Riansh OS : Enchanted (A Songfic)

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NOTE – I hope everyone reading this OS likes it. One request from my side… do vote and comment. I would really like to read some inline comments.

SONG – Enchanted by Taylor Swift. (Do listen to the song… It will set the mood…)

BACKDROP – Total AU.

The numbers ticked by slowly. I rolled onto my back for the hundredth time. Sleep had eluded me tonight and I knew why. I thought back to the events of the night and a smile formed on my face.

He was so charming. I hadn’t expected him to be so…perfect. But he was. Tall,brown-eyed and gorgeous. His baritone made me melt and his body was perfect. He was a gentleman too; opening the door for me at the restaurant and pulling out my chair for me to sit in. He actually listened to what I had to say and complimented me several times. He walked me to my car at the end of the date and kissed my hand. When we exchanged numbers, he stared at it for a while, as though he was trying to commit it to memory. He watched me as I drove away and waved when he saw me glance in the rear view mirror. It was the perfect date.

And that was why I was panicking.

I had been so unlucky with love in my life. I casually dated in school and college, but every time I thought it was getting serious, the guy turned tail and ran. No explanation; just ran. My one serious boyfriend, Kabir, left me for a coworker and completely broke my heart. He didn’t even have the courtesy to show a little respect and tell me to my face. I just came home one day and he was gone. I only found out the true story when I saw them together a month later at the movies. She just smirked and blatantly kissed him, clearly taunting me.

So yes, my luck with men has not been great. That is why I was lying awake in my bed, worrying about this. A guy can’t be that perfect. A guy can’t actually be interested in me.

For the longest time, I believed it was me; that there was something seriously wrong with me and that was why I couldn’t get a man. Maybe it was a chemical imbalance. But I had come to the conclusion that I was destined to be alone. It happens, not everyone gets a happy ending. And for the most part, I was okay with that.

Flashback Start

At the beginning of the night, I was dreading the date. I couldn’t believe I had agreed to have my friend Sejal set me up with someone. How humiliating! Having a friend who knows that you are a loser and can’t find someone on your own. She was so nice though; telling me that the guy was her cousin and he had been through similar experiences as me. I scoffed at that; no one has been through the pain I’ve been through.

She showed me a picture of her cousin and my jaw dropped. I couldn’t believe that someone that good looking wasn’t taken. But the picture did not do him justice up close. He was better in real life.

“Trust me Riddhima,” she said as she pulled out her phone and began texting. “You two will hit it off.”

I asked her what was wrong with him. Certainly, a model like him had to have issues if he was single. All sorts of scenarios ran through my head: abusive, gay, secretly married, alcoholic. She laughed and said he was none of those things.

“Vansh has never been the one to casually date,” she said, hitting ‘send’ on her phone and then putting it down. “He’s a good Delhi boy; he believes in only dating women he’s completely into.”

I looked down at my tee-shirt and sweats and scowled. “And you think he’ll be into this?” I said, gesturing to my clothes.

She rolled her eyes. “You don’t see yourself clearly, Riddhima. You are beautiful, funny, kind-hearted and perfect for him. He would like you like that; he thinks a woman should be herself around a man.”

As her words sunk in, she continued. “That doesn’t mean he doesn’t appreciate it when a woman looks her best for him either. A dress and some makeup go a long way.” She glanced at her phone as it buzzed with an incoming message. The smile on her face told me it was Vansh she had just received the text from. I could only imagine the reply.

What the hell is wrong with the girl? Why do I have to do this?

Sejal was talking again so I snapped out of my thoughts.

“But if a woman feels she has to always have makeup on, even after just waking up or lazily lounging on the couch on a Sunday afternoon, he wonders what she’s hiding. To him, that shows insecurity. He wants someone who is comfortable in her own skin and comfortable to show herself to him.”

“How do you know so much about him? I thought he lived in Delhi,” I said as I twirled a strand of hair between my fingers.

She picked up her tea and held the cup between her hands before speaking.

“He moved here to Mumbai a year ago and we’ve been hanging out a lot. Vansh and I have always been close; we’re more like siblings than cousins. Since he’s moved here, he’s only gone out on two dates, and both were disasters.”

I asked what happened, unsure if I really wanted to know. She chuckled and sipped her tea before answering.

“Well, Ahana was obsessive. She believed he was ‘the one’ and even went so far as to tattoo his name on her body. This was before the date.” My eyes grew wide at that.

“He finally had to get a restraining order against her because she wouldn’t leave him alone. Crazy b*t*h finally got the message and left the area.”

My stomach did a snap roll. I wasn’t sure if I was comfortable with going out with a guy who had a stalker.

“Ragini was an alcoholic. She showed up to the date drunk and it kept getting worse and worse. Being the southern gentleman that he is, he made sure she got home okay, but deleted his number from her phone so she wouldn’t be able to get a hold of him.”

