(A/N: Eeks! I apologize for the delay girls. To compensate, I will be posting the next part of this chapter ASAP. Yeah, it's on priority. Hope you guys like this chapter. Be sure to follow me for private updates. :) Vote, comment and share. Thanks.
Twitter: @torridtides
Loads of love.)

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Manik dressed the wound for me and I tried to get cozy with him, but he was clearly pissed at me. Such tricks always tended to make him worried and this wasn't just the first time it was happening.

"Kya hua?" I asked in a cute tone, making a cute face and Manik gave a death glare.

"Aur kuch hona baaki hai?" He howled into my face, to probably terrorize me of the consequences of me hurting myself. I frowned.

"Gussa phirse." I huffed and shrugged him off me and almost immediately, he tugged my arm, pressing the damp cotton on my wrist, cleaning the wound.

"Aur tumne apna haath jala di, phirse." He spoke under his breath, with a hint of arrogance. I put my hand on his shoulder, to support myself and at the same time, console him.

"Manik, stop na? Maine jaanbuchke kuch nahi kiya." I shook my head cutely as I made my point clear to him but he was just being so combative, shooting sarcastic comments and words that could best express his emotional state.

"Vahi toh, like there exists a word called 'careful' in Mrs. Malhotra's life." He flapped in the air as he rolled his eyes and went to get some bandage. He grabbed some bandage cloth and pressing the cotton to my wound carefully, he began wrapping my arm with the bandage cloth.

"Sorry." I said in a mere whisper and he grunted loudly, at least, loud enough for me to already know that it wasn't enough.

"I don't need it."

"Please, Manik. Bhaiyya..." I said in a animated tone and he stared at me and within a second, I was thrown on the bed with him over me, caging me tight within his body. His hand was pressed against my mouth to shut it and my eyes widened.

"One more time I hear that, I swear Nandini, I'll never talk to you again. Never ever." He made a hell serious face and I grimaced sorrowfully. It hurt when he didn't speak to me, not that I denied I was being overdramatic in our relationship.

This is the thing right, girls tend to adore it when their boyfriends care for them a little too much and when that happens, they feel pampered and hence, become more dramatic and overprotective because they want their boyfriend to themselves.

In a healthy relationship, the only issues are insecurity and overprotectiveness. Insecurity because probably someone will treat your loved one better than you and overprotectiveness because you want to ensure they are never harmed by anything or anyone.

"Toh maaf karo mujhe." I pouted cutely and he watched me for a moment and heaved pathetically.

"And there is a limit for being possessive, you know that, don't you?" He grit his teeth in anger and I pressed my lips into a commiserative smirk.

"Oh yeah? Okay, now suppose an uncle, elderly man, comes home and hugs me, you'll be standing there watching?" I cringed my eyebrows in doubt and he gawked at me. He thought for a moment and then answered.

"No?" It sounded more like a question but yeah, who cares. He looked so helpless, trying to justify himself.

"Then why? Why is it that girls can't react the way guys do? Why can't girls be bold, be strong, fight for themselves?" The feminist in me outraged in fury and there was no stopping there, even he knew that yet, he tried to tame me.

"But main hu na? Toh kya zarurat hai ladne ki, huh? Humesha ladti rehti ho, lady Bheem." He joked with a klutzy giggle and he was surprised I didn't even react.

"I don't like these stereotypes. It's stupid." I snapped as I rolled my eyes at him.

"Acchha baba, I'm sorry." He pecked me on the cheek quickly and I smiled. I kissed him softly on the lip, just for a moment and gave him a warm genuine smile. After all, that's what relationships are. Getting angry at each other is normal, but it won't last long.

"Vaise, kal Karwa Chauth hai. Mom ka message aaya." I winked as I walked to attend to the guests and his look was priceless. That helpless, disapproving scowl.

"Nandini... suno... Nand..." He ran behind me in an attempt to explain how stupid that ritual was but I paid no heed.

***

Manik was constantly doing everything he could to impress the aunties who'd come to stay with us. It was around 7 p.m. and my head almost started throbbing at the amount of drama happening at home.

