Manik was in his room..thinking of all tht happened since morning.. bakery shop..orphanage visit..Champ's walk..donuts distribution..Champ's truth..his positivity..Arohi's wish..donuts preparation..Nandini's laughter...fab5 performance..their happy content faces..lunch..arohi calling Nandini her mother...his dislike for Nandini being Arohi's mother...fab5's decision to continue music..all was goin fine.. but then Mukti and Aliya's exit..Nandini's roar..her anger..her words...her accusations..His slap..Nandini's quitting...his mother's appreciation..her pride..her request...her sourness again..her painful angry eyes...and then..Mukti's confession. He wasnt able to make peace with whatever he heard..he was moving from one end to the other in restlessness.. all he could hear was mixed voices of Nandini and Mukti...

Nandini ne sab sach kaha tha...

U guys r the most cheap and disgusting people on earth...

Gundo ko humne hee bheja tha...

How could u stoop so low..

We thought she is trying to break fab5.

U have 4 pillars to support u..

It slipped from our mind.

Nandini Moorthy kisi mard ka intezaar nahi kerti..

Slap...
Bura laga na..

They could have molest..

Man: yaaaaaaaaaaa
N in anger he punches the glass table of his room..breaking into pieces which prick him n cause bleeding.

Man (self talk): how could I? Mene Nandini pe haath kaise uthaaya? Kaise?

He again punches the wall with the bleeding hand which was the same hand which slapped Nandini.

Man: aaj pehli baar..3 saal baad mom ne mujhse pyar se baat ki..pehli baar kuch maanga..wo b Nandini k waje se..aaj pehli baar Mom mujhse khush thi..i again saw that pride in her eyes jo pehle hoti thi..sab Nandini k waje se..aur mene kya kiya? I...I slapped her? Aur wo b jab uski galti nahi thi.. Dhruv sahi keh raha tha..agar un gundo ne sach me kuch....
Nahiii...aisa kabhi nahi hosakta. NANDINI KO KOI HAATH NAHI LAGAA SAKTA. I wont tolerate that. Never...
Aaaahhh...y Mukti..y Aliya..y dd u do this? Kyuuuuu???
Aaj maa ka aanchal mere paas aaya lekin usi waqt chala b gaya.
Thak gaya hu ab..aur nahi saha jaata..

Saying so..he falls on his knees and cries.

Someone puts a hand on his shoulder from behind.. Manik turns behind and finds Cabir standing there. Cabir bends down next to Manik n takes him in a brotherly hug. Both had somewhat similar pain..both had that guilt in them of not trusting the girls who make them feel differently..the guilt of not being there to protect them..but more than that..both had the pain of being deceived by their best friends..afterall..hiding a truth which myt effect someone's life is as bad as deceiving.
Cabir breaks the hugs and makes Manik stand. He holds his bleeding hand and says..

Cab: Manik..u need dressing. Come.

Manik simply follows him. Cabir takes the first aid box and does his dressing. After completing the dressing..

Cab: Manik...let it out. At least aaj chup mat beth.

Dhr: he is ryt buddy.

Dhruv too had come to check on Manik. Both Cabir and Dhruv knew that the person most effected with all this chaos is Manik..n thus they wanted to b with him..they wanted to stand on Nandini's belief on them of being his support pillars.

Dhr: buddy..aise khudko chot pohchaake u r doing no good to urself.

Man (chuckles sadly): i have never done anything good in life buddy. Tabhi to aaj b mom mere paas aate aate waapis mud gayi.

Cab: aisa nahi hai Manik. Mother india ko galat fehmi huwi hai. M sure once all the misunderstanding gets cleared..she will come around.

Man: aur wo hoga kaise?

Dhr: sach bolke. Haan buddy.we will tell her that u had no connection with the prank.

Man: aur fab5 ka kya? Sach me tootne de ise?

Cabir n Dhruv both go quite.

