Hello guys,

I know I'm updating late, but can't help it. I was busy. Also, how is the book so far? 

A small note! I've started to become active on my Instagram Public profile, where I write quotes. If you're interested, you can follow and dm me there. The IG ID is shared in my Watty Bio. Thank you!

~And she came like a Tornado in my Life~

-Affu-

In India

Murthy's Cashew Nuts Industries

Viren's Cabin

"You may leave, Miss Maya." Viren spoke to his personal assistant, who nodded at him, before leaving his cabin.

"Oh! Sometimes, I hate being a businessman." Viren spoke frustratingly, after checking the clauses for a contract that they made, for an upcoming deal.

"Angel ki call bhi nahi mila." he muttered to himself, while staring at his mobile. He opened the chat box to find all his messages unread. He tried her number, which went unanswered, like the past 2 days.

"Damn it!" Viren slammed his mobile on the table, and tried to concentrate in his work. But all he could think about was his sister.

Is she alright? Is she going through some problems? Are Appa and Ma alright? Did somebody hurt her?- these were the thoughts going through his mind.

Taking his mobile again, he was about to call Rithvik, when an unknown number flashed in his mobile. He denied the call, and dialed Rithvik's number, but the unknown number flashed again. And now, he was more than frustrated.

"What the hell is your problem? If I am denying your call, then it means I am not interested. Now, who is it?" he barked over the phone, and the caller was silent.

"Why the hell are you silent, now? Speak up. Who is it and hang up the damn call then." Viren barked again, clenching his fists. He was losing his control, and when that happens, he wouldn't know what he speaks.

"I thought I called Viren Bhayyu. Lekin aap tho Asad Bhayyu nikle. Oops, wrong number, Bhayyu." his eyes snapped open in shock, on hearing the voice.

"Angel!" he stood up, pushing the chair backwards. "An-Angel. Is that you? Oh my God! Are you alright?" asked Viren, while running his hand through his hairs.

"Filhaal teek. But you sounded sick. In fact, you sounded like my silent serial killer lookalike Asad Bhayyu." Nandini retorted, and Viren widened his eyes at her new nickname for Asad. She loves giving them nicknames. Of course, meaningful nicknames.

"Why were you barking like a Hyena, Bhayyu?"asked Nandini, and Viren stared at himself.

"Hyena? Seriously Angel? I don't look like a Hyena, Angel. Besides, they don't bark, but laugh or cackle." Viren said, and then slapped himself for describing about the sounds that a Hyena makes, when he's supposed to scold her for not responding to their calls or messages.

"Huh! You seriously going to teach me about Hyena? Aapko wild animals se ithna pyar kyun? I should have guessed it, after knowing your characters." she muttered, and Viren let out a sigh.

"Angel. Stop your London Express, and answer my questions. Why the hell didn't you receive any of our calls? You didn't even bother to call us back. Na hi messages pada. Do you even know how worried we were?" Viren burst out, angrily. He was the most affected among the brothers, because he neither belongs to the calm group nor the agitated ones. He bottles up everything inside, and that makes him spit his frustration out to Nandini, because she does not complain and listen to all he's got to say.

"Hogaya Bhayyyuuu?" she sang sweetly and Viren got settled on his table, because the chair was nowhere seen now.

"Angel. Don't ever do that, okay." he asked, softly and she smiled from the other side. "But I love irritating you." she said. "You weren't irritating us, but worrying us. Sirf tu ek hi hai ham bhaayyon keliye." he corrected her, calmly and she pouted.

"Lekin agar apko pehle hi phone kiya tho apko surprise kaise karun mein?" she asked, and he frowned.

"What surprise?" he asked, and she rolled her eyes. "Bhayyu! Don't tell me you didn't get it yet. Mathlab, phone number tho dekh liya hoga na." she retorted.

"Get what? And what about phone number? I know your n---" he trailed off, on realizing it was an unknown number. He took the phone back from his ear to see an Unknown number.

An Unknown Indian registration number!

His eyes widened and he clamped the mobile again, to his ear. 

"Angel!" he whispered in shock. "Keh dho. Welcome to India, Miss Nandini Shekhar Murthy." she grinned and hung up on the call leaving Viren all shocked.

"Angel India mein hain." he muttered to himself, and the next second he received a text from her. "Location- your new construction" it read. Viren did not wait, but sprinted out of his cabin.

