3:00 pm, 25th February, Galaxy Villa, Madh Island, Mumbai.

I took a sharp breath as I fixed the chain of the skirt that the style team had chosen for me. It was to be my outfit for the activity that'd been planned for Manik, Aryaman and me.

Aryaman. I was still afraid to confront him after the incident in Manik's room. The whole crew had taken nearly a two hour lunch break after the shoot for the dance and I'd quietly returned to my room after collecting a doggy bag of food from the kitchen, too afraid to run into him.

His behaviour had been unacceptable. The way he'd let out his anger had been quite frightening and alarming.

Could he not see how uncomfortable I was? Had his rage and ego blinded him so much that my consent didn't seem important to him anymore?

However, if I were being true to myself, that wasn't the only reason I'd chosen to avoid him. My own conscience was guilty as well.

I should never have let Aryaman stay and watch me dance with Manik. Of course he'd be angry seeing us together! Which boyfriend wouldn't?

Besides, the fleeting sensations of warmth I got whenever Manik was kind to me, the fact that my nerves were a wreck whenever he was physically close to me-how could I ever explain all of it to Aryaman?

How could I explain to Aryaman that his touch didn't feel the same to me today as it did a month ago?

Quite frankly, I didn't know what it meant, myself. Or rather I didn't want to ponder over it, for its implications frightened me...

I knew that I couldn't avoid Aryaman forever. I'd have to speak to him at some point and clear things out. But first, I needed some clarity myself, as to whether I truly wanted to continue my relationship with him, or deem it irreparable and forget about him. For some reason, Chachi's doubts about his maturity or lack thereof made a little more sense now...

I decided that I'd just get through the activity with him and then speak to him at the end of the day.

Thankfully enough, the activity that Aryaman had chosen wasn't one where we'd be in close physical proximity.

Aryaman, Manik and I were to have a cooking contest among ourselves. The choice of activity didn't come as much of a surprise to me for Aryaman, unlike a lot of other guys his age, was actually a pretty decent amateur chef. He'd frequently cooked various dishes for me as well as Abhi whenever we hung out, as well as made some extra cash out of selling midnight snacks at the college hostel.

There was only one thing bothering me about the cooking contest. The kind of life that Manik had led so far-I was pretty certain that he had no idea as to how to perform any sort of household chore, let alone cook!

This meant that he'd lose to Aryaman pretty miserably! And I didn't want any sort of scuffle between them to be recorded on camera! Especially after today's incidents, there was an extremely high chance that tensions would run high!

"Nandini, you ready? You've been instructed to go to the back entrance, right?" An A.D's voice brought me out of my thoughts.

I turned around and said in response. "Yes. I'll be there in five, Rohit."

Over the last few days I'd learnt a few of the A.D's names, since they'd been pretty helpful and supportive.

"Cool." He said, before exiting the room.

I took one last look at the mirror before I mentally prepared myself to face Aryaman. I sniffled into a handkerchief and put it in my skirt pocket, just in case I felt a sneeze coming on again. I walked out the door and down the steps rather cautiously, trying to mentally practise my speech regarding what exactly I would say to Aryaman in order to put off our conversation.

My nerves were a mess when I reached the back entrance of the villa. I observed the arrangements the production team had made and marvelled at them since the place looked almost unrecognisable.

I could see three cooking stations set up on the concrete floor by the pool-one for each of us. There was a vast array of ingredients-vegetables, meats, and many other cooking essentials laid out on a large table next to them.

"Nandini! Thank god! Where have you been? I've been trying to track you down for a while! I even banged on the door to your room a few times! We need to talk!" Aryaman's voice succeeded in disturbing my composure.

I looked up at him grudgingly and noticed the utter distress and regret on his face.

I swallowed as I replied. "Aryaman, we do need to talk. But this isn't the time. Let's just finish this shoot. And then we'll have a chat after..."

"Fuck this shoot! As if you care about it anyway! Let's go and talk right now...I can't take this distance between us anymore...I'm sorry Nandini, I'm really sorry for the way I..." Aryaman said, grabbing my wrist rather roughly, sending another wave of discomfort through me.

