Kaise yeh yaarian

Part 38

FAB5 JAM ROOM – CONTINUOUS

The whiteboard stands between them—crowded, chaotic, rewritten.

Alia stares at it like it's a crime scene.

Then she laughs.

Low. Bitter.

ALIA
Wow.
You didn't step in to help.
You erased everyone else.

Nandini looks up slowly.

ALIA (CONT'D)
Every category. Every stage.
Tell me—was this always the plan, or did it just... grow once you realized what Fab5 could give you?

CABIR
Alia—

ALIA
No. Let me talk.

She steps forward, eyes sharp, merciless.

ALIA (CONT'D)
You don't prove talent by grabbing everything.
You prove it by knowing your limits.

Nandini says nothing.

ALIA (CONT'D)
And don't insult us pretending this is about the fest.

She looks straight at Manik.

ALIA (CONT'D)
This is about him.

MANIK
Alia, stop.

ALIA
Why?
Because you know I'm right?

She turns back to Nandini.

ALIA (CONT'D)
Because suddenly you're everywhere he is.
Duets. Dance. Center stage.
Almost like you're building a future, not a performance.

Nandini's grip tightens around the marker in her hand.

ALIA (CONT'D)
Let me guess—
you saw the money, the name, the security...

She pauses. Then—

ALIA (CONT'D)
And since you don't have parents to fall back on,
you thought maybe Manik could give you the life you lost.

The room freezes.

Cabir reacts instantly.

CABIR
Alia—what the hell—

Mukti's face drains of color.

MANIK
Alia. Shut up.

Too late.

Something in Nandini snaps.

Her breath catches—once.

Then—

CRASH.

Nandini swings her arm and slams the whiteboard with full force.

The board splits, cracks spiderwebbing across it.
Markers fly.
The impact echoes like a gunshot.

Everyone jumps.

Nandini stands there, chest heaving.

Her hands are shaking.
Her jaw is clenched so tight it looks painful.
Her eyes—wild, burning, devastated.

She turns slowly.

NANDINI
You know nothing about my life.

Her voice is loud. Raw. Unfiltered.

NANDINI (CONT'D)
You don't know what I've buried.
You don't know what I wake up with every morning.

She takes a step forward.

NANDINI (CONT'D)
And you don't ever get to use my parents as a weapon.

ALIA
I was just—

NANDINI
No.