•When you hold me, when you look deep in my eyes, I feel like am special, like I mean something very deep to you..•

Nandini's Pov

It's been a week of that incident, am back to NavNiTi mansion. And am fine now, physically yes! But mentally and emotionally. God! Am so very pissed at him right now, why he's behaving so weird around me, I know we both don't share a very friendly bond but whatever I felt around him it isn't any illusion right?, Then how can he easily ignore all that?, I really want my answers today because from past some days he's only ignoring me.

That day, when I was in hospital and he asked one hug from me, he left me speechless, I always find tension in his body language whenever he's around me, but as soon as I look deep in his eyes, I feel like there is so much in them, so much to cherish, so much to adore and so much to love..

His charismatic eyes communicate with me, more than he ever did, I don't know what's the history or rather to say the mystery behind my such weird feels but it's very unnerving. This one year was very crucial to me as I had no memories of my past, and I was bounded to start afresh, but I was always in the search of information, perhaps! Any day I'll be able to locate traces of my past life..

But whenever I look closely, deeply in his eyes I just feel like there is my peace and I can rely upon them. His eyes holds utmost honesty which makes me feel weak. Whenever I am with him am totally different, am no longer me myself, am a different person altogether in front of him. It feels like I know him since ages, that's why may be his bit ignorance is affecting me this much.

I really have no idea behind his indifferent behavior, right now am hell angry on him but at the same time hurt as well. But am still wondering why he affects me so much?. Today I want my all answers, I have to talk to him today, I need answers, what I did to get such pathetic ignorance from him, I want to know.

That's why am standing right in front of his Mansion, but why am feeling like I've paid visit over here once, as if this place isn't unknown to me, why does everything related to Manik isn't unfamiliar to me?, why?..

My head will blast any moment if I won't stop thinking, No! Nandini! Just focus on one thing. Yes! Manik Malhotra! That's where my focus should be today.

I entered inside the mansion, it's a huge huge Mansion, with such a peaceful environment, everything screaming luxury but the weird thing is everything is dark, the whole mansion is covered with black and white color only. As if someone has deliberately eradicate all the colors, the thought brought displeasure inside me, if am not wrong I had read somewhere that Manik loves red color, but his Mansion gives the impression like he isn't very fond of colors.

Am analyzing every bit of the living area when a soft yet so beautiful graceful tone broke my trance, I turned around to find a beautiful face staring at me with surprising but a very friendly grin plastered on her face.

"Hi!"..I said with a smile but she seems to be lost somewhere else, she is closely examining me as if she's trying to make herself believe that am there for real! .. But her gaze isn't making me uncomfortable,she has a face to die for, such a pretty and innocent face. SHIT! my mind instantly shouted and I realized she is the same girl whom I met on the launch party night, she is the same girl who was really worried for my Manik..

Wait! My Manik? Where this came from?, Am being an idiot, it's so confusing, my mind and my heart both are not behaving in a right manner and I feel like I'll faint any moment with the war between these two.. SHUT UP YOU BOTH!

"hi! Is manik at home?".. I asked with my calm tone, in real am anything but calm. She looked at me momentarily and then gives a smile, She is so beautiful! Is she really means something to Manik?..Something special? Or more than special?.. a heavy lump caught in my throat as this unpleasant thought crossed my mind, but why am being so insecure?, I have no idea..

Kajal : "Manik is in study. You can meet him, he's free.."..She has a sugary voice as well, I think God has made her on Sunday! ..I smiled to her, and asked for the directions, she instructed me in her friendly tone. I really wonder that this girl is friends with everyone or am getting any special treatment?.

I turned around to leave but something crossed my mind, and the question has relevance so I need an answer before I start scratching my own head, it will be better to ask her, so I turned again back to her, she's still there but when I turned around she looked surprised and narrowed her eyes in confusion..

"umm! Will you mind if I'll ask you one question?".. am very unsure of her reaction afterwards so I asked this at first place, she looked surprised for a brief moment but then got relaxed, she looked at me like she's an open book which I had already studied long back. Her face, her voice, and she herself seems familiar to me, as if I know this girl by heart, as if we both are connected with same string.

Kajal : "You can ask without any second thought!"..Her calm tone shut down my irrelevant theories...

