"Nandini you had me worried." Manik's voice was heard through the phone as soon as I answered. His voice is full of concern. Damn, I feel bad. I haven't had anyone worrying about me except for my family and friends.

"I'm so sorry Manik I got busy talking with my parents and I totally forgot. So sorry."

I really feel bad for worrying him. Wait he was supposed to text me when he reached home as well, did he text me? He probably did. Not everyone is like you.

"It's not okay but I'll let it go this time. When someone tells you to message them when you reach, they mean it Nandini. Remember that next time. I'm not a very patient man and being worried is a feeling I don't tolerate well." His voice is stern. Damn, he's scolding me. I feel like a 10-year-old Nandini who did something bad and is getting scolded for it. When was the last time I was scolded?

"I said I'm sorry." I try my cute voice that always works on my dad and it probably worked on Manik too because I hear him sigh and then changing the subject.

"You should be tired. Go to sleep Murty. We'll talk tomorrow." I don't want him to hang up. I want to talk to him more but I also know he must be tired. He had back to back meetings until he came to see me.

"Okay bye. Goodnight."

"Goodnight Nandini."

I stare at Smurfy who is on my lap as I put my phone down on the bed.

"I guess it's just you and me buddy. What should we do now? Should we watch some Netflix?" I ask him as if he's going to answer me. I talk to my pet okay? It's normal. Sometimes he answers me with a bark.

Laying down with Smurfy, I turn on the tv and press on the Netflix icon with the remote. Before I could decide on what to watch, I feel the sudden urge to eat chips. Chips it is then.

I run downstairs to the kitchen, grab two packs of chips, and run back to my room. Food is the only thing that gets me running.

Laying back down, I decide on continuing watching The King. Korean men, I tell you, they are fvcking hot.

It's 12:55 when my phone buzzes. A text from Manik.

You looked really beautiful today. I forgot to say that.
M

I blush instantly. My eyes wander on top of the screen where I see more texts from him that I hadn't seen before.

I'm home. Did you reach safely?
M

Nandini I'm starting to get worried. Tell me you are home.
M

Nandini please respond to my calls or texts.
M

This is just making me feel more guilty. Shit, I really need to be more responsible. All the lectures of my mom come to my mind. I guess you were right mother.

I contemplate calling Manik. It's pretty late but after reading his texts, I really need to talk to him in order to feel less guilty. I need to know he is okay with me. That he is not mad.

Taking a deep breath, I call him. He answers pretty fast. I guess he was doing something on his phone.

"Hi." I hear his sweet voice.

"Hi. I hope I'm not disturbing you."

"You can never disturb me, Nandini. Why aren't you sleeping? It's 1:00 am."

"Why aren't you sleeping?"

"I believe I asked you a question first."

"Well I was watching a show and I didn't realize the time."

"Yeah, I can hear it in the background. Anyways, I was working on something so I didn't realize the time either."

"You work too much Manik". I say and unconsciously put chips in my mouth. Fvck. How will I talk to him with my mouth full of chips?

I hear him chuckle. He finds it amusing. Nice.

"Are you eating chips, Miss Murty? It's pretty late for that, no?"

I try to chew quickly and swallow the chips.

"Chips are meant to be eaten late at night. That reminds me, I should probably grab ice cream too. Great midnight snack Mr. Malhotra. I'm sure old people like you don't realize that."

How old is he? Isn't he 26? I might have to google it later just to double-check. He's basically 3 years older than me. Not bad.

"Old people, eh?" His voice is full of amusement.

"Do you have hearing issues too? Damn, must suck to be this old."

I hear him chuckle first and then it turns to full-on laughter. This is the first time I am hearing him laugh. He always chuckles. Wow Murty you managed to make Manik Malhotra laugh. Will that count as an accomplishment for my mom?

"I'm glad you find me funny Manik." I let him laugh for a little bit before speaking. Honestly, I didn't want to interrupt him. His laughter was a sound that I can hear for hours. Cheesy. Murty. Really cheesy. Navya would probably throw up if she heard me saying this but it's not a lie. I do find his laughter pretty mesmerizing.

"You really are something Nandini. Anyways you should go to sleep. It's pretty late. I'm going to bed too."

"Okay, goodnight."

"Goodnight Nandini."

And with that our conversation ended. Now I should probably go to sleep or maybe I should watch another episode and then go to sleep. Yeah, one last episode before I call it a night.

~~

The next day was very typical for both Manik and Nandini except for the occasional texts they exchanged while at work.

What Manik was feeling for Nandini was something very new to him. He was used to be distant from people. He didn't open up completely to anyone. But what surprised him was that he met Nandini just a few days ago and she already knows so much about him.

He doesn't realize the time with her. They could talk for hours without even realizing it. She sure was interesting and had his attention from the very first moment he saw her but being in love wasn't something he aspired in life or something he wanted at the moment.

He does like her but that's it. He doesn't want anything more than that. He can't be like those guys who fall in love and make stupid promises about being together till death do them apart.

