"When you wait for the right time, you'll never know when it's already too late."

― Udai Yadla

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Shravan was standing in the middle of the dining room of Tiwari Killa, confused, and a bit dizzy from the chaotic nature of the interactions between the two families. Nothing made sense, nothing was making sense. Everyone was talking at once and over each other, yelling and shouting. Soon after he and Suman had reached, the whole Malhotra clan came with an overly upset Kamini Chachi and a very calm Ramnaath Malhotra, who in all his overpowering presence went straight to the head of the Tiwari Killa to talk about the matter. Observing all of it, Shravan felt as if suddenly he was from another parallel world. Last time when the whole so-called scandal of his picture with Suman was created by Chachi, he had been accused of being too 'open-minded' and forgetting his roots and culture, so even if he felt all of this drama was unnecessary, he couldn't tell them they were overly sensible on the matter. Pushkar and Preeti both were mature adults, loved each other, and were good to each other and for each other. What else did their family ask for more?

"Pushkar is a boy, they do things like that, it's your daughter who was dreaming too big by aiming to become Malhotra's daughter-in-law," Kamini mocked.

"Oh don't worry, I don't want to marry my daughter into a family where no one wants her," Mami Ji yelled.

"That's not true, Bhabhi Ji, we all like Preeti," Lala Ji objected lightly.

"And Pushkar is a very good boy," Mama Ji added hurriedly.

That's how the attention of their wives shifted to them and started the usual complaints of them never having their husbands taking their side when they needed their husbands' support and backing.

"Why don't we rationally try to solve the problem," Shravan proposed, not for the first time yet again was ignored for the drama.

"Let's try to solve this democratically, please raise your hand if you are at least you are willing to hear from Pushkar and Preeti what they want to tell you," he tried once again, louder this time.

Surprisingly it worked as apart from the two mothers, every hand was raised and unfortunately, that further agitated the two women who now were complaining to their whole family for not being on their side.

"Democracy doesn't work here, son," Ramnnath whispered to him as he came to stand next to him.

"Learn from the masters," his father told him with a smirk as he patted on his shoulder.

"Silence," Raghuveer Tiwari commanded.

Suddenly everything stopped, the yelling and dramatic chaos were replaced by the tension in the air, and everyone was now focused on the family heads.

"Me and Ramnnath have talked about this and we see nothing wrong in marrying off these two if that's what they want," Nana Ji said firmly.

"I don't want to hear from anyone else but these two," he continued, cutting off the protests.

"Pushkar, tell us," Ramnaath said.

"I like her and I want to marry her if the elders would allow," Pushkar responded, brave yet sweating under the gazes.

"And you, Preeti," Nana Ji asked gently.

"Yes, me too," Preeti whispered, hidden behind Suman who blocked Mami from reaching to her in her attempt to pressure her into not responding.

"It's settled then, we can do engagement for now. As Suman is the eldest, she would be the first to be married - that hasn't changed. That would also give both families time to get to know each other better," Nana Ji announced.

"Nanu, please, let's not make my marriage a hurdle for them," Suman objected.

"About that, Tiwari Ji..." Ramnaath started but was cut off by someone else.

"If you are searching for a boy for Suman, Tiwari Ji, that means I am right on time then," a female voice rang out loud.

When everyone turned around, they were surprised to find out who it was. Making her way after greeting everyone, Nirmala came to stand right in front of Tiwari Ji and by default Ramnaath.

"Namaste Tiwari Ji," Nirmala greeted with a smile while ignoring the man standing in front of her.

"I came here to ask you for Suman's hand for my son," she said, shocking everyone.

"Your son?" Nana Ji asked, looking at Shravan who seemed as if he was dizzy, surprised, or sick? His gaze was firm on Suman who was looking back at him with a frown.

"Yes, they were classmates in the college," she explained.

"But Shravan and Suman were classmates in school, not in college," Nana Ji reminded with a light laugh.

"Shravan?" Nirmala asked, confused as she turned around to look at him, realizing that he had been here all this time.

"Oh, no, Tiwari Ji, I am talking about my son Aditya," she clarified before turning to her side and seeing no one, only when she looked back she found the one she was searching for.

