I keep the vote goal only for early update purposes as it gives me a boost to write fast. Please keep it in my mind the vote goals are not targets!!!

I will update as per the schedule even if the goal doesn't reach.

Emotional chapter, and long chapter, ahead! (not that long tho only 2304 words) but it's the longest chapter I have written in this book.

Happy reading!

Inline comments are love.💜

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"Harshitha, bring that orange plate ma!" Radha hollered from outside as they prepared for the Pandha Kaal Muhurtha.

When both the families pile/erect a bamboo pole at the entrance of their house and offer prayers to god for a peaceful, happy wedding.

This ritual was done mainly to ensure that the wedding preparations proceed without any interruptions and also to let the world know that the family is holding a wonderful wedding in place.

(obviously taken from google😅)

"Yes, athai!"

"Vihana, call Hari and ask if he bought the things on the list."

"Okay maa." Vihana blushed at the mention of his name as she remembered the morning incident where they both stole glances at one another.

"Vihana, why are you daydreaming? I asked you to call Hari."

Vihana scrambled up from the chair to call him immediately before her mother would start her scolding session.

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Everyone come down for breakfast." Harshitha called, standing at the entrance of the terrace.

The men nodded and walked down, leaving Harshitha and Vikram alone.

"So?"

"So?"

"Why you messaged me to stay back on the terrace. May I know the reason?" Vikram asked with a smile as Harshitha blushed shyly.

"What did I even say that made you blush?" He raised his eyebrow in question looking at her as she looked around nervously.

"Don't tell me you want to kiss me, with our bunch of relatives downstairs, baby! you are becoming bold day by day, first biting my lips and now kissing in the open space-" Vikram stopped as her warm hands came in contact with his forehead.

"Stay still!" Vikram stood still as Harshitha drew a small tilak with kumkum on his forehead gently.

"It's just that I saw Paati keeping kumkum on thatha forehead, it looked cute that's why." Vikram grinned as his darling mumbled, playing with his shirt button.

"And give your dirty mind holiday!" Before he would catch her, she ran away smiling.

What they both didn't notice is a jealous figure glaring at them furiously.

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Sleepless, Harshitha laid awake at midnight. She looked around to see everyone asleep. Even prathyuksha, who was awake a moment ago, was asleep, hugging her phone to her chest.

The day ended with a happy note, but not for Harshitha and her mother.

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In the morning, during the rituals, Not even an hour passed, her aunt Swetha began to fight with her mother for doing the ritual wrong or not giving her a chance to perform it. So to the maximum, the mother-daughter duo avoided Swetha.

In the evening, when Harshitha spilled water on the kitchen floor by mistake. Swetha ridiculed her and mocked her mother for not teaching her manners.

How the hell manners and water were connected?

Only after prathyuksha intervened, Swetha stopped and moved out of the kitchen, not before whispering something in Harshitha's ear that made her gasp.

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Closing her eyes, Harsitha tried to sleep, but Swetha's taunting words kept echoing in her mind.

'Before this wedding ends, I will surely make you Mother and Daughter cry!'

It's not unusual occurring. There will always be a fight if Swetha is there, but this time the way Swetha said with a strange glint in her eyes made Harshitha sweat.

Taking a deep breath, Harshitha tried to relax, but the nagging feeling in her heart kept increasing.

Prathyuksha stirred, hearing someone panting so hard, she looked at her right to see Harshitha curled up, having trouble breathing. Her eyes were closed, but her breathing came out labored.

"Harshi"

"Harshitha!" Harshitha felt someone patting her shoulder to wake her up, bringing her back to reality.

"Akka?" She looked up to see Prathyuksha hovering over her face, her eyebrow furrowed in worry, and eyes analyzing her face for answers.

(Akka-elder sister)

"Are you okay?" Prathyuksha asked her cousin as she switched on the night lamp while harshitha winced as the light pierced her eyes.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine."

"Do you want some water?" Without waiting for her reply, prathyuksha walked to the study table, where a water pitcher was kept.

"Oh, sorry. The pitcher is empty. Wait here. I will fill this up and come." Prathyuksha whispered, looking up from the empty jar with a smile.

