SEAL THE DEAL

Chapter 1

Mani:-"Okay Dad, go on then. What is it that you really want to say to me?" She asked, a knowing smile on her face.

Manisha knew her father well enough to know that something wasn't quite right when he called her from his office earlier that afternoon, speaking a little extra sweetly and sounding a little extra nervous as he asked how her day was going. She'd instantly been able to tell that something was up.

If that wasn't enough, she was sure that something was definitely going on when her
mother popped into her room and told her to get ready because her father had made a reservation at her favourite restaurant for dinner tonight. Her parents really couldn't have made it any more obvious because the three of them only went to that restaurant together once a year; on her birthday...and her birthday had passed just last weekend.

Plus the restaurant had three stars, and even with her family's big name, a reservation typically had to be made at least a month in advance. Her father must have had pulled some major strings to get that reservation for tonight, which meant there was probably something major going on.

And if all of that really wasn't enough, Manisha was 100% convinced that there was something major going on when she saw her father's composed front falter when she questioned him directly. Her father was an incredibly successful businessman who had completely mastered
his poker face over the years, but no matter how much be perfected it, he would never be able to fully mask his feelings in front of his daughter.

Her knowing smile turned into a frown when her father chose to remain quiet. She hadn't
been too worried before, but now she
suddenly was.

"There's something going on...isn't there?"
A stifling silence smothered the table. Manisha parents exchanged anxious glances and it only made her feel even more unsettled about the situation. A moment later, her father finally decided to ditch the act. He should have known better than to try to hide his feelings from Her in the first place.

"Manu beta, I don't even know how to say this," he sighed, the wrinkles in his forehead
deepening as he looked at her.
She looked between her parents warily, wondering what kind of Pandora's box she'd just forced open. Her parents had never acted like this around her before. She was an only  child, and her parents had always been more like her best friends. They'd never been so hesitant or apprehensive about anything.

Was JDB going bankrupt? No, that was impossible. Even though the family business had seen much better days, everything was still relatively okay; or at least she thought it was.

Had the stocks drastically fallen to the point where they were irrecoverable? No, Manisha was sure that was impossible too...not that she actually knew a lot about how it all worked. Had there been a media scandal or something, a lawsuit maybe? No, that was definitely impossible because her father always made sure there was no room for that to happen.

Her mother slammed her fork  down on her plate, "I said this before and I'll say it
again. You shouldn't even be having this conversation with her," she said sharply, clearly displeased about the situation...whatever it was, "It's too much to ask of her,"
Ask of you?

Manisha loved her parents more than anything and everything else in the world and would readily do anything and everything for their happiness, so what could they possibly ask of her that was 'too much'?

She hid her rapidly growing sense of concern and immediately placed her hand over her mother's, stroking the pearls on her wrist gently, "Look, Maa, whatever it is, I'd rather you just tell me outright and talk to me about it,"

Her father's gaze was downcast. Honestly, nothing about the current situation was quite as daunting as the fact that his usually calm and composed demeanor seemed to have evaporated into thin air. He fiddled with the napkin in his lap uneasily, and it was obvious that he was
struggling to find the right words to convey his predicament.
Her dad:-"Manu, well, it's -"

Her mom:-"You better think about this again before you decide to tell her," her mother warned one more time, inhaling deeply as she picked up her fork  again.

The friction between her parents was thick and suffocating, and she didn't even care about what they were going to ask her that was too much anymore. Her curiosity was bubbling to the brim and she really just wanted to know what was going on.

Mani:-"Go on Dad, what is it?" She urged him to continue, giving him a reassuring nod when he glanced at her for confirmation.
Looking at Manisha, her father wondered where all the time had gone and when she'd grown up so much. She always made his heart swell with pride and joy, and he felt ashamed that he was even entertaining the thought of what he was about to say.
He took her hand in his, the words feeling nauseatingly heavy and burdensome in his throat,

M/D:- "Beta, you have the full right to reject what I'm going to say to you. If you don't want to do it, it won't happen. There is absolutely no pressure from me, or from anyone else either,okay?" his grip on her hand tightened, more for his own sake and sanity than hers.

How's this??...do comment your opinions 😁😁😁😁....