N A N D I N I

After like so many days, the fangirl is back to her job. Having reached my apartment, I indulged myself in two back to back movies of Manik. Sometimes I laughed, sometimes screamed, sometimes fantasised whilst the rest of the time flashes of his soft black hair teased by the air on the cruise were bright in my mind. It indeed was a special night. Although sometimes he being a total ass misbehaved or threatened me with things that killed me for that moment but deep down in my heart, I knew he could never hurt anyone intentionally.

Switching the light off, I pulled the sheet over and stretched my body on bed with a smile that never faded away since the time he drove me home. This's reality.

Wow.

And after a long, reality felt better than dreams.

My thoughts came to a halt as a sudden yellow light peeped through my glassed window which seemed like a torchlight signalling something. The light was there for a fraction of seconds slitting the darkness and then vanished.

I kept focussing on the window in case the light again came into sight. My heavy lids closed as I was tired to the core but again the sharp twinkling of the light dazed me. Hurriedly, I switched the bedside lamp on and to my surprise so long the light inside my room was on, no other light keeked through. Pressing the home button of my phone, I realised it was 2:53am. Someone blinking a torchlight aiming at the ninth floor seemed strange. Maybe a mistake?

As I switched the light off, the torchlight again blinked disquieting me. Swiftly, I moved to the window and peeped but to my fluster, there's nothing. Not even a street dog.

Nonplussed, I slowly walked to my bed and sat down gaping straight at the thick curtain. I checked the time on my mobile again and realised fifteen minutes have passed. For a second, I heaved a breath of relief as within that duration, the light didn't reappear. I drank a little water to moisten the dryness in my throat and fixed the pillow back on my bed to lie down.

I lied down curling a lose strand in my finger when suddenly the light trespassed making my pulses race. For a second, I sat numb on bed but I knew I was alone and I had to deal with it. Licking my lips, I extended my shaky hands to remove the curtain and the moment I stood by the window, my senses flipped.

The car.

That same bloody car.

That black Range Rover.

I stepped back until my knee touched the edge of the bed and with a thud, I flopped on bed.

This meant that the murderer knew my address and that he was intentionally playing with my mind. He tried to terrify his prey and enjoy the cloud of terror he blinded my sky with.

He followed me?

Quickly stepping out of my trance, I switched the light on and checked the locks of my door. I came tiptoeing to my bed and sat down pulling my knees closer and needless to mention that how I was sweating and shaking. This was a nightmare which turned true. I measured my each breath as if someone would hear me. Palming my mouth, I exhaled slowly. I wanted to drink some water but the thought of walking up to the kitchen seemed suicidal. The room was filled with dense air where the pounding heartbeats of mine echoed making it worse.

I don't remember for how long I sat there coiled up fighting the demons that my own head was building up and slowly when it was early morning, my lids joined and my frame weakly strewed on the bed.

✾

The next day went quite untroubled which somehow was abnormal in my dictionary. The whole day there's no sign of Manik in the office as he's busy shooting. The day was quite thriving where I conducted successful meetings with the radio and fitness partners and after a long, talked my heart out with Harshad and Aaliya.

✾

"Nandini, are you leaving with me now?" Shunting the door, Aaliya asked inclining her upper body.

I glanced over my wristwatch and sussed it was already 9 but I still had quite some work to cap.

"Ah no I'll be working for some more time. You leave." I communicated.

"Alright then, I'm leaving. My brother's leaving, so have to drop him to the airport." She apprised.

"Surely. Say my hi to him. See you tomorrow." I smiled.

"Don't make it late. Cya." Smiling at me, she closed the door.

I totally was engrossed into the work not paying any heed to what time it was. Finally as I gazed at the watch, I sighed.

10:30 pm.

"15 more minutes and I'll be done." I murmured and picked up my bottle to quench my thirst but found it empty. Sighing in tiredness, I walked up to the water filter. While pouring the water I pressed my temples to wane the dull pain in my head as sitting for long before the computer system had taken a toll on my cells.

