Chapter 16

"You have met sixty four boys with the purpose of getting married and not one single person said yes for you," Neil's voice boomed across the room in incredulity. But there was anger too. What were all of them? Morons?

Simi smiled. Wryly.

"The family of the sixty fifth boy called up and said 'no' to my mother today," she told him.

And Neil looked at her weirdly. Okay, first he was still coming to terms with the fact that after staying in the US for as long, her parents were still trying to arrange a match for her. So it was just her mother probably as her father was a busy man and couldn't be concerned with his youngest child as she couldn't meet his expectations by either becoming a doctor or a lawyer.

Neil would like to meet her father and tell him a few harsh truths but never mind. And her mother had made a spectacle of Simi by presenting her as a show piece to several families with the mindset of getting her married. Why couldn't Simi choose her own partner? Or find someone for herself? But he understood the traditions her family followed. It didn't matter that they had been settled here for so long, they had kept their values and family systems very similar to the ones they had been brought up in. He hadn't been off the mark when he had deduced Simi to be traditional. There was nothing wrong in it. Several marriages across the globe were arranged. But sixty four boys...make that sixty five that was a bit too much to digest.

And what about the boys she had met? Most hadn't respected her for her choice of profession. Just because her father was a neurosurgeon, and one of the best, her brother a lawyer and sister a gynecologist didn't mean she had to be one too. And what was wrong with being a teacher? He didn't understand. To reach a stage in the education system everyone needed a teacher. Her father must have had one. Her brother must have had one. Her sister too. Every single boy she had met must have gone to school as well. Teachers put the foundations for every single child in the world to become who they eventually go on to be. It was a respectable profession. They wouldn't have reached the heights had none of them had had teachers to teach them the skills. And yet they thought low of her. Neil was disgusted. But when Simi didn't have support from her own family in the choices she made what could anyone say to the outsiders.

"Is that why you are so upset?" Neil asked quietly.

"Who likes rejection Neil," Simi said quietly too. After telling him her history she felt better. She wasn't as angry anymore.

"Did your mother call up to tell you this?" he asked again.

"Yup, she did," Simi said and smiled sadly, "she was so angry. At me," she told him, "as if it is all my fault. Maybe it is. I am not as successful as my brother or sister. I am a teacher. And it doesn't pay as well," she said, "I just make enough, to live my life, the way I want to, that's all," she went on. She wasn't looking at Neil or she would have seen him tighten his jaw, "With the name of Dr. Prem Sardana for my father it gets a bit strange for people to understand why one of his children is so lacking," she said and sighed, "coming from a traditional Sikh family, my folks want me to get married into a similar one. There are several of them on the continent only their demands and list of attributes are different," she said with a hint of cynicism, "and then maybe it is not just my profession that is such a big deal, it is the whole package," she said, "me. I am not as beautiful so it doesn't make up for lack of a great professional degree. Then I am not smart enough, too simple for how one might want their life partner to be. Even my lack of having a boyfriend is a problem," she said sardonically and would have continued when Neil interrupted her.

"Wait, how you not having a boyfriend is a problem," he asked surprised, "I mean, since you belong to a traditional setup for a family and most families you are looking at are similar, then it should be a plus factor," he said hoping he was putting it the right way.

"You would think that," Simi said as she looked at him, "sadly that is not the case. Parents might be pleased with the fact but their sons are not. 'How come you don't have a boyfriend?' 'How come you never had one?' 'Not even in high school' 'Are you straight?'" she said and shook her head, "half the time I don't know what to say to them. I never had a boyfriend because I don't like casual flings. I am not that sort of person. I mean how difficult is it for anyone to understand? But it is," she said irritated, "it is a crime, I guess. I don't know would it be better if I start telling them I have had several relationships. That I have kissed a dozen or so people," she said trying to understand the dynamics herself, "would that suddenly make me more marriage material. I don't know," she said, "You tell me, what do you look for in a partner? Tell me," she asked Neil.

"I don't think I can answer that one Simi," Neil said honestly, "I am sorry but I have never thought on those lines and I am not sure I will so..." he said and shrugged.

