One Month Later

" Do we really have to go to the party tonight Ragini?" Swara asked her sister even as she turned towards her wardrobe trying to choose the dress.

" Swara, I can't say no to attend the Party. Laksh is my boss and it is his birthday party" Ragini spoke up clearly trying hard to fool her into believing that is all there is to for the invitation from the Maheshwari family.

"Tell me Ragini, how many of your colleagues are invited. We all know that he invited you because you are his friend not as an employee. But even if you want to argue it is just a work relationship, why do I have to go as well" Swara answered back after selecting a blue dress and hoping her sister would admit that she is falling for her boss aka Lucky.

" Fine maybe Laksh is a good friend of mine, but so is Sanskar a good friend to you. And you are only coming to the party for him. Don't think I don't notice how much you chat everyday after the trip to our Grandparents house. And you are always is plus one to any event he had to attend as the heir presumptive of the Maheshwari industries. Didn't he buy you this Blue dress for one of his party?" Ragini responded back with a smirk as if daring Swara to deny it.

" Well it is because he needs someone to keep him off drinking and I volunteered for the job like a sponsor or something . " Swara answered back unwilling to let Ragini see the extent of her interest in Sanskar and his happiness.

After Sahil left and her father was kicked out. They both stayed one more day with her Grandparents before taking their leave after Laksh called in to assure that Sahil had indeed contacted the lawyers and the debt had been paid by the Maheshwari's.

On the way back Swara knew the charade of being his fiancee would end the moment the step on to the city  because without Sahil there was no need for the ruse and she was also aware that while her grandparents were okay with Sanskar paying the debt, it had been because they believed he was her fiancée.

But Swara wasn't really his fiancee and by coming to her rescue Sanskar had been left with no choice but to pay her father's debt and it felt like a big ask from an casual acquaintance.

" I would love to say that I will pay you back as soon as possible, but we both know the truth. If I was anywhere near capable of paying his debt then I wouldn't be here in the first place. I can negotiate with small payment each month but I am aware that my monthly check and my sister monthly check after our expenses won't cut much in the original amount for years.

So here I am feeling like the worst person who taken advantage of your kindness, first I made you into my fiancée then pushed you to use your name as a shield for my safety and now you had to pay my father's debt as well. So tell me is there anything I can do for you, anything that will make me feel as if I didn't take advantage of your kindness" Swara spoke up on the way back.

Swara had expected Sanskar to either assure her that it wasn't much or tell her that there was nothing she can do for him. Because in truth even as she offered him a favor she was aware that there was nothing she can really do for him, so had been surprised when he spoke up with a favor.

" Be my sponsor, seeing your family and your drunken father made me aware of my family and how my drinking and general destructive behavior destroys their happiness bit by bit. I had justified my actions as heart break and my destructiveness as if there was no reason for me to live after Kavitha's death. But i do realize now that I was walking on a path that will only lead my family into more unhappiness and I can admit when I need help" Sanskar spoke up surprising her by his request as well as admittance.

" Sponsor, aren't they usually people who you find in AA meetings. Someone who had managed to stay sober for years offering support and guidance?. While I would love to help you, I fear I am not qualified for that job" Swara answered back truthfully, she could have agreed and researched later for ways to help him but she also cared enough for him to know she wasn't the best choice for the job.

" You are right, but you have an advantage over any others I might meet. You distract me Swara from drinking and drowning my sorrow just by your presence and I don't think anyone else can take your place in that, we have known each other for such short time but I feel comfortable around you and yes I am used to drinking a lot but I am not really addicted yet. I am just heavily dependent on it to numb my sorrows.

Because an addict wouldn't be able to go two days without a drink and still drive normally like me, I just need distraction and little help" Sanskar answered back and Swara felt little bad that she judged him bit harshly on their first encounter.

Her father's drunken behavior made her assume Sanskar was similar back then. But as he said she was aware that on the two days he spend with her Grandparents, he had been a perfect gentlemen. Maybe if as he said she can be of assistance then Swara would do it not just because she felt like she owed him for his help but because she wanted to help him.

