Episode 15
Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves more than usual…thanks to the spiked juice.
They had formed a line and played “choo-choo train” all through the hall, tried to take over the DJ’s job, and then someone insisted that they sing ‘Karoke’….Pragya’s friends were currently on stage, singing the latest film song hits. Pragya couldn’t remember the last time she had laughed so hard or had so much fun…Come to think of it…neither could he! He was so glad he came. The happiness on her face alone was worth it!
He was sitting at their table, looking at her cheering her friends on stage. She was really beautiful, he thought.
She had the best smile, the best laughter…so pure-hearted…everything about her was so awesome.
The guy who ends up with her is going to be really lucky, he thought. So…why can’t it be you? A thought came from nowhere. What th–? Where did that come from? he asked himself. Pragya came back to their table and looked at him, “What happened?” she asked. “Nothing” he said and averted his gaze.
No more juice for him…he thought.
Just then, the principal of their college, Mr. Patel, came on stage.
“Hello everyone! Having fun?” he asked.
Shouts of “Yeah” came from the crowd.
“Great!” said the Principal. “Well, I’m sure you all know why I’m up here…”
They all cheered.
In order to make their night more special, awards were given out each year to the graduating class.
In keeping with the theme this year, the award titles have been modified to suit the fairy tale concept. Prizes were being given out for most original costume, best dancer, best villain, cutest fairy tale character, favorite King and Queen etc. And finally…the last award was up… “And now…the moment you’ve all been waiting for…the award for ‘Princess of the Ball'” Mr. Patel said. “The girl who is crowned gets to choose her very own Prince.” he said. “After which they shall share a dance…Are you all ready?!” “Yeaahhh!” the crowd shouted.
“Ok!” he said. He looked down at the result and smiled. “And the “Princess of the Ball” title goes to…..” All the girls waited anxiously to see if their name would be called… and all the guys wanting to be the one she chooses as her Prince. Pragya just stood there waiting for him to read the results quickly so she could get back to enjoying. “The title goes to….” he repeated. “Miss Pragya Arora!!!”
The crowd cheered!
Both of them, not realizing that Pragya’s name had been called, cheered with the rest of the crowd. “Pragya!” the Principal called “Come on up here! You are our new Princess!”
Everyone turned in her direction, “Go on” they said.
Then it slowly hit them…
“OMG, I won!!!” she said excitedly.
“You won!” he said and hugged her. “Go on, they’re waiting for you on stage.”
When Pragya arrived on stage, she was greeted by the Principal and two other Lecturers at their college.
She was given a sash, with the word “Princess” written in glitter, a bouquet of roses, and a crown was placed on her head after safely removing her tiara.
She was asked to come forward and say a few words.
“Wow! Um…This is so unexpected. So many beautiful girls here…and yet you chose me!” Pragya giggled. “I am so honored and so happy. Thank you all sooo much for this!”
As she waved to the crowd and turned to leave, the principal asked her to wait there….and then announced that Pragya will now choose ‘her Prince’.
What? Pragya thought.
OMG! She could already hear the guys chanting “Pick me! Pick me!”
What should she do now? “Have you made up your mind, Pragya?” The principal asked smilingly. “There’s so many ‘Princes’ to choose from.” She scanned the crowd, her eyes searching for him only. Finally, she spotted her prince. “Yes Sir, I’ve found him. He’s over there!” she said. The principal nodded.
“And we have a winner!” he said. “Our Princess has finally chosen her Prince and it’s none other than….Mr. Abhishek Mehra!” Abhi was shocked at being chosen…this wasn’t even his graduating year! “Come on up here, Abhi!.”
When Abhi went onstage to claim “His Princess”, he was also given a crown and a sash that said “Prince” on it. He turned to Pragya and extended his hand to her…like he did earlier.
“May I have the honor of this dance, my Princess?”
Pragya smiled and nodded. He took her hand in his and once again, led her to the dance floor.
The dance began as the song “Ajab Si” from the movie ‘Om Shanti Om’ played in the background.
Their first slow dance, Pragya thought. She smiled looking at him… and he looked back at her just the same….
“In your eyes, there is a magic I see, magic of a moonlit night.
Your breath blows like a wind around me carrying my heart away like a weightless kite.”
He twirled her around and pulled her closer to him as the song continued to play….
“The beautiful night is here after all…fortune is smiling as well you see.
