Song of the chapter:

Bin Tere- I Hate Love Stories

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How unreasonable.

How selfish.

How irrational.

How rude.

I stood there, fuming at the silence that he had left behind in his wake, my mind a jumbled mess of warped thoughts that refused to untangle. The cogs of my brain refused to cooperate and it took me a long time to come to terms with what had just transpired.

We had fought. And he had left.

It was crushing and humiliating and I trembled as a choked sob escaped my lips. It had just been one day and we were in this sorry state. How long would we keep up this tug of war before both of us lost?

And more importantly, would we be able to last till the end?

The thought was terrifying and fell upon me as a cruel blow that left me shattered into pieces.

I would have collapsed under it had not what Aryaman had said flashed through my mind.

"He loves you. He really loves you."

"You can be mad at him or he can be mad at you, but you will still go back to him."

I clutched his words close to my heart like they were giving me precious life. They were a balm to my soul but the more I repeated them over and over again in my head, the more they pricked me.

You will still go back to him.

That 'still' annoyed me and as I glared at the blood strewn bandage on the floor that he had purposefully discarded to hurt me, I decided that I was going to flip those tables.

This time, this time, HE would come back to me.

It would hurt me immensely, more than I could ever imagine but if we were as strong as I knew we were, it was time both of us started meeting halfway.

Making up my mind, I fished out my phone from my pocket to see Alya's text still sitting there. I didn't know if doing this was hasty and impulsive of me but my emotions were ruling my actions stronger than my heart and before I could over think myself into pulling out, I typed out a text.

*Come & meet me. Will text you the address*

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"He lives here? Wow." Alya's eyes were wide as she took in the sight of the mansion from the window of her car and she turned to me as soon as I climbed in beside her, "The Malhotra's never surprise me."

Not me either. By now, I was used to Manik and his hot headed stubbornness but I hadn't really expected him to take it this far...

As our bitter spat churned in my mind, the details started corroding away in murky memory while all that was left behind was the festering anger.

What has he said about punching a steering wheel? I wasn't sure if Alya would appreciate that.

Speaking of her, she was currently giving me a weird look, one eyebrow raised in question.

"What?" Had she said something and I hadn't caught it?

"Nandini." She shook her head solemnly, leaving it at that while revving up the car and as we sped off into the distance, my frustration only increased at the pensive silence that stretched around us.

"Are you going to say something?" I demanded, thoroughly annoyed with the way she looked like there was a joke only she was privy to.

"Nothing." She smiled back, casually steering her way through the late night traffic, "Because I think you need some time alone with your thoughts."

No. That was the last thing I needed. Thinking about it would just be adding fuel to the fire.

"If that's the case, stop the car. I'm leaving." I snapped, irrationally taking out my anger on her but she seemed the least bothered.

"Chill!" She reached out her hand and caught mine in a reassuring grasp, "Leave and go where? Definitely not back to him."

Her tone was light but what she had said startled the wits out of me, and I looked at her alarmed and astonished. How? How did she know?

She read the question in my eyes and an amused smile curved up her lips, "The look on your face. Not hard to guess and if you're forgetting, I've been there, done that."

Done what?

Then it dawned on me and I had to bite my bottom lip to stop myself from screaming at the absolutely messed up and completely terrible situation.

I was hanging out with his ex-girlfriend.

Perfect. How perfect could this day get?

She must have easily seen the nauseated expression I was trying to hide for she again spoke in that highly amused yet empathetic voice, "Relax. We're friends. We can talk about this. It's okay."

No it's not okay. The last thing I wanted to do was discuss our fight with Alya of all people.

I sat there, my stomach twisting uncomfortably, not sure where to look or what to say, but unfortunately, Alya had no such qualms.

"And we should talk about this especially because whatever must have happened was because of us."

Her voice dipped in sadness and it took me a little while to catch on to what she was implying but when I did, I shook my head frantically.

Because of them? No. No. No. I hadn't even gotten along to telling him the truth about the replacement before we had already started blasting each other!

Our fight was about us. And because of us.

"No! It's not about that!" I told her, keeping the sorrow out of my voice. I didn't need her pity. I didn't need her interviewing me either.

She shot me a contemplative look but perhaps realizing that I wasn't going to divulge any more details, she turned away. Besides, we had already reached our destination and I couldn't have been more grateful for it when she pulled in to the parking lot of the Four Seasons, the hotel where the S.P.A.C.E. contingent was staying at.

Where I should have been staying at.

She jumped out, handing the keys to the valet and flashed me a wide smile, "We can make this a girl's night!" She said enthusiastically, leading the way and I wished I could share her happiness.

Instead, I glanced up at the towering, brightly illuminated hotel warily, already feeling like running far, far away from it. Everything felt so wrong, so empty...last night had been so beautiful. I wished I could go back to it.

"Nandini!" Alya's impatient voice sounded through the lobby and I plastered the most fake smile I owned on my face before I followed her inside. I certainly didn't do a good job of it because Alya's face fell sadly.

"Mukti?" I asked before she could broach any other topic and this was something I needed to know. I wasn't up for seeing Mukti anytime soon. Her feelings aside, what she had said had hurt me.