"you live over here with him?"..I asked in almost a whispering tone, and she looked shocked by my sudden attack. Okay! I know it's personal, but I want to know, I need to know. But wait! Why am invading in his personal space? Why do I care he lives with whom? And what relation they both share?. God! Why am behaving like a over possessive girlfriend?

SHIT! now this word, there's something wrong with me, no actually everything is wrong with me. Every god damn thing! ..Am loosing my calmness,I need to be calm. Yes! I have to be calm and quiet.

Kajal : "Not in the sense you are thinking.."..She answered but partially, her eyes are stuck on me as if she is trying to analyze my expressions.

"Umm! Sorry! I think I should go and meet Manik.."..Before I embarrass myself more, I took a quick leave from there without looking at her, she must be considering me as some stupid girl who came in his mansion for the first time and enquiring about their relationship status as if I know him since ages. But it's not fully untrue as well, I do feel like I know him since ages, he touched my heart the day I met him first time on our birthday..

Isn't its so beautiful, we both share same birth date and birth month, then why can't we share our lives?... Shit! Shit! Shit! What the hell is wrong with me, why am behaving like this?, Why am uttering all these things to me?. I shut my heart and mind both, Because these two has totally lost it and making me insane over here, right now my subject should be only Mr. Manik Malhotra being a douchebag ..And I'll make sure he'll learn his lesson well today.

• Wherever you go, whatever you do, I'll be right here waiting for you..•

****

Manik's study:

I knocked on the door when I heard his charming, sugary voice .. "Come!" ..That's all he said but it's enough to make me grin like a teenager who is going to meet her first ever crush. Okay! Now please don't start with all these cheesy lines, for heaven sake!.. I literally chided my mind for behaving so weird , actually it's not right to blame my heart or mind for that matter, it's him who should be blamed for, who has asked him to be utmost sweet and easy to love ?.....

Oh good lord! Please please help me, what's gotten into me today?, I think I should stop talking to myself only, because my own thoughts are my enemies, I really don't want mind to mouth malfunction inside the study Infront of Manik. Yes! Nandini go ahead but don't listen either of them..

I entered inside the study halting my stupid childish thoughts, and as soon as I entered I saw him sitting on the chair with his eyes closed, he's holding a frame tight to his chest, as if that one single frame has his life in it, he's body is giving me an impression that he's in agonizing pain, as if some kind of war is going on inside him.

This site itself built a lump in my throat and I felt a hole in my stomach, my hands are sweaty suddenly and my heart is started aching all of a sudden, it's seems like he is wounded but am experiencing all the pain his wounds has caused him.

"Manik!"..I called him in my low tone and as soon as I called him,he opened his eyes abruptly and sat straight, he looked shocked, surprised but happiness in his eyes all of a sudden, Is he's happy to find me here? ..My heart questioned me but I have no answer, he is like a mystery to me which I want to solve very badly but am not able to.

He then looked downwards to the frame which is still in his hand, then he looked at me for a brief moment , and I located fear, horror in his eyes .. I have never seen him scared apart from that day when I was in hospital,that day I had witnessed a totally different side of his.

My trance broke when he stood up and called me in a surprising tone, but all this while I noticed he's trying to hide the frame behind him, his action made me curious. What's that he's hiding?

Manik : "Nandini why you are here?.."..His question offended me.

Can't I pay him a visit just like that? Do I really need a reason to meet him?

I started walking in his direction and I can feel every step I take in his direction his body tenses a bit more and more. But he's still standing there like a statue, I reached to him and locked my hands around my body in front of him. I tilted my head in my right side and gave him a sarcastic smile.

"Actually we both were doing quiet very tired practices now a days, so I thought why don't taking a day off and we can have lunch, it's that we are seeing each other way too much now-a-days so this break was needed. Good idea right?".. I said with a wry smile plastered on my face.

But he seems to be confused and then I gave him a deadly glare, he tenses suddenly by my reaction and I can easily figure it out that he can like anything but my wrath. Well! If he's scared then it's good for me, atleast right now when I really want to get into his head.

Manik : "Why you are angry on me?".. he asked with all the Innocence in his eyes and I so want to slap this man hard on his beautiful handsome face, he can't be serious, he really don't know why am angry on him? What an amazing man?.. My anger is rising only and he's not helping either.