"Aditya, what are you doing there hiding away? Don't be shy now," she said with a laugh and beaconing him over.

"Tiwari Ji, he is my son, Aditya, he is preparing to take over Ahuja company and likes Suman so I came to you with a wedding proposal this time," Nirmala said sweetly as she smiled at the elder man.

"Well, that's unexpected," the elder man muttered.

"Tiwari Ji, I wanted to talk to you about something very important, can I talk to you in private please," Ramnaath said with urgency.

"Can it wait, Ramnaath?" Nana Ji asked, even though Nirmala was a sensitive topic but something was off with the way he was suddenly behaving.

"It can't, please, Tiwari Ji," he begged.

"Okay, let's talk in my study room," he accepted before turning towards Nirmala and continuing: "Give me a few minutes, Nirmala, till then why don't you sit down and drink something," he nodded at his daughter who came to guide the new guests away.

As moved towards the sitting arrangements, the tension in the air was defused by Mama Ji and Mausa Ji who tried to converse with the new arrivals, asking them questions to assess the proposal. With everyone else busy entertaining the guests, there were only two figures who stayed still on their feet even if they felt the ground beneath their feet was giving out.

It was too soon...

It was too soon. They haven't talked yet, they haven't listened to each other yet, they haven't done so many things that they wanted to do yet there it was, another hurdle to test them. As they looked at each other, trying to understand, to communicate what should be their next move, and what they should do to overcome this one, the said hurdle came in between them to break their connection.

"Hi there," Aditya said with a cheeky smile.

"Hi," Suman responded, taking a few steps away from the man who was standing too close to her.

"Oh, don't worry, I asked for permission, after all, this is the traditional way right? For you and I to talk while the elders set a date for the wedding," Aditya said, once again advancing towards her with a grin but was stopped mid-step by a hand on his shoulder.

"Maintain your distance," Shravan said firmly with a glare before standing beside her and lightly pushing him away from them.

"Wow dude, no need to growl and all. I am the husband-to-be, she doesn't need your protection from me," he said with a laugh.

"And anyway, don't you guys think you are too old to have the opposite sex as best friends? I am telling you in advance, this isn't going to happen after marriage, haan, I want to be the only guy friend in her life and she is going to Mumbai with us so you guys should start getting used to the distance," he said with a self-assured shrug.

"I advise you to stop bubbling before I lose my patience," Shravan hissed in a low voice.

"Shravan," Nirmala called him out as she came to stand next to Aditya.

"A word, please," she said and walked out before he could refuse.

"Go, I will handle this," Suman muttered to him and nodded at him with a firm gaze, assuring him.

And even though he didn't want to leave her alone with the creep, he never wanted to leave her at all, his need to hide her away was stronger now than ever, his fear of losing her so visible, but there was one thing he has learned during the past few months: there were battles Suman Tiwari wanted to fight alone and he just had to trust her to come to him if she needed help. And therefore, with a restless and heavy heart, he walked away from her.

"What did you want to talk about?" Shravan asked the elder woman as soon as he came to stand before her.

"What do you think you are doing? Grow up, Shravan, only because Aditya is my son, doesn't mean you and your father should pressure them to reject such a good proposal for Suman," Nirmal hissed at him.

"A good proposal, biased much, Mrs Ahuja? Sorry, you are still Mrs Malhotra, right? Anyway, why are you guys not divorced yet? It has been 11 years, when is this ego war going to end?" He asked out of curiosity.

"I see your father has succeeded in turning you into a mannerless brat, expensive education can't teach everything, can it now?" She mocked with a bitter laugh.

"Yes, that's what I am, a mannerless brat, you know why? My parents were too busy ruining my childhood with their destructive marriage and when they separated, neither of them wanted me close because their ego war was more important. I turned out like this because one parent abandoned me and the other sent me away. So forgive me if I am not up to your expectations," he said with a bitter laugh.

"You know what, Shravan? I am not interested in this game you and your father want to play. Just stay away from Aditya and Suman," Nirmala said, raising her hands in the air, and giving up.

"And what makes you so sure that this proposal would be accepted?" He asked in disbelief at the utter confidence of the son-mother duo.

"Why wouldn't it be? Aditya is perfect, no one would say no to him," she said with conviction.

