What Dreams Are Made Of: Episode 44

#EPISODE_44

 

 

Chrissy met Henry at the decided time and place the next day. He was waiting at the gate of the house when Chrissy arrived and they both went in together. Chrissy couldn’t understand why Henry would want to buy a house in North Hampton but decided to keep her curiosity to herself. The less she involved herself in their life, the better it was for her.

 

So she concentrated her thoughts on the house in the question. It was a large mansion with multiple rooms spread over on two floors. There was a grand sitting area, a separate drawing room, a living area and a large dining room on the ground floor. The bedrooms were on the second floor. After few rooms of the first floor, Chrissy had actually lost the count.

 

The beautifully crafted staircase in the central landing lead to the second floor. While it was all very impressive, Chrissy was wondering why Henry and his

 

 

mother would need such a big house in this place. Just as she was going around the living room, Henry mobile phone rang. He picked up and said excitedly, “Hello Mom, yes yes, you won’t believe what happened!”

 

Chrissy looked up at him in alarm, worrying he might be about to tell Mrs Clark about her. She quickly rushed to him and tried to stop him mid-sentence. Henry looked up to see a worried Chrissy. She placed her finger on her lips to signal him not to talk about her. Getting her message, Henry stopped what he was about to say and improvised it, “Uh.. Yes, Mom. I found the place. This is just as you wanted. I am sure Nik would love it.”

 

Henry went on to explain the mansion but Chrissy couldn’t recollect any of it later. She froze the moment she heard him say Nikloi’s name. This was for Nik.. Nikloi? She feared mentally.

 

Why was God so cruel to her? Why would everything come back to that one person she wanted to forget?

 

It was not easy. Not a single day. But she had hoped with time the pain would ease. She didn’t need any reminder of him or his houses. She laughed at the irony of her life. She had again landed up in Nikloi’s house, well sort of, without knowing it was his place! How could life deal her same embarrassment twice? She whined internally.

 

So was she lost in being frozen, she didn’t notice Henry was through with his call. He came to her and patted on her shoulder to bring her back to present. “What happened to you?” He asked on seeing the lost look on her face.

 

Chrissy quickly tried to recover from her lapse. “ah.. nothing. Nothing important.

 

You tell me. You were talking to Mrs Clark?” she asked to change his focus.

 

“Yes, this is all her idea. She wants to gift this place to Nikloi as a wedding present”, Henry answered her innocently. He had no idea what pain his words were causing to her.

 

Nikloi was getting married!

 

Married!

 

She thought she shouldn’t be affected so much with this news. After all they were never meant for each other. Whatever they had between them was over that painful night. So why was she letting this news hurt her so much.

 

And even though he was not the marrying kind, he had to do it one day or the other. That is how it worked in his circle. They married for business or status or money or all of it.

 

Or did he find someone to fall in love with?

 

It was too much to bear inside. She also had no clue that Henry was watching her closely, her white face, and her state of shock. Realizing she had been silent for too long and he was expecting her to say something, Chrissy couldn’t help but ask, “Oh Mr Swaroski is getting married. Do I know the bride?” She voiced her fears.

 

She tried to cover her anxieties and act as normal as possible under the given circumstances. She had turned away from Henry, looking outside the window as if she was interested in the garden outside. But the fact was she didn’t want Henry to see her emotions on her face.

 

Henry came close behind her and said, “Yes you do.” He added after a pause, “Its Susan.”

 

Chrissy worst fears were confirmed. Deep down her heart, she had dreaded this the most. Nikl

 

oi was marrying Susan!

 

But shouldn’t she have known this was expected, she scolded herself. They had always had this love-hate relationship. Always going away and then getting back together. Hadn’t she herself seen him kiss Susan passionately? Didn’t they have a strong business relationship as well? And has she forgotten the way Susan had treated her once she had found Nikloi might be interested in her. She had even tried to kill her!

 

 

Obviously, Susan would have stopped at nothing till she got her heart’s desire – Nikloi as her husband. So come to think carefully, this shouldn’t come as a surprise at all.

 

But her heart refused to look at it carefully. It refused to consider the news as a neutral person and not be affected. It refused her self-respect and tears of lost love spilled over her eyes. This was the last nail in her heart and she gave in to the ache. She bowed her head and cried silently, not being able to control the storm of painful feelings.

 

Henry had sensed her discomfort and when he came in front of her, he could see the non-stop tears even with her head bent forward. His concern for her well-being immediately made him turn her around and asked her hurriedly, “Chrissy, what happened?” but his heart had already known the answer.

 

When Chrissy didn’t answer but continued crying, he pulled her in his arms and let her weep on his shoulder. He could now understand why Chrissy could never think of him as more than a friend. And while he had accepted her decision, he had never thought it was because of Nikloi.

 

But he should have known, he thought. It was impossible to resist his cousin brother’s charms. He had never seen any girl to escape unaffected. But he had been so lost in his own emotions, he had never noticed what was going on right in front of her.

 

Chrissy was different but a girl after all and Nik was devastatingly handsome man who had girls falling all over him.

 

When her sobbing sobered up some time later, she straighten up away from him and his arms. Trying to control his own emotions, Henry asked her softly, “Was it Nikloi? You left London because of Nikloi?”

 

Chrissy had been trying to keep it all buried deep inside her heart but it was difficult not get swayed with her emotions. A fresh bout of tears threaten to unleash from her eyes. Her throat struggled with the heavy lump stuck in it. She called for all her strength to control her tears and simply nodded in response to Henry’s question.

 

“Oh my dear Chrissy! What did Nik do to you?” Henry exasperated helplessly.