"Mukti and Maddy are out biking." She informed me and I couldn't help but show my surprise. Biking? There was something going on there and I didn't know whether to be happy about it or be extremely wary.

"Yeah." Even she looked cross at the idea, "That sort of stuff is not my thing! And they just left me alone! Even Aryaman is gone god knows where."

Oh, so that's the reason she was so excited about meeting me. Everyone's so selfish. Figures.

"It's not like that!" She amended quickly, realizing what I must have felt, "I really felt guilty about the way they behaved today and I want to make it up to you."

"Okay Alya." I sighed, exhausted, because what else do I say? Suddenly I felt so out of place from everything. Their life, his life, just being tossed around in between. What was I doing with my life?

We walked into the lavish suite on the 13th floor, that was booked for the Fab5 and here was the proof that Musicana was indeed an exceptionally grand affair this year. The room was bigger than my entire house, decorated in royal creams and reds, illuminated by an impressive chandelier that cast a soft glow on the antique, luxurious furniture. It was all so ostentatious that I wondered exactly how much money was riding on this competition.

Certainly a whole lot.

I was busy doing my mental calculations when Alya spoke up, "We missed you here yesterday."

Missed me in what? Deciding the ways you could blame me for the entire fiasco?

"I wish things would go back to normal soon." She continued and I had a feeling that she was more bothered about glorifying her own conscience than concerned about me, the thought had spiked in my mind before I realized that I had become way too judgmental and negative.

I kept quiet, placing my things on the bedside table. Not much, my phone, watch and purse. I hadn't brought anything from the mansion and I didn't feel the least bit guilty for leaving behind all the things he had made Sara buy for me. He could wear them himself for all I cared.

"Nandini." She began earnestly and I grimaced. Why was Alya still chewing this topic? Why won't anyone let me be at peace?! "Make yourself at home. Don't be upset I-''

"I'm not upset Alya!" I burst out, once and for all, how much patience could a normal human have? "And definitely not at you. I just...can we not talk about this? Please?!"

She swallowed consciously, surprised by the underlying command in my voice before her face brightened up and her excitement returned, "Okay! I'll distract you! Let's do something fun!"

Much better.

I couldn't have regretted my words more because Alya's idea of 'fun' included her modeling her entire shopping for me. If that hadn't gotten me freaked out, the reason why she had shopped this much was enough for me to almost drop the glass of water I had just picked up.

"Why are we going to Goa tomorrow?!" I screamed, my voice infused with all shades of panic.

"Are you living under a rock Nandini?!" Alya twirled in a red number that I hadn't even bothered to see properly, "Second stage of Musicana!"

No shit Sherlock. Oh god! I could feel all my brain cells die one by one as this sudden piece of information fried them completely. How had I missed this? And what...how... Every thought seemed to be spilling over everywhere, making no sense in between. Things were happening too fast! Too soon!

Couldn't anyone have at least prepared me for such bombshells?

As the minutes ticked by and Alya continued to spin and twirl, unbothered, I sat on the bed, chewing my finger nails into bits and pieces. The fact that this childhood habit of coping with paramount stress had come back was enough for me to know that shit had hit the fan now.

How had everything come down to this?!

I wished that I had an answer but all that stretched in front of me was a huge, black hole, ready to suck me into it.

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He turned up the keys in the ignition and as he pulled out of the driveway, his mind screamed at him for the zillionth time that this was a bad idea.

It was as bad as letting her go just like that.

But stopping her was injurious to his ego and so was following her. Besides, he was still mad at her for meeting up with the Fab5 behind his back so there was that. Not only had she been at a fork road he had never imagined her to be at, she had chosen the one option which would hurt him the most.

And over here he was doing everything he could to protect her from his vile father and if possible even more vile mother.

He shook his head, hands clenching hard on the steering wheel, the pain of the wound on his knuckles that he had opened again, serving as a reminder of what she had reduced him into.

A worried mess. A worried mess for her when she hadn't even bothered herself to make him her first priority.

So much for being apart for two months.

Perhaps that's why here he was, on his way to hunt Aryaman down to get her number. He mentally gagged at how pathetic that sounded but he guessed that this was the price you paid for burning your own previous cell phone.

But again, hadn't he done that to protect her?

Damn protecting her. It was a full time job. A job that he would do for the rest of his life.

Aryaman was the perfect choice. He had null emotional investment in him unlike the rest of the Fab5 and this was a splendid opportunity (and excuse) to have a little healthy chat with the boy to put him back in his place.

He had already strayed into Cabir's line and his girl's. It was time Manik marked his territory again. He had the audacity to hold her hand. The image of it was still burnt sharp and clear in his mind and if he hadn't been conflicted between who to be more mad at, her or him, Aryaman Khurrana would have been counting his last breaths right now.

He was asking for it and he was going to have zero regrets if this endeavor turned violent. Besides, he was itching for a punching bag anyway.

Finding him was so very easy; he was skeptical when he had pulled in through the gates of AMA and was about to turn around and track him down at the hotel instead but the moment he entered the lobby and heard the sound of drums reverberating through the practice room, he knew that he had made the right choice.

It's not always that you get the chance to replace the drummer of the best band in the country and when you do you make the most of it.

