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Nandini scrolled down the spreadsheet and tried to find the darned error in the balance-sheet. Her eyes burned as she dived into her computer screen. The singing bird sang irately and she glanced at the wall cloth. It was almost 9. She could see how lights outside were turning duller as mist started to cover the range. She still had to make a few entries before she headed home. 

Home.

That word struck the wrong chord. That house was one freezer without that one man. It was a week since they had talked. She bit her lower lip as she missed him more. After their heated argument, none of them tried to talk, even if that meant making a call. She didn't because she had overconfidence in her cadet's coping inability. She had this blind faith in his impatience when it came to staying mad at her. She guessed she had terribly misjudged her worth in his routine life. She bit her lower lip harder as an urge to cry blinded her vision. 

She corrected the wrong entry with an urgency and saved the spread sheet. Taking her coat from stand, she switched off the lights and rushed out of room. Her red truck stared her face as if was complaining for leaving him out in cold for entire day. She had started to like the company of inanimate objects. 

"Losing mind already?" 

She asked herself as she put the keys in ignition. Starting her truck, she drove it on dark misty roads. 

It was not heavenly Saturday where she could sleep with hope of a Sunday with him. It was damned Monday with a preceding Sunday where he didn't come to see her. Manik hadn't come home last day and that was certainly 100th last nail in the coffin. She huffed in fury and then frowned in anxiety. 

  "FINE! Then why I should even care? Why I should even say that place as my house when I cannot even make a simple payment for it?"  

His words rang into he rears and she clutched the steering wheel to fight the anxiety. What if he never came back? The thought was scary. But she hadn't ever let fear run her mind, had she? 

Never.

But now 'never' had started to find its way out of her life. He made her feel so vulnerable. She had vested her life in him and now he wasn't showing up. She looked at the sky which was nothing but misty. There were no starts gazing her tonight, nothing of that sort which could give her company. An urgency churned her insides and she halted the car in middle of road. Picking up her phone, she dialed a number but then disconnected it after two rings. His voice would do but then she wouldn't be able to hold her muffled cries. 

She opened message box and typed something urgently. 

"Okay! But Make sure you reach before 11."

She read the reply of her boss and threw the phone on passenger seat. 

 The invasion was scheduled for tomorrow morning. 

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The military truck halted and Manik opened his eyes. 

"Finally home"

Harshad mumbled tiredly and jumped out of truck to see the academy bathed in white mist. Manik followed him and sighed at sight of that huge building. 

"In your dorms right away, GCs"

The officer commanded and they all started to jog towards the dormitory. Almost each one of them audibly whimpered as they found their beds after a week long. The rigorous drill in upper hills had fluxed their muscles. 

"Now bed has started to feel alien," Harshad uttered with his eyes closed. 

Manik looked at the clock and saw it was 11:30. He didn't care to mind his daily routine of taking a bath even when he needed one badly. He just dived into his bed and closed his eyes to the sullen world. He could curse himself to the end of world if he didn't know how it wasn't helping anything. These seven days were hell physically as well as mentally. He could survive hundred other such drills for the love of this service but he couldn't bear the pain of not talking to her, not seeing her gorgeous face for one day more. He was mad, mad at her when he chose not to call her next day after their argument. He felt how she should take the first step. He had the chance to call her before he left for this supposedly 3 days drill but he didn't. The guilt was heavier than he thought. He knew it was wrong, wrong to put her through this. She hadn't had best of relationships knowledge, thanks to her dysfunctional family. He put her through this and God made sure his drill got extended so he could feel the same heat. 

He winced as Harshad threw something heavy on his back. He growled and lifted his head to see what was the urgency with his darned friend. 

"I have been talking to walls since five minutes," Harshad complained and Manik threw his stinky shoe back at him. 

"Take care of your oversensitive back before sores turn worse," Harshad said throwing an ointment towards him. He knew how his friend had spent this last week. He saw him regretting something each minute. This was the first time Manik hadn't shared anything with him no matter how much he pestered him. 

He saw Manik walking out of dorm without any protest and wondered how bad he might have screwed this time. Granny Harshad was kicking in already. 

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Nandini's truck halted at the gate of academy and she tried to mask her excitement with a stern face. She was sure she was going to punch across his face and then tell him how she hated him before she just held him tight so that this cold could disappear. She entered the campus and decided to meet Sahiba before she headed to see that one face which could bring the tornado. She met his batch-mates in way and tried not to return the smile. She hated them all at the moment for being around him 24*7. 

Manik on other hand walked into Colonel's office. Colonel Singh asked him to wait till he attended a call. He rubbed his palms to fight the urge to run to admin office and ask if his aunt had called. He was still busy in his thoughts when someone took the seat next to him. He looked up to find Avanti sitting next to him. She smiled cautiously at him and then chose to keep to herself. Another realization dawned upon Manik as he remembered how terribly he had behaved with her last time they met. He palmed his face and muttered some cuss words. The lady cleared her throat and he apologized. 

