Hey people!

I got a new cover for this story :)

Thankyou ImLilMissComplicated for the beautiful cover! ❤
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Next morning

I saw the girls sleeping peacefully but i passed the night feeling restless, so i came out of the room to check on manik. This was supposed to be a punishment only for him!! I went to the boys room and found the door was already open , so i peeped in but found only Dhruv and cabir sleeping.

Where is manik? I started looking for him. He was not in the house. When i came out, i found him in the pool. he was swimming bare bodied and the view of him in the pool was a turn on. But why is he in the pool so early in the morning? What is wrong with him??

I was wearing shorts and tee , so i sat on the edge of the pool, dipping my leg in the water. As manik turned around for another round, he saw me and a smile instantly adorned his face. As a reaction a smile broke on my face too, almost automatically. He swam back to me quickly and stood beside me in the pool.

"good morning, jaan" he wished

"is it really a good morning , manik??" i asked him suspiciously.

"yeah of course" he said looking away.

"what are you doing in the pool at 4 in the morning?? Soye the ya ni??" i asked sternly

He jumped and sat beside me on the pool edge "haa soya tha" he simply said

"then why are you in the pool , now?" i asked and he knew i am not going to let go without listening the truth, so he sighed heavily. "actually i haven't slept, as i was not feeling sleepy, so after the boys slept i came here , so that after getting tired , i may sleep.

And what about you?? Tum v toh jag rahi ho?? Don't lie, i know you have also not had a wink of sleep" he replied.

"mujhe bhi nind ni arahi thi" i said sheepishly and he smiled.

"so wanna swim with me, wifey??

Manik winked and i blushed knowing very well the intention behind the apparently simple proposition.

"how about lets go and sleep together for sometime as it is a long day ahead??" i suggested a better option and he was in for it almost instantly, as this was what he wanted. He tried to hug me in excitement but i stopped him mid-way and he looked questioningly at me.

"manik you will get me wet...first dry yourself , then only think about coming close to me" i spoke in fake annoyance and he chuckled putting his hands up "ok, ok, whatever the wifey says!!" and with this he got up and wiped his body with a towel while i just gaped at his perfect physic and muscular body. He turned around and caught me staring "how's the view wifey??" he asked immediately and i turned red.

"you are getting paunchy!" i lied to cover up my embarrassment and it came out quite convincingly which was evident because of manik's doubtful face "really?? It means we have to increase our frequency of workout" he said with a smirk but i didn't understand the reason behind the smirk and he read my confusion so spoke to clarify it "you know..." he trailed as he came closer and traced his finger on my bare arms slowly and seductively "the workout that we do together...mostly during night and which lasts till morning.." he continued and i realised what he was hinting at so i stopped him from speaking further by palming his mouth and he shamelessly kissed my palm, true to his nature of not leaving any chance to romance with me. he picked me up in his arms and started walking towards the empty room "so tell me , do you really think, i have become unromantic?? You know i would loveee to prove you wrong!" he asked and i buried my face in his chest to hide the embarrassment of speaking such a thing to him, but he was in a mood to tease me

"com'on...answer me!!" he urged as we entered the room.

"manik put me down na.." i said as it seemed he was not planning to do so even though we had reached our room. i flapped my legs and jumped out of his hold and ran to sleep on the bed while he locked the door laughing at my ways to prevent myself from answering his question. He came on the bed and slept beside me "tumne jawab ni diya nandini??" he whispered in my ear from back . i closed my eyes "manik mujhe nind aa rahi hai, good night" i wished him and he chuckled but didn't poke further and slept hugging me from back. I smiled inwardly and dozed off.
...

Nandini peeped in mukti's room and saw her going inside the washroom to take shower. As mukti shut the washroom door, nandini got in her room. she placed the dress, accessories , footwear and other essentials that abhimanyu had chosen for mukti and removed the outfit that mukti had chosen to wear. After finishing her work, nandini quietly came out of mukti's room. she had a never ending smiling on her face. She thought finally today, abhimanyu and mukti will be sorted!!
...

