Gear up for a MaNan filled update, as promised! Keep your love coming so I can keep posting!

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Nandini, oblivious to the locking system that her driver pushed down on several seconds ago, hastily unbuckled the door of a substandard cab, repeating the action in her frustration. The act of capturing someone like this was morally wrong.

With her wrist handcuffed to his, Manik smirked, awaiting her realization that there was no way to escape him. He waited for two seconds, hoping it would be enough for her to understand and give up... just for once.

The woman yet consistently tried her luck, stubborn about not letting him have his way, which was blowing the whistle on Manik's composure. God, she was so dumb!

With an eye roll, he reached for her undone seat belt with his right hand.

Flinching, Nandini hoped he would never lay a finger on her. His mere touch repulsed her.

Manik's stinging eyes met the woman who turned his world upside-down. For the second time that day, someone he held dear to him dismissed his efforts. It wasn't supposed to bother him much, but in his raw emotional state from earlier in the day, it stung hard, and he forced a gulp.

Hell had broken loose hours ago when he entered the fight at the market, when he had a rough blow of a reality check: that he was fucking unreliable. How had it not occurred to him earlier? Mukti was right. How goddamn naïve was he to think he was adept at helping anyone, supporting anyone, protecting anyone when he couldn't deal with himself?

Incapable of regulating that depressing emotion on his own, he sunk into his pocket to drown that customary feeling as he remained surrounded by danger. He touched the pills, registered their presence, and relief swept over him. No thoughts occurred in that time frame. Only impulses.

No, Manik!

Churning in anger as what he did dawned on him, he countered a thick chain of steel that came lashing at him with a mere clasp. It snapped in the veins behind his palm, lighting Nawab's frail skin on flames like a wake up call. He constricted the metal links, spun it twice around his opponent's grip, and enclosed the goon's hand in it. Cutting blood flow.

Until then, the rowdies second-guessed their opponent. Nawab had a sneaky suspicion Mukti calling his name threw them off: they were expecting to tackle 'Nawab' but their ears turned when they heard the name 'Manik', briefly pausing their assaults. Once they faced Nawab's brunt, questioning their judgments became impossible.

If he wasn't deprived of Adira, his final ray of faith in his life, he would have clung to the truth that he alone could look after them; nothing and nobody could have forced him to new decisions, but now he realised... he had to go, had to stay away from them if he wished to help them.

He couldn't afford to lose them, for real.

Nawab resisted the urge to consume, and powered through withdrawal symptoms with his unhinged rage.

Snapping Nandini's seat buckle securely in place, he returned to the present. Manik didn't know why he possessed that stupid uncontrollable desire to protect her against her will, when he couldn't even help himself; it was aggravating that he couldn't seem to stop.

One thing was clear. She was one of those people he could not lose, not again – even if he had garnered the strength to do it once before. The decision to hide from his clan and the world he had always known was harsh on him, and having her – the familiarity of her presence – by his side eased him.

When he had arrived home earlier that day, Cabir had told him of the plan – to intercept  a woman who was supposed to meet Harshad. Manik did not counter, which took Cabir by surprise.

It was Manik's one chance to leave and never turn back, at least until he found out who was stalking him and preferred him dead. The options were limited to Harshad, his allies, or Malhotras and their allies.

On further provoking from Cabir's side, Manik – who wanted to pack his belongings for the trip – reached the top of the staircase leading to his room and wrung his neck at his friend on the ground floor. "I swear, if she causes one minor inconvenience, I'll drive a bullet through her brain."

Cabir had nodded in understanding, "Sure. No questions asked."

As he slammed the accelerator of the car, he speculated whether the whole tip-off was an elaborate lie crafted by Cabir to get Manik to meet the stubborn-head, as he once made Manik promise he would, when the Harshad story cleared up. Any plans to meet any other woman for Cabir's sake were already shelved... that split-second decision was made the instant Manik laid eyes on Nandini.

The likelihood of Cabir investing in his matchmaking side hustle was high. 

Nandini sought her driver from the corner of her eye, unsure of what to make out of his gesture. If she was her old immature self, she would have immediately fallen for the action but her past experiences had taught her differently. Why was Manik showing her unfiltered concern, after everything he had done to her, after freaking ruining her entire life?

What was the reason, and intention, behind his behaviour?

Why was he behaving one way – kidnapping her – and showcasing something entirely different, like he cared about her safety? It was so confusing, as was she!

How could a part of her be relieved that he was right in front of her eyes? And why had she spent weeks devastated, thinking that he had died?

Was what she felt really nothing but hatred for him?

She blinked the cloudiness away while staring into the distance, betrayed by her own emotions and the lack of control she exercised over them... especially when it came to him.