Okay, now let's get one thing straight. No matter how modern the society is, or how advanced and 'cool' the old generation gets, when they're surrounded by fellow old people, it's just so dramatic. Inevitably, there are arguments and sarcastic smiles and what not! Drama was something I HIGHLY disliked.

To top it all, Amma was in the house, trying to accommodate those six aunties who'd come to visit my mother and instead, were staying in OUR house, invading our privacy. No like seriously, don't old people understand that newly married couples need privacy, for God's sake? Like what the hell? We haven't even gone on a damn honeymoon together.

"Yahan koi extra room hai, jahan hum sab adjust kar sakte hai?" One of those aunties, supposedly my mother's aunts, questioned in the most annoying tone or rather, I was just so pissed off. Sexually frustrated.

"Nahi Aunty, bas ek hi room hai iss ghar mein." I said with a fake smile and Manik gave me an impressed look. Sometimes I managed to surprise him with my stupid antics to please other people while his were genuine. Again, it was a totally different case for Manik because it was always just him and his parents. Our family was a huge family and in most of South India, an entire village belongs to a particular family.

He was overwhelmed by the guests, their love, their affectionate comments, everything and Amma was cherry on the cake, while I was hell frustrated.

"Haan Maasi, aap yeh room le lijiye." Amma offered and the aunties peeked at the room, looked at each other for a minute and then nodded.

"Haan teek."

"Nahi Amma par hum..." I shook my head in denial and Amma gave me the look, the look that meant, 'will you shut up?'

"Haan... Aap araamse rest kar sakte hai. Bed bahut acchha hai." He winked at me and I slapped him hard, for making such pathetic jokes.

"Pervert." I muttered under my breath, crossing my arms and cursing under my breath. He smiled at my angry avatar. It was always a treat to him to watch me shoot glares and curse across the room; given he wasn't the victim.

"Nandini, tum bhi aa jao humare saath." I freaked out at the idea of being stuck for an entire night with drama queens. I stumbled as I made excuses. 

"Nahi voh..."

"Yes, Nandini. Go join them." Manik said, in an attempt to get the title, best-son-in-law. Jerk.

"Par Manik..." Amma trailed off and Manik had a comeback ready. Why couldn't he be the same with me? But no. He only has to impress other people, who cares about me!

"Main adjust kar lunga couch main. No worries." He smiled and I rolled my eyes mentally, because Amma was already staring at me.

"Nahi nahi." I protested but all in vain. See, this is the thing here. Nobody listens to me.

"Manik, sure na?" Amma asked, totally ignoring my presence and I felt like stabbing something in anger.

"Haan Amma, I can adjust here. It's pretty big." He polished his smile and refined it to look more genuine but I couldn't care less.

"Okay then. Thanks."

"Amma, am I not like your son?" I gave a pathetic look at the two of them.

"Will you guys stop? Where will I sleep?" I shouted helplessly. One hell of a life I have.

"Nandu, humare saath aa jao kamre main." Another aunty suggested and I ignored. Amma gave me a few hopeless looks.

"But..."

"Bahut pyaar se bula rahe hai na? Aao beta." I glanced at Manik and he was doing something on his phone. Ugh. Can I kill this man? He can never learn priorities. Just then, my phone pinged and I checked to see his message.

Manik: *Say okay. We'll deal with the rest later.*

"Okay." I said, after he gave me the assurance look.

"And get up early tomorrow, it's your first Karwa Chauth." Amma gleed excitedly and the dullness in my face almost immediately vanished. One, because it was the first time I was celebrating Karwa Chauth, not like I knew what it was; except for that women fast for their husband's wellbeing.

"Haan. I'll wake up at 4:30, don't worry." I assured with a smile, a proper one.

"Manik, Nandu ko mehendi lagane ke liye abhi artists aayenge. I hope it won't be disturbing you."

"Not at all. Vaise, Mom is getting customary gifts as a mother-in-law. She'll be coming soon." They joked around a bit and then Amma bid goodbye to us. Nyonika Mom came and gave some mehendi cones. She gave me a saree too, as a customary gift, to wear the next day. According to rituals, the plate of customary gifts was given to me, while I was sitting on a chair and I was fed some sweet. Manik clicked pictures of me and his mother together.

