Happy Ending

Anshul and Priyamvada were both in the same school – The Army School. Both their fathers were in the Indian Army. They were best friends, and their kids continued the tradition. Anshul always relied on Priyamvada for any advice. Priyam, on the other hand was happy-go-lucky, and made friends easily. So for her, Anshul was one of the friends, while for Anshul, Priyam was his world. He did not even realise when he fell in love with her. For him, it was an obvious emotion. He always felt they were meant to be together forever. Therefore, without a second thought, on her 23rd birthday, he not only wished her, but casually said, “Priyam, 23 ki tu, 25 ka mai! Ab shaadi kar leni chahiye, nahi?” (Priyam, you are 23 and I am 25. Isn’t it time we got married?)

Priyam was taken aback, as she had not seen this coming. Also, she did not have feelings of love or togetherness for Anshul. She stared in disbelief. “Anshul, what are you saying?” she asked. Anshul thought she was shocked. He smiled and said, “Take your time, and let me know when do you think is the right time!” With that, he left the gift on the table, smiled, and said, “See you later, have a super awesome day.”

After he left, Priyam still shocked, stared at the wall blankly, and wondered how this shaped up right under her vision, yet she couldn’t see it. Looking back, she understood Anshul had been mistaken, and had wrongly interpreted her ways as love. She decided she would clear it out. She was not keen on marriage with Anshul, and in fact, she wasn’t keen on marriage at all.

She desired to become a teacher and teach at a school for the underprivileged kids. She wished to go to remote locations and establish schools for kids. She was already one-step up in that mission of hers. That evening, Priyam spoke to her father about her dream, and he was undoubtedly proud. He asked, “What about Anshul?” Priyam was shocked yet again. Was it that obvious that she and Anshul were seen as one unit? She mentioned to her father that she had no wishes of getting married. She wished to dedicate her life for the kids of the country. Her father was proud of that, yet a little disappointed. He had dreams of getting his daughter married, and he had always pictured Anshul as the extended family member. He decided to let the matter rest for a few days.

When Priyam’s mother heard of her choice to not get married, she was simply shocked. She decided to speak to Priyam. After a long and heated argument, she came back hapless to her room, and was not only disappointed but also sad that her daughter was so independent that she did not care once for her parents’ wish to get her married. Her husband tried to convince her that it is all right to let her be.

After a few days, Priyam approached Anshul and had a heart to heart talk with him, and told him of her dream of setting up schools in rural areas, and teaching kids. She openly told him how she hated the thought of being tied down with marriage, and how she wanted to visit every single village in India. She was passionately speaking about her vision and how she planned to achieve the same.

After listening to her intently, Anshul smiled and said, “Where do we start from?”

Priyam could not believe it. But just as per his word, Anshul made a plan and laid out the road map for their journey. Without another reminder of how much he loved Priyamvada, he spent every single free minute of his in planning things for her, or accompanying her whenever he could, or talking to people in authority to get help for Priyam. At the end of 18 months, Priyam was educating more than 600 kids of the lower strata of society, and had set up 4 rural schools. Her dream was not a distant reality anymore. She spoke to Anshul every single day, from wherever she was. She felt a very strong sense of gratefulness for him. She felt weighed down by his dedication for her cause.

However, Anshul never took advantage of the fact that she would submit herself if he asked her now.

At the end of four years, Priyamvada had set up more than 35 schools across the country, and appointed teachers and volunteers, none of which would have been possible without Anshul and his contribution.

On her return to her home one weekend, she went to Anshul’s house. She called out to him. When he came down, he hugged her. They sat down, and Anshul started discussing his plan for the next school with Priyam. She cut him short, and said, “Shaadi ke baare mein kya khayal hai? Abhi karenge ya boodhe hoke karenge?” (What is your thought about marriage? Should we do it now or when we grow old?)

Anshul was astounded when he heard this. He could not believe his ears. Even before he could say anything else, Priyam was on her knee with a ring in her hands, “Will you marry me?” she asked. Anshul stared with disbelief, “What is all this… this is my scene!” Priyam laughed aloud and said, “Gender equality all the way!” Anshul shook his head and rolled his eye.

Some love stories get a HAPPY ENDING a little later. Remember, every story has a happy ending; if it is not happy, it is not the end!