***

"Bhai!" Asad looked up in horror, when he saw Viren barging inside his cabin and running towards him like some lunatic. But what caught his attention was, Viren addressed him "Bhai", and that happens only when he's too happy, too sad or too helpless.

Now what situation is he in?!

"Viren. K--" Asad couldn't complete his sentence, because Viren had already pulled him up from his seat and dragging him outside. 

"What the! Hua kya hai? Pagalon ki tarah behave kyu kare rahe ho?"Asad yelled at his brother, who looked like he has lost all his senses. The employees were looking at them aghast. "Viren! For heaven's sake, ham office mein hai. Dad can kill us if he sees us behaving like kids." Asad tried to reason, but Viren didn't budge, instead he dragged him to his car, and pushed him in the passenger seat, before taking the driving seat, and zooming to the main road.

"Will you tell me what happened?" Asad asked, losing his calm again.

"Angel is in India." Viren yelled out, and that zipped Asad's mouth.

"Huh?!" he raised his eyebrows, going speechless while Viren cared less. He was too occupied in his thoughts.

***

"Huh?!" Sidharth asked, while sitting on his car's bonnet. 

"You freaking kidding me, Bhai!" Rudr exclaimed, in a pissed tone and Viren shot a glare towards him. The moment Viren and Asad got their brothers in the same location that Nandini had sent to Viren, they explained the situation, and all they got in return were blank stares until Sidharth and Rudr broke the silence.

"Do I look like a joker 2.0, who's interested in entertaining a Joker? Then no! A big no!" Viren retorted, and Om palmed his face. "Bhai, gussa math hoja. Relax. What if it's someone else and you mistook her to be Choti?" Om tried to calm Viren down, who shot another glare.

"You seriously think I won't be able to recognize my sister's voice?" Viren threw his hands in air, and Om rubbed his forehead realizing that none of them could be confused or misinterpret, when it comes to Nandini.

"That means, she's really in India? But didn't she say that she'll be here, only next week?" Shivaay muttered, disbelievingly and then pressing his hands onto his forehead.

"Exactly. She wouldn't lie to us." Karan said, and then turned towards Rithvik and Asad, who were silent spectators. "Bhai!" Karan called out, and Asad's attention turned towards him. "Viren said that she wanted to surprise us. Tell me, Karan. Can you surprise someone without lying or avoiding a topic?" Asad asked, too calmly that Karan stared at him blankly.

"Er..No..?" Karan stated, or precisely asked himself, and then stared at others who let out multiple sighs.

"She's here. In India." Rithvik supported Asad's statement.

"Kuch bhi kaho yaar.." they widened their eyes, and turned their heads towards the voice. "Serial killer lookalike is the most intelligent among my Bhayyus." the voice completed.

And there she sat, Nandini Murthy, on Rudr's car's bonnet while sipping on her orange juice, which she dislikes the most.

"Nanni." Shivaay broke the trance, and Nandini grinned at the brothers.

"Bhayyuuu!" she jumped off the Car to run towards them and hugged the first person near her, which turned out to be Sidharth.

"I missed you, Bhayyu!" she sang her complaint, while hugging all her brothers, who just gaped at her.

"What? You won't hug me back?" she asked, while being in Viren's arms, looking at their shocked faces. "Come on! Apko sirf ek hi hun mein." Nandini winked at Viren, whose face broke into a beautiful smile, and before she knew she was in his arms, getting twirled around and laughing out.

Her laughter brought the others out of their trance, and they stared at her with moist eyes. It's been nearly six months since they have met, as they were all busy with their businesses, while she waited patiently for them to complete all their works, but when she realized it's time to enter Yashjeet Murthy's life, she decided to meet her brothers first.

"You scared us, you know." Viren said, while keeping her back on the ground and then kissing her head. "I know! Lekin yeh smile keliye tho kiya mene." she pulled his cheeks, and unlike every time she does it, he didn't glare at her, but was smiling.

In fact, they were all smiling.

"I know I am not a touchy person, but aaj keliye teek Bhayyu." she said, and the next second she was getting pulled into strong pairs of arms, who took their own turns to squeeze the life out of her.

"You seriously could have played a better surprise. We were planning to trace your location." Karan said, while taking her in his arms and then smacking in her head.

