10:30 pm, Riverside Apartments, Mumbai.

I stood at the balcony of my own flat and watched the police car parked outside the apartment gates. I felt like a prisoner in my own home! They had been keeping a watch on us ever since Manik escaped!

Manik! If he appeared in front of me right at this moment, I didn't know what I'd do to him! One part of me wanted to throttle him for his pigheadedness and the other part of me wanted to hug him to offer him comfort!

It had been nearly three days since I'd last spoken to him! When I informed him about the recording the Singhanias possessed, I finally thought Manik would allow us to help him! After all, Fab Five was his family! But, no! Instead, he insisted on extracting the recording all by himself! And in order to do so, he kidnapped an innocent girl?!

I knew that he was planning to do something crazy! But this?! He had completely lost his mind! In order to prove himself innocent of one crime, he committed another?! How stupid could he get?!

And the girl, I had absolutely no idea who she was! Was she connected to the Singhanias in any way? Is that why Manik kidnapped her? In order to use her as leverage to blackmail the Singhanias?

Cabir! Calm down! Don't let your thoughts run wild!

I was sure that Manik had a good reason for committing such a crime, but was it really worth it?

I still wasn't sure if I should have told him about the recording or not! I knew that he was an impulsive soul, and he would be hasty in his actions! However, I told him about it to give him hope-something he seemed to be desperately in need of at the time!

It was such a spot of luck that Dhruv and I had overheard Ram Singh speaking to Mukesh Singhania on the phone! Both of us had then coerced Ram Singh into confessing that he had been betraying the Malhotras for a while! The police had no idea about the bug, but I was convinced that if we got our hands on the recording, Ram Singh would corroborate our story. That man seemed too weak willed to withhold the truth for long!

I was brought out of my contemplation when I heard Dhruv scream my name.

"Cabir! Yahan aa jaldi!" He screamed.

I sighed in frustration as I said. "Coming!"

I immediately stepped into the drawing room of my flat and closed the door to the balcony.

"Kya hua?" I asked Dhruv, in a bored voice.

"Dekh-news pe kya bol rahe hain..." He replied pointing to the T.V screen.

I scanned everyone's face in the room and realized that something was seriously wrong! Dhruv, Alya and Mukti seemed utterly shell-shocked!

I turned my eyes to the television screen and watched a news reporter as she said. "So in the top news today...the mystery of Shrikant Malhotra's death is once again in the forefront, as more news surfaces about his son Manik Malhotra. According to investigations carried out by the police, Manik-the main suspect in his father's murder case- had gone missing for a number of days after fleeing from the scene of the crime. However, now his location is no longer a secret as a video of him and his supposed romantic partner-Nandini Murhty-singing at a beach in Goa has gone viral on social media. Earlier, it was believed that Manik had kidnapped Nandini Murthy, but according to a tip that our channel received yesterday, she eloped with him of her own free will. And the video confirms the same! Although Manik isn't currently in police custody, the police have increased security in Goa to catch him as soon as possible. Stay tuned to News Express for more updates on this story later...until then, let's have a look at the snippets of the video that's gone viral..." She said.

To say that I was shocked upon hearing this news was a gross understatement! They thought Manik and that girl-whatever her name was-Nandini....yes her-they thought that Manik and her were a couple? What the fuck?!

However, when the snippets of the video showed up, I could understand the public's confusion! When I saw Manik's face in the first picture, I could immediately tell that he felt something for her...His expression with her by his side was one of peace and pure happiness-one that I hadn't seen grace his face in a long time! The public seemed to have loved their performance, because they seemed to be applauding in all the photographs.

"Cabir...look, I found the entire video on Youtube!" Alya said, as she handed me her phone.

The police had questioned us the whole day yesterday to see if any of us knew of Manik's whereabouts or why he had kidnapped Nandini Murthy! Obviously, none of us opened our mouths to say a word against him! We even had to submit our phones for inspection, and we had got them back only a few hours ago. So naturally, we had missed a lot on social media!

I grabbed the phone from her and immediately played the video. Watching it only served to deepen the inkling I had, about Manik's feelings. I had never seen him look at any girl as passionately as he looked at Nandini.

So it had finally happened...Manik Malhotra had fallen in love!

However, I had to admit! His timing was terrible!

When I observed Nandini's face, and saw her dazed eyes, I realized that she was equally smitten with Manik.

"Toh aag dono taraf barabar ki lagi hain..." I said, rubbing my chin.