"what the hell is this!!!" mukti screamed as she saw the shop' arranged for her . nandini and navya came running to her.

"kya hua mukti?? Why are you shouting??" navya asked

"arey see na who has arranged all these stuffs and the clothes i had taken out are missing!!" mukti spoke angrily.

"ok let me see" navya said while nandini stood there quietly

"arey these are gorgeous pair of ear studs and the stilettos too...this is exactly like you wear..mukti...what is the problem?? Wear them and on top of that you just have 30 minutes...cabir will start shouting otherwise!! Don't waste time and start getting ready ..ok!!" navya spoke after inspecting the stuffs arranged for mukti.

Mukti sighed heavily as she realised that navya was right. Taking the cue, navni left her alone and came out.

"thank you navya!! Tum ni hoti toh pta ni main kse mukti ko convince karti!!" nandini whispered

"arey arey!! Bas karo yaar!! Itna formal haan!! We are best of friends!! Right?? Toh ye sab toh chalta rahega!! Kitni baar ek dusre ko thanks bolenge hum dono?? Aur wse v main abhi aur mukti k lye bahut khush hun..ek baar ye dono settle ho jaye toh main temple me ja k Prasad charhaungi!!" navya replied and both the friends giggled.
...

"Ye le mukti..agya tera drop..yaha se agey tujhe khud jana hoga...look for clues!!" cabir informed and mukti looked sceptically at him. She was getting the feeling that this surprise from abhimanyu is the one, she has been dreading since last night. Cabir , navya and mukti were on the outskirts of the city. Mukti could see a lush green outfield in front of her as she got down from the car and cabir drove off .

It was a complete no man's land. Mukti could not see a single soul there. She took slow steps ahead looking around for any clue..as cabir had suggested. She was having a mixed kind of feeling and the most dominant emotion was that of fear.

What if abhimanyu actually proposed her?? Because off late , his behaviour and topics over chats had changed. He tried to get romantic with her.

Though she had liked it but she had somehow avoided his advances till now. BUT NOW WHAT??

As mukti was thinking this, her foot struck something. She looked down to find a small cute basket. It had a neatly rolled yellow paper and a small gift wrapped. She bent down and picked it up. She unfolded the paper and read the message which was neatly written in abhimanyu's handwriting.

Don't worry !! cabir has not dropped you to a wrong place. :-D

Mukti smiled as he was wrong. she talked to herself "i am not worried , because i know cabir will never drop me at wrong place!!" as she finished , she heard someone chuckle. That means abhimanyu is near and following her. She shook her head at his antiques and moved further. She forgot all her worries in the excitement of solving the riddle. She read further

I am here...waiting for you!

She smiled again. "i know you are" mukti spoke so that abhimanyu could hear.

Just a few more steps...
Don't get bored
Plzz

"ok" mukti spoke rolling her eyes.

Open the wrapper...only then read further

"oook!" mukti said and unwrapped the gift. She was amazed would be an understatement!! "Gosh its the same nail polish shade and international brand which i had said i want to buy but its not available!! I might have mentioned just once about this! He remembers!!" were mukti's thoughts.

She was overwhelmed by his gesture. She quickly read the note further.

You had mentioned about this sometime back.
I thought this is a perfect occasion to gift you this..so that you don't consider it as a favour!!
You can't refuse today!
Keep moving in a straight line.

Mukti had a wide grin plastered on her face. Just then her foot struck something again. She looked down to find another basket of a slightly bigger size. It again had a paper roll and a gift in it.

Just open the gift first!!

Mukti read and obeyed. She unwrapped and this time she was expecting something exceptional, so she wasn't surprised much. But the gift again showed , how much abhimanyu paid attention to her every word. In this way she collected 4 awesome and unexpected gifts till she reached the main spot.

It was a canopy on a slightly raised portion of land. The weather was also favouring the couple as it was cloudy and a low breeze was blowing. Mukti reached near the table under the canopy. It had a big basket with a lid on top of it. She removed the lid and found a cute little Alsatian puppy.