"Hey! You were about to spoil my surprise." Nandini narrowed her eyes at Karan. "Well, Rithvik Bhayyu stopped us." Karan said, while rolling his eyes and then Nandini grinned at Rithvik.

"And that's why I love you the most, Bhayyu." she said, making Rithvik to pull her towards him. "As usual, Asad Bhayyu aur Shivaay Bhayyu would have been the ones who initiated it..hm?" Nandini raised her eyebrows at Asad and Shivaay, who looked elsewhere.

"Koi shak?" Sidharth asked, winking at her.

"Nah shak. AI and AI 2.0" she said, and the brothers laughed out, including Asad and Shivaay.

"We missed it." the brothers said while pointing at the way they were enjoying their sister's presence.

"Haa haa. Nandini Murthy missed you too." Nandini waved her hands in air, and they laughed leading her to smile at it. She did not want them said, but happy. Now that she is here enjoying her time with her brothers, she was more than sure to let Yashjeet Murthy know that he has taken a lot from her. A lot of relationships, which she could have enjoyed being here, in India, in her Appa's place.

At night

MruNi's Home

"Yaar fluffy! I don't think that guy will be helpful. Dhruv Malhotra was too silent for my liking. He was making business deals with his clients, but I could barely hear him talking." Mrunal whined, while throwing Dhruv's details on the tea-poi, while Nandini stared at it with her eyes bored into it.

"Na hi Cabir Malhotra aur na hi Manik Malhotra mujhe pasand aayi. One was a drama company while other one was a shouting company. Dhono mere type ke nahi ki that I can befriend them." Nandini said, sounding sad. 

"What about Mukti Malhotra?" Nandini asked, and Mrunal showed a video of Mukti talking with the kids.

"She seems to be friendly, you know. Too friendly that she would never doubt us, if we befriend her. But her age is a problem. Hum aiveyi ek 18 year old ke saath kaise friendship kar sakthe hain. People can doubt it." Mrunal pointed out, while Nandini was too busy in watching the video.

"Not her, Mruno. She's too innocent. Wo bachi hai." Nandini admired the way Mukti talked to the kids. She really does not fall under spoilt brats list, but a pampered princess list. Just like her. She couldn't think of befriending Mukti, for her own selfish reasons.

"Then what?" Mrunal asked, sighing out loud.

"I don't know. I thought the Malhotra youngsters will be spoilt. Bhayyus zyada bathein nahi karthe ladkon ke barein mein mere saath. All they have talked about is Mukti. After watching the video, I understood they were right about her being innocent. Lekin the boys..yaar, kaha phas gayi! Khwaab tho Oscar award ke tha, lekin yaha tho ek Television award bhi nahi milega." Nandini cribbed while holding onto her head.

"Arey, don't lose hope, fluffy. Maybe, our first impression is wrong." Mrunal tried to reason, and Nandini looked up at her. "Alright no, my first impression never comes out wrong." Mrunal added, and sighed in frustration.

"All I can say is Cabir Malhotra was as dramatic as hell. Lekin, people who is dramatic and appear to be humorous are the most intelligent ones. They observe you top to bottom and get to know the real you, because nobody would doubt that a person with humor traits in his character can do secretive missions." Nandini said, and Mrunal looked at her.

"I get it. Rudr Bhai always finds out people's characters in seconds." Mrunal stated, while thinking about how Rudr always warned the girls about certain boys in the past. "Dhruv Malhotra was too silent, and such people take a lot of time in being friendly with people. Maybe, they can trust us but they won't be comfortable enough to take you to their place." Mrunal added, and Nandini showed a thumbs up.

"Exactly. And regarding Manik Malhotra, he was yelling. All I heard was yelling. But something I noticed was, he was a family guy, and such guys are extremely sensitive in choosing friends. Yaar, ek bath batha, Malhotra khandhan mein ithna perfect bete kaha se aaye? Do they buy from some markets? I mean, usually I hear people complaining that their grandchildren are good-for-nothing." Nandini spoke, totally irritated.

"If you think that way, I would say Murthys adopted 8 boys from 8 different markets." Mrunal said, while rolling her eyes and moving towards her bedroom.

"Witch!" Nandini cursed out loud. "Suna mene." Mrunal said, from her room.

"Tho mene kab kaha tere kaan ko repair karne ka time aagaya tha?!" Nandini retorted, before slipping inside her bedroom, and then falling on the bed.