Man: u knw..Nandini always amazes me. N today too she did that. Just in few meetings..she understood what fab5 r..how deep our connection and our trust is. How confidently she said tht we all r together..even in this prank. If she wanted..she could have taught Mukti and Aliya lesson on the spot itself..but she got them here..to teach us..fab5 a lesson.

Cab: she trusted on fab5's trust..but we couldnt. I still cant believe our girls did this..

Dhr: u r ryt Cabir. Even i dnt believe that Aliya too hid it from me. Look at the irony..technically we won the challenge..today Nandini herself quitted the job..we shoud b happy..we should b celebrating ryt..but look at us..i feel i m the biggest loser on this earth..it feels as if i backstabbed Nandini. We were all praising her at noon for giving our music back and as soon as she turned her back to us...we stabbed her. What she must b feeling..i cant even imagine.

Cab (chuckling sarcastically ): we had warned her about backstabbing..n here..we did that. She had been fair all the time..she kept Navya away for 5 days so tht this challenge thing doesnt go out..she even ddnt charge any money for teaching us.
U knw..that day when Navya turned down my friendship..i felt bad. But today..m glad that she did that..she listened to her friend..Nandini was ryt..she should b away from us.

Man (lost in his stance): m i really that bad? That bad that i will never get mom's love back again? Will she never trust me again?

Dhruv and Cabir hug him from each side:
No u r not.

Cab: its a bad phase Manik..it will get over soon.

Dhr: yes buddy.. dont worry..we all r together..we r with u. Just let this night end..m sure..new morning wud bring new hopes in our lives.

........................

Navya and Nandini were eating their dinner n were chit chatting on random stuffs..basically Navya was chatting and Nandini was hmming..she was happy to see the old Navya back.

Nan: navya..i think tumhe thoda fresh hojaana chahiye.. me tumhare clothes ki arrangement ker deti hu..tum tab tak fresh hojaao.

Nav: theek hai nandu..aaj hum b tumhare jaise ekdum alag kapde pehnenge aur tumhari tarah sundar dikhenge.

Nandini laughs..

Nan: tumhe sach me lagta hai me sundar hu? Acha mazaak tha Navya.

Navya smiles and holds Nandini's hand..

Nav: tum duniya ki sabse sunder ladki ho Nandu..kyunki tumhara dil sone ka hai..jisme sirf aur sirf pyaar hai..sab ke liye. Aur agar tum sunderta is baahar k roop ko kehti ho...to hum tab bhi kahenge k tum sab se khubsurat ho.

Nandini gets overwhelmed with Navya's reply.

Nav: acha chalo..hume fresh hona hai aur tum b fresh hojaao..

Nandini then guides Navya towards the guest room n shows her the washroom..Navya was again gawking everything...trying to memorise all her surroundings.

Nan: tum yaha fresh hojaao..me tab tak tumhare liye kapde laake rakhti hu.

Nav: aur tum kaha fresh hogi?

Nan: me apne kamre me. Aur kuch chahiye ho to feel free to ask.

Navya simply nods and again starts staring at the surroundings.

Nav: matarani...kya hum khule aankho se sapna dekh rahe hai? Ye sab...matlab Nandu k paas ye .....
Ufff..hume to kuch samajh nahi aaraha. Nandu ne sach kaha tha..bohot se sawaal hamare mann me uth rahe hai..lekin hum Nandu se koi sawal nahi karenge. Usne humpe bharosa kiya hai..ab hum is bharose ko marte dum tak nahi todenge.

Navya then goes to get fresh n here..Nandini gets her a simple dress n places it on her bed. She goes from there to get fresh. Navya comes out of the washroom and gets another shock on seeing the dress.

Nav: ye kya? Nandini k paas aise dresses b hai? Hume to laga k sirf...... hey matarani..Nandini to sach me ek paheli hai..jo sirf waqt k saath hee suljhegi.

She quickly gets dressed in tht dress n goes out in search of Nandini. She first passes through the kitchen to get herself a glass of water. She takes the glass and moves from there to reach a room n finds the door open. She pushes the door slightly n enters inside..thinking it to b Nandini's room.