"He is perfect, huh? Because you raised him, that's why? And I am nothing because my father raised me?" He asked with an amused laugh.

"Don't make this a competition between you and him, Shravan, for God's sake, grow up," she warned him.

"Competition? He may be the son you want, love, and have raised, and you know what he wants but I am part of you, your blood and flesh, how can you be so unaware of what my heart desires?" He asked with a bitter sigh.

"Oh, I know you alright, you always had this habit of wanting something and then tossing it aside when you had it, but Suman is a person, not a toy," she reminded him.

"Of course, you will forget how much you both used to fight about who was better at providing for me and turned every toy into a competition and then fought over who should return it, who I had asked first, and who bought it first," Shravan muttered with a laugh.

"It had continued to the point I had stopped asking for anything and buried away the desire to have anything. But it's different now, I don't care how much or how hard you both are going to fight or do whatever because this has nothing to do with you two," he said, shaking his head and standing firm in his stance.

"Shravan, you..." Nirmala started but was interrupted.

"Excuse me, Nirmala Ji, Babu Ji is asking for you," Mausa Ji came to inform her.

"Please lead the way," she responded with a polite smile and walked away without turning back.

It wasn't as if she hadn't noticed how close Shravan and Suman seemed when they had come to meet her, but she knew by experience that feelings and romance didn't matter in marriage, two people had to have the same values and priorities to be able to make it work. Knowing Shravan and the way he had been raised by Ramnaath, it wasn't difficult to conclude that an independent and loving girl like Suman wouldn't be able to deal with the misogyny and overbearing attitude the two men seemed to have. And anyway, there was no way Ramnaath would let their marriage happen, he liked control over his son and his family way too much to let a wild card like Suman enter his territory. And even if he did because he liked playing ego wars with her, Suman wouldn't be able to breathe in that suffocating environment for long. Wasn't it better to not let Suman go through it in the first place? Determined to make the younger woman's life easier, she concluded that she had to fight for this marriage more strongly than ever, not only for Aditya but also for Suman's sake...

"Come on in Nirmala," Tiwari Ji invited her to sit in his library.

"Ramnaath here has asked Suman's hand for Shravan," he informed her as soon as she sat down.

"Is that so?" She asked, glaring at the man sitting right in front of her.

"Yes, and I am conflicted. You both are dear to me and you have raised your sons so I am sure they both are good proposals,"

"I am so fond of Shravan, he has grown up in front of me. Yes, he had been away from home, but he came back and has been working with his father ever since. Everyone from our field has said such good things about him," he said with an affectionate laugh.

"But I have always wanted Suman to have the motherly love which she had missed and Nirmala can give her that. Aditya knows the pain of losing parents so he would be very understanding of her pain, an understanding and supportive partner makes life easier," he said, deep in thought.

"I want her close to me, but I also don't want her to be stuck under the burden of this family," he muttered with a sigh.

"Tiwari Ji, why don't you ask what Suman wants," Ramnaath suggested.

"Are you really sure you want Suman as your daughter-in-law?" Nirmala asked the man and before he could reply she continued.

"My son's happiness is important to me," he responded firmly with a glare.

"That doesn't answer my question, Ramnaath. She is an independent woman, a career-driven woman, don't expect her to stay at home and forget her dreams of expanding her business and partake in the kitty parties. Do you even know how many plans she has? Mumbai will offer her everything she needs, me and Aditya are going to support her in achieving her dreams," she claimed.

"Believe me, Tiwari Ji, she is going to have such a supportive and loving family. Ridha, me, and Aditya are going to keep her very happy and she will be free to do what she wishes. And as you said, she would be free to start anew but Mumbai is just a few hours away, she can come and visit you anytime you want," she assured the elder man.

"I want some time to think about it and ask Suman what she wants," Tiwari Ji responded after hearing her.

"Of course, Tiwari Ji," Nirmala smiled at him before standing up.

"I will take my leave now, but I will be waiting for your positive response," she said as she folded her hands, and with a nod and smile, she walked out.

"I am sure the decision would be in our favor," Ramnaath called her out from behind her as soon as she stepped out of the library.

"Overconfident much, Ramnaath?" She said with a mocking laugh.

"They both love each other, did you know?" He claimed with a smirk.

