Keep faith in me.

~ • ~

N A N D I N I

"Manik!"

"Manik!", I called another time and he finally turned his head to me, leaving the girl he was talking to.

I squared my eyes at the girl. Long, gorgeous hair. Milky white skin. Mini dress. Pretty face. Just like that Soha!

"Hi, I am Nandini." I introduced myself to her, shaking her hand, "Manik's girlfriend!".

Just as she heard girlfriend, the smile on her face faded.

"Hi. I am Soha!" She smiled and it was my turn for the smile to fade away.

"Soha?" I asked in shock.

"Yes, Soha Khurrana!" She smiled and my mouth almost opened. "And Manik, tumne bataya nahi you had a girlfriend. I thought I had a chance!" She laughed, hitting his bicep and Manik also laughed with her.

I turned Manik towards me, my eyes darting into his.

"Can I talk to you for a moment Nandini?" He said, fake smiling as he held my arm and dragged me out, away from the business meet.

"Nandini! Why the fuck did you introduce yourself as my girlfriend?" He questioned.

"Because I am?" I mocked rolling my eyes and he seemed more pissed.

"Yes, you are. But we are at a business meet, and you weren't supposed to say that. Or were you?" He barked, his eyes knitting.

"Yes I shouldn't have, so that you continue flirting with that Soha who thinks you're single, right?" I scowled.

"Flirt? Flirt my foot. I just laughed with her, and look at you getting so hyper as if mein uske saath bhaag raha hu. I was normally talking to her Nandini!" He shouted and tears welled in my eyes.

"Out of all the beautiful butterflies, you chose a girl named Soha!" I whispered, my voice breaking.

"Come on Nandini! Not all girls are Soha Kapoor right? She is Soha Khurrana, she... she is different!" He said, smiling by the end.

"Different!" I sighed in disbelief. "I'm sorry I disturbed your 'talking and laughing' session and introduced myself as your girlfriend so that she would stop throwing herself at you Manik Malhotra!" I snapped back.

"She wasn't throwing herself at me Nandini. You're over reacting. And about that girlfriend thing, I think this is suffocating. Matlab, ek ladki ke saath baat kya kar liya, I get that 'I have a girlfriend' tag on me!" He snapped and I drank away those arousing tears.

"Aur agar tum yeh karo toh no problem right? I can't talk to any other guy, even if it is for business purpose. You can do what you like, and that's not suffocating. But if I do something, it suffocates you!" I shouted back in disbelief.

"Nandini, I don't want to argue about this please. I do that because you're naïve, tumhe nahi samajhta if someone's actually playing you! I understand those games more, and all I was trying was to protect you. I never meant to suffocate you that way!" He said. Finally, we were back to talking and not shouting atleast.

"So you mean I am naïve. And you're toh expert in playing games right?" I spat in anger and he nodded ferociously.

"Then how did you get played by Soha, haa?" I barked back, blinded by anger as his face fell pale but his eyes darkened.

The frowns from his face disappeared and creases appeared on his forehead as his eye brows knitted and his eyes turned dark. His hands held me by my arms, the nails digging inside my skin as his anger poured in.

"Don't ever use my past against me!" He said in a whisper like silence between the thunderstorm as he pushed me away from himself.

"I'm done with you Nandini Murthy, go!" He said in a dangerously husky voice that sent whispers down my spine.

Monsters exist, and nobody knows this better than me.

"Manik Malhotra, I am done with you!" I shouted looking back into his eyes and he left out a laugh.

"You, you are done with me? May I know why!" He said laughing sarcastically.

"Because I am tired Manik. I want to fight with you by my side, I don't want to side against you. I am tired handling those mood swings you throw on me. I'm tired being bossed around. Nothing changes the fact that I love you Manik, but I love who you are. I like you when you're all possessive over me and all, when you protect me. But everything in a limit. The fact that I'm not even allowed to look at any other guy while you can 'laugh' with them suffocates me!" I shouted pushing him apart.

"I love you, I repeat. But this love is getting too much to handle now. I don't know if I can do this forever or not. It's as if I'm caged, as if I have no more independence of mine!" I shouted back, pouring my heart out.

"You mean I have caged you. I boss you around, my love is suffocating you?" He whispered. His face looked drained of all colours and so did mine.

We were tired, but we didn't know of what. We just needed space, we needed a break.

"Maybe!" I replied after a long pause.

He left out a laugh, which sounded more like a sarcastic mock.

"So, this is it then?" He laughed dryly. I shut my eyes tightly. These were the words I never wanted to hear.

I was sick. This was supposed to be love. This was supposed to be forever. I had dreamt of getting married to him, of travelling with him, raising dogs, having kids, building our own vacation home, grow old with him. He was my hamesha.

Was it the end of us?

I opened my eyes to look at him. He stood there calmly, straight, no emotions on his face. As if it didn't effect him at all, as if he didn't care about us at all.

"He's just a player"
"He messes around with girls"

"Manik!" I whispered. Maybe just one other try to make us work.

"Yes Miss. Murthy!" He snapped back, smiling at me. I looked away in disgust, there was no point talking to him. The monster was back.

"Are you a new slut?"
"Are you just a bedwarmer for Manik Malhotra?"

"It's over!" I shouted on his face gritting my teeth.