He opened the door to the practice hall and sure enough, there was Aryaman, drumming a steady rock beat, fast, strong and powerful that bounced off the walls, making the floor itself vibrate under his feet. He would be kind and rate him as good but he couldn't hold a candle to Cabir.

Even the thought of it caused his blood to burn and perhaps that was why when Aryaman moved to strike the cymbal, in a flash he wrapped his fingers around his drum stick, effectively stopping him from producing the music he didn't have a right on.

Aryaman swiveled around, eyes blown wide with mute terror. If he wasn't here for a specific thing, he would have taken a picture to laugh at later on.

"Manik?!" He had gone from bright red with shock to pale as a ghost with fear in nanoseconds.

"I'm so sorry to say it but that sucked." He said sarcastically as a way of greeting, putting on a faux sympathetic face. He wasn't being a jerk on purpose but who banned him from having a little fun with the eyebrow-man?

Aryaman sucked in a breath of offence, nostrils flaring and those were all the signs of an insecure, self doubting wannabe. How dare they replace Cabir with this amateur idiot?! You most often than not would go down fast if you didn't have enough confidence in your craft.

"Look Manik, I don't know what you're here for but I was just practicing and-''

"Oh shut up!" He rolled his eyes, snatching the drum sticks right from his hand for a good measure and Aryaman cried in protest. "I don't want to hear you talk as much as I don't want to hear you play."

Aryaman swallowed heavily, this time there was an edge of that classic downtrodden victim look in his eyes and Manik was reminded of all the reasons why he had disliked this guy before. Why did she always have to be friends with such classic pieces?!

"See mate, I know that both of us are not in the best position right now," He began thickly, each word monotonously slow, "But I didn't mean to-"

Enough. He had not planned for things to escalate so quickly but he was getting on his nerves and before he could stop himself, he had grabbed Aryaman by the collar, hoisting up the fearfully struggling boy,

"Didn't mean what?! Didn't mean to replace Cabir? Or...," Aryaman tried to violently free himself but he had nothing on him, 'Or didn't mean to get on with her?"

"What?!" He quit the struggling, dread taking over his features, stark and transparent and now he shook his head frantically, "Come on Manik! We're just friends! You know it! I never-''

"Thinking I'm a fool is the biggest mistake you will do Khurrana." He sneered as Aryaman continued to turn purple, his eyes rimmed with red, giving rest to any doubts he might have had. If he was so honest about his intentions, why so scared?

"She didn't get it then, she doesn't get it now." She was too simple, too kind. Too good for this world. Too good for him for god sake. She won't be able to recognize bad even if it knocked on her face.

And that's exactly why she always had to be friends with classic pieces like Aryaman.

"But I do." He leaned in and by now Aryaman was as white as a sheet, "So I don't know what you did for her in the past two months, don't want to know, whatever it is, you won't be doing it anymore."

"Manik!" He spluttered, 'We're friends! She knows it! In fact, I helped her to find you!"

This was news. A really unexpected news and he filed it away for future investigation but right now, right now Aryaman had provided another link that was further evidence that he was right. Helping her. Of course.

"Of course you did." He said faux appreciatively, "You helped her; you were her shoulder to cry on etc...etc..." He tightened his hold just a little bit more and enjoyed the way his bloody expressions were giving him all the proofs he could have asked for, "And of course you didn't want anything in return. That's so selfless, so kind of you! You deserve the Nobel prize!"

"Manik!" Aryaman mewled pathetically, 'Trust me...I don't...I don't think of her that way! And I won't ever!"

That was too easy. Damn! He wasn't even worthy enough to fight! Manik rolled his eyes, finally letting him go and the scrawny boy doubled over, theatrically messaging his throat that Manik hadn't even held in the first place. On second thoughts, he should have.

"That's right. You won't." He flashed him a wide smile before he dropped his voice into a low threat, "And if you do...well, I don't think I've to tell you that."

Aryaman glared back defiantly but didn't say a word more and Manik took it as the cue to get down to business because he really wasn't interested in spending a minute more than what was required in his presence. He fished out his phone and handed it to the boy, "Her number. Now."

He opened and closed his mouth like a goldfish, looking between his face and the phone like he had just handed him an object that belonged to the Stone Age and Manik was at the end of his patience.

"I do believe you know how to type."

That snapped him out of it and realizing that it was completely pointless to argue with Manik or to refuse him, he brought out his own phone and proceeded to punch down the digits.

"Thanks." He grinned when he mutely handed him the phone back. This was way easier than he had thought, "And cheer up because I don't say that often."

Aryaman's face fell harder than before and he chuckled at how ridiculously tragic he looked.

Seriously, messing with him was way too much fun. Why hadn't he done this before? Cabir would have...the thought never completed itself.

"Where's she?" Aryaman asked quietly, not meeting his eyes and Manik's laughter s subsided.

He raised an eyebrow in challenge, "I don't know. Maybe she's out shopping, maybe she went back to Mumbai or maybe she's back at my house. Point is, it's not your business."

"What did you do to her?"

That was crossing the line. He took two steps towards him and Aryaman immediately backed off and that was a great move because he was planning the best way in which he could shut him up for good.

