Nidhi walked into the gym with a look of stoic resignation. Hearing her footsteps, a gleam of devilry appeared etched onto Pavan’s handsome countenance drenched in sweat. His lips twisted into a smile as he switched off the treadmill. He snapped his head to the side to face her and for a minute, his heart skipped a beat looking at the vision she presented. Pavan’s eyes roamed over her frame that was draped in a Kerala sari. His eyes crinkled with admiration at her resolute body language as she stared him in the eye.
“Last I heard you were getting married today,” Pavan’s gruff voice did not try to hide the sarcasm at all.
Nidhi balled her fists even as her face remained impassive. But Pavan could read the fire raging in her eyes.
“Is this all about your obsession to never lose? Am I a win you are desperate for? Because I cannot convince myself that the Pavan Thampuran would go to such lengths for a mere girl like me when he can have throngs of women at his disposal,” she shot straight.
Pavan let out a loud rumble of laughter as he reached for the bottle of water on the table. He took his time to quench his thirst before he meet Nidhi’s razor-sharp gaze.
“I don’t mind losing, Nidhi. And the streak of wins I have makes me bored,” he drawled as he plonked down on the bean bag that was placed directly in her line of vision. Biting his lips in an attempt to conceal the fun he is having at her expense he continued, “You will simply have to convince yourself that I am desperate for you. That I want to play with you rather than against you.”
His eyes danced with mischief as he took in her balled fists and the way her doe eyes turned hard as granite.
“So,” he drawled, taking a sip from his bottle, “can we discuss the terms and conditions of our deal?”
“You bought him because you couldn’t buy me. What makes you think you can buy me now when I have nothing more to lose?” Nidhi challenged him with spite.
Pavan took a pause to answer that but the glint in his eyes was hinting at confidence, “Because you stand to gain a lot if you lend me your hand, Nidhi.” Rubbing his nails on his thumb he said with calculated precision, “you made a wrong choice by pledging your dreams and ambitions for love. The sacrifice you are making is not worth it. I want you to choose wisely.”
“And that wise choice is supposed to be you?” Nidhi’s voice shook with derision.
Chuckling darkly Pavan said, “Unfortunately for you, yes.”
Nidhi gritted her teeth as a violent urge to slice out the smug expression on his face roared through her entire being.
As if reading her thoughts, Pavan’s grin grew wider.
“Quit the act, Nidhi. You know I am right. The real question is how long you are going to take to accept it,” Pavan raised his arms to support his head.
Nidhi slammed her eyes shut, trying to rein in her emotions. After a beat, when her doe eyes reappeared, they were crystal clear.
“I guess I’ll not make you wait anymore. I’m ready to accept your deal.”
“Not so soon, sweetheart,” Pavan smirked, “you delayed this decision a little too much to my liking, not to forget insulted me when I proposed the deal. So I’ve made amendments to the deal I placed before you.” Nidhi’s gaze narrowed and her body language turned defensive as she waited for the new cunning curve Pavan had planned for her.
Reading her diligently, Pavan worded out her death knell with the next statement, “Now it will no longer be enough for you to be my fake girlfriend; you have to be my legally wedded wife and there is no room for falsehood in this amended contract.”
Nidhi balked as if she had been physically struck, whereas Pavan was completely unapologetic in his stance. While initially he did not want to coerce her into a wedlock when she was so young, her resistance, and the complications that might arise with time, put him on guard.
I needed a fool proof plan to ensure Nidhi’s destiny to be tied down to me. So like a kingmaker, I struck when the iron was hot.
“You are a monster,” Nidhi roared out as the last vestiges of her control snapped.
Whenever I am around this obstinate man, I lost my calm and collected persona and transform into a girl who has raw emotions and violent streaks to offer. She was breathing hard and her eyes had turned blood red as she stared him down.
If looks could kill, Kerala would have been mourning the death of a superstar today, Pavan mused with a carefree grin.
And that grin gyrated on Nidhi’s already fried nerves. She was about to launch into a tirade when she noticed the glint in Pavan’s eyes. He was clearly enjoying sparring with her. Nidhi quelled her murderous instincts just to deny him the satisfaction that he sought from her outburst. Closing her eyes, she inhaled and exhaled slowly, willing herself to think with her head and not heart. Several minutes of thick silence ensued as Pavan coolly waited for her to collect her bearings and agree with him simply because he had left her with no choice.
She lost in love today. It is an ordeal that has fill her with a bitterness that is hard to clamp down. Today, she won’t prioritise her emotions but what really matters to her. Nothing and no one should matter more than her ambition to her, I’ll make sure of that. And for that ambition she will conform to the absurdity I’ve concocted for us. At the end of the day, she will win in life and I’ll win alongside her, Pavan’s conscience rang clear despite the devious designs he was canvassing around Nidhi’s existence.
After what felt like eons, Nidhi spoke. “I will marry you,” she stated tersely. Pavan felt his heart take a leap at her words and relief coursed through him. But he knew he’d not have it easy from Nidhi, and he wasn’t disappointed. “We will be the picture-perfect couple before the world and our families. But…”
“But you will keep resisting me within the four walls of our room,” Pavan completed for her with a chuckle. “Nidhi, I’ve done this scene a hundred times already before the camera. I expected novelty from you. ”
“Trust me Mr. Pavan Thampuran, I’ll offer a completely novel experience in our marital life together,” Nidhi she chewed out the words indignantly.
Pavan laughed out loud., “I’ll hold you to that promise.”
Their eyes locked in a battle of wills as his gaze became impenetrable and hers turned inscrutable. A few days from now Pavan and Nidhi would be a married couple who would still be waging wars at each other but the newly formed bond was sure to define some ground rules for them. Rules that would bind them together for good or worse, time would tell.
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Adhiti's Musings & Books 