PLAYING YOU (#2)

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

AN EARLY UPDATE
HAPPY READING!

"Why don't you love me Manik" asked Nandini avoiding all his questions.

Manik was sulking in guilt asking for some forgiveness and help from his dead mother when he heard his phone ringing loudly on the side table. At first he chose to ignore but a lot had happened today, a lot because he ignored stuff.

Picking up the phone he realised that it was a call from that one person he was ready and wanted to spend his rest of the life, Nandini. Seeing her name flash on his phone screen made him happy at one second but panick at the next because of the situation she had left in.

Was everything okay? Was her father fine? He surely was very concerned about his daughter. Was she okay? What if she had decided to leave him forever without even an explanation from his side?

"Hello Nandini? Are you okay?" he asked in a panick stricken voice only wishing for a happy voice from the other side but the only thing that could be heard was loud music and a faint "Why don't you love me".

Where was she? Was she out? if yes then where?

Alot many thoughts and questions crowded his mind when her giggle came from the other side.

"CBI inspector Malhotra" Nandini giggled as she found his interrogative questions funny.

"Nandini is that you?" Manik asked just to be sure.

"Ofcourse you idiot. My phone. My voice." Nandini replied.

Idiot. Well she wasn't in her senses and predicting the future maybe alot much more was yet to arrive.

"Where are you? And why do you sound so wierd? Are you drunk?" Manik unloaded a series of questions only to hear the most ridiculous answer from the other side.

"I don't know Mommy. Am i?" Nandini giggled and suddenly there was a loud voice of a broken glass.

"Shit Nandini. What was that? Are you okay?" Manik asked being worried as he tried searching for his car keys. Right now even if Nandini couldn't tell him her location, he could even wander the streets to find her.

"That freakin motherfucker broke my bottle." came an angry voice from the other side, "You owe me one asshole." Nandini cursed at the supposed victim.

Damn she was fierce.

"Nandini just tell me where you are so that i can come and get you." Manik tried being calm and composed in order to get her answer his questions.

"OOkay if you want to it's something, let me read that booard. S-T-A-R  N-I-G-H-T " Nandini finally answered as she lay down on the green grass away from the pub.

"That pub?" Manik asked as he ignited his car turning on the GPS for the quickest route.

"No grandpa the church. Ofocurse it's a freakin pub. OOps we are not supposed to curse in a church. My bad." Nandini blasted back.

She was getting annoying as hell.

"Nandini please get to a safer side of the area and around the crowd. I'll be there in 10 minutes. Nandini? Do you hear me? Don't be anywhere alone! " to say that Manik was terrified isn't the right word. He wished he could be superman so that he could reach there in a flash.

"You haven't answered my earlier question." Nandini asked in a baby voice as tears streamed down her eyes. Manik could hear her sobbing from the other side and each sob broke his heart.

A sharp left turn and the pub was in clear site.

"Will it be okay if i answer you when i am near you?" Manik asked as he parked the car.

"That will be fine" Nandini replied in a baby voice.

"Can you tell me exactly where you are? So i can get to you quickly" Manik instructed her.

"Okay. Walk through the pebble trail onto the grass. I am gazing the stars." Nandini sniffled wiping away the big tears.

Manik did as he was instructed and soon he stood above Nandini as they looked deep into each others eyes. To Nandini Manik was the star that she wanted to gaze only if he had let her in and for Manik he had finally found his destination in life.

"Get aside you are blocking  my view." Nandini shooed him away clearly indicating her angry mood.

"What if i laid down beside you?" Manik asked as he made himself comfortable closer to her.

"It's a free land, you can do whatever you want." Nandini replied not even glancing at him for a second.

"Angry at me?" Manik asked.

Nandini pushed her body closer to him as she laid her head on his arm, "because you hurt me."

"I know and i want to rectify it. I want to make you happy." Manik replied clearing off the hair locks from her face.

"Even when you don't love me." Nandini spoke with a sad smile on her face. It wasn't a question anymore.

" No. I want to make you happy because i think i love you." Manik spoke the truth. Well he hadn't realised it since boys are SLOW.

"You think." Nandini laughed a sad one as she side glanced him looking back up.

Manik turned her face to him, "It's what i know for now. I don't want to rush in things with you, remember baby steps. I wanna feel every cell of this feeling." 

Honest.

"And i promise to make things right." Manik looked above the stars smiling at his shining mother and then back at a sleeping Nandini. Smiling at her innocent face, he picked her up putting her back inside the car and driving off to her place cause he would never want the family to question her such state.

Zeke was searching for Nandini, he panicked when he couldn't find her inside and everyone denied having seen her since a couple of minutes.

Stepping outside the pub he mentally marked the places he would try to find her at when he saw Manik holding an unconsious Nandini in his arms, putting her gently inside the car and speeding off. 

A feeling of content and satisfaction came upon his face as he knew that his best friend was safe in that man's arms.

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Placing Nandini gently on her bed Manik removed her heels. He definitely never understood how girls walked in them. Covering his dear wife with a quilt he sat on his toes stroking her face.

"I have promised you something today and i am going to stick to that. I don't care where and why you were today because i know it was definitely me who led you in such a condition but it won't happen again." interwining their fingers he spoke, "I am never going to leave this hand ever and for that to happen i'll have to do a few things and once everything is settled i'll tell you the truth because honestly i am selfish. Alot selfish than the others around me because i am now scared to loose you. I am scared of how you will react and what if you decide to leave me. And for sure i don't want you in this mess so before letting you make a decision about us, i'll clear up this entire game i started and then hopefully everything will be where it is supposed to be."

Closing the side lamp Manik stood up walking to the door, he turned back for one last time of that night to look at her face before shutting the door behind him and leaving for something he should have stopped a long time ago.