"Friendly advice, stay in your lane Aryaman because next time I won't be as kind as I was." He hissed softly, making each word slow and crystal clear so that it won't have much difficulty in getting through his brain.

Aryaman nodded silently, his expression devoid of anything else.

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After waging an internal battle with myself for an entire hour, I finally plucked up my phone. I had switched it off after texting Alya; it was my irrational way of intentionally freaking him out. I turned it on with shaking fingers, bitterly wondering if he had tried to call me or text me...which was impossible since I knew he didn't have my number.

The notification tab was empty and that hurt me more than it should have. What was I expecting?

"Are you okay Nandini?!" Alya asked pausing in her strut down the imaginary ramp.

"I'm fine." No I wasn't.

My hand clutched the phone tightly, my anger getting the best of me and I had already imagined myself flinging it at the wall to abate some of the tension cording inside me when the device buzzed, disconcerting me.

*You could've at least said goodbye* An unknown number and I didn't have to guess at all to know it was him.

I sucked in a sharp breath, conflicted between being happy that he had contacted me god knows how and the fear of what he had done in order to do it.

*Did you care?* I typed back harshly.

*More than you did* The reply was instant and I snorted. What a...

*Really? Then what's my rank on your care list* I hit send, wishing I could also send a punch with it. Technology was useless.

*I know you went with Alya*

HOW!? I had to clamp my hand around my mouth to prevent myself from screaming that loudly. Did he have the entire mansion rigged up with CCTV cameras?! But then that explained how he knew about Aryaman...

He did! Monster Manik I'm going to kill you!

Goa seemed like a very good idea right now! I won't tolerate him observing me without my knowledge anymore!

*how do you know that?! ARE YOU KEEPING TABS ON ME*

I was literally fuming, the keys of my keypad bearing the brunt of my rage and because I wanted him to know exactly how mad I was, I scrolled through and added an angry emoticon to the message.

The reply was again instant and while I expected an extremely detailed and apologetic explanation, I was rewarded with a single emoticon of a camera.

Just a camera.

The nerve.

I would have never dared to say it, if I hadn't had this feeling that he was probably laughing on the other end but I responded with a picture of screw along with a finger pointed at him.

Screw you. Serves him right.

*I know you would love to* He had the audacity to send a winking smiley.

Absolutely done with his crap and blushing when I most certainly shouldn't be, I raked my brain for an appropriate comeback, my exasperation only rising when I hit an absolute dead end. Determined to not let him have the last word even through a text message, I scrolled through my emoticons once again and settled on a snake and hit send.

What did people use a snake emoji for anyway? For people like Manik Malhotra.

My phone pinged immediately and my jaw dropped at his choice, a whale.

That's enough, ignoring the voice inside me that screamed how childish, I rushed to update the app so that I would have the choicest of emoticons in my arsenal.

For the next one hour, both of us were locked in a heated emoji battle that could put world wars to shame and never had I laughed this much despite being so angry. From the most insulting to the most ridiculous we had used each and every emoji for each other that had ever existed. I wasn't going to back out and I wasn't going to let him one up me. No ways.

By the time, my cell's battery was a tiny red line at the bottom, Alya had already gone to sleep and as the light started to slowly die on my screen, I sent one last emoticon that I had reserved.

That red monster.

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It was the D-day. I woke up with a ringing headache that just seemed to perfectly mark the disasters that I knew were going to strike today.

Alya was already skipping around the room, all dressed up and putting finishing touches to her make up, all the while humming a cheery tune that just made me feel worse.

"Rise n' shine!" She called out, capping her lip stick when she spotted me scowling at her through the mirror.

"We've to leave in a few minutes. Others are meeting us straight at the hangar." She informed me brightly and I tried to swallow the bile in my throat, she didn't know. No one knew this.

I always knew this was going to happen but I had never thought it would be so soon and now that the daunting prospect waited right around the corner, ready to pounce on me, I felt sweat coat my palms and my breathing became shaky.

We hadn't even reached there and I was already freaking out.

"Hangar?" I choked, "Why aren't we going to the airport?"

No helicopters. Please no helicopters. A plane would do but no helicopters.

So here's the thing, I was absolutely, completely, irrationally but still overwhelmingly scared, afraid and freaking terrified of flying. The thought of trusting a machine to carry me more than a few thousand feet up in the air, having no solid ground in sight and trusting another piece of cloth to carry me down to safety if anything went horribly wrong, was a thought that made me sick in my stomach.

Birds were supposed to fly. Not humans or we would have been born with wings.

For a student of science, this was utterly disgraceful of me but then just because you knew how a nuclear reactor worked doesn't mean you would put yourself in it right?

'Naah....I personally hate choppers. We're taking a jet." How could Alya be so excited about this? Didn't she value her life? "Nandini?"

She was looking at me worriedly and I saw in the mirror that my face had gone chalk white. I composed myself with great difficulty, I didn't want to be a drama queen, and I would rather face my fear in silence rather than making a big deal out of it.

"Why?" I asked in a whisper before quickly amending my question, "I mean, why we can't go by road?" I was grasping at straws here. I didn't want to do this. I didn't want to do this at all.