The artists applied mehendi to my hands and Manik had made me promise that I won't touch him at all until the design was off my hands. He fed me my dinner, tried not to fool around with me; given I knew his weakness and took every opportunity to display his love for me in front of those aunties.

Even weirder, those aunties were staring at us while we were sharing private moments together. Disgusting, ain't it? After everything was over, I headed to the room at around 9:30. The mehendi was dry, though I didn't remove it. The aunties and I went to bed, and I checked my phone. I opened his contact and sent a quick text.

Nandini: *I miss you.*

I heard his phone ping and I stared at the screen blankly, waiting for his reply.

Manik: *Go to sleep, love. Just a few hours.*

I smiled to myself and looked at the ceiling, thinking of what to type back. I liked it when he addressed me with 'love'. Yeah, call it cheesy if you like, I call it true love. It's rare to find love in this world of lust and men who address you with cute names are a lot likely to be in true love than lust.

Nandini: *But look, we're in adjacent rooms but cannot see each other. 😢*

I tapped the 'Send' button and waited. I couldn't believe how hard it was to live without Manik. In such a short span of time, he'd become such an integral part of my life. It was true, marriage doesn't bind two people, it binds two souls. He's a part of me. I am a part of him. We're nothing without each other, not anymore.

Manik: *I know. ☹️ But Amma ne bola na?*

I giggled at the emoji. I literally imagined Manik sighing and frowning and it was cute.

Nandini: *Tum Amma ko impress kar rahe ho?*

I smiled at the screen like an idiot. Is it just me, or do people in love smile for no reason?

Manik: *Of course.*

Nandini: *See how much trouble I'm in, because of you!*

Manik: *I'm sorry. ❤️ Now sleep; baby. Good night. 😴*

I sighed to myself. For some reason, I couldn't sleep. I wasn't sleepy.

Nandini: *I can't.*

Manik: *Ssshhh...*

Nandini: *Fine. 😐 Bye.*

I locked my damn phone screen and placed the phone, with screen down, over my chest. I looked up at the ceiling and observed the way the ceiling fan spun, as I thought about my life. Sometimes, nights when you aren't sleepy are the best times to think about your life.

What am I doing with my life? I'm bunking college really often and if this is the case, I'm never gonna become a good microbiologist. I don't study at home, because with Manik around, it's like handling a toddler. He gets cranky at the most inconvenient times. It's irritating sometimes but then again, I love him too much.

I turned to my side and pulled the blanket up until my chest. I snuggled my hands under my head and blinked at the dresser. Unable to sleep, I groaned and turned again, a little roughly, making the bed creak. Ugh. Stupid bed.

After like 10 minutes, I got up in frustration and with a thud, my phone fell to the floor. I grabbed it angrily and checked for scratches. iPhones are a pain in the ass, but I had more important things to think about. How can he be sleeping now? Is he really sleeping? What, without me? No wait. Let me just go check on him.

I slowly got off the bed, wrapped the blanket around me, kinda looking like a halloween monster; and tiptoed to the door. I turned the knob very carefully and the door creaked. I crept out of the room. As soon as I stepped out, I whined. Darkness... I raised my arms to shoulder level, in front of me, and began flapping as I walked, to not bump into something and get hurt. I'd had enough of death-stares and sarcastic compliments.

I found the couch and I flipped the switch behind it on, and it lit up a section of the living room. I glanced down to see Manik snoring real soft. I frowned at how easily he could sleep and gave him a look, hoping he'd acknowledge my presence but he almost immediately turned, once the light was flipped on. I felt a little sad for him, more because he looked really cute, adjusting in that little couch. It was short and wide and probably that's how Manik fit.

I smiled and walked closer. I laid down beside him and he turned back towards me, rubbing the tip of his nose onto my hair. He sensed my presence and in his sleep, he threw his arm over me, pulling me to himself. I adjusted my blanket over the two of us and kissed his chin, for I could only reach there. My face was shoved into his chest, and his arms clasped me in their tight hold.

