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Y

o Yo Honey Singh.. Raat ko hoga hungama jab chamkega Chanda Mama.. Suit boot ko goli maaro pehenko aa jao pajama.

I am currently on my way to school and this song is playing on the radio. Today, I will again be sitting on the seat nearest to the window and keep staring at the most beautiful face in the world- Manik's.

As I reached, I noticed that Manik's seat was unoccupied which was quite unusual. I sat at my place and kept looking at the door. Feeling a little weight on my right shoulder, I turned back only to see Navya keeping her head on my shoulder as if it's a headrest.

She being the only one who knows all my deepest secrets, didn't say anything and just continued to look at the door.

Manik entered, with wait a minute, with Soha! Their hands were interlinked together as if they were walking into a party or something.

I felt a pang of jealousy seeing both of them together. My knuckles turned white as I put immense pressure on my palms with my nails trying to supress the rage within. They aren't dating, I know. Perhaps, it's pretty normal for friends to walk like that. Maybe.

Manik's face was void of any emotions as if he were one of those stones from the Easter Island. Cabir and Dhruv followed close behind them as if they were their bodyguards. Yeah, that's how it felt.

The class began but my whole attention was on them. Manik was looking at the board and Soha was looking at... Harshad?

Isn't Harshad in Manik's bad books?She is sitting with Manik and also looking at Harshad. Or should I say, ogling?

Wierd Girl.

Well, Harshad has recently taken admission in SPACE Academy, I guess just a day after Aryamann. He is a decent looking guy with almost a height of Manik's maybe a few inches shorter.

Manik is perfect in everything.

Just in the span of some six days, Manik and Harshad had had some serious conflicts and they definitely don't like each other.

Whatever. I think I should just focus on what the teacher is saying.

Yo! Finally school is over. As usual we didn't talk in school but what is strange is that I saw Navya talking to that Soha. Maybe she found a new friend in her. But that doesn't matter anyways, I am her soul sister.

I didn't get a chance to bid Navya bye and I really regret that. She is my Luv Guru but in the last moment the professor called her. Therefore, we didn't get to talk.

Today I cant wait to get to tuition. He will be there. I am going to confess today. Uff just the thought of me confessing to him is giving me jittery feelings.

Waiting is something I despise but kya karu hayee pyaar ka intezaar to karna padega.

Nowadays, him being 20 minutes late is normal. I still don't know what he does. I mean he is a guy, how much time does it require to wear a simple jeans and t-shirt?

He made his entry looking ever so dashing. He sat beside me and started talking the usual things. I opened my mouth to say those three magical words but nothing came out.

I tried two more times, but no luck. It was as if my throat had choked.

"Hey are you okay? Do you wanna go home or something?" he asked with so much of concern in his voice that it worked as a boost for me and I finally said what I hadn't planned to say.

"I like you," wait what am I even saying? These aren't the three magical words. I just screwed it.

Am I even ready to say those words? Till now I was pretty much sure but I think I should just go with the flow. I like you will do for now. Anyways I don't feel like a confession depends upon those three words. It should be pure and coming straight from the heart.

"I really like you Manik. Your smile, your laugh, the way your eyes shine when you talk to me, it's all so appealing. I have tried, tried a lot to see you just like a friend and nothing more but my heart just doesn't agree with my mind. Your heart, it's so pure that I sometimes envy you for having such a selfless heart and that you can do anything to make your loved ones smile. I want to get included in that 'Loved Ones' Manik. I could keep on talking about you but I have to ask you this now."

"Are you willing to give this relationship a chance?" my heart was pounding inside my chest and I was finding it difficult to breathe as Manik had gone completely hushed. I certainly didn't expect this kind of reaction from him though I can't predict anything as long as he doesn't give his reply.

After like 4 minutes he finally decided to speak up."I am," I jumped in joy. Then he again said,"But we will keep this a secret okay?"

"But why?" I was very confused. It wasn't like he was scared of something or somebody. Was he?

"Arre in the school if anyone comes to know about us then maybe the teachers will also be informed and then we will get blacklisted. I toh am not good in studies but you are. It will affect you."

The reason was okay okay but he said it so fast that it actually took me some seconds to register what he actually meant. Wonder what happened to him.

"Hmm okay. So are we good?" I asked looking straight into his hazel brown orbs. "Totally," he replied rather plainly.

"Thank god it went smooth," I muttered as I was walking back to my house after waving a bye at Manik.

As I reached home, I slid my hand into my pocket to pull out my mobile but it wasn't there.

"Oho wo to charging pe hai," I didn't take my phone to tuition today as it was dead. I went straight towards the charging point to unplug my phone.