Capping the bottle I kept walking towards my desk when suddenly I heard a little sound in the office which was dead already with not a single peon even occupying the floor. The empty cubicles appeared ghastly. I discerned the light of Manik's cabin was on. A sudden warmness rushed my cheek as at the mention of his name, last night became vivid.

"Should I see him once? Once?" I convinced myself whereas my mind hoisted a clear NO board.

Sighing in dejection, I reached my desk but I jerked hearing a havoc sound coming from his cabin.

"Seeing from afar will do no harm." Blithely, I neared his cabin.

"Last night...." I muttered biting my lower lip hard. God knew why was I blushing so callously even without sighting his single glimpse.

"Jeez..."

Placing hand on my heart, I finally gathered the courage to face him and soon as I swung the door, I frowned.

"Adarsh?"

He was an editor working in the second floor but his presence there in Manik's cabin was inappropriate as nobody was authorised to enter the cabin when he wasn't around.

"Nandini, you?" He fretted.

My eyes landed on his hands tampering with sir's laptop.

"What are you doing here?" I asked sternly.

"Ahh umm...umm sir asked me to mail him certain details of our latest ongoing project." He stuttered.

"From sir's personal laptop?" I grilled, crossing arms across my chest and he nodded anxiously.

"Oh really? Let me see then." Smiling slyly, I advanced while he stepped back holding the laptop near his chest.

"Oh what, let me see?" I insisted but when he hid the laptop behind, the roots of my suspicion strengthened.

"Nan-Nandini it's...it's nothing much.." he fumbled.

"You were vandalising the property inside the laptop, weren't you?" I was narked.

"N-no. I was jus..." he sweated.

As I tried reaching out to the laptop, he smashed it on the floor and I gasped palming my mouth.

"Why did you do that?" I screeched.

Neither he miffed nor pacified and I was left with no other choice than to terrorise him with Manik's name.

From the landline of the cabin, I quickly dialled up Manik and as the call went ringing, the receiver unsparingly was snatched from my grip.

"How dare you dial Sir up?" He yelled and I gasped at his intensity as seconds back I saw the same man fumbling who with each passing second was turning cold and dark.

I pointed my finger at him "Shut up. Here you're destroying his things and on the top of that raising your voice? I need to tell sir about your intentions and let him decide." I tried to reach the telephone which hung from the table.

Holding my upper arm, he swiftly spun me around and before I could register anything, his fingers ripped the sleeve of my top mercilessly.

Although I was quick to back off but my brain somewhere still wasn't working fast enough to lodge the things inside.

I looked down at my ripped sleeve which unveiled my skin which by then had the red scratches of his nail and my soul shivered. As I gazed up at him, I found him hysterically smiling at my skin.

"How-how have you dared to..touch me?" I vexed as he crossed all the line of decency.

"Touch you? Nah, that can barely be called a touching but...I can show you what touching is like." His eyes examined me from tip to toe while I looked away in disgust covering my displayed skin.

"Don't you dare think that you can do whatever you want and get away with it. You don't know Nandini Murthy yet." My eyes were blood red as I warned him and could feel my entire body shaking out of anger as every cell inside boiled.

"That's what I want... To know you from cloooosee." He dramatised raising the level of my indignation. I understood whatever he was doing, was doing out of fear or maybe to cover up his mistake.

I parted my lips to intimidate him real bad up till I heard someone from the other side of the phone voicing 'hello?'.

It was Manik.

Even if Adarsh killed me still that wouldn't have stopped me from wanting Manik's good especially when Adarsh's gesticulation clearly revealed his ill intentions. Hurriedly as I attempted to hold the receiver, Adarsh kicked on my leg and my frame slumped on the floor sloshing my elbow gravely.

"Ouchhh... Are you mad? What's wrong with you?" I tried to stand up but the escalating torment seized my powers.

I slowly tried to drag myself till that hanging receiver but that beast stepped on my hand.

"Ahhhh" I cried in pain.

I howled.
I screamed.
I cried.
I punched his leg.

Sometimes I begged him to get off but all he did was stand there on my head enjoying my suffering while keeping the end of the receiver covered with his hand.

