Chapter 23: Chapter 23

"Lift her, lift her..." Nick was about to put the garland around her neck when they lifted her. Nick tried to put it around her neck but they did it again when everybody started cackling louder.

"Groom has to work hard, after all, we are letting him take our daughter... Bro, do something. You must not lose." Maxwell shrieked behind him. This time when they lifted her Nick jumped and put the garland around her neck. He had a proud smile of accomplishment playing on his lips.

After the exchanging of garlands thrice. During the Induction of the Bride into the Groom’s family that calls Sampradan, Sanaya was looking at the space. She was missing her family especially her parents. Her father wanted to do this ritual back when she was going to get married to Virat. Now, the groom was Nick and her father could not perform this ritual.

Nick's eyes were fixed at her. The priest was chanting mantras and Sanaya's hand was placed on Nick's hand. As she hoisted her headd up, her eyes met with his, she found him gazing at her.

She looked down to hide her tears. "Baba(father), I miss you." She whimpered...

While taking seven rounds around the fire Nick was peering at Sanaya and exchanging marital vows. Like he thought he would just follow those rituals he could not. Most of the time he kept staring at her as if he was possessed by her beauty.

Nick was staring at the rice measuring utensil. Sanaya had her eyes down, finally the little way to go and she would be taken forever. She was going to be his wife not for this life only but the next seven generations. She was going to belong to him and only him forever.

Nick glanced at her and then smeared the sindoor (vermillion) on the hair parting of Sanaya. She closed her eyes when the vermilion touched her hair, Clara grinned with her teary eyes.

She had never been to a Bengali wedding before but her best friend's wedding was the one she never expected to happen. She did know that of course, Sanaya would come to see her after marriage but her home was Sanaya's parental home, before wedding she lived there, her wedding took place there and everything that happens at a bride's place was Clara's home.

She was Sanaya's best friend, her family, and the home but after her wedding, Clara was going to miss her, she was going to live alone like before. She wiped off her tears, praying for her happiness.

Immediately after the sindoor Daan(smearing the vermilion ritual), Sanaya's head and face were covered with a new saree that's called the lajja-Bastra.

After their wedding ceremony was done, Nick did not want to have dinner as he liked to eat alone or maybe you could say it became a habit for him, staying alone was the most peaceful for him so eating alone was.

But as he saw Sanaya he sat, he took a bite on the food without saying anything. Everybody around them was laughing and talking when he was looking at Sanaya and on the food again. Sanaya smiled shyly as she saw Nick look at her. Maxwell, Raina, Clara, and some friends were teasing them.

"I can tell my bro is too much excited to meet boudi (sister-in-law) alone." As Maxwell said so everybody laughed when Sanaya blushed and lowered her head. Nick was silent, unlike other times he did not react angrily or somewhat.

After dinner was done they were about to enter a room called the Bashor Ghor. But before that along with Raina and some female friends Clara guarded the door of the Bashor Ghor. Then they started demanding money from their new brother-in-law in exchange for letting him enter the room.

"You must give us 250 USD per head or we won't let you get in." They demanded.

"No way, this is unfair. Please can we bargain?" Maxwell pleaded. "No bargain. Pay us or we won't let you see your bride." When both girls' parties and guys' parties were debating until Maxwell got to bargain and finally Nick got the opportunity to enter the Bashor Ghor.

**

"Are you ok?" When everybody was playing games Nick asked Sanaya.

"I am ok." She answered with a smile. Her eyes were sleepy, she was tired indeed.

As she saw Nick still look at her she asked, "Are you okay?"

"Hmm." He replied shortly. Sanaya could not help but yawned.

"Are you sleepy?"

"No..." She replied while trying to widen her eyes. "Why were you crying that time? I mean when the priest was saying mantras..."

Sanaya was surprised to see that he noticed she was crying. "I was missing baba, I mean my father." She answered.

"Ohh..."

Sanaya was trying to keep her eyes opened but she was very sleepy. As Nick saw her he touched her head and put her head on his shoulder. Everybody was sleeping there anyway, only Nick was still awake.

After all day he saw her face from so closer for the first time. He caressed her face. After a tiring day, she seemed to sleep peacefully, how tension-free she seemed and she was saying that she was not sleepy a while ago.

He stroked his lips against her forehead gently then touching his head with her head he closed his eyes...

**

Sanaya stepped on a vessel filled with Alta and milk and then stepped on a white cloth and walked on it. Nick was observing everything, especially her shy smile. He did not notice that he almost stumbled with Emily.

"Do you want to hold her hand?" As Emily asked so while giggling Nick glared at his hand. He had enhanced it as if he wanted to hold her hand. Seeing how he did not have a word to utter Emily laughed.