"Tu keh dho, aur mein sunu? Never happening. Good night, witch." Mrunal called out from her bedroom.

"Although I am not interested in you, we have one soul unfortunately. So good night, witch." Nandini replied, while closing her eyes, but the next moment she closed them, she was watching the scenario happened in Manjeet Care Hospital's Restaurant.

She remembered the way Manik cribbed about his mother. She watched Cabir teasing Manik, with her eyes closed. Surprisingly,she remembers all they have said as well.

"All you got to do is find a suitable girl for yourself, and then they will be fine." "Yaha mein ithna pareshan hun, aur tujhe ladki dundna hain? Nahi chahiye mujhe koi ladki." and Nandini's eyes were snapped open.

She took her mobile and played the recorded conversation of Manik and Cabir again, and she came to a conclusion.

"Manik Malhotra doesn't need a girl in his life, but it seems like his mother wants him to have one." Nandini said to herself, before narrowing her eyes at her mobile. "So..why can't I be that girl?" she asked herself and then laid back on the bed.

"He doesn't want to be in any relationship, reason unknown to me and I don't care about it, neither do I want to be in any relationship as my family is already a broken mess now, that I don't need another mess like romantic relationships. Aur agar ham dhono ek fake relationship keliye ready hua tho..advantages dhonon ko hai. He can get rid of his mother's anger, while I can get closer to Murthys." Nandini muttered to herself and grinned.

"Lekin ye bandha ye sab keliye ready hoga kya? Sanskari lagthe hai yar, aur aise ladke ye sab keliye ready nahi honge." Nandini spoke to herself, sadly when her gaze fell on her mobile. The recording started to play again, and this time she smirked.

"Plan tho hai!' she said, but her happiness was short-lived. "It took nearly years for DJ to accept Alya and Navya, when they were just friends with Dhruv and Cabir. And now that they are couples, DJ is more conscious of the girls. You know baby, they are very good. Although they hail from modern family, they don't act like that. They really compliment Cabir and Dhruv, lekin DJ ko apne bete keliye ladkiyon ko accept karne mein bohath time lagthe hain." Sidharth's words rang in her head. "That's why all our parents have done arrange marriage. I mean, DJ doesn't like love marriages. I still wonder how DJ accepted Raj Chachu's and Rohit Chachu's marriages. After all, they did love marriage." she heard Karan's supportive statement ringing as well.

"Oh hell! How can I forget that my Appa's old man doesn't approve of relationships! Ab kya mein Manik Malhotra ki beewi ban jaun unhe impress karne keliye?!" Nandini cursed out loud and slipped in her slumber, too tired to think more about it.

***

"I cannot accept your girlfriend, Manik." Yashjeet's thunderous voice could be heard in the entire mansion. "Lekin Yash, Nandini is the best choice for Manik." Harshvardhan supported Manik while staring at his grandson and Nandini.

"You don't have problems in accepting your sons' girlfriends, but I do. These relationships don't go far. They are only for a short period of time, that the youngsters slip to another one easily." said Yashjeet angrily.

"But she is my wife." Manik said, and Nandini stared at him with a smile, who stared back at her, before taking her in his embrace. "She is Nandini Manik Malhotra, my wife." Manik said, and that made Yashjeet smile.

"Phir apko koi problem nahi hoga na Yash Daadu?" Manik asked, and Yashjeet beamed. "Of course not, beta. I am way too happy that you didn't stay in relationship but married her straightaway. Welcome to family, Nandini beta. Nandini Manik Malhotra." Yashjeet smiled tenderly at Nandini, and she stared at him aghast.

"Oh my God, DJ accepted me." she screamed taking the three men's attention, and thud, she fainted...

"Nandini!" Manik screamed.................................................................................

"Ouch..Hayee, mera kamar." Nandini hissed, and looked around to see she was in a new bedroom. A new place. She started to freak out. "Oh! I am in India." she suddenly realized. "But why am I on the floor?" she asked herself and then shrugged before standing on her toes, and then jumped back on the bed.

She laid back comfortably and closed her eyes, but then she heard it again. "Welcome to family, Nandini beta. Nandini Manik Malhotra." she was jolted upwards, and now she clearly remembered everything. Her dream!

"Holy Mamma of Murthys!" she cursed out loud, while palming her face.

