~5~
How are you all doing ? ❣️
I hope you all are good 👍
The sound of conch shells echoed as we stopped before the grand entrance of Raizada Mansion. My veil still weighed heavy on me, my body weaker than anyone realized, but I kept my head high.
The aarti thali shimmered in his mother’s hands. She circled it in front of me with a smile that didn’t match the image of “enemy’s mother” I’d carried in my mind.
Nandini Raizada {ML MOM}
“Aayiye, bahu.”
( Come, daughter-in-law.)
Next came the kalash ritual. A silver pot filled with rice was placed before me. I hesitated, then lightly kicked it, sending grains spilling like pearls on marble. My first step into this house was supposed to feel heavy, but instead it felt… strangely soft.
Then the red alta footprints. I dipped my feet in the thali and walked inside. Every mark I left behind on the white floor glared back at me, reminding me—this wasn’t a dream. I was now a Raizada bride
But of course, the family wasn’t about to let rituals go boring.
Aarohi Raizada {ML SIS}
“Now the ring game!”
his younger sister clapped, placing a big bowl of milk and rose petals. They dropped a ring inside. Tradition said whoever finds it more often rules the marriage.
I sat opposite Veer. Our eyes locked. He looked like he was born to win—smirk already ready.
Veer Raizada {ML}
“Best of three?”
Aradhya Oberoi / Raizada {FL}
“You’ll lose all three.”
We dipped our hands in. The cold milk made me shiver, but my fingers worked fast. First round—I pulled the ring out.
Nandini Raizada {ML MOM}
“Shabash, bahu!” (Well done, daughter-in-law!)
Second round—he tried hard, but my hand shot out first again. Ring, mine.
By the third round, Veer was glaring like I’d just stolen his entire empire. He lunged into the bowl so aggressively that half the milk spilled out. But fate (and my speed) was on my side. The ring gleamed in my hand again.
The room erupted with laughter. His father even chuckled
Aadvik Raizada {ML GRANDPA}
“Beta, ab se ghar ka rule tumhare liye easy hai—sunna padega inki baat.”
( Son, from now on the house rule is simple—you’ll have to listen to her.)
Veer’s jaw tightened. Mine? My smile spread.
And that’s when the roasting began. One by one, his family swooped around me, praising, teasing, even warning him. He stood there, absolutely stunned, while everyone made it very clear—if this marriage was a battlefield, then he had already lost his army.
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