In the evening, Manik picked Nandini from her office and went to her mother's place. Nandini immediately hugged her mother once she opened the door.
"Oh my god...!! Itna sara pyar...!!" Shobana chuckled and Manik bent to take her blessings. She smiled and took them inside.
Once they exchanged all their well-beings, Manik excused himself to attend a business call. Nandini took out her first salary and forwarded it to her mother to which she was surprised.
"Nandu...What is this...!?" She asked.
"It's my first salary Maa...This is for you..." Nandini said happily with a tinge of pride in her voice, as she fulfilled her dad's wish.
"But beta...Why are you giving me this...?? You could have taken some thing to Manik and everyone at home right...!" Shobana said being concerned because of her decision which is making her as priority even after being married.
"Maa...I have talked to everyone...and I am actually lucky to have such wonderful husband and in-laws...They don't have any problem Maa...and...moreover, I have already decided to give my salary to you..." Nandini said.
"But still Nandu...It's not correct...You shouldn't be doing this...you are married bacha...You should be more responsible towards your home beta..." Shobana tried to put her thoughts. (Old generation thoughts - #NoOffense)
"And isn't this her home anymore Maa...??" Manik asked hearing the statement. Nandini smiled seeing him as she knows that only he can make her mother understand and Shobana too listens to him when he explains.
"It's not like that Manik..." She tried to say something but he interrupted saying "Maa...Please...You have right on her, her salary, her decisions and every thing Maa...You gave her to me...It's my responsibility to take care of her...But still she is your daughter and it will never change Maa...Why don't you understand...??"
He sighed seeing Shobana still with the same expression and continued "Fine Maa...Let me ask you one simple question...If Nandini were a boy, and if your son is offering his salary to you, will you do the same...?? Will you say the same to him to give to his wife and in-laws that they have whole authority on it...??"
Shobana nodded her head in a no slowly, lost in her thoughts.
"Then why her Maa...?? Why are you saying this to her then...?? Just because she is your daughter...?? Or she isn't your daughter anymore but someone's wife and someone's daughter-in-law...??" He asked in a serious noter because he didn't like the perception of their thinking.
"Manik...Not like that beta..." She tried to say but she was in loss of words.
"Please take it Maa...Aapka haq hai..." He said with a smile and held Nandini's hand and both forwarded it to her.
She looked at them again and Manik blinked his eyes in assurance, to go ahead. She smiled and took it and kissed Nandini's temple and said "I am proud of you Beta..."
Nandini smiled to the fullest and looked at Manik who was admiring their bond and mouthed 'Thank you' and he blew a kiss making her blush.
They had their dinner and spent some time talking. When Manik was busy on call, Shobana took Nandini inside and gave half money from what she gave.
"Maaaa" Nandini took her hand back in reflex but Shobana made a serious face and said "Chup...Ek dum chup...I listened and agreed to both of you na...Now take this...I will keep half with me...You take this and gift something to Manik and your in-laws....Please mana math karna beta..."
"But Maa...I thought to give full salary to you..."She whined making Shobana sigh.
"Nandu...I will take it next month ok..?? So for now, please..." She said to convince her and kept half money in Nandini's hand.
"Please bacha...Try to understand..." She said at last.
"Aap pakka next month lenge na..?? You will take right..??" She asked again making a pout.
"Haa haa meri maa...I will take from your next month salary..." Shobana said taping her head slightly.
"Ok Maa...Will leave now...Will come on one weekend..." Manik said and both bid bye to her.
Once they reached, she hugged Manik tightly and as he already expected this, smiled and hugged her back.
"Thank you sooooo much Manik...You know you are the best..." She said kissing his cheek.
"Ohhoo...I heard that you said the same to Mom as well..." He asked raising his eyebrows to which she chuckled and said "Now don't tell me that you are jealous of your own mother because of that..."
He slammed his lips on hers for a deep kiss and then said once he broke "Why wouldn't I be darling...?? I actually hate the fact when your attention gets divided from me..."
"Cheesy..." She said pulling his cheeks.
"Cheesy huh...?? Let me show you how much cheesier I can become..." He said hovering her on bed and room filled with her giggles.
Next day, asusual, Nandini went to her office.
Naina seen her thinking some thing deeply and poked her finger on Nandini's arm.
