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Chapter 40: Last Chapter

One week after

He breathed out and sat next to her, "are you sure you'll like this movie?"

"Yes, why. . . Won't you?" She turned her head to the side while eating popcorn, questioning him after she swallowed.

"I. . . Will." He lied with a smile over his lips and faces the screen, 'I'm not alone.' He thought to himself and relaxed his body against the cinema chair, watching a male figure take a seat next to him.

"Be honest, you do like horror movies don't you?" She questioned again after sensing his uneasiness and he nodded his head in crystal clear lie, "I enjoy them."

"Really? Cause Sheesh told me that you hate horror movies."

He looked at her again and they made eye contact, "and you still decided to watch it?"

"Yes. Because I wanted to hear it from you not him. But you kept lying!"

"I only said yes because you wanted to watch it, besides it's your turn to pick what we do today so I couldn't say no and ruin your plan."

"It's not about ruining the plan Sanskaar, it's about being honest. You should've told me you hate horror movies, I would've made a different plan."

"How could I have? I wanted to try doing what makes you happy. Isn't that also a way to know what type of things you're interested in?"

"Shhhhh! The movies about to start, this is a cinema hall not your bedroom, so fight outside!" The man behind them interrupted and yelled, annoyed with Swara and Sanskaar's mini argument.

Swara exhaled and turned around, facing him. "Excuse me Uncle, we paid for the ticket. The movie hasn't even started. Everyone else is talking. Even you were giggling with your girlfriend, so you had no rights to tell us off. Do you come here to watch a movie or have an affair?"

"Swara. . ." Sanskaar whispered shockingly and held her hand, while she passed a look to the man who was too stunned to speak.

"You. . ." He had no words and Swara stood up, "rude girl!"

"Let's go Sanskaar. Looks like we are disturbing someone's affair." Swara taunted and started walking away, Sanskaar stood up and followed her.

The man was frustrated and lashed out, "yes, go hold her pallu and run behind her like a puppy. Instead of explaining to your girlfriend you're letting her be rude and out of character."

Sanskaar stopped after successfully managing to get out of the tow and turned.

"Uncle Ji. . ." He trailed off and Swara stopped while standing near the exit, turning around after hearing Sanskaar. "She said nothing wrong." He continued and the man looked at him.

"Before pointing at her character make sure yours is perfect. I'm sure you have a wife, who is being cheated on by you. If you want to talk about character then fix yours and don't be a scumbag!" Sanskaar insulted and walked away, leaving the man to fume.

Swara curled a small smile and then hid it as she saw Sanskaar approaching her. "You took your time." She taunted and started heading outside the theatre.

"Swara. . ."

"Hmm?" She stopped after they left the theatre and faced him.

"Today is the last day of the dates, where you will make your final decision. . . What. . ."

She cut him in between, "the days not over yet Sanskaar, we still have things to do. And I'll tell you my decision right towards the end."

He nodded his head and she held his hand, "let's go eat now. I wanted to try the street food place near the bridge."

He nodded his head and two went to spend their last date together.

First, as planned they ate at the street food stall near the bridge, and then went to the park, riding rented cycles. After that, they went to the highest peak point ever, watching the city from it. And as the day was slowly over, they were sat inside the car outside Swara's house.

"So. . ."

"You tell me, how did you like the week with me?" She interrupted him, wanting to know his opinion first.

"I enjoyed it. It was tiring, fun, and felt new. But it felt good to have you besides me. I feel like keeping you forever."

She passed him a small smile, "I did like it too. Though we had many indifferences and we argued nearly every other day. I think it was an okay week and about doing this again, um. . ." She gave it a genuine thought, "I think I'd wanna do it. I want to give you a chance. We should. . . Date."

A smile appeared over his lips and he held her hand, she glanced at his hand and then at him, startled to see him leaned so close to her.

"I love you." He whispered near her cheek and she exhaled, feeling her heart hitting against her chest.