Nav: Nandu ye tumhara kam....
N thud....
The glass that Navya was holding falls from her hand and breaks into pieces on touching the floor. The sound makes Nandini turn n she finds Navya standing there in utter shock with her eyes and jaw wide open.

         Nandini's pajama..

Nan(self talk): Aiyappa...pata tha aisa hee kuch hoga. Abhi tak ghar k shock se nahi nikli...is shock se kaise nikaalu?

Nandini slowly proceeds towards Navya. On reaching in front of her..she waves her hand in front of her face..to which Navya doesnt even blink her eyes. Nandini slowly closes her jaw..

Nan: moo to band kerlo Navya.

On listening Nandini's voice..Navya turns her head towards Nandini but with same expressions. She blinks twice thrice n sees Nandini from top to bottom..n then again from bottom to top. She repeats this..n then suddenly holds her temple n moves her head in round direction as if feeling dizzy n was about to collapse on floor but Nandini caught hold of her on the right time.

Nan (worried): navya..navya.. (patting her cheeks) kya huwa? Utho navya..plzzz... navya..navyaa.

Navya slowly opens her eyes..Nandini makes her stand slowly n while holding her..she asks again being worried..

Nan: kya huwa tumhe navya? Tum theek ho na?

Nav: tum shock pe shock diye jaa rahi ho..to hum theek kaise ho sakte hai?

Nan: oh Aiyappa.. tumne to mujhe daraa hee diya Navya.

Nan: aur tumne to hume chakkar hee dilaa diya Nandu. Ye sab kya hai? Hamara matlab...tum to bilkul ek pari jaisi dikhti ho nandu.. (with every passing moment..her smile increases) tum itni khubsurat ho. Hume yakeen hee nahi horaha k tum hee hamari Nandu ho. Kahi koi judwa to nahi?

Hearing her talks..Nandini gets zoned out..her eyes get filled with pain and unshed tears. Navya doesnt understand but she sensed it to b a deep serious matter. She keeps her hand on her shoulder..

Nav: humne kaha tha na Nandu..tum sab se khubsurat ho..dekha..humne jhoot nahi bola. Aur raha tumhare is huliye ka sawal..to hum ne pehle b kaha tha aur ab bhi keh rahe hai..hum tab tak tumse koi sawal nahi poochenge jab tak tum khud hume bataana nahi chaahogi. Hume tab bhi tumpe bharosa tha...aur ab bhi hai..aur pehle se zyada hai.

Nandini gets emotional n she hugs Navya tight. For a second Navya gets surprised on Nandini's reaction..but responds back by hugging her back.

Nan: thank u Navya. Thank u so much mujhpe bharosa kerne k liye. Mujhse koi sawal na kerne k liye.

Navya breaks the hug..

Nav: isme thank u kaisa? Nandu..ho to tum humse zyada hoshyaar aur mature..lekin sach to yehi hai k tum humse choti ho. Isliye humne soch liya hai..k baahar to tum hee hamari amma banna...lekin jab bhi hum akele honge..tab tum humare saamne asli Nandu banke rehna. Hum tumhe bigaadna chahte hai..bilkul waise jaise tumne orphanage me sabko bigaad k rakha hai.

Nan(chuckling sadly): ab aadat nahi rahi khudko pamper kerne ki ya kerwaane ki.
Khair chodo.. andar aao.

They both enter and sit on Nandini's bed. Navya sees the first aid box on the table n starts doing her dressing. After finishing with the dressing..she keeps staring at Nandini while Nandini was keeping back the aid box. Nandini turns n finds Navya staring at her.

Nan: aise kya dekh rahi ho?

Nav: dekh rahe hai k uparwaale ne kitne fursat me tumhe banaaya hai.

Nan: kuch b Navya.

Nav: nahi sach me. Tume pata hai..hamari amma kehti hai k insan tab khubsurat lagta hai jab uski aatma..uska dil khubsurat ho..kyunki wahi khubsoorti uske chehre pe b jhalakti hai. Aur humne to tumse pehle hee kaha k tumhara dil sone ka hai..sabse khubsoorat.. haan tumhare chehre pe aaj kuch zyada hee jhalak raha hai..

