Yaman and I started dating when we both were colleagues, working in Gurgaon. We both worked in the same department and he was my immediate senior. Sometime while working on a four-month long project, meeting deadlines together, staying back late in office and having meals together, we found compatibility and fell in love. He looked nothing extraordinary, just a regular guy in his mid 20’s, but it was his personality that made my heart melt. He made me feel so alive whenever he was around me, protected and so loved.
Over the two years we dated, I started seeing him more than just a boyfriend. We had great compatibility, but that wasn’t all, he was also everything any girl could ask for. Sweet, loving, fun and hard working; he was a man who knew how to take good care of his girl.
When I turned 26, I had been with Yaman for over two years, still going strong. I had kept this relationship a secret from my parents all this while. Since my feelings for him had grown so much with time, I felt like I wanted to take the next step. Yes, I mean I was considering getting married to him. After discovering that Yaman and I were on the same page, I was relieved and overjoyed at the same time. I couldn’t wait to begin this fairytale journey of a lifetime with him. Our honeymoon phase hadn’t fizzled out in two years. In fact, I had this constant feeling of butterflies in my stomach- which made me believe our love was meant to be. Since we both loved each other and shared a great chemistry (both inside and outside the bedroom), I assumed that both our parents would be supportive of our decision to get married. But things turned out a bit differently.
Overwhelmed to share this news with my parents, I gave them a synopsis of our love story and invited Yaman over for dinner and drinks with them the same night. My parents were thrilled to hear my story and were relieved to know that all this while, Yaman was the ‘secret boyfriend’ I had been hiding. They had met him several times earlier and had chatted with him as well. To be honest, I was surprised to know that they were so impressed with him and my choice, of course.
Now, finally, it was time to tell Yaman’s parents. Instead of breaking this wonderful news to them alone, he took me along as a surprise. We didn’t want to delay this, so we told them the same night, after the dinner. We entered his house and once everyone was seated, he broke the news, almost the same way I did… The difference being that I was there too.
I got up to hug aunty and uncle, but to my shock, they remained seated with a blank expression on their faces. It didn’t end there… Instead of being happy, they asked million questions like, ‘How can you decide this for yourself?’, ‘How will you adjust with our family?’, ‘What will the relatives say about this inter-caste marriage’ and so on.
Feeling extremely hurt by their unwelcoming, unexpected and curt reaction, I felt out of place and awkward. It dawned on me that maybe they had sensed this earlier as well, which is why they’d always been distant. I broke out of my thought bubble and held myself together, bid goodbye to his parents and left for home. Yaman, on the other hand, torn between me and his parents, had a long discussion with his parents about his plans for the future with me.
It was a long night for me as well as for him. The next day, I was woken up with a hot cup of coffee in bed along with a bouquet of my favourite blue orchids by my bedside. This was his way of saying sorry for his parents’ reaction and how much he loved me. I walked out of my room to have breakfast and saw him seated comfortably with my parents. He promised me that he would always stand by my side and get his family to look at me as the amazing person that he thought I was. He wanted me to just be patient and always have faith in him. I felt really secure and happy knowing this.
Fast forward to 2017, we just celebrated our first wedding anniversary. As promised, my man kept his word. While it took his family a while to come to terms with their son’s decision of marrying a girl of his choice rather than a girl of their choice, they ultimately came around. I won’t lie, the first few months were tough, but with Yaman’s constant support, things became much easier. Today, I am happily married to the love of my life.
*Names changed to protect privacy
Images: Shutterstock
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