***

"Good morning!" Sidharth greeted the Malhotra ladies, who were busy in getting the table ready with the breakfast.

"Sidharth beta. Good morning." Arpita patted his cheeks, while Nyonika and Anjali took him for a hug. "How come you are here in the early morning?" Nyonika asked, smiling at him.

"Bas aiveyi." Sidharth grinned. They smiled at him. It was not a secret that Sidharth loves to meet and greet people when he's too happy. He may yell out his happiness, but if he cannot, he would simply grin at everyone around.

So what must have made him this happy?- the ladies wondered!

"Wow! Aaj Punjabi food hain." And Sidharth took his seat, while staring at the food dreamily.

"Good m--whoa what a surprise!" Manik walked down the stairs and stared at Sidharth in surprise, before smiling at him. "Good morning." he greeted Sidharth, who looked up at him to grin. "Good morning." he greeted Manik, too cheerfully. Manik stared at his mother and Aunts, who shrugged at him.

"Well! What's the news?" Manik took his seat, opposite to Sidharth, who looked around. 

"Nothing. Just happy. Waise, where is everyone?" Sidharth asked, smilingly and the ladies nodded at Manik, as if asking him not to bother Sidharth with anymore questions.

"Sab aathe hi honge. Aap khao na." Arpita plated food for Sidharth and Manik, while Sidharth stared at her with a smile. She reminds him a lot of Shamishti. Shamishti always plates food for them, when they go to meet her.

"Good morning."Harshvardhan greeted the ladies and took seat, followed by his sons and grandchildren.

"Whoa Sidharth Bhai! Good morning." Mukti greeted Sidharth, who grinned at her. "Good morning." he greeted her back, and then started to dig in his food.

"Aap aaj yaha achanak?" Cabir asked, with his eyebrows raised, in question. "Kya problem hai sabka? He's also our son. Can't he come home to have breakfast with us?" Anjali asked, while glaring at Cabir and then at Mukti, who zipped their mouths and then smiled at Sidharth.

"It's alright Chachi. They were surprised. I don't come here for breakfast, often. Actualy, bas aaj happy hun. Aivey happy." Sidharth said, while chuckling and others bought it.

They started to have their food, while chatting happily. Harshvardhan likes to talk while eating, and his family follows the same.

Sidharth was about to drink water, when his gaze fell on Manik and Mukti, who were whispering to each other and eating. Mukti was speaking a lot, and Manik was listening and smiling at her. He was also forcing her to eat more, while she was showing her tantrums. Cabir and Dhruv were busy teasing her.

They looked like they were still kids!

Sidharth smiled faintly at the scene, and then looked down in his food. He was too happy that finally his sister is in India, but now on watching the Malhotra boys' bonding with their sister, he wonders will he be able to be with his sister the same way, at his place, in front of everyone?

He didn't have an answer, and that bothered him.

"Sidharth. Why aren't you eating anything?" Nyonika kept her hand on Sidharth's as he was sitting next to her. "Um..kuch nahi, Chachi. Wo..bhook marr gayi." Sidharth smiled sheepishly before looking at everyone.

"I'll take my leave. Abhi abhi yaad aya that I have an important work to do." he stood up, and the Malhotras stared at him in worry, for he was behaving weirdly. "Waise, masth breakfast tha. Thank you, Chachis." he kissed the three ladies' foreheads and smiled at others, before leaving the Mansion.

"Thoda weird nahi laga Sidharth Bhai aaj?" asked Manik, while staring at Sidharth's retreating figure.

"He is always weird. I mean, humans are weird. You can't expect a human to be same always." chirped Cabir, and the rest gave him looks filled with disbelief. "Bath tho sahi hai that humans are weird, lekin tu humans list mein tho nahi. How come you are also weird, then?" asked Rohit, while staring at his son, who pouted at his father.

"Well! An Alien's kid is always an alien." Cabir replied, in a bored tone. Rohit shot a hard glare towards his son, in return.

"Oh shut up, both of you. Subah subah dimaag khana shuru kardiya baap bete na. Isn't the food enough for it?" Anjali retorted angrily.

"Well...hum kya kare ismein." the duo sang, too sweetly that Mukti and Manik chuckled. "Bechari Anju Ma." Dhruv said, while chuckling and Anjali had pitiful face.

