"It's technically our third kiss" Cabir said as they entered the parking lot. "Kaise?" she asked innocently. "Pehle tumne kiss kiya aur dusri baar maine kiss kiya" Cabir said. "We shouldn't count on them humare memories kuch khaas nahi hai unke saath" Navya remembered how they fought over their kisses. "It's okay" Cabir patted her back. "Hum kaha jaa rahe hai?" Navya asked as Cabir asked he to join. "Tumhara ek baap ne permission tho diya, dusre set of parents se bhi no objection certificate leni hai na, Harshad ke ghar chalein?" Cabir asked her. "Hum waha jaa rahe hai kya?" she asked again. "Navya, always remember don't try to forget your past, it is what you are today. Accept it and move on. I know tum unhe miss kar rahe ho" Cabir said and Navya was happy to have Cabir who wanted her for who she is.

************************************
"What do you think Nandini aur Manik dono aayenge ya nahi" Alya asked Dhruv. "They'll come for sure don't worry, we will have to attend other guests as well" Dhruv said to her. Alya saw Manik and went near him. "Hi Manik" she wished him. "Hi" he said. Manik saw her worried for something. "Is everything okay?" Manik asked her. "No, I need a help from you" she said and took him to her room. "Alya, what is it?" he asked. "You have promised me that you'll talk to di about me and Dhruv" she asked. "It's not like you are getting married tomorrow if you ask her approval today" Manik said ignoring. "Please ignore mat karo Manik" she almost pleaded.

"OK I will talk to her" Manik said but Alya insisted to make a video call to Sonya. Manik finally agreed. "Hi Alya, why did you ask me for a video call urgently?" Sonya asked. "Di Manik is here he wanted to say something" Alya showed Manik to Sonya. She paid attention as he talked. "Hi Manik! What's the matter?" she asked. "Sonya, it's about Alya's marriage" Manik said. "Oh that's interesting! Who's the groom Manik! Wait let me guess, is it you?" she widened her eyes. "No" Manik was quick to answer.

"Very interesting, tho Phir kaun hai?" she asked excited. "Dhruv" Manik showed Dhruv who introduced himself. "They love each other and they want to marry when they wish to, Alya had asked me to talk to you about their wedding" he said in one go. "Ahh! My little sister wanted your help to talk to me! I'm very happy for her, Dhruv and Alya I love you both" she said and cut the call. "I'm so happy" Alya squealed in joy and went out of the room to receive her guests.

"Dhruv!" Manik called. "I'm seeing her happy after all these days, I hope you will treat her the same all her life" Manik said and Dhruv smiled, "sure, come let's go out to party" he said and they came out. Everyone was there. Abhimanyu, Mukti, Aryaman, Sanju, Navya and Cabir but couldn't find Nandini. "She might have not come here" Manik thought as he sat there alone. "Let's play a game" Dhruv announced. It was a game designed for couples. Manik felt bored and disinterested in the party. He came out from there and roamed in the garden. He saw Nandini there.

Manik stood there silently. This was the first time they were alone after their break up. He wanted to go off from there without her knowledge but someone called him. "Manik ji, aap idhar? Kitne din ho gaye?" Alya's maid talked to Manik as she saw him outside. "Ha main theek hu" Manik answered and Nandini saw him. Manik tried to go from there but Nandini.

"Want to escape from here too?" her question didn't let him go. He stood still. "Are you trying to get away from me?" Nandini asked. "We already are" Manik said slowly. "Oh yes, I have forgotten that" she said sarcastically. "Yaad karke bhi koi fayda nahi hai and it's good that you've forgotten" Manik didn't go back this time.

"Nandini" he called her. She saw him. "I'm sorry for whatever mom said to you, isme tumhari koi galti nahi hai" he apologized on behalf of Nyonika. "Hurt karke sorry bolne ki aadat ab tum nahi chod diya tumne" she taunted. "I apologized out of humanity, because I thought you were hurt, because you are not at fault, you accept or deny that's your wish" Manik said and this instigated her. "Manik, what do you want now? Why are you talking to me?" she said angrily. "It's you who talked to me first" he said. "So, it's still my mistake" she said and was about to fall down but Manik held her.

"Leave me" she said. "Gir jaogi" Manik warned her. "That doesn't hurt me, you are hurting me" she said. He made her stand and her words caused pain to him. "Go away" he said to her and turned aside. She tried to say something but he had hit the cement bench beside him to stop her. She is scared of him and then saw blood dripping from his knuckles.