“This isn’t making me feel better, Sejal,” I said.

She looked at me and smiled. “Trust me, Riddhima,” she repeated. “You’ll be perfect for him.”

There I was again tonight

Forcing laughter, faking smiles

Same old tired lonely place

Walls of insincerity,

Shifting eyes and vacancy

I had regretted agreeing to the blind date as soon as I arrived at the restaurant a few days later. My insecurity was on display. What if he doesn’t show? I’ll be embarrassed; sitting in this restaurant all alone while the wait staff and other patrons laugh at me. Perhaps one of them will put me out of my misery by giving me some cyanide.

I looked down at the blue dress I was wearing and smoothed my skirt. I chose one with a modest hemline; not too short, not too long. I didn’t want him to think I was a prude, but I also didn’t want to send the wrong impression. This dress had a sweetheart neckline and fell just above the knee. My bone-colored shoes completed the look and I kept my jewelry simple. Just a pair of pearl earrings and a matching pearl necklace. Simple, not flashy and yet still classy. My purse matched my shoes. I pulled out a mirror to check my hair. The bun I had it in was still in place; only a few stray strands hung down.

I put the mirror away and continued to worry.

Vanished when I saw your face

All I can say is it was enchanting to meet you

Your eyes whispered, “Have we met?”

Across the room your silhouette

Starts to make its way to me

My insecurity melted as soon as I saw him. He walked in gracefully, holding the door open for a woman and her child to pass through. He was dressed impeccably; a crisp white shirt and khaki pants with black shoes and a matching black belt. His eyes scanned the lobby until they connected with mine. A smile formed on his face, but I was too engrossed with his eyes to notice.

They were so brown and so expressive. I could read his whole life in those eyes. I saw pain and insecurity, but also hope and relief. He approached me and held out his hand.

The playful conversation starts

Counter all your quick remarks

Like passing notes in secrecy

And it was enchanting to meet you

All I can say is I was enchanted to meet you

This night is sparkling, don’t you let it go

I’m wonderstruck, blushing all the way home

I’ll spend forever wondering if you knew

I was enchanted to meet you

“I’m Vansh,” he said, his baritone knocking me over. I smiled and whispered “Riddhima” while placing my hand in his. It was warm and my hand fit perfectly. I caught a whiff of his cologne and almost died. He smelled amazing, like leather and pine.

“Please excuse my directness, Riddhima, but you are stunning.” His eyes never left my face. “The picture of you that Sejal sent me does not do you justice and I thought you were beautiful then.”

I blushed at his words. I thanked him and gave a similar reply. His eyes twinkled at the compliment. His eyes travelled down, taking in my appearance. I fidgeted uncomfortably, wondering what he was thinking. When they returned to my face, his eyes were shining. He raised my hand, still intertwined with his, and kissed it gently. I drew in a breath.

Please don’t be in love with someone else.

Still holding my hand tightly, he walked us to the host’s station. “Table for two for Rai Singhania, please,” he said and then looked at me. When I made eye contact, he smiled. I smiled back and he began rubbing circles on the back of my hand. Warmth flowed through me that I had never known before.

The host walked us to our table and the date officially began. He ordered an expensive bottle of champagne and chatted lightly with the waiter. That gave me time to check out the restaurant we were at. It was incredibly high-priced; I had no idea how I could afford to eat here tonight. I knew he would leave before the date was over and I would be stuck paying for my own meal and possibly his.

He’s probably checking out all the waitresses and seeing which one piques his interest. I’m guessing he’ll run off with the girl working the bar. She’s voluptuous and stunning, much better looking than me.

But none of that happened. He never scanned the restaurant for women nor even attempted to look at the bar. He kept his focus on me the whole time. We fell into an easy repertoire; taking turns at speaking and genuinely listening to one another. I countered all his quick remarks with ones of my own. He would frequently reach across the table and stroke my hand and I felt like the rest of the world faded away. He peppered me with compliments the whole night, commenting that I was like a Greek goddess at one point. I blushed and whispered “thank you,” looking down at my lap. He chuckled and asked what was wrong. I shook my head, not wanting to tell him of my fears.

From the corner of my eye, I saw his hand reach for me and land gently under my chin. He slowly raised it so I was eye level with him. He smiled warmly at me.

“I meant that, Riddhima.” His hand moved to stroke my cheek. “You are like a Greek goddess. Your face is stunning and your figure….” He stopped for a moment and blushed himself, looking away. Now it was my turn to chuckle.

He removed his hand slowly and then returned his eyes to me. He lit up when he saw I was smiling at his slip.

“You’re fine, Vansh,” I said. “No need to be embarrassed.”

He let out a breath. “Thank you.”

