She closed her eyes.

Extracting her from ash and blood beneath; grabbing her closer away from the corpse lying beside, he clutched her petite body in his arms. She didn't move even when he held her so tight. He demanded her to flinch but she didn't. She didn't move a finger. 

It all was a nightmare, that's what he kept chanting in his mind. He closed his eyes one more time, but nothing changed. She was still lying unmoved in his arms. He looked back and saw everything burning in ashes. Everything was motile except for her. Looking everywhere with this helplessness in eyes, he again looked at her. Her face was covered in this red and black. Her head was bleeding. A wheeze escaped his throat as he tried to gulp the reality. 

"Someone help," He yelled in middle of gunshots. 

He looked back again only to find army and civilians having climax of that battle. 

"Wake up," He besought looking at her. Tapping her cheeks constantly, calling her name urgently, wakening the sleeping she; he sat there with her in arms in middle of a war. 

"Somebody help," He yelled yet again chocking almost as he cradled her in arms. Picking her up in next go, he looked around. Corpses were lying as far as he could see. He looked at her and then around. He didn't know what to do. He couldn't think. He wasn't able to believe. He didn't want to. One last gunshot and everything came to a halt. Smoke sustained in air for a minute or two and then it started to die. There were faces standing right in front of him. They all were looking at them as he stood there holding her. Those eyes had condemnation and he knew for whom it was. He started to walk and they all were still standing contrary. He pierced through the horde and they all glared her as she laid unconscious in his arms. He kept walking till someone he didn't pay heed to stood unmoved, not giving him a way. He looked up and saw chief standing with this illegible face. Behind him was a crowd standing as blank as he was. 

"Save her," Manik said in controlled tone looking down. 

No one spoke. Nobody answered.

"She needs help," He added almost begging.

Harshad stormed towards him but his father stopped him in his way showing his palm.

"One finger on her, Nobody would stand here on feet," Manik warned a fuming Harshad as he tried to reach Nandini.

Harshit held Harshad tightly as Harshad tried to reach Manik.

"She is harmless," Manik continued and looked at chief. 

"She needs medical attention urgently, Please," He said in a subdued tone. 

Chief looked at blood covered girl in his arms and his eyes did soften a bit. He looked at another elder beside him and then back at Manik. 

That moment was toughest of all. He waited there, helpless. He for the first time was this helpless. His fate was in his arms whether he acknowledged it or not. And her fate was in hands of those hurt civilians who had reasons not to help her, even thought when she was faultless.  

Chief nodded and Manik sighed in relief. Chief looked back at someone and that man from horde walked quickly to Nandini. Manik flinched away, not letting him touch her. 

"I am a doctor. We need to treat her immediately," He said and Manik gasped. 

"Make a way," Doctor cut the angry crowd and Manik followed him, avoiding all the raged eyes around. At end of horde, he saw Aryan standing with a guilty face. He didn't meet Manik's eyes and just stole a glance of dying Nandini. 

Door to bunker opened and sighs were the first thing they heard. Women and children inside hovered the door but then backed off seeing a tiny girl bleeding so profusely entering the bunker in a man's arm. Manik put Nandini down on a table and Doctor shouted telling everyone to make some space. He immediately checked Nandini's pulse and then sank in his thoughts. A girl pierced the huddle around Nandini and reached the middle. Her shriek touched Manik's ears as she gasped in fear. He looked around and saw Aashi palming her mouth trying not to cry. She was looking at bleeding Nandini and tears from her eyes were already cascading down. 

"What happened?" She asked holding Manik's arm. 

Manik just saw her terrified face and those flowing tears. He looked down in this unknown dud. Aashi looked at doctor and then at Manik seeking some response. 

"I need to operate her," Doctor said and Manik's eyes shot up. 

"There are some internal bleeding and deep cuts," He added. 

"Then do it," Manik said impatiently. 

"It's not that easy as you think," Doctor retaliated, "I need more equipment and medicines."

 Acute silence filled the atmosphere for a minute and then two voices almost echoed at the same time.

"I'll bring it"

Manik turned around to see the other source of voice being one himself. 

Harshit stood at opening of bunker with an ached face looking a bit nervous. 

"I'll bring it," He repeated while approaching the table. 

"My house in town, you gotta go there," Doctor tried to warn. 

"I know. I'll go," Harshit said in assured tone.