"Akka, No problem. I will go and fetch some for me, and you sleep as It's your big day tomorrow. You don't want to look like a zombie, do you?" Harshitha teased, taking the pitcher out of her hand, to which Prathyuksha shoved her playfully to the door.

"Okay, be careful on your way. I don't need someone saying they broke their bone attending my wedding." Harshitha laughed, closing the door quietly, silencing her words completely.

As this a 3BHK home, not everyone would get a bedroom to sleep, so the men agreed to sleep on the terrace and living room, giving the three bedrooms for the ladies to rest.

The actual plan was for them to stay at their respective home in RS Puram, but Prathyuksha's mom insisted everyone stay together.

Harshitha walked towards the kitchen by the living room where some of her relatives slept. Placing her palm against the wall as a support, she stepped over someone's leg cautiously.

She breathed in relief for not waking anyone at this hour.

Taking the lid off, she stood before the water purifier tiredly, waiting for the water to fill, as it took ages to fill.

Her body tensed up as she heard a door creak from upstairs. Till now, she was not that conscious of her surrounding, but now she could hear someone's footsteps as the person descended the stairs.

Her knuckles turned white from her hold on the pitcher as the footsteps neared her. But all of a sudden, everything became silent. Only the noise of the fan could be heard, making her aware of her so calm surroundings.

Harshitha gulped, her eyes looking around vigilantly with the pitcher pressed tight against her chest.

She waited a moment, hearing no sound, she breathed, shaking her head for fearing unnecessarily over something silly.

Turning around, she closed the now-filled pitcher with its lid and walked towards the stairs.

A loud gasp left her mouth as someone hugged her from behind, their hold was so tight that she felt suffocated.

She struggled to get off that person's arms as she realized the person wasn't Vikram. Vikram's hold was never tight, he was always gentle with his touch, and he would never be this rough. She would even identify his touch in her sleep!

She stomped on her feet on his foot as she trashed against his hold, it felt like thousand of a caterpillar crawling on her skin when he touched her arms with her fingertip.

She opened her mouth to shout, but the person muffled her voice by placing his palm on her mouth, dragging her inside the dark kitchen.

The moment his lips came in contact with her skin, Harshitha dropped the water pitcher, the glass breaking into hundreds of pieces like her heart, piercing their bare feet as correctly someone switched on the light.

That person moved back from her but still held her hand forcefully.

Disguised, Harshitha turned around to see a smirking Arjun, he looked smug with his chin raised high haughtily as if asking her. 'what?'

She raised her hand to slap him but paused halfway as the sound of someone clapping echoed in the now bright kitchen.

She turned around in horror to see a smirking Swetha standing there and clapping loudly. She looked scary with a wide grin on her face, her eyes shining in an evil glint as she walked towards them slowly, still clapping.

Her heart dropped to her stomach as all the light turned on. A series of footsteps followed by some mummers of the question 'who dropped a glass' 'who is clapping'.

"Oh, who do we have here, the great Sakthi's precious daughter, princess of the family?" Swetha mocked, tilting her to a side with a smirk as everyone entered the kitchen but stopped on their track as they took in the disheveled appearance of Harshitha and Arjun.

Someone gasped, pointing out their bleeding feet while Swetha paid no heed to them, asked a series of disgusting questions.

"What's happening here." Sakthi's confused voice came from the back as everyone moved aside to give her the way. Her breath hitched as she took in her daughter's tear-stricken face and disheveled appearance.

"Ah, here comes her mother. Look at your daughter, not even completed her studies, but making out with a boy. Who knows what all the things she has done. 'Thayapolla Pillai, Noolapola Selai' nu summa va andha kalathula sonnaga?" Swetha accused, throwing a shady look at Sakthi.

(A childlike its mother, a sari like its thread, did the elders say this simply without a reason?")

(meaning- children imitate the doings of parents, it may be good or bad deeds, they reflect parents' behavior. so growing up as a good/bad human depends on parents, similar to that quality of the thread defines the quality of the saree)

"Maa, nothing like that maa." Harshitha shook her head, her throat tightening up as she looked at her mother getting teared up.