So she agreed to be his sponsor/slash friend during the ride and in the last one  month. He had lived up to his promise of staying away from drinking and she had lived up to her promise of helping him as well.

The first week, Sanskar and Swara stayed in the same house, because his family asked them to stay till all the legal hurdles were solved and their house opened again. So they had countless opportunity to be with each other after work.

Swara had taken a like to the library in the house and Sanskar would usually find her there after he returned from work. They would talk sometimes but most often they would each find a book to read and yet stay in the same room till dinner time.

Swara would have felt bad for not paying attention to her sister but Ragini had been working overtime that week. And Laksh had taken it upon himself to drive her back home every day that her sister only reaches home during dinner.

If his family noticed that Sanskar wasn't drinking during the week, no one commented on it to her. When Swara and Ragini finally moved out to their house after much resistance from Sanskar's family especially his mother who insisted the house was big enough for all of them.

But Swara and Ragini couldn't overstay their welcome. Also Ragini felt that it won't look good on her if others found she was staying in her boss house. So they moved and Swara feared that she couldn't help Sanskar much after that but they simply changed the location and continued to live the same.

First it started as a coffee shop meet, then when Ragini gotten night shift, he had taken her to dinner instead. It was exactly after two weeks Sanskar invited her to attend as his plus one for a party.

He gave her the dress, and said she can either take it as a gift or bribe and insisted that he would like to have her by his side for the Party since there would be too much of alcohol in the party and he could be tempted.

Swara agreed and it also became an habit that for events Sanskar would invite her to be his plus one. But Laksh's Birthday Party wasn't like that, for one it was happening in his house and there would be no alcohol and two he didn't actually invite her tonight.

The invite came from Laksh's mother who wanted both sisters to come for the celebration. And they even send their family driver to pick them up for the party. Thus making their attendance inevitable.

                     ***************

Sujatha Maheshwari must have glanced at the door million times in the last fifteen minutes that her sister in law had to reassure her that Swara was indeed coming to the party with Ragini.

Sujatha had waited for one month without saying a word about the continuing relationship between Sanskar and Swara. In fact she encouraged it as silently as possible because she didn't want to spook them.

But her son was not seeing the extent of positive influence Swara had in him. Sujatha did, she noticed her son spending more time with Swara over the days, she noticed her son was quick to smile than before and she noticed that over the 30 days she had yet to see her son coming home drunk.

That in itself was more than enough for Sujatha to want Swara as her bahu. Because she wants her son's happiness but it had been her sister in law who insisted that they should just not see from Sanskar perspective but also Swara's.

" The girl had been hounded to marry someone because of her father over a year Sujatha and even if our intention is good. We need to see how she feels about our Sanskar " her sister in law had spoken and Sujatha had to agree with it, hence the invite to today's party.

Sujatha is not going to be subtle anymore, once she sees Swara tonight. She will ask her how she feels about her son. Because she knew her son is falling in love with her already and she was not prepared to see her son's heart break all over again.

Sujatha had been vigilant in watching the door, it was how she knew the moment Swara entered the house along with her sister. And also because she was a mother first, she knew where her son was throughout the party.

Sujatha had planned on peppering Swara with questions during the party, she could have hardly contained her excitement and waited for her to arrive first but when she looked now between the two of them and saw the smile the lit up on both of their faces as soon as they noticed each other. She had all the answer she needed to know about those two that they are not just falling in love but are already in love.

Call it a mother's intuition, Sujatha Maheshwari knew her son was in love with Swara, and the way Swara searched for him in the party the moment she stepped inside the house and how her face brightened to see him was all the answer she needed to know about Swara's heart.

Sujatha had seen how destroyed her son was when he lost Kavitha and she has no intention of letting history repeat itself. She knew those two still may think of themselves as friends but they will soon come to terms with their heart because a match making mama was going to be not so subtle anymore and she intends to win in her schemes for her son as well as her future daughter happiness.

P.S:" That is it for now. Let me know your thoughts and feedbacks . Hit the votes if you liked it "

Juanita Reid