"I am so sorry for the last time we spoke," He uttered and Avanti tried to smile. Colonel called them both inside and the conversation ended a quick death. 

"How was your drill, cadet?" Colonel asked and Manik replied briefly. 

"Avanti is leaving in week and I want to do something special for her," Colonel divulged the reason why he had called them. 

"I am sure she is going to do marvelous job with this documentary and I would be pleased if we could do anything for her as token of appreciation," He added and Avanti smiled cheerfully. 

"I have already had some good time here, sir," She said genuinely.

"Maniik, I want you to train her this upcoming week. She had causally told me that she has keen interest in shooting," Colonel ordered and Manik nodded. 

"It's okay, Sir. He already is so busy and I don't want to trouble anyone here," Avanti said earnestly. 

"I would love to. Please allow me, Avanti," Manik insisted. He too wanted to make up for his reckless behavior. He could do this much, he was sure. 

Some more talks went over tea before Manik left for admin office. He had an hour free before his first class and he asked Avanti to meet him in shooting arena. 

"Are you sure?" Manik asked for the second time and Major Kumar glared him. 

"There was no call for you, Manik," He divulged positively. 

Manik's face hung low and he walked out of room all lost in his thoughts that why wouldn't Nandini call when he didn't show up on Sunday. 

Did he hurt her that much?

He asked himself and walked absentmindedly towards shooting range. The disappointment soon turned into agony and anger. He felt dejected as he dwelt more. 

Did he hold that much worth in her life?

He asked himself and then scolded himself. He knew how she worked and it would be so wrong to expect her to be someone she was not. She was stray when it came to handling relationships. 

He reached shooting range and saw Avanti waiting for him. She sure was excited. She smiled at him and he returned the smile. 

"So I suppose you know how to hold a gun," He asked and she giggled. 

"Fortunately Yes," She replied and Manik asked her wear headgear. 

An easy air surrounded them as they talked about basics of shooting. 

Avanti took a shot and it for sure went wrong. She bit her tongue and looked helplessly at Manik. He walked to her and held her hands to tell her what posture she should have while taking a shot. His throat ached out of sudden as if he would choke any moment. His heart started to ache sweet yet sharp. He felt muscle of his neck stiffen and that easy air turned thick out of nowhere. 

Was he falling sick?

He asked himself and then tried to focus on lesson he was giving. 

That uneasy feeling grew fonder and asked Avanti to take few more shots. Turning around, his eyes found the fireball standing right next to door. Her face pained, her shoulders stiff; her eyes questioning while lips pursed tight, she looked like a warning. 

He skipped a few breaths and blinked his eyes thrice before he realized she was there for real. 

"Nandini"

He said aloud and a smile invaded his lips. She took small steps towards him while he strode towards her. She stopped few steps away and he tried to find the smile on her face. She didn't smile. Her eyes met his and then traveled behind him. He followed her gaze and found Avanti taking some aimless shots. 

He looked at Nandini whose face now held nothing. She was pro at turning into one illegible book. She gulped and he knew she was angry. He shook his head as he realized how bad of a moment that was for meeting after nine long days. 

"Busy, haan?" She asked raising her brows a bit. Her face now was red. She was fighting something profound.

"I am so..." Manik ran towards her when Avanti called him. 

"I was wondering how to reload it," She asked turning around and found Nandini standing just a step away from Manik. 

"You haven't come home on Sunday," Nandini drew his attention back. Only she knew how she was restraining herself from punching him and tell that girl off. The shooting range was their place and it was special. 

"I was wondering what kept you so busy," She added and tried to sound a little less perturbed. 

"Maybe I know now," Her voice betrayed her and she looked down. 

Uttering some profanity under her breath, she gathered herself to look into his eyes. His eyes held the same pain, probably. 

"Hey," Avanti came to them unsure. 

Nandini didn't bother to say a hello but looked at her with something unforgivable. 

"He is one terrible teacher, I must tell you," She uttered not knowing how those words escaped her throat. 

Avanti smiled unsure and looked at Manik who was looking at Nandini without a blink. He looked disturbed yet relieved. 

"He is a good teacher I guess. I found him quite sweet," She said not understanding what was going on there. 

"Is it?" Nandini asked and looked at Manik with menace in her eyes. 

"The class shall continue then. Whom am I to disturb?" She announced a little loudly and turned around to leave. Her each step screamed for fury. She could hear him calling her name but she didn't stop. If she would, she would break his pretty nose. 

She kept walking rapidly and felt a tug. He pulled her closer to him and cupped her face. 

"There's nothing like what you are thinking," He said impatiently. 

She pushed him away as hard as she could. 

"If I had thought what you think I have thought, that place would have been on fire," She said through her teeth. 

"I would end up punching you, Go away for now," She said and turned around to get away as soon as possible. Rage was too real. 

Manik tugged her once again and this time he held her arms tightly behind her back. She wriggled and kicked his leg with her knee. 

He winced up but didn't let her go. 

