Under the Mistletoe - MaNan

Part 8

Hey guys!  I'm really sorry for the delay!  I've been caught up in some work.  So thank you for your patience!  I hope you enjoy this part after the wait :)

--

Soon enough, we both started laughing at our childish acts. But it felt nice to be able to do childish things once in a while. Brought back some bittersweet memories that never failed to make me smile.

As we regained our breath, I grabbed a picture frame from my bedside and handed it to Manik.

"He's the most important person in my life, you know. Rishab, my brother!"

"What about your parents though?"

I took a deep breath; it still hurt to talk about what had happened.

"They actually died a long time ago in an accident"

"Oh... I'm sorry to hear that," he said as he placed his hand on mine, squeezing it slightly as he intertwined our fingers together.

"You know, my parents are alive. In fact both of them are doing great. But I don't even call them mom or dad. Almost as if we aren't even a family to begin with," he trailed off.

The atmosphere felt too serious in comparison to how it was going earlier, but talking about my parents always made me sad. I tried to think of all the happy moments we had shared together, but it was so hard.

"You do realize that it's almost Christmas, right?" He shook my out of my thoughts. "You can't be sad!"

A smile escaped before I could even attempt to control it.

"You look better when you're smiling! Or actually, better yet..." he trailed off once again, leaving me puzzled.

Until I found his hands on my waist, his fingers tickling me. I contorted myself away from him as I gasped from air.

"Manik... st---stop!!!" Breathing heavily as I tried to stop his hands. In an attempt to turn myself away from him, I ended up lying down on my bed, taking him along with me.

Great Aiyyappa. Because this is what I needed right? He's this close to me, and here I am... Crying and struggling to breathe, while probably looking like a maniac.

He was almost on top of me, his lips a few inches away from mine as his eyes held mine. It wasn't really awkward. Until we heard a cough from someone that is.

I pushed Manik off in a rush, making him fall off the bed, only to find Cabir standing there with a smirk.

He gave a hand to Manik and helped him up.

"Sorry to disturb you... lo-o-o-o-vebirds..." he went on, ignoring the death glare he was receiving from Manik and I.

"You know next time, you should close your door. Or hang a sock of something, if you know what I mean," he winked to me.

"Cabirrr!" I screamed aloud, throwing the pillow on him.

"Shut up Cabir!" Manik also joined me, to which Cabir just laughed. "Anyway, let's go guys! I just came to call you both. It's ten to 12!"

I got up and walked out as Manik held the door open for me. As I headed to Dhruv's room, I heard a punch, which was soon followed by a groan, behind me.