"Kya bola tune?" Mukti asked threateningly, immediately standing up from her seat.

"Kuch nahin..." I said, quickly.

"What are you trying to say Cabir? You think that what the press is saying is true?! You think that Manik and this chick are really together?!" She asked incredulously. "How could he hide it from us?!"

"Mukti, have you gone mad? You think that if he already knew her from before, he wouldn't tell us?" I said, exasperated.

"Exactly! Then why are the news channels saying this shit?! Ye log kuch bhi bolte hai, yaar! First they said that he kidnapped her and now they think that yeh dono saath mein bhaag gaye hain?!" Mukti screamed.

"Relax Mukti! Screaming won't solve any problems..." Dhruv said in a neutral voice as he heard her arguments.

"Cabir, when you last spoke to Manik, what did he say? Did he say anything about this girl? Who is she?" Dhruv asked.

"No guys...he didn't say anything about her! All he said was-he has a plan to extract the recording and we don't have to worry anymore! Back then I didn't know that he was talking about, but later I realized kidnapping Nandini was his grand plan! I guess he knew the police would be penalizing us-that's why he didn't call again!" I said.

"But how is this girl related to the Singhanias? What would kidnapping her achieve? The only news that's being circulated about the Singhanias is the announcement of Madhyam's engagement to Soha Khurana...so..." Dhruv, asked puzzled.

"I really have no idea..." I said.

"I can't believe this! First, Nyonika kills Mr. Malhotra and blames it on Manik! Such a witch that woman is! I can't believe that she had Alya and I attacked just so that she could manipulate him to acquire his property! Then, the press and the police start calling Manik a murderer as well as a kidnapper! And now, they are linking his name with some random nobody! His luck is really rotten, I must say! If I find the person who is spreading these stories, I swear I'll smack him or her!" Mukti said, bumping her fists against the couch in anger.

I was about to give my opinion on Mukti's rant when Alya spoke up.

"No Mukti...she's not a random nobody...Manik genuinely cares for her." She said, as if she were in deep thought.

"Aur ye tujhe kaise pata hai?" Mukti asked in a flustered voice.

"Look at the video Mukti...when is the last time you've seen him that happy? She makes him happy Mukti...something I failed to do..." She said in a trance-like voice.

I smiled slightly at her words and realized that Alya had figured out the same thing I had. After all, who better to gauge Manik's emotions than someone who had always been on the receiving end of his friendship and support but never...his love?

"Alya, are you okay?" Dhruv asked her gently, as he placed his hands on her shoulder.

She immediately snapped out of her thoughts and said, smiling. "Of course, Dhruv! I'm okay! In fact, I'm happy! Now he has someone too...just like I have you!"

Dhruv immediately blushed when he heard her words.

I giggled slightly at his reaction. Dhruv would always remain the baby of the group!

"Agar romance khatam ho gaya ho toh, can we get back to our discussion?" Mukti, asked annoyed.

Suddenly a thought crossed my mind, as I said. "Mukti jo tune pehle bola tha, woh dobara bol!"

"What? Yahi ki Nyonika chudail hain?"Mukti asked.

"Nahi! Uske Baad!" I said.

"Um...Manik has horrible luck?" She asked apprehensively.

"No...after that..." I said, egging her on.

"That when I find out who spread the story about Manik and this...Nandini, I'd smack him?" She asked.

"Yes exactly, that's what we need to do!" I exclaimed.

"Cabir, what do you mean?" Alya asked.

"The news reporter-she said that their channel got a tip off from some source about Manik eloping with Nandini! We need to find out who this 'source' is! Then maybe we can figure out what connection Nandini has to the Singhanias and why Manik kidnapped her in the first place!" I said conclusively.

"And how will we do that?" Mukti spat.

"Simple...I'll call up Ranbir and ask him for contacts at the channel! Maybe if we talk to the press, we can tell them our side of the story..." I said.

My twin brother Ranbir had interned at the same channel a couple of years ago...so it wouldn't be difficult to acquire at least some contacts from him.

Today he was a successful VJ, but he had started out as a news intern! So, he definitely had friends at the channel!

Mukti seemed to think over the plan and said rather calmly. "Cabir, this could actually work..."

"I know! So let me call him right now..." I said as I dialed his number.

It rang a few times, before he finally picked up the call.

"Hello bro!" He said in a cheerful voice.

"Hi!" I said.

"Dude, are you fine? Has your friend Manik really been accused of murder? Are the police after you too?" He asked in a concerned voice.

