"You're back early," Manik breathed out, staring at his mother who, on the other hand, paid no attention to him. She was sitting at the dining table, engrossed deeply in her work, and although she heard him, she really didn't care at the moment. This act of hers made Manik fume with anger. "Why are you back early? I asked you something. Nyonika, why are you-"
"It's Saturday," she finally responded, completely uninterested.
Is it the weekend already? Manik thought to himself. Days fly by past. I guess I was just so preoccupied with Nandini that this slipped out of my mind.
Ever since his childhood, Manik Malhotra would always anticipate his parents' return. As much as he'd like to pretend to hate them, he would still count the days to when they'd be back home. It never did him any good, but he still liked to hope that maybe one day when they came back, they would be... different. He prayed that they would be better parents to him and actually, for once, care about him and maybe even start to love him. It was a wish he had at the age of five but to this day, he never saw it come true. He still waited and waited and waited, and he was prepared to wait for an eternity.
"Um," Nandini interrupted, feeling a little awkward, and that was when Manik remembered she was still there. "Who is... this?"
Manik closed his eyes. He knew what he had to do now, he knew what he should do, but he wouldn't. At least, not yet. It just wasn't the right time. That was exactly why he only said, "You know where the room is, Nandini. I'll explain things later."
By then, Nyonika had started looking at the girl her son brought home. She watched with piqued interest as Nandini ascended up the stairs with her suitcase and she was amused. Manik used to bring girls at home but never with suitcases. Once Nandini was out of sight, she looked at her son and without saying anything, she motioned him to explain. Manik knew then that for the first time in his whole life, his mother now cared.
For that brief moment, he almost didn't regret everything that he'd done.
xx
Nandini stood in front of the mirror, zipping up her blouse. She was, however, deep in thought. The woman she'd seen downstairs was older, and she assumed she was Manik's mother. Yet, he seemed to be calling her by her name. If she was his mother, why would he do that?
Grabbing hold of her perfume and spraying it a bit, Nandini realized that Manik Malhotra was truly a very confusing person. One moment he kidnapped her and forcefully married her, which made her come to the conclusion that he was a ruthless monster. The next few days, however, he'd been acting very nice to her, so he might not be too bad after all. But now, he was speaking rudely with a woman who was probably his mother. Nandini sighed in exasperation; she figured she probably shouldn't invest too much of her time on him.
As she grabbed hold of her bag, she paused. Wasn't that was she was here to do in the first place? She wanted to find out why he married her, and for that she needed to understand him, even if a little.
Nandini was lost in her thoughts but was brought back to reality when the bedroom door opened to reveal Manik walking in at that exact moment. She straightened up her blouse and quietly walked past him, not saying anything. He followed her and didn't speak a single word the whole time. Not until they were inside the car, anyway.
"That was my mother," Manik finally announced while driving to her college.
"You called her by her name," Nandini said. It was more of a statement than a question.
"I've lost all the respect I had for my parents since very long," he explained. "They were never proper parents to me and they probably won't ever be. They don't really give a damn what goes on in my life unless it affects them directly."
"I don't want to hear your sob story," Nandini interrupted. If he continued further, she knew she would pity him and after all that he'd done to her, she did not want to have any kind of feelings toward him except for the one of hatred.
Manik let out a bitter chuckle, "Right. I don't suppose it makes a difference."
"It doesn't. I only want to know why you married me and that's that."
"Nandini..."
"I think I have a right to know," she harshly said. "You played with my life, aren't you even going to tell me why?"
Manik sighed, "I will, but not right now. You have to wait for the right time."
"The what?" Nandini sputtered in disbelief. "The right time? When the hell is that?"
"Not now," he firmly said as the car came to a stop, "and that's all you need to know. Your college is here."
Shooting him one final look of betrayal and disgust, Nandini got out of the car and stormed off in anger. She had had enough of this guy. He always did something unexpected and most of the time, it made her absolutely mad.
I'm not waiting, she thought to herself, determined. Nuh-uh, not waiting. He's going to tell me the reason tonight and I'll make sure of it.
xx
"So?" Nyonika questioned, looking up at Manik as he closed the door behind him. "Who was the girl earlier?"
After Nandini went to his room, Manik had promised Nyonika he'd tell her everything later and now that the time had come, he was incredibly nervous. He knew that this was what he wanted but for some odd reason, the confrontation now scared him.
"She's my wife, Nandini," Manik finally breathed out, gathering all the courage he had left. The room filled with silence for many seconds as it continued, it suffocated him. Nyonika was too much in shock to say a single word and every second she didn't speak, Manik grew more and more scared.
"Manik," she started, her voice dangerously low, "stop joking."
"I am not joking," Manik confessed. "She's my friend's sister; Cabir Dhawan. His parents are one of your partners. We ran away and got married on Wednesday."
"This is not funny," Nyonika said as she felt her patience slip out.
"I am being absolutely serious. I have the legal documents with me so you can check if you want."
After that, Nyonika said no more. She seemed to be thinking and Manik hated that. His mother was a manipulative and vile woman. He did not enjoy any of her plans as they served as a threat to him. He knew that his mother was furious and now, he didn't know what to expect. He was expecting the worst, the absolute worst, but even that didn't prepare him for what she said next.
With a calm voice, Nyonika announced, "You'll have to leave the house."
YOU ARE READING
The Forbidden Fruit (MaNan FF)
FanfictionNandini Murthy always thought that the day of her parent's death was the worst day of her life. Then she met Manik Malhotra, and he gave that word a different meaning altogether. [ also available on india-forums ] [ continued only here ]