"Light off, kardo." I commanded and Manik began to search for the remote behind him, still closing his eyes. He grabbed it, pressed a button and the light turned off. He put a leg on me as he snuggled into me and I embraced him by wrapping an arm around his waist.

Part-2:
I was having a nice slumber until my damn phone buzzed. I pressed the snooze button and lazed in for a few more minutes before someone called.

"Hello?"
"Abhi tak so rahi ho? Khaana kab khaayegi?"
"Haan... matlab, nahi... I wasn't sleeping."
"Acchha chalo, freshen up and shower. Nyonika will be coming there."
"Yeah, cool. Okay bye."

I cut the call and nudged Manik to move. Instead, he pushed his head into the crook of my neck, holding me to himself.  I have him a light slap, hoping to bring him back to his senses.

"Manik, choddo mujhe. Kya kar rahe ho?" I twisted and turned, all in an attempt to get out of the cage he'd created with his body, around me. He flickered his eyes half-open, gave me a irritated look and grabbed me tighter.

"So raha hu. Sone do, aur tum bhi so jao. Come." He snuggled and adjusted to find a cozy spot in that couch and pulled me too.

"NO! I need to get ready, let me go." I commanded and struggled and he nuzzled into me, slipping his hand under my shirt and drawing gentle circles around my tummy.

"Hmm..." I looked at him for a minute and then found the best thing that could scare the shit out of him. I placed my mehendi hand onto his bare arm.

"Manik..." I called out, touching him with that dry mehendi and he jumped up in fear, after shrieking.

"Eeks! Chee yaar Nandini, kya natak hai yeh? Aise koi utthatha hai kya? Disgusting!" He growled as he dusted his arm and glared at me. I giggled and rolled out of the couch, leaving a sleep-deprived Manik all flustered there.

"I'm going to take bath." I threw the blanket over him and switched the light on. I walked towards our room and turned the knob, accidentally putting pressure on my burn. "Oww."

"Ab kya?" He howled from under the blanket and I turned to see him blinking out of his sleep.

"Haath..."

"Main pehnata hun saree. Ab nahake aao." I chuckled at the thought of Manik having expertise in such activities.

"You know how to?" I shot a challenging smile and he smirked at his idea.

"Google!" I pressed my lips tightly and huffed.

"Manik, tum na... rehne do. Main hi kar leti hu." I stumbled into the room, sheering the curtains open and then heading into the bathroom. I carefully undressed myself, and began filling the tub with water. In the meantime, I brushed, used the bathroom, and brushed my hair free of tangles. I stepped into the bath, taking one long relaxing bath.

After I was done, I changed into my lingerie and stood in front of the queen-sized mirror, glancing at my petite figure blankly. It would be wrong to say I wasn't attractive because I was, probably. Short, cute and vulnerable. I mean, yeah, alright, not vulnerable but yeah, cute and bubbly and sometimes bold. I found a few of Manik's shirts hanging behind the door. I grabbed one, put it on and admired myself. My long loose curls bounced over my chest and I smiled and turned from side to side, admiring myself in the mirror.

"Okay, so... how do I put..." I heard his voice trailing off until the door creaked open, and he stood there, holding my saree in his hands, placing it in the countertop. His jaw almost dropped as I gleed at him.

"Kaisi lag rahi hu?" I twirled and tried to act overly cute.

"Sexy." The word escaped his lips in a trance and I smiled coyly. I stepped closer and his hands automatically traced the curve on my waist. I leaned onto him, folding my arms and placing the insides on his chest.

"Tum bhi." I murmured softly as I ran one of my hands down his chest, to his stomach and before I could reach any below, he grabbed my hand and pulled me, to collide with his chest.

"Nandini, stop... I won't be able to stop later." He said, taking a deep breath and I smiled cheekily. I quickly grabbed my saree.

"Tumhe toh pehenana nahi aata." I spat in a humorous tone and after inhaling deeply, he spoke.

