"Did you knew maira from earlier?" She asked looking at him from sideways and his grip loosened on her.
He turned around rubbing his two days grown stubble nervously not meeting her eyes.
She needed to know what's going on. He has never hid something from her and now he's trying to conceal something which is not okay for her.
"Tell me manik have you known her from earlier?" Nandini demanded and turned him around holding his arm.
"Nandini I----" He stuttered finding it difficult to form words.
"Just the truth manik please. And don't you dare bullshit me now." She said impatiently, she cannot wait for him to tell her anymore. She knew from the first day something's up. She was just waiting him to tell her but he never did and that what's hurting her.
"Okay but let's sit and talk. I'll tell you everything." He said calmly and they sat on the bed side by side.
"I met maira a year back." He said slowly because he knew she's going to be mad at him. She chose not to react and decided to listen his side of the story.
"Remember I went to New York last year for business purpose for a month?" He asked and she tried to remember. "When you used to call me at every hour because you missed me." He continued and she made a knowing face.
"Then you threw your phone because you were annoyed with me and when you came back I threw all your clothes away to teach you a lesson because you are prohibited to ignore me?" She said with a wide grin and he gave her a sarcastic smile.
"Yes that very trip." He rolled his eyes.
Dayum he was so mad at her well he shouldn't have ignored her. He knows she's psychopath.
"I went to a club one day with some of my friends there. I didn't want to go but they were quite persistent. That's where I saw maira. My friends dared me to get her number because they saw me eyeing her." Manik started with a casual tone.
"Why were you eyeing her?" She asked and her I'm-not-getting-mad facade was blowing away slowly.
"Because she was the only person who was sitting alone in the whole club." He said shrugging and she scrutinised him.
Liar that's what she thought because she knew him well.
"And stop cutting me off do you want to hear the story or not?" Manik said as she keep cutting him off.
"Yeah sure continue. Just don't make me punch you in the end of your story." She said warning him and he didn't look her in the eye.
And that's what she's scared of.
"So I went to her and we started talking. We clicked instantly, an hour passed and taking her number was a forgotten business. We were enjoying each other's company a lot when she offered me to go to her place." He explained slowly and looked at her face to see how she's feeling but she gave nothing.
Her nails were digging so hard in her right palm but she was numb. Her tears were at bay and she already knew it's bad. She wasn't that strong to continue listening to his story.
"Sugarplum?" Manik kept his hand on her left hand which was on the bed but she jerked it away.
"Please don't manik." Her meek voice barely reached to his ears because of the lump formed in her throat.
"Nandini please don't do this. Okay fine I'll stop." He said because he knew she was hurting.
"I want to listen." She exclaimed determined and he sighed. He knew she's not going to leave this topic easily.
"Finish it fast manik." She roared and he jumped on his place listening to her, coming out of his reverie he nodded.
"I informed my friends that I am going with maira and they agreed. She was staying at a hotel at that time so we took a taxi and reached there. We were a little tipsy by then, we entered inside giggling and laughing. And the next moment her lips were on mine." He said and before he could say or do anything nandini stood up with a jerk, hot tears spilling out of her eyes before she can control them.
She couldn't listen anymore because it was too much for her. Manik stood up and tried to engulf her in a hug but she jerked his hands away and took a step back as she was not able to control her tears.
"Nandini listen----" He took a step forward but she backed off her hand on her chest tears spilling. His heart was breaking seeing her.
"I can't please" She clutched her top and ran outside. She cannot even look at him now.
Isn't it weird how you can actually feel it in your chest and stomach when something really hurts your feelings.
Maira was his first kiss and just by thinking about it, it was making her nauseous. It was hurting her physically as well as mentally. It was hard for her to even look at him right now.
She ran to the terrace and locked the door as she knew manik was behind her. She slid down with the support of the wall and tears were unstoppable. Reason: unknown.
He was just her 'best friend' then why this breakdown? It was hurting her. A lot.
"Nandini what happened?" A distant voice was heard by her. She looked up and saw a worried navya running towards her who was already present on the terrace.
Navya knelt down and started rubbing her back to calm her down.
"Nandini open the door." Manik banged the door and they know he was worried.
Navya looked at nandini and she knew something's wrong.
"Manik I've got her don't worry. You can go for now please." Navya almost pleaded and nandini couldn't be more thankful for understanding her without even speaking.
Manik didn't want to leave her like that. He knew how hurt she was, his heart broke seeing her like that but he needed to give her some space so he left from there hoping to talk to her later.
Nandini calmed down, her tears dried down by now. Navya waited for her calmly to tell what's wrong.
"Okay so tell me what happened, nandini who makes everyone cry is now crying herself. There should be some strong reason behind it right?" Navya said to lighten up her mood and she chuckled at it.
"Manik likes maira I guess." Nandini muttered.
"And why is that a problem?" Navya asked carefully to know what is going on in her mind.
"Because I-----" Nandini started to say but immediately stopped don't really know what to say.
"Because you?" Navya asked shaking her head in disbelief.
"I don't know." She replied looking everywhere but her.
"Okay so let's start step by step. What happened? And how are you feeling about that right now?" Navya asked making it easier for her to answer.
"Manik kissed maira!" Nandini exclaimed with great difficulty.
"What? When? How? I mean he loves yo------" navya started blabbering totally flabbergasted but suddenly stopped, realising what she was going to spill.
"He loves?" Nandini asked confused by her words and navya bit her tongue.
"Manik kissed maira really when?" Navya said changing the topic and luckily she was successful.
"A year back!" Nandini exclaimed sadly.
And when she got no reply from navya she looked up to see. Navya was staring at her with a poker face.
"I don't know if you are that dumb or you act like that. Because I'm just a second away from choking you." She stated obviously angry.
"I'm so hurt right now I was crying my eyes out and you are being mean to me." She huffed in anger and navya rolled her eyes.
"That was a year ago nandini why are you crying over spilled milk think of the present." She tried to reason her.
"I'm saying that seeing the present scenarios only. I caught them together so many times and I always knew something's up between them." Nandini explained her point.
"Did manik tell you all this? His feelings for maira?" Navya asked but nandini shook her head.
"Then how are you so sure? You need to talk to him nandini, you are misunderstanding him that's it." Navya tried to explain her and nandini realised how impulsive she acted a while back.
Maybe she should have listened to his whole story, maybe she shouldn't have acted impulsively.
"What were you feeling when he told you?" Navya asked and nandini took some time to answer.
"I felt like someone snatched him from me navya. I felt so insecure and jealous I still am feeling like that. I cannot afford to lose him. It is hurting navya, it's hurting so bad. I cannot lose him he's mine." Nandini poured her heart out, she told everything she was feeling which made navya grin widely.
From childhood they were together, no third person came between them and now when it's happening she cannot handle it. Everything is so dynamic now and these new found feelings were so overwhelming for her.
"Nandini do you think the things you said just now was something more than best friends?" Navya finally asked because it was high time and being blunt is the only solution now.
"Now you mentioned that I really think it's something more than best friends thing." Nandini whispered after a while.
~~~~❤~~~~
I updated super early this time so yay me. By the way I'm nervous about this update, I don't really ask but this time I'm asking you guys to comment and give your views.
And this was the last update because I've exams the entire march not that I used to update early but still.