Soon, the Malhotras were done with their breakfast, with healthy teasing.

MruNi's Home

"Why the hell would you see something like that? Dekhne keliye aur koi dream bacha nahi tha kya that you started to dream about some random guy being your husband?" Mrunal cried out, horrifyingly and Nandini just stared at her plate, which is full of food.

"I was thinking about being in a relationship with him. Maybe, that's why I saw that dream." Nandini said, and Mrunal stared at her wide-eyed.

"London ke ladke ithne bhi bure nahi the ki tujhe ye khayal London mein nahi aaya. Aur waise bhi, India aake sirf dho din hue yaar. Ithne mein relationship?(Guys in London weren't that bad that you never felt like being in a relationship when you were in London. Also, it's been just two days since we're in India, and you're already looking for relationships?)" Mrunal threw her hands in air and spoke dramatically. Nandini rolled her eyes at her best friend.

"Fake relationship." Nandini corrected her previous statement, and Mrunal stared at Nandini blankly. "Explain!" Mrunal thumped on a seat, and Nandini started to explain the plan that formed in her head, the previous night.

"Why would he agree to your proposal?" Mrunal asked. "I mean, he belongs to a reputed family. Tu Chennai Express ki Meena nahi ki Manik Malhotra darke tera fake boyfriend banjaega." Mrunal added.

"Mera boyfriend banne keliye mujhe koi Meena nahi banna. Being Nandini Murthy is enough, for any damn guy to fall on his one knee and forward a white rose." Nandini retorted. "Red rose, it must be." Mrunal corrected her. "Well..I am unique." Nandini flipped her hair backwards, and Mrunal mimicked her action.

"White rose is for purity or friendship or for a marriage function, witch. Aur tujhe romance chahiye." Mrunal barked, which Nandini ignored. "Fortunately, I ain't interested in those mushy stuffs. Isiliye filhaal white rose teek. Waise bhi, in ancient times, White roses symbolized love." Nandini replied, and then concentrated in her food.

"But what was the need of such a dream?" Mrunal said, and Nandini too nodded at it. "I don't know. Bas relationship ke barein mein sochne se shadi ka khayal ayega kya?" Nandini replied, and started to sip on her juice, when her eyes widened.

"Shadi!" She muttered to herself and remembered the dialogue in her dream. "Welcome to family, Nandini beta. Nandini Manik Malhotra." she also remembered Rithvik's words. "It's not like DJ has problems with love marriage. DJ ko problem nahi hai if you marry someone instead of being in a relationship." she widened her eyes on realizing that her grandfather would accept any damn girl for his sons or his friend's sons, if they're getting married straightaway, rather than being in a relationship.

"Fluffy?" Mrunal kept staring at Nandini, whose gaze went up to Mrunal and then at herself. She looked parched. She looked dissatisfied with the thoughts running in her head, yet she couldn't keep the what ifs away.

"What if I marry Manik Malhotra, in reality as well?" Nandini asked, and Mrunal stared at her best friend, blankly.

***

"This is not good. This is not good. This is not good." Nandini muttered to herself, while looking around the posh restaurant, and then at the entrance. "I can't do it. Appa ko kya bolun? Shadi ki mene? Unke permission ke bagair? Ma mujhse bath thak nahi karegi phir. Bhayyus will go mad. They are super possessive for me. Will they even let Manik Malhotra see the next daylight if I marry him? Wait..will they even love me like they do now, if I get ready for a contract marriage?" Nandini held onto Mrunal's hands and mumbled, nearly fainting.

"Do I look like anything but sane, lady? I am going crazy. Fluffy! You freaking thinking about getting married. Fake relationship teek hain. But marriage. Tu ne hamesha romance ke khilaf bath kiya, because you found it cringeworthy. But marriage was something you always dreamed about. You never cared about whom to get married, when to get married, but you wanted a big fat wedding with your family members by your side. Ye shadi aise nahi hogi, jaise tu chahthi thi." Mrunal replied, while holding Nandini's hands, too calmly.

Nandini stared at Mrunal, and then held onto her head.

"I shouldn't have thought about it. Sabo dhoka dhe ke shadi nahi karna chahiye, lekin my desperation to unite my Appa with his father, was huger than every other relations. I shouldn't have." Nandini said to herself, but before she could ponder more about it, her mobile was ringing. Incoming internet call.

