The Friendzoned Husband - Part 3

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Part 3 - The Local Bachelor Trip

Telugu words in the chapter:  Nanna = father;  Anna = elder brother;  Vadina = sister-in-law (elder brother's wife)

---***---

"Shambhavi has been yelling at me since morning" Uncle Bharat told Amar as soon as he entered the house.

"Why? I did inform you before going. Didn't I?" Amar sat on the sofa beside his uncle. He looked tired.

"I told her where you have gone to. You know what she said? She called me a lazy and irresponsible uncle. She said I should have stopped you from going out and started listing my past mistakes right from year 1985. She reached 1992 when your father-in-law called her on her phone and I escaped quietly. May the lord bless him," said Bharat making Amar laugh.

 "What's going on here? " Shambhavi, the matriarch of the family entered and suddenly the atmosphere turned silent.

"Nothing aunty. Uncle was telling me that he is not scared of you because he is the boss and you are just a--"

"NO NO NO. He's lying" said Bharat quickly.

Shambhavi ignored this and turned to Amar. "How many times do I need to remind you that you are the bridegroom? You'll get tanned if you go out on a sunny day like this. You are not allowed to work a day before getting married."

"But this was important. I have been told that the supervisor of our manufacturing plant in this city is involved in illegal activities. I had to go. I tricked him into confessing his crimes and got him arrested."

"You could have assigned it to someone else from your team. Now go and sleep for a while. I will wake you up in the evening." Shambhavi ordered.

Amar nodded his head and went to his bedroom. To be honest, the Vishakhapatnam house was smaller compared to his huge mansion in Hyderabad. But he liked the 1930s styled architecture which gave a royal look to the house. 

He entered his room to find his cousin Anirudh lying on his bed with a juice bottle in the right hand, a book in the left hand and earphones connected to his iPod. He was humming a tune. He jumped from the bed on seeing Amar and exclaimed, "Finally!! You are here. I thought you have forgotten me."

"How do you manage to do all these things simultaneously?" Amar pointed towards the book and the iPod.

"Anna, I'm the biggest multitasker you will ever see. Now don't change the topic. Tell me the story."

"What story?" Amar feigned ignorance though he knew what Anirudh was asking about.

"The story of your first meeting with Lasya vadina. As far as I know it was supposed to be a normal business deal. How did it turn into a marriage alliance?"

"The Dhanunjaya family invited us for lunch after finalizing the deal. Aunty insisted on me to accompany her and uncle. She revealed that she was considering Lasya as prospective bride for me only after reaching their house."

"I knew it. It is amma's doing. She tricked you. Didn't she?" Anirudh asked.

"Hey!! Don't talk about Aunt Shambhavi like that." Amar said reprovingly.

"Oh! Sorry. I forgot that I was talking to Shambhavi Devaraju's biggest fan. Please continue."

"I spoke to Lasya for a while. She was very polite and cordial."

"How can you decide it in a single meeting?" Anirudh interrupted.

"I have been reading her blog for 2 years. She seems to be a nice person. And when aunty asked me what my decision was, I couldn't say no. I didn't have a reason to say no. So I said yes." Amar explained.

"But why did you rush with the wedding date? You met her just 3 weeks ago." Anirudh continued asking questions.

"The wedding date came as a shock to me. I was expecting an engagement ceremony. But the Pandit who examined our horoscopes said that there is an auspicious day within 2 weeks and if we miss it we will have to wait for one year. I tried to protest. But aunty and uncle were not ready to wait for an year."

Anirudh was outraged"I wonder who is getting married. You or my parents?" 

"I wanted a gap of at least 2 months between the engagement and wedding. I wanted to call my fiancee everyday, chat on WhatsApp, meet her secretly in her balcony like they show in the movies. The supposed engagement didn't happen. I didn't even get to speak to her on phone. Her parents pick my call every time." Amar said bitterly.

"You know what the worst part is? I planned a Bachelor trip for you in Bangkok. Now you are directly headed to Honeymoon in Hawaii islands."

"Thanks for reminding what I've missed." Amar said sarcastically.

"Hey cheer up. What will you do in Bangkok? You don't drink or party. A local bachelor trip is enough for good boys like you. Come lets go out for a drive." 

"Not now Rudy boy. I'm not allowed to go out."

"I found nanna's old bullet in the backyard." Anirudh said the magic words.

"Really? Let's go out then. I'll talk to aunty. Watch how she gives me permission."

Amar found his aunt sitting on a couch. He sat next to her with a miserable look on his face. "What happened?" his aunt asked to which he answered lowering his head, "Nothing". "Amar, is everything fine?" his aunt looked concerned. "Leave it aunty. I can't get everything I desire."

"Why are you saying so? If you want something, just name it and I shall get it for you within seconds."

"I wanted a love marriage which I couldn't get. I wanted a bachelor trip which I couldn't get. Now Anirudh asked me to go for a long drive with him. I want to go but I can't go." Amar covered his face with his hands for additional effect.

Shambhavi thought for a while. "Go with Anirudh. But comeback by 9 pm."

" You are the best aunt in the world."

---**---

"Bro, you are a terrific actor." Anirudh said as the bullet roared.

"You just need to know what to speak and when to speak," said Amar. They stopped at a coffee shop next to bus stand and chose a table in the corner to sit.

Anirudh sipped the coffee. "It's the best thing I have tasted in ages. Do you like it?" 

But Amar wasn't paying attention to him. He was staring at something at a distance. "Is that Lasya?" he asked pointing at a woman standing at the entrance.

"You are behaving like a typical Romeo who sees his Juliet wherever he goes-- wait that is Lasya vadina. What is she doing here? Is she here for her bachelorette party too? What a coincidence!!" Anirudh exclaimed.

Amar walked up to her and said "Lasya, what are you doing here?". She was startled on seeing her fiance. 

"I need a place to hide. The guards are searching for me." she said with urgency in voice.

"You look scared. Please come and sit with us." He took her to the corner table. "Now tell us. Who is searching for you? What are you doing here?" he asked gently.

Lasya took a deep breath and answered "I'm running away. I don't want to marry you. I love someone else."

Amar's heart sank. There was a deafening silence. After a few seconds Anirudh spoke," You're kidding. Right?"

"No. I'm serious. I love someone else. But my parents separated me from him and are trying to get me married to Amar."

Anirudh shouted "Why didn't you tell this to us before? Running away like a coward .My brother has to face everything alone now." 

"Do you think I haven't tried? I was house arrested. They took my phone, credit cards, debit cards, passport and laptop away. They even hit me twice" she showed them a bruise on her right arm." They value money more than their daughter's happiness. My boyfriend is not rich. That is why they rejected him."

"Your parents seemed so nice when I met them" Amar found his voice again.

"They are good actors." She checked her watch. " He should be here by now. I don't know why he's taking so long. I don't even have my phone to call him."

"Call him from my phone. Ask him to come to the coffee shop. And hide under the table. We'll handle the guards and your family if they come here searching for you." Amar handed over his phone to her. 

Nobody spoke until Lasya's boyfriend arrived. "Take care of her. Never hurt her." Amar told the guy. He didn't know what else to say.

Anirudh pinched himself to check whether he was dreaming. "Anna, I don't  believe this. You helped your fiancee in eloping with her boyfriend."