"Dude, it saves time!" She looked at me like she was teaching me the alphabets, "Why are you so worried about flying? You should be more worried about who we are flying with!"

Wait, what?

"What?!"

"The first three finalists and their teams." She said grimly and I felt my heart plummet to the floor, "I guess I don't have to say anything more."

She didn't. She really didn't. I squeezed my eyes shut as I imagined what a nightmare this was going to be and my hands immediately went up to clutch my forehead as the list of people who were probably going to be a part of this deadly concoction ran through my mind, with three entities standing out clear.

Manik, Fab5 and Harshad.

"Who did this?" I demanded, my anxiety getting the most of me and my voice came out high pitched and panicked. I was shaking, blood thundering in my veins and and all wanted to know was whose brilliant idea was this so I could go ahead and strangle that person.

"AMA." She informed me but I detected the doubt on her face, "Though I'm not sure, I just got the mail late at night."

I had a really good guess and I hoped for his sake that I was wrong.

"But it doesn't really matter. It's an order. We've to do it." The perkiness was back in her voice and I just knew that Alya wasn't as appalled by the idea as I was. Hadn't she realized it yet that the jet we would get into was actually a time bomb that could explode any second?

She hadn't.

"Get ready!" She announced merrily and all I wanted to do was flop back into the bed and never, ever get up again.

In dismay I grabbed my phone from charge and saw a message sitting in my tab.

It was from him.

Right below that monster, there was a star.

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Strong gusts of dusty wind whipped my face and the sun beat down upon us harshly, the air so dry and hot that trickles of sweat ran down my temples and I already regretted leaving my long tresses open.

I already regretted everything.

The open airfield stretched for miles, beyond what my eye could see and I stood in front of the large corrugated hangar that housed inside its lofty metal walls, the mean machine which was going to be our ride to Goa.

A sleek white plane, a Boeing Business Jet 2, powered by CFM56-7 engines, named as The Hawk, rested majestically inside, being tended to by technicians. It boasted of covering an astounding 6616 miles at a go with a top speed of Mach 0.82, equipped with state of the art Honeywall digital avionics system and a luxurious customized configuration inside.

Of course all this was Greek and Latin to me, and I was the least interested in finding out, Maddy had been kind enough to provide the information and excited enough for me to understand that this was a big deal.

Him, Aryaman and Dhruv were already fawning over it. Boys.

I cared the least about the said jet; all that was of significance was the giant, imposing 'M' embossed proudly on its rear tail.

If I had any doubts before, all were laid to rest.

He was going to die at my hands today.

Provided he bothered to show up anytime soon.

"Nandini, he'll come. Relax." Alya called out from her perch on one of the seats in the waiting area, "And get inside! It's hot!"

I turned around to look at her; she had her hat and sunglasses in place while she chatted away excitedly with Navya, who noticed my gaze and sent me a cheerful wave. I returned it half heartedly.

Was I the only one not sharing the enthusiasm?

She was right though. I should've joined her in the shade but here I was, standing under the bright sun with my patience under severe strain.

He was being fashionably late to his own execution, of course, or was it Sara holding him up? God forbid if he showed up with Sara, I will seriously -

"This is cool isn't it!" Mukti's voice floated through the air, breaking my train of thought and I pretended to be more engrossed in observing the tarmac than what she had to say.

Things between us were weird and I didn't know where we stood. Same was the case with the rest of them, Dhruv didn't meet my eyes, Maddy was his usual arrogant, cocky self but surprisingly even Aryaman was avoiding me for some reason.

I had brushed it aside for the moment because I had faith that he would sooner or later tell me what was wrong. Right now, bigger issues loomed ahead of me.

'This year's Musicana is seriously a joy ride!" Mukti chuckled, 'If I ever find the person who suggested this, I'm taking him out to party!"

Oh no, that said person is currently pissed at you and would probably pour that vodka on your hair at the party.

"Someone at AMA probably." Alya answered with a non committal shrug and I mentally face palmed. Was I the only one with eyes over here? How had they all missed that 'M' that basically stood for, 'Property of the Malhotra's.'

"Nandini, what do you think?!" Alya asked in an effort to include me in on their conversation and I face palmed for real this time. She and Navya had been doing this ever since we had arrived at the airfield, trying to get me me to talk to Mukti and vice versa. I never held grudges and I didn't have any bad feelings towards Mukti anymore but I was seriously irked by the way everyone always expected me to be the mature one and to always produce the olive branch.

Yes, 2 months had indeed toughened me up.

I rummaged through my brain for an appropriate response but thankfully, I was saved from answering when the raucous clanging of metal on metal coming from the iron gates of the hangar being opened rang through the air and everything in the field came to a standstill.

A polished black car zoomed inside, the low hum of the engine breaking the pregnant silence for a while till it parked to a stop barely a few yards away from me.

A spiky penciled heel hit the ground, followed by a tall striking girl that I knew all too well. I didn't even have it in me to feel shocked anymore; I had turned numb to the core, turned into an outsider, merely a participant of a hilariously painful drama show that I didn't want to be a part of.

He didn't.

But he did. He really did. Lying to myself was no defense when reality was unfolding right in front of me.

