A Palace of Dreams

This is the story of Ayan and Kriti, two entrepreneurs from India based in London. 

They were young. They were rich. They were successful. They loved each other. They had the best family and the loveliest friends. They ran a successful multinational company. Life couldn’t get any better.

Or so they thought.

Until one day a strange letter fell out of their mailbox. Ayan found out that his ancestors had been the royals of a kingdom in Rajasthan. The keepers had been trying to trace down the descendants for years before they had finally found them. At first they laughed it off thinking their friends were probably messing with them for fun but when his parents rang them to confirm it, they didn’t know what to think.

Since then, it has been a few years since they moved to the palace. They used the name their company had and converted majority of the palace to a heritage resort that was running very successfully. They had themselves gotten married there and since then the business had skyrocketed with more and more people wanting to say "I do" under those roofs. It was a perfect blend of the cultural traditions of the place and the air of western sophistication and modernity they brought in. They were richer and more successful and just as much in love.

One morning……..

Ayan lazily stretched with a yawn, stopping midway on realising the missing weight of his wife’s head on his chest. He sat up abruptly, pulling down the covers to find her sleeping soundly on the other side of the bed. He swept her hair away from her face, kissed her forehead and slipped out with a smile on his face to get ready for work. They’d had a nasty fight the evening before which had upset both of them very much since they rarely ever even argued.

They’d finally moved on from it and gone about the rest of the day as if nothing had happened. It was so petty a topic that by the end of it, both of them had even forgotten what they were fighting about. It was very unnecessary and he was still wondering from where had she suddenly brought it up. They seemed to be fighting more than ever before for the past few weeks.

When he came back to the room, he saw her sitting upright on the bed, hugging her knees close to herself and staring into space.

“Good morning” he smiled and swooped down for another kiss, which she swerved and just answered his confused look with a small smile. He hugged her gently and then left, thinking that perhaps she hadn’t completely forgotten about the fight.

Even when he got back in the evening she was acting the same. She kept avoiding eye contact with him and muttered only a bare minimum of words as responses in a very small whisper, only nodding "yes" or "no" most of the time. He thought that she was still mad at him and decided to just apologise and get done with the awkwardness.

As she was walking by, he caught her arm and stood up. Wrapping her into his embrace, he pressed her head softly into his chest and whispered a small apology, “I’m sorry Tia. Please don’t be mad. I love you. I don’t want to fight with you. Please?”

But was she really mad for the same thing he was apologising for….or was it something else?

She pulled away after a few seconds and giving him a stiff smile that didn’t reach her eyes, walked away. He stood there, helpless and confused.

The same behaviour continued for another 4 days. Now let alone talk, they weren’t even acknowledging the other’s presence. Ayan tried for the first two days but then gave up. He was getting frustrated now and a little worried too.

He wasn’t able to focus on work. All the time he just sat holed up alone in his office, wondering where he’d gone wrong. He just wanted to fix things and go back to how they were. A tear rolled down his cheek as he blankly stared out of his office window at the lake. He was doing nothing productive there and deciding that that was the limit and he couldn’t go like that any longer, stood up and marched out of his office. She was going to be back in his arms by the end of the evening and that was final. He just had to grit his teeth and do it. She was his wife! He could talk to her about anything and this was about them! And yet he was still so hesitant.

“I just don’t want to lose her,” he answered to the voice inside him he was reasoning out the situation with. He went up to their room and set it up for a movie evening, thinking it to be the best way to feel closer again.

He had been waiting for almost an hour when she walked in. She looked at him like she’d seen an alien

Without looking at him, she said, “You’re early”.

“Yeah,” he whispered as a small relieved grin spread on his face, “I thought we could spend some time together. It…It’s been a w...while….” He trailed off.

She looked around at everything for a moment including his eyes waiting with hopeful anticipation and before she could slip, scoffed and rolled her eyes, muttering a small “As if!”

“Tia….” His voice broke as she walked away into her closet.

He took a deep breath to calm himself down. He wasn’t going to give up today.

He got off the bed and walked to the closet door, debating whether or not to take the chance. He opened it a chink and then suddenly hit with a gut instinct, slipped in and shut the door behind himself. She had just changed and walked out and gave him a weird glare. He missed the look however since he was busier admiring how angelic she looked. She was wearing a pearly white kurta and sharara with a baby pink dupatta hanging on her shoulders. He was shaken out of his trance and turned to where she was currently standing- she was in front of the mirror putting on her earrings, resolutely ignoring his presence. He slowly walked up to her and stopped when he was standing right behind her. He looked into the mirror and caught her eye as she slowly glanced at him in the mirror, and bowed her head again as soon as their eyes met. He lifted up her hair off her back and moved it onto her right shoulder. She shuddered as his cold fingertips brushed against her neck and drew in a sharp breath. He softly slipped his arms around her waist and pulled her towards himself. He then closed his eyes and kissing the side of her neck gently, dropped his head onto her shoulder with a sigh of relief, inhaling the intoxicating whiff of strawberries he had grown to love so much. His grip around her tightened as he nuzzled his head deeper into her shoulder, sniffing in an escaping sob when she suddenly tore his arms away from her. Holding his hands she turned around and giving him a half warning, half apologetic look, backed away further. Glancing at him one last time, she rubbed a tear off her cheek before running out. He stood alone in the closet, hurt and heartbroken, staring where she had stood only moments ago. But he was not losing heart today. He sprinted after her and went out to the gardens.