"Try karunga, tumhare liye." He snatched the saree from me and began examining it, while I stood there, still admiring myself. He forced me to change into my petticoat while he figured out the basics, that is, how to hold the damn saree. "Haan okay come here." He pulled my waist towards him and got down on his knees. He played the video on his phone, asking me to hold it and he watched step-by-step.

"Hmm... tuck to the left, okay." He tapped the 'pause' button and tucked one end of the saree into my petticoat, at my waist. I observed something weird and hit him.

"Manik, this is right." I signaled with my hand flapped into the air and he clicked his lips is disagreement.

"No, left hi hai." He sighed as he began awkwardly figuring out how to proceed.

"Mera right hai yeh, idiot." I pushed his head gently, in a rather playful manner and his tongue stuck out cutely, as his face cringed in realization.

"Haan haan... sorry. Daant kyun rahi ho?" He frowned as he untucked the saree and tucked it to my left.

"Sorry." I bent down and pecked his forehead and stood back straight, brushing his soft hair with my fingers.

"...around the body once..." He said to himself, like a toddler that repeats lists when he's asked to buy goods from the store. "...tuck the edge of the saree..." He tucked it in very clumsily and I sighed. Manik Malhotra!

"Uff... I'm almost done." He sighed exasperated and he ran his fingers through his hair.

"Oh hello, pallu?" I waved before him and he nodded.

"Haan ruko na?" He watched the pallu pleating and tried himself a couple of times, before giving up. "Ab yeh kaise kare?" He held the end out, showing me or rather asking for help.

"Do, main hi kar leti hu." I took the end from him but he almost instantly grabbed it back.

"No... mujhe karna hai." He nagged as he began fiddling with the hemmed end. I instructed him in the best way possible, without straining my hand yet still gesturing the necessary actions.

"Keep your fingers like this... fold the saree between the fingers..." I moved my fingers in such a manner and he observed and copied. "Manik, make it smaller. Such wide pleats look lame." I whined and he huffed.

"I can't make it smaller. Wear this or ask your 'affectionate-aunties' to help you out." He said with a fake smile and I grunted in annoyance.

"Fine. Do whatever. I'll ask their help later." I flapped and crossed my arms against my chest. He placed the pleats over my shoulder and pinned them in place. He made similar pleats and tucked them in my petticoat, to hold the saree in place.

"Lo. You look fine." He placed his hands on my shoulders as he looked at me with a satisfied look. I turned to see myself in the mirror and trust me, the sight wasn't pleasing at all.

"Chee, are you even looking at this? I look so fat. See my tummy, I look so pregnant." I pat my tummy from over the saree and frowned at Manik through the mirror. He looked at my stomach and gave me a sarcastic look.

"Haan toh, suppose you actually get pregnant, you'll look at yourself with that ugly look?" He looked clearly annoyed at the fact that I was calling myself fat and ugly and more so, that I was ruining the title of pregnant women by calling the phase ugly.

"Yeah... why do girls have to go through all the pain?" I cried, okay not literally, and Manik stood behind me, wrapping his arms around my entire body, interlocking them at my stomach.

"Because women like you have men like me in their lives, who're always there for them, to take care of them, to love them; just like I do." He whispered into my ear as he grabbed my earlobe in between his teeth and slowly bit on it. He ran along the lobe and then kissed the skin just at the end of my jawline real quick.

"Aur main?"

"Aur tum... kya?" He smiled and I put one arm around his neck.

"Main..." He grabbed my body and I ran my finger along his thumping chest muscles, feeling him react.

"Tum..." He spoke in a controlled tone. I shifted my gaze from his chest, to his lips. I ran my finger along his lip line.

"Tumse..." I breathed against his nose and he inhaled deeply.

"Mujhse..."

"Bahut..."

"Bahut..." I leaned into him, so close, we were millimeters away. He shut his eyes closed and felt the moment. I watched him, desperate as ever, and smirked at him. I coughed and he opened his eyes, to see me smirking. He knew he'd given in and embarrassed himself.

"Arre... fine. Jaa raha hu main..." He frowned and turned to leave and just then an external voice overpowered.

