MaNan: It all started with a lie

Nandini Murthy Doesn't Drink!!

Manik

I followed the laughing sound and soon reached the place. My eyes were almost out of my sockets and I doubt my jaw could drop down any further seeing the sight in front of me. There she was, nandini, laughing her ass of, sitting all alone near the staircase wall. At first I was confused on why was she laughing hysterically, what was so funny? She felt my gaze on her and called me out between her laughs "are manik tum staring game khel rahe ho na? To fir idhar aao na, hum dono yaha baith kar khelenge OK?" She said sounding all happy and I nodded my head while walking in her direction. "Nandu?" "Hmm" "tum itna has kyu rahi ho?" I asked. "Main?.....nahi toh! Main kaha has rahi hu?" She said again laughing and I slapped my forehead as realisation slowly dawned upon me. Ms. Nandini murthy was drunk. "Nandini are you drunk?" I asked to confirm my doubts. "Where is the bottle?" I asked searching in every possible place near her." Kya hua hai tumhe? Why did you drink? And why are you sitting here all alone?" I added all the questions that I had in mind. She just stared at me with wide eyes full of amusement in it. "What? Why are you staring? Answer me dammit! WHY ARE YOU SO DRUNK NANDINI?!?!" I asked this time yelling at her, shaking her shoulders vigorously to make her answer me. I rubbed my temple to calm myself. Damn! This girl was seriously testing my patience now. I looked at her, she looked so cute with her eyes so wide and her mouth open in a perfect 'o' shape. I smiled seeing her like that but that did not stay long on my face when she burst on me. "Manik malhotra what kind of a best friend are you huh? Don't you know that nandini murthy doesn't drink?!...
I don't drink" and started laughing again and hit me on my arm pushing me hard.

I was taken aback at first but later composed myself. She is drunk definitely! Nandu ke aiyyappa this is going to be a long night I helplessly told myself and decided to take her to my home as soon as possible. She needs sleep. "Acha OK sorry. I know that my nandu never gets drunk. She is a good girl" I told her ever so calmly as if she was a five year old. She took a moment to register my words and bobbed her head cutely like a baby and replied "yes I'm a good girl.....a veryyyyy gooddd girl." She said stretching her hands to show how much of a good girl she is. I giggled to myself seeing her childish behaviour. Drunk nandu is always fun but mahn! She is difficult to handle too. "Nandu tum good girl ho na?" I asked and she bobbed her head up and down cutely agreeing to my statement. "To good girls are not up till late right? So come on let's go home and get you to sleep" I said. Gosh! I sounded like her dad. "Nooooo.....I don't want to go home. I'm not sleepy manik. Pleaseeeee! I want to stay here and party" she whined. Nandini ke aiyyappa bachao! I said looking up and then at my talli best friend again. "No nandini. Good girls don't party and they always do what is right. Chalo now be a good girl and let's go home." "Fine" she agreed and I mentally patted myself to convince her so soon. I was about to get up when she said "manik dekho na everything is moving round and round. Sab gol gol ghum raha hai like a merry-go-round hai na?" She said amused. "Its so much fun na?" She added. "Yes yes it's really so much fun" I replied enthusiastically. Note the sarcasm here. She beamed at my reply and clapped her hands, feeling excited and proud of her new discovery.

"Now let's go" I said and held out my hand for her to get up. She held my hand and got up. She was a bit tipsy and hence stumbled but I caught her in time, preventing her from falling. "Manik you are sooo big and I'm so small so you go first and I will follow you" she said pointing at my tall height and then comparing it with hers. "No nandini you...." "No manik you go first" she cut me off like a stubborn child. Having no other option, I agreed to her and started walking ahead making sure that she was following me. I walked a few steps but stopped. I realised that nandini wasn't following me. I turned around to find no one, only empty corridors. Wtf! Where did this girl vanish?! I searched for her frantically but could not find her at all. I was busy thinking where she could go when I heard her voice from somewhere behind me. I turned around to see her near the library door. "Manik is a fool...manik is a fool" she kept on saying the same thing, sticking her tongue out at me. I wanted to bang my head somewhere. This girl is driving me f***** crazy now. I began taking steps to approach her but she ran inside the library and hid somewhere to tease me more. I entered the library being clueless. I had no idea of where she was. Now I will have to search every freaking corner of this library. I started finding her.

It had been more than ten minutes that I was searching for her but could not find her. She was nowhere to be seen. An idea hit my head and I hid behind one of the book shelves. I was right, nandini came out after some time finding me "Manik....manik....where are you? Bahar aao na mujhe dar lag raha hai...please manik" she said whilst searching me. She looked so innocent and scared. I could not resist her anymore neither did I want to scare her more so I came out of my hiding place and whispered huskily in her ear standing behind her "Tum to mujhse bhaag rahi thi na, to ab kyu dhund rahi ho mujhe?". She jumped at her place due to my sudden appearance behind her out of nowhere but soon turned around to face me and started hitting me on my chest. "You monster! Pata hai main kitna dar gayi thi? Aisa koi karta hai kya?" She complained. "Sorry" I said holding my ears and making the cutest puppy face that I could make to melt her. "Its ok. But you know jab tum mujhe kahi nahi dikhe and I came to know ki you were not searching for me I thought....I thought that I....I lost you. Mujhe laga ki tum bhi amma appa ki tarha mujhe chod kar chale gaye manik" she said getting emotional all of a sudden. My heart ached seeing her so vulnerable. Now I was feeling guilty for scaring her. I wasted no time and pulled her in my embrace. I hugged her as tightly as I could. I was not worried of squeezing her right now because of my hug, I know that she needed this. She hugged me back with the same force. We stood like that for a while with her sobbing quietly in my chest. I slowly broke the hug and dropped a kiss on her temple cupping her face gently.