"Ramnaath, I suggest you stop trying to ruin another woman's life for the sake of your ego and your son's along with it. You are never going to accept her, you will try to bend her into the mold that you see fit and break her as you tried to break me and almost succeeded. I am not going to see another woman suffer by your hand," she said, strong in her resolve.

"Exaggerating as always. Shravan is supportive of her career and doesn't want to change her, so she is going to be fine," he objected.

"And for once, can you be a mother to your own child instead of others'?" He growled.

"Exactly, that your poor and narrow mindset of yours is your biggest flaw, other than your big overinflated ego of course," she said with a disgusted glare.

"Oh, then what about your cold heart that can warm up for everyone other than your own child? Or is it because you can't see him as an individual separated from me? He is your child too, do you still remember that?" He reminded her.

"Of course, I remember, I was the one who gave him birth, but you have ruined him," she hissed at him.

"So because I raised him there is no good in him? Is he not worthy of your love and your chosen son is?" He yelled, seeing red as anger colored his eyes.

"Excuse me," a voice broke the heated glare between them.

"Suman," Nirmala broke away first and tried to offer her a smile.

"I am glad I got to meet you before going," she said before walking toward her and away from the man who was the bane of her existence.

"Suman, I hope you will make your decision with your head and not based on your feelings that are flimsy and die out the second a person realizes that marriage is much more than romance. Choose your mind, your dreams, and yourself, always prioritize your self-respect or you are going to regret it," she advised and hoped the younger woman would choose wisely.

"He is too much like his father, way too into his control to break away, don't make the mistake of thinking that you can change him. He isn't going to change, he is going to try to change you and trap you in a golden cage that may look attractive now, but you are going to grow to hate it and hate him along with it. Spare both of you the pain and marry my Aditya, and I promise he is the best man for you between the two," she promised, confident in her claim as after all, it was she who raised him with her values and her love.

After saying her bit, she smiled at the younger woman, patting her cheek lovingly, and walked away leaving the two behind.

"You better choose Shravan," Ramnaath ordered.

"Excuse me?" Suman asked, shocked.

"Suman Tiwari, you better not abandon my son midway," he hissed at her.

"Are you threatening me?" She asked, controlling herself to not snap.

"Yes, I am. He chose you over his hatred for marriage and fear of being abandoned, so you better choose him too," he growled.

"And you are going to let that happen? Not just temporarily, Ramnaath uncle, but for our whole lives, are you going to let us be and not interfere in our married life?" She asked, daring him to speak his mind.

"No, I can't promise you that. I am afraid of history repeating itself and the idea of him getting hurt breaks me, but what can I do? As a father what else can I do when you are the only one who seems to want to marry? Do you know what I had feared after his rejection of Urwashi's proposal? That he would never trust a woman enough to stay even if gets married to her for my sake. But with you, it's different, he trusts you to stay and he wants to marry you. And the day you fought with me for him, I had started to trust you too, Suman, so please, don't break this trust. Don't break his trust," he pleaded.

The sight before was something she had never thought was possible: Ramnaath Malhotra was pleading with her to marry Shravan and wasn't giving her money like some old movie's rich father who wanted her to get out of his son's life.

But did Shravan actually want to marry her?

He had feelings for her as she did, for over a decade now, but marriage was a different matter altogether. Wanting to marry a person you loved wasn't given, they never had talked about it. Let alone the marriage, she had pushed and waited for almost a year now and still hasn't gotten a proper confession out of the man. Only a few hours ago he had gathered the courage and overcome his fears enough to give her the latter that not only represented his love but also his past trauma. How much time would it take him to reach the stage to be ready to marry her?

Was it not unfair to expect him to be okay with getting married so soon just because others have decided he must? She wasn't ready, he wasn't ready, they weren't ready. They had just overcome the hurdles of his past, their shared past, and now the new obstacle seemed to have the strength to break them under the pressure of marriage.

The dark thought inflamed by her fear kept running in her head as she made her way into the library.

"Oh, Suman, you are here, good," Nanu's voice woke her to the present.

"What do you think? Which proposal is best for you?" He asked.

"What do you think?" She asked without responding.