My eyes flitted towards his grip on my wrist, and an inadvertent expression of contempt began to appear on my features. I looked up at Aryaman once again, and he let my hand go with a slight jerk, guilty for having lost his temper once more.

"Aryaman. I'll hear whatever you have to say, later on...just let's finish this shoot peacefully..." I said firmly, my tone objective and stoic.

He was about to reply when the director exclaimed. "Aah! Manik's here. Let's start the shoot! We need to wrap this up as early as possible! Take your positions! Nandini in the middle, Manik to the right and Aryaman to the left...Raghav you know what to do!"

I turned back to see Manik arriving at the spot for the shoot. The last time I'd seen him, he was all dressed for a tango performance, but now, he was dressed in a pair of smart casuals, much to his own observable relief.

The smirk that he harboured on his face almost permanently was intact, and thoughts of the dance we'd shared earlier came back to me, making me flush slightly.

Manik walked up to his station and stared at it with a rather amused expression. Frankly, I was quite surprised that he hadn't lost his temper already. Did he really have no problem taking part in a cook-off with me and Aryaman?

Aryaman finally proceeded to his station in a flustered manner, and started to tap his fingers on the counter impatiently.

"Alright. Lights...Sound...and action!" The director yelled as the crane descended downwards to face Raghav.

"And we're back on yet another episode of 'The Bachelor'-powered by Veet! Now the next contestant that we're going to spend some time with-she's been an absolute fan favourite from the very beginning! Her chemistry with Manik has been winning all our online polls! So, without further ado, let's head over to our next activity...Nandini and Aryaman, it seems like we're going to have a friendly cook-off, aren't we?" Raghav said animatedly as the camera shifted towards us instead.

"That's correct, Raghav. Cooking's been quite an engaging hobby for me, and I really do enjoy it! As a matter of fact, Nandini's even helped me out with my dishes a few times like an assistant- that's why I chose this activity!" Aryaman said into his collar mike, before I could respond.

I shook my head instinctively at his response. It was fairly obvious that he'd chosen this with the intention of humiliating Manik.

"That's great, Aryaman! So, why don't we begin? I've been told you have twenty minutes to prepare us a tasty dish, and then I'll be the judge and choose the winner once your time is up! All the best, you all! May the best chef win!" Raghav exclaimed.

I'd made up my mind about what I wanted to prepare. I decided that I'd make chole bhature, since Chachi had shown me how to prepare it a number of times.

I started gathering the ingredients I needed in order to prepare the dish. I looked to the side and observed that Aryaman had started cutting vegetables with the utmost precision.

I turned towards Manik, slightly worried, and to my surprise, he'd simply dragged a chair and sat down in front of his station.

Had Manik given up even before trying?

I knew he wasn't the kind of person who'd simply admit defeat. There was surely something stewing in his twisted mind.

"What's wrong, Manik? Have you given up, already?" Aryaman yelled, as he started to heat his pan on the induction stove provided to him.

His question made me extremely uneasy. I half expected Manik to attack him physically in response.

However, he simply looked up at Aryaman from his seat and said, tauntingly. "You see Aryaman, I need barely five minutes to prepare my dish. So, I thought I'd just take a break until then...but if you need those twenty... long minutes, go ahead..."

Aryaman seemed pretty alarmed and angry at Manik's response.

"What are you going to achieve in five minutes? Preparing Maggi isn't cooking, you know?" Aryaman hissed in response.

I could almost imagine the subtext behind their exchange. All they wanted to do was tell each other to fuck off.

"Aryaman, I think you should be worried about your own dish instead of mine. So, instead how about we focus on getting to know each other, like we're supposed to? Why don't tell me something about yourself?" Manik asked, twiddling his thumbs casually.

I sent a silent prayer upto the heavens in order to ensure that this conversation wouldn't end in a fist fight between the two.

"Right. I'm Aryaman Khanna. I'm Nandini's classmate as well as one of her closest friends. We've known each other for a pretty long time now...In fact, I probably know her better than anyone else." Aryaman said with a smirk, as he shifted the vegetables onto his pan.

