Nandini and Cabir rushed towards the canteen as last time Manik said he's going there and till now he was not seen anywhere. Cabir's speed was double than her.

While rushing towards canteen, she witnessed some people banging the washroom door. Due to fire and water dripping from the smoke detector, door somehow got jammed. She wanted to go towards the canteen but then she couldn't just ignore those people too. Unwillingly she stayed back to help them but her mind and heart was occupied with the thoughts of his safety.

Cabir reached the canteen, and the scene horrified him. Whole canteen was under the flames of fire. His eyes searched for his friend and finally he spotted him, who was picking up a lady from the floor.

"Manik..!!" Cabir shouted and ran inside.

"Cabir.. Neha.. she fainted.. she's expecting, we can't risk her health." Manik said referring the lady he picked up.

"Manik , your hand is hurt, give her to me.!" Cabir said taking that lady from Manik to himself and without waiting Cabir rushed out to get her treated.

Meanwhile due to the pressure, his hand started bleeding again. He looked around in the canteen and there were still few people trying to get out as the canteen door was half occupied by fire.

In few minutes , Nandini came rushing towards the canteen and barged straight into the canteen , not letting the fire harm her. Till then most of the people were safely out of the canteen.

"Manikkk..!!" she shouted from behind as his back was facing her and ran towards him , panting heavily and grabbed his hand.

"Nandiniii ... are you mad.? Tum bahar thi..? then what are you doing here..? " he freaked out , the moment he saw her there inside the canteen , in between the fire.

"Manik... you ok right .? Tum theek ho na.? tum.. tumhe kuch hua to nahi na..?" she kept on blabbering and checked him from head to toe if he was ok or not , and finally her eyes fell on his hand that was bleeding really badly.

"Manik ... Manik your hand..it's bleeding." She uttered those words with difficulty as seeing him in pain was making her breath stuck in her throat. Panic , fear , anxiety all the emotions were clearly visible on her face. The mere feeling of him getting hurt , was shaking her from her soul.

Manik noticed the worry on her face. She was horrified. Her eyes were getting moist due to fear and seeing him in pain and in problem but she did not let them over power her and this thing didn't get unnoticed by Manik.

Though he was angry on her as she came in the canteen in between the fire but deep down in his heart he knew how much she cared for him and that feeling made him feel good.

"ok ok relax.. am fine.. and my hand , we will get it checked up. Ok. Abhi let's move out , its not safe here."

He managed to calm her down and held her right hand in his left hand and rushed out of the canteen. Till that time ,the whole canteen was on fire and there was no one inside except the two.

Manik very carefully made their way out protecting her , so that she could not get hurt.

They were rushing towards the door when suddenly Nandini's eyes fell the ceiling where a wooden plank which was fixed there as a design to enhance the interior , was about to fall as it was completely burnt.

"Manik..!!" She pushed him in front and herself moved backed and the plank fell between them.

They both got horrified as because if she wouldn't have noticed it , they would have been under it. They were breathing heavily and looked at each other.

"Nandini.. come .. fast.. fire is spreading , we need to rush." Manik after composing himself said to her and this time he walked ahead without holding her hand and she followed him.

Manik almost reached the door , and looked back at her. She was few steps back from him.

"come .. fast." He extended his hand to her to hold it but before he could register anything , he felt a forceful push on his chest and next moment he found himself lying on the ground outside the canteen.

He could not understand what just happened , as everything was so fast and sudden. People around the area rushed to him and helped him to get up. He looked here and there but Nandini was nowhere.

"Nandini...??" he shouted and looked around.

"I guess she's stuck inside." Someone from the crowd said which was enough for Manik to frighten him to the core. He rushed towards the door and saw a huge wooden plank lying there.

While he was standing near the door, extending his hand towards her, she saw a huge wooden plank above him which was just about to fall any second. She didn't had that much time to warn him, so she just pushed him using all her force and energy so that he gets out from the door.

He looked inside the canteen, but was not able to see anything as now the whole canteen was on fire. He tried to see through it and at last was able to see what he wanted to but the sight in front of him was enough to make his blood dry in his veins. She was lying unconscious on the floor surrounded by fire.

"NANDINIII...!!!!!!!!!" He shouted his lungs out. He was about to make his way inside but his colleagues stopped him.

"Manik.. don't go inside.. Fire is spread all over.. It will not be safe." One of them said, stopping him from going inside.

He felt he was been dragged back to that dreadful night where he was as helpless as he was feeling today.

The night which snatched his happiness , his peace , his smile , his light , everything. But he could let this happen again. Everything was just a replay of all the single moments he once witnessed.

Veebha's face flashed in front of his eyes , when she was lying dead on the hospital bed. He was numb. He was not strong enough to witness the same incident again.

