AMAN: The Bride

Photo by Urvi Kotasthane on Unsplash

She sat quietly amongst a cloud of pillows, adorned in red silk and gold. Glass bangles covered her forearms from wrist to elbow; they were more than just decoration. Once broken, they would signal to the elders that the marriage had been consummated. Outside her door, the wedding celebration continued. Guests ate and drank and laughed with the new groom. It was only a matter of time before he left the party and came to her.

She did not want to be here.

“Your husband is a good man, from a good family. Everyone will be happy.”

Aman whispered encouragements from his perch in the corner, as he observed the young woman whose dreams he’d entered for many moons. She’d rush to sleep every night to see him and allow herself the delicious feeling of freedom. As their friendship grew, she told him secrets that she wouldn’t dare whisper in the waking hours. She let Aman explore her body in the dreaming world, but always stopped him before they went too far. She refused to be with him when she was awake. She was the daughter of a powerful man, and it was imperative that no one touch her until her wedding night. Such a violation would mean dishonor on the entire family… and that could mean death.

She looked at him now with a smile that never reached her eyes. “What do you know about being a man? You’re not even a real one.”

He let the comment pass, understanding that she was upset. But what he said was true. Her new husband was kind and would give her a good life. She knew it as well, but was disinterested in grace at the moment.

“Come sit with me.”

He looked away. “You know I can’t.”

She turned fully to face him and pulled up her gown, revealing bare flesh… shaved clean for her wedding night. She parted her legs and leaned back.

“Aman.”

He looked back at her.

“I want it to be you.”

One hand carefully reached between her legs to spread her lips… her middle finger tracing lazy circles around her clit. She continued to stare at him as she moved against her hand, her fingers growing increasingly slick. Aman felt himself respond, but refused to move from his seat.

“We can’t break your bracelets.”

“I know.” her breath was rapid now. “I’ll be careful.”

Unable to resist, Aman closed the distance between them and stood at the edge of the bed. She carefully moved to meet him, then laid back, hiking her gown high. She lifted her arms above her head to keep the bracelets clear of contact.

“Please.”

He reached down to lift her hips, then dropped to his knees to taste her. She gasped when his tongue made contact, moving into all the places that he knew she liked. She pushed back against him, begging… needing. He firmly held her in place, lest they risk breaking a single bracelet. When her moans put them both in danger of discovery, he pulled away.

“You have to be quiet!” he whispered with a laugh… but she knew he was serious.

She smiled back, genuinely this time. “Then you’ll have to kiss me to shut me up.”

He was back on his feet, hovering above her with one hand braced against the bed while the other undid his pants. She carefully positioned herself to come up to a seat, then reached for him in a hungry kiss. Her hands pulled at his hair and touched his face, any promises to be careful falling away as she pushed her tongue into his mouth. He matched her urgency, kissing her with the knowledge that it would be their last time together.

She moved away to meet his eyes, and he understood. He pulled her toward him and gently entered her. She buried her face in his shoulder to muffle her moans as he moved slowly, then released him and fell back onto the bed… several broken bangles showering shards of glass around her. She ignored the mess and spread her legs wide.

“Harder.”

He braced himself against the edge of the bed and granted her wish, thrusting into her without care. She grabbed his hips and moved with him, matching his urgency. When she came, the volume could not be helped; Aman only hoped that the party outside was loud enough to cover her cries. They were still for several precious seconds, and then they were up, scrambling to clean up the mess they’d made.

Closer inspection revealed that only three of the bangles had shattered: two from one arm and one from the other. She handed the shards to Aman to take with him and discard outside. Then they straightened the bed so she could position herself innocently in the center.

Before he left, she kissed him fully on the mouth and looked at him with genuine adoration in her eyes. “Thank you.” She whispered. “I will miss you.”