Third Person's POV
Manik waited for Nandini to come out of the bathroom as he paced in the room, thinking about what he wanted to say to her.
As he heard the door being opened, he turned to look at her and sucked in a deep breath.
There is something that draws him toward her whenever he sees her right after she takes a shower.
Maybe it is her natural beauty that shines through. Her skin soft and flawless, not marred by any makeup. Her brown eyes that seem to exude compassion, and her straight nose and full, delicate lips that enhance her beauty. Everything is perfect about her.
Before he knew about her story, he misjudged her. Although he was attracted to her beautiful features, he always considered her beauty only skin deep.
But he knows now how wrong he was.
Yes, she is beautiful, but what is truly captivating is the way she carries herself with grace and poise. He has seen her breaking down a few times but other than that, he has only seen her bravely take whatever his rude self threw at her.
And after learning about her story, he feels more in awe of her.
It must have been hard enduring the indifference from her parents. Watching her parents love her brother but ignore her like a plague must have been terrible. It must have been a horrifying experience of getting molested yet unable to tell about it to her own parents for fear that they would believe her molester over her.
Yet here she is, still with a hope to make something of herself. She is still moving forward and not giving up even after life has thrown harsh experiences at her one after the other.
Her inner courage is what shines through her. Maybe that is what had been drawing him since the beginning. Not her skin-deep beauty, but rather something that comes from within.
Manik jolted out of his thoughts when Nandini clicked her fingers in front of his face.
"Did you hear what I said just now?" Nandini asked him, and Manik shook his head to clear all his thoughts about Nandini.
'What the hell is wrong with me? Why was I thinking all those things?' He wondered, but as he looked at Nandini looking at him questioningly, he thought to reply to her first.
"I missed it because I was thinking about something else. What were you saying?" He asked Nandini.
"I was saying I will be joining your office starting today. Since you do not want anyone to know we are married, I will introduce myself as Nandini Iyer to everyone," Nandini said as she took off her mangalsutra.
It is better she does not wear one. That way, there would be no questions about her husband or married life.
Manik frowned as he saw Nandini take off the mangalsutra. "I told you not to tell anyone you are married to me. That does not mean you need to take off the mangalsutra and tell everyone you are unmarried."
"And what will I say when they start asking me about my husband? What will I say if they ask me to bring my husband along to the office get-togethers?" Nandini asked him.
Manik opened his mouth to answer her but could not say anything. Those were valid questions.
"You are joining the office to work, Nandini. You are not going there to befriend my employees and share your life stories with them," Manik said to her.
Shaking her head, Nandini applied moisturizer to her face before turning to Manik.
"You had made me sign a contract when I came to your office that one time. According to that contract, I will be working as your assistant for at least six months.
"What do you want me to do in those six months? Just go to the office, work there, and return home? Do you really think I won't talk with anyone there or anyone there would not talk with me?" Nandini asked another valid question, and Manik knew there was no way he would win this argument.
"Ok. Do as you feel like." He turned toward his cupboard to take out the clothes to wear to the office, still wondering why it bothered him when she took off her mangalsutra.
'Stop thinking along these lines, Manik. Whatever you are feeling toward Nandini is only guilt for what you did to her. Nothing else. You only need her in your life to take revenge against Myra and Raghav. Once that is done, she will go her way and you, your way,' his mind quipped.
'Still, there is nothing wrong in at least being civil with her, is there? It is exhausting to always argue. Instead, if you make her your friend and help her, that could be better for both of you. Also, that might lessen some of your guilt,' his heart countered.
Sighing deeply as the battle between his heart and mind continued, Manik was about to enter the bathroom when he suddenly remembered what he had wanted to tell Nandini while waiting for her earlier.
"Nandini, I need to tell you something," Manik started speaking.
Hearing Manik, Nandini stopped combing her hair and looked at him. "What is it?"
Nandini braced herself for another argument coming her way.
'What is his problem? Why can't he live in peace and let me live in peace too?' Nandini wondered as she waited for Manik to speak.
"Whatever you told me last night was right. I would not have been considerate toward you if I had not known about your horrendous past. I would not have cared for you if I did not know your story. So, yes, you judged me right.
"When you told me your story, I was consumed by guilt. After knowing what you endured your whole life, I felt so small recounting every taunt I threw at you.
"That is why I tried to be mean to you the following day. I felt I deserved only your hatred after what I did to you. That is why I told you it was a relief that you would not bother me with your sob story.
"I had thought it would be better in that situation, but as I continued thinking about what Dr. Mehta said to me regarding you needing a psychiatric consultation, I felt maybe that was not the way to go.
"I know I would be the last person you would come to if you need any support. And it is totally understandable too. After what I have done, it is ok for you to hate me.
"But I do not hate you, Nandini. Not anymore.
"You see, I had misjudged you before, thinking of you as a gold-digger and a manipulative girl who only pretended to be righteous to trap me in your web. But I have now understood nothing you said or did was a pretense. I am sorry for misjudging you.
"That is why what I want to say here is I do not want to be rude to you anymore. I know we cannot be friends because you will never trust me. But I believe we can at least let go of our animosity and co-exist without any fights or heated discussions.
"I know I do not deserve to be your support, but the least I can do is not be a reason behind your distress." Saying that, Manik walked inside the bathroom, leaving a stunned Nandini behind.
Nandini came out of her stunned stupor a couple of minutes after Manik closed the bathroom door.
She resumed combing her hair as she replayed what Manik had just told her.
She could not understand what had gotten into him.
'Did Manik Sisodiya get swapped by his doppelganger somehow?' She thought because she could not believe what had just happened.
After everything that had happened between them since the wedding night, every taunt he threw at her, and every hurtful accusation he made at her, she could not believe it was the same man who had now compassionately apologized to her for everything he did.
'And what more? It seemed sincere too. Like he really meant what he said.'
Nandini sighed as a small smile curved her lips. It was a smile, but the one that reflected sadness, not relief or happiness.
Because today she saw a glimpse of a man she had dreamed of marrying in Manik.
Since their wedding night, he had seemed like a closed book to her whenever she faced him. His eyes dark, and his demeanor cold. It was next to impossible to read him.
The things she surmised about him were only from his behavior toward her. That is why she had thought him to be a rude, uncaring, insensitive, arrogant jerk.
'Well, I was not completely wrong about him. I feel he is still all those things.'
Sighing deeply at that thought, Nandini kept the comb on the dressing table and sat on the foot of the bed.
She felt that rude persona was one side of him, and today she saw a completely different side. A compassionate, understanding side.
She knows she can never forgive him for what he did to her. He took away that one dream she had—the dream of having a loving family.
But she is relieved that he at least has agreed not to become the added reason for her distress.
She already has so many things on her plate that having this one thing taken away seemed like a massive relief for her.
So, yes, there is relief as well as sadness.
Relief because Manik showed his compassionate side and would not cause any more problems for her.
And sadness, because he showed this side of him that she had dreamt her husband would have.
'But that was not the only quality, Nandini. Along with being compassionate and understanding, you had wanted someone who would also love, trust, and respect you. Manik might understand you, but he will never love or trust you. He had made it clear on the first night itself.' With that thought, Nandini felt her heart clench painfully, and her eyes teared up. The yearning making its return with full force.
Agreed that she wants to be independent and make something of herself. But even after achieving all those things, there still will be one dream that will be left unfulfilled. The dream of being wanted and loved by someone. The dream of having a happy, loving family.
'Will my dream really remain unfulfilled? Forever?' Nandini wondered as she raised her head to look at herself in the mirror in front of her.