Manik believed strongly that you can fall out of love even with someone you love endlessly because people change, feelings change, habits change, circumstances change, everything changes so why not love?

Maybe in the future, he'll feel something much stronger than attraction but he won't name it love. Certainly not, he thought.

His past experiences have taught him that he is not capable of love. He never felt love for any girl in his entire life. Attraction, sure, but not love. It was an unexplored feeling that Manik didn't think he'll get to experience.

Nandini, on the other hand, is the complete opposite of Manik. She grew up with love stories whether that is of fictional characters in books or of the people around her.

Her goals in life include falling in love and she certainly wants to check it off the list. In her past relationship with a guy, she didn't get to reach the love stage. The relationship ended way before she felt what is described as the most beautiful feeling in life.

Nandini was definitely attracted to Manik and she certainly can't deny that. Finding love in Manik would be a long journey and she was well aware of that. But it depends on her and Manik if they want to go on that adventure together.

If they do get married, somewhere down the years, they'll find their love story or so she hoped. Right now, Manik is still a stranger that she knew some details of.

She liked how caring he is. Growing up, she is used to being the one to take care of people whether that was taking care of Abhi, Navya, or the rest of her friends. She always had been the one who was responsible and caring. She was the mother of her friend group.

She was the person you could count on not drinking beyond her capabilities. The person to take care of you and drive you home or call uber for you. The person who would come over when you're sick and take care of you like a mother. The person to spend hours making your favorite food. The person who will plan your surprise party for your birthday just to make you happy. She was that person. She always has been.

So seeing Manik taking care of her was something new. The way he made her feel special every time they met, the way he looked at her like she was the most beautiful person on the planet, the way he treated her like a gentleman. All these instances were making her like him a little more each hour she spent talking to him.

Nandini's POV

I'm floating. I'm at the beach. I look around me, it's empty. Weird. Why is it empty? I don't like being alone. I'm scared. Fear is overwhelming me and I'm drowning. Help. Someone help. I'm suffocating. Nandini. I hear a voice. His voice. Manik. I'm not drowning anymore. I'm not at the beach. I see flowers. Flowers everywhere. I lay on the grass. I have flowers on me. I look up, I see a face. Manik. He's staring at me smiling. Hi, get up. We need to go. He grabs my hand and leads me towards a light. It's really bright. I shut my eyes momentarily, when I open them, we are more close. I'm about to see what is inside the light when I hear a really loud sound and suddenly I'm out of there. I'm more aware. It was a dream, I realize.

I open my eyes annoyed and turn off the alarm. Why is it even on? I'm not working today. Maybe I forgot to turn it off last night. Damn it Nandini.

I shut my eyes again, trying to sleep more. It's my day off. I have to sleep more, that's how a day off should be, sleeping more hours than working days. But my sleep is far gone. Annoyed, I get up and start my morning routine.

When I go downstairs, I see Abhi sitting on the dining table doing something on his ipad. He's probably answering his emails.

"Good morning Abhi." Startled by my voice he looks up. He probably didn't hear me coming down.

"Nanu. You scared me. Good morning."

"I'm sorry. You were too engrossed to hear me coming."

"I was just trying to answer some emails before I go to work. Anyway, what are your plans for today?"

I take a sit in front of him on the dining table and grab a banana to eat.

"Well until late afternoon I'm not doing anything. I'll probably watch Netflix after that I have to attend the reunion." I'm dreading it. Part of me wants to go but the other part of me wants to stay home. It's something out of my comfort zone so it's easy to just give in and stay home and make an excuse. But I don't want to do that. Staying in my comfort zone is not a habit I want to get used to.

"Reunion? Oh, right you told me about that. That would be fun. You will see so many classmates you haven't seen in years. I remember when I went on mine, it was so great."

Oh, Abhi I hope mine is like that too.

I smile at him and take another bite of my banana. Abhi leaves soon and I start eating the breakfast that was made for me.

After I'm done with my breakfast, I decide to text Manik.

Good morning Manik.
N

While waiting for his response, I decide to head back to my room. I smile at Smurfy who is playing with his toy. After he sees me, he grabs his ball in his mouth and throws it in front of my feet. He wants to play.

Grabbing the ball, I play with him for a little bit. He's so energetic. I hear my phone buzz. Manik's text.

Good morning Nandini. Are you ready for your reunion? I hope you remember that you can call me the moment you feel uncomfortable. I'll be around the area since I have a meeting nearby so give me a call and I'll be there within minutes.
M

I smile at his response. I wonder what my classmates would think when they see Manik Malhotra at the reunion to rescue me.

Don't worry. I'll give you a call when I feel like I don't want to be there anymore. I do hope for that to not happen though. I want to enjoy my time there. But we'll each other even if everything goes well, right Manik?
N

Of course Nandini. Just let me know when you finish with the reunion in that case. I gotta go. I have a meeting. I'll see you later. Try to be calm and trust yourself. You'll do great Nandini. I know you will.
M

I'm not too sure about that Malhotra but we'll see. This reunion will for sure be interesting.