Aryaman was trying his best to get under Manik's nerves, and I could see that it was working. Nevertheless, I was still thankful that he'd had the good sense to refrain from announcing that he was my boyfriend on national television.

"Oh really? You know Nandini better than anyone else, haan?" Manik said, raising his eyebrows. "How about you tell me as well as our viewers something about her that we don't already know?"

Fuck! Why are all men so bloody arrogant? When will this childish pissing contest end?!

"Sure! Now everyone knows that Nandini is a science geek, but only her near and dear ones know that she's a musician as well..." Aryaman said proudly, as he stirred the vegetables on his pan.

Well, Aryaman was quite right about that...not many people knew of the artsy side to me...

"So, what instrument does she play, then?" Manik asked, grabbing some cocoa powder, sugar and other such items from the table nearby.

I'd barely begun to wonder what he would use them to prepare, when Aryaman's voice brought me back to the present...

"Um...the piano, I think..." Aryaman fibbed casually, making a guess.

Well, I hadn't really discussed my musical talents at length with Aryaman, so it was natural that he'd forgotten that I played only classical instruments.

The bhatura dough was nearly prepared. I began to knead it into a circular shape as quickly as I could manage.

"Really? That's funny. I distinctly remember Nandini saying she plays classical instruments in her introductory video." Manik said with a sinister smile as he dumped all the ingredients on his station and sat back down on the chair.

I was pretty surprised that Manik remembered what I'd said in the video so vividly. The videos seemed to have been filmed ages ago, despite the fact that it had just been a few days.

"So, what instrument do you play, Nandini?" Manik asked, facing me.

I was taken aback by the sudden question, but I found my voice quick enough, as I rubbed my nose slightly.

"Um...the veena." I muttered.

A victorious grin emerged on Manik's face the moment I'd finished speaking. If anyone were keeping score, which let's face it, Aryaman and Manik definitely were, Manik had won this round of the game.

I could see Aryaman fuming next to me as I finally kept the bhaturas aside to fry later, and started to prepare the chole instead.

"So any more of Nandini's secrets we should know?" Manik challenged Aryaman again, as he raised his leg once more and sat in a more comfortable position.

"Well, I'm sure this will come as a shock to you, but you aren't the first guy in Nandini's life...perhaps, the audience will be shocked as well..." Aryaman said, a glimmer of self-importance in his eyes.

Shit! I really hope Aryaman doesn't say something stupid! And I hope Manik maintains his cool!

Manik stood up from his seat and said with a fake smile. "That's old news Aryaman. In fact, Nandini has admitted the very same on camera as well...and besides, it's not as if I've been celibate thus far. I've dated others too...so I wouldn't expect Nandini or any other contestant for that matter to not have any sort of romantic past..."

I could see the director as well as the crew members visibly disappointed since no juicy details about my private life had been divulged, due to Manik's timely quip.

I breathed a sigh of relief as I began to boil the gram seeds. This entire activity had been just like a game of dodgeball thus far!

"Really? You think you know everything there is to know about her, huh? I bet you don't know about her brother...and his disability..." Aryaman exclaimed, determinedly.

Suddenly, a feeling of dread began to engulf me. I didn't want details of Rishab's health to be broadcast on television! Aryaman's impulsiveness was really getting out of hand!

"Aryaman, please...don't..." I whispered to him, requesting him to stop.

"No, Nandini. Manik wants me to reveal a secret of yours, doesn't he? So, why not?" Aryaman said, chuckling, oblivious to my feelings.

I turned towards Manik instead and saw him giving Aryaman a nasty look. However, when our eyes met, his expression softened considerably.

I shook my head the slightest bit as I looked at him, my eyes pleading and desperate.

"So ever since he had an accident, Nandini's brother...." Aryaman started off, but Manik interrupted him in the middle.

"That's alright, Aryaman. You needn't speak of the accident anymore. Um...I believe you...You know Nandini better than anyone else...After all, she'd only share private details about her family members with those who are closest to her..." Manik said, stuttering slightly.