Mukti loved puppies and she had told the same to abhimanyu. Yet again abhimanyu had really surprised her.

She mewed and cooed as she took out the puppy from the basket. It had a tag hanging from it's neck.

Just as mukti flipped the tag to read I LOVE YOU written on it, she heard the same words from abhimanyu's lips as he whispered those words in her ear.

Mukti turned around to face him, completely lost in the moment. They had an eyelock intact as abhimanyu started speaking

"mukti, i won't say that it was love at first sight, but yes, definitely i had found you different from other girls that i had known till then. Slowly, you started becoming a mystery, a puzzle, and i set out on a mission to solve this puzzle. When i started spending time with you and you started shedding your inhibitions, i came to know you better. I came to know that you are like a coconut, hard outside but very delicate and fragile inside and i don't know when i fell in love with you. I can't tell the exact date and moment but yes I LOVE YOU ...i love you now, and i will love you FOREVER. It's a promise that i have made to myself."

He finished and waited for mukti's reply. But she didn't reply. His heart sank at the realisation that may be she doesn't love him yet...but he will keep trying. So to break the awkward silence, he put on his crazy mode, hiding his tears behind his fake smile.

"ok...shit! i forgot to wish you...happy birthday mukti!!!"

"thank god you remembered!!" mukti teased him.

Ok since i forgot! I have another surprise for you" abhi said

"abhimanyu..this is enough..i don't need anything more!"

"but i have put in so much effort..it will be wasted na..so plzz.."

"ok..go ahead!"

" you know what i have prepared a song with the help of cabir. And mind you if you are not impressed, cabir is to be blamed" he spoke funnily and she smiled "ok ...let me atleast hear first!!"

"ok , so here you go!" abhimanyu spoke enthusiastically while mukti cuddled the puppy in her arms.

"(Everything I Do) I Do It For You"

Look into my eyes - you will see
What you mean to me.
Search your heart, search your soul
And when you find me there you'll search no more.

Don't tell me it's not worth tryin' for.
You can't tell me it's not worth dyin' for.
You know it's true:
Everything I do, I do it for you.

Look into your heart - you will find
There's nothin' there to hide.
Take me as I am, take my life.
I would give it all, I would sacrifice.

Don't tell me it's not worth fightin' for
I can't help it, there's nothin' I want more
You know it's true:
Everything I do, I do it for you, oh, yeah.

There's no love like your love
And no other could give more love.
There's nowhere unless you're there
All the time, all the way, yeah.

Look into your heart, baby...

Oh, you can't tell me it's not worth tryin' for.
I can't help it, there's nothin' I want more.

Yeah, I would fight for you, I'd lie for you,
Walk the wire for you, yeah, I'd die for you.

You know it's true:
Everything I do, oh, I do it for you.

Everything I do, darling.
You will see it's true.
You will see it's true.
Yeah!
Search your heart and your soul
You can't tell it's not worth dying for
I'll be there
I'd walk the fire for you
I'd die for you
Oh, yeah.
I'm going all the time, all the way.

Yet again abhimanyu had left her speechless. Yes he had not sung perfectly but he had taken so much efforts, was what surprised mukti.

She thought am i this lucky??'

"so how was it??" abhimanyu asked as he had sung each and every word with so many emotions attached. He meant every word of it.

Before mukti could reply it started drizzling , so she quickly placed the puppy in the basket. When she turned around , abhimanyu wasn't there. She looked here and there for him and found him soaking in the rain, with his face towards the sky.

she doesn't love me' abhimanyu thought and a tear finally escaped his eyes. Thankfully it was raining! Mukti wouldn't see his tears.

Mukti called out for him 2-3 times but on getting no response, she walked to him and held his outstretched arms.
"abhimanyu , tum kya kar rahe ho??

