JENNIFER'S POV
The double doors opened as two red uniformed men pulled it revealing a grand ballroom behind it. The
theme of the party seemed to be golden and silver colors. I again stood at the entrance, gawking at the
decorations done. And again, Mayank pulled me in as I got lost admiring the preparations done for their
special day.
The entire decor was giving me a feeling as if I was about to meet a king and queen of some state.
To the left of the hall was a wooden stage set up for the couple to address their guests. It was
decorated with numerous photos of Mr. and Mrs. Dhoopar in their youthful days. They really looked
deep in love.
There were several tables placed for the guests which were assigned by their names. Mr. Sumit led the
way and the rest of the two of us followed. There were atleast 200 people present in the ceremony
leading to quite a lot of hustle and bustle. Luckily, our table was in the front row.
Once seated, I took a sweeping look at my surroundings.
While Mr. Dhoopar was busy attending to his guests, most likely the ministers of the cabinet, Mrs.
Dhoopar on the other hand, could not stop gushing about her diamond necklace and earrings set.
"Pretty amusing!" I thought, giving a half smile.
Mr. Dhoopar was a tall man in his late 60s, a very sophisticated person though. Each and every word
he spoke was measured, calculated. He had a french beard with grey eyes, that gave him a don't-
mess-with-me look. He had worn a black three piece suit. I was fascinated with the way he was
carrying himself, with great authority.
"Still, he doesn't have the enigma like that stranger in the den." My subconscious mind whispered.
What!? From where did that come from? I winced on... I don't know what. That guy wasn't ready to
leave my head.
On the other hand, Mrs Dhoopar draped herself with an orange Sabhyasachi saree, pairing it with that
diamond set. It was apparently her anniversary gift. She was a plumb, fair as the snow lady with
attractive blue eyes. She and the other ladies from her kitty were gossiping about the alliance she had
bagged for her daughter with one of the devils. I couldn't properly hear the name of the guy, it possibly
started with A though.
"Perfect opposites of one other and perfectly perfect for each other too!" I thought for the Dhoopars.
We were seated in front of the stage. Behind us, on the other end of the hall, was a big heart, from the
top ceiling to the floor, made up of red and white roses. Several girls, around my age were busy taking
hundreds of selfies there. Some guys were chatting and flirting with the 'chics' they found 'hot'. Every
single person seemed to have spent lakhs of rupees to get ready for this one night.
"Thank god I didn't come wearing Anarkali!" I mentally patted myself for not touching Anarkali for a
party like this. She's my favorite though... Haven't I told you about her? Well.... she's my favorite pink
coloured salvar kameez. I repeat... Do Not Judge Me. I like naming my stuff. It makes me feel I have
friends.
Through the heart, the way led to a medium sized garden, fully decorated with scented candles, were
the banquet had been arranged.
In short, everything was marvelous!
Then, I waiter come towards me, with a tray, full of differently coloured liquids in those typical narrow
mouthed wine glasses, high up in the air in one hand.
"Madam.... Merlot, Grenach, Gamay or Martini?" He asked bringing the tray in front of me. I kept mum.
This caught the attention of the father and hs filthy son beside me.
Never in my life, had I ever tasted wine or alcohol. I didn't even know the difference between the two if
any. What should I supposingly say? I kept staring at the glasses, embarrassed, my face acquiring a
red tint.
"Madam....?" The person asked again.
I was loosing my confidence in front of these filthy rich people. To my continued silence, Mayank
smirked at me, mockingly and my soon-to-be-father-in-law muttered,"bloody primitive bride!"
"I uh... uh.. shall go for a glass of water please." I stammered. But luckily, the waiter didn't give me a
judging look.
"Sure madam." And then, he left.
I soon drew my attention to my fingers, fiddling with them. Afterall, I wasn't one of these people, hence
this sudden change of company, status was making me uncomfortable.
"So, our children would say that before marraige, their mother used to live on streets? Atleast, she is
that primitive in her taste and knowledge for sure!" Mayank said, in an exasperated way, clenching his
chest.
I was shell-shocked.
"Just because I don't have drinks... you call such a Cardiologist as primitive of knowledge? And as far
as my taste is concerned, you are the very first person to eye-fuck me, apart from the boys here,in this
dress of my choice. Damn.it."
I was literally on the verge of spitting this out on their faces, but didn't as I knew the grave
consequences it would lead to. So, I went for something more polite.
"In case we have kids, (which I highly doubt) what would they say..? That their father tends to fuck
children. So... should they remain on high-alert too?" I said innocently, batting my lashes.
To this, Mayank fell silent, with widened eyes.
"Take that you bastard!" I screamed mentally.
"Shut up you bitch!" Thundered the bastard's father. This grabbed the attention of a few people around
us. I stood up and made my way to the garden.
"Enough of this bullshit!" I whisper-yelled.
""""""""""""""" × """"""""""""
The garden outside the ballroom was peaceful, calm. It was something which was shielding me from
those judgemental looks I had been garnering inside.
Apart from the scented candles, the clear starry night sky was adding a miraculous effect to the
environment. I stared up. I always did this, whenever upset. Counting the stars was my favourite thing
to do to think past my troubles. But soon those stupid drops of water clouded my vision.
Nobody, absolutely noone had got the right of belittling my hard work of 10 years. Being a cardiologist,
tending to a person's heart is not a child's play. I had worked day in and day out to earn that post I have
today. Not knowing fancy wine names could not tarnish my character or persona or any other damn
thing about me.
"That's Ursa Major you are looking at and the one to the west of it is Cassiopeia... MY favorite." Said a
silky voice behind me leaving me in awe and admiration.
I turned and was struck by the beauty this person had!
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