Cordially, Yours!

-2-

"Chachi, Rishabh!" Nandini called out in between her muffled sobs. It was one hour since she had been ringing the main door of Murthy house. An unsettling feeling had already settled in and by the eventful day she already had, she wasn't up for more. 

She rang the bell and knocked the door once more. With again no answer at the door, she tried the landline and Chacha's phone for the twentieth time. The number your trying is currently switched off, please try again later- the recorder answered her back. She hated the voicemails enough previously- but, now she detested them. With no other choice left, she went upto the neighbors. 

"Mrs. Aggrawal, could I please borrow the spare key? I left mine at college and it's too dark to go back and I forgot sabh bhar gai hi!" she bluntly white-lied. Manik did rub off her, she now realized more than ever. Mrs. Aggarwal being the very sweet lady she was, didn't further question and handed her the keys. Nandini was grateful for she didn't have the cliche, nosy, neighbors who were on-lookers. 

She clicked open the door and found the house to be a mess as if someone broke-in. Her heart raced and started to call out. 

"Rishabh!" 

"Chachi!"

"Chacha!" 

No one answered back. She ran up the stairs and barged into Rishabh's rooms only to find it more scattered than the rest. Her muscles tensed and stomach sank. She paced downstairs into the Chacha-Chachi's room and found a similar mess. She went into the kitchen and constantly tried their mobile phones. Suddenly, her eyes caught hold of a messily written note on the kitchen table and the note's look screamed that it was a note written with shaky hands and was stained with tear marks. 

"Going to Mangalore. Amms is terribly ill- Ramu called to say it was a heart attack. You stay for college. Will call" 

It wasn't a note but a declaration. A terrible one, though knowing about their whereabouts calmed her a bit, she wasn't satisfied- yes, Amms' health was of a concern but, she also knew they would pick up the phone where so ever they were. According to her experience, Mangalore was a 4 hour flight or a 14 hour train journey. A bus was out of question-seeing the situation and the flight was most likely. Any which ways- a phone call or message was possible! After all, they knew she was here and be back by 10 o'clock or did they assume she would be with Man... Her thoughts shattered her again and left her eyes welled up. 

A sudden ring on the door startled her and got her out of her reverie. She walked towards the door to open it and found Mrs. Aggarwal standing their with a concerned look. 

"Beta Nandu, I... I... Which train did Mr. and Mrs. Murthy take? " she asked. 

"I am not sure. But, there is only one that goes around this time." Nandini answered blankly tired of what all had happened today. 

"I think.. look beta, I am not sure,"Mrs. Aggarwal looked for words. 

"What are saying, aunty? I can't get it" Nandini answered slightly irritated and confused and then it struck her, "Wait, how do you know they are gone to Mangalore?" she inquired. 

"Beta, Mrs. Murthy came to me before they left-- to let me know in case you needed help. I was watching the news right now when--  " Mrs. Aggrawal explained herself in broken sentences.

"What news aunty?" Nandini questioned. 

"The train track to Mangalore broke down and..." Mrs. Aggarwal shuddered on her thoughts. 

"No, it can't be it!" Nandini tried to deny all the bad thoughts she got, the day was such may be worse than the day she lost her parents- today too much was already lost and so much was on stake! She ran to the TV set and flipped to the news channel. And there, her biggest nightmare flashed on the TV screen in big bold letters. 

--Space College: Greenroom--

"Buddy, you are taking it all wrong", Manik tried to explain Dhruv. He had to get him out of this pit of spiral thoughts. 

"No! He isn't Manik!" Aliya murmured. "He isn't! He is right! It's because of Nandini. She's a slut- she came in the group and tore us apart. She went for Dhruv first since he is innocent and not as fierce as us. She saw him as the bakra, but then when she realized he didn't have the deep pockets she gave up and at the same time she saw the feisty you with the money and a girlfriend and like any other cheapster, she set up a trap for you. With this plotting and all, I am so sure, Harshad and her are all together in this and she ain't one of those fairies. Don't you see she was too good-to-be-true. A. no one is like that today and then, B. she drifted us apart and then worked her way up to Dhruv. It's all her! Oh my god! Why didn't we see this, Mukti? How could we... " Aliya ranted.

"Stop it!" Manik cut her off. "Stop satisfying your nonsensical logic, Aliya! Are you convincing us or yourself? Do you hear yourself? It's so superficial." He stopped Aliya from distracting him and spreading the seed of doubt that Nyonika had so smartly woven into Dhruv's brain. This was contagious and fatal.

"Our break-up, Aliya. You and I know was we were a fantasy and not real- a relation forced by public and not internal . We knew it- it was a drag and not because of Nandini. And do you think before letting Nandini in and among us, I didn't fact check her? I didn't make sure Harshad and Nyonika had no ties with her?" he tried to rationalizing this as maturely as possible. 

"I am not saying that, Manik. But what if you missed out on something? What if this time she was cunning enough to hide all the loop-holes", Aliya questioned. Somewhere her doubts, insecurities and feelings for Manik had resurfaced and somehow, they got a person to blame it all on.

"Bas bohot hogaya!" Navya had heard enough now. As dramatic as she was, she had now also connected the dots in her mind on why Nandini ran out on her. She knew Manik was trying to be mature  and it wasn't her place to say anything but somewhere, she couldn't hear more about her friend and saw Manik's vulnerabilities come out. 

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Navya's outburst! Would it do it all and sort it or not? 

Happy reading! 

Love, 

HF