~Its Been Long~

Home.

Home is where you're happy. Home is where your heart resides.

This four letter word is capable of bringing back so many memories to our minds. Memories that were stored in our hearts, memories that always remain.

But right now, in this moment, I don't feel like being here. Home is not here for me. Home is what I left behind, and I'm never going to go back there.

Born in India, I shifted to America, Fourteen years after my birth. My parents were starting up a new business and at that time there seemed the best place for a new start to them. I never wanted to leave India and go to a completely different place.

My friends were here, my heart was here.

It was not easy to leave my home build a new world somewhere else for myself but I had no choice.

Five years after, I'm back to where I left from. But again, leaving the place I had accepted and made my own wasn't any easier.

It was so difficult to make new friends and adjust in a new world there and I finally succeeded in doing that but maybe that was just a temporary settlement. I had to shift back to India. My parent's business didn't do much well there, so they decided to shift back. I wasn't much happy about it because I had accepted those people and that place as my own but like always, I had no other choice. I know five years isn't much of a long span but it seems like a lot is changed and I have no option other than embracing the new things.

So here I am.

In India. At home.

My parents didn't come with me. Dad said he had some work things left to take care of and my mom decided to stay back with him. So its just me here.

Standing outside the big house with locked gates, I look around the entire place.

Nothing seems to have changed. Not a dirt mark, not a broken window, not a sign of scrapped off paint. Every thing is just as we had left it.

Before leaving, my father gave the spare keys of our house to our neighbor, Malhotra Uncle. The entire way back here I was wondering if they still lived here or not because Malhotra Uncle was an Army man. He had to travel a lot back then but looking at the condition of my house, I think he's still around.

I take the keys from my pockets and open up the tall gates. Entering inside, I pull my bags with so much efforts into our garden and walk out towards our neighbour's place. I just had this urge to check if he is in there or not. It had been five years since we had talked. Five years since I had seen him, heard him, touched him. My bestfriend.. Manik.

As I stand in front of their house, I find the gates locked. I feel a bit disappointed inside.

Maybe they don't live here anymore.

But as I am about to turn around and leave I see someone move on the other side of the gates.

"Excuse me?" I call out.

A figure arrives in front of my eyes. Its a watchman.

"Yes ma'am?" He says.

"Um, hello. Does Mr. Malhotra live here?" I ask.

"He doesn't live here anymore.. he just visits sometimes." He says to me.

"Oh, okay." I smile half heartedly and walk back to my own house.

I dread cleaning. I never keep my room clean, its always messed up and I like it that way. I find it easier to locate my stuff in a messy room than in an organised place. It's just.. easier. And just the thought of having to clean the entire house up from the inside, drowns my heart.

Well, just because it was nicely maintained from the outside doesn't really give me any hopes of it being livable on the inside. It's been locked for years now, it has to have spider webs, and dirt all around the place.

Preparing my mind for torturous cleaning, I open the doors and enter inside, dragging and pulling my heavy luggage along when suddenly my phone rings.

Knowing who it would be, I pick the call immediately.

"Nandu, are you home?" I hear my mother say.

"Yes, maa, I'm home." I close the door. Much to my surprise, the hallway looks not so dirty. No webs. No spiders. No dirt. Giving no more thought to it I walk towards the living room.

"Good. Lock the doors properly." She commands but concern laces her tone.

"I just did." I say.

"Nandu, please take care of yourself and don't wander off at nights. I have asked your..." and her voice just doesn't reach my ears for a second when I notice the living room that I had expected to be covered in sheets and full of dust, clean. The sofas look just how we left them, the floor is free of dirt.

"Mom, why is the house so clean?" I interrupt, happy but puzzled at the same time.

"Oh, I forgot to tell you.. Your father took care of it."

"How?"

"He never mentioned. Just said he got it covered. And I didn't ask further questions because you know he doesn't like to be questioned a lot." I nod in agreement.

Though my father isn't much of a strict person but he seems to get irritated easily. A trait which I have perfect inherited from him.

"I'm sure he did. We have a lot of family here anyway." I shrug.

"Yes. Your father relates to how cleaning up feels like to you," she chuckles, "so he got it done for you."

