Bade Acche Lagte Hain | MaNan

Love & Light - II

Continued from the last part...

"May we come in Mr. Manik Malhotra?" Hearing a familiar voice, Manik turns around and walks towards an old couple standing at the entrance, with quick steps.

"Sat Sri Akaal Dayal Sahab!" He touches their feet, greeting them with a smile and Nandini follows, covering her head with a dupatta.

"God bless you both and may you live happily together." Mr. and Mrs. Dayal bless them with a warm smile.

"You just disappeared after your marriage ha!" Happy complains and takes Manik in a friendly hug.

"It's nothing like that." Manik dismisses the blame coolly, though he knew what he referred about. It's been long since they met over drinks.

"Achi baat hai na! Apni vohti ko time dega ki tere jaise jhalle k sath ghumega. Dosto ko bolne ki jagah khud shaadi krle ab." And Mrs. Parminder Dayal states the best solution for her son's loneliness. Happy curses himself mentally for serving his mother another opportunity right in a platter to taunt him regarding his bachelor life.

(It's good that he is giving time to his wife rather than wandering around with a fool like you. Instead of complaining to your friends, start thinking about your own marriage now.)

"Nobody introduced me to this little prince." Mr. Dayal cooes under Veer's chin making him giggle and tactfully changing the topic.

"He is Veer, Madhu's son." Manik informs tugging Veer's nose who hides himself in Nandini's embrace on getting all the attention.

They talk for sometime when Parminder corners Manik and asks, "Manik, son, are you happy?" Manik nods with a flushed look.

"I'm also an idiot. She is here with you today and that tells me that she values every feeling of yours. And you should also take care of her. Everything is new for her, okay?" She guides him like a mother and he smiles. "I will."

"Bhabhi, please protect your husband before my mother fills his ears with all the tactics to torture you." Happy screams with horrified expressions making everyone laugh while Nandini looks down, pressing her lips to hide her smile. Parminder darts a furious look at her son followed by her husband. Mr. Dayal immediately sobers up and Happy screams, this time in pain as she pulls his ear. Veer giggles loudly watching Happy getting scolded while Manik shakes his head at the drama family and looks at Nandini who raises her eyebrow, asking him what Mrs. Dayal was talking to him.

"She was asking me to tell you how to serve your husband. She sounded very disappointed from you." Manik tells her in a hushed voice and ends with a deep sigh. Nandini draws her eyebrows closer in stress wondering about the reason behind it while Manik stifles his smile, enjoying the little pranks he'd started playing with his wife.

She looks at him to ask the reason but all the frown lines disappear from her face as she catches him smiling. Though he straightened up his features but he was just in time. He knew he was caught but what confused him was her smile, a crooked one. He could smell something fishy.

"Aunty ji, I hope you don't think that I don't know how to serve my husband and my in-laws. Though he keeps on taunting me that I should've learnt better but I swear, I try my best." Nandini clarifies with a sullen face, fidgeting with her fingers and Manik stares at his wife shell-shocked. He was clean bowled by her act. Wasn't she innocent?

"What did you say? He is taunting you? Khotteya! Teri himmat kaise hui aisi soni kudi naal tanz kasne ki? Nandini puttar, dobara aisa kuch kare na yeh, mainu dasna, taange todke hath vich na rakhdi toh mera naam bhi Parminder Dayal nhi!" Parminder scoldes Manik, scaring him with her big eyes and without any choice he listen to her like a kid. Nandini bites her tongue at the over the top reaction but it would be a lie to say that she isn't enjoying pranking her husband. She was no less in childhood.