After challenging him I walked to the bed and he walked out of the house.

"Angry young man!" - I said to myself.

His anger is justified and I completely understand his position, I should have told him about his baby at least but then I had no idea how he would react, I know how he is; sometimes ice cold and sometimes a soft hearted person.
Agar bata dia hota to sochta I'm addicted to these luxuries now, islye I'm cooking up stories or I'm using this baby information to make him dance on my fingers but he's The Manik Malhotra ussay bhi koi apni unglion pe nacha sakta hai?
Right now. I want to talk to him, I'm ready to bear all the anger and hatred.. because.. because I want us. I want to grow old with him. He was my first and I want him to be my last.

Hours passed but Manik Malhotra did not show up. What is up this man? Kab kya karta hai no one knows. I placed my head on the headboard and closed my eyes. I didn't even realize when I dozed off.

____

I woke up with a jerk.
I turned to check if manik is back home or not.
But he didn't come back. Wow. Where is he? I checked the time it was 4:00 AM. Like what?
I took my phone and dialed his number, he didn't pick it up. I dialed his number again.
He turned his phone off. He's ignoring me. I thought we're getting married today and my husband-to-be has no interest in picking up his wife-to-be, in fact he's ignoring her like a boss. Oh wait he's actually my boss.
Honestly, this is serious. I can't blow it like a joke. I need to find where he is and I'll have to make him burst on me any how. I can't let him keep him all this inside him. He'll destroy himself if it's actually affecting him.

I walked out my room and I checked every bit of our house to find him, I sat on the sofa in the living room with my eyes on the main door. I waited for him for hours.

Time passed and it's now office time. I got up from my place and walked inside my room, I knew he'll attend office anyway. He won't skip it because of his personal reasons.

I stepped out of the room dressed.

I reached office.
I ran directly to manik's cabin.

"Thank god!" - I murmured as I saw him safe and sound working on his laptop.

"Manik!" - I yelled breathing heavily.

"Nandini are you okay? Tumhe kuch lag.." - He got up and stood in front of me. I could feel concern in his voice for me but then he stopped in the middle and walked back to his seat.

"Manik. Why are you doing all this to us." - I asked  him.

"Nandini! I don't need a drama here, get back to work right now." - He sternly instructed me.

"No!" - I said.

"Manik, please talk." - I said.

"There's nothing to talk." - He said.

"There's a lot to talk about us." - I said.

"US is nothing, you and me - it's not us." - He said and got up from the chair walked towards the door.

"You're such a coward Manik Malhotra, you're scared  that I might enter the bubble you've made around you. Darte ho tum - darte ho tum mujhse." - I said.

He didn't reply and walked out of the room.

The day somehow passed at the office, I tried talking to him but he didn't talk back.
I took a drive back home, I did wait for him on dinner table but he did not come. I walked back to our room without eating anything. Yeah I didn't eat anything the whole day. If he's stubborn then I'm no less.
I slept waiting for him only.

He did come back home but after I slept, he lay down next to me after making my position correct.

-----

Next morning.

I woke up with the constant sound of the door bell. I was not in a state to get up and walk to the door and receive the person standing on the other side. I saw manik sleeping like a horse next to me. I nudged him twice, he didn't response.

"Manik wake up! There's someone on the door." - I said and pushed manik a little to wake him up.

He did not respond.

"Manik, get up. Go! I'm so tired." - I said again.

"NOOO!" - He said.

"Aghhh!"

"Tumhari shadi ka tohfa ayaa hoga, go and receive it yourself." - He said in a sleepy tone.

"As if we're married." - I said with an annoyed face.

Again he did not response. Wow. Mood swings, he get mood swings like a pregnant women - no even more than that, he replies to whatever he feels like baki sab bakwaas hai.

"Manik! You're such a monster! I hate you!" - I said and removed the duvet from my body and walked out of the room.

"Same here." - He said.

I didn't pay heed to what he said after I left the room.
I walked to the main door, I used the peephole to check who's on the other side. It was the most distressing veiw, none would like to see in the early morning.
I ran back to my room without even opening the door.

____________

I knew who was on the other side of the door, after all I had called them here.
I got up with the first bell only but I wanted nandini to open the door instead.
I placed me head on the headboard, in real I was waiting for nandini to come and question me and she did accordingly, I heard her calling my name. She rammed inside the room. 

"Manik! What are they doing here?" - She questioned me.

"Who?" - I asked innocently.

"My parents!" - She with with a confused expression.

"I don't know what they're doing here. Go ask yourself!" - I said and walked on the other side of the room.

"Manik don't act smart! Tell me what are you upto?" - She asked.

"I'm not answerable to anyone!" - I said.

"To me, you are!"- She yelled at me.

"Go and open the door nandini, I guess you need to answer your parents right now for living with a guy without any relation." - I said and smirked.

"You're disgusting manik." - She said with an irritated expression.