"NOOO ... I will not let anything happen to her .. not this time." He said to himself ; and the next moment without paying any heed to people stopping him , he kicked that plank hard from his foot to make his way and ran inside the fire.

Just when he entered the canteen in between the fire , people standing outside heard a sound of something falling again. It was sure that another wooden plank must have fallen after getting burnt.

After few minutes , Cabir too came rushing towards the canteen as he was not able to find both Manik and Nandini.

"Kisi ne Manik ko dekha.?" He asked the people standing there.

"He's inside." One of them said.

"WHATTT..?" he shouted as soon he got to know that Manik is inside. He looked towards the canteen , and now the flames were coming out of the canteen. Fire was now widely spread in each corner of the canteen.

"yes..!! we tried to stop him from going inside but he didn't listen to us. I hope he comes out safe." Another colleague said.

Cabir was shocked to see the huge fire flames and on getting to know that Manik was inside it , did nothing but trap his breath in his throat and dry all his blood.

He was too numb to react on anything but after few seconds , he registered what the person said.

"Stopping from going inside ..? matlab ..? means .. wo bahar aa gaya tha..? then .. why did he went inside again.? He almost shouted on the people standing there.

"Nandini was stuck inside .. he went inside again to save her." Informed his colleague and Cabir got another shock of his life.

"WHATTT...?????????" he freaked out again as this was too much for him to handle. His best friends , one his brother and another his sister ; both were stuck inside , in between the raging fire.

He tumbled a bit and held the wall and he felt weak on his knees.

Clutching his hair in his fist , he was just staring the blazing fire dumbfounded.

...

After what seemed to be eternity for Cabir ; he heard another sound of something falling and his heart skipped another beat which was already thumping loudly.

But it seemed that almighty was just a bit lenient with him, as the very next moment , he saw Manik , coming out from the canteen , carrying unconscious Nandini in his arms.

His eyes were flooded with tears and hand covered with blood.

The moment he saw him coming out , he took a breath but seeing Nandini unconscious scared him.

Manik was looking at her face then and now and also that she should not get hurt anymore. He spotted Cabir , and shouted ; "Cabir , get the car , fast.."

Cabir nodded and in the bat of the eye , he rushed towards the parking to get the car. Due to the fire , the power of the lifts were shut. He carried her down through the stairs.

The wound of his hand was getting worsen but he was not feeling any pain of it. The pain that he was going through , seeing her in that condition , that to in the attempt to save him , was much more pinching him rather than his hand.

In no time , he was in front of the gate where Cabir was waiting for them in the car. Manik carefully made her lie on the seat first and then settled himself beside her keeping her head in his lap and securing his arms tightly around her.

"Cabir Jaldi please... Jaldi chal.." he pleaded Cabir and he ignited the engine to drove at the fastest speed he could .

Manik was all lost. It seemed he had travelled a time machine and gone back to that same night where he got Veebha out of the fire.

Every thing was just like a replay for him. But he in his worst nightmare also cannot think of the result to be as the same in case of Veebha...

Tears were not stopping their work and with each passing second, his own breath was getting stuck in his throat .

Her face flashed in front of his eyes how carefree she was looking while smiling when talking to Cabir .

She was all the time , since morning was trying to talk to him but he kept on avoiding her and now he was scared whether he will be able to talk to her again or not.

His hand was hurt , and she was in tears seeing him in pain. Just to save him from getting hurt , she risked her own life. He was very much aware of her care towards him but was not sure , will he get to see this care again.

When the car was ignited , car's radio too started automatically as it was not turned off.

While the 3 friends were experiencing the worst of their lives, the song played in the background added more it.

[Background song]

AASHIYAANA MERA SAATH TERE HAI NA

DHOONDTE TERI GALI MUJHKO GHAR MILA...

(He remembers the first time she allowed him to stay back because of the heavy rains and made him feel at home by her food, coffee and everything. That very day he realised that she is not what she pretends to be. That one stay played a major role in changing their equations for the eternity.)

AAB-O-DAANA MERA HAATH TERE HAI NA...

(how ; at 2.00 am in the night , he sneaked into her house as he was feeling hungry and though at first she was mad at him but then , cooked for him to satisfy his hunger.)

DHOONDTE TERA KHUDA MUJHKO RAB MILA...

(he realised in the process of making her meet the real her , he has actually found the real him)

TU JO MILA LO HO GAYA MAIN QAABIL

TU JO MILA TO HO GAYA SAB HAASIL HAAN

(Life was changed after she came. Unknowingly , but she bought light into his dark life ; colours to his dull days ; shine in his lost smile.)

MUSHQIL SAHI AASAAN HUI MANZIL

KYUNKI TU.. DHAD.KAN.. MAIN DIL...

(He realised , without her , he will be nothing as only the mere thought of losing her was making him insane.)

ROOTH JAANA TERA...

