Tangled Beliefs

Chapter-37: Bound by Chaos

She didn’t ask for his help, yet he was there, fighting battles she didn’t even know how to name.

Manik’s POV,

The drive back home was drenched in silence. No one dared to speak, and even the engine's faint hum felt loud compared to the storm raging in my mind. Navya had run straight to her room when we stepped into the house. Cabir and I had instinctively started following her, but Dad's firm voice stopped us.

“Give her some time,” he said softly but sternly. “Let her process this. Right now, she needs space more than anything.”

Mom placed a calming hand on Cabir’s arm, nodding in agreement. “She’ll talk when she’s ready, Cabir.”

I clenched my fists by my sides, my frustration bubbling just below the surface. I hated this—this helplessness, this inability to fix things. But I knew they were right. With a heavy sigh, I returned to the living room.

Cabir was sitting on the couch, his head in his hands, while Mukti and Alya silently tried to console him. Dhruv stood near the window, staring out into the night sky as if searching for answers.

“Manik,” Cabir’s voice broke through the silence as he looked up at me with red-rimmed eyes. “Can you… can you please check on Nandini?”

I froze, my brows furrowing. “Nandini?”

“She was crying when we left. Navya said she’s… she’s a little sensitive, emotionally. And after everything today…” He paused, his voice cracking. “Please, just check if she’s okay.”

For a moment, I hesitated. My mind was a mess, and I wasn’t sure if I had it in me to offer someone else comfort when I could barely process my own emotions. But then I remembered Nandini’s face at the temple—the pain in her eyes, the way she had clung to Navya like a lifeline.

“I’ll… I’ll call her,” I said quietly.

Cabir gave me a small nod of gratitude, and I walked upstairs to my room.

Once inside, I locked the door and leaned against it, rubbing my face with both hands. My head was pounding, my chest tight with emotions I couldn’t name. I started pacing from one corner of the room to the other, my thoughts racing at a speed I couldn’t control.

Should I even call her? What if she doesn’t want to talk? What if I make it worse?

But Cabir’s words echoed in my mind. “Please, just check if she’s okay.”

“Okay, Manik. Just do it,” I muttered to myself, grabbing my phone from the nightstand.

Her contact stared back at me, and for a few seconds, my thumb hovered over the call button. With a deep breath, I pressed it and held the phone to my ear.

The phone rang twice before the call connected.

“Hello?” I said cautiously.

Silence.

“Nandini? Are you there? Hello?”

Nothing. Just silence.

I frowned, pulling the phone away to check if the call had disconnected, but it was still ongoing.

“Nandini, if you can hear me, please say something. Anything.”

I was about to cut the call, thinking maybe she’d accidentally picked up, but then I heard it.

A sharp sob.

I froze, my heart dropping into my stomach.

“Nandini?” I said her name softly this time.