He gave her a peck on the lips and her cheeks heated up, changing their colour.

"What the. . ." He pecked her again and she placed her hand over his lips. "You're annoying!" She replied and opened the door, stepping out with her bag.

Sanskaar grinned and Swara closed the door, rushing inside.

X

After a while, Swara was freshened up and joined her family for dinner.

"How was your day?" Janki asked and Swara nodded her head, "it was good. How did your day go?"

"Mine went fine."

"Sorry I'm late. . ." Ragini rushed towards her seat and sat down. "The shoot took a little too long."

"Quickly put some in before it gets cold." Janki uttered and Ragini nodded.

Rajveer glanced at Janki, signing her to speak while Janki was hesitant. Ragini and Ayush notice their parents exchanging glances.

"Swara. . ." Rajveer cleared his throat, and Swara looked at him after taking a bite. "There's something me and your mother would like to talk to you about."

Swara was confused but nodded her head, signing them to continue and Ragini furrowed her eyebrows.

"Is this about Sanskaar?" She asked casually and Swara surprisingly glanced at Ragini who smiled after seeing her parents reactions. "Mom they're only dating, it's fine. There won't be anything more. . . Right?" Ragini turned to a stunned Swara who glared at her.

"So that boy in the car was Sanskaar?" Ayush questioned and looked at Swara who looked at him.

"About him, are you two serious about each other? Ragini had told us that you're in a relationship with him after I saw you two in the shopping mall few days ago." Janki asked, sounding serious while waiting for Swara to respond.

Swara didn't know what to say. "Do you like him?" She looked at Rajveer, swallowing her spit while shaking her head positively.

Janki was shocked and Ragini dropped her spoon, "so you're deciding to give him a chance? Swara, you deserve better!"

"Ragini. . ." Swara trailed off while looking at her seriously, not in the mood to joke.

This sudden situation was giving her tension, she wasn't sure how to be honest with her family regarding this situation.

"Do you want to spend the rest of your life with him?" Janki asked and Swara nodded her head after giving a thought.

Rajveer sighed and so did Janki, "so we didn't do anything wrong."

Swara creased her forehead after hearing Rajveer sigh a relief and stared at them confusingly.

"I actually don't want to give you away so soon, you only came to us and I feel like we need more time together and so do you and Sanskaar, so. . . Me and Rajveer decided to get you engaged to him. We've already spoken to Ram and Sujata about this and they're happy."

"Hmm?" Her eyes widened after hearing Janki and she was clueless on what to say.

"Why, you don't want to?" Ragini asked and Swara glanced at her.

"No, I mean. I don't mind but, all of a sudden?"

"You are going to marry him aren't you Swara?" Janki was curious and Swara shrugged, surprising Janki. "Look Swara, being engaged doesn't always mean you have to marry that person, it just means he's the one for now. You can always break off the engagement, but it's just a way to give your relationship with Sanskaar a new light. We are really chill about it, you can date him if you want but unfortunately Durga is conservative, he'd like you to be engaged if he ever found out you two were in a relationship, even though Ram on the other hand, who is nonchalant, Durga is really protective about his image and respect among the society. He never had a girlfriend before, he only loved Annapurna and married her, but instead of secretly dating Annapurna, he chose to marry her straightaway. So, I think it's best to be engaged to Sanskaar and openly date him without feeling awkward or the need to hide it."

Swara understood Janki's concern and agreed with her as she thought about it. The bitter it was, it's still the truth of this society. They're more open to accepting an fiancés in relationship rather than a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship.

"And like Mom said Swara, you can break the engagement off anytime so don't feel pressured that you have to marry him. Being engaged doesn't mean he's always the one, it simply means you're taken in a way no one will judge you for, you can always break up with him later on."

"Okay, as you wish. I'll get engaged to him." She agreed and curled a small smile over her lips.

"I can't believe it's him though." Ayush joked and Swara chuckled while Ragini agreed with him.