"Manik blood!" she said and took his handkerchief and tied it like a bandage even when he didn't let her touch him. "There was a time, when you waited for me, there was a time when you loved me, everything was beautiful in my life" she tied it and he didn't resist as she spoke. "2 years, you said you waited for me since 2 years but its hardly not more than 2 months we were together" she smiled sarcastically.

"Why did you return here? Why can't you really just go away from my life! I was happy when you're not here. Maine khud ko bahut samjhaya that's it's over, we being together was a dream for me then, which has now become a nightmare" she said with tears. "But still I'm happy that you decided to move on and let me move on in my life, thanks to you to push me away from you, I can't imagine my life with someone who never loved me" she said and turned back to leave.

He held her wrist and pulled her back. "What did you just say? Do you really think I never loved you?" Manik asked her and he felt the cool breeze and suddenly it started to rain. "Ye baarish mujhe tumhari yaad dilati hai, the nights remind me of your eyes, the mornings they're like your innocence who doesn't know what the day has in store for me. Hundreds of times I felt like losing myself in your eyes and thousands of times I imagined you to hug me. Lag jaa gale gaana tho lakhon baar khaano mein gun guna raha tha, yaha tumhare paas chacha chachi hai, tumhare friends hai, busy rakhne ke liye tumhara job hai. But I, was alone. Like always, away from everyone, away from me" Nandini couldn't see his tears due to heavy rain but she could feel his tears.

The droplets of rain hit them forcefully and within few minutes the road was deserted and they could see no vehicles until they pass by them. The sudden unseasonal rain fall was just like them, unpredictable and extreme. "It's because of you, I left. I thought everything will set right if I leave from here but my bad luck mom is now suffering from arrythemia. I don't even know about her. I was a failure as a son, for you I'm not even existent because you have a new life now, you got what all you wanted. Career, jaise tumhe pasand hai, marriage, jab tum haa kahogi, friends jo tumhara ek baat pe jaan dene wale. What do I have?" Manik said hopelessly.

"I wonder how could you still blame me for your mistakes? I never asked you to leave from here, I never created a rift between your parents and you. Moreover I was the one who got blamed because of you leaving suddenly. Why did you leave? Aunty ki haalat itni kharab thi ki wo hospital admit karna pada, you always want to protect Alya, but you disappeared when she needed you the most. She had a trauma attack. She became phobic to people around her. It was Dhruv who helped her in the situation. You left me, Alya and aunty uncle. All you thought about is just about yourself. Your love, your life, your ego and your pride. We all really mean nothing to you" she accused him.

"Yes, it's my mistake" Manik had to accept and finally answered himself. He wanted to confess the truth to himself that it was his mistake to leave everything and ran away from the circumstances like a coward. "Tumne dhoka diya, sirf mujhe nahi, Alya ko aunty uncle ko aur tum khud ko bhi dhoka diya, I hate you for who you are! I feel pity on me for falling for a guy like you. I accept that I never publicly accepted that I was in love with you but now I feel proud that I will never have to do that again. I hate you Mr. Manik Malhotra, agar meri wish poora ho jaye tho life mein kabhi tumhara chehra bhi mujhe nahi dekhna hai" she said as she cried hard. Never in her life she imagined that she will feel cheated like this. She slapped him hard on his right cheek and Manik was shocked. "This is not because you left me, this is for coming into my life" Manik never saw her this angry and wild ever before. He felt he deserved such backlash from her but didn't expect that her reaction from her.

Everything was blurred in front of him. He know that it's not just because of the rain but his tears had blurred his vision. He felt as a failure again and always Nandini won over him and won him too. He wanted to stop her and tell how much he loves her still. He wasn't sure if she forgives him but he wanted to hug her for at least one last time. He craved for her love since months. He know how hard it was to live without her. His chain of thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a loud shriek of her. Blood spilled all over his face and his white shirt but washed away due to heavy downpour.

A thud sound was heard before he could realize what happened and Nandini fell on the ground lifeless, in a pool of blood. He ran to her within no time and didn't understood what to do. He took out his phone but it got wet and stopped working. He could see no one on the road due to the fog. It was around 8:30 pm in the night. All the others were in party in the house. Manik and Nandini were alone on the road. She laid unconscious in his arms and he went unheard to anyone as it was thundering.