He followed straight after, dressed in a leather jacket with cool black shades on his eyes and his hair mussed up in all directions. A sickening pit of jealousy opened up in my stomach when I registered just how perfect they looked. Sara complimented him in her short black skater dress, biker boots and shades and together they looked like they had just stepped out of a high end glossy magazine's photoshoot.

My hands curled into fists by my side and it felt like I was burning up from the inside while my heart was torn between the denial that he went this far and an all consuming jealousy and fury that he did.

It took all my efforts, even though it seemed like my heart was splintering in my ribcage, I mustered up everything that I had and fixed him with a look as ferocious as the sun scorching the field we stood on.

Don't you dare hide behind those shades.

There wasn't even any question of hiding, for he didn't even look at me. He had swiveled around and I followed his gaze to see another man stepping out of the car and if I was brutally stunned before, I was nastily tasered now.

Prof. Raghuvir.

What was he doing with him?!

My heart refused to cooperate with my mind to allow me to think rationally. It thudded and pounded in my chest with fear, hurt or anger I wasn't sure. Dizziness settled in, along with the burn in the corner of my eyes and I wished I had heeded my own advice and never, ever had turned up here just to be made into a fool.

Raghuvir said something to Manik and I watched through a red haze as he leaned in to whisper into Sara's ear. She nodded with a smile on her painted lips and I had really seen enough.

Without sparing anyone a single glance, the three of them royally stalked into the pilot's office at the far end of the hangar and I was left there, unable to come to terms with what had transpired.

After what seemed like ages, Navya's voice broke through through my conscious and even it seemed to be coming from far away, desperately weaving its way through the daze that had descended on my mind, "Nandini! Nandini?!"

I jerked out of the stupor that I had plunged into and turned in the direction of her voice, only to see Alya and Navya standing there, giving me a sympathetic look.

"Huh?"

"Nandini." Alya said patiently, giving me a reassuring smile, "Come on, let's get going. We leave in 20 minutes."

20 minutes.

The number rested like a piece of glass inside my stomach

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I took deep breaths to steady myself and looked at my reflection in the ladies room of the hangar. I looked like a mess, my hair was stuck to my face with sweat, my eyes were rimmed red and my cheeks were drained of all colour.

Instantly regretting allowing anyone or any situation to mess with my mental peace like this, I hurriedly splashed water on my face. Feeling much better and refreshed already, I decided that I had had enough of hiding and silently suffering.

It was time to get my dues.

I tied up my hair into a high ponytail, letting a few tendrils lose and reapplied my lip balm. Plain and simple, just how I liked it. Very much satisfied with my appearance, I felt ready to face this tragedy of a day.

And we hadn't even got on to the flying part.

I shuddered and took deep breaths. I can do this.

I kept chanting such seemingly pointless motivational sentences in my head like mantras giving me life.

When I walked out, I couldn't see anyone around and I figured that they all had already left to board. Speaking of which, I could see the giant jet parked on the tarmac merely a few yards away, glistening in the sun and I gulped fear down my throat.

I would have to do this alone.

I signed quietly to myself, letting those thoughts slip away for a while because that challenge could still wait.

I had a monster to tackle first and I wasn't setting foot on that machine till I shot a few bullets through him.

It didn't take long to spot him. He stood on the tarmac a few feet away from the wing, talking animatedly to a young man in a crisp, immaculate uniform.

Without thinking much about being rude, I strode towards him, gathering up all my courage and anger with every step, "Manik!"

Both of them stopped and whirled around to look at me but I didn't let my gaze falter from him. As I approached them, I noticed that the person with him was quite good looking, with cropped black hair, a straight jaw line, complimented by a pleasant, friendly smile on his face.

"Your girl Manik?" He asked casually, appraising me from head to toe and my jaw dropped.

"No" Manik shook his head just as nonchalantly, throwing me a smirk, "She's just someone I fight with."

Cheeks burning with equal parts embarrassment and fury, I glowered at him with all my might, "Keep this up and I'll show you exactly what a fight is."

"Oohhh," The guy in the uniform wiggled his eyebrows suggestively while Manik raised one eyebrow at me in challenge, "She's got spunk."

The sentence or the compliment as he had intended it to be, dropped between us like a bomb.

It all happened too fast, Manik's jaw clenched and the next second I knew, his fingers covered my wrists and I was hauled into him, his arm wrapping around my waist, protectively possessively.

"Everything she's got is only for me Khanna." I gaped at him in shock. Cold fury glittered in his eyes as he towered over the guy menacingly, a warning, a threat and a fierce claim that had to be reckoned with.

"Tough luck."

"Calm down!" The guy laughed heartily and I breathed a sigh of relief that at least this wasn't going to descend into a fight even though I didn't know what the hell was going on and who he was in the first place.

"I was just kidding. But she is pretty....sorry, sorry." He amended his sentence when Manik shot him a scathing look and rolled his eyes, "By the way, I'm Anuj Khanna. Sincerely, your pilot."

He extended a hand at me for a shake and I glanced between it and Manik warily. He was scowling like a sulky little child throwing a nasty tantrum and I had to suppress a giggle.

You fight with me so bad and then get jealous when someone compliments me? Wow.

I was no less.

