|AN Writing Challenge~Closed*UPDATE pg 150* - Page 25

Originally posted by: spln

hey everyone - i had to hack in from another laptop to get this message through - my laptop has finally gone for repair and replacement of its hard disk - shall be back in 2 days, and then i shall promptly post the next part.

so long then!
nj

After Nikki's accident, Abhi had come closer to her but there was still some awkwardness between them. The awareness between them had intensified so much that even in passing when they locked eyes with each other; the world around them seemed to disappear into oblivion. Both of them were afraid of confronting their own self to find out the answer but they knew in their hearts that they were madly and deeply in love with each other.

"Dr. Modi" Ridhimma's soft lilting voice roused him from the file he was pretending to read in the cafeteria, where the other interns were at lunch. Today his feet had actually dragged him to the cafeteria for lunch but in his heart of heart he knew he had come here for the glimpse of the birthday girl Nikki. Yes, he knew it was the spitfire's birthday today but he hadn't wished her yet. He didn't know what to do and for the first time, the ever confident Abhimanyu Modi was at a loss for an idea.

He looked up into the gray eyes of the intern who he treated as a friend. "Yes Ridhimma" he asked in his professional voice and saw a smile entering those beautiful gray eyes.

"Dr. Modi……I have a favor to ask you" she replied to his query and he nodded his head to ask her to continue.

"I….ummm" confusion lined Ridhimma's beautiful face and the dark brown eyes peered at her with confusion. Abhimanyu Modi was a handsome albeit formidable man. It was beyond Ridhimma to understand how he had fallen for a delicate beauty like Nikki but she adored the couple and was thankful that they were at least on talking terms if not on friendly.

"I am waiting Dr. Gupta" his professional tone roused her out of her pondering.

"Dr. Modi ….can I talk to you alone" she asked softly and saw her boss's eyebrows rise.

"Alone…..without that boyfriend of yours glaring at me?" he asks sarcastically and Ridzi turns to look at Armaan's handsome face darkening with anger