"Nandini, I love you, please wake up" he cried. He shook her again and again hoping her to get into conciousness. He didn't waste a minute after he realized that it's getting late and he rushed taking her into his arms and lift her. He ran into the house as he didn't know where he left his keys. He constantly called out her name in a hope that she would answer but everytime he was disappointed.

The soothing sounds inside the house brought a romantic mood for the love birds. They lost in each other and celebrated their love. Thunders and lightning only added as the extra ingredients of their romance. Who knows that it was a silence before a storm. Manik felt like a lost kid and stood at the entrance with Nandini and waited for someone to help him.

Aryaman came out as he got a phone call and was about to leave from there. Manik saw him but his voice went unheard due to the noise of the music. Sanju, who came there searching for him saw Manik at the entrance. "Dr. Manik" she said to Aryaman and he turned back. They didn't see Nandini till they go near him. Manik tried to come in and Aryaman called Nandini as he saw her.

"Please help" that was all he could manage to speak. "Kya hua Nandini ko?" Aryaman asked. Manik didn't answer and Sanju went inside to call everyone. They came within no time as and Mukti came there to see her. "Bahut blood loss hua hai, let's take her to hospital" she said and Abhimanyu took his car out. Manik sat back with Nandini and was trying to wake her up and called her name.

"Manik, we'll have to get her into conciousness, the wound should not reach her brain, and try to stop blood loss" she said hastily. In a minute, Mukti understood that Manik didn't listen to her but still tried hard to wake her up. His efforts didn't go in vain as she opened eyes. "Nandini, are you fine?" Manik asked. "Bahut dard ho raha hai" she said and he hugged her and cried vulnerably. "Tumhe kuch nahi hoga, I will not let anything happened to you, I love you Nandini, I love you so much" he said.

Mukti and Abhimanyu were surprised to listen to Manik and Nandini. "Utho Nandini, please wake up don't close your eyes, you want to slap me, say yes please say yes, talk something, please say something. Don't close your eyes" he pleaded her. "I love you and I can't live without you. This is all because of me. Why did you come to me?" he asked to keep her engaged as she keeps closing her eyes. He shook her continuously. "Manik" she held his shirt. "I hate you" she said with tears in her eyes. "Yes I deserve it but please don't leave me, I can't live without you" he cried like a baby.

"Abhimanyu, please go faster" Mukti said. Aryaman, Cabir, Sanju, Navya and Alya started to hospital. Manik talked to her continuously. "I don't want to die Manik, please save me" she said. "Shh tumhe kuch nahi hoga, I'm there" he said and they reached hospital. Manik carried her inside and found a stretcher. Mukti walked inside. "Nandini, please be concious, don't sleep" she said to Nandini.

"She needs blood transfusion ASAP Abhimanyu, arrange for it" she said and took her into OT. She held his hand tightly and didn't let him go. Manik stopped near the entrance and stood there. "Manik" she said before Mukti took her inside and he was left behind. Everything was blank for Manik and his world came crashing down as he saw her like that. He sat on the ground barefoot while her blood marks were all over his shirt.

Others reached the hospital and were informed that Nandini is in OT. Abhimanyu told them that she needs blood as soon as possible. "Nandini ka blood group O positive hai, and she's a match with me" Navya said. "That's great" he said and Cabir came out to help Navya. Aryaman helped Mukti inside. Abhimanyu stayed back with Manik. "Ye sab kaise hua Manik?" he asked but Manik didn't respond. Alya saw wound on his hand. "This needs to be dressed" she said to him and Manik pulled out his hand from her and didn't talk anything.

Abhimanyu and Alya looked at each other. "Manik and Nandini?" Abhimanyu said doubtfully. "They were in love" Alya confirmed him. Navya and Cabir were shocked to core as they heard Alya. Navya gave her blood sample for routine test and came back and heard Alya. "What?" they exclaimed. "Yes they had already broke up and that's why Manik left Mumbai" she said to them.

"Manik" Nandini took his name many times. "Ma'am, she is sinking" Aryaman said worried. "Yes, try to stabilize her, give her atropine 1 mg" Mukti said. Manik saw her through the glass walls of the OT and was dying in guilt as he saw her condition. Sudden epileptic seizure attack made her condition worse due to anemia. Abhimanyu and Alya were moved seeing Manik wither in pain. "Manik ko kya ho raha hai? Why is he not talking to anyone?" Alya broke out in tears. Abhimanyu calmed her down.

"Sometimes, sad endings are way better than never ending sadness" he said.