*Flashback*

"Navya, I need your help!" - I said.

"What kind of help manik?" - She questioned me politely.

"I need your cousin nandini's family information." - I said.

"What? Nandini?" - She said with a shocked expression.

"Yeah, the same nandini who ran away from her wedding." - I told her.

"But manik ap usko kaise jante ho?" - She asked me, obviously she would. This was actually weird of me asking about nandini out of blue.

"Navya, wo sab ask cabir about it. Abhe ke lye, I need to talk to her family for some personal reasons and it's important." - I tried to convince her.

"Is she in Mumbai?" - She questioned me.

"Yep and she's with me." - I told her, giving her a hint about happenings.

"Can I meet her?" - She asked.

"Not today as I'm going to stay here only tonight, maybe tomorrow." - I said.

"Okay." - She said with a confused expression.

"Now if you're done with your investigation, can you please give me her family's contact number?" - I said.

"Yeah. Wait." - She said and picked her phone from the table.

"Here. They miss her." - She said forwarding me a number.

"Thank you." - I moved back to the room I was staying in.

I had a word with Nanidni's parents. They're quite difficult people, somehow I managed. They're coming to Mumbai day after tomorrow.

                 
              *Flashback Ends*

_____

"Mom dad! Ap loug yaha?" - As I opened the door to let them in, my mom hugged me tight.

"We're here to take you home." - My dad said to me.

"But who told you that I'm staying over here?" - I questioned.

"That's not an issue beta, we're here to take you home." - This time my mom said.

"Erm.. mein.. wo.." - I lost the sense of speech.

"Kya hua?" - Dad questioned.

"If you guys are here to take me home because I lost my baby and abhe ap meri shadi karwasakte ho, to please, chalay jao yaha se. Please go from here." - I said, because they were not the same people who I know.

"What? You got your baby aborted?" - My mom said with a wave of excitement on her face.

What? Why is she happy with this news? Like seriously!

"You're happy with it?" - I asked.

"Of course! At least now you'll think about yourself, your life." - She said, cupped my face and kissed my forehead.

"Mom, how disgusting!" - I said with a disgusted look on my face.

"It's not. Now when you got rid of it, you can enjoy your life happily." - My dad said with a victory smile.

"STOP! Both of you - just stop! I lost my baby and you, you both are happy about it?" - I said with the tears in my eyes.

"Na jaaiz (illegitimate) tha wo!" - My mom said with a disgusted look.

"If I was in my baby's place, then nani bhe yehe kehti? Khush hoti wo?" - I questioned my mom.

"You're my daughter." - My dad said.

"And the baby who died in my womb was my baby." - I said sternly.

"Illegitimate!" - My mom said it loud.

With her voice manik came out of the room, surprisingly they didn't comment on or questioned about manik, which was kinda unreal.

"NO! Mera bacha tha wo, it was an accident that I lost my baby! I had no intention of doing it purposely, if you guys have forgotten. Me usi ki waja se ghar se bhaagi thi." - I shouted on them.

"Jis bache ke na baap ka pata na kuch, tum uske lye bhaagi thi!" - My mom said.

"Pata hai, I know who's my baby's dad, he's the one and I'm going to marry him." - I said and walked towards manik.

He blinked his eyes in assurance.
My parents didn't say a word, wow. Neither manik said something in my favor, whatever's happening between us, it's an another story but here - here I need him the most. I want him to tell my parents, "yes, she's my responsibility." Jhoot hi bolde for sometime.

"Ap loug ja sakte ho, I don't need anyone of you." - I said.

"Hamara koi bacha nae hai." - My dad said to my mom.

"Dad, you never treated me like one." - I said.

In return I got a tight slap on my cheek, the moment I turned my face they walked out of house. Good they did. I ran directly to my room, crying.

_____________

"Bye!" - She said as she walked out of the room with her luggage.

"What! Where are you going?" - I questioned her.

"When you're not answerable to me then you shouldn't expect an answer from my side either." - She said.

"Nandini, don't test my patience." - I shouted on her.

"Manik! Stop. Stop this concern drama! Neither I effect you nor you need me. So buzz off!" - She said.

I rolled my eyes in return, I know I was being a jerk but I couldn't help it. I have anger filled in me but then what just happened, it's not correct either. Her parents, they're no less than monsters.

"Manik, you had called them na." - She said.

I lowered my eyes in return. Obviously, I was at fault.

"Manik for this you called them?"

"Yeah. Right, yehe to tum chahte thay."

"Dekh lia, how my parents are? They never cared for me nor they will. Ever."

"Manik you know, I'm tagged as a run away bride. You know why?"

She took a seconds break.

"Because I ran away from my wedding, but I had a reason for it. That guy, I knew I had no future with him nor my baby had and then I had to save my baby from the monsters around. Is liye i left that house!" - She said and burst into tears.

"Our baby!" - I corrected her.

"Yeah. Our baby." - She mocked.