"Hey Appa." Nandini began to speak cheerfully, while Shekhar smiled at her excitedly. "Guess what, Shona?" he asked, rubbing his hands, and Nandini raised her eyebrows. "You getting married again?" she asked, and he let out a sad sigh. "Tch! Kaha permission milega teri Mother India ka." he said, and Nandini nodded at him.

"Well! You can't expect her to bring a sautan for her, when I am already a hindrance in between you and her." Nandini replied, and Shekhar narrowed his eyes at her. "So..who asked you to barge inside our bedroom whenever I romance with your mother?" he retorted. "The answer is present in your question itself. You romance with my mother. My mother. And I have all the right in the world to enter my Mom's bedroom." Nandini replied, while Mrunal stared at the father-daughter duo in disbelief.

"Wo sab chod, aur ye batha. What's the catch?" she asked, and Shekhar grinned again. "I got Amitab Bachhan's autograph. He was here in London, yesterday." Shekhar said, enthusiastically and Nandini stared at him weirdly. "So?" she asked, and he stared at her. "So? What do you mean by So? Arey, it's Amitab Bachhan's autograph. The famous Bollywood actor." Shekhar pressed, and Nandini still had that weird look on her face.

"Appa! Mujhe patha hai Amitab Bachhan kaun hai. I mean, I agree I don't watch Bollywood movies much, lekin he's a big name of Bollywood. Par aap ithna excited kyun? You were never a movie person. Ma tho mujhe apke xerox copy isiliye bulathe hai because we both aren't into films." Nandini said, and Shekhar rolled his eyes. "Tu mujhe chodke kya chali gayi, sab kuch bhool gayi. Don't you know Amitab Bachhan is Ma's favorite actor?" he asked, and Nandini slapped her head. "Oops, sorry. Wo tho mein bhool gayi." she smiled sheepishly, and he faked a frown.

"It's Ma's birthday, after 2 weeks. Aur iss baar tu bhi nahi hai celebrate karne keliye. Mene socha to celebrate it with Mishti and with Amitab Bachhan's autograph." Shekhar said.

While Nandini stared at her father blankly. She could see sadness in those eyes. He was looking happy, happy because he got a gift for his mother on her birthday, even though she's not alive.

But what about his family? Do they even know that he celebrates everything related to them, alone? Does his father know how much they matter to him, that he still hides his sorrows from the world and act the most strongest?

"Appa! Hamesha sad kyun? You have to be my handsome Appa, and for that you need to wipe off those fake smiles. Waise bhi, aap bhuda lagtha hai, when you fake smiles. Come on, I don't need an oldie father. Cheer up, now." Nandini scolded her father, who chuckled at it.

"Well, its fine now. I was sad that you wouldn't be here to celebrate Ma's birthday." Shekhar voiced out, and Nandini smiled at him. "Virtual celebration ho sakthe na." Nandini winked at her father, who beamed in approval, and they talked for a while to cheer up Shekhar, before the line went off.

" Mruno!" Nandini sighed, and Mrunal held onto her head.

"I know, you've decided it. But I've been asking one single question to myself, from the moment you announced about marrying Manik Malhotra. Are you ready to bear every wrong thing going to happen in future, just for uniting Uncle with his old man, who doesn't even care about his son. He doesn't even care whether his son had a child or not, fluffy. Ek baar bhi reply nahi diya, when Uncle sent a mail to him stating that he had become a father then. Aise aadmi keliye ithna kuch?" Mrunal asked, in disbelief and Nandini smiled.

"I can. Because, it's not for Appa's old man, but for my Appa. I believe that Love is selfish." Nandini replied, and Mrunal knew there's no going back. "Maybe, he doesn't care about his son. But unfortunately, my father loves his father a lot." Nandini muttered, before her gaze went up to Manik, who got inside the restaurant, for a lunch meet with his client.

"You sure about it?" Mrunal asked again, and Nandini nodded. They stared at Manik and his client, until they were done with their lunch.

"Chal. Let's intrude." Nandini stood up and Mrunal gave her a thumbs up, before moving along with her.

Manik was about to leave once his client left, when he saw someone taking a seat opposite to him, through his peripheral vision. He frowned and looked up, only to come in contact with a girl's face. One stranger's face. One beautiful stranger.