"What are you thinking babe..??" She asked making Nandini smile.
"I have to take something Maa ji, papa and Manik...with my first salary...But I don't know what to..." She cribbed.
"Chill dude...I can help you if you want..." Naina said and Nandini smiled widely saying "Really..!??"
Naina shrugged her shoulders and nodded.
"Fine...we will go in the evening...I will tell Manik to not to come to pick me..." She said taking her mobile to call him. Since her next session was about to begin, she just sent a message to Manik 'I will be late...Have some work to finish...'
They asked Ayaan to join but he said he has some work. So they both left to the nearest mall. After 2 hours of shopping, Nandini was happy that she got everything perfectly but only left is their reaction and whether they will like it or not. Just then, Naina's phone rang displaying an unknown number and she answered while Nandini was paying bill at the last shop.
"Manik..!" Naina said in surprise and Nandini's eyes widened. She immediately checked her mobile which has 20 missed calls and her phone was in silent.
"I am gone today..." She thought and took mobile from Naina.
"Manik...I...I am sorry...Phone...actually..." She tried but couldn't finish being scared of his anger.
"Where the hell are you...??" He said from the other side, gritting his teeth.
She gulped and told him the mall name and he just cut the call saying "Wait there itself...I'm coming..."
She gave back Naina's mobile to her and looked worried. Naina understood that though Manik is sweet, Nandini is afraid of his anger. Soon, Manik came and both hopped in without uttering a word. He dropped Naina once she said the directions to her place and gave a slight smile when she said bye.
Nandini's heartbeat became faster when they both were alone. She gulped and called his name slowly "Ma...Manik.."
"Shut up" He said gritting his teeth and she did. She held his hand which was on the gear rod and said "I...I am sorry...Phone was in silent..."
He stopped the car to a side and held her arm.
"Didn't you even think to inform me to not to come...?? I was waiting for an hour and then my mind was blank when you weren't picking the calls...I had to call everyone to get Ayaan's number and then Naina's number to reach you and to know where the hell were you...Seriously...??" He asked being annoyed.
She frowned and said "but...Manik..I have dropped message..."
"Oh shut up...Can't you even make a call for few seconds...?? And what message...?? I didn't receive any..." He said leaving her arm.
She checked her mobile and saw that message wasn't delivered. She mentally tapped her head and said "I...am...Sorry Manik...This will never repeat...I know I should have atleast called you once my session was over...But..."
She bent her head and whispered again "sorry..."
She knows how much worried he will be if she goes missing, especially after that Aryaman's incident. He never took a chance and was being extra protective towards her.
He closed his eyes to calm himself down and asked "Anything else..??"
She looked at him and took out her gift to him. "This is for you...My gift from first salary..."
"But you gave all money to Maa right..??" He asked being surprised and she explained their so called 50-50 deal. He chuckled forgetting his anger and took it.
"It's just a small gift Manik...I am sorry I had to manage in limit...But I actually loved it...I felt that it will be perfect on you..." She said while he was unwrapping the gift.
He cupped her cheek and said "I have already told you love...Gift won't be small or big and neither be calculated with price...It will always be my precious gift because it is given by you..."
She smiled and he opened it to be a pair of cufflings.
"Beautiful...Will be perfect for business parties..." He said looking at them and she smiled seeing the shine in his eyes which she desired to see. They reached home and she saw her in-laws in the living room.
"Glad that I found both of you here...I have something for you..." She squealed in excitement and Manik chuckled.
She took out their respective gifts and gave them with a bright smile which they reciprocated equally.
But before they opened, she told "Maa ji Papa...Please don't mind with my selection...I have never taken anything like this..."
"It's ok bacha...But let me open first...I'm excited..." Raj said and quickly opened the box to see a watch.
"Wowwwwww" He exclaimed and removed his watch to wear the new one.
"This is soooo amazing Nandu...Isn't it...??" He asked showing it to Nyonika, excitement and happiness clearly visible on his face.
"Papa...I am sorry...You already have top branded watch...and this one don't even worth half of them..." She said slowly making him smile.
"Nandu...Gifts should never be calculated by it's size and price...remember that..." He said and she looked at Manik who shrugged his shoulders indicating 'I-TOLD-YOU-THE-SAME'
"But papa..." She tried to say some thing but Raj interrupted her saying "Bacha...Do you know what makes me happy in the whole day...??"