"But if you were then," she asked.

"Well, if I was to look for one, then her nature would be most important I guess," he said thoughtfully. He had never really thought about what he might want in a life partner. Mainly because he wasn't going to get married. But now as the question was posed to him, he had to really think what attributes he might want in his wife. "She will have to be patient and compassionate considering I am not a very easy person to live with, neither are my parents and though they reside in different countries I do get to see them every once in a while and trust me, they are really very difficult people. I guess the best way to sum it up would be that she loves me, unconditionally, because that way she will accept me and my peculiarities without trying to change anything," he said honestly. He felt it.

For the first time in years, he knew what he wanted from a relationship that personal. It surprised him. Stunned would be a better word. He had never thought of it. Never acknowledged it. Not even in his rarest dreams. But he knew the conviction of those words. He wasn't just saying them because she had pushed for an answer, this was truly how he felt. And he looked at her. A bit in shock. And a bit in awe.

"That is beautiful Neil, you should be proud of how you think because that is what should be the root of any marriage. Love, respect, understanding, compassion. Sadly, not many think that way, you know what one guy told me," Simi said as she smiled faintly, "he wanted to see if we were physically compatible and based on that he would decide if I would suit him as a wife or not," she told him and saw anger rise in his eyes, "he wasn't the only one, another one found my virginity a sin, the fact that I hadn't even kissed anyone let alone slept with someone was a crime in his eyes," she said quietly and a lone tear slid down her cheek.

How could any self-respecting man say that to a girl he wanted to get married to? How could anyone say that to any girl, whether marriage was even in the equation or not? Where was the respect? How could anyone be so disrespectful? And her parents still put her through the grill. Again and again. No wonder she was so low on confidence. Nervous. Unsure of herself. Damn. And that tear was his undoing. Poor thing. How had she sat through those conversations? How had she felt when someone had subjected her to being just an object? He couldn't even begin to comprehend. Who was to be blamed? Was it the girl? Was it the boy? Was it the parents? Or the society as a whole? It was so unfair. So bloody unfair. How could a human being be subjected to such nonsense? Why had she taken the insult? They weren't worth it. None of them.

Neil couldn't take that just sitting down. He just couldn't. He took her in his arms and hugged her tightly. There was nothing he could say to her. Nothing that could ease her hurts. So he just stroked her back. She was so soft. So sweet. Such a nice warm person, how come no one saw that as her attributes. She had grit too. He had seen it for himself. And somewhere Neil felt she had a certain stubbornness as well. It showed itself rarely but it was definitely a part of her. She was funny. And cute. Smart. Intelligent. How come no one saw that in her? How come everything just boiled down to either materialistic things or physical attributes?

And he had to mentally shake himself. That had been his first impression too. It was only when he had talked to her, spent time with her had he found out the kind of person she was. Unfortunately, he had glimpsed her in light of her beauty too or lack of it. And he closed his eyes mentally berating himself. How was he any different? Her strength lay on the inside not on the outside. But being in a profession where packaging mattered just as much he knew the value of it. He understood how important it was to attract the eye of the target audience. And what appealed to the eyes was what appealed to the brain. He closed his eyes for a second. Maybe if Simi brought a little more style to how she looked she could boost her confidence, take charge of her life the way she should. Attract the right kind of attention.

But maybe now was not the right time to talk to her. That is if her soft snores were anything to go by. She had gone off to sleep. And Neil smiled at that. Trust her to do something like that. He slowly eased her out of his embrace and then stood up. Then picked her up and carried her to her room. She hadn't eaten anything but that was okay. She was exhausted. He settled her on the bed and pulled the covers over her. She looked so serene after the huge scene that had taken place in the past few hours. He couldn't resist it. So he bent and placed a light kiss on her forehead.

"Sleep tight," he whispered.

Then left the room and closed the door behind him. At least she won't be able to lock him out tonight. Though his thoughts immediately returned to all that she had told him and he realized he wasn't getting any sleep tonight. Because he was going to stay up and keep thinking about her.

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