Manik was just trying to read him while he offered such big help being on other side of fence. He had no reason to help Nandini. He was son of chief and elder brother of Harshad. 

Doctor nodded and Harshit turned around to leave. Manik followed him out and doctor said to someone, "Please open my dispensary. We need to shift her there."

Manik followed Harshit and held him from arm fiercely. 

"Why are you helping us?" He asked roughly. 

Harshit looked at Manik with this illegible something in eyes and then away. 

"I don't intend to harm her. You should stay here. I'll go," He said and walked away. 

Aashi called Manik, "We need to shift her to the dispensary." 

Manik rushed inside and before someone else could touch her, he wrapped her in his arms to pick her up. He followed doctor with Nandini in arms while Aashi followed him. She was afraid but she couldn't stay inside dying out of worry when they would be treating Nandini. A man opened the door to dispensary which was in other block of building. Blood stains on floor was still there but bodies were gone. 

Manik put her down on operating table and saw her pale face. Doctor brought wet sponge to clean the dirt along with gauze pad to clean her wounds. Wiping blood off her arm, there was a big cut on her arm which was still bleeding. Aashi looked away as she saw the wound. She couldn't take it. 

"You should wait outside," Doctor suggested Aashi. Manik too gestured her to leave and she walked out. 

"Are you sure you want to stay?" Doctor asked as he wiped another long cut on her thigh with gauze piece. 

"I am not leaving," Manik murmured and dipped the sponge into water. He wiped her face gently to take off all the black dirt. Her skin was pale. In her deep slumber, she looked off guard unaware of all the pain she was going through. 

"She has lost so much blood," Doctor murmured as he cleaned her wounds. He rushed to take his kit and brought suture out. 

He cleansed the would on her thigh and then started to stitch it. Manik just looked at her face trying to find any sign of pain but she didn't even frown. That needle was piercing her flesh and she didn't even realize the amount of pain her body was feeling owing to her sweet slumber. 

"What about her head?" Manik asked as soon as doctor got done with stitching. 

"We have to wait. There's a cut on her upper neck. I have to wait till my equipment arrive. Besides she needs blood too," Doctor explained and started to cleanse cut on her wrist. 

"There aren't any burns due to explosion. That's the relief," Doctor added as he got done with stitches on her wrist. 

Doctor walked out saying he needed to search his dorm for some medicines and Aashi came in. She saw Nandini lying on bed with her wounds bandaged. Manik was sitting on chair beside all lost in his thoughts. She knew he was cursing himself for not being able to protect her. 

"What did doctor say?" She asked waking him up from his thoughts.

"She needs blood," He said in low tone, "We have to wait till his equipment arrive."

"You are hurt," Aashi said touching a scratch on his forehead. 

Manik flinched away depriving himself of any care. His wounds shouldn't be cured, That's what he thought.  

"It's not your fault, Manik," Aashi said putting her hand on his shoulder. 

He sighed and then again looked at Nandini. She still didn't wake up. 

"She'll be fine," Aashi said looking at pale Nandini. 

"She has to," This time he spoke and then got up. He left the room with this urgency and left a perplexed Aashi behind. 

__________________________________

"Do you understand what you have done?" Harshad yelled at his father as all gathered in hall to have a meeting. 

"Do you understand what you have done, son?" His father got up from his seat and walked angrily towards Harshad. 

"You walked to the building without my permission. Killed those men when we didn't need to. Got a girl injured as well as our men. Do you understand what your actions have done?" He shouted on top of his voice. 

"She is minister's daughter. She deserves to die," Harshad said gritting his teeth. 

His father glared him with this anger but then looked down trying not to sympathize with Nandini. It was hard.

"And you have just saved that traitor's daughter by allowing her have medical aid," Harshad yelled.

"Do not raise your voice on me, kid," His father growled.

"She will get treatment here and nobody would say anything against it. This topic shouldn't be raised again until she wakes up," His father announced in a warning tone and left the room.

_________________

An hour or so, Manik was sitting out on stair. Doctor returned but Harshit didn't. Manik's pulse was throbbing in his temple due to frustration and stress. He was looking the way Harshit had gone. Doctor had put Nandini on drip. He hadn't entered the room again. It was so difficult to watch her lying there unmoved.

Manik saw Harshit approaching the dispensary with some men following him. Grabbing his collar, he asked, "What took you so long?"