She thought and nodded in a no.
He smiled and replied "It's your 'papa'...That call makes me happiest and makes me forget all the tensions...I have never felt this happy even when this ladder had first called me 'dad'..." He said pointing towards Manik who made a shocked face and looked at Nyonika as if complaining.
She chuckled and tapped Raj's shoulder and Nandini too chuckled.
"I am proud of you my little girl..." Raj said and she happily hugged him.
"Thank you papa..." She replied with a smile and Nyonika snapped her fingers to break their moment.
"If you both papa beti has completed your session, can I just open my gift...??" She asked in fake angry tone.
"Looks like your Maa ji is jealous..."Raj whispered and Nandini smiled.
"Of course Maa ji...Please...open it..." Nandini said settling between both of them.
Nyonika happily opened the gift which was baby pink colored saree with silver border.
"Maa ji...I have never selected any dresses of my own...You also know that na...I am so sorry for my selection if you don't like it...I thought as per your taste only...But we have the bill, and we can get it changed if you don't like it..." She started and Nyonika stopped her by keeping her finger on her lips.
"This is soooo beautiful...exactly as per my taste...and I will definitely wear it for the next party whatever is coming..."Nyonika said with a smile which doubled Nandini's smile.
"Actually...I have another gift for you..." She said and gave her another small box to which Nyonika's eyes brightened. She opened it quickly to see a pair of matching silever ear rings to the saree.
"Woowww...So pretty...." She said touching the pearls on it.
"Did you really like it Maa ji..??" Nandini asked to confirm and she replied "Like..?? I loved it...They are perfect match to the saree beta...thank you so much..."
"Arey waah...Two two gifts for your Maa ji..." Raj said making a face and before Nandini could say anything, Nyonika showed her tongue and said "Now who is jealous..!"
"Whatever...She loves me more..than you...hai na bacha...??" He asked and Nyonika said "No she loves me more..and that's why she thought so much about me...so she bought accessories which I like..."
"Enough" Manik stood making them stop their love argument and Nandini stood immediately in reflex.
"She is my wife...and she loves me more...before any one of you..." He declared and held her hand and took her to their room while Raj and Nyonika exchanged looks.
"Actually he was the one who was jealous all the time..." Raj said and hi-fived with her.
"Manik...What was that...??" Nandini asked being surprised by his behaviour and he slammed his lips on hers for a dominating kiss.
Once he felt she was out of breath, he broke the kiss and pulled her towards him and said "This is for going without informing...and now...let me show you that you are mine first..."
He said hovering over her on bed and she chuckled saying "Seriously Manik...You are really jealous of your parents...??"
"I will be jealous on every one who shares your attention from me...I don't want your attention to be divided...It should be on me...only me...call me anything but that's it..." He said, his voice dripping possessiveness which she can't help but surrender to him and his sweet tortures.
Before she could say anything, he made her scream with pleasure and made her forget everything except him.
Another month passed and Nandini's training perios was completed. Ayaan, Naina and Nandini checked their mails to check which project they are assigned to.
Nandini read it out 'Contact – Ranjeet Rai, 2nd Floor; Project Manager – Arjun Mehta'
"Hey Nandini, even I got the same contacts" Ayaan squealed in happiness but Naina's face saddened because her contacts and project was different.
"It's ok Naina...We will be touch...and we will hope to have our projects in same branch...atleast then we can meet in lunch breaks and all..." Nandini comforted her but inside, she too will miss her. Thank her stars, atleast Ayaan will be with her, to her company.
Next day, Ayaan and Nandini went to meet the contact person and he led them to their project manager.
He professionally shook hands and they introduced themselves.
"So Miss Nandini" Arjun, the manager started but she interrupted him hesitatingly "I..am sorry...but it's Mrs. Nandini"
He smiled and said "Oh sorry...My bad Mrs.Nandini...You will be in development team and Mr.Ayaan you will working for unit testing..."
"Means different teams sir...??" He asked out of curiosity.
"Yes and call me Arjun...You shouldn't be addressing with Sir and Madam in IT field..." Arjun corrected him with a warm smile which they reciprocated.