"Ranbir...slow down! I'll explain everything later...I need your help!" I said.

I saw three expectant faces before me as I waited for his response.

"Sure dude...whatever you need!" He answered.

I immediately smiled and nodded to the others so that they'd know that he'd agreed.

Taking a deep breath, I said."So listen, here's what I need..."

*****************************************************

11:00 pm, News Express Office, Panjim, Goa.

I looked at my computer screen and slammed it shut in frustration. Enough was enough! I couldn't do this anymore!

When I imagined myself as a journalist, I'd always thought that I'd be reporting noteworthy news or writing articles of substance.

But no! All my boss wanted me to do was take an inexperienced cameraman along to stalk random starlets who came to Goa for their holidays!

And here I was-writing a silly article about the same! To my boss-I'd always be a newbie intern who couldn't do any serious reporting!

I had never thought that I'd be doing such a pointless job! I was just an inch away from quitting, but sadly enough I needed the money to keep me going!

What frustrated me even more was that our channel had been breaking a lot of great stories lately, and I'd been included in none of the reporting teams!

Take for instance-Shrikant Malhotra's murder case-there were many people in this very office who were writing articles about it, as well as collecting information about the progress of investigation from the police.

But the question was...were they reporting the truth?

When I thought about the whole incident, something definitely seemed a little off about it...Manik Malhotra had always had a bad image in the media, but murder?

Was he really a cold blooded killer? And when it came to the motive...I definitely wasn't convinced! Was a music career really more important than his own father's life? Was he really that psychotic?

There were so many other things that didn't make sense! How did that Nandini girl fit into all this? Had she really eloped with Manik? Or was the reality something else entirely? The rumour around the office was definitely something to think about...

Ugh! Jeff! There's no use pondering over this! No one cares what you think! Definitely not your boss!

I took a deep breath and opened my laptop to start typing again.

My deadline for the article was the next day, and I couldn't afford to miss it! No matter how annoying writing it was!

Just as I was about to type the first letter, my cell phone started ringing.

When I saw an unknown number flashing, I was overtaken by surprise.

Who could be calling at this hour?

I finally picked up the phone and said. "Hello..."

"Hello...am I speaking to Jefferina from News Express?" said a male voice on the other end.

"It's Jeff. And yes, I work at News Express. Who is speaking?" I said, a little alarmed.

"It's Cabir...Cabir Dhawan...your friend Ranbir's brother?" He declared hesitantly.

Shit! Ranbir! He was one of the first friends I made when I joined here as an intern! He was such a cool guy! When he left our office to take up video jockeying, I knew he'd just kill it! Frankly, he was smart to get out of this hell hole on time!

However, I hadn't spoken to Ranbir in ages, so why the hell was his brother calling me?!

"Yes! I remember Ranbir saying something about having a twin brother...but not more than that..." I said, apprehensively.

"Ranbir and I really aren't that close...I guess our parents' fucked up marriage affected our relationship too..." He said, giving a slight laugh.

I giggled slightly at his answer. Both of them had the same dark sense of humour!

"So why have you called?" I asked curiously.

"Actually I was wondering if you could help me..." Cabir said.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"Well I'm sure that you're aware that your channel received a tip-off from a particular source, about Manik Malhotra and Nandini Murthy eloping... I need to know who this 'anonymous' source is!" He exclaimed.

I felt the skin on my scalp prickling at his words...why did he want to know that?

"I'm sorry Cabir! That's classified! I can't share it with you! Besides, I'm just a junior reporter! I don't know anything for sure..." I said quickly.

"But you have some idea..." He said, relief evident in his voice.

I smacked my own forehead in frustration! I revealed more than I should have!

"Listen if you know anything, you have to tell me! I don't know what Ranbir has told you about me, but did he tell you that Manik is one of my best friends? That I'm part of the same band as him-Fab Five? So I need to know, please..." He pleaded.

What? Cabir was Cabir from Fab Five?! I never followed rock music, so I hadn't known about Fab Five until I'd heard its name in correlation with Manik a few days ago! I had never seen a picture of the members either!

This was a real shock!

"You're friends with a wanted criminal?!" I asked, alarmed.

"Listen he's not a criminal! He's been wrongly accused! He is being set up! But as if the media actually cares about the truth!" He yelled, angrily.

I was slightly puzzled at his outburst. What did he mean by 'set up'?

"What are you saying? So you're saying he's being framed? By who?" I asked, with knots in my stomach.