"Hah! See? I knew I'd prove you wrong!" Aryaman shouted triumphantly as he continued to focus on his dish.

I felt my nerves relax as the argument between them as well as the matter of Rishab's health came to a close. I looked towards Manik and observed his expressions-evidently displaying his annoyance with the fact that he'd let Aryaman have the last word.

It took me a few seconds to fully realise what Manik had done. Manik-someone who despised being corrected or opposed in any form, let alone before millions of viewers, had conceded to Aryaman pretty openly...for me....He'd understood how much it would hurt me to speak of Rishab and the accident all over again and he'd protected me from it...

I found myself gazing at him involuntarily as he finally started to open up the containers of the ingredients.

That warmth that I'd been feeling so frequently was spreading across my chest again...

What the hell was I supposed to make of this increasingly common sensation?!

The next few minutes passed relatively passively as all of us focussed on finishing up our dishes. Iprepared the chole according to Chachi's recipe and I finally began to fry the bhaturas on the pan.

Aryaman was nearly done with his dish as well and had started to mix the rice that he'd cooked with the fried vegetables. I should've guessed that he'd be preparing fried rice for the cook-off. After all, it was his top selling item at the boys hostel.

I used my peripheral vision in order to ascertain what exactly Manik was upto as he started to mix some milk, cocoa powder and oil in a small borosilicate cup with a pinch of salt and baking powder.

He'd really exceeded my expectations thus far! I expected that his attempts to cook might have ended with the entire set on fire. But here he was, calmly working towards completing his dish, which appeared to be some sort of dessert.

He finally picked up the cup after he was done whisking its contents, and walked over to the microwave and put it inside. He started the timer on the device, which he set to a mere ninety seconds, and walked back to his station.

He proceeded to bite onto a packet of chocolate chips, but seemed unsuccessful at tearing it open solely with his teeth.

"You have only three minutes left, guys." Raghav's voice blared in the background, reminding us of the time limit.

I watched as Manik attempted to tear the packet open with his fingers instead. As he pulled the edge of the rough plastic with his forefinger, a conspicuous stream of blood gushed out of it due to a slight graze on his flesh.

"Shit." Manik muttered to himself, as he jerked his hands slightly in reaction to the pain.

It was almost as if I were possessed by a paranoid spirit in the next second. I let go of my spatula involuntarily, and rushed to Manik's side in order to tend to his cut.

"Manik! What is wrong with you? Why can't you be more careful?!" I exclaimed, as I brought his finger up to my lips in order to alleviate the pain and stop the blood spewing from the small but deep cut.

This boy! He'd cut himself twice in a span of two days! He was beyond careless when it came to his own health and wellness!

When I finally released his finger and looked up, I could see a highly amused expression on his face.

And then an even more worrisome realisation sank in!

I could feel Aryaman as well as the rest of the crew staring at me, dumbfounded. I cursed myself for having reacted so impulsively. Now all of them as well as the viewers would most probably misconstrue this tiny act of humanity into some overly romantic gesture!

I was just about to take a step back when the amusement in Manik's face disappeared. It was almost as if he'd suddenly noticed something that he'd been ignorant of from the time we started our activity.

I found his fingers under my chin in the next second, as he brought my face up to meet his eyes again.

"You've been crying. Why were you crying?" He asked, his expression fairly worried, forgetting for a second that the cameras were taping our every action.

A large lump began to form in my throat as the words came out of his mouth.

Somehow, he could see through my calm facade and judge my true emotions better than anyone else even though I'd just known him for a few days!

"And three, two, one...your time is up, guys!" Raghav's loud voice snapped us out of our bubble.

Manik retracted his hand rather awkwardly and stuffed it in his pocket, while I hurried to my station, only to notice that my last bhatura was thoroughly burnt, due to my inattentiveness.

"Alright guys. Please transfer whatever you've prepared onto the serving dishes and keep it ready for me to taste!" Raghav said excitedly as I discarded the burnt bhatura and finished up the overall presentation of my dish.

Aryaman seemed to have finished cooking nearly a minute before the challenge ended. But he was far from satisfied. On the contrary, my concern for Manik had probably enraged him even more...

