Marrige built on lies

Aashi was sitting on the bed in her wedding saree. Rose petals were all over the white sheets around her. The faint smell of rose mixes with her perfume. She put her hand over her neck, which was tired of wearing the heavy gold jewelry the entire evening. She let out a slow sigh.

"Uff, I am so tired and sleepy, Arthav.”

On the other side of the room Arthav was standing near the mirror, fiddling with his cuff, half-mindlessly applying it. A tall, dark-haired man looked at her through the mirror and said in a teasing voice, “I am not letting you sleep today, jaan.”

Aashi looked at him, blinked once, then looked the other way at the window and smirked.

She returned her gaze to him and rolled her eyes. “Oh, really?” she murmured. “It was a long day; I don’t have any energy left to argue with you. I am so exhausted.”

Arthav chuckled and turned to face her, slowly unbuttoning his shirt. He took a step closer to her and sat beside her on the bed.

He slowly lifted his hand and caressed her cheeks with tenderness. “You don’t have to do anything, Jaan; you just have to lie down.”

Aashi took out a slow breath and looked at him nervously.

He slowly reached for her hair, which was gathered as a bun, and undone it. “I will not let this night pass without any moment between us,” he said in a low, calm voice.

She gulped and looked at him; his eyes turned too dark. She was not able to say anything, just looking at him.

He slowly removed her sari. Underneath her red blouse, she was wearing a black bra. He slowly kissed her collarbone and reached for her back to unhook her bra. Then he slowly undraped her sari and threw it on the ground.

Aashi was too stunned to speak anything. It was her first, and all was strange—in an overwhelmingly delicate fashion. The wide shoulders of Arthav stood in her way to the white ceiling overhead.

Her hands automatically curled into the sheet she was lying on, her breath was shallow, and her heart was racing beyond her ability to comprehend. Something softer she could not name, but there was a nervous trembling in her chest.

Arthav saw how she shuddered under him. When he spoke, in a low, softer voice than ever. “Hey… look at me.”

Aashi raised her eyes slowly to look into his, unsure but seeking. His gaze was no longer hurried but patient and something that calmed the tightness of her chest.

Arthav touched her cheeks and asked, “Are you okay, Jaan? Your heart is beating hard.”

Ashi nodded once and gulped. Her voice was soft and trembled when she spoke, “I…. I haven’t done it before.”

He tucked some strands of her hair behind her ear. “Ohh, I know, baby; I’ll be gentle.”

Arthav kissed her lips slowly, trying to find her rhythm. When he did, he carefully inserted his tongue into her mouth. Ashi hesitated first, but soon she found it pleasurable, and her body shivered.

Arthav lifted his hand and played with her hair for a while, then he put it into her bosom; he was slowly playing with it, and then his hand traveled across her entire body.

Ashi has felt the men’s touch for the first time; she has no idea that it could give her this much pleasure over her own touch.

Arthav placed his middle finger on her thighs and moved it in a circular motion just to tease her as the reaction started to breathe unevenly. Then he slowly inserted his finger inside her and said, “Are you feeling it inside you, sweetheart?”

Ashi sighed uncontrollably and nodded, looking at him. Arthav moved his finger in a practiced rhythm. Ashi closed her eyes feeling every bit of it.

Suddenly Arthav stopped moving his finger and pulled it out. Ashi did not get why he stopped; she looked at him and was about to ask, “Why did you stop?”

But before she could ask anything, she saw Arthav’s expression suddenly change from sweet and loving to extremely dangerous; there was a disconnecting darkness in his eyes.

A snickering smile appeared on his face, and he grabbed her jaw with one hand. His grip was too tight and suffocating that it nearly bruised her, his thumb pressing into one cheek and fingers into the other.

Aashi was suddenly filled with fear. What had happened to Arthav just then? She could not guess why his manner had changed so suddenly in a few seconds. Her eyes flickered with panic, her breath hitching as she attempted to draw back a little and was unable to.

“Ouch, Arthav, what are you doing? It hurts,” she said in a trembled voice.

Arthav was breathing wildly, and it was not smooth and even but rough and halting, like the snapping of a spring within him. He bent down his head, nearly touching her ear, with his lips, his hold growing still tighter, his presence stifling.

“You’ve been touched and seen by me… you disgusting piece of trash,” he mumbled, his voice low, sharp, and with a frightening intensity that chilled her spine.