The car zoomed onto the main road in no time. Deep in her thoughts, Nandini forgot she was being taken somewhere against her will. She glowered at he who held her hostage, and all those contemplative ideas flew out the window. No, it was morally wrong, there was no explanation or justification to that.

Her fight-or-flight response kicked in, and she banged on the window, trying to garner attention from passersby and hoping someone would help her.

Ah, just about time...

An evil laughter, that monster's laugh, echoed in the car along with the booming radio, both of which killed Nandini's eardrums.

"Get this thing off me," she tugged the ridiculous pink silk strings popping out of the metal cuff, wondering where the hell the monster sourced something so hideous.

"Tumhe dikhai nahi de raha? Gaadi chala raha hoon main, so I don't have any free hands to comply with your wishes," he tapped his uncuffed palm on the steering wheel to a beat on the radio, exuberant about spending a long long while with her.

What better timing to take her on a long drive? His very first private long drive with a woman.

He yanked their linked wrists as he shifted gears with skilled ease, heading out of the residential roads. The impact seized Nandini's attention, and then a certain banded finger did. That was new, she hadn't seen that ring on him before, and it was on that finger... Nandini stroked it without thinking twice, and Manik withdrew on command, as if anyone's touch would tarnish its significance, and shook her off him.

It was instantaneous: a firm act of sheltering something immensely personal to him, and a stern rejection of her.

Her hand lingered in the air as she drew her gaze, staring at the trees outside that ran past them; she wished she could run away from him similarly. She had no right to feel so dejected about it – neither his reaction, nor the hidden meanings behind the band. But why was it stabbing her when she had known for the last seven months, and was in fact extremely thankful, that such a horrendous man wasn't hers? None of it mattered.

There were more important things to focus on, like what exactly was on the star-shaped locket Harshad gave Navya? To think about all that, she had to be out of that suffocating vehicle.

Nandini tried to pull the car lock lever. Even if she fell with the momentum of the vehicle and severely wounded herself, she could survive. She would make it out alive to be with her family, the people who truly cared for her and would be worried sick thinking of her.

The lock kept slipping from her fingers. Why? She rubbed them together, spreading a thin film of oil.

Manik had done that purposely to trap her in.

That bloody smirk!

She was increasingly intimidated as time passed and was running out of options to get out of his captivity. One of her hands slid into her pink tote that sat on her lap, and out came an iPhone. "Main na, police ko bulaungi, and I will complain about you." She innocently proclaimed, struggling to unlock her outdated phone with a passcode typed with one hand.

Grunting, Manik discarded the steering wheel and grabbed the device from her hands, tossing it behind his seat. It fell with a thud and Nandini gasped, as did Manik. He twitched his lips, exhibiting sympathy to her unfortunate situation.

Beyond furious at him, Nandini seethed on her seat, pulled on the cuff, and bit an already inflamed piece of skin just behind his palm.

Manik wheezed and retracted it from her hold. The area that was priorly attacked by a thick chain from resisting a goon's blow was blazing with rejuvenation, bright pink from that assault. Her eyebrows furrowed, meeting his sore ones. She was supposed to be halfway home by then; instead, she was stuck with this horrible human being who...

Remembering something, she leafed through her surroundings, trying to find anything, absolutely anything, to incriminate him.

"Ji Madam, kya complaint hai aapka?"

A male constable held a pen in his hand and a pad of forms was tucked under it. Navya squeezed Nandini's hand.

It had taken a lot of convincing on Navya's part to get Nandini to those premises far away from their home suburb in Mangalore, where nobody knew them or their families. Nandini's breaking point was when Navya had certified that she needed to report the incident and protect the next girl who could fall into his trap.

When a rejoiced Navya returned to her flat that dreadful morning, Nandini was drenched in sweat, mumbling something delirious while convulsing with clasped hands. Her black kurti, her favourite one, had been cut through with something akin to a blade and frayed along the edges. The sight had been traumatic to witness, and the girl bundled her best friend and soothed the screaming girl, her cries wrenching Navya's soul with a whiplash.

A composed Nandini said, "I want to file an FIR on Manik, for... molestation charges." She was unsure if she could even call it that since she had welcomed it upon herself.

"Manik... puura naam bataiye,"

"I... don't know,"

The constable looked the two girls up and down. They were both dressed in Indian clothing: one brave, while the victim was shattered. It was a sensitive matter, and he thought it would be best to bring a female teammate to take over. "Okay, aap baith jaayiye, main abhi aata hoon,"

The lady that replaced him gave bitch vibes. "Haanji, kahiye kya baat hai?"

