#NotEdited
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Manik looked up at Nandini. She faintly smiled. Seeing her determined face Manik sighed. He closed his eyes. In an instant he felt her hands ruffling his hair calming him down. Without opening his eyes he spoke.
Manik: Nyonika was very happy when I was born. Not because she became a mother or I was her flesh. Naah! She was happy as now I was her way to my father's overflowing back accounts. I was basically a blank cheque for her. My parents were so involved in their lives that they didn't bother about me. They never were. Dad was busy in his business world and probably with his love. I don't know. And Nyonika.....I have no words to praise her. She kept me away from my family and my family also never made any attempts to meet me. I was always under the care of the servants and nanny. You know I had became such a spoilt brat that nobody wished to live with me more than a month. har mahine ek nayi nanny slash caretaker. Some strict, some careless, some loving, some understanding. But everyone left me within a months time.
Nandini caressed his cheeks. Manik held her hand. He kissed her knuckles.
Manik: I had started to believe that no one will ever love me and I m born to live alone all my life and that's when i met Fab5. We were a bunch of broken kids. I was living a totally isolated life, Mukti somewhere had a very similar life as mine, Cabir was broken as his twin brother had been seprated from him cause of his parents separation.
Nandini interrupted him: twin brother!!!!!!
Manik: ya.....twin brother....Ranbir. Cabir was very close to his brother. They are identical twins. But due to the divorce of their parents Cabir's custody came with Aunty and Uncle got Ranbir's custody and then Ranbir got admitted in a military school which totally broke Cabir and Ranbir's contact due to strict rules of Military school.
Nandini: who can ever think that the ever jolly and prankster Cabir could have had a bad past like this.
Manik: I know right. And then we met Dhruv the silent boy. You know why he is always this silent.
Nandini nodded in no.
Manik: His parents always had to keep shifting due to his father's job and due to which schools changed and neighbourhoods changed. He never had any proper friend till he joined Warrior High. You know the first time I saw him, he was sitting on the stairs and strumming a guitar. That's how we bonded. I didn't even realise when we became so close. Itna ki I confined in him. Aisa ni hai ki I couldn't confide in Cabir. Ofcourse he was the one who knew about me even before I worded it. But he was always like urm you know jo tumhe samjhaye aur sahi raasta dikhaye. Lekin Dhruv is someone who patiently listened to me.
Nandini smiled affectionately and continued ruffling his hair. Manik smiled recollecting old memories
Manik: It was like Dhruv let me vent out my anger without getting scared and calmed me down while Cabir was the one who always explained me the difference between the right and wrong. And you know what was the worst part.
Nandini: what
Manik: jab bichara Dhruv is bearing all my anger and calming me down Cabir sat there eating something, making weird sounds and above all cracked lame jokes that made me so angry that sometimes I felt like actually choking him to death.
Nandini burst out laughing.
Nandini: typical Cabir
Manik: Matlab agar maine kabhi koi diwaar pe punch maara na toh he would be like Kya Manik itna chicken khane ka kya fayda! Ek diwar ni tod paaya toh. Sheeee! Meri saari parvarish par pani pher diya tune. Aur thoda strong punch maar na. Unn Useless biceps ka kuch toh istamaal kar.
Nandini laughed hysterically.
Nandini: only he can mess with you.
Manik rolled his eyes: I swear.
Both of them chuckled. They were sitting in a peaceful silence
Nandini: Manik.
Manik: hmmm
Nandini: tumne Alya ke baar main kuch ni bola.
Manik: You want to know.
Nandini: Ofcourse yes. I want to know. I want to know everything about you. And she was a part of you. I want to know about all your friends and she is included in it.
Manik smiled.
Manik: Alya.....urm....about her....as you know she was always this diva. But you now what attracted us the most about her was her excellent piano skills. Her music skills were mind blowing. And along with that she is a very generous person. Very. Like you now she was always this helping fun loving easy going girl and her broken hindi was like a cherry on cake.
Nandini smiled.
Manik: I really don't remember how did we end up together. It was like she was this hot diva and I was this hot hunk so people in our college always shipped us together and then somehow we also ended up together.
Nandini nodded. Manik got up and sat facing her.
Manik: ek confession karu?
This caught Nandini's attention. She eyes him curiously.
Nandini: O...kayyy
Manik: you know I am thankful that Alya and I dated each other. Actually I am thankful to Veebha....
Nandini: who Veebha??
Manik: my crush in warrior high. Had Alya and I not dated each other I would have surely been with Veebha right now and.....honestly speaking she is just like you. Like a total you. Bilkul tumhari tarah sochna. Bilkul tumahri tarah mature. Tumhari tarah har problem ko shaanti se suljha na. Aur Cabir ke baad koi tha jiski baat main maanta tha toh woh V thi. She was the one who rejected my proposal. Yes I had proposed her. She rejected it for Alya. As Alya was smitten by me. Had she accepted my proposal toh aaj shayad Manik aur Nandini Manan na hote.
Nandini silently listened to it. She was confused how to react. Should she be thankful to her aiyappa or should she be jealous of this girl or should she be happy and move on knowing that now Manik is with her. She looked at Manik who was sitting there looking at her trying to read through her eyes.