He looked everywhere for her but couldn’t spot her anywhere. He stopped and resting his hands on his knees thought where she would go if she was mad. Then it struck him. He ran to her favourite spot in the entire palace. And sure enough she was there. She sat on the big wooden swing, her feet dipped into the shallow water underneath, staring at the lake locked between the low hills ,atop one of which stood their palace. Slipping off his shoes next to where hers lay, he stepped into the water. 

“Tia” he whispered carefully as he took another step closer to her. Her gaze broke and she immediately got up and started to walk off the other way, leaving behind her sandals.

“Tia at least listen to me” he groaned but his request once again fell on deaf ears as she continued plodding up the hill garden.

Leaving behind his shoes, he ran behind her once again and once he’d caught up considerably began to take long strides, reducing the gap between them with every step. He was starting to feel angry now.

“Tia what is this childish behaviour? ”he asked out exasperatedly, “Can’t we just talk like adults and sort this out….Tiaaaa” he called loudly once again

She stopped walking and turned to face him as he stopped at a distance. “Don’t Call Me Tia. You’re nobody to call me that” she shouted back at him angrily.

He stopped at a distance and stared at her for a few seconds.

“Just forget the name, Why don’t you? It’s not like you’re going to need it for long” she whispered tearfully but loud enough for him to hear.

His shoulders sagged as he shrugged in confusion, asking her to explain but she kept looking at him, shivering in the cold wind.

He started slowly walking up to her and was thankful she wasn’t walking away anymore.

“Tia,” he said cautiously trying to bring her out of her lost world.

He carefully held her by her shoulders and started talking.

“Love, I don’t know what’s happening. You’ve been ignoring me for nearly a week now and it’s killing me. Please. Please just talk to me at least. I love you and I’ll do whatever you want me to do to fix this. Fix us. I can’t go on any longer like this. Knowing that you’re here but you’re not. I haven’t been able to focus on anything. Wherever I go I just keep thinking about where I went wrong and I just...just please”

She still hadn’t looked at him and now he was pissed.

“Kriti Siddiqui you just listen to me” he bellowed shaking her hard by the shoulders but stepped away instantly regretting what he’d done.

She came back with a start. She was quivering with fear and the tear she’d been holding back slipped down her cheek.

“Tia I…” he started apologetically gently resting his palms on her cheeks

“I’m not an Siddiqui anymore” she whispered dangerously, anger burning behind her charcoal eyes.

“Tia no please” he begged as she tried to move away from him but his hands travelled down her cheeks to her neck and shoulders. He came closer and leaned in to rest his forehead against hers, sobbing profusely. His hands went down her arms and came to rest on her waist as he wrapped them around her and buried his face into her hair all the while begging her to stay. As she tried to push him away he slipped down to the ground on his knees and sobbed into her palms. He wasn’t going to let her walk away from him anymore.

By now she was crying too and very confused as to why someone would get divorce papers made without telling their wife, sign them and leave them for her to sign and then cry like her presence meant the world to him. Nothing made sense to her. She just helplessly looked on as her husband sobbed into her hands.

“Please don’t go away Tia Please. What will I do without you”

“But that’s what you wanted right?” she croaked

“The only thing I’ve ever wanted is to live with you and die with you. I have no idea what you’re talking about or why you’re acting the way you are. I just know that I love you and if you’re not happy with me I want to know why but I know that I’m not letting you go anywhere. At least not until you tell me where I failed us”

“Then why did you sign the papers?”

“What papers Tia?”

“Our divorce papers”

He suddenly stood up and stared at her like she was mad.

He gaped and mouthed soundlessly for a few minutes before speaking again.

“So you mean you never had nothing to do with any of it”

He shook his head.

She breathed deeply. Her hand went to her head as suddenly a piercing pain ran through it. She coughed and stumbled as everything around her blurred. He caught her before she could fall and holding her in his arms kneeled to the ground, gently laying her on the grass.

“Tia. Tia? Wake up. Heyy. I got you. It’ll be ok. I promise. Just wake up please”

He carried her unconscious form to a nearby canopy and lay her gently on the swing. He grabbed a bottle of water from the table nearby and sprinkled a few drops of water on her face. She turned her head to the other side away from the sun, her eyes still shut and her face scrunched up in pain and confusion. He held her hand in his and the other one slipped under her head, cushioning it against the stiff wood of the swing as he leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. Her eyes fluttered open and she stared at his lips hovering a small distance above hers. She stared at them for minutes before her free hand came to rest on his cheek. As she ran her thumb back and forth along his lower lip, he caught her hand and pinning it above her head, kissed her once more and this time when he pulled away, he pulled her up into a sitting position, rising to sit beside her on the swing. He wrapped one arm around her back as the other one held her hand and she instantly leaned into him. Resting her head on his chest, she closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief.

