Broken But Beautiful

26. His Fuck-Up on Her Reality

Manik

"Manik! Argh," No sooner had I entered Vardhan House than I found Mukti Vardhan screaming and jumping at me. I half laughed, half carried her inside while she kept screaming my ears out.

"Don't. You. Even. Pull. This. Stunt. On. Me. Ever. Again!" She shouted each word so near my ears that I felt the momentary deafness covering them tight. I groaned and once reached in the hall, threw her in one of the sofas.

"God, Mukti, I'm sorry!" I grunted, "But you're the one who went out of town yesterday, or I'd have met you right then,"

She rolled her eyes, "Yeah, sure. But do you even realize what I went through that night? If Nandini didn't agree to go behind you and pull you back on your sense..."

And there comes Nandini Murthy again. Aha.

And here comes Manik Malhotra pulling on his pathetic attempts to pretend as though he hasn't heard that name. Aha.

Which became easy for next few moments, when Sahil uncle hurried towards me with an apologetic, worried expression.

"Manik, beta I'm so so sorry about that night," he said, "I swear I really didn't invite him. I didn't even know how or why he suddenly showed up-"

"To spite me, I guess?" I smiled gently at him, "Please don't apologise, uncle. I know you'd never do anything that might hurt me, anyway,"

He smiled, patting on my back, "Always, beta. We're always with you,"

I smiled faintly as he walked away. Mukti was still glaring at me, sitting weird angled on the sofa. I sat beside her, the guilt trip that I had been trying to ignore all this while slowly boiling inside me.

"I'm not proud of it, okay?" I huffed, looking away, "I'm not proud of the way I loose control over me and I'm sorry I behaved like shit with you. You never deserve it, but I always keep-"

"Okay, stop," she frowned, "Don't go to your usual 'I-did-nothing-for-you-but-you-keep-doing-for-me'. We both know you'd be lying big time,"

I sighed, looking away. This girl, like always- couldn't understand. I wasn't good. I wasn't good for anyone. But she- just won't let go. God knows what she still sees in me, or all these people. 

"Come, everyone's upstairs," she got up and pulled me with her, "Come on, you're so heavy duh,"

I was very grateful to God when the door of Alya's bedroom opened and there was Dhruv, Alya, Cabir and Navya- and Nandini wasn't. I almost sighed in relief before cracking a greeting smile at everyone.

After yesterday, I didn't have any more strength to meet her up close like this. Yesterday drained me quite nicely.

Who knew faking could cost so much, when that's what I did all my life, practically?

I didn't want to think about yesterday morning. I wanted it to vanish or obliviate out of my memory. Everything was good enough. I and- we were doing fine. Fuck, after all those running on the opposite direction we were finally better than we ever were. And the night before- I took a huge sip of the chilled beer, letting the bitter and coldness burn my throat.

Well, even going near the thought of that night brought burns inside me colder than the beer, or ice or-

I never wanted anyone to matter to me anymore.

Mukti and her family were enough for me. I could already never repay them for things they had done for me, I couldn't even think of it. I built strong, tight walls everywhere around me so that people couldn't see it- so that no one could get in. And now, I don't understand why, in hell, anyone could get in through those walls when no one could all these years. When I didn't let anyone, and promised never to let anyone.