It displayed 15 missed calls from Navya and 1 message.

Call me back ASAP.

What the hell happened now? Aiyyapa ek second ki shanti nhi hai mere jeevan mei.

I called her back and she picked it up in the third ring. Before I could even say 'hello', she started talking,"Nandu where the hell were you? I called you 15 fucking times. Are you on the line?"

"Hello to you too Navya," I said and I guess it pissed Navya more.

"Bloody hell Nandini. Tell me you didn't confess. Tell me..," she was behaving super weird. Why would I not? After all she was the one who encouraged me!

"Shh Navya listen to me. I did doit–" Before I could say something else, she started with her yelling again, "Navya calm down will you? Or else I ain't telling you anything."

"What did he say?" she asked sounding much calmer now.

"The answer's yes sissy," I said it with a lot of enthusiasm, after all I was sharing this with my best friend.

"Fucker."

"Hey Navya, you are talking about my boyfriend better mind your tongue," I said slightly offended at her choice of words.

"Ohoo memsaheb jiss boyfriend ke baare mei aap baat kar rhe ho na... Pata hai usne kiya kya hai?" she said but I found it rather sarcastic.

"Kya kiya hai?" I asked back with full on confidence as I had a lot of trust in Manik. He would never do anything to let me down.

"He already has a girlfriend. Damn it!"

"What?" I literally choked on the water I was sipping. This is too much!

"Yes Nandu he already has a girlfriend and–" she was saying something but I cut her off.

"Navya I think there is some misunderstanding. Manik would never do that to me. You know right I asked him just 7 days back whether he is in a relationship or not. He clearly said no. Besides I have full faith on him," I said with fear laced in my voice. I could already sense a lump forming in my throat because as much trust I had on Manik, I could never deny the fact that in my priority list, Navya topped and she would never misguide me with such news.

"Nan-Nandu listen to me, don't get emotional. Just tell me did he say something after he said yes to you," she said in order to take me out of the trauma.

"He said that he wants to keep our relationship a secret," My voice trembled as I doubted what I said was even audible to Navya or not.

Suddenly it came all rushing back to me. When I had first asked him did he have a girlfriend or not and at first he had uttered, 'You know?' but I had royally ignored that and maybe that is why he was coming a bit too late in the tuition. And the fact that he wanted to keep our relationship a secret was doing nothing but just confirming my doubts further.

Navya's voice broke my chain of thoughts,"Hey you still there?"

"Yeah yeah. Who is it?"

"Who is what?"

"Who the fuck is his girlfriend and how do you know it?" I literally screamed into the microphone of my phone. It was getting hard for me.

"It's.. it's Soha. See I told you. Otherwise why would he want to keep your and his relationship a secret?" she asked me but the only thing in my mind was if Manik and Soha were already in a relationship, then why would they hide it?

I asked her,"How the hell do you know everything and I don't know anything?"

"Nothing actually a dumbass and a Majnu helped me in this. You remember today I was talking to that Soha, she was talking non-stop and I was regretting my idea to talk to her because I had a doubt about Manik and Soha today morning when I saw both of them entering together but I was not sure so I couldn't tell you anything. While talking to her I said something which instigated her to spill the beans."

"What did you say?" I asked scared to listen to the truth.

"I said that see Sana is so beautiful and you know her boyfriend is so macho and good looking. So sad that you are also beautiful but alas you don't have one," she said with a small sarcastic laugh.

"She made a bad face and said that even she has a boyfriend but they are in a secret relationship. I probed further and found out that the guy happens to be none other than our Manik."

"And you believed her just like that? You know she is such an opportunist and can lie straight on your face," I stated in disbelief.

"No my jaan. After talking to her I knew I couldn't believe her completely and had to confirm the piece of information which I had got. Luckily, today my Aashiq Awara Cabir came to me and was flirting like he always does and even I responded for the first time which took him by surprise. I built up a conversation with him and asked about Manik and Soha. He seemed to hesitate but on my continuous insistence he also confirmed that they were in a secret relationship. He is a very close friend of Manik and thus, it confirmed all my doubts."

She finally finished and I could literally feel and hear my heart break into pieces. The pain I was undergoing was so strong that the phone slipped from my hands and landed on the bed on which I was sitting. But I couldn't let my friend hanging just like that so I picked the phone again. She asked whether she needed to come over at my place but I politely denied.

"Thanks," is the last thing I said before cutting the call.

I slept thinking about all the events that happened today which practically changed my way of looking at the world in a mere twenty four hours. I decided to seek all the answers to my questions from Manik. Tomorrow.

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2092 Words

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Edited.

Published On- 3/11/2019