He paused for a few seconds before answering. "I'm ready to give you a full scoop if you reveal your sources and help Manik out!"

"But how can I..." I tried to argue, but I was cut off by him immediately.

"Do we have a deal? Yes or no?" He said, plainly.

After thinking through the repercussions, I realized that I had to know Cabir's side of the story at any cost! What if his story had some truth to it?

"Yes..." I said.

"Good, so without wasting any more time, please reveal your source..." He said.

"Well I'm not a hundred percent sure about this...but the word around office is that the Singhanias released the news!" I said, grudgingly.

"What? The Singhanias? Why?" He exclaimed, genuinely shocked at my answer.

"Well...people are saying that they did it to save themselves from public disgrace...they're saying it was Nandini Murthy who was originally engaged to Madhyam Singhania before Soha Khurana! And when Manik kidnapped her-they wanted to avoid bad publicity and hence broke off all ties with her...but I guess no one wants to report this because they are scared of Mukesh Singhania's power!" I said, shamefully.

"Oh shit! That's why Manik kidnapped her! Because she was Madhyam's fiancée!" Cabir exclaimed in excitement, as if a light bulb had just glowed in his head.

"Wait a second, what connection does Manik have with the Singhanias? You're saying he abducted Nandini with a specific motive?" I asked, confused.

Cabir took a deep breath before saying. "The Singhanias possess proof which can acquit Manik and free him from all accusations...let me explain...it's a long story."

As Cabir started narrating the story, my eyes grew wider and wider. I didn't even know that such convoluted events could take place in real life! It sounded like a plot of a thriller novel!

Which made it all the more likely that Cabir was telling the truth! It was unlikely that he would be able to spin such a tangled yarn if it wasn't rooted in reality!

"So basically, you're saying that Nyonika is responsible for Shrikant Malhotra's murder? And she's the one who framed Manik?" I asked.

"Precisely!" He said.

"Cabir, those are some serious allegations! And not much proof to back it up!" I said.

"I told you! We're working on the proof! Manik will surely try to acquire the recording from the Singhanias somehow even if his original plan has failed! But when he does, it will have to be protected! It needs to be broadcast on a national platform immediately! We have to expose Nyonika's and Mukesh Singhania's reality to the world at any cost! So...will you help us?" He asked, hopefully.

I thought about what he was saying and realized that even though pulling such a stunt wouldn't earn me any plus points with my boss-this is what I wanted to do! I came into journalism to make a difference! And if I could help save an innocent man from being wrongly convicted, I had to take that chance!

"Yes! I'm ready to help!" I said, finally.

"Great! I'll keep in touch, and update you about any news I get from Manik!"He said, eagerly.

"Alright. All the best! I hope you succeed in helping your friend!" I said.

"Thank you. We'll need it!" He said, playfully.

I bid goodbye to him before I finally cut the call.

I took a deep breath and calmed my nerves. I was excited and afraid at the same time! This could either make or break me, but I knew that I'd be cheating myself if I refused to help Cabir now!

However, could I really do it all alone?!

No! It wasn't possible!

But my ally had to be someone I could trust! And I knew just the person to confide in!

I immediately got up from my seat and made my way to the teleprompter room.

As soon as I walked in, I saw Zubin fixing a defective light, with the utmost concentration.

That's exactly how my brother Zubin was! Whatever the job was, he did it with the utmost sincerity, no matter how small or big!

He had been an employee at the channel, long before I started working here, and was one of their chief hardware technicians.

Although Zubin wasn't overly qualified, experience had made him indispensable to the channel.

When he finally realized that someone had entered the room, he looked up at me and gave me a confused expression.

"Jeffy? Tu yahaan kya kar rahi hai?" He asked.

"Zoo, I've something important to tell you! It's about a story! And it's big!" I said.

"What story?" He asked, looking a little afraid about what I was going to say.

"It's about Shrikant Malhotra's murder!" I said.

"Jeffy please! I can't handle any more of your conspiracy theories! So just stop!" He said, in an annoyed tone, as he continued to fix the light.

"It's not a conspiracy theory Zoo! I have first-hand information from Manik's friend and band mate!" I exclaimed.

"And what is this information?" He asked stepping away from the light in irritation.

As I explained the entire story to him, his face went pale with confusion and alarm. I was no stranger to the feeling! Zubin was facing the same befuddlement I had experienced minutes ago, when Cabir finished narrating the twisted tale to me!