Her old habit of burying her desire to please others stopped her from expressing her wish as always and being her grandfather and the one who raised her after her parents passed away, Raghuveer Tiwari knew her best. And that's why the scale of his decision tilted toward Aditya's proposal more.

"I don't want you to be married in the same family as Preeti. If not, the same things that happen in this home would happen even there. You would be pushed to cover up for her, keep doing things for her, and keep taking the blame for her. And if you are close by, this family will keep leeching off you. Do you think after you paid the loan off with added money as interest things would settle down? No, this so-called favor would keep getting cashed at every small and big incident," he said with a bitter scoff.

"As much as I want you close to me, I may be only alive for a few years more," he said, ignoring her yell of protest, he continued: "And I can't be selfish and ruin the rest of your life."

"Even if Ramnaath has his own flaws, he has been clear that he thinks you are perfect for his family and his son, and he has assured me that he is never going to stop you from working or doing what you want. And I trust him because he is a man of his word. But Kamini, I don't trust her. Preeti would fit right in their family because she suits the rest of them, knows how to deal with people, is firm, and gets what she wants. But you, my child, you are going to feel trapped and looked down. In your pursuit of pleasing them, you are going to ignore what you want," he voiced his fears out loud.

"I want to marry you off soon. I don't trust death or time, or this family for that matter. So I want to know what you want. Who do you want to marry?" He finally asked her.

But was he being fair to her? Could she dare to go against him after hearing his strong opposition? Could she defend their case when she wasn't even sure what Shravan wanted? Suman thought, her vision hazy and her heart breaking in her chest.

"You like him, don't you?" Nanu asked softly, noticing her bent head and tears for the first time.

"I suspected that," he whispered when she refused to reply.

"What about Shravan?" He asked her after a long sigh.

And when she still refused to respond, he shook his head and decided to take matters into his own hands.

"I am going to ask him myself then, you can go," he dismissed her.

"On your way out, tell him to come here," he told her.

"Can you please not ask him now," she whispered.

"If not now then when?" He asked her and when she stayed silent he let out a sigh.

"I want to marry you off before I die. I have been searching for a good proposal for years now, but no one was worthy enough, but now that Nirmala has come with Aditya's proposal, I don't want to waste time," he told her firmly.

"Go call him," he ordered her.

Was fate taunting her? Testing her? Mocking her? She thought bitterly as she walked out, her legs shaking with every step and her vision turning hazier.

Just a few hours ago he had promised her that they had all their lives as long as she was there. And now...Now fate was showing them how wrong they were for thinking that there was no time limit for them. That time would remain the same for them because their feelings remained the same...

How could she even approach him with the idea of marriage when they hadn't even confessed their feelings out loud? How could she expect him to respond well when he would be pushed into the corner to accept now or give up forever? How can she put conditions and give ultimatums when he barely has stepped away from the shadow of his past? What if she overwhelmed him into making him run away in panic and leave her first due to his trauma and his fear?

Countless what-ifs would soon drive her to madness, she could feel it as she got hold of the wall nearby before she could fall. Slipping slowly to the ground, she felt as if she couldn't breathe when she realized how he had just started to trust her not to leave him but now fate was twisting her hand into choosing between Nanu and him...

Was she even actually given a choice?

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A/N:- So, yes, a cliffhanger? But is it really one? ;D

I apologize for the late update but promise to work on the next chapter as soon as I can as we have reached the end of the story...So wish me luck... :D

Btw, who saw Nirmala coming with her pavitar sanskari son Aditya with rishta? Who was surprised? I had warned that the drama was coming but did you think Nirmala-Aditya would be the cause of it? ;P

And who was surprised by Ramnaath? The man is showing the potential of the biggest cupid and of being soon in competition with Pushkar for ShraMan's fan club president position. So much progress, nahi? T___T

And who thought Nana Ji would be anti-ShraMan? That sure was a shock... :O

Let me know your thoughts and feelings and leave a comment or more on your reaction to the chapter... ;)

Comments help in writing and staying motivated as writers get to know readers' thoughts and know what, where, and how to improve, so please try to comment on whatever you read, your writers would appreciate it... :)

As always, thank you so much for reading, liking, commenting, and waiting for the updates. So grateful for the love, and the support... *hugs*

Thank you! <3

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