("I DON'T WANT TO TALK TO YOU BOTH..!! YOU BOTH ARE DEVILS...!!! I HATE YOU GUYS..."! )

She was shouting on both of them as they went to watch a movie without her and that to of her favourite actor; SHAHID..! Poor guys have to go on their knees to make her heart melt but she did not gave in before they took her to watch the movie again followed by lavish dinner in her favorite restaurant.)

MAAN JAANA MERA...

("SORRY MANIK...PLEASEEE.." ; he remembered the first time he got angry with her as she went for some work on Sunday without informing him or Cabir and also by mistake left her phone at her place.

He literally turned the whole city upside down to find her and after 5 hours when she returned at her place ; she found both the devils pacing up and down in front of her home and the moment they saw her, they attacked her just as a vulture attacks from the sky to its prey. She got into tears , seeing them shouting on her.

Though Cabir begin a sweetheart , consoled her then and there but our very own monster didn't bothered that. She pleaded him for hours and finally after lots of convincing session, she managed to make him smile through her cute antics .)

DHOONDHTE TERI HANSI

MILL GAYI KHUSHI...

(her smiling and laughing face appears in front of him. Her smile would always make him happy. Her smiling face is the best view for him in the whole world)

RAAH HOON MAIN TERI

(her smiling and laughing face appears in front of him. ' Her smile would always make him happy. Her smiling face is the best view for him in the whole world)

ROOH HAI TU MERI

(Seeing her lying unconscious , was killing him thousand deaths , every single second .)

DHOONDHTE TERE NISHAAN

MILL GAYI KHUDI

( "I can't live without you Nandini ; please for God sake , mere liye , just come back. Ab tum nahi Jana ... Please... Please Nandini... Don't leave me alone again.". He said to himself , looking at her pale face.)

TU JO MILA LO HO GAYA MAIN QAABIL

TU JO MILA TO HO GAYA SAB HAASIL HAAN

(With her , he was contented .. He did not wished for anything else after she came in his life . Now all he wants was her and only her .)

MUSHQIL SAHI AASAAN HUI MANZIL

(Life became easy with her for him as her one smile was enough to make him forget all his worries.)

KYUNKI TU.. DHADKAN.. MAIN DIL...

O...

TU JO MILA LO HO GAYA MAIN QAABIL

TU JO MILA TO HO GAYA SAB HAASIL.. HAAN!

TU JO MILA AASAAN HUI MUSHQIL

KYUNKI TU DHADKAN.. MAIN DIL...

Just then her phone vibrated in her pocket bringing him out his trance.

He pulled it out and saw the trio's picture as wallpaper. It was from her birthday where both the boys were kissing her either cheeks , holding her one hand in their while their other covered her from back , showing their protective nature towards her.

Her eyes were closed and she was laughing. It was her best birthday till date. He caressed the picture with thumb and unknowingly tears rolled down his cheeks.

(Ok sorry for this but couldn't get a better depiction.)

He looked at her. Her face was all pale unlike what he saw in the picture. He could see the burns on her hand and an injury on her forehead. All this was just in the attempt of saving him from getting hurt.

The wooden plank which was about to fall on Manik , fell on her but luckily she was not completely under it. He knew they all were on her body , just because she couldn't let him get hurt.

He pressed his lips to control his sobbing.

"Cabir.. please fast.." he said remorsefully letting his tears roll down his cheeks to her face.

"Ya .. Almost there.." he replied taking a sharp turn.

After few minutes , they were in front of the emergency gate of the hospital.

Cabir quickly got down from the car and opened the back gate. Manik carefully took her out in his arms and soon the doctor saw them , calling for the stretcher and he carefully laid her there.

He did not for once let her hand go off while they took her to the ward.

"Sir , you need first aid ; please go with the nurse , we are there to take care of the patient." Doctor said seeing Manik's condition as his hand was bleeding really badly and also there were some injuries which he got while rescuing her.

"No.. I'll not go anywhere. Treat her first , she was stuck in fire , I am fine , but please you just save her." He replied in a higher pitch but a pleading one, tightening his grip more on her hand.

They reached the emergency room , but Manik did not let off her hand. He was too vulnerable at that point as he didn't know whether he will be able to hold her hand again or not.

He looked at her face , and sobbed hard , looking at her closed eyes ; which were scaring him every passing minute with the fear that those will open again and shine at their fullest or not.

Cabir, who was begin the silent witness of his friend's emotion , was too crying ; firstly seeing her in that condition and secondly knowing the turmoil Manik was going through.

Controlling himself , he held his shoulders and said , "Manik , let her go ; she needs to get treated."

Manik looked at him with heavy eyes , flooded with tears but was too shaken to say anything.

Cabir gestured him with eyes to let her go and he again looked at her. With heavy heart , he left her hand slowly and she disappeared behind the ward door.

............

A/N - sorry for messing the update with pictures.