XX

Maheshwari Mansion

Sanskaar walked inside the mansion and as he was heading up the stairs, Sujata walked down and stood in front of him.

"Your Papa is saying that you're taking a lot of early leaves at work. What is wrong?"

"Nothing." He replied and curled a nervous smile, "I just take breaks and meet with friends that it."

"You're meeting your friends quite often."

"Mom, we used to see each other a lot in college so I'm used to seeing them a lot. The working life is still new to me."

She raised her eyebrow suspiciously yet decided to let it slide and then smirked, "by the way Swara's parents called today. . ." She trailed off and walked down and past him, having his full attention.

"What did they say?"

"They were asking for Swara's hand in your hand for an engagement, but we refused."

Sanskaar was shocked "what! Why?" He followed his mother down and Sujata hid her smile before turning, "what do you mean why? She doesn't even like you, you probably don't like her, and after all that happened between you and her, it won't make sense if you two want to be together. So we refused."

"But Mom. . ."

"Why? Do you want to get engaged to her?"

"I. . . Yes, I do."

"But she wouldn't want to. Why would she, you're probably so annoying to her." Sujata turned back around and Sanskaar held onto her shoulder.

"Mom it's nothing like that. She'd want to too. But why did you say no. You ruined it!"

"Why are you getting so upset? How do we know if she wants to, you're just assuming! Besides, the guilt didn't let me say yes."

"Mom. You should've asked me first." He complained with a frown and Sujata turned.

"I was only joking, I said yes. But why are you getting so impatient?"

"Mom I like her and you said no to. . ." Sanskaar stopped after realising what Sujata had said, "Huh? You said yes?"

"And now I see, the friend you go to meet after taking early leaves from work. . . It's Swara isn't it?"

Sanskaar sighed a relief and touched his chest, nodding at Sujata's question.

Sujata smiled, "treat her well. She's a nice girl. Now I'll call them and confirm the dates for the engagement, you go freshen up. I'll warm some food for you."

"Thank you Mom. You're the best." He side hugged his mother who shook him away from her, "enough of this love drama, go freshen up."

"I love you Mom!" Sanskaar exclaimed loudly and started heading up.

Sujata shook her head negatively and took her phone out, dialling a number while heading to the kitchen.

x

After entering his room, he immediately started messaging Swara, and soon after she replied, he called her and sat on his bed.

"We're getting engaged." He excitedly chirped and she replied "I know, why are you getting so happy, it's not like we're getting married."

"I know but, engagement is a step closer to being married without any drama or hurdles. It's a relationship both of our families consent. So I'm happy. I'm happy that you're allowed to be mine."

"You sure watch a lot of romance movies don't you. Which movie's dialogue did you steal?"

"Why? Did I make your heart flutter?"

"No, you just sounded cheesy."

"Ahh."

"And clingy!" He heard Ragini's voice from the call and looked on. "Am I on loud speaker?"

"No but you're so loud that she can hear you."

"I'm sat right next to her." Ragini uttered and chuckled, "I didn't know Sanskaar was romantic too. It seemed like he only knew how to argue back."

"I'm always nice to everyone that are precious to me."

"You're about to enter our family too, don't know what magic you did on Swara that she's head over heels but your cheesy dialogues won't work on me or Ayush. You have to work extra hard to impress us."

"Nah. I already have what's mine, so I don't need extras."

"Hah very funny, she's mine too. I can steal her back from you! Remember, sisters before misters, so stay in your line."

"You sisters sure know how to argue back."

"Huh? You're saying all Swara ever does is argue?"

"No, I didn't say that. . ."

The call cut and Sanskaar sighed, "this Ragini. What does she have against me. What can I do to impress her so she lets me keep Swara?" He wondered to himself and laid on his bed while staring at the ceiling.