Navya repeated on behalf of Nandini, and the lady noted down the victim's name, phone number, and address, mentioning that it was not under their jurisdiction and hence the two girls should file a complaint wherever the incident took place. After some back and forth and feeling sympathetic to Nandini's shaken appearance, the woman reluctantly gave in to their request and enquired the date, time, and location of the incident, which both the girls were reluctant to share. Most often in such cases, fingers were pointed at the victims only, and they hoped to Aiyappa and Mata Rani that their case would not be one of those.

The constable sarcastically mentioned that they were past the prime period to find the culprit as Nandini's body would show no evidence against him and so they needed every bit of information from her to nab the criminal.

Those words made Nandini sick to her stomach.

"Accused ka koi nishaan, description?"

Nandini tried to blurt out everything she remembered about him. "He's 6"2. Fair, long hair, and wears three rings..."

"Hello Madam, hum yahan matrimony ka advertisement laga rahe hai?" Nandini gulped and Navya glowered at the woman. That Nandini, within a week of the incident, had developed this kind of strength to talk about it and bring herself justice had been a big deal, but that police officer–being a woman herself–was behaving so insensitively since the time they walked in! "Profession, jis company mein kaam karta hai, kahan rehta hai, yeh sab ke details bataiye,"

Navya almost wanted to retort: if they were asking this many questions to the victims,  what sort of investigation was the police department even conducting? Was the justice department a joke? Her mind voice said: aise toh hum puura case humaare haathon main hi le lete agar itna pata hota toh'.

Nandini was thinking hard, her body physically shaking as she flashed through all her memories for any clues he had given that could support her case. "He... he drives around big-big celebrities, and... he's not from Mangalore, but he has a black Honda City,"

The constable appeared bored as she asked, "Company ka naam?"

"Pata nahi,"

"Gaadi ki registration number?" Nandini shook her head. "Nahi pata?"

The lady put her pen down, locking her hands on the table. "Mere kisi bhi sawaal ka jawaab toh aapke paas hai nahi, aap padhe likhe lagti hai toh aap hi bata dein. How do you expect me to lodge an FIR with just a first name and a car make?"

The details. The details were very important.

While Manik was busy examining his hand and admiring the beautiful mark of some skillful incisors and the contours of cherry lipstick on his pink patch of skin, Nandini took her free hand to her ear, pulling a jhumka out. She scratched the glass pane with the letters of her name, alerting Manik. He clasped her linked hand. "What the hell are you doing? Listen... gaadi meri nahi hai, I have already paid a huge sum to acquire it, and I will have to pay a premium if you cause any damage,"

"Thanks for the information," she said sarcastically, slithering her cuffed hand from his hold while continuing her task.

She was not going to listen like this. Manik swiftly off-roaded the vehicle onto a sandy street, grabbing both her wrists once the vehicle came to a complete halt. "What the actual fuck has gotten into you?!"

Nandini panted at the grip, her heart pounding in her chest, as a familiar nervousness returned to her body. His brows arched, unable to understand how the woman sitting before him was palpitating in such a manner while life came back to his soul only upon seeing her.

He precisely remembered when he claimed the cab and got into it, he had adjusted the seat for more legroom. One moment, he had casually glanced in the side mirror to fix it and in the next, his breath choked in his throat at the sight of her emerging from the gates.

Her.

His shock sent him into a series of choking coughs, but every second or so amidst them, he looked in her direction in disbelief. Was it her? Was it actually her? How could he be blessed with such delightful fortune that an angel appeared just when he was riding his lows?

Was it a sign... that running away from her, for so long, had only led to continuous disasters...  as if every moment in his life since her departure had been carefully and perfectly constructed to bring him to his knees at this juncture? He was at this same spot six months ago: his heart had urged to stay with her, but he fought its will and made up his mind to spare her from more lies.

Today, at the same place, he was granted a second chance to make things right, finally – to do the right thing, to follow his heart, his selfish wish.

"Let me go. My family is waiting for me. I need to be home," she screeched, her shrill voice piercing through the silence and commanding him.

He grit his teeth and dug her wrists into his chest in a tone that suggested deathly possession. "I can't. What part of that is not entering your thick skull?!"

"WHY? Haven't you had enough?"

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I was struggling to find a spot to finish the update at, it felt like it could just keep going and going :") That's the charm of MaNan, isn't it? <3

I was struggling with the flow of scenes in this chapter, I knew what needed to happen but interweaving it with their emotions took a while for me to complete.

I hope I can be forgiven for the delay in updating :(

Also, is it even MaNan if they don't have an enemies to lovers arc? ;) It's going to change, but enjoy it while it lasts :")

Don't forget to vote, comment and share! Hope you had fun!