"Harshi, why are you lying? Athai, maama, We are in love with each other, and I would like to ask Harshi's hand in marriage." Arjun lied, holding her hands forcefully, he tightened his hold when she tried to remove her hands from his. (Aunt, uncle)

Hearing his words, the whole room went into pin-drop silence. Harshitha's breathing became frantic as she tried to digest what's happening here. Her bewitching black eyes turned red as she shook her head painfully.

"No way in hell I will allow that." An angry voice boomed, breaking the silence as they looked at the entrance to see a fuming Hari and Vikram.

"Why machan, we are both in love, so I am asking for your parent's permission." Arjun challenged, smirking at Vikram mockingly.

Before he could speak, someone tugged him back. Vikram's raised his hand to shove the person away but put down his raised hands once he saw his mother's face.

"Do you think that we would believe it, I know my sister, and I know about you too. Do you think that I don't know about your playboy behavior in the college?" Hari defended, shoving Arjun back hard and took his sister in an embrace whose shoulder shook as she sobbed against his chest.

"And If I see you near my sister again, it won' be nice." Hari warned, rubbing Harshitha's back gently as her breathing came out as pant.

"What a beautiful family drama! Brother defending her sister, passing the whole blame on an innocent boy, who at least wished to marry your mannerless daughter." Swetha exclaimed, crossing her arms over her chest mockingly.

"Shut up Swetha Chitti!" Prathyuksha shouted, starling everyone as she walked to the front and stood face to face with Swetha.

"Prathyuksha, watch your tone!" Swetha warned, taking a step back as prathyuksha kept walking forward.

"Or what?"

"This is not nice, and you will regret it!"

"Okay! No problem, and why the hell are you creating unnecessary problems, and are you that desperate for attention that you degrade a young girl like that. And don't speak about manners when you don't have one."

"You are crossing the line, Prathyuksha!"

"This is my house that you are standing and speaking, and I don't have to draw a line when speaking to someone like you. Who doesn't even adjust with anyone? Who refuses to share a room with anyone and demands she wants only the AC room. Are you even a human?"

"Prathyuksha, Stop ma." Prathyuksha's mom tried, stopping her daughter as she kept glaring at Swetha.

"Cat caught your tongue, huh?"

"I-- I " Swetha stuttered, looking at her husband for help but he walked away angrily.

"Everyone, go to sleep! We will speak about this tomorrow." Lakshmi ordered, patting Harshitha's back comfortingly and moved towards her room.

Slowly the crowd dispersed, passing a comforting smile to harshitha on their way.

"Harshu papa, come here." Sakthi whispered, stretching her arms to her daughter.

"Ma." Harshitha choked back a sob as she ran to her mother's waiting arms. Sakthi embraced her sobbing daughter in a warm embrace, kissing her forehead continuously, assuring that she believes her and not to cry.

Everything was silent except the Harshitha small hiccups and Sakthi's comforting words. Next, Radha took her niece in a warm hug, patting her back gently.

Suddenly someone groaned, startling everybody, they looked at the scene in horror as Vikram stood there holding a knife against Arjun's neck.

"Vikram, drop that." Radha shrieked, looking at her son wide-eyed, as he whispered something to Arjun holding a knife dangerously close to his skin.

"If I see you once again near Harshitha, I will not be speaking like this," Vikram whispered dangerously, pressing the knife lightly into his skin.

"O- okay." Arjun whimpered, sliding on the floor in defeat while everyone looked at them wide-eyed. Vikram moved back but not before stepping on his hand. By hearing the crack, Surely a bone could have fractured.

"Vikram!"

"What ma? do you want to leave him when he touched our Harshi with his dirty hands?" Vikram shouted, his hands balled into fists as he blinked rapidly to stop his tears.

"Come." Radha dragged her son away forcefully as Vikram tried to remove his arms from her hold. Vikram gulped as his eyes met his darling watery eyes. He shook his head, signaling her not to cry, to which she nodded and wiped her face with a sad smile.

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Hello, chellams!!

An emotional and dramatic chapter, what do guys think?

I felt I need to speak out about this. This happens to many girls(even for boys), Some families support and believe them, but some totally blame the girl(boy), creating a great trauma that the girl(boy) has to carry for her lifelong.

So, please think before you speak.

I really felt emotional while writing the last part.

Do you like it?

Share your thoughts

Thank you, take care.

Have a great day/Night.