You will fall sick...come with me" she said but abhimanyu didn't hear a word of it. As he could only see the way her lips moved and her eyes, how they widened or narrowed. She was pulling him but he didn't move. Finally she looked into his eyes for an answer and the intensity of his eyes smothered her. She felt entrapped and could not help but look back into those passionate eyes and what got into them, no one can tell as they fused their lips. Was it the weather?? Or the care of abhimanyu? Or the fact that they were alone and let their passions overflow? Whatever may be the reason , but the fact was that they were kissing each other hungrily. Mukti was an equal participant. It was not even clear , who initiated the kiss ? as both of them moved together.
Suddenly in the middle of the kiss, something triggered mukti's memory and she got flashes of her past with harshad and how he told her that i don't love you! In fact i never loved you! You were just a toy for me!" with this mukti pushed abhimanyu. He was startled and for a moment he could not comprehend what happened but when he saw mukti's condition, he knew he had spoiled his chances!

"i don't love you...i can't love you...i cannot love anyone...i am not good enough for you!" mukti sobbed and then she made a run from the spot.

Abhimanyu stood there drenching himself in the rain, and her words kept sinking in his system. "i don't love you" was the line which kept playing in loops in his mind. But soon he realised that he was supposed to drop mukti. She doesn't have a car. he quickly ran after her.

He ran out but mukti wasn't there.

Abhimanyu thought may be she had started walking , so he got in his car and started searching for her on the way. Finally he found her still running aimlessly on the road. He quickly got out and stopped her "mukti listen to me...i will drop you home, its too far from here...plzzz" he pleaded and mukti having no other option sat in his car on the back seat. Abhimanyu sighed and started driving. During the 45 min drive , he tried to talk to her but she didn't reply and tears kept rolling down. Abhimanyu was worried now, what will manik say? How is nandini gonna react? Lots of questions flooded his mind.
...

As the car haulted outside her home, mukti ran inside. Manik who was going out, saw her running. He called out but she didn't reply. Manik too got out of his car and ran after her. Here, outside the gate , abhimanyu was sitting in the car, deliberating his next move. Should he go in? Suddenly his mind struck an idea and he dialled nandini's number.

"hello, bhai?? What's the news? How did it go??" nandini's excited voice made abhimanyu more guilty.

"nandini.."

"haa bhai.." nandini still didn't notice the tremble in abhimanyu's voice when he addressed her.

"i think i ruined it" abhi finally managed to pass on the information.

"what???" nandini almost shouted , confusion, fear and anger mixed to form a single emotion "what do you mean bhai...please tell me properly...and where is mukti??"
Nandini asked and just then she saw mukti running towards her room. she was looking horrible. Nandini's voice stuck in her throat when she found manik following mukti. Now what???

"i don't know what happened..everything was going good...we were enjoying, i confessed that i love her. She didn't reciprocate my feelings, still i didn't force her. But then it started drizzling and in the heat of the moment i kissed her, even she kissed me back...but then i don't know what happened she just ran away from there, crying.." abhi wanted to speak further but nandini cut him short as she heard manik's shout.

"bhai i will talk to you later...i think you should come here" she said and hung up.

"mukti open the door sweetheart!! You know your bhai is here, i will solve all your problems...please just tell me what happened??" nandini heard manik's continuous shout. She reached near him, dreading his reaction. Manik looked at her with a different kind of look as if he was accusing her for whatever wrong has happened to mukti.

"i swear nandini , if abhimanyu has done something...which has done something...which has made my sister upset...i will not leave him" manik told nandini in a fiercely angry tone. His eyes were spitting fire and his jaws were clenched.

Although it hurt and infuriarated nandini to hear something like that about her brother, she managed to control herself from answering back to manik, as the first priority now was to talk to mukti. She walked to the servants ,who were standing at a distance and observing.

"Samantha...are there extra keys of mukti's room?" nandini asked

"yes ma'm"

"go and get it here fast"

"ok"

Soon one of the servant returned with the key. Nandini gave it to manik silently. He took it from her without looking towards her and unlocked the door and moved inside.
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Credits to the writer- Manini mehra