"Why you're ignoring me?".. I put it straight because am very bad in talking about whole world but the real topic. And his expression changed suddenly, he turned around instantly and started walking towards the desk. I noticed tension building in his body, I can feel it well. He opened the drawer and placed that frame safely in his drawer, his acts are making me more curious now, what's so special about the frame?

Manik : "Am not ignoring you, and why would I even will?".. he asked in soft tone but still he's facing his back to me, and I want to look in his eyes right now.

"The reason is well known to you only, since I came back home from hospital you are behaving all weird, I know we aren't very good friends Manik but we do share some relation....".. I stopped abruptly as he turned around with my last word, he looked at me like he's able to see my soul. And I can't even express what I felt about his that gaze on me. It's very unnerving, I can feel butterflies in my stomach, he's so tempting. His one gaze on me and I just forget the whole damn world.

He's the first one to take the eyes off and it suddenly ache in my heart but I composed myself. He picked the glass of water and took a sip still not looking at me,he turned around again,I didn't liked that but I want some answers for that I want to look in his eyes because I always felt like his eyes are honest, they'll answer me for sure.

So I started walking in his direction and I think he's too lost in his own thoughts that he didn't even realized that am walking too close to him, I stood right behind him, when I was about to place my hand on his shoulder, he turned around suddenly making me shocked and in all that process , I don't know how he ruined my dress. Crap! He drenched me totally.

Manik : "Am sorry..Am so sorry.. am really sorry..".. he started chanting sorry like he is reciting some poem he has learnt by heart and I gave him a deadly glare because to be very honest when he said sorry I really didn't liked the tone.

"It's okay Manik! It's just water.."..I answered softly because he's the one who is panicking right now. I looked at him , he's really apologetic and I really wonder that Has this guy ever committed any mistake? Am sure he has never committed any, because he's really sensitive, even if he has then he might be living in pool of guilt. The thought of him being in pain and guilt tore my heart badly, I don't know why am so worried about him? But it's like he's pain brings pain to my heart and soul as well.

"Can I use your washroom?".. I asked in a low tone, it's bit embarrassing on my part but he never makes me uncomfortable, he instantly nodded.

Manik : "you can use my room, Straight upstairs, first room in right is mine. And am really sorry for this"... He said pointing towards my dress which is wet now, I just smiled and nodded a no.

I started walking towards the door when suddenly Manik shouted at highest peak of his voice, which really scared me to death.

Manik : "Nandini wait!"..He ran to me and am shocked by the fear he has in his eyes.

"What happen Manik?".. I asked being totally confused by his behavior. He looked very cautious about something like he's in deep trouble.

Manik : "you can't use my room Nandini...".. he put it straight and I took aback , he's not making any sense to me.

"You are behaving like a typical girl, you can't enter in my room, it's my private room etc etc..This is how girls do Manik.."..I can't hold my grin back but am curious like hell,this man from head to toe is a puzzle.

Manik : "No! Actually renovation work is going on, apparently things are out of order over there so it'll be better if you use a guest room. Come I'll show you..".. he explained me slowly with clear accent but still I feel like he's lying to me but why would he do so what's there in his room which he don't want me to find out?.

Manik : "let's go!".. his voice broke my trance and I just nodded. We both started walking out of his study, we are walking upstairs, he is walking beside me but he's maintaining distance ,neither of us said anything, and I truly dislikes this much silence between us.

I suddenly froze when my eyes fall on one room's door, a beautiful name attracted me, MAA-NI , That one word earned all my attention, it's so peaceful and the way it's engraved on the door with shiny golden and silver color it's looking more beautiful to me. A smiled curved on my face and I don't know why I felt like this small word has immense relevance to me, I touched the word very softly.

"What's in there?"..I asked him still not taking my eyes off that pure beautiful word MAA-NI I recited in my heart umpteenth times.

"MY LIFE!".. His voice suddenly came out like a mere whisper and I turned around to look at him, he's looking at that word lovingly , passionately. I looked at him with surprise, something very special is inside the room, Am sure...

*******

Am so overwhelmed with your response to both the stories, am not able to reply all of you but I read all the comments and it only makes me feel grateful to have such a huge family who adores me and my stories.

Hope you all liked Nandini's Pov as well.

Loads of love and care
Your storyteller ❤😘