Nandini's POV
It's midnight and I am turning and tossing in my bed. After ringing Manik's number for hours and hours, I finally gave up. It's switched off. Where the hell is he? Did something happen to him? The thought alone makes my insides churn with anxiety and fear. Jenny seems worried too. She has been checking on me every half hour.
I roll onto my stomach and bury my face in the pillow in frustration. All the moments I have spent with him are continuously flashing through my head. Aaarggggh! What the fuck is he up to?
Thinking about Manik and assuring myself that he will be back in the morning with a proper explanation, I manage to fall into a troubled sleep.
...............
"But you said you would do something if we didn't hear from him by now!" I yell at Jenny. It's 10 in the morning and there is still nothing from Manik Malhotra. I am starting to get angry now.
"Nandu, Pathak is coming over. He will decide what to do from here on." She says calmly, but I can see she is anxious.
After another fifteen minutes, Pathak uncle finally arrives, accompanied by Dhruv.
"Do something right away! Find out where the fuck he is and get him back!" I scream at Pathak uncle, my anger and restlessness taking over.
"Relax, Nandini. Why are you so worried. He is just a bodyguard." Dhruv says flatly, looking stunned and angry. Jenny comes forward and placed a hand on my shoulder.
"Please do something uncle!" I whine, collapsing on the sofa, totally ignoring Dhruv. Manik is missing since last evening and I am worried and upset as fuck!
"Nandu, I will do whatever I can. Please calm down beta." Pathak uncle soothes.
"Lekin baba..." Dhruv starts but uncle holds up a finger to silence him. Just then, his phone rings.
"It's Manik!" He exclaims, taking it out. My head pops up and I snatch the phone out of his hands.
"Manik, where the fuck are you?" I scream into the phone.
"Um..may I speak to Mr. Pathak?" An unfamiliar voice says on the other end.
"Who are you and where is Manik?"
"May I know who this is?" The guy asks.
"I am Nandini Murthy. Now will you fucking tell me where Manik is?" I yell.
"Oh. Miss. Murthy, this is Abhimanyu, Manik's friend. Thing is that, his mother fell severely ill yesterday. So he had to fly to Delhi. Manik wanted to apologise for leaving so suddenly and would like to know if it's okay if he stays here for a couple of days to take care of his mother."
I sigh in relief and fall onto the sofa. He is fine!
"Where is he? Make him talk to me. Now." I say in a demanding tone.
"I am sorry miss, but he is really not in the condition to talk. Please try to understand."
"Okay. Fine. Tell him to call me whenever he can."
"Sure. Have a good day." Abhimanyu hangs up.
The relief coursing through me is unbelievable! I didn't think I was capable of being so worried and so relieved!
After telling Jenny and Pathak everything, I get up to finally go to college.
"Wait, let me see if a substitute bodyguard is available, until Manik comes back." Pathak uncle murmurs, looking into his phone.
"No uncle. I think I can manage for a few days. Besides, it's not like a madman is waiting in the canteen with an axe or something to murder me." I smile at him, trying to make up for yelling earlier.
"Okay beta. Be careful. Go with Dhruv."
I say bye and walk out. Dhruv follows after me. Without a word to him, I get into the car.
"You know, everyone is not what they seem to be. Some people are fake. They charm you first and then hurt you." Dhruv says in a matter-of-fact tone when we are fifteen minutes away from college.
"Oh puh-lease Dhruv, spare me." I snap at him.
"Nandini, I am just..."
"You are just what, Dhruv? Let me tell you, there can be nothing more than friendship between us. So stop pissing me off by saying random shit!" I glare at him.
He stares at me for some time and then looks away. The disappointment and hurt on his face starts to make me feel guilty.
"Dhruv." I say firmly.
"It's okay, Nandini. You are right. I should try to get over you. I promise to try now. Please don't be mad. I am now ready to have you whichever way I can. If it's as a friend, so be it. Sorry." He murmurs, looking out of the window.
"Dhruv. You are a great guy! And you deserve to be with a great girl. Not someone like me." I say firmly, looking straight ahead.
"Thanks." He flashes a small smile saying whatever. "Anyway, I'll try to be happy for you."
"Happy for me? What exactly do you mean by that?" I raise an eyebrow at him.
"Well, you and that Manik obviously..." He tails off.
"It's not like that. We are just..."
"Just starting to fall for each other. I know you will deny it. But everyone who knows you can see it. Bachpan se janta hoon tumhe. And I have never seen you this way for anyone."
I take a minute to ponder over what Dhruv said. Is it true? I surely like Manik a lot. But can there actually be something between us? Now when I think of it, I have never felt this way before. Never have I ever been this anxious on not seeing someone. Never have I ever tried to be...nice for someone.
Until Manik.
He came like a fucking hurricane and totally blew me away! Even if I do try out this dating thing, would he too want it? Part of me thinks he would.
We pull into college and quickly get to the last lecture before lunch. After an hour, we are seated in the canteen. My food is lying untouched.
No points for guessing who I am thinking about! Yeah, you are becoming pathetic, Nandini!
"Okay, so you ditched morning lectures because you were worried sick about Manik." Cabir laughs at me.
"Shut up, jerk." I mumble, staring at the wall on the other side.
"Hey, Cabira! What a boaring lecture that was." Alia waves, sitting down a few tables from us.
"Manik is not here today for you to throw yourself at! So stop bothering us." I snap at her.
"Oh. I know he is in Delhi. I just spoke to him. And I wasn't talking to you anyway." She mumbles, rolling her eyes.
What? Manik spoke to Alia Saxena? I check my phone. His whatsapp last seen is two minutes ago.
Fuck. Here I am, grinding myself, waiting for his call. And he is...that's it. Call him.
With that, I press the call button. The phone rings but he doesn't respond. Really? I call him one more time. Still, no response.
After a lot of thinking, I leave a message for him.
*call me asap.*
..............
It's been two days. Two fucking days. And Manik Malhotra has not responded to me. After sending the message, I decided not to call him again, more out of anger than anything else. Who does he think he is? I know his mother is ill. But if he can talk to Alia, why not me?
It's new year's eve and I am reluctantly getting dressed for Cabir's party. I am not at all in the mood to go and was planning to sulk in my room. But Jenny just wouldn't stop pestering me.
My patience is finally fading away. Taking a deep breath and putting my ego aside, I text Manik.
*hey! all ok? when are you coming back?*
After holding my phone for a good ten minutes, I finally put it down. As I am about to leave, it beeps.
I double back and grab it. There's a text from Manik. Yippee!
With bated breath, I open it and read.
*what the fuck is your problem? I thought you said I could be with my mom for some time. What is this now? STOP irritating me with calls and messages. I will come back as soon as I can.*
If I was feeling bad earlier, it was nothing compared to how I feel now.
.
.
.
.
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