Manik took his dish out of the microwave oven and placed it on the counter after sprinkling some choco-chips onto the cup.

The crew members and the director appeared to be quite pissed off with Raghav for announcing the end of the challenge right on time, interrupting Manik and me. After all, their job was to cook up salacious proceedings and the footage could easily be edited later to look as if the challenge had ended on time. But Raghav, who received daily payments, obviously didn't want to shoot for longer than necessary.

Raghav walked up to Aryaman and said. "What do we have here, Aryaman? It seems quite delicious from the looks of it!"

Aryaman used a softer tone as he said. "It's just some egg and vegetable fried rice. It's one of my specialties!"

"Well, I'm keen to try it." Raghav said, as he picked up a spoon and placed a morsel in his mouth.

An instantaneous expression of glee spread on his face as he chewed the rice.

"Wow! That's amazing! It honestly reminds me of the homely Chinese joints outside my college! But it's classy all the same! Very well done!" Raghav said, clapping his hands as he moved to my station.

Raghav scratched his chin as he looked at the plate of food before him. It wasn't as pretty as Aryaman's for sure, and the lonesome bhatura on the plate did look slightly peculiar.

"Well, looks aren't everything!" Raghav exclaimed, as he tore a piece of the bhatura, dipped it in the chole and put it in his mouth.

"Well, it's decent. But a little salt would have been nice. What do you say, Nandini?" Raghav asked, cheekily.

I slapped my forehead in frustration when I realised that I'd forgotten to add salt to the chole while presenting the dish, as I'd planned. Raghav had been quite merciful in the way he'd described the flaw!

"Um...Sorry Raghav." I said, apologetically.

"It's quite alright! Why don't we move over to Manik? I'm particularly excited for this one since I have a sweet tooth!" Raghav exclaimed as he walked to the right.

Manik grinned as Raghav looked at the oddly deformed but gooey looking chocolate cake that Manik had prepared in a mere five minutes.

"Let's get straight to it, then!" Raghav said as he dug his spoon into the cake.

As soon as he tasted it, Raghav started beaming from ear to ear like a child.

"Woah. If Aryaman's dish reminds me of college, Manik's dish reminds me how fond I was of chocolate brownies as a child! It's so sinful and rich!" Raghav said, happily.

My eyes widened as I heard his praises for Manik's dish. Aryaman seemed just as shocked as I was. I'd never imagined that Manik would earn compliments from Raghav in a cook-off!

"Alright then. I've had all three dishes. Looks like it's time to announce the winner!" Raghav said enthusiastically.

I could see Aryaman on edge as Raghav prepared to announce the results.

"As much as I love your cake Manik, the presentation of Aryaman's dish was far superior to yours. And it tasted equally good, so I'll have to pick him as the winner! So everyone, clap for Aryaman! He's won a lovely hamper sponsored by Veet!" Raghav said, as he handed Aryaman a giant basket with cookies and chocolates.

"Thanks Raghav!" Aryaman said proudly, as he accepted the gift from him.

I expected Manik to sulk in response, but it honestly didn't look like he cared.

"Alright, guys! We'll be back with the next activity shortly! Until then, keep watching, 'The Bachelor'-powered by Veet!" Raghav recited his monologue into the camera.

"And cut! Good job guys! Let's take some time before we start the badminton game. Manik, please head over to your stylist for a change of clothes!" The director yelled.

"So Manik. How does it feel to lose to me in front of the audience and the whole crew?!" Aryaman asked, chuckling.

I shut my eyes and shook my head in irritation at his mockery.

I expected an explosive retaliation from Manik but instead he scoffed slightly as he said."Please Aryaman, we both know that this childish cook-off isn't what I'm trying to win."

With this last statement, he wore his shades and followed his stylist as she led him into the villa.

I looked at Aryaman for a brief moment and found him extremely riled up due to Manik's statement.

There was surely something going on between the two that I had no knowledge of! And I made a promise to myself that I'd find out before the day ended!

*****

4:30 pm, 25th February, Galaxy Villa, Madh Island, Mumbai.

