~Taking it easier only worsened it's situation; it, the heart~

In Manjeet Lifecare Hospital

"Manik!" Sooraj's hands found Manik's arms to hold onto, as he was running towards where the former stood. "P-pari...kaha..kaha hai Pari?"

While all Manik did was to stare at the translucent door in front of him, which had I.C.U typed in bold letters on it.

"Manik!!" Sooraj forced Manik to turn towards him. "Where is my daughter?" He yelled out, that the people around turned their attention towards them, especially the staffs of the hospital.

"He--here." Manik pointed at the door, before walking towards a bench and slumped on it, with his palms covering his eyes.

"And I...love you too."

He shut his eyes tight, and tears slipped out of them on remembering those last words that came out of her mouth.

She loved him!

She loved him as much as he loved her!

But she wasn't by his side. She wasn't in his embrace. She wasn't talking non-stop like her usual self.

But she was here, in the hospital, unconscious and getting treated by some doctors.

"Why? Why? Why, damn it?" Manik mumbled into his palms, crying uncontrollably. While Sooraj was just staring at the door of I.C.U.

"In... here?" Sooraj turned towards Manik. "Magar...Kyu?" He walked towards Manik and held onto his shoulders. "Manik! Utho. Manik, utho and tell me what the hell is happening. What happened to my daughter? Why is she in the I.C.U?"

Manik only stared at Sooraj helplessly, while the latter was staring at the former, almost on the verge of crying.

"Phone kiya aur bola tumne Nandini aur hospital. Bas khatam. Kya samjhun mein isse? Hua kya hai Meri bachi ke saath?" Manik only hugged Sooraj tight, who let out a sigh when he heard him sobbing.

"Shh, shaant Manu. She'll be okay. She'll be okay." Patting at Manik's back, Sooraj turned towards the door of I.C.U. "She must be." With tears welling up in his eyes, Sooraj managed to console Manik.

"Princess!"

***

"Asad. Calm down, will you? Leave him. Now." Sooraj and Rudr pulled at a raging Asad, whose hands were around Manik's collar.

"What.Happened?" Asad gritted at his teeth, without removing his hold on Manik, who was trying to free himself from the former's hold. "Bhai, please!" Manik looked up at Asad with his eyes all sorrowful. "I won't fight you."

"Then tell me what happened to my sister. If you were with her, you failed to protect her, damn it." Asad seethed. "Bhai, shaant hoja. Manu, please tell us. Jaan ko Kya hua hain. Wo kis haal mein thi?" Rithvik moved towards Manik, and tried to free him from Asad's hold.

"I trusted you." Asad looked at Manik, who stopped struggling. "I thought you would protect her. I thought she would be safe with you." Asad's eyes held anger and guilt for trusting his sister with Manik.

Pushing Manik away, Asad turned around and punched in the wall nearby, and mumbling curses out loud, he vented out his anger and pain.

His brothers hugged him, with tears welled up in their eyes, fearing for their sister.

"I...I confessed that I...loved her." Manik said, loud enough for the brothers to hear. He looked up at the eight pairs of eyes which were filled with disbelief, anger, pain, rage and power.

"Pyar Karne laga tha usse. Lilliput se. And I told her the same." Manik wiped his tears away, and looked at Asad. "And she just fell in my arms breathing heavily. She mumbled hospital and I took her here. By then... she'd fainted."

The brothers looked at Manik, hearing everything but staying silent.

While all Sooraj did was to frown. Nandini isn't a typical girl to faint over getting proposed to, by any guy friend of hers.

So what happened now?

"Miss Nandini Murthy's?" The doctor who came out of the I.C.U looked at the crowd in front of him confusedly. "How is she?" Sooraj was the first one to move, followed by Manik and the brothers.

"She's stable now, Sir." The doctor frowned at the care visible on Murthys' faces. "Although we have to wait until her test reports come out." Sooraj nodded at him, and looked back at the boys.

"Nobody is gonna come inside." Saying this, he went inside leaving the boys out, to ponder over what just happened.

***
"I'm fine." Nandini smiled at Sooraj, whose shoulders suddenly sagged. His legs went limp, that he thumped on the chair kept nearby. "Come on Murthy Saab. Sorrow doesn't like you, it seems. Bohath Bure lagthe hain aap."

He held his daughter's hand in his palms, before kissing them and patting at them with tears flowing out of his eyes.

"Already crying?" Nandini mumbled smiling faintly. "And here I was thinking you could stay strong for my Appa." She thought to herself, before taking her palm away from his hold to touch his face.

"All okay, Papa." She smiled at him, and he looked at her nodding his head. "What... happened?"

"Long story short- just got shocked." And suddenly she remembered what caused this scenario. Or better, who. "Grumpy coffee kaha hain?" She stared at Sooraj, going all concerned and he stared at her with his eyes squinted.

"You can stare at me later. Tell me where he is now. Teek tho hain na? Did he punch in anybody's face? Did he scare someone? Or at least, did he also faint?" She babbled, and he held onto her hands to calm her down.