Nandini shifted a little closer. Manik too pulled her closer.
Manik: don't worry Nandini. It's just I didn't want to keep it a secret from you. She means nothing more than a best friend. Of course I do have a soft corner for her and I always will have but she is no threat to you. She can't take your place Nandini. I promise you that.
Nandini simply nodded. Not wanting to make him feel uncomfortable she smiled and guestured him to continue.
Nandini: Manik why did Nyonika call you a Casanova? Was it because she knew about your crush for Veebha and you and Alya dating and all.
Manik: partially yes.
Nandini: but you loving someone and someone loving you doesn't make you casanova na.
Manik: actually that's not it. Woh....when I was in warrior high na.....tab....actually I.....woh at that time.....I was caught.....
Nandini: you were what?
Manik: actually not me but entire Fab5 were caught.......
Nandini irritated: MANIK CAN YOU PLEASE BE CLEAR. YEH AISE GOL GOL BAATE MERE SAMAJH SE BAHAR HAI. PLEASE BE CLEAR AND COME TO THE POINT.
Nandini's angry yet irritated voice scared the shit out of Manik. He knew that once Nandini will get to know the truth she will beat the day lights out of him.
Manik: woh actually the school principal had caught me kissing a girl in the backyard of the school.
Nandini: WHATTTTTTTTT!!!!
Manik stood there with his eyes shut tightly. He was expecting a Nandini famous punch. When he felt that his jaw was perfectly intact and no bone in his body was broken he slowly squinted his eyes open to see Nandini standing there with her arms crossed in front of her chest looking at him with a blank poker face.
Nandini was bubbling with anger. She wanted to strangle this monster standing in front of her. Literally strangle him to death. She was having a hard time controlling her anger. When she saw Manik squinting his eyes open a faint small smile appeared on her face as it took her back to the day he confessed his love for her. A dejà vu when he himself offered her the egg to make them both equal equal.
But soon her anger surfaced back when she saw Manik standing there looking at the beautiful exquisite flooring of his room while shifting from one leg to another. Suddenly to Manik the flooring and his Woodland shoes were the most attractive piece on earth, currently. Though he loved an angry, pissed irritated and frustrated Nandu but definitely feared the angry as hell Nandini Murthy.
Nandini: Elaborate Mr. Malhotra
Manik gulped listening to her. Inwardly he started praying to Nandini's Aiyappa.
Manik: woh....woh she messed up with Mukti and Alya toh to....to get back to her......I.....I....used her.....and....and kissed her and Cabir.....Cabir taped it so that we could blackmail her later. But that day...We got caught by the principal herself......warrior high is a very strict school. Strict and discipline about all its rules and regulations. We had been summoned in the Principals Cabin for the first time that day. And then all our pranks and all the bullies that we did so far were exposed.....all the times we bullied people forced them to do our work and everything.....all the girls that I troubled and misused......
Nandini's glare hardened.
Manik: I mean took revenge for either demeaning Alya or Mukti or....For troubling V.....or for trying to get close to me or Dhruv or Cabir......We recorded them and bullied the....them.
Manik stopped not wanting to go ahead while Nandini didn't let him to do that
Nandini: Finish it.
Manik: That day our parents were called but Fab4 was hell scared and seeing them scared made me more angry and in anger.....I took the whole blame on me and said that it was me who forced Fab4 to support me. I said I bullied them and forced them into all this. Dad was out of India at that time but Nyonika turned up and she being she threatened to tell this to my father and separate me from Fab5. I got angry and in anger I hit her with my cricket bat on her head. And then that's how give and take took place between us. Dad doesn't know about all this cause in return to save Fab5 and myself I had given up music for a month and also at the last minute ditched Fab4 in a musical competition.
And now something happened that Manik was expecting long back but didn't happen and now that he wasn't expecting it, it happened. The world Famous Nandini Murthy's punch landed straight on Manik's face causing him to stumble back and loose his balance.
Nandini was bubbling in anger. More than the time when Manik broke her appa's pen and even more than the time when she realised that Manik left her only for Dhruv's sake. Had it been possible then by now Manik Malhotra would have become extinct. He would have been turned into nothing but ashes under Nandini's raging wrath.
Nandini: just because the girls tried to befriend you guys or whatever. Even if they tried to demean you guys what did you do. You tried to get back to them by recording and playing with their self respect. Like really!
Nandini's disgusted tone made Manik look down.
Nandini: Do you even realise how much it pains when a person breaks your heart. No you don't cause you have never really experienced that Manik.
Nandini's words reminded Manik of the painful times when he himself broke Nandini's heart. Those hurtful and painful eyes of Nandini flashed in front of his eyes and that's when he realised how much pain must have those girls who me he bullied would have gone through.
Nandini: Tumhe lagta hai yun bully karna logo ko is such a big achievement, nahi!
Manik opened his mouth to interrupt but stopped seeing Nandini glaring at him.