A smile forms over my lips and I heave out a breath of relief, "Thank god!" I plop down on the sofa, with my arms and legs spread out to different directions, "I thought I'd have to clean it all up after such a long journey.. I think I'm having jet lag right now." I press my head between my palms.

"You can sleep the entire day today, tomorrow go and get yourself enrolled in the college."

Yes. College. I am obviously going to be studying in a college. I didn't want to go to a college though. Dance school was more like my idea because dance is my life, but dad gave it to me loud and clear that I had to be going to a college alongside my dance academy. So he got this one covered too. I was going to study in one of the best colleges of Delhi University. Of course I got to atleast choose the subject of my choice, so English Honors was that I picked.

But all my smile wears off when my mom continues, "Navya will also come by tomorrow evening.."

"Wait, what?" I interrupt her. "Navya?" I scrunch my nose at the mention of one of the many persons that tops the charts of my 'most disliked human being ever created' list.

"Yes, Navya.. I just told you about it. She will be living with you until we come back there.."

"Mom! I don't like her!" I sit up straight, "And I'm 19 years old, an adult, capable enough to take care of myself for just a month!" I whine into the phone.

"Nandini, she's going to be staying with you, no arguments. You're 19 years old but we're still paying your phone bills and you still live in our house. Tell that to me when you live on your own." She says putting on a fake commanding tone.

"I didn't know this wasn't my house" I counter back, "I think I'd better go live in a hotel maybe.."

"Okay, fine. But you're going to pay the bills for that." My mom says and I know she's smiling all this while.

"Ugh! Mom! Navya is very irritating! I don't like her..!"

"You have to like her for a month because there's no one else over there and we need to be at peace every night before sleeping, knowing that our daughter is safe and is not alone."

There she has a point.

Ugh. Do this for them Nandini. Invite the trouble.

Closing my eyes tight and cursing my stars I finally agree with my mom.

I don't like my cousin Navya. There's no particular reason besides the fact that she was a pure form of Satan for me back then. And I don't think she has changed.

"And oh, I forgot.. Manik." She pauses.

Here goes my poor heart.

My heart pounds. It starts beating for more than 72 times a minute and this is lethal. I can die any moment.

"Manik is there.. he lives next door, I can trust him completely, so I'm no more tensed." She says feeling relieved but putting me in a state of such... such... I can't even find words.

A few seconds later, or what felt to me like hours later, I find my senses. "Who Manik?"

"Nandini.." My mom says in a playful 'I know it all' tone, "Manik Malhotra. The exact guy who you've had hots for since forever."

And now I lose my senses again, "Oh, my god. Mom, you can ever say "hots for" ever in life! I'm your daughter for god's sake! Like.. like.." I'm breathless and wordless and everything-less right now.

I hear her laugh, "Nandini, I sure saw you a couple of times gazing at his pictures on Facebook." Okay, so what? Do you not look at the pictures of your bestfriend? Even though he is not talking to you? Is it too bad to not let your ego ruin something so amazing?

"God, MOM! You stalked me?!"

Oh, my God. This is so embarrassing.

"You ought to do certain things when you have a beautiful teenage daughter growing all up.." she chuckles.

Even my mom knows about the huge crush I've had on this guy since I was ten. Like TEN. Seriously, TEN! Or maybe younger.

Back then he used to like me too. But My "like" for him prolonged way too long and I don't think his ever did because not once in these years has he tried to contact me. I don't know what changed but I sure am planning on getting to the root of it.

I'm not in 'like' with Manik anymore, bit I sure still am in love with my bestfriend, even though he kept us apart.

"Mom, I'm going to talk to you later now.. I think my jet lag is increasing at the rate of every word you say per nanosecond." I heave a breath, my knees still shaking a bit. It's a miracle I'm not yet turned from solid to liquid.

"Okay okay," she laughs, "but he's going to be there sweetie, I think, if they still live there. Why don't you give them a visit?"

"Maybe later, mom."

"I think I can trust those people to take care of you, you guys were bestfriends after all." She continues.

"Mom. I can take care of myself. Plus I don't know if he really still is my bestfriend or not because a lot had changed over the years." My smiles fades away.

"There must be a reason for that.." she says getting the hint.

