Heyyaa everyone! Ananya here. A big, heartfelt thank you to each one of you for all the likes, comments, never ending love and also the dislikes. I know I’m not perfect, guys. I’m working on my writing, some experiments do way better than my expectations, some flunk. I’m grateful though, that you guys are always patient and supportive. Anyways, stay safe, happy reading!
Twinj: My Lifeline: Episode 11
A quick recap: Twinkle and Leela’s visit to the Sarna mansion where Kunj asks Twinkle to help him in convincing Usha for a simple wedding, which Twinkle successfully handles, despite knowing that she was destroying many dreams, and not just her own. Shopping at the mall, some girls begin to pass mean comments at Twinkle, but she chooses to ignore them.
“That’s enough!” A voice boomed, making all of them turn around. There was a moment of absolute silence as everyone watched Kunj walk towards them angrily, but then hushed voices began again. Kunj stood next to Twinkle, gave her a glance and then turned towards the others. “I said that’s enough!” He repeated himself, glaring at them. “None of you have the right to speak a single word against her! Am I clear?” He thundered. “Kunj!” Twinkle called meekly, partly scared of his sudden outburst of anger. “They are all worried for you. They can’t see why you need to marry a nobody, in such a hushed and rushed manner. I don’t think they’re at fault! I’m a fan too, I totally understand because..” She managed to speak, mustering all her courage, but he cut her short. “You. Are. Not. One. Of. Them!” He spoke, emphasising on each word , and then looked back at them. “I agree that you’re all loyal fans, you want to know what’s happening in my life.” He spoke more calmly now, his mind slowly registering what Twinkle intended to make him understand. “You can ask me all you want, pester me all you want, but not her. I don’t see why she needs to suffer just because she’s the one I’m marrying!” He said, and dragged her away by her hand, leaving everyone, including her, surprised.
When Twinkle got home, Leela had been pacing in the hall worriedly. As soon as she saw Twinkle, she hugged her tight, making sure she was alright. “Twinkle, I don’t understand why you didn’t say anything to those people!” Yuvi spoke, and she noticed him for the first time since she got there. Leela explained that he had come to make sure Twinkle was fine. “I agree!” Kunj spoke, entering the house, and Yuvi stepped away from Twinkle immediately. “Hi, Kunj!” Kunj said, forwarding his hand to Yuvi. “Yuvraj. A friend of Twinkle’s.” He replied, shaking his hand momentarily, his eyes never leaving Twinkle. This didn’t go unnoticed by Kunj, who thought it was very strange. Leela asked Kunj if the issue was resolved now, and he simply nodded. He then cited that he was getting late and needed to get back home, and was walking out, when Leela insisted that Twinkle should walk him out.
“Kunj” Twinkle called out once they were far enough from eavesdropping distance. “Hmm?” He replied, still thinking of something. “That was bound to happen some time or the other..” She said, shocking him. “What?” He asked, stopping in his track. “I don’t know if you’re aware of this, but a fair amount of rumours had spread that you had been dating Alisha for quite some time now. Everyone thought they would be seeing you marry a celebrity” She explained, careful not to meet his gaze. He took a moment to think about it. “Maybe you’re right?” He said suggestively. She smiled at him and nodded. “But that doesn’t mean they could speak outrageously about you like that!” He protested, but just as she was about to speak, he added, “You are my friend. I cannot let that happen to you just because of all this..” He couldn’t find the right word to fill in, so he decided to leave instead. Twinkle sighed deeply, wondering what she had put herself into, when Chinki spoke from behind, “You are his friend. Did you hear that?” Twinkle knew exactly what she meant, but she decided to dodge it with a simple, “He’s my friend too.” Chinki looked at her right in the eye, and said, “No. He is the love of your life, he is the prince of your dreams.” Twinkle didn’t respond to that, and walked back indoors instead.
Days were passing quickly, with the arrangements for the wedding taking up so much time and attention. Twinkle totally avoided going out, not wanting another embarrassing situation to come up, and Kunj seemed to be unusually busy with his work. Chinki hadn’t given up on trying to change Twinkle’s mind about marrying Kunj, but she had largely unsuccessful until the night before the pre-wedding rituals were to begin, when the Sarnas had been invited by Leela for dinner. They had been having a cheerful conversation at the dining table, when Kunj’s phone rang. He went out to answer the call, and when he got back he insisted that he had to leave immediately for some work. Twinkle had been looking at him worriedly. He whispered to her, “Alisha has regained consciousness for the first time since the accident! She will want to see me now, I need to go!” While the others thought it was very cute that the couple was bonding, Twinkle felt her heart break into a million pieces. She managed to smile back at him cheerfully, and then left the table saying she would be back. She followed Kunj out, and watched him leave excitedly. Twinkle couldn’t hold back her tears anymore. It was all over for her. She had hoped that somehow, by some miracle, she and Kunj would actually be able to build themselves a happy future in a little world of their own.
Later, when Twinkle got back to her room, Chinki’s warnings came back to haunt her. “It’s never too late, Twinkle!” Chinki had said. Weighing her options, she realised she would always choose Kunj over herself, no matter what. Smacking her forehead, she reminded herself that she loved Kunj enough to be able to do all that for him that he asked of her. She told herself that she needed to stop imagining happy scenarios in her head, lest she should be left crying all her life. She just needed to go with the flow, she thought, sighing deeply. She smiled as she thought of all the rituals and had been taking out her clothes for the next day, when she heard a low tapping sound. She opened the balcony door, and there he was, the prince of her dreams, just like she had imagined a thousand times before. But he didn’t look happy, she noticed. She brought him in quickly, and closed the door. “What are you doing here so late in the night?” She asked, wondering if he had secretly sneaked in or Usha had forced him to come and see her since he had left abruptly before. She then immediately shut her laptop, on which she had kept a folder full of his pictures open absentmindedly, hoping he hadn’t seen his pictures. That would be horrible. “I needed to speak to someone.. couldn’t think of anyone else who would understand..” He said, breaking her bubble.
Twinkle offered him a glass of water, which he accepted gratefully. She then sat down beside him on the couch, placing her hand on his assuringly. “Is Alisha alright?” Twinkle asked, feeling a burden on her heart at the thought. He simply nodded. Twinkle wasn’t sure how she felt about that. “Is the wedding called off then?” She asked herself, but dared not voice it out loud, fearing that the response would shatter her beyond repair. “Did… Usha Ma say something?” She asked instead, he just shook his head in a ‘No’. “You can tell me anything you want, I promise to listen. I won’t judge you either” She said finally, her eyes glistening with tears. She closed her eyes immediately, anticipating the worst. Her mind was already wondering how she would break the news to Leela and how she might react to it. Even in her own crisis, her thought went out to her Ma first. She wondered if she would have to be the one convincing Usha too. That would be a hard task. What would happen of her then? Would she be able to take it?
That’s it for now guys. I hope I didn’t bore you, this was an episode that dealt more of with emotions than any occurrence. Tell me what you think about it. Until next time,
Lots of Love