Nan: tum meri aisi hee itni taareef ker rahi ho Navya. Me ek mamuli si ladki hu.

Nav: Mamuli??? Tum apne aap ko kis angle se mamuli bol rahi ho? Tumme itni himmat hai k tum raat me akele ek taxi chalaa ti ho..itni himmat k tum fab5 ko unke kartooto k liye karaara jawab de sako..arre tumme to Dharmendra jitni himmat hai..tabhi to tumne un gundo ko maar maar k bhoosa banaa diya.
Aur himmat k saath saath tum me pyaar aur dhairya (patience) b hai. Jaise tumne orphanage k bacho ko sambhaal k rakha hai..unki har wish ko poora kiya hai..wo b akele..wo kaabile taarif hai Nandu.. tum kisi b angle se mamuli nahi ho. Tum to SPECIAL HO..BOHOT SPECIAL. samjhi tum?

Nandini just nods with tears in her eyes and smile playing on her lips.
Navya then plays with her hair..

Nav: Nandu...ek sawal puche? Tum chaho to jawab dena..

Nan: pucho

Nav: ye kya asli baal hai?

Nandini giggles..

Nan: haan Navya..ye mere asli baal hai.

Nav: to phir wo baal kaha gaye..jo ghar k baahar hote hai? Acha samajh gaye..wo wig hogi na?

Nan: nahi Navya..wo bhi mere hee baal hai. Me apne inhi baalo ko baand deti hu..to wo short hair ka look dete hai.

Nav: ye kaise mumkin hai?

Nan: mumkin hai. Me tumhe kal subah dikhaaungi. Abhi bohot raat hogai hai..so jaao.

Nav: Nandu..wo...kya hum tumhare saath so sakte hai..yaha tumhare kamre me?

Nan: haan Navya..isme puchne ki baat nahi hai. Tum waha se sojaao aur me yaha se soti hu.

Both lie down n wish each other gud nyt.

Girl1: its all because of u..i lost my everything because of u.

Girl2: No Anjy..thats not true. Trust me it wasnt my fault.

Girl1: it was all ur fault. U betrayed me. I kept begging but no one came to my rescue..n now..i m nothing but just a tissue paper..who was used n now thrown away..

Girl2: plzz dont say like that. We both r together in this. We will sort it out. We r best of friends na..plz dnt say like this.

Girl1: u r the worst friend anyone could ever get.. i hate u..u r the reason of my suffering..i will never forgive u.. never..

Nandini wakes up in horror seeing the nightmare. She gets panicked. She looks beside her only to find Navya sleeping peacefully. She looks at Navya from head to toe just to check if she was fine. Finding her to b fine n deep in sleep..Nandini sighs in relief and wipes the sweat from her forehead. She slowly n carefully comes out of her room n goes in the open area...her favourite area..

Nan (self talk):2 years..2 years n still m stuck where i was..it feels i never moved on. After that incident..i never had the courage to make any new friends..but i couldnt hold myself back from befriending Navya. Her trust on me is something that pleases me and at the same time scares me too. She shouldnt trust me so much so soon. Or trust any other for the matter of fact. This world isnt only of good people..it has more of bad people wearing masks of good ones. N those r the most difficult persons to identify. Navya is a pure soul.. she never doubts anyone. Seeing her i somewhere get a glimpse of old me. But no..i wont let anything happen to her. I will protect her in every circumstance..in every possible way.. i wont let her become another Nandini Moorthy.
Today was the end of fab5's chapter in my life. Tomorrow would b a new beginning..a new start..with my Friend..Navya....

###########=##
Tadaaa..lo me aagayiii... kaisa laga ek mystery solve hoke? I hope n i pray it was upto ur expectations. . I had decided it earlier to b like this only..but yes..i wasnt going to solve this mystery soon..but kya karu? I cant disappoint my sweet readers...
Hope u enjoyed....
😊😊