The Nerd and The Brat (Sequel) ✔

Chapter-16

Hello Fam :)

A/N - There might have been some confusion regarding Manik's stern words to Nandini during the last chapter to many of you. It sounded okay to me while writing the first draft because I had Manik's PoV with me, which, unfortunately, didn't make it to the final version in that chapter. Hence, I am repeating the scene again with Manik's PoV. Hopefully, it would clear the confusion. 

@Dweeb_Dork Thank you for pointing the confusion. Talk to me after reading this. :)

Happy Reading...

"I will take my mobile and come", said Cabir.

Manik nodded absentmindedly as he twirled the spoon between his fingers.

"Eat your food, kid. I will make sure your wife is well-fed", teased his mother.

Manik gave her a smile. She was the one person he had on his mind lately and constantly. Nandini was ignoring him. He was caught up with the work in the office and was often late to home. But he knew when someone's sleeping or pretending to sleep. Her entire frame would be rigid as soon as Manik entered the room. She was avoiding eye contact with him. She was skipping food but Nyonika assured him that she was forcing Nandini out of her room to eat her food and take medicines.

The first time when Nyonika told him that, Manik thanked her and almost cried in relief. He didn't want Nandini to spiral back after making the progress in her recovery. It also made him question his decision to hand over the divorce papers to her but he calmed himself down. It's not as if he was giving divorce to her. He never would. She was one of his most precious people and he only had got her after all these years.

But the biggest issue wasn't some stupid divorce papers. It was Nandini not considering herself a part of their family. Even though she had started addressing Nyonika as mom, (he was the most surprised and happiest when he had heard it) Manik could see the way she threw a glance at the twins every time she called that to their mother. It's as if Nandini was expecting them to be angry at her for calling their mom hers. He could see the surprise on her face when Cabir made any hypothetical plan of a family outing in the forests and included her in it as if she wasn't a part of their family already.

Manik knew her recovery wouldn't happen overnight but what bothered him the most was that she wasn't even trying. He felt as if she was waiting for them to wake up one day and inform her to leave the house. There was a twitch in every muscle of hers whenever a conversation got a bit heated, she was cautious, walking on the eggshells and that wasn't healthy.

Nandini was his strongest girl, surviving her parents her entire life and then those four years and when finally she was free and could happily live a comfortable life, she had donated her whole property to the Murthy trust. Why? Because she didn't want to be associated with the wealth that only caused her pain. And if that girl was struggling to accept a family or the place she was living as her home, the universe was doing something really wrong with her. And if the universe isn't trying to give Nandini whatever she rightfully deserves, Manik promised himself that he would make sure she gets everything that the universe had denied her.

He was brought back by Nyonika trying to free the spoon from his hand. He didn't realize when he had started gripping it tighter during a little adventure to fight with the universe. "I apologize", he muttered and avoided her eyes. It was embarrassing.

Nyonika raised an eyebrow. "Manik, are you fighting with Nandini? Do I need to be an ideal mother and take her side?"

Manik rolled his eyes at his mother. The two women had now started to defend each other but he didn't know that if Manik and Nandini were fighting someday, his mother would choose his wife's side. It should have made him angry but he was on cloud nine. His mother was the family he was trying to give Nandini. "Mom, why would I fight with Nandini?", he asked her, instead.