Touching his face all of a sudden Emily smiled gazing at him, "Stay always happy. Always smile like this..." Nick saw tears rolling down to the corner of her eyes. Something touched his heart, he had never been noticing Emily's motherly love for him. Damn, he felt like he wanted to not let her cry but something stopped him from doing so. He just bobbed his head.

As Sanaya stepped into her new home she was taken to the kitchen to see milk being boiled.

After Sanaya was welcomed into the family, both Nick and she sought blessings from all elders who showered them with gifts.

Emily gave her a special gift – the loha ( a special kind of bangle made with iron). "This.." Sanaya mumbled.

"I know this is important for a Bengali bride," Emile told and smiled at her. Sanaya wore it on her left wrist.

"Wait, why can't I see her? She is my wife." Nick wanted to see Sanaya but Emily, Raina, Maxwell everybody was stopping him from doing so.

Chuckling Raina explained, "Bro, please hold on a bit. It's a ritual, the bride and groom must stay separately."

Nick glanced at her making an annoyed face. Emile got up to her seat and walked towards the kitchen as she announced, "Yes, it's a ritual called Kaal Ratri. So hold on a bit. We can understand you might be impatient to see her, but not now. You guys must not see each other."

Letting out a sigh of disbelief Nick walked upstairs without saying anything when everybody was laughing. Not really that he was dying to see her but his mind kept telling him to go and see her. He could not focus on anything but kept remembering how beautiful she was looking. He thought he would go and just see her then come back to his room but sadly, he could not.

The next day

Stretching out her arms Sanaya got up to the bed without opening her eyes. She walked towards the door mumbling, "Clara..."

As she opened the door she sauntered straight. Slowly strolling she stumbled against a rock-like hard chest. Smelling the sweet fragrance she smiled and mumbled, "Delicious food. Yummy..."

But the food itself did not want her to eat it. She felt someone's finger touching her lips, motioning her not to eat it. She opened her eyes but what she met was... Those familiar attractive eyes of Nick staring at her.

"What is he doing here?" She asked in a low voice.

Nick answered glancing at her, "This is your new home and I am your husband." As she glimpsed at her wrists, slowly she recollected everything, screaming she covered her mouth with both her hands.

"I am sorry. I thought..." Interrupting her he grabbed her waist, making her gulped. "What you said earlier? If I haven't heard you wrong then you wanted to eat me, am I right? Let's go to my room, I will let you eat me." As he grabbed her hand Sanaya grinned sheepishly saying, "No, I was... I thought it might be Clara. Clara makes yummy breakfast so I thought... I thought that it... Ahh, I meant food. Yeah, delicious food you know?"

"Is it so?" He looked into her eyes. Sanaya started getting nervous but hearing people's chuckle both Sanaya and Nick looked downstairs just to find out that their morning romance had been caught off guard. Nudging him away suddenly Sanaya ran to her room.

Getting in she locked the door, breathing heavily while blushing. Nick ran his hand through his thick hair and walked to his room.

"Did you notice his cheeks turned red? Omg, this was so cute..." Emily giggled.

"I am truly happy that he is getting changed for good. All these years, what we could not do seems this girl can do it. May God fills their life with blisses and unending happiness." Hearing Nick's dad Emily grinned and declared, "This girl is a lucky for our son. I wanted to see him this way but never thought this soon... I am so happy for them."

Sanaya got freshen up but now she was struggling with the saree. Damn, she mostly wore salwar kameez, Kurtis, palazzos, and lehenga, etc in India but she always skipped saree as she did not like to wear it much and it was mostly because it was hard to handle and she did not know how to wear one. When she wore a saree for a college program or occasion or festival someone helped her always.

Sanaya bit her lips and squatted on the couch, watching on her cell phone how to wear a saree. Hearing someone knocking at the door she looked at the halfway she wore the saree. Grabbing it with both her hands she went to open the door.

Raina took a glance at her from head to toe, "What's wrong? Boudi."

"I don't know how to wear a saree..." Sanaya retorted biting her lips. Raina got an idea in her mind. Smirking she let out, "I have an idea. Gimme five seconds." With that, she left.

"But..." As she left Sanaya kept the door opened. "What should I do with this now? I don't know how to wear it but I want to wear it, for Nick..." She tried wearing it but again, ended up somehow wrapping herself with it.

"What are you doing?" Suddenly hearing Nick's voice she coated herself with the saree somehow and swiveled towards him, "Where is Raina?"

"Ahh, she said you needed help." He replied. As he walked towards Sanaya she edged her hand towards him saying, "Stop there!"

"Why?"

"What do you mean why? You... Don't you see what I am doing? You should not stay here now. Go out." Sanaya announced.

Nick peeked around instead. Grabbing a piece of clothing he put it around his eyes as a blindfold. Sanaya disputed, "What are you doing?"

"Helping my wife to drape a saree." Countering, he heightened his hand, asking her to hand him the saree so he could help.