"Koi hai andhar? Darwaza kholo." She banged and I ran to grab Manik's arm.

"Manik... sshh... if you go out now, what will they think?" I tried to explain the situation but it looked like he was rather enjoying seeing me all flustered.

"What will they think?" He smirked and I tugged his arm to make him stay in place.

"Manik, don't be stupid. We both are here, together and you're dressed like that and I look so disheveled..." I dropped hints and he gave me that fake realization look. The one where he acts overly surprised and stunned for my acts or rather, intelligence.

"Ohhh... you mean, they'll think we had... sex? Toh sochne do. Shayad unka vichaar sahi ho. Hmm?" He chuckled as his hands slid down to my butt, pulling me onto him.

"Manik..." I grit my teeth in anger and he giggled. I tried removing his hands but he didn't budge.

"Ahhh..." He squealed as my pinch pained him and that manly squeal must've given the aunty ideas. This man! He defined trouble.

"Koi hai andhar?" She banged the door again and now I had to respond.

"Haan Aunty... aayi ab." I called and grabbed Manik's arm. "Kya zarurat thi cheekne ki?" I spoke under my breath, cursing him in between, for putting me in this embarrassing situation.

"Why did you pinch me?" He scowled as he rubbed the area that hurt.

"Because you never think beyond sex, Manik Malhotra." I grimaced and in return, got a glare.

"What do you mean? I'm addicted to sex? Huh? You know what... Never mind." He flapped hopelessly and angrily, threw a glass bottle down. He stomped away even upon my constant calls.

"Manik..." I tried to stop him but he slammed the door behind him, hardly. I walked out of the bathroom, looking for him and was stopped outside the room by an aunty.

"Tum andhar..." She looked at me up and down, looked towards the room door, through which Manik slipped out and gazed back at me. She glanced at my disheveled state and gave me a judgmental look. This day couldn't get worse. I apologized and quickly escaped to avoid anymore embarrassing situations.

***

It was almost dawn and a feast was prepared for me by Nyonika Mom. Seriously, in my entire life, I'd never seen that much food altogether. On top of that, Punjabis I tell you, just... love food. They can't get over it.

That was the case with Nyonika Mom too. One thing I didn't like to have loads of, was food. Okay, yeah, I love food; but there's a limit, right? Like you can't just go on eating like a hippo. It's no good.

"Mom, no. Enof. I cauth eath..." I growled with my mouth stuffed with food. Nyonika Mom was having a nice time feeding me. As such she had just one son and probably sons are just too boring after a while, unlike daughters, who always come up with deranged ideas to entertain their parents with.

"Nandini, eat well. Now you'll have to fast for 18 hours so eat na?" She tried to convince, stuffing two morsels together into my mouth and I was literally choking. All that food clogged my food-pipe, why? Because the pace of intake was faster than the pace of processing. Manik saw me struggling and decided to pop in, to the rescue.

"Mom, she doesn't have to. These rituals are stupid." He walked towards us, smelling the dishes of food and closing the lids in awe. He was serious one eccentric food-addict. I stared at him, to see if he'd give me a reaction but no, he was ignoring my presence there.

"Manik..." His mother warned and he sighed as he closed the dishes and went back to watching TV. He struggled to go back to sleep after the drama in the bathroom but yet again, a distressed Manik couldn't sleep even if he needed to.

He chugged down a beer, while swapping channels and I gave him a apologetic look. If only he knew what I meant. If only he listened for once but no, Manik Malhotra just had to jump to conclusions without caring a bit about what I was saying, or at least listening to me for heaven's sake.

"Kuch hua kya tum dono ke beech?" Nyonika Mom interrupted and I broke eye-contact with a distressed Manik. I shook my head negatively in a rather, swift motion, to prove we were okay.

"Nahi Mom, all good." I smiled and she pat my head while Manik looked at the two of us, a smile creeping on his lips without his knowledge.

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(I'm blushing now! 🙈 These two are so cute, like seriously. Don't you guys agree? Well, if you did, drop your votes and comments. I love to read them and it makes me happy.
Twitter: @torridtides
Thanks. 😘)