After like a thousands stars died, he stepped back and instantly I drew my hand back which bled.

"Are you even a human? Give me the phone, you swine." I tried laying my hand on the phone but he pushed me hard making my back dismally hurt against the wall.

"Why is this happening at all?" My heart worried.

"Adarsh, you piece of shit, give the phone back to me." I yelped soothing the soreness of my hand.

He laughed evilly at me for one last time and held the receiver in the air.

"Nandini! Nandini! Don't. Please don't do that. Nandini.. noooo.. that's Sir's important documents please don't destroy them. Please. What has gotten into you Nandini??" I was shocked. Shocked to the core seeing the flipping of sides. He was a psycho. A proper one.

"Adarsh, give me the phone back." I screamed while he kept throwing few files here and there faking all the vulnerability. He kept successfully pretending that I was the one trying to tamper with the property.

"Nandini... I've heard you talking to Aryaman over phone but pl-please don't forget that Manik sir gives us our livelihoods. You... can't backstab him, I beg you."

"What? What all are you saying? Why the hell are you lying?" I tried to grab the phone but he pushed me away.

"Nandini...Manik sir tr-trusts you. No... Not the laptop please." Picking up the broken screen of the laptop he smashed it hard sneering at my powerlessness.

I palmed my mouth not understanding the depth of his madness. The colour of insanity he coated himself with was savaging.

"Nandini hit me all you want...but please...please don't destroy the files of sir's dream project please." He faked a cry.

I froze there gawking him. He smiled dancing his brows.

Dream project?

Why did he do that?

He disconnected the call and stepped closer to me while I stood immersed in my thoughts staring at the blankness on floor. My eyes were fixed at the impossibility not staying aware of the lunatic around. Soon as I heard the crushing sound of glasses, I looked up and discovered, he slashed his forehead with a broken bottle.

"Adarsh, what's wrong with you? Are you....." I tried grabbing the bottle away whilst he hissed in pain as blood gushed out of his snagged skin.

He wheezed in pain holding his head but as I aimed to ease his pain, he shoved me away. My feet took steps back until it touched the wall and I swear my heartbeats were like thousands of horses galloping inside. My back gently touched the wall and the pain soared. There's no pain greater than helplessness when you know your inability can cost your loved one a million of heartbreaks and trust me it breaks you. More than any fear or pain, the pang in my chest raised because I couldn't save Manik's project.

"Why do I have to go through so much all alone?"

✾

It was 1 in the clock and I was still stuck in that room embracing my dense breath and void heart, the only difference being I wasn't alone in the room with that fucktard. Manik and Cabir were there in the middle of the night.

Gulping heavily, I dared to look at Manik who leaned on the table resting his butt and crossing his arms whom Adarsh coaxed to consider himself truthful.

"Sir, I just..wanted to save this company and I don't care if Nandini beats me up or kills me." Adarsh concluded while Manik hissed seeing the cut on his forehead which kept bleeding.

"Cabir, treat his wound." Manik directed and glowered me. I didn't know why every time proving the truth was the toughest.

"But what were you doing on the sixth floor?" Manik asked while Cabir kept healing Adarsh who stuttered a little whom I looked at with bloodshot eyes.

"Sir I.. umm the gents washroom on our floor wasn't working and thus I thought to avail umm avail the washroom of here since I had the barometric code of this floor." He breathed as Manik ducked his head. "And when I came here I heard Nandini conversing with Aryaman."

Manik's eyes shot up at Adarsh who stuttered further "I-I mean Aryaman sir." And Manik's nodded.

Whenever my eyes fell on Manik I found him glaring at me and I knew he was misunderstanding me like every time. He could see and buy Adarsh's fake story by considering his wound but how come never spared a look at my displayed cuts and sleeve?

What a male dominated earth it is!

"This girl caused such a ruckus in the office!" Cabir spat.

Staring rudely at me, Manik murmured "Such cause won't exist after today."

Manik sighed "I'm sorry on this behalf as things in my office should have been in my control. I'm sorry.. uh what's your name?"

"Sir, Adarsh." He informed.

