Till Fate Tie Us Together...

Chapter 7: Promises

A/N: vote. Comment.

***

'Promises. The thing about promises is that they are made when people are happy. The moment of ecstasy when a person feels invincible is when a promise is made, oblivious to the turmoil ahead. But as the path gets tougher does a person realise that what they promised is far greater than what they can muster. That is why promises are made to be broken and are the emptiest words...'

The palanquin jerked and her hand slipped, causing the nib to poke a hole on the parchment. Ada groaned in frustration. She was on the jerky palanquin for about half the day but it still irritated her when it rocked. Her skirt had patches of ink stains on them. The black orbs glaring at her from her cream coloured skirt.

She slid the curtain to the side to look at the passing scenery. But instead of the scenery she found him riding the horse beside her. His armour glinted in the sun. He had a serious expression on his face, he hadn't noticed her yet. She huffed a breath and let the curtain fall again. She was still cross with her father over selecting him as her bodyguard. He needed to visit Bengal for business matters so she was entrusted in Salim's care.

They hadn't talked yet from that morning. She cringed remembering the time she had spent with Prince Jellal, they played chess, which terribly bored her. He liked to talk but matters of the court which was boring in itself. She had known from gossip sources that he was actually very much protected and had not even fought in a war. He was a prince, not a warrior. He seemed too perfect, flawless, confused, handsome yes but terrible at having fun.

When she'd walk into Salim by chance, he walked straight past her, his eyes not even sparing her a casual glance. She felt drenched in sorrow and felt herself questioning her decisions. If she chose him now, would he accept her? Would he forget this bitter part of their lives and never pitch it out no matter how angry he was? Could he? The mere fact that her mind was questioning it was an glaring indicator that he would. He would taunt her someday, well into their marriage years, he would. He would never forget this broken promise.

Besides, the more posing question was could she bear the gossip and taunts of others? Gossip would soon spread that she had jumped from one brother to another like a harlot and that would be the end of her self esteem. She knew she had actually jumped from one brother to another but no one except Salim and herself knew about it. The sweet veil of lie was the only thing that protected her dignity.

She shook her head in refusal. It was too late to go back now. She straightened her back and decided she'd let her decision be. If Salim was adamant on ignoring her, she decided she'd take it as an blessing in disguise. She wouldn't be tempted to run her fingers through his hair, trace the scar across his cheek and watch him sigh in delight. Her cheeks flushed as she scolded herself for having such bashful thoughts.

Cutting through her thoughts the palanquin jerked sharply. She fell on the back, grabbing the sides for support. It stabilised quickly but she heard men talking loudly. She heard him barking orders too. Feeling soothed, she sighed. She became more aware of the fact that their journey was cutting close and she'd have to separate from him, forever.

The atmosphere darkened like her mood, she almost felt blind inside the stuffed palanquin, the thick blinds enclosing her in a thick dark prison. And soon enough rain poured down on them with vengeance. She fidgeted inside moving away from the dripping water.

"Let us stop for a while, saheb." She heard a man yelling over the patter pf rain.

"No! Keep going!" He commanded. Ada grunted in irritation. She pulled the blinds to the side. He was still beside her. The rain was drenching him mercilessly. His face was dripping with rain. His eyelashes were clustered in rain, darkening them, rivulets flowed down the length of his nose dripping down to his lips, which seemed in a frown. His hair drenched was matted down flat against his head, drops dropping down from his clumped strands.