In Mental Asylum

Ranvir turned to the person who was looking at him in tears. He simply made a stern face and looked down.

Manik ( whispered ): Nandini...

Nandini stared at Ranvir with a look which said that she wasn't pleased with whatever happened. By now, Alya was crying in Dhruv's arms who wasn't in a condition to even know about her surroundings.

However, Nandini ignored every gazes and walked inside the room from where she could see Pallavi shouting for her.

Nandini: Ma...

And that mere word caught everyone's attention. Even Pallavi stopped struggling and her face softened.

Nandini moved towards Pallavi and held her hand, who immediately clung to her like a baby making her ( Nandini ) sigh in guilt of not able to be beside her Ma, at the right time.

Pallavi ( cried ): Tum..tum kaha..thi..Mein..darr..gayi thi..ye log..ye log mujhe..aisa pakadke..ke rakha jiske..wajah se..mujhe..dard hua..

Nandini moved her gaze to the nurses and balled her fists.

Nandini: Irine..I need privacy. Get your workers out, now..

Each and every nurse were out of the room and Irine preferred to stay near the doorstep along with Ranvir and Fab 5.

Nandini: Ma, aap pehle ye beito..

She made Pallavi sit on her bed but her grip on Nandini's hand tightened.

Pallavi: Tu..tum mujhe..chodke..jaa rahi ho..

Nandini ( smiled ): Nahi Ma, mein aapko chodke kahi bhi nahi jaoongi. Ek second..

Nandini turned and got a glass of water for Pallavi who drank it in a go without leaving Nandini's hand. She kept the glass on the side table.

Nandini: Ma, aap chilla kyu rahe the..?? Aapko patha hai na, ye sab aapke sehath keliye acha nahi hai..

Pallavi ( in tears ): Tum mujhse..milne kyu..nahi aayi..??

Nandini ( guiltily ): I'm sorry, Ma. Par, mene aapse kaha tha na uss din, ki mera ek dosth ki shadi horahi hai aur mein shayad aapse mil nahi paoongi..

Pallavi: Haa tho, kithne din hogaye ab..

Nandini wiped Pallavi's tears lovingly who was sniffing like a kid.

Nandini ( smiled ): Shadi ithne dino thak hogi. Wo kya hai na, shadi mathlab, haldi, sangeeth aur mehendi bhi hogi tho..ye sab..ek hi din mein nahi kar sakthe aur waise bhi, shadi ke kaam bhi karna chahiye thi. Patha hai na aapko, aapki beti designer hai, jo kapde design karthi hai..

Pallavi nodded at her in understanding. But, still, she had some sadness on her face. Seeing it, Nandini cupped her cheeks..

Nandini: Kya hua, Ma..? Aap abhi bhi mujhse naraaz hai kya..??

Pallavi ( sadly ): Mujhe..yaha..pasand nahi hai..Tum..mujhse pyar nahi karthi ho kya..??

Nandini sat beside Pallavi and took her in a side hug..

Nandini: Ma, mene kya kaha tha aapse, aapke sehath teek nahi hai, isiliye aap yaha rethe hai warna mein kabka aapko ghar le jaathi. Mein bhi tho yahi chahthi Ma ki aap jaldh hi teek hojaye. Phir dekhna, aap tho ek Queen ki tarah jeeyenge..Aapki beti agar aapse pyar nahi karoon tho kisse kar sakthi hai..??

Pallavi ( smiled ): Queen nahi, bas koi mujhe daantna nahi chahiye. Koi mujhe aise pakadke dard nahi dena chahiye. Yaha ke log tho mujhe padai bhi karne nahi dethe..

Nandini stared at Pallavi with a helpless face. Sadness could be seen all over her face.

Nandini: Arey Ma, agar aap beemar hai tho padai kaise kar sakthe hai. Pehle teek hone dho, phir aap college jayenge. Teek hai..??

Pallavi nodded sadly at her.

Nandini: Chalo, ab aapka sone ka time hai..

Pallavi ( panicked ): Nahi nahi, mein nahi soongi. Jaise mein sojaoongi, tum jaoge. Nahi, tum mujhe chodke jaoge phir..

Nandini ( sighed ): Nahi Ma, mein nahi jaoogi. Agar aap nahi soye na, phir aap kaise teek hojayegi aur agar teek nahi hua tho aap mere saath ghar kaise jaa sakthe..Aap apni Nandu ke saath jeena nahi chahthi ho kya..??

Nandini made a sad face and Pallavi immediately laid on the bed making her smile. She caressed her hairs and Irine moved towards them with a syringe in her hand which she injected in Pallavi's arms without her notice. Soon, she slipped into a deep slumber.

Nandini ( held her head ): How..?? How did it happen..??

Irine ( sighed ): She wanted to meet you. We tried a lot to convince her but she was stubborn. She started to throw things here and there and we had to use pressure on her but she was much stronger..

Nandini ( lost her cool ): What the hell you mean by that, Irine..?? I've asked you not to harm her, then how could you..??