My breathing felt slightly uneven as I wiped the sweat off my brow. So far, the day had been pretty tiring, and playing a sport was only serving to drain my remaining energy.

It wasn't as if I'd elected to play badminton in the humidity, of my own volition, however. Alya and Varun had chosen the activity, and I had no choice but to go along with it!

To top it off, they'd decided to team up and play against me due to the odd number of players in the game. Why couldn't they just arrange for another player like they did with the dance activity?

I swear! The production team's reasoning skills are absolutely fucked!

"Manik, it's your turn to serve." Alya's voice made me snap out of my internal rant.

"Oh...right. Of course!" I replied awkwardly, as she passed the shuttle cock to me.

Despite the fact that I was playing without a partner, I was still ahead in terms of points. I just had to get two more in order to win. Conceding wasn't something that came to me easily, be it sports or anything else. Besides, I'd just lost the cook-off to Aryaman. If I lost this game as well, it would be way too humiliating!

I was pretty much on course when it came to winning the bet against Aryaman. However, I really wanted to find out the reason behind Nandini's tears!

Had Aryaman said something to her?

Unfortunately, to add to my woes, I hadn't been able to find out much about Varun over the course of the game, either. Apart from the fact that he was Alya's business partner and friend, he hadn't revealed that much about himself. They'd met roughly a year ago, and set up their business together. If I had my timeline correct, it was about the same time she'd decided to walk out on our relationship...

Perhaps my insecurities were playing up again, but I couldn't help but be suspicious.

Could Varun really be the man Alya'd left me for?

I threw the cock up in the air, and whacked it using the racket with great force, making it accelerate towards Alya, in an unexpectedly aggressive manner. She raised her racket a tad bit in order to block it, but her reflexes were inept to handle the speed of the incoming object. And sure enough, the cock landed up hitting her eye, making her gasp abruptly in pain.

As soon as I saw her covering her eyes in distress, I immediately regretted the action. Even though the cock had struck her by accident, my anger had gotten the better of me again, and I'd promised myself that I'd keep it under control!

"Alya, are you alright?" I asked as I dived under the net and walked to the opposite side of the court.

However, before I could reach her, Varun picked up a water bottle from a table close by and ran up to Alya, nearly blocking my path.

"Here, Alya. Let me sprinkle some water...you'll feel better..." He said, as he sprayed a few droplets onto her eye.

All of a sudden, I felt as if I were completely superfluous in the current situation. It seemed that Alya already had someone to look after her.

She didn't need me.

So, why the hell was she so intent on winning me back?!

I clenched my fist as I found my suspicions about the two of them growing exponentially.

"Alright, looks like our friendly little game of badminton's taken a turn for the worse...so how about we just call it off right here? I'll see you then!" Raghav said into a steadicam as a cameraman filmed him.

The director had possibly asked Raghav to go ahead and wrap the activity up due to the mishap. I'd most probably missed it due to the frustration creeping up on me...

"And cut!" The director yelled.

"Alright guys. Take a breather before the elimination ceremony!" He said, as the production crew finally started to loosen up.

I decided that walking away from Alya and Varun would be the best way to avoid a scene. I started taking small steps towards the villa.

However, before I could pull the large glass door open, I felt someone yanking me by the wrist.

"Manik, wait! What's wrong? Why'd you storm off like that?" Alya's voice filled the surroundings.

I was about to start yelling when I noticed the slight swelling on her eyelid due to the shuttlecock.

"Is your eye alright? I'm sorry it hit you..." I said instead, in an attempt to lessen my guilt.

"Manik, it's fine. We were just playing...I know it was an accident. But what happened? You seem angry..." Alya said, completely oblivious to the thoughts in my head.

I wiggled out of her grasp and said firmly. "Why are you here, Alya? You have Varun, right? So, why the pretence of wanting me back?!"

Alya seemed utterly shellshocked at my outburst.

She finally managed to speak a few seconds later.

"Manik...Varun is just my friend and business partner, nothing else! Me wanting you back isn't a pretence! You've got to trust me, Manik..." Alya said, desperately.

