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The next day Manik left to meet Nyonika. He refused to let anybody accompany him. He said that he wanted to face this himself. Mr Malhotra and Nandini were totally against this, but Manik had to do what he had decided he needed to do.

He wanted answers. He had spent a lot of time thinking about this, but he did not want to think further. He wanted to start a new life with clarity in his head, and for that, he needed to get over his past once and for all.

Manik got out of the taxi in front of the meditation centre in Jaipur to meet Nyonika. He waited for her in the lobby while trying to keep his cool. It was an important moment in his life. He wanted to get honest answers from her and relieve himself from this heavy burden.

After five minutes, Nyonika appeared stunned, seeing Manik. She immediately ran and hugged Manik shocking him. He awkwardly separated her from himself. Nyonika stepped back, looking down.

"Nyonika, I need to talk to you," Manik said without looking at her.

"Manik, I am so happy that you are alive."

"Are you?" Manik asked arrogantly in a low voice.

"A day did not pass by when I did not think about you, Manik." She confessed

"Oh, shut this drama of yours and keep it with yourself" he did not want any melodrama. He wanted answers, and that was it.

"I am sorry, Manik" He looked at her and did not say a word. Nyonika took him outside to the garden and made him sit on a bench and sat beside him. She wanted to confess everything to her son. All these months she had spent feeling guilty that her son died because of her, and this was an opportunity for her to be liberated from the pain.

"Manik, I did not want to kill you," she said, looking straight. Manik did not respond, but she knew that he was listening, so she continued.

"The whole setup was for Nandini. I wanted her to be out of your life" Manik turned towards her, stunned. This was even worse than the story that he had weaved in his head.

"Are you a lunatic psychopath" he almost shouted and was ready to leave. He did not want to listen to the truth anymore. He was done with her and did not want to give her a chance.

She held his hand. "Manik, please. Let me speak today. It is hard for me. I have gathered this courage with a lot of difficulty" Something in her voice made him stay, and he stood stiff on his spot without facing her.

"All my life, I have seen you as a big mistake. I was never the woman who you hate so dearly. I was better than that. I hated love when you were born, and I never allowed myself to love you. I don't know when everything became transactional for me. I will be frank today; I always saw you just like an ATM card and nothing more, but anytime if anybody tried to hurt you, I could not handle that. I could not let anybody else hurt you but me. I was punishing you for things you were not responsible for, and the worst part was that I never felt guilty until I got to know that I have lost you." She sat down as tears started flowing and her voice started breaking. "I could not bear that I killed you. When Nandini came into your life, I was jealous and reluctant. I could not bear that you had something I never got, and I was also scared that you will fall into the same trap as I did. I was scared for you. I misjudged Nandini for a gold digger, but evidently, I was wrong. I was always wrong about everything."

Manik shut his eyes tightly. This was a lot for him to take. He wanted to run to breathe, but he also wanted to listen to her and believe her. It was tougher than he had assumed.

"I am really very sorry, Manik, for ruining your life. All I ask for is forgiveness. I am ready for any punishment you choose for me, and in return, I only ask for your forgiveness. Please accept my apology," she pleaded with earnest eyes.