I laughed. “But I don’t think I want to know what a man thinks about my body.”

He countered that remark. “This man thinks that Athena would be jealous.”

I drew in a breath sharply at his compliment. He smiled at me and once again reached across the table for my hand.

At the end of dinner, he insisted he would pay for the meal and even offered me gas money for the drive to the restaurant. I was floored that he really was a gentleman. The night was perfect.

We took a walk after dinner around the area; there was a river nearby and we strolled past it. I was still waiting for the other shoe to drop; waiting for him to run away screaming. He continued to hold my hand all through the walk, only letting go to buy some ice cream for me.

“Can I get two scoops?” I asked hopefully.

He shook his head. “Nope.” Then he glanced at me, smiling. “Of course you can. If my lady wants two scoops, she will get two scoops.”

I laughed at that. He paid close attention to what I ordered, making me wonder why. He then ordered the same thing and we continued to walk along the river in silence as we licked our ice cream before it melted.

At one point later, he reached out and moved a strand of hair behind my ear and his hand brushed my cheek in the process. The electricity at that touch surprised me and I wondered if he felt it too. I wondered if he felt the same way as I did.

I’m enchanted to meet you.

There was a moment where I thought he did feel the same way. We had been talking by the river bank and he stepped closer to me. His face glowed in the moonlight. He reached out to cup my cheek again and I thought he was going to kiss me. Electricity was humming between us; I sincerely hoped he could hear it too. He lowered his head towards mine.

It was then that a bird squawked above us, breaking the moment. Vansh snapped up at the sound, startled. He laughed heartily at the situation and pulled back, taking my hand in his again and continuing our playful banter.

I was blushing all the way home. He made me feel like a lady. He made me feel beautiful. I had not felt like that in a long time.

Flashback Over

The lingering question kept me up

2 AM, who do you love?

I wonder ’til I’m wide awake

And now I’m pacing back and forth

Wishing you were at my door

I’d open up and you would say, “Hey,

It was enchanting to meet you,

All I know is I was enchanted to meet you.”

This night is sparkling, don’t you let it go

I’m wonderstruck, blushing all the way home

I’ll spend forever wondering if you knew

This night is flawless, don’t you let it go

I’m wonderstruck, dancing around all alone

I’ll spend forever wondering if you knew

I was enchanted to meet you

But as soon as I got home, the insecurity again took hold.

And that was why I was lying there in bed at two in the morning, wide awake. I got up and began to pace, fear and panic settling in. It was too perfect.

I imagined him knocking at my door and me opening it to tell him that I was enchanted with him. He then pulls me into his arms and kisses me passionately.

Get a grip, Riddhima. Like THAT would ever happen.

My heart began pounding against my chest, each beat echoing his name: Vansh, Vansh, Vansh. I shook my head and stopped pacing, staring at a wall while my thoughts were someplace else.

What if he’s like all the rest? What if he is in love with someone else? Just because Sejal SAYS he’s single doesn’t mean he is. I’d love to see him again, but it probably won’t happen. I don’t think he’ll call me; he probably threw my number away as soon as I was out of sight. He seemed interested; he was going to kiss me, but as fate would have it, he realized his error.

This is me praying that

This was the very first page

Not where the story line ends

My thoughts will echo your name

Until I see you again

These are the words I held back

As I was leaving too soon

I was enchanted to meet you

Please don’t be in love with someone else

Please don’t have somebody waiting on you

Please don’t be in love with someone else

Please don’t have somebody waiting on you

This night is sparkling, don’t you let it go

I’m wonderstruck, blushing all the way home

I’ll spend forever wondering if you knew

This night is flawless, don’t you let it go

I’m wonderstruck, dancing around all alone

I’ll spend forever wondering if you knew

I was enchanted to meet you

Please don’t be in love with someone else

Please don’t have somebody waiting on you

I was in such a state about Vansh and the date that I didn’t hear my phone beeping, indicating a new message. Once I understood what it was, I walked to my nightstand, figuring out Sejal had texted to see how the date was.

The number of the text was unfamiliar to me. I debated on reading it as I assumed it was a wrong number, but something told me to click on it. The message had been sent ten minutes after I drove away. I had been so wrapped up in my fear that I didn’t hear it beep.

I opened up the message and a huge smile spread across my face. I knew immediately who sent it. All of my worries went away. It was exactly what I needed and it looked like he felt the same way about me as I did about him. I started thinking that maybe this was the one. I read his text over and over again.

“I was enchanted to meet you.”

THE END

NOTE – Agar jyada hi lamba hai to maaf kar dena.

PS – I always read all of your views. I just don’t have enough time to reply to all of you personally now. I just wanted to say thank you for all the love you all have been showering on my stories. Your comments keep me motivated to write more and more.

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