"That's the thing, Alya. Perhaps you really are being truthful. I have forgiven you...believe me, I have...but trust...I'm not sure I'll ever be able to trust you again. Not after what you did to me..." I said, as my throat closed up slightly.

I turned around and walked away before Alya could say anything more. However, I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't the least bit relieved to hear that Varun wasn't the asshole that Alya had left me for.

*****

5:00 pm, 25th February, Galaxy Villa.

"You know what that bitch Tina did? She agreed to be his dance partner during our activity while I had to dance with that idiot Aryaman! She stole him from me! And to think that she was my friend!" Soha's voice made me want to wear ear plugs and resume my nap.

The whole day had been quite a drag due to the fact that I hadn't had a visitor come in to meet me or spend time with Manik.

It wasn't as if I was offended by the fact that everyone I knew had refused to turn up. It was just that I'd expected Manik to send in the signed contract to my lawyers by now! Especially after I'd given him enough motivation last night by bringing up the incident with Jeff.

But after speaking to my lawyers at midday, I'd confirmed that the documents still hadn't been sent in!

All I could hope was that Manik hadn't gotten cold feet about the whole plan! What if he'd figured out that he had feelings for Nandini?!

Thinking of all this had put me in a pretty foul mood and Soha's annoying complaints about Manik certainly weren't doing anything to improve it.

"...and Alya and Nandini! Why the hell did they get to dance with him?! It was my activity! I swear, I'll teach them a lesson too..." Soha began to rant on and on, as I nodded along but barely followed her venomous speech.

Suddenly, I observed Nandini's friend Aryaman wandering about by himself in the corridor. It was strange that Nandini had been actively ignoring him post lunch.

There was definitely something fishy going on between the two. It was fairly obvious to me that the two were dating each other, for his possessiveness for Nandini was clearly visible in his eyes.

I wondered if Aryaman and Nandini had had an argument of some sort, for he seemed quite lost and distressed...

"Soha, you said you're upset with Nandini, right?" I asked cheekily, interrupting her all of a sudden.

"Uh...yeah! Alya and Nandini! We have to do something about both of them!" Soha exclaimed, folding her arms angrily.

"I think I might've found a way to mess with Nandini...and perhaps I'll get to have some fun as well!" I said with a wink.

"What are you planning to do, Inaaya?" Soha asked, her eyebrows creased.

I merely flashed her a smile as I walked over to Aryaman and greeted him.

"Hey. I'm Inaaya!" I said.

"Hey." Aryaman responded, flashing me a flirty smile.

And that's when I realised that messing with Nandini would be easier than I'd estimated.

*****

5:30 pm, 25th February, Galaxy Villa.

I walked out of the editors' room after having a pretty frank conversation with them. After a few routine threats, they'd agreed to keep the footage of Jeff kissing Mukti out of the future episodes.

Jeff had a few drinks too many, and just got a tad emotional. Nothing more. That's all the audience would believe, since it was clearly the cover story which would do least damage.

Now that this important job was out of the way, I had to go and find Nandini before the elimination ceremony. I had to find out the reason she'd been upset earlier!

Just as I was about to head to her room to knock on the door, I observed her coming out of it, slightly perturbed.

It looked like she was searching for someone as she walked forth.

She was about to avoid eye contact with me and make a quick escape, but I ended up blocking her path pretty effectively.

"Looking for me?" I asked with a cheeky smile, as I stretched my hand and leaned against the wall, closing another route for escape.

She rolled her eyes and replied. "Really, Manik? Weren't you going to keep a distance due to my cold?"

"I think I've violated that rule one too many times today, Doll, so what's another?" I said with a smirk, as I inched closer to her.

Her face flushed slightly as she gulped. Somehow this expression of hers always succeeded in pleasing me!

"So, why were you crying? Tell me...Did Aryaman say something?" I whispered gently, as I tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

For a second, I felt as if she would come clean, but she soon looked away and muttered. "I wasn't crying...this stupid cold is just making my eyes water..."

I didn't believe that in the slightest! There was surely something more serious bothering her!