"Our baby, about whom I got to know after his death." - I said.

"Manik, what do you think? Now you're angry on me but three months back when I got to know about it, If I would've approached you for this reason before, your reaction would have the same as it's now? Bolo?" - She questioned me.

"I'm not talking about the time you had the baby, after to met me. Why? Why you didn't tell me?" - I questioned.

"Manik, I didn't had that much trust on you the time I came here!" - She replied.

"You live with a guy, in his house, in his room and sleep on his bed and you're telling me you don't have faith on him?" - I said with anger filled in my voice, obviously she's not talking sense at all!

"If you've forgotten let me remind you. I didn't come here by choice, you had set up situation in such a way that I was left with no option!" - She retorted.

"You can leave! Now you have an option." - I suggested her.

"I don't want to." - She plainly said.

"Why you don't want to?" - I questioned her.

"Because I trust you." - She said.

"Haaah! Trust." - I mocked.

"Manik, Listen to me. I had no intentions of hiding this information.." - She spoke but I didn't let her continue.

"Still you did!" - I said.

"Manik, let me complete." - She said.

I didn't reply but turned my back to her.

"Manik, It's just a matter of time, obviously I wanted to tell you but how things shaped up between us, I just couldn't and suddenly this cabir thing happened. I didn't know how to handle things and unfortunately situation slipped out of my hand before I could grip it tighter." - She tried to explain her situation.

She took a pause, waiting for my reply but I wasn't in a mood only.

"Manik, think.. just for once. Were things that good between us in the start? Was our relation like a normal one? No manik. It's not, hamesha.. hamesha we did things without thinking - take our first make out or now. We both are perfect example of impulsive human beings, aren't we?" - She said, took steps and faced me.

"Take the example from now only, two days back what we did? We challenged eachother, marriage! Manik, marriage is the purest relation one can have and we made a game out of it!" - She continued, she had a point.

"Whatever and however things shaped up, I still feel you should've told about me. Things would've been better then. About the marriage, it was always you." - I told her.

"It was not me manik! Remember your weird way of proposing me in you cabin? And we can make things better even now!" - She said.

"No we can't." - I said.

"Then let me go." - She said.

"N.." - I opened my mouth to speak but I didn't continue.

"No, Isn't?" - She smirked.

"Manik you called my parents because you were scared of me, scared of accepting your defeat in front of me." - She said.

"I'm not scared of you okay! I just didn't want to marry you, that's why I didn't come home and I called your parents." - I said, then I realized what I blurted out. Now nandini will definitely get ideas. 

"Why you didn't want to get married to me? You don't have any answer, wait. I'll tell you, because after this marriage I'll get an official right to boss on you. No? And who knows you might fall for me or you already have? - She smirked.

"Oh hello, it's nothing like that! Get it staright." - I justified.

"Then kaisa hai?" - She asked.

"Wrap the crap nandini!" - I told her.

"It's not crap manik!" - She said making an annoyed face.

"It is!" - I said.

"Manik, why don't you accept it, you need nandini murthy as much nandini murhty need manik Malhotra." - She said.

"I don't need you nor you affect me, get it staright." - I said and walked a little away.

"Ok." - She said and smirked.

I don't know what was so good in it. Like seriously.
I was bothered. Somewhere I understood her point too. Yeah, she's not even wrong that; I'm impulsive. I shouldn't have done what I did, calling her parents here was a bad idea, really bad. She's hurt but right now her priority is not her being hurt but me.
I was busy in my own world, she stood in front of me, with a perfect height - which was not hers. Obviously! I looked down she wore her red stilettos to match my height but why is she wearing stilettos with night dress? What kinda weird combination it is! Only nandini murthy can do this. I got to know her real motive when I felt her hands cupping my face. She placed her lips on my lips, kissed them lightly and sucked them, she was busy in kissing me like a wild tigress who got her food after ages. I did not respond for sometime but then for how long could I hold back. I replied to that kiss, we parted our lips to fulfil the need of air.

"I don't.. eff..ect.. you." - She said catching her breath.

"Shut up!" - I muttered and placed my lips back on her.

We shared a passionate kiss but then suddenly she stopped responding and she passed out in my hands.

"Nandini!"

"Nandini..?"

"Tum theek ho na?"

"Listen! You don't have to do all this. I accept my defeat, yes I need you the same way you need me."

"Please open your eyes!"

"Nandini!"

She didn't reply. I immediately scooped her in my arms and walked to our room and called my maid inside from the servant quarters.

(A/N: Happy? 3084 words. 😂🙈🙉
I don't know. I'm not sure about this chapter, I'm legit scared many of you were waiting for this update I don't know if the wait was deserving. Next update, I'll try to update as soon as I can. Sorry for not updating and a piece of information, I've published some chapters of my PaNi fanfic, only if you feel like reading for else just ignore this part of author note. 😄 thank you.
Tadaaa. ❤ )