Nandini: And you......you once again proved that tumhe yeh dikhana hai to your friends that you are this great person who can sacrifice anything for anyone. Matlab by taking the whole blame on yourself you not only encouraged Fab5 but also made them feel ki the next time they do something wrong you will always be there. And be there for them to cover up not to show them the right path.
Manik: of course I will protect them na Nandini. I will always protect them. They all have a bad past.....
Nandini: DON'T
Manik was shocked seeing Nandini yell so much.
Nandini: Don't you dare cover up your these acts with the excuse of having a bad past. And tum toh aise bol rahe ho jaise I don't have a bad past. You guys atleast had your patents living on this planet somewhere and could atleast have this satisfaction somewhere deep in your heart that kabhi na kabhi they will come back to you. What about me Manik? Socha hai tumne. Mere paas toh woh bhi nahi tha. I didn't have my parents when needed.
Manik simply walked to her and took her in his embrace.
Manik: sorry na. Sorry. Abhi thodi der pehle toh humara patch up hua tha mujhe phir se ni ladna tumse.
Nandini pushed him.
Nandini: seriously this all that you have to say after all this!
Manik's eyes widened.
Manik: Arrey ni ni ni.......I am sorry for all that I did so far. But actually I have a valid reason for doing it.
Nandini: trust me agar kuch bakwaas hua na toh I swear main tumhari yeh face dismantle kr dungi.
Manik: arrey dekho uss waqt Nandini nahi thi na mere paas. Ab hai.....toh ab agar maine koi aise ulte kaam kiye toh woh definitely mujhe ek punch maar ke rok degi. Haina! Ab tum thoda pehle aayi hoti meri life main toh main pehle hi sudhar gaya hota.
Nandini looked at Manik blankly who stood there with a sheepish grin on his face.
At Cavya's Apartment.
Just like Manik, Cabir too was having a hard time. Why? Because he had wa busy handling his 7 months pregnant girlfriend.
Cabir: yaar Navya tum rest karo na main khana bana lunga.
Navya: kitchen main dikhe na tum toh tumhari khair nahi. Last time hamare kitchen main ghuse the toh humare pure kitchen ki waat laga di thi. Khabar daar agar darwaze ke aas paas aaye toh.
Cabir made a sad face while Navya Contined blabbering.
Navya: banana toh kuch aata nahi bas saara din thuste rehte ho. Bhukkad kahi ke.
Cabir thought of something and carefully sneaked closer to her. He wrapped his hands around Navya's bump and placed his chin on her shoulder. Navya turned around with such a jerk that her shoulder blade hit Cabir's jaw giving him a sharp pang of pain.
Cabir: owwwwwwww
Navya: BOLA NA DUR....PAAS AAYE TOH YEH GARAM KARCHI TUMHARE YEH CHIPKALI JAISE CHEHRE PE CHIP KA DEGE.....PHIR ZINDAGI BHAR ISKA NISHAN LEKE GHUM NA TUM.
Cabir made a horrified face and immediately ran out of the kitchen. He passed the mirror placed near the tables and started examining his face in all different angles.
Cabir: Kuch bhi bolti hai....itna beautiful face hai mera. Huh! Chipakli se toh bohot better dikhta hoon main....kaha woh chipku chipkali aur kaha main.
At Malhotra Mansion.
Manik was standing there looking at Nandini as she was still glaring at him. She walked closer to him and before he could realise another punch landed on his face.
Nandini: and this is for ditching Fab5 and agreeing to Nyonika's disgusting terms and conditions.
Saying this she walked out of the room. Manik sat there making a crying face holding his lower jaw between his palms.
Manik: Kya girlfriend mili hai mujhe! Mere hi naseeb main aise hi kung fu panda inspired girlfriend kyu likhi aapne Nandini ke Aiyappa!
Still holding his jaw and crying over it he walked out of the room following Nandini. Look at the irony The Manik Malhotra who once, never allowed even a single person to lay their figer on him without his permission; today was standing totally unarmed in front of his girlfriend, bearing all the punches and curses she threw at him.
That's what her love had made him. Her love had changed the monster in him. He was still THE MONSTER, but now for a good cause. He was THE MONSTER when his loved ones were harmed. He was THE MONSTER to protect his friends and his family. He was THE MONSTER to safeguard his star and her happiness.
After lunch Manik drove along with Nandini's to her house as promised. She was still pissed at Manik and had no plans of forgiving him anytime soon. Manik tried all ways to pacify his angry girlfriend all throughout the lunch. But nothing seemed to work on her.
She was extremely upset about the fact that Manik misused girls attraction for him as a medium to get back at them and played with their feelings. She was angry with the fact that Manik took a stand for Fab5 for an entirely wrong reason and supported them for their wrong doings. She was hurt that the Manik who never let any harm reach Fab5 let them face the humiliation only because Nyonika threatened him.
As soon as the car stopped outside the Murthy Villa she got out of the car paying no heed to a sad Manik and banged the door really hard. Manik flinched seeing her remove all her anger on the car door. He sighed and walked inside to see Nandini hugging a man of his age or probably elder then him by a year or two. The guy was facing his back to Manik. The scene in front of him made him boil in anger.
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I hope you guys liked the update.
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