"Well, now that you're intent on indulging in frivolous chats, why don't you tell me exactly what's going on between you and Aryaman? What were you referring to when you spoke about winning?" She asked, eyebrows furrowed and arms folded.

Her investigative mind was in its element again!

"Nothing really. He was being an arrogant ass, after winning the contest. So, I just said something to get back at him...to match his assholery." I said casually, brushing the topic aside.

Nandini didn't look entirely convinced as she processed my words.

"By the way, I had no idea you could bake. I thought you'd end up smashing the glass objects in frustration or something!" She said, shaking her head.

I stood upright again, as I ran a hand through my hair, unsure of what to tell her.

"Well, that chocolate cake is basically all I know how to make. It's because of Alya actually...Whenever she stayed over at my place, she'd always get midnight dessert cravings. She's not much of a cook herself, and I never wanted to wake the staff up at those ungodly hours...so I googled the recipe myself, and started making it for her..." I said, slightly embarrassed.

"I'm not even sure I should have brought Alya up..." I said in a flustered tone.

Nevertheless when I faced Nandini again, she had an amused smile on her face.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing. It's sweet..." She said, her smile widening even more.

We were silent for several moments after, but it was a peaceful one...like when we'd first talked candidly at the pool.

My peace of mind was suddenly disturbed by some muffled moaning noises coming from the room just a few feet away.

I looked in its direction and realised that the sounds seemed to be coming from Inaaya's room.

What the hell had she gotten up to? Was she watching porn or something?

Honestly, with that girl's libido, I wouldn't be surprised.

"What's that noise?" Nandini asked, frowning.

"Wait, I'll go and check." I said, as I walked to Inaaya's room, and found the door left only slightly ajar.

When I took a quick peek through the slit, the sight before me served to shock me considerably.

I could see Inaaya's tongue down Aryaman's throat, as the two kissed rather roughly.

I closed the door discreetly as I took a step backwards.

"What? What is it?" Nandini asked, as she walked up to me.

"Um...nothing. Just Inaaya...come on...let's get going, the elimination ceremony will begin soon..." I stuttered as I tried to divert Nandini's attention away from the room and its occupants.

I wanted to win the bet against Aryaman for sure, but I'd never want anyone to see their partner or boyfriend cheating on them, first hand! Let alone Nandini! Especially when I knew what being cheated on felt like...

The fact that I'd stammered was clearly a red flag. By this time, she probably knew me enough to figure out when I was hiding something!

She pushed the door open with a jerk, before I could give her any warnings whatsoever, and sure enough, she was greeted by the same ghastly sight I'd gotten a glimpse of earlier.

"Aryaman?" She exclaimed in shock, alarming the two occupants of the room a great deal.

Aryaman and Inaaya finally broke apart and jumped nearly three feet away from each other.

Inaaya seemed quite indifferent but the panic on Aryaman's face was palpable.

"Alright. This is where I head out. I don't do drama. You're boyfriend's a really good kisser by the way..." Inaaya said to Nandini with a wink as she exited her own room.

Nandini stared at Aryaman, speechless, as tears began to well in her eyes.

"Nandini...it's not what it looks like...she came onto me..." Aryaman tried to justify his actions, coming closer to Nandini.

But I could see it clearly on her face-she didn't want any excuses. She was utterly disgusted with his actions!

She turned on her heels and ran away from the room in the next second, as Aryaman screamed her name.

"Nandini, wait!" He shouted as he reached the door.

However, instead of going after her, he turned to me and said with scornful eyes. "You brought her in here purposely, didn't you? Just so that you could win the bet?!"

I resisted the urge to punch him hard across the jaw right then and there.

"You know what the tragedy is, Aryaman? Your girlfriend just caught you cheating on her, and instead of going and apologising to her, you're still worried about our silly bet...Wow. I guess you're an even bigger asshole than I'd first imagined." I said, through gritted teeth.

With this last statement, I walked away from there, in order to refrain from getting physically violent with the twat.

I could only hope that after this incident, Nandini would come to her senses and realise that her presumably loving boyfriend whom she stood up for, oh-so frequently, wasn't the slightest bit worthy of her.

*****