"Come I will introduce you to your team leads..." He said and led them to other side of the floor.
First he introduced Ayaan to his team lead and he took his seat with his new team members.
"Come Mrs.Nandini" Arjun called out and she looked at Ayaan who mouthed "It's ok...Go...I am here..."
She took a deep breath and went with Arjun to the next cubicle where there are four seats and he called out "Rehan"
A guy in 30's turned and smiled seeing Arjun.
"Hey Arjun...I was about to come to you...That coding was sent to testing team..and" Rehan kept on going till Arjun interrupted "Mr.Workaholic...Wait...take a breath..." and Rehan let out a smile which showed his dimples, making him look cute.
"She is Mrs.Nandini...Your new junior..." Arjun said pointing Nandini to Rehan and his eyes forgot to blink seeing her smile.
"And he is Rehan...Your team lead..." He said and Rehan forwarded his hand officially to introduce himself saying "Rehan Agarwal"
She smiled and joined her hand and said "Nandini Manik Malhotra"
"Excuse me..? Did you just say Malhotra...??" Rehan asked with a frown.
"Ummm yeah...My husband Manik Malhotra..." She said with an equal frown.
"Husband..?? Married...??" He asked with a disappointed tone and she realized the change in his voice.
"yeah...I think Mr.Arjun has said already...It's Mrs.Nandini" She asked with a tight lip smile and he nodded awkwardly.
"umm..Well...welcome to the team...and....Thanks Arjun..." He said and Arjun waved bye while going off.
"It will take time to get access to system and get office laptop...So, meanwhile, I will explain about the project..." Rehan said and started explaining the structure of project and time to time noticing her facial expressions, her eyes, her lips and her smile.
After an hour or so, he concluded saying "Okay...That's it for today Nandini...I will mail you few documents...Just tell me your mail address...Try going through them...we will discuss about them tomorrow...Any doubts...?"
"Actually...Where are the other team mates...??" She asked hesitatingly to which he smiled and said "They went for an outing...Will come tomorrow..."
"Ok..."She said with a smile and he gave her his number saying "Just in case if you have any doubts in the document..." She just smiled and said her mail address to which he mailed the study documents.
"So...you can leave if you want..." He said and she checked time and said "But it's just 4pm"
"There is no time restrictions here...If you are done with your work, you can leave...But minimum working hours must me 7..." He answered looking at his screen.
"Ohh...Ok..." She said and checked her mobile.
"So...are you leaving...??" He asked again.
"My husband will come by 5...So I will wait till then..." She said.
"Oh...Ok...So come...let's have a coffee...I am going to have one by the way..." he said standing up and she nodded being hesitant. She signaled Ayaan 'coffee', who saw her going with Rehan and questioned with his eyes. He nodded in ok and got back to what his lead was saying.
"So Nandu" Rehan called but she glared at him and replied "I prefer Nandini"
"Ok...Sorry...Nandini...You look so young...and you just completed your graduation...how come married so early...??" He asked.
She smiled and said "I don't think we need to wait if we find the right person...Manik is my soulmate whom I found in my graduation and we didn't see any point to wait...So...we are happily married for 3 years..."
"3years...!!" He exclaimed.
"Yes" She said strongly and her phone beeped with Manik's message that he is coming to pick her.
"I think...I should leave...Thanks for the session and thanks for the coffee Mr.Rehan...See you tomorrow..." She said in a formal tone and left, while his eyes were fixed on her disappearing figure.
"How was the day love...??" Manik asked once she got into the car.
"Great...New project...new team..." She said thinking about Rehan.
"Nice..and team members...??" He asked watching the road.
"There were no one today...went for an outing it seems...I just met the manager and team lead..." She said and explained about them in detail.
Manik just nodded listening the conversation between her and her team lead and he tried drawing lines between the words from a guy's perception.
"Cool...Let's see how it goes..." He replied casually and she was surprised seeing his reaction.
"It's ok love...It's quite common in this field..." He said seeing her expression and she smiled.
Ignore mistakes...
So here are the ones who suggested me the names which I liked and couldn't neglect and so tried fitting them in the story.
Ranjeet Rai - zainabrasheed_123
Arjun Mehta - ArchanaaManean
and finally the winner :p Rehan Agarwal - velvetxcanvas
Thank you guys...