 

Chrissy didn’t know how to answer him. While she was burdened with everything that had happened and wanted to share it with someone, she also knew Henry was Nikloi’s cousin and she didn’t want to cause any trouble between them. Also she was too embarrassed to share the more intimate details. “Please, I don’t want any trouble between you two”, she cried.

 

“Don’t worry about us. I knew Nikloi was a through and through heart-breaker but I would have never imagined him to hurt you. Anyone could see you were completely different from all the butterfly girls he used to move around with. Hell, there is no one like you! You are so unique, Chrissy”, Henry couldn’t stop letting his own feelings come to the fore front.

 

“Believe me, it’s no one’s fault. We aren’t meant for each other.

 

There is no common thread that binds us together”, Chrissy expressed, omitting the strong physical connect she had experienced in his arms. She knew both of them were equally pulled towards each other but the sad reality was that the commonality ended just there.

 

Seeing Henry was not satisfied with the explanation, she told him what had happened between Nikloi and her. There wasn’t much to say since they never had any expression of true love or any discussion of future. He wanted her. And she wanted him. But then Susan had made sure that never happened.

 

She told him about Richard Susshell and how Susan used him to create suspicion in Nikloi’s mind. How he thought she had betrayed him and his hotel, his dream project and that was enough for him to send her off

 

from his life.

 

Chrissy had doubts whether she should share about Susan’s attempts on her life. She was hopeful that now that Susan was finally marrying Nikloi, her evilness would subside. But maybe it was important for someone in the family to know the extent of Susan’s crooked mind.

 

Henry was appalled on hearing Susan had tried to end Chrissy’s life on more than one occasion. “Susan tried to kill you! And you never bothered to tell this to anyone? You never even told me! And you call yourself my friend?”

 

 

Henry was infuriated that Susan had tried to harm his angel and he wasn’t even aware. He didn’t want to judge her but given the circumstances he had a strong desire to hit someone and Chrissy was the only one around. All his frustration came out as accusation on Chrissy.

 

“Please don’t say that. I wasn’t sure of it myself. It was a very big accusation and I myself had a hard time coming to terms to that Susan can do something like it. I had no proof and I came to know all about only when I had decided to leave London. I finally decided, it was better to leave all that behind and move on. In any case, there was no possibility of getting back with Nikloi so I thought it wasn’t worth it”, Chrissy explained.

 

“Not worth it! How your life not be worth it? Had it been any other person, they would have not let Susan get away with such heinous crime. Why are you so innocent, Chrissy?” Henry couldn’t come to terms with the scariness of all it.

 

“If anything had happened to you, I would have never forgotten myself”, he added nervously, pulling Chrissy again in his arms.

 

Chrissy was suddenly conscious of his arms around her. She tried to get away but Henry didn’t loosen his hold. Trying to get him to relax, Chrissy said, “But, I am fine, ain’t I? See?”

 

She lifted her head and looked up at his face, trying to create some distance between them. “Yes, and I am so grateful to God for that”, Henry answered looking in her green eyes. His own eyes were filled with love and gratitude but he sensed her discomfort in her eyes.

 

He quickly released her from his embrace and moved away. He needed to get his emotions in check. Finally, he turned back towards her and asked what had still been nagging him.

 

“Nikloi doesn’t know any of it? You never told him anything?”

 

She quietly shook her head.

 

“But if Susan is indulging in such dangerous games, shouldn’t Nikloi know what kind of a person he is getting married to?” Henry asked again, urging her to not let Susan go scot free.

 

 

“At that time I didn’t know Nikloi would marry Susan, though I should have known it considering Susan’s intentions. Now, I think having got what she always wanted, Susan would never resort to such crimes again. I guess it was her love for Nikloi which made her so jealous”, Chrissy answered thoughtfully.

 

Henry looked at the naïve girl in front of him and wondered how she could still think good of Susan after all the pains that woman had caused her directly and indirectly. She definitely didn’t belong to this selfish sad world. “Chrissy, you are really an angel. How can you be so good?” Henry commented incredulously.

 

After a long silence, Henry said, “I know you made your decision and moved away from Nikloi and you may not be looking for my advice but I want to tell you this. It’s your life we are talking about. Nikloi can be a stubborn, thick-headed barmy when it comes to girls, but he is not a complete fool. If there is even a slightest possibility of you two being together, you must give it your best shot”.

 

Chrissy looked up at him surprised. She wasn’t expecting Henry to understand the extent of her affection and advise her to go to Nikloi.

 

“What?” Henry said looking at her surprised face. “You didn’t expect me to suggest this?”

 

“I know this works against my feelings for you but I can see your feelings for Nikloi are genuine. Even though I couldn’t win your heart, I want you to be happy and if that happiness lies with Nikloi, then I want to do everything in my capacity to help you”, he continued.

 

Chrissy was truly touched with his care and for the thousandth time

 

wondered why she couldn’t love him instead of the hard-hearted Nikloi.

 

May be that’s how love works, she thought gloomily.

 

Heartache was inevitable in love.

 

In spite of all the confusion, Chrissy was really thankful for Henry’s true friendship. She thanked him for being so caring and thoughtful but quickly added that she didn’t want to pursue it. Nikloi and she belonged to different world and

 

 

even though they may come together momentarily, they would eventually drift apart. She didn’t want to go through that heartache all over again. It was with great difficulty, she had gained some control over her aching heart.

 

She also made him promise that he would never tell Nikloi any of what she had told him. Henry was very reluctant but he finally gave in his word on her insistence.

 

Finally, parting their ways that evening, Henry told her, “Always remember, I just want you to be happy, Chrissy.”

 

“Thank you, Henry. That really means a lot to me”, Chrissy had replied.

 

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