Dusting his hands off, Harshit stepped back and replied, "This was not as easy as you think."

Saying this he entered the room to drop the stuff doctor had asked for. Manik followed him and strode towards Nandini before Harshit could even look closely. Publishing a silent warning through his eyes, he glared him and Harshit gulped the anger. Nobody had ever treated him with that disrespect. He was trying to help and he thought he didn't deserve condemnation in return.

"Would you people leave the room? I need to start the treatment," Doctor insisted.

Everyone walked out except for Manik who had released an order hours back that he won't leave her side during treatment.

Doctor took blood samples and then treated her head injury. Meanwhile, he just sat there with stone heart and aching mind witnessing everything.

"I need to ask around and find match to her blood group," saying this doctor walked out.

Aashi had changed Nandini's cloths and she looked like an infant lying there with a pale face. She was weak and it showed. Manik's hand traveled towards her hand. He slowly undid her clenched hand which she hadn't opened since a long time. Her fingers were sleek. Manik slowly knitted them with his own ones. Her warmth was faint but it was there. He sighed as he realized her blood was motile. She was just adamant on sleeping.

"Wake up," He murmured and then tightened his grip on her hand.

"I have a lot to say today. Would you listen?" He said almost choking. He didn't want to feel that weak ever. He didn't want to feel vulnerable. He had barred himself from feeling all those years and now it all was coming to null. He was melting and it was gonna rain so bad. She was changing everything.

"Open you eyes, Nandini," he pleaded. Something moved. He felt as if she replied. Her soft fingers moved a bit being caged into his hard ones. 
He kept looking at knot of their hands trying to absorb if she had moved or he was dreaming. He waited and she didn't try to play tiles of their knot again. He looked at her keenly literally begging her to open her eyes. 

_____________________________________

"Come here, Princess"

She giggled and swayed in her favorite case of arms in entire world. Little she was smiling as her father cradled her in arms. And then something pulled out the plug. He was disappearing and so did his giggles. She tried to hold everything but all of it got scattered and she couldn't hold a piece.

"Promise me you would survive"

Her mother's face flashed out of nowhere and she tried to hold that also. Her mother was going away and Nandini was just chained to something that she couldn't even run to stop her. Her mother's teary eyes and that broken smile got played like broken record until she felt this sharp pain in her head. Then it all started to lose. It all started to go away. Her vision got blurry and her mother disappeared in that blur.  

"Didn't I tell you, never turn your back on me" 

His words, yes, his words. Suddenly the pain was lessening. She turned around and saw him. He was standing right in front of her, dressed up in a white suit. He was smiling and there was a beautiful cascade behind him. "Manik" She called him and he smiled wider. She took a step towards him. Everything was so beautiful. But then his smile started to fade. He looked serious about something. "Manik" She called his name again but he started to retreat. He looked at her with this ache in his eyes and then stepped back. He was going away. She wanted to scream to stop him but nothing came out of her mouth. Pain in head was throbbing again. Then it moved to her chest. She tried to bear it but it was so tormenting. He was walking away. Those gunshots filled the air from nowhere and she flinched. She tried to run away but she couldn't move her feet. She was jammed to her place. Pain was becoming intolerable. 

Then there was someone calling her name.

"Nandini"

She tried to look around to find the source. 

"Wake up, Nandini"

She looked around but there was no one. 

"Open your eyes. It's just a bad dream"

Someone said and she tried to believe it. 

"Just try harder."

That voice again touched her ear and she closed her eyes. A pain crossed her head as she tried to open them again. It was too much to take. 

"Nandini"

Someone called again and this time she put her entire energy to open her eyes. With a loud gasp, she shot them open. A light so bright pained her eyes as she got exposed to it. There was a ceiling above. It took few blinks to realize that she was somewhere. She looked around and saw him. Manik was standing there as if breath had denied passing his lungs. There was a twinkle in his eyes but it was disappearing in pool which was building there. Then there was some man standing on other side. He seemed happy as she looked at him. Behind him was Aashi smiling with teary eyes. 

"You are fine."

That man said and checked her pulse. He must be some doctor. Nandini again looked at Manik but this time her head pained so bad a she quickly moved her neck.

"You had to come back"

He said and she just could look at those brimming eyes. 

_________________

Unedited*