"Mom, there is no reason for not even calling up once or hell even taking my calls when I do so. I don't even know where I went wrong."

"But you are still holding on to your friendship.. no matter what, at least that is one thing you are holding on to." She states knowing it all.

I hold back my words for sometime, contemplating on whether to agree or disagree with her. But I realise there is not point in doing so because she is my mom and she knows everything already.

"I am, mom. For some weird reason, I am." There is silence for about a minute until I speak up. "Mom, did.. did something happen that you may know of?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean something.. five years ago.. did something happen that I am unaware of and that may have caused Manik to distance himself from me?"

I don't hear her say anything after this for a long minute.

"Nandini, Manik is a smart guy.. I'm sure he may have an suitable explanation for you about this but I do not know what happened that he decided to break his friendship off with you." Mom says.

"But mom how can you still trust him? We don't know if he's the same anymore. I mean, he practically broke all contacts with us since the day we left." I question.

I myself have been wondering about this a lot.

How do I know how that person is now? I haven't seen him for five years, what if he's nothing like what my bestfriend used to be.

"I don't know, sweety. I guess you just have to keep faith and give it a try." My mother replies.

And I guess she's right. That's what I had planned on.

I will give it a shot, but only one.

"Okay Nandu, I've got to rush baby, It's almost dinner time here.. and dad will be home any minute. Bye baby, Love you. Take care and stay safe!"

"Always, mom. Bye, Love you." and the next second, I hang up.

My mom has never really been much of a typical mom to me. Well, yeah, she has but she's always been more of a sister I never had. She always knew things even though I tried my level best to hide it from her. I have always talked to her as I would have to my sister, if I had one.

She always seems to have solutions to all my problems but probably the solution to this problem resided with just one person walking on this planet. And I await his arrival into my life.

But at the same time, my heart flutters too.

The thought of being able to see him again in five years, to listen to his voice again in five years, to feel how it feels to be around him again in five damn years leaves me shuddering in excitement from head to toe. I can feel the goosebumps rise on my skin.

No matter how much I hoped not to see him again, I can never deny the excitement there always was in that tiny part of my heart that still belongs to him. He was always there with me because even though he never talked to me after I boarded that flight five years ago, I always hoped he would. I still do. I wouldn't let go of something so precious to me without putting up a fight.

All these years I have kept my ego in the trash when it came to Manik and for one last time, I am ready to throw my already wounded ego back into the trash can. But just this one last time.

We were crazy teenagers but this thing that I had with him.. that friendship.. it just kept growing even without his presence. Growing into something unknown, something scary but exciting at the same time.

Almost five years later now..I still feel the same way about him. I could never let go without knowing the reason behind all of this.

He was my neighbour. My first friend ever. A year older to me. We were best friends but I knew I liked him. Everyone knew we liked each other. But well, we were just kids.. We promised we would talk everyday and video chat and always stay connected but that little prick never called me again. And when I called him, no one ever answered. My dad said he had lost contact with the Malhotra's and I couldn't contact him.

He never called me, or even accepted my friend request on Facebook. I typed long angry messages to him and also that I was damn pissed and I missed my bestfriend but I got ignored all along. That day I had thought I would never talk to him ever again. That I would forget I ever had a best friend named Manik but I couldn't. So I held on. I held on for the day when I return back and ask him everything. If he can provide me with something that explains all those five years, then I think there still is hope.

But what if he moved on?

What if whatever we were was just teenage trash for him?

What if he is over our friendship?

I will know. Soon enough.

I have questions and I hope he has my answers because its been long.

------

Finally, I post.

It's been long!! And I've been busy with life and exams and I still will be busy with exams for another year or so but I will post! I will try at least :p

And here goes the first chapter to another Manik-Nandini love story. (Ignore the errors please.)

Aren't you all over them now? Should I change the character names or still the die-hard fans of the duo breathe on this earth? Lol.

Like always, your feedback is needed. Do drop comments and loads of hearts and also, share!

Sealed fate has 207k reads to it, omg! Its amazing! Thank you for the tremendous response to it guys!

936 followers, you guys make me happy with those reads and comments and hearts! Keep doing that❤

Bbye! Take care!

P.S: I need a cover! If anyone knows how

23/08/2016