"Nandini Murthy!" I gave him my brightest sunshine smile and loved it when Manik's hold on my waist tightened and I could positively feel him burning up.

"Pleasure to meet you!" I gave my hand into his and gasped with amused surprise when he raised it to his lips for a kiss.

"Khanna you'll-" Manik began with clenched teeth but he never got to finish for he had already started jogging away.

"See you on board girl! And you too Hulk!" He called out chuckling uproariously while he gave me a bow and ran off, leaving behind a seething Manik and a laughing me.

"Your face." I pointed up at him and doubled over in laughter. He really looked like he had swallowed a whole lemon and he was as green and as angry as the Hulk. Oh god. I was really liking the pilot's sense of humour.

"What was that!" He rounded on me, fingers digging into the skin of my arms as he roughly pulled me up to his chest.

"That!" I looked innocently in the direction in which Khanna had gone, "I was just being polite to the pilot. In case you forgot, he's responsible for keeping us alive today."

I informed him smartly, seriously loving the way I was beating him at his own game and his scowl deepened, eyes throwing daggers.

"Of course." He grinded his teeth, "He was freaking hitting on you but no! Being nice to everyone except me is your birth right!"

I couldn't believe him. He had the nerve didn't he! After everything, he expected me to be nice.

I gave him a death stare, outraged, "You want nice? Fine!" I grabbed his arm, dragging him with me all the way across the tarmac, till we reached the back of the hangar and I pushed him up against the channeled wall.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" He fumed the moment I had him cornered against the wall and the veins on his forehead popped as his eyes blazed, this was a crash of fire and fire.

"What the hell is wrong with you!" I snarled back with equal force. If we were going to have a showdown, then I might as well unleash everything that I was dying to say,

"What is this?!" I demanded, gesturing towards the expanse of the airfield that surrounded us in miles.

He deadpanned, "Don't be ridiculous. A for airplane. That was in nursery."

"Shut up Manik!" Why was he being so infuriating? If all this was to purposefully drive me mad then he was definitely succeeding, "You own it! You planned this! Are you crazy? Why would you-"

Before I knew it, he caught my arm, spinning me around till my back slammed against the wall and then his body pressed against mine, trapping me between the spiky metal and his hard, smooth muscle. I could feel the beat of his heart pulsing against mine and the warmth of his skin seeped in between, heating me up more than the unforgiving sun above us.

No I couldn't! I couldn't have him overpowering my senses like this when I wanted to be mad at him. I made a move to escape but he slapped his palm against the wall beside me and I knew I was immutably locked, my body under him and my heart under his searing intense gaze.

"Tell me," He took his time, his warm breath fanning my face, the words rolling off of him in a lazy drawl, "If I hadn't done this, would you've come with me?"

Iron bands grasped my chest in a tight hold and I was suddenly finding it hard to breathe. Yes, I would go anywhere with you, that would have been my answer, that should have been my answer but those nightmare of a few months had changed a lot. They had dragged me straight in between a rock and a hard place, no escape, just pain, "Manik..." My voice came out in a hoarse whisper, 'I know...I...how can I just abandon everything? Abandon them?"

This. This was what I was struggling with ever since he had come back to my life. What was I supposed to do? Pretend that the 2 months without him hadn't happened? Pretend that the life I had lived, the life that I had made without him didn't exist? Pretend that the people who he stood against today were my friends now?

How selfish would that make me?

"You can't abandon the people who abandoned me." He stressed, his lips curved into a mocking grin and the underlying hurt in there caused a pang to my heart, "Seriously, how? This World Welfare centre...how do you run it?"

Why? Why did he always jump to either one of the extremes! In his books, if I cared about them, I didn't care about him and that was an unalterable fact. He wanted me all to himself or not at all. Aiyappa! How do I make him understand?!

''It's not like that!" I pleaded, begged for him to understand but something told me that there was a huge wound there and it couldn't be healed so easily. But what would I do if he didn't even let me try?

'Manik...I just want it all to go back to how it was! The Fab5! You and us! That's all I want!"

I hadn't realized it but in my agitation, my palms had come to rest on his chest and I could feel sparks fly from where my skin touched his, the desire to embrace him, to give in to his arms was so immense and powerful that I trembled under its intensity.

He closed his eyes at my touch, breathing in deeply, "It's too late for that." The emotion in that one sentence was unfathomable but it felt like finality, "The Fab5 doesn't exist. It died that day with..." He choked, unable to finish that sentence and I sucked in a sharp breath, my heart aching with the heavy insurmountable weight that was placed upon it. A weight that I shared with him and a weight that would be our companion for the rest of our lives.

Cabir.

Would I ever be able to fill that hole of his loss?

Let me heal you Manik. Let me at least try. But how would I be able to do it if you keep pushing me away? If you keep hurting me in return?

"You get it now?!" He spat, anger crawling back into his brown eyes, "I'm not going to forgive them! Stop trying to make me!"

This is where he got absolutely unreasonable! Did he think that they didn't mourn Cabir? That they weren't as hurt as he was?

"You know what?!" I ranted, knowing that I was being hard on him but someone had to do it, "You think that you're the only one who deserves a chance! No one else!"

"And you think that all things wrong in your perfect little world are because of me!"

