Wajah Tum Ho

35. Suffocation

Yeh ishq nahi aasaan, bas itna samajh lijiye;
Aag ka dariya hai, aur doob ke jaana hai.
[Love isn't easy;
It's a sea of fire, You have to drown to cross It.]

Sometimes, you find yourself on crossroads; you find yourself tangled between the 'rights' and 'wrongs'; your heart agrees on one thing while your mind says the other; and it is these situations that create havoc like no other. Manik And Nandini, two souls who never needed words to communicate, today needed them for reasons of assurance, acceptance, repentance and expression, stood staring at each other as they found themselves at loss of words. It seemed as if no word was enough for the chaos that was inside them.

Before they could even try to say something, a shuffle distracted them. Nandini turned towards the door, partly in relief and partly in panic, while Manik stood still, trying to gauge her reaction and it pinched him; he hadn't left any reason for her to be at ease with his presence after all.

Navya entered the room in worry, followed by Fab5 who immediately locked the door. Turns out a concerned Navya managed to fish out duplicate keys from the manager, not wanting to leave her best friend ever alone with the monster.

Nandini: Nia?

A cold whisper left her now chapped lips as she stared at Navya in a hope to derive strength from her, which broke Navya's heart like no other.

Navya: With Advik.

Nandini nodded even though her mind refused to register anything; more to make others believe that she could stand tall.

Navya: What in the world do you think you are doing here Manik?

She finally voiced out her contempt, not being able to hold back herself. It was supposed to be a happy day for her best friend and she didn't want anything to go wrong; Manik had already done enough damage to her heart and soul. She awaited her answer but Manik kept looking at Nandini, as if she'd disappear if he even blinked. His ignorance only increased Navya's rage so she held his bicep and shook him, trying to turn him towards herself.

Navya: Manik. . .

Before she could hurl further insults on his face, he spoke with nothing but determination in his voice.

Manik: I'm here to know all that happened. With Nandini. With aunty. With us.

He whispered as if scared that his broken voice would reflect his wounded soul as he stared as Nandini's teary eyes, that were already reflecting what he was trying to hide.

Navya: And what will it get you?

Now her voice held no more grudges, only pity and fear. She knew his heart was broken but it couldn't change the reality that the truth will completely destroy him-his soul, his self confidence, his trust, his character altogether; just like Nandini's.

Manik: Closure?

He whispered with uncertainty; he was confused, was it because he was scared what will hurt him more-the truth or the fact that he'd have actually nothing to do with Nandini hereafter?

Navya: You've chosen this life for all of us Manik, I hope you've realised that by now. This closure would mean nothing but pain and emptiness for a lifetime.

Cabir: But doesn't he deserve to know the reason he was made to choose this life? You, Abhimanyu and Nandini know the entire truth and that's why you are able to move on in life but what about Manik? Do you think he'd be able to move on like this?

Navya rolled her eyes and scoffed at the irony. The man who had made her best friend's life a living hall was now being victimised. Maybe, just maybe he deserved pity, maybe she was being selfish and heartless but one thing that couldn't be denied that Nandini had to suffer for no fault of hers. She had seen her best friend breaking bit by bit in her arms and all she could do was watch in helplessness.