Irine moved towards Nandini and made her sit on a couch..

Nandini ( pissed ): Irine..

Irine ( softly ): Calm down, Nandini. You know her condition. Hadn't we used pressure on her, she would have hurt someone.

Nandini ( angrily ): So, you thought you should harm her instead. Did you forget that you were her doctor..? A doctor is supposed to treat her patient.

Irine tried to speak but Nandini showed her hand..

Nandini ( glared ): This isn't Nandini. It's Nanz and she doesn't care about what she does in order to protect her family. Pallavi Saxena, your patient is my Ma and if you happen to do anything that would hurt her, mark my words Irine Paul, I would forget you're Soha's friend. I would forget that since you're my soul sister's friend you were even my friend too. Nothing and no relationship comes in between my family. None would touch her if she doesn't like it. Next time I hear her complaining about it, I would just take her out of this place and will make sure that the staffs over here rot in hell..

And Nandini walked out while Irine sighed. She isn't angry at her because this isn't the first time Nandini being angry at her. It happens whenever Pallavi gets out of control due to which Nandini gets upset and the next day, Nandini would be at Irine's cabin's doorstep with a bouquet of flowers for hurting her. However, this time, she could feel Nandini is way too upset with her staffs and she will be doing what she just said.

While walking out, Nandini reached up to Alya who was staring at her with some unknown emotions in her eyes.

Nandini ( emotionless ): Papa..??

Dhruv: He's gone somewhere...

Nandini nodded and moved out while sparing a glance to Manik who was simply staring at her. While Alya moved inside the room once she got permission from Irine.

In the backyard

Ranvir was sitting on a bench lost in deep thoughts, when he felt someone's presence beside him. He threw his head backwards and closed his eyes while ruffling his hairs in frustration.

Ranvir: Don't ask me why I did it. I lost my calm. Har baar mein Alya ki har ek zid poori nahi kar paoonga, princess.

Nandini, simply held his left hand in her's and entwined them with each other making him look at her who smiled faintly at him.

Nandini: She's fine.

He smiled weekly at her and nodded.

Ranvir: I know. Jab thak tum uske saath ho, thab thak wo teek hi hogi.

Nandini ( nodded ): Papa..do you really feel Alya deserves this pain..??

Ranvir ( nodded in No ): None deserves pain, maybe, Alya too. All I want is her to be a better person. Jantha hoon, wo ithni jaldhi ek saint nahi ban paegi par, mein ek beti ko dekhna chahthi hoon usmein jo usse kabhi nahi hua.

Nandini ( calmly ): Shayad usse nahi patha hogi ki aap kya chahtha hai..

He looked at her with a frown. She turned to him and held both of his hand in her's and smiled.

Nandini: Papa, har kisiko apne ek character hai. Aur har kisiko ek character hai jisse wo pasand karthe hai. Aap mujhse bohath pyar karthe hai, isiliye aap chahthe hai ki Alya bhi mere jaise ho. Par papa, ye galath hai. In fact, har ek parent apne bache ko aisa dekhna chahthe hai jaise unka dil chahthe hai. Ye zaroori nahi hai ki unke bache ke character aisa hoga jaise wo chahthe hain. A character is something that forms without anyone's desires. We'll be born with it. Just look at you, you were never an angry person unless someone triggers you to get angry par Alya aur Harshad aisa nahi hai. They both aren't among the calm ones. Ma bhi aisa nahi hai. Par Alya aur Harshad ek jaisa bhi nahi hai. Harshad was always behind his victory against Manik, he wanted only that in his life while for Alya, she was insecure. She had a crush on Manik but then he fell for me, she hated me, she fell in love with Dhruv but then it was that time she realized her love for him when Dhruv was attracted to me, she hated me again and now, when she wanted your attention, you wanted her to be like me, she hates me again and again. Aap uske dil mein insecure hone ka mathlab increase kar rahe ho. Usko pyar aur affection ke barein mein nahi patha because all she has with her is Dhruv and you but she's insecure that I might snatch you both from her. Usse class aur money ka ithna importance isiliye hua kyunki kabhi usse pyar ka mathlab sikhaya hi nahi kisine. She has her own character Papa, love her for what she is and you'll get to see a new Alya, when she knows that none is going to snatch what belongs to her then she'll change herself for you. Zabardasthi se kisiko badalne mein nahi hai pyar Papa, apnon keliye apne aapko badalne mein hi pyar hai..

Ranvir looked at Nandini lovingly and caressed her cheeks..

Ranvir: Shayad tum teek bhi ho sakthi ho par ek baap ka dil samaj nahi paoge tum, princess. I wanted Alya and Harshad beside me when I saw your Ma in such a condition par kaha thi wo..? Uske dunya mein..kya mein ye sab deserve kartha..??