"I can explain," He pleaded too earnestly and tears escaped her eyes. Her nose flared and she looked like a perfect mess. 

"I don't want to know why you didn't care. I hate you and that won't change," She said and couldn't stop a sob to escape. A sigh escaped his lips as he heard her.

"Let me go," She yelled and he hugged her tightly. 

"I would never," He said and she groaned. 

"I would kick you somewhere you won't like," She warned and he held tighter. 

"LET ME GO, MANIK," She hammered each her word. Winters were gone out of sudden, she didn't want it to come back either but then she couldn't melt just yet.

"Cadet Malhotra," A manly voice echoed in ground and Manik let go of Nandini. 

Lieutenant Kalra barked and in no time the moment turned sordid. Nandini walked away not being able to hold her all over the place emotions while Manik felt sandwiched. 

The facts that he might not be able to see her before Sunday and he couldn't disobey Kalra were up for a battle. He was on crossroads. He heard scolding of Kalra with a deaf ear while his mind raced to only one person, her. 

 Her pained face, furious eyes and broken voice; he cursed himself more. If not for his stupid ego, this wouldn't have stretched this far. 

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Nandini drove aimlessly on hilly roads not knowing how to calm herself down. Earlier he used to be her escape, maybe he still was but she didn't want to go his way. The unabashed truth that he could reduce her to this was too bare to accept.  She didn't know at the moment how to exist around him without squeezing the life out of him. She wanted to hurt him yet love him so bad. She was caught into extremes. His touch had evoked something so outlandish this time. The need of having those arms around her was too hellish. While she drove all lost in her thought, something white flashed in dark road and she took a sharp turn. Her truck slid down the vale and hit a tree with a thud. 

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Four days later...

Manik zipped his bag while Harshad entered the dorm with permission letter. It was Sunday, at last. 

Four days and she had not picked up his calls. He knew she was mad, and he was all game for wooing her. 

"I still think you should get her some roses," Harshad suggested yet again. 

"She would murder them as well as me," Manik replied hanging the bag on his shoulder. 

"She might murder you anyway," Harshad mumbled and received a slap on his head. 

"You are on my team," Manik warned and Harshad rolled his eyes. 

"The way you keep screwing, I might be the only one on your team soon," Harshad taunted and Manik kicked him in foot. 

Wincing and limping, Harshad followed him to gate. Manik took a deep breath and got ready for most awaited Sunday with his hellion. He knew this was going to be tough but he was not going to give up till she took him in. 

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Chimney was exhaling some smoke and that was a topic of wonder. Nandini and working in kitchen? Manik was amazed that she was up that early. It was hardly 7 in the morning. His eyes traveled to her truck which had a crushed bonnet and some serious dents. His mind turned blank for a moment. She met with an accident. His heart pounded bad.
He ran down the road and opened the gate. Taking the keys out of his pocket, he strode towards the door. He didn't need to use the keys as door was already open. He prayed endlessly as he fumbled with knob.

He stepped in and found her standing in kitchen. Her hair were in a messy bun while her hands were kneading the dough. A huge packet was on the slab and it read some strange brand. He sighed in relief as he didn't find a single scratch on her. He smiled in glee as her eyes found him standing at the door. He didn't fail to notice the glee in her eyes yet she didn't smile. Before he could love her more through his eyes, something groaned, precisely small barked. 

His eyes traveled down and found a puppy with blue eyes staring him. White fur, blue eyes and a cute collar, and in between his paws a brand new sneaker which had started to tear from the toe. It was his shoe! His eyes widened in shock while that litte thing barked at him again. 

"That's my shoe," Manik cried while the little guy went back at chewing it. 

Another bark and he realized his other shoe had better company. Another little devil was sitting on rug with his shoe in his claw. 

Manik ran to get his shoe while Nandini rushed to stop him. 

She stood right in front of him warning him not to disturb the kids. 

"That's my shoes," He groaned in helplessness. 

"And they are my kids," Nandini spoke in reply and that made him forget everything around. Her sweet voice, He smiled in relief while she kept glaring him. He bent in a little and kissed her lips tenderly. She stood rooted not knowing what got into her kitten. 

"Our kids need to meet their Dad," He said validly and she narrowed her eyes in mix of blush and anger. Her red cheeks looked beautiful. Manik slid his arms around her waist and hugged her softly. Nandini could melt in moment but then Sunday was long and she needed some loving worth all the days he wasn't there. She let the cadet unfold he plan. 

He started to murmur some sorry in her ear when those two little devils barged in. One started to tug his trouser while other one was busy eating the rug now. Their growling was the background score to their romance. 

"Two Siberian huskies," Manik shook his head as he gazed the little devil tugging his pant. 

"Guess what," Nandini spoke and he looked at her, "They don't disappear when it's cold."

She said in low yet menacing voice and he gulped. It was going to take some sincere loving to mend the princess. 

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I know I have been gone for too long but life was too hectic. Thank you for your love and patience. Your messages about ATE make my heart warm. Apologies for making you all wait. 🙏🍁🍁