"Woah. That was quicker than I thought, Murthy. Finally, I wouldn't have to flirt chup-chupke. I'm a free bird now!" He laughed and I shut my eyes tighter.

This was not my Manik. This was not the man who was so possessive about me, who can't even bear a single scratch on me. He isn't the man with whom I have been with a year, with whom I have so many beautiful memories, with whom I have learnt how to play guitar, who's kissed me under the stars, who's taken me to the best dates, who's loved me under the open sky, who's made me wear the promise ring lingering on my finger. He can put the entire world on fire, but make sure not even a single flame touches me.

This is the monster, the monster Manik. He can put not only this world, but even the parallel world on fire, and makes sure that the first flame starts from me.

"You're free from this Manik! And so am I!" I smiled weakly at him and he whistled, not caring at all as he picked up his coat.

Not even for once he saw the tears in my eyes, or the unspoken words in my smiles as he picked up his coat and went back into the business party, to flirt with his Soha.

My eyes filled with tears just as much as I didn't want it to. I was in a business party, and I couldn't afford being a crying mess here.

Wiping my face with my hands, I pulled my dress down. It was small, that hardly covered my thighs as I made my way outside, on the footpath. Even footpath was a safer place to cry then near those socialites.

Just as I reached a little isolated area,I covered my hands with my face and I cried my heart out.

"I am a monster, I will push you into darkness. I am the darkness people are scared of, I am the monster that will destroy you and you wouldn't even come to know"

"I might fall in love with you, princess; but you will never be able to stand my love. My love is worse then my hate, my love is poison, a poison that will kill you, that will push you into an abyss; no one can save you from this, not even me myself"

Maybe I And Manik were never destined to be. Maybe, this was all what our destiny wanted.

So small happened to be our forever, isn't it, Manik?

Just when I thought I was drowning in that pain, a comfortable hand supported my shoulders and jerked out of my thoughts.

"Mr. Saxena?" I asked in shock.

"It's Harshad. And such ugly tears, do not suit a beautiful girl like you!" He smiled as he sat besides me, his thumb roughly wiping the tears on my cheek and I politely pulled myself behind.

"Nandini. I wouldn't interrupt, but I'd just like to say sorry. I don't know mujhe kya ho gaya tha in that café, I had lost it totally-....." he started but I stopped him.

"Harshad!" I shouted. "It's okay, please!" I weakly smiled.

My life was already a mess, my mind following a thousand different thoughts and all I wanted to do at this moment is to think about Harshada's proposal.

"So, someone broke the beautiful lady's heart, isn't it?" He smiled and I weakly smiled back at him, nodding positively.

"Well, Nandini, zindagi aisi hi hoti hai. I don't know what it is, or who it was who's made you cry this way. But everything that happens in life has a reason, it either wants to give you a chance to move on, or to realise someone's worth. But if it is someone who's hurt you, don't forget, life is about new beginnings, second chances, and falling in love. Maybe not every end is a happy ending, but that doesn't mean it doesn't lead to another beautiful start!" He whispered.

Each word he spoke was deep and I was drowning in it. I had forgotten the pain my heart had, giving new hopes. Somewhere, the cracked heart was happy, knowing light was entering inside.

I genuinely smiled at him and he smiled looking at me smile as his hand gently held mine, entwining our hands together.

Other wise, I would have minded it. But today, he was the light on a dark day, he was the hope I wanted.

His hand cupped my cheek as he looked into my eyes trying to pull me further, as his lips leaned upon mine and it rained over head.

Manik is a player, and I was just another girl who got played around.

I closed my eyes as his lips irked to mine, his breath all over my face.

A broken end is always a new beginning.

M A N I K' S P O V

A broken heart aches much more than a body on fire.

"Love doesn't exist. Love is marriage, and marriage is suffocation...", my mother's words echoed in my ears.

One.
Two.
Three.

"Then how did you get played by Soha, haa?"

Four.
Five.

"Manik Malhotra, I am done with you!"

Six.
Seven.
Eight.
Nine.

"But this love is getting too much to handle now. I don't know if I can do this for ever or not. It's as if I'm caged, as if I have no more independence of mine!"

Ten.
Eleven.

"MANIK!" A shout stopped my hands in its place as a pair of hands encircled my neck.

"You've already had more than ten shots. You're highly drunk Manik! Please stop!" Someone's sweet voice made its way to me.

Everything around me was blurred and I could understand nothing except that it was someone house and I was at the house-bar.

"Please Stop Manik!"

Stop this. Stop that. Stop everything. I am done with everyone in my life.

I got up but I couldn't walk more than a step as I stumbled and I fell somewhere, upon someone. Everything was rotating, and I was upon a bed, or maybe a couch.

"Nandini!" I whispered pulling that girl closer.

"Soha!" She corrected. As if I care.

Her hands were all over me as my hungry lips lingered over her neck, but the continuous knack to stop there ran in my mind.

"It's over, Manik Malhotra!"

I couldn't figure anything as I lifted her dress and pulled her upon me, my lips over her skin.

It is now officially over, Nandini Murthy.

~every relation is a book. There comes a time when you have to chose between turning the page and writing a new chapter, or closing the book altogether~

~ • ~

• cheating on someone is the worst punishment you can ever give, no matter what their mistake is •

~•~