Nandini ( nodded in No ): Nahi, aap ye sab deserve nahi kartha. Par aap ye samaj nahi paa raha hai ki Alya ki bhi ek point of view hogi. Haa, ye sach hai, wo galath thi, use lifestyle, uske character, ye sab mein bohath saare galathiyan the, in fact, she used to be a brat but then, do you know why..? Because, she wanted everything to happen according to her wish and she wanted you to be with her but she failed to understand what you expect from her. From a daughter and she realized her mistake too, isiliye wo ab badal rahi hai. I can feel it. So, now its your turn to change yourself. To be gentle with her, don't push her away but let her in. Aap chahthe the na Papa, ek family jismein Alya bhi hogi aur ab uskeliye aapko mehenath karna chahiye. Jab Ma teek hogi na thab aapke pariwar poora hojayega, haa Harshad ke baath alag hai but Alya would mean a lot to you then. You will be able to live a life with both Ma and Alya then, without any hurdles. Trust me. Just give it a try.

Nandini got up from her seat after kissing his cheeks..

Nandini: Alya needs you now..

And Ranvir took a deep breathe and walked away not before kissing Nandini's forehead. While, she preferred to stay there for some more time. She knew, they need privacy.

She closed her eyes and whispered..

Nandini: I miss you, Mom..

Soon, she felt a body behind her back and leaned into that touch.

Nandini: Manik...

Manik wrapped his arms around her stomach and she held his hands and tilted her head back to look in his eyes..

Nandini: Gussa ho..??

Manik ( frowned ): Kis baath ki..?? Hamare koi ladai hi nahi hua..

Nandini ( softly ): Mein tumse..Ma ke barein mein..chupayi..

Manik smiled and kissed her forehead making her close her eyes in peace.

Manik: Pehli baath, tumhara Manik ab tumse kabhi gussa ho sakthe ho tho wo hamara chote mote ladai keliye hogi warna kabhi nahi. Kyunki, ek baar mere gusse ne tumhe mujhse alag kiya hai aur phirse wo mistake nahi kar paoonga..Aur doosri bath, gussa nahi but I will have to feel so proud of myself for falling for a girl like you. Aaj jithna mene Ranvir Uncle se suna, usse mujhe sirf ek bath samaj mein aaya, kuch bhi hoja, you're named peace, for your loved ones. And so mine..

She smiled and turned to him and hugged him tightly and soon he felt his shirt getting wet making him worried..

Nandini: Patha hai, Manik. Ma ko dekhke mujhe hamesha bohath dard hothi thi. She doesn't deserve all these pain but she went through a lot. When she screams in pain, my heart bleeds. Mujhe kabhi nahi laga ki wo meri apni Ma nahi hai. Mujhe meri Mom dikhthi thi unmein aur shayad isiliye hogi ki wo meri Mom keliye bohath keemthi thi. Mom, Poorvi Ma and Ma used to be the best of friends. Maybe that's why, I'm much closer to Poorvi Ma and Ma, meri Mom jaise hi mujhse pyar karthe hain. Isiliye I wanted to make her fine. Kabhi kisise bhi share nahi kiya kyunki sab Ma keliye worried the tho mein kisse share karoon, I wanted to be my family's strength. Soulie ko bhi zyada tension nahi diya, isiliye hamesha Mom ko yaad karthi thi. But, not anymore, I have you beside me. Never leave me, Mani. Iss baar mein poori tarah se toot jaoongi..

He tightened his hold on her and kissed her head..

Manik: Never, because this monster has madly fallen in love with you and can never live a life without you beside me.

She kissed his heart which made him smile. And, they were at peace. Only, they mattered to them..

In the Asylum

Alya was sitting beside Pallavi and caressing her hand with tears falling out of her eyes when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to see Ranvir and it didn't take her a minute to bang in his chest. She wailed like a baby in his arms and he let her do it.

Alya: I..I'm..so..sorry, Dad...please...mujhe..maaf kardo..maaf kardho..Dad..please..

Ranvir: Shh..its fine Alya. Dad tumse naraz hoon but you can make it alright. Won't you try for it..??

Alya broke the hug and immediately nodded in yes making him smile. He wiped her tears and kissed her forehead making her bust in tears. And she knows, now, she's her father too beside her.

A nurse walked inside the room..

Nurse: Excuse me, Sir. Sorry to interrupt but visiting time is over sir..

Alya ( panicked ): Dad..mom ko akela chodenge kya..

Ranvir ( sighed ): We have no choice, Alya.

He took Alya's hand in his who was glancing at her Mom time to time while walking out of the room. At the same time, Nandini entered inside the room along with Manik. She smiled seeing Alya in Ranvir's arms.

Ranvir: Princess, we should leave..

Nandini: yeah..

She walked to Pallavi and kissed her forehead and whispered..

Nandini: I'm going to get you out of this place, Mom. It's time Pallavi Saxena get to see the outer world.

She caressed her hairs and walked out of the hospital followed by others. Manik and Nandini got inside Nandini's car while others were in Ranvir's and Manik's cars.

Pallavi Saxena

To be continued..