"So basically, this Fab Five-they want us to help Manik out by broadcasting the recording which contains Nyonika Malhotra's confession on our channel?!" He asked, shocked.

"Yes! And I told him we'd do it! So you have to help me!" I said, firmly.

"Jeffy, tu pagal ho gayi hai? Even if this Cabir's story is true, do you know what a big risk you're taking? You could lose your job! Or worse-the Singhanias may try to harm you! These people seem highly dangerous!" He screamed.

"I know the risks Zoo-but how long am I going to right fluff pieces about starlets? I want to do some real reporting and this is my chance! And I'm not afraid to tell the truth! I believe Cabir's story, because my gut tells me he's right!" I said.

"But Jeff..." He began to speak but I cut him off in the middle.

"Zoo, I really need you and your team to make sure that the broadcast happens! Please help me! This is bigger than us! It's time to show the rich that they can't control the press no matter how much money they have! It's about freedom of press, dammit!" I pleaded.

He stroked his chin for a few seconds before saying. "Fine! I'll help! But on one condition-if Cabir summons you to any location to hand over the recording, I'm going with you!"

"But Zoo..." I argued.

"No arguments! It's not safe!" He said, in a serious tone.

"Besides, when you break your first main story as a news reporter, don't you want a skilled camera person to shoot your segment?" He asked smirking.

I laughed slightly, hugged him and said. "Thanks for having my back!"

He smiled as he said. "That's what family is for, Jeffy!"

His words made me feel more at ease and gave me courage to do what I was about to!

I just prayed that everything would go alright and there would be no problems...

**************************************************

11:30 pm, Riverside Apartments, Mumbai.

"Yes, guys! I've done it! Jeff will help us!" I shouted excitedly as I looked at three happy faces in front of me.

"That's brilliant, Cabir! Now-once we acquire the recording, we don't need to worry about dirty cops getting their hands on it!" Mukti screamed victoriously, as she engulfed me in a hug.

I immediately hugged her back and Dhruv and Alya joined in as well.

However, the hug seemed incomplete without Manik!

As we broke apart I said. "Guys, now that we know that Manik's initial plan to acquire the recording has gone for a flop, we have to help him!"

"But how?" Dhruv asked.

"Simple-we go to Goa and find Manik!" Mukti chimed in.

"But Mukti, the police are watching us!" Alya said in a flustered voice.

All of us made our way to the balcony to inspect the police car from afar. There were three police officers in totality, but two were fast asleep in the car, snoozing on the job!

That left only a junior officer, who seemed highly unsure of himself, to take the first shift of the night to keep watch.

I immediately smirked as a thought popped up in my head.

I put my arm around Mukti and said."Mukti, kya tujhe police wale ke chehre par wahi dikhayi de raha hai, jo mujhe dikhayi de raha hain?"

"Kya?" She asked, slyly.

"Fab Five ka thappa! Yahi imagine kar le!" I scoffed.

The others giggled at my statement when I rubbed my palms and said. "Chalo, isko sabak sikhate hai..."

"Ruk, Cabir! Is chomu ke liye toh main hi kaafi hoon!" Mukti said smugly.

"You guys pack some stuff to take to Goa, and I'll take care of him!" She remarked.

Soon after, Mukti ran downstairs with a glass of beer in her hand, as all of us wished her luck on her mission to trick the officer.

Alya immediately moved away to try and arrange our things for our road trip and Dhruv and I watched from the balcony in amusement as Mukti seduced the police inspector and convinced him to chug the whole drink in one go!

It was barely minutes before the police man passed out completely, and Mukti shoved him into the car discreetly.

She immediately called us downstairs once she had accomplished her task.

"Alya is everything packed?" Dhruv yelled.

"Yes!" Came the prompt reply.

"Awesome! Let's go down!" I said, excitedly.

I locked my flat as the three of us stepped out and we quickly made our way downstairs to meet Mukti.

"Neend ki goli milayi thi maine drink mein! Ab toh yeh chomu kal dopahar tak nahi uthega!" Mukti chuckled.

"Good Job, Mukti!" I said as I laughed and high-fived her.

All of us finally got into my car, and I waited for everyone to settle down.

"All set guys?" I inquired, as I started the car.

"Yes!" Came the answer in unison.

"Good! Next stop-Goa!" I said as I revved up the engine, and started coasting smoothly on the main road.

Manik! Hang on just a little while longer!

Fab Five will have a reunion very soon...