But before he could think about that, he left a message for Swara clearing the misunderstanding that was caused by Ragini few seconds ago.

x

Having no response from Swara for over four hours had Sanskaar worried. He couldn't handle it anymore and made his way to her house at 1am in the morning, successfully climbing to her balcony. Luckily it had pipes which allowed him to make it up there. He peeked in and saw a figure sleeping on the bed. He slid his phone out and called Swara making sure it was the right balcony he was in. He saw the phone light and sighed a relief.

Swara woke up and held her phone, seeing Sanskaar's called ID. "Hello?" She answered in a sleepy tone.

"Swara it's cold, open the door."

She was confused and sat up, opening her eyes fully while yawning. "Hmm?"

"Balcony."

She tilted her head to the balcony and saw him waving at her. Her eyes widened and she instantly got off the bed, heading towards the balcony.

"What are you doing here so late?"

"I came to see you. You didn't reply to my text so I was worried."

Swara opened the balcony door and Sanskaar disconnected the call, entering the room. He closed the door from behind.

"You came all the way here because I didn't reply?" 

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I was worried."

"You already explained yourself over text. What else was I meant to say?"

"You left me on seen Swara, I was worried something happened. And you didn't answer when I called you."

"All we do is argue don't we?"

"I was only joking." He replied and she scoffed, "I know. I didn't get time to reply back because I was with Ragini. And by the time I had seen your message it was late so I thought you were asleep."

"Ohh."

"You overthink too much, by the way how did you know this was my room?"

"I guessed." He replied and she looked on.

"What do you went to someone else's room?"

"I guess luck was on my side." He replied and she walked towards her table, turning the lamp light on to give the dark room a bit of shine.

She then closed her room door and locked it.

"Why are you locking the door?"

"So no one misunderstands when they're walking past. It's still wrong for you to be in my room at 1am!" She exclaimed in a low tone, walking towards him tiredly.

"I'm sorry I woke you up." He apologised and walked towards her, holding her face and she stared at him. "And I realised, one partner needs to be over romantic to make a relationship work. And I guess that'll be me in our case." He added and pecked her forehead.

Her heartbeat increased and cheeks flushed by his sudden movement. She felt butterflies dancing in her stomach and clenched her fist while blinking at him surprisingly.

"It's late. . . You should go." She whispered softly and he shook his head. "I just came, it's too early to go. Let me stay for a bit." He whispered back tucked her hair behind her ear.

He held her by the hand and took her to the bed, making her sit. "Go to sleep, I'll watch you fall asleep and then sneak back out. I feel bad you woke up, so I'll help you fall asleep."

She was too stunned to speak and he made her lay down, taking a seat next to her and pulling the blanket over her.

"Good night." He wished and caressed her head.

She felt warm and secure, closing her eyes while resting. He stopped and tucked her in, standing up to leave but she opened her eyes and held onto his hand before he could leave. He stopped and turned back around, looking at her.

"Don't leave yet." She uttered and he looked at her, she then pulled him closer to her and he laid next to her, facing her while she faced him.

"I love you too." She whispered and he was stunned by her sudden confession. 

The two blinked at each other and Sanskaar leaned forward, placing his lips over her lips and she closed her eyes, reciprocating to the kiss.

The broke the kiss and he gave her a hug, leaning closer to her while patting her back. She rested her forehead on his chest and closed her eyes, making herself comfortable.

The whole night, he stayed with her as the two cuddled in each other's warmth. He didn't realise when he fell asleep but she did, he fell asleep before she had and covered him with the same blanket.

It was finally happening for Swara, everything she thought she could never possible dream of is happening. She found her family, she's on her way to her dream job and now someone to love and someone who loves her. Everything was going smooth, and she wishes it would stay like this. . . forever.

The End

—

Finally finished! After year, literally after years I have finally finished this story!

I hope all of you enjoy the last chapter. Do let me know how you felt.

Thank you so much for supporting, encouraging and loving this story ❤️😘
Thank you for being patient with meee! 🥺❤️

I love all of you so so so so so muchhhhh! ❤️❤️❤️❤️

Take care everyone!
Have an amazing day.