"He's outside, alive and safe. And no, nothing you just mentioned have happened. At least not in my knowledge." And Nandini sighed, breathing heavily and touching her raging heart.

"Right. Be calm, now." Sooraj patted at her back. "Your brothers are with him to take good care of him." And Nandini's eyes went wide.

"What?" She turned her head towards him. "Bhayyus bahar hain?" He nodded at her, and she stared at him aghast. " And you think... grumpy coffee is safe with them?"

Sooraj nodded again and Nandini held her head.

"Ya tho mein baahr jaungi, ya aap. Choice is yours, Murthy Saab." Sooraj simply walked towards the door and gave her a thumbs up. "Yeah. Boyfriend comes first." And he was out of the room, while Nandini pondered over what he said.

"Boyfriend!" She mumbled to herself. "Ewww. That sounds so mushy."  her face showed distaste.

Manik Malhotra seems to have a longer than short way to go!

***

"Bhayyu, I'm fine."

"No, it's not paining."

"No, my head is still thick."

"No Bhayyu, my legs don't feel jelly."

"No, it wasn't Manik. How can he sit in my head so that I could faint?"

"That's just the color of nail polish and not blood."

"Yes, I can see clearly. Stop panicking like kids, now."

"Stop looking for wounds. I'm so sure that Manik may look bulk but sure, he's not made of Ambuja cement."

"For the nth time Bhayyus, I'm not hurt." Nandini had to scream lightly because her brothers were still in the mode of panick.

"No more questions. Okay?" Nandini asked, and the brothers nodded. "Finger on lips." She commanded, and they obliged.

"Uff. Better." She breathed a sigh of relief, when the door to the room she was in, was busted open.

"Fluffy?"
And all Nandini did was to shut her eyes tight.
"Marr gayi, yar. Marr gayi."

***

"Ss. It hurts, witch." Nandini tried to move her hand away as it got a cut with the thorns in the rose flower. "So who asked you to touch those flowers, khooni?" Mrunal slapped at Nandini's hands before cleaning the blood in her finger and treating it. "And who the hell bought these flowers?"

Mrunal looked around at the spectators, who shrugged their shoulders.

"It's the hospital rule to keep fresh flowers in the patient's room." Sooraj said, grabbing others' attention. " What? Arey it gives out a good smell." He explained, and the girls just stared at him.

"Yeah, right. As if the patients in here are more concerned about the smell rather than the bills you plan to make." Nandini retorted,and Sooraj glared at her. "We do help the poor." He defended and Mrunal let out a chuckle.

"Sure! Yashjeet Murthy is suddenly a good man." And Mrunal got settled beside Nandini on her bed. She started to examine her, assessing her undereyes and mouth, looking for any dehydration.

"Hey, not fair, Mrunal." Sooraj defended and turned towards the boys and Nandini, who did not support him. "Yeah, never mind." He rolled his eyes at his children's ignorance.

Amidst all these conversations, there was one person who was staring at Nandini, every now and then.

Manik.

He was scared of her reaction. Will she scream at him? Will she scold him? But she did say she loved him too.

So why did she faint?

Sensing his gaze, she knew he's got questions. Questions that he needs the answers for.

"Ma?" Nandini questioned, raising her eyebrows at Manik, who nodded at her assuring her that he handled it well.

She nodded and shifted her gaze elsewhere.

Mrunal knew something was happening. She knew her best friend fainted for a reason. She didn't expect the proposal.

They need to talk it out!

"Bache nahi hai dono." Mrunal said while looking up at Nandini, and then at Manik. "Baath Karna hai tho you guys can tell, you know? You need privacy and not permission."

Mrunal turned her attention towards the Murthy brothers, and they immediately looked at each other before looking back at Mrunal.

"Mrunal!" Shivaay warned, and she let out a sigh. "I know big brother means overprotectiveness, over confidence, over impulsiveness and wagera wagera. So trust me when I say it that nobody likes these qualities. At least not me." She blabbered, before looking at Sooraj. "Should have let them dated a few girls. Bechare bachon ko privacy ka P bhi nahi aathe." And she left the room, while Nandini just leaned back and smiled at her brothers.

They looked at her, and nodded. Standing up, each and every one left except for Sooraj and Manik.

Sooraj stared at the door wordlessly, before looking at Nandini.

"Mein bhi?" He asked, and Nandini just smiled, while Manik looked here and there.

"Oh." Sooraj stood up and moved towards the door. He opened the door and was about to walk out when he remembered that he was the father.

"No physical talk." He turned around and Manik frowned while Nandini sighed. "Just the verbal talk." He warned again, and Nandini just stared at him.

"Don't belong to your era, Murthy Saab." Nandini replied, and Sooraj glared at her before walking out and closed the door for them.

Manik stared at the door and gulped the lump in his throat.

No, he can do it. It's just him and his Lilliput. Yes, nobody else.

"We cannot be together, Manik."
And all the confidence in him went down his throat!

***
Hey guys!

How was the chapter?

Okay, I know I'm a little late. But I've got a lot more responsibilities now. So I'm not able to sit for writing like how I used to.
Please do bear with me!

With love,
Affu.