The beauty who is loved by all from far… is standing right here next to me
There are a million things I want to say… but my heart questions me here
What I tell you in my dreams every day, should I whisper it in your ear? In your eyes, there is a magic I see, magic of a moonlit night.
Your breath blows like a wind around me carrying my heart away like a weightless kite.”
Abhi and Pragya stare into each others eyes…all others around them forgotten…
“Grace and beauty walk with you…Oh what a lovely sight And the moon bows down to you to beg for some ivory light
Your gaze has seared my heart so bad…hope it is not in vain…
I want to drown in your eyes forever never to surface again…
In your eyes, there is a magic I see, magic of a moonlit night.
Your breath blows like a wind around me carrying my heart away like a weightless kite…..”
As the song ended, they were brought out of their trance by the sound of the crowd’s applause around them.
They glanced awkwardly at each other and then left the dance floor.
Afterwards, both classmates and friends came to congratulate them…
After they had left, Abhi turned to her and asked, “Would you like to go for a walk?”
It was like he read her mind, Pragya thought.
She was beginning to feel a little overwhelmed by all the attention. “Yeah” she replied. And then they headed outside and sat on one of the benches there. “Wow” she said. “Finally, some fresh air. This feels nice.”
He smiled at her and asked, “Enjoying yourself?”
“Very much!” she said.
“Now are you gonna tell me what you’re doing here?” she asked “What happened to your interview?” “Well, I was getting ready for the interview, I realised I wanted to be here instead.” he said. “….so I called up the boss and told him I had an emergency and couldn’t make it… but they were already on their way to the restaurant. I asked if I could send representative instead. They weren’t too happy about it, but agreed as they didn’t want to waste anymore time.”
“So who went to the the interview?” she asked. “Wait…Lemme guess…you asked Purab to go, didn’t you.” Abhi smiled and said, “Yeah, he’s great at handling meetings and things like that. He somehow manages to charm people into his way of thinking.” Pragya smiled and said “True”
As the night air got a bit chilly, Pragya shivered a little.
“Cold?” he asked.
“I’m fine” she said.
Abhi ignored her reply, took off his jacket and draped it around her shoulders.
Then he moved closer to her and wrapped his arm around her and she rested her head on his shoulder. “Better?” he asked and she nodded.
“So did you find out how the meeting went?” she asked.
“Yeah..actually, Purab called earlier. He said it went off really well. They just need me to come in next week to sign some papers…and I’m all set.” “That’s sooo great! Congratulations, yaar!” and she hugged him.
“Thank you Fuggi” he said.
“I’m still a little mad at you though” she said and playfully punched him in the arm, before settling her head back on his shoulder. “Me? What did I do?” he asked.
“You were willing to forego your interview for a stupid dance…”
There would be other interviews, he had thought, but Fuggi would never have this night again… “It’s not a stupid dance. It’s a celebration of all the years you’ve spent at school and all the hard work you’ve put in. I’m glad I was here.” “Yeah…but…” she started to say.
“I’m beginning to think you’re looking for a reason to fight with me” he teased.
Pragya laughed. “No, I’m not” she said. “It’s just that when I thought you were going to give up this huge opportunity, I…” He made her face him.
“You can stop worrying now, Fuggi. Everything has worked out for the best.” he said. “Besides, I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to become Prince, now could I?”
Pragya looked away, blushing, remembering how she had chosen him out of all the guys. He took a stray lock of hair and tucked it behind her ear.
Pragya looked up and her gaze met his.
“My Princess Fuggi” he said and caressed her face.
They look into each others eyes….and Pragya knew what was coming next…she could feel it… And then Abhi bent his head, his lips slowly coming towards hers….
But before his lips could touch hers, they heard, “I don’t know where they are!”
Both of them quickly drifted apart.
“So this is where you’ve been hiding.” One of the girls said.
“We were just out for some fresh air.” said Pragya, trying to recover from what almost just happened. “You’re both needed inside for pictures.” she said.
“We were just coming” Abhi said. “Come on, Princess, let’s go.”
And they all went inside…
Precap: Many changes take place in the Mehra family…
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Hi everybody!
Thank You So Much:
Di, Anu, Nirmal, Mukund,
Riyashri, Rosy, Somiya,
Disha, Sugan, Durga,
Maahhi, Aishwarya, Reshma,
Abhigya, & Asmithaa.
Thank you to all my Silent Readers!
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