The enthusiasm of the Talent Hunt was at its peak. The audience was high on music. The artists were drowned in their passion, lost in the world of lyrics and rhythm. But, somewhere in the Greenroom, insecurities and tensions had seeped into the world of peace and the magic of music failed to heal broken souls. 

"Manik, you have to choose between her and us! And that's definite buddy! " Dhruv said. His voice neither held aggression nor an obligatory choice. It wasn't sly or slurred. It was cold, distant and foreign- and that's what confused Manik more than ever. Initially, he knew this day might come but with passing time this to be reality was far from his thoughts. He was shocked, shattered to be tugged in between family and love but, it didn't pull the ground under his feet. Unconsciously, he knew this but, didn't have an answer to it. He stared at Dhruv in a hope to read him, understand what his buddy wanted and from where he was questioning. Through his lens, Dhruv's glassy eyes shouted his insecurities not instilled by himself but by Nyonika. Right there was her silent bomb. She took to the weakest- her win, she took to his dearest and his strength- his win!  

While Manik had all it cleared in his mind, Nandini's mind was running at a totally different pace. Soha's incidence and their night after, their break-ups, fights, misunderstandings- all came running to her thoughts- yes, she was suspicious of something since morning but this wasn't what she expected. This was a spinner. Her thoughts ran and she looked at Manik for once and understood he saw there was a cheap game under this. A game in which, clearly, he would choose her to be out. She understood his concerns and affections in this situation but there was one question she wanted him to answer- a question they ran into several times. 

"Manik", she meekly called to him. She noted Dhruv looked up to her, not with disgust or hatred but with complications and confusions. She knew it- it was himself questioning his thoughts but right now his mind spoke more than his heart, so she let it be. Not dragging it much and leaving that for Fab 5 to clear out, she jumped into the clarification she wanted from Manik. It was a risk, a do or die but, it was critical. 

"Manik," she continued and cupped his face in the petite hands, "we know it, now and also, then. Wish you the best and you know where to find me." She looked deeply into his brown orbs and pressed her lips on his. It wasn't her usual but she had to do it for herself and to make it believable. She died a million times inside but it was necessary for her to see.  She parted and turned around to leave and started to walk with great expectations, fear and hope in heart. She reached the door and stood there for a moment- just for once, wishing to hear her name once in Manik's voice. She knew her kiss was promising enough for Manik to know what she was trying at. She knew his mind wasn't scattered enough to blind it from her and that he had understood the deeper meaning of what Dhruv said. It was just this one time that she wished hard to hear Manik but may be Aiyaapa had something else in plan. She had to go on with her plan and already had gotten what she wanted. Despite so many instances, they were still on the same page, stuck on the same question. There was no use, she wanted to give up and so she made it through the door and once out of the Green Room, she ran as fast as she could.  Through the college corridors, the crowd of the Talent Hunt, onto the dark roads, towards Murthy house- her home, she had left long back in the Greenroom. With herself all shattered, she rang the bell only to be left unanswered and unattended.

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-Space College: Greenroom- 

"Manik, Cabir, Mukti, Aliya, Dhruv!" Navya came shouting to the greenroom all tensed up after seeing Nandini but was more confused after seeing blank faces and utter silences in the Greenroom. 

"Guys, what happened? Koi mar gaya kya?" she knew the situation was grim but lightened up the situation. 

"Bakwas band karo Navya!" Cabir answered her back in a grey voice. 

"What happened, Cabir?" she questioned. She knew Cabir was the safest to ask from for now. 

"Somebody's lost their mind and got a garbage bin instead! Right Dhruv? " he sarcastically answered hinting Navya that it was for him to handle and of course, a Fab 5 situation. 

"How could you Dhruv? It was her, your first friend among us and your first friend except us! Do you realize what shit you were saying?" Cabir questioned Dhruv. 

"No I don't, Cabir! I don't see what I did! That's what you also think right? Dhruv is the young innocent boy who can't be on his own, can't make discussions of his own, be overshadowed, ignored and he would be okay with it. It's not like that!" Dhruv burst out. 

"Yeh! It's not like that, bro! Nobody did that. None of us intended it to be so! And, if this was about that, then where does Nandini fit in this?" Cabir countered to the shit Dhruv was up for. 

"Nandini- She's the root for everything! She ditched me, stuck up to buddy since he had everything from limelight to looks and then distracted him so he pushed us all away, especially from me and then, ruined Aliya's life with Manik and got then, got Manik into jail and you see- she did everything!" Dhruv rambled everything he had inside.

"What the hell!" Cabir sighed understanding Dhruv's haphazard thoughts and connecting the dots. 

In all this, while Mukti, Aliya and Navya were silent spectators of the odd debate, Manik realized something- he did wrong Dhruv in some ways and may be, he did overshadow his buddy. After all, he, Nandini and himself had a long back story so intertwined that if a shrewd onlooker like Nyonika and Harshad knew their stuff, Dhruv was an easy target. He cursed himself for overlooking Dhruv which was crystal with or without Nyonika's manipulation and then, he also faltered to leave Dhruv as an easy target- it was his duty to protect everyone. And, now that he realized, he was at fault he had to fix it- fix it all! 

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First up! How does it flow? 

Remember the Disclaimer: If any queries or plagiarism or any sort of issues with contact, do message me and we'll sort it maturely. 

Love, 

HF