"Yeah..Adarsh." Manik uttered and my heart felt like a crumpled paper.

"Murthy you...." Manik got interrupted by Cabir who commanded him to ask me about the telephonic call with Aryaman.

I was clueless.

"Cabir, I hope you remember who still is the boss here." Cabir lowered his eyes clutching the cotton ball tight and Manik gave me a menacing look.

He set his foot forward and I stepped back and tears begged to break free.

"Sir, I wouldn't like to say any-anything in my favour...because I'm fed up." I parted my lips to breathe in to prevent the tears from falling "No matter what I say, what I do..it'll hold no significance because you've made up your mind to distrust me. Only if you knew what in this life I've done to earn your trust. I w-won't say anything..." I sniffed "Because you'll never understand my honesty for you."

I expected his glare to subside a little showcasing his humanity but instead he rolled his eyes.

"Manik, you'll ask her and she'll obviously deny. So it's better to save the time, you just fire her right away." Cabir interposed. I failed to understand what have I done to earn so much of Cabir's hatred.

I stared back at Manik and although my tears clouded up my eyes, I still looked into those hazel orbs trying to know what my fate was.

"Manik, Aryaman and she-"

Cabir couldn't finish as Manik insouciantly splintered the paperweight on the floor slitting the air and silence and it quickly disintegrated causing the room to be filled with gasps.

"I. Still. Haven't. Finished. Why is it so hard to understand?" He gave Cabir a black look who was taken aback.

Manik wheeled around facing me but this time I wasn't scared but hurt. Why the trust of this man mattered to me the most when he himself never wanted to trust me?

Clenching his jaw, he took a step ahead standing at the distance of half a hand.

"Why? Why Murthy?" He pressed the words giving me a death glare.

"S-sir.." Adarsh interjected "Sh-she with a full proof plan ripped off her clothes when she.. she understood I was not ready to give her the files and your laptop. She teared the pap-papers into pieces." He added and Manik's eyes in the speed of light fell on the teared papers...the papers of his dream and he closed his eyes sighing a little, maybe to cage his inner monster.

When his eyes opened, it opened with bags of questions.. questions that he threw at me with his silence and detestation. Wish I could tell him how giving all my life I was willing to protect his but ironically, he was blind.

"This is the reason why I don't..." he nodded his head pressing his lips "trust people." His eyes were imminently pained. He felt betrayed.

My stomach churned and heart crashed making the pulses race as we all heard a cops' siren.

"Do we hear a siren?" Cabir asked "Manik, why are you creating such a big fuss, we could've simply thrown her out and solved this amidst these four walls and four people."

Louring at me, Manik mouthed "It is needed, Cabir. To let some people know what it is like to mess up with Manik Malhotra." His glaring hitched my breath.

I saw him glancing at those pieced papers with balled up fist. With ny eyes I begged Manik who refused to look at me clenching his jaw.

Cabir sighed "Well, that to some extent is correct as well. She needs to be taught a lesson."

Manik nodded laying his eyes on me. Walking past me, he seated on his leathered revolving chair and the room was still dim with that pale yellow light and daunting silence.

Resting his head back on the chair, he closed his eyes covering the bridge of his nose with fingers and oscillated the chair.

"Manik treated you so better, Nandini compared to the other staffs. Still..still you had to betray him?" Cabir abhorred and I nodded in a no.

Rapidly, I rushed to Manik whose eyes still were closed and knelt down before him whilst my tears flew down like a spring. All silent yet painful enough. Vulnerably, I touched his hand feebly which laid on the hand-rest but he didn't care to open his eyes.

"I'm not good at explaining myself, sir and.-and you're not at understanding.... I can't explain but I need you to believe me. I badly do." I cried lowering my head while his fingers slowly slipped from his forehead and his eyes reached me.

"Why?" He asked and looked down as my injured palm.

That same question.

Wasn't he affected by my misery a bit?

"Because I lo-" I bit my inner cheeks "because I want you to know that I never can betray you even if the world is falling apart. Even if God gives me one last chance to survive, I still won't betray you." My breaths got heavy because of my blocked nose.