"Um..yes?" asked Manik, looking at the girl, who was smiling too sweetly at him, not that he's complaining. "Hi. Manik Malhotra, right?" she asked, and he nodded at her, frowning.

"I am Nandini. Nandini Murthy." she forwarded her hand towards him, and he stared at her hand and then at her. "Well! Go on. I know rape attempts isn't just from the guys' side but even girls are doing it nowadays. But just a handshake wouldn't do any harm." Nandini said, and Manik stared at her wide-eyed.

"Ex..cuse me?" he asked, and Nandini dropped her hand down. "Your bad. Ithna time nahi hai mere paas. So we'll save the handshake for some other time. Filhaal, I have something important to talk to you." she said, and Manik stared at her weirdly.

"Well, nothing much. Marry me." she said, and Manik stared at her aghast. He couldn't blink his eyes. He couldn't even believe his ears. A random girl had just taken a seat opposite to him, and commanded to marry her.

Well, it's not like he was never asked out. He was. Many girls have proposed to him, but they're all those whom he knew from either his school or college, not any random girls.

It's not everyday where you meet a girl, who introduces herself and then asks you to marry her!

"Wh-What?" Manik asked, unsure of what he heard.

"I said, Marry me." Nandini repeated, and Manik lost his patience, but before he could burst out, she beat him to it. "Alright, I don't know how to ask a guy out, so I cannot say those mushy sentences and ask you out like a typical girl. Also, that should be done when you're really interested in someone, and I am not interested in you." Nandini added, and all Manik did was staring at her. 

"What-what-what the hell are you even saying, Miss?" Manik growled, yet not so loudly to invite attention from others.

"Look." Manik's attention went towards the girl beside the one who "proposed" to him, who was unnoticed by him until now. "I know, she's not making it clear. Actually, we are in need of your help. If you get married to her, we are going to be benefited in the future." Mrunal said, as if she was making sense.

"Are you even hearing yourself? This lady just proposed to me, to marry her when we don't even know each other. Plus, she's saying that she's not even interested in me. And you're saying that you both will be benefited if she marries me. The hell is wrong with you girls?!" Manik barked out, and Nandini held onto her head.

"Listen Mr. Malhotra. I know, its weird to see a random girl coming to you, and proposing for marriage, but then I am not even asking for a real marriage." Nandini said, and Manik turned to look at her, blankly. "I am here for a contract marriage." she added.

"What the f***!" Manik cursed out loud, and the girls glared at him. "Language, young man. Language." Nandini said, and he gave her a look filled with anger.

"Now listen. There's something that you have, which would benefit me in gaining something I lost. I know, that may not make sense to you, but that's all I can say. You don't have to be worried. I don't need anything from you. Not your money. Not your family. Not your fame. Nothing. In fact, no harm would be caused to you by me. But I would like you to marry me." Nandini poured the main point, out.

"Insane. That's what you are. Completely insane." Manik said, and got up to leave, when he heard it. 

"Yar Cabir! You need to help me to tackle Anju Ma..." he turned around to see Nandini playing the recorded conversation of him and his brother, in her mobile. "Ismein saaf saaf suna hai that you don't want any girl in your life. Ye media ko patha chalega tho you know right, how a conversation could be changed to anything that they want." Nandini said, and Manik clenched his fists and marched towards her. 

She stood on her feet, and kept her hands in the mid air. "Okay, don't go hyper. I am not going to send it to anyone, but you have to accept it. Koi real shadi nahi. Bas ek registration marriage. Hamare traditions ya rituals follow nahi karna chahiye. Ye sab tum apni real beewi ke sath kar saktho ho. I want a marriage, only for 3 months period. Ye 3 mahine mein, I am not going to create any ruckus in your family or public life. I can even write it as a clause in the contract. I am desperate enough to get married to you, for you have a connection with something that I need. Don't worry, its nothing harmful for you or your family." Nandini said, and wrote her number in a tissue paper and kept it on the table.

"Tumhara number mere paas hai. I got it, through my sources. But you cannot have mine, through any sources..so, keep it and let me know your decision. I don't have a choice." she said, and left with Mrunal, while Manik kept staring at her retreating figure.

He stared at the tissue paper, in dilemma. What is happening in his life?!

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How was the chapter?

It's a long one. I'm sorry to the people who cannot handle long chapters. I write as per my mood, and once I'm under control of it, I write a loooot.

Love,

Affu.