Round and round, we could go on like this for hours and each turn on that carousel would descend us into deeper pits of hell, 'If you're going to be stubborn then I'm done."

I tried to leave my confines yet again but before I could, his hand went down to my waist, firmly pulling me closer till he held me prisoner against his body, "Stubborn huh?" He asked, yanking me even closer and this time I gasped as I connected with him, feeling the entire expanse of his hard body pressing into me causing my cheeks to flame a blazing red and I was so thankful for dragging us both into a secluded corner.

I would die of mortification if anyone saw how he was so capable of reducing me into a fine pile of mush, senses scattered everywhere with a measly agonizing contact of skin on skin.

"After everything you'll still go back to them and I'm stubborn?" His voice was husk dripped into molten honey but his words coated me with hot lava, "Even if it hurts me."

He caught a wayward tendril of my hair that had dared to escape my ponytail and I cursed it to seven hells when he leisurely spun it around his finger and gently tucked it behind my ear, reducing my breathing into a harsh, uncontrolled mess.

I knew what he was doing! He was such a-

"Yes, I will go back, I've to! I'm their manager!" I asserted steadily and I was the least bit surprised when he didn't look shocked by the revelation. Sara. Of course.

'And hurt you?!" I goaded him on purpose, if we were warring then I refused to back down, "Says you who came here with Sara knowing that would hurt me!"

Dammit!

I regretted the words as soon as they irrationally flew out of my mouth for they were a massive chink in my armour. He couldn't know that Sara's presence with him affected me! Ugh Nandini! I chided myself, I was supposed to have put on an unperturbed front and here I had foolishly exposed my own green spot of jealousy.

His eyes danced with amusement and a triumphant smirk was curving up his lips as my fists curled up, in annoyance at myself and anger at him and I had to control the urge of punching that smugness out of him.

'Well, she's my manager!" He unleashed that weapon, unexpectedly, casually and the air was knocked out of my lungs like I had been hit by a speeding train. A violent scream ripped up my throat but it died somewhere under the blanket of shock that settled around me.

His manager?

"Jealous?" He asked, leaning in closer till inches remained between our lips and I hated him so much at that moment, enough for our proximity to cause me unexplainable pain. I wanted him closer as a proof that he was mine no matter what and as far away from me as possible for hurting me this way.

"In your dreams hulk!" I snapped savagely, not giving him the satisfaction of seeing how much this piece of news had affected me. I doused it under as much anger as I could and I had enough of it anyways. My blood was literally boiling with the urge to either strangle him or that Sara.

"And let me go!" I commanded, looking at him square in the eye. I couldn't remember the last time he had driven me up the wall like this but the frantic rush of blood in my veins and the maddening thud of my heart was all too familiar for me to know that this was always going to be us.

"In your dreams Nandu!" He echoed me and the fact that he had deliberately used that pet name was enough to cause my head to explode. If that wasn't enough, he reasserted his statement by tightening the hold on my waist, hard enough for me to be pushed further into him yet soft enough to not bruise. I yelped, my arm wrapping around his neck instinctively and he sighed softly when my action only resulted in his face being even more closer to me, his lips, a few tantalizing inches away from mine.

"Why?" He whispered and I screwed my eyes shut, not being able to bear looking at his devastatingly handsome face anymore with those chocolate brown eyes, churning a vast range of emotions I couldn't even begin to comprehend.

"This is what you do to me and this is what I do to you." He continued and every word seemed to ignite a living flame over every inch of my skin, "Then why do you still seem miles away?"

My breath hitched in my throat and my fingers fisted in his hair, the hurt in my heart clamouring for some sort of release, some sort of relief that only he could provide.

"I'm right here Manik." My voice broke, drowning under his fierce gaze, the moment we were locked into seeming to stretch across infinity and beyond. My heart beat much slower, a cool calm replacing the fire chasing in my veins and this was the feeling that came just before coming home, when you were tired, when all paths traveled were despair and all that that you had was the hope that beyond the door of home, laid all the comfort and happiness you ever wanted.

Kiss me. Close that distance. Meet me halfway.

He smiled and I shut my eyes close, waiting for the impact of his lips on mine which would mean the end and a new beginning, the missing piece of a beautiful puzzle that would complete itself in a heartbeat, which would be the key to the lock of secrets that I had carried around for two months now and I was tired, which would mean both of us healing each other into something stronger, better.

It never came.

I waited.

I waited and his lips brushed across my cheek, a slight ghosting caress that imprinted itself on the skin it rested, perhaps, for forever and my eyes shot wide open. I felt his lips tease the sensitive flesh of my ear lobe and I trembled gently as he spoke in a low voice,

"Happy Journey."

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A/N: I never wanted to do this but the response was really low on the previous chapter and that made me wonder if you guys don't like the story anymore? If that's the case then please let me know so that I can improve. Silent readers never bothered me before but it kind of hurts when you write such big chapters (I don't mean to brag) but you guys won't give any feedback.

Anyways, hope you let me know how you found this update! And yes, I'm on vacation now, so updates would be more frequent and your response would help! One more thing, I have published the 2nd One Shot in my book "One Shots" if you would like to check it out! Would mean a lot!

Thanks for reading!

P.S.

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