking about this, "how can he block his own father?"

"He blocked me too." Adarsh revealed, earning everyone's stare. "I tried calling him and it'd cut me off."

"I tried and it worked." Sanskaar says in surprise, not believing Lakshya did this. "It sounds unreal, he wouldn't block you now. . . I mean, he had all those years to block you guy."

"Try calling him again." Durga Prasad instantly uttered, not hearing Sanskaar properly and Sanskaar nodded, taking his phone out from his pocket.

He tapped on Lakshya's name and put the phone to his ear. His eyes scrunch and he glanced at Durga Prasad. "It's. . . Not working."

"He blocked you too?" Ram asked and Sanskaar was confused. "I. . . Don't know. It wouldn't go through." Sanskaar seemed hurt more than confused, thinking about being blocked by Lakshya. He has no reasons to be blocked by him, especially when he favoured Lakshya from the beginning and is much more closer to him than the rest of the family.

"This boy. . ." Durga Prasad clenched his fist while gritting his teeth in anger, feeling frustrated and annoyed by Lakshya's behaviour.

XX

Nicco Park:

After an hour, Ragini and Lakshya stop near an ice-cream man after going on every single ride in the park, being judged and looked at a lot. Yet, they didn't bother caring and focused on themselves merely enjoying.

"It was fun." Lakshya made a face and nodded side to side, "it was too slow and childish."

"Of course it would be slow, this is mainly for children."

"That's why, we should've went to adult places. . ." He brings back what he had said earlier during the day and she sighed.

"But, I have to admit, it was pretty fun. Apart from being looked at and talked about, we had a decent time." He added, allowing himself to compliment it for the first and probably the last time ever.

"I had fun the whole time." Ragini honestly revealed and the two looked at each other. "I'm glad you did." He replied and she smiled at him, sharing an eye-lock.

"Yes?" It was interrupted after the ice-cream man spoke, "what would you like?"

Ragini and Lakshya felt awkward and glanced away, Ragini looked at the man and inhaled before speaking.

"One vanilla ice-cram and one pistachio ice-cream please."

He nodded and took them out of his truck, handing it over to them. Lakshya and Ragini took their perspective ones and Lakshya handed him the cash. He took it and gave him change.

While walking, the two eat their ice-creams and head towards the exit.

"Where do you want to go next?" Lakshya asked and Ragini looked on, "there's more places you'd like to visit with me?"

Lakshya nodded his head and she turned to the side, passing him a look. "I'm the most boring person you'll come across. I thought you'd want to ditch me after this."

He scoffed, "I wish I could but it's not nice leaving a lady on her own."

"Wow." She was impressed, "you got manners?" She sounded surprised and he rolled his eyes playfully.

"Yes I do, just to the right people at the right time." He replied and she chuckled, "are you sure that's not an excuse to hide your rudeness?"

"Sure is." He replied and she scoffed while he smiled.

Hearing the cycle alerting them, Lakshya turned and watched it speed towards Ragini. He instantly held her by the arm and pulled her. She swiftly turned and abruptly moved forward, clashing onto his chest. Her eyes lift to his face and his eyes watched the cycle speed away.

She blinked at him and he lowered his gazes, staring into hers.

To Be Continued. . .

Up Next - Ragini & Lakshya spend more time together, getting to know each other. . . Wedding preparations to start. . .

____________

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