He played with her hair while she contently rested in his arms. He twisted the stray curls between his fingers and then tucked them behind her ears. As her eyes fluttered open, she squeezed them shut almost instantly against the blinding sun and the next time she opened them, the calming shade of his hands rested on her forehead shielding her vision. 

She looked up at him for a few moments with uncertain eyes before speaking up in a baby voice,"I'm sorry"

 "Shsshshhhh," he whispered, nibbling on her earlobe,"It's not your fault,baby."

They sat in peaceful silence, swinging back and forth, hugging each other close.

“It’s beautiful. Isn’t it?” she whispered, her eyes fixated on the sunset.

“Yeah it is,” he whispered back tucking a stray curl behind her ear, his eyes hooked onto her.

She smiled softly and turned to look at him while he just gently smiled back.

“I’m talking about the sun,” she said caressing his cheek with her thumb locking eyes with him.

He leaned in closer to her, lifted her other hand to his lips, kissed it lovingly and then gazed up into her eyes. She blushed as their eyes locked.

“I’m talking about my universe”

She giggled like a school girl and cuddled up into his arms.

“C'mon let’s go back, ” he said after a while, getting up noticing that her eyes were beginning to droop.

He got up and stepping out of the canopy, held out his hand for her to take. She merely stood there with her arms crossed, head leaning against one of the pillars, with a goofy smile playing on her lips.

He immediately understood and with a small laugh lighting up his face ran back up to her and scooped her up in his arms and spun her around in circles. She laughed merrily, kicking her legs up and down.

He stopped spinning and looked at her laughing her heart off. His heart swelled at the sight and he held her closer to himself, closing his eyes and pressing her firmly against his chest, afraid of losing her again. She tightly wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her head into his chest, curling up into a little ball.

“You’re such a baby,” he teased her rubbing his nose down to hers and carried her back to their suite. Since they lived there, they had converted one whole floor into their home but since there was just two of them, they hadn’t wanted to take up an entire wing to themselves.

He went to take a shower while she stood in the balcony, looking at the majestic mountains, softly humming to herself. He walked into the room and looked around for her before finally steeping out into the balcony. He saw small tears slowly rolling down her cheeks as she gazed away into infinity. He wrapped his arms around her waist once again and rested his chin on her shoulder. She turned in his arms to face him and he kissed her cheeks dry.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered slowly not meeting his eyes.

“It’s not your fault love,” he said putting his index finger below her chin and raising her drooping head straight. As their eyes and their lips met, fireworks seemed to erupt in their hearts.

“I have a surprise for you after dinner,” he told her and taking her hand guided her in, sliding the balcony door shut behind them.

After they shared a lovely candle-light dinner from a common plate, he pushed back his chair and stood in front of her. 

He bowed and held out his hand,"Mi Lady"

Though she was tired and wanted to go to bed, he managed to kiss her into submission.

They strolled through the palace gardens, hand in hand.

"Catch me," she suddenly said and ran ahead. He followed, sprinting after her and catching up within seconds. He grabbed her dupatta and pulled her towards himself making them both topple to the ground. They fell down on top of each other, rolling with laughter. They lay on the grass for sometime admiring the beautiful clear sky till Ayan stood up and pulled Kriti to her feet. He asked her to close her eyes and began to walk her towards her surprise. After a few steps of struggle to keep her from falling over the rocky terrain, he scooped her up into his arms.

Two minutes later he put her down and asked her to keep her eyes closed. Making sure that everything was set, he walked towards her and standing behind her, put his hands over her closed eyes.

"3,2,1" he counted, "open".

She slowly opened her eyes as his fingers slowly slid away revealing her their canopy, only it looked more beautiful than ever before. It was lit up with thousands of fairy lights and had streamers of roses hanging from all sides. Rose petals floated on the surface of the cool water. Hundreds of little wax candles were lined up around the platform over which hung their favorite wooden swing. The swing's arms as well as the canopy pillars were also adorned with roses. She slowly walked around it, taking in every little detail and then ran towards him and jumped into his arms, giving him a bone crushing hug. 

"Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you sooo much. It's beautiful baby. I love it."

He smiled at her and placed a gentle kiss on her head.

"I love you baby," he said. She teared up again and buried her face into the crook of his neck. One hand dug into his back while the other got tangled in his hair.

He held her close for a few seconds before leading her inside the canopy. They sat down and as if on cue, a waiter walked in pushing a food trolley laden with every possible dessert Kriti could think of. She'd always loved desserts. They could set almost anything and everything right for her.

Ayan picked up the bowl of chocolate ice cream and adding to it a slice of her favourite gulab jamun cheesecake, pulled her close once again. She folded her legs up and leaned into him. He put an arm around her and lovingly put a bite of the dessert into her mouth. She hummed a contended approval and he continued till they had licked the dish clean. Then they sat there gazing at the stars and hills and lake and of course their palace of dreams.

“I still can’t believe it’s mine,” she said looking at the entire palace beautifully light up.

“Neither can I,” he answered looking at her.

“I’m talking about the palace,” she said turning to face him with a smile on her face.

“And I’m talking about its queen,” he replied, pressing a gentle kiss to her temple.