"Mr.Malhotra?" One of the officers entered the room while Adarsh hiding from everyone passed me a 'poor you' nod.

I stared back at Manik with eyes full of hope...hope for a single ray of trust. I never begged before anyone but before him I seemed to lose my individuality and it costed me everything. I kept my heart at his feet who kicked the same with all his mind.

"Manik must've told you in detail and there's the offender." Cabir pointed at me and I closed my eyes.

And sighed.

I lost the battle.

"Cabir, I know you haven't studied law but I thought you at least know.. that a girl can't be arrested at this odd hour." Manik spat filling Cabir with confusion.

"Then why have you...." Cabir stitched his brows.

"Since the cops have come, the procedure will be completed." Manik pointed his finger at me and if eyes could ooze blood, my eyes would've.

He smirked.

Feebly his slender index finger flew from my side travelling to the other and it rested somewhere other than me. I was perplexed. Cabir knitted his brows as he saw Manik's finger moving away from me and it rested on Adarsh who happened to have lost his voice.

"Si-sir me?" He fumbled and Manik walked up to him.

"Sir that-that bitch...she kept giving me wrong signals from a long time back and when I refused her coy gestures..she took this drastic step. Girls like her can do anything for money and Aryaman sir offered her that-" His face revolved the other side as a shrill and sharp slap landed upon his cheek.

"Kid, what you're trying to do which can barely be called 'acting' is my profession which gives me my bread, butter and whiskey." He pulled Adarsh's collars "How have you dared to misbehave with my staff that too in my office? I want to chop your these fingers but I believe in the third degree that these people would be welcoming you with and trust me Aaa-darsh, I'll ruin you real bad. I don't know why you've done what you've done but soon I'll find it out." Manik shot daggers at Adarsh while Cabir took few steps back gasping for oxygen.

"Manik, are you crazy? Can't you see-" Cabir shuddered earning a threatening glare from Manik.

"Cabir, I might be bad. Very bad. But I'm not that blind to not realise what happened here. The moment I entered the room, I understood everything then only. Why can't you see that this girl-" he pointed at me "this girl's modesty can't be questioned. I'm ready to buy everything but not this shit that her character and honesty are for sale." Manik yelled and I refused to blink my eyes although my tears have dried leaving their stains behind.

I didn't lose?

Dropping his jaw, Cabir gawked Manik who pushed Adarsh to the cops directing them to to take him away who kept pleading to Cabir.

As my eyes fell on Cabir, I saw him surreptitiously assuring Adarsh with his hand. I frowned.

Soon as that psycho was dragged out, Cabir walked up to Manik.

"You're on a huge mistake, Manik. Without going for the proof, you got coaxed by her crocodile tears so easily? What happened to Manik Malhotra?" He criticised.

"Because I'm confident about her character and I need no proof to certify her honesty for me and this company. There are very few employees who I can't afford to lose for this company's good and she's one of them. If she could endanger her safety for my good, can't I payback by having little faith in her? That's not how we treat people who care for us, do we? That's not Manik Malhotra." The colour on Cabir's face faded and he scowled at me while stomping out of the room.

Not looking at my direction, Manik passed me his coat and as I stood there frozen staring at him, he cleared his voice.

Taking the coat, I stared back at him. I saw him walking out and swiftly I held his hand but hissed in pain as the roughness of his hand brushed my cuts. I blew some air to my wound and he gently took my hand in his brushing his thumb over the cut and looked back at me whilst I forgot the world in him.

"Why?" He asked again "why did you endure this when you had the option of saving yourself?"

I breathed looking at my hand in his.

"Because it was about you..." I stated and he swallowed shifting his eyes away.

"You're one absolute trouble seeker." He declared leaving my hand and reached the door.

I waited for his last glance and succeeded when he turned back gesturing me to make a move. And I blinked a yes.

Something changed as somewhere along the line he stopped and focused on me and my suffering.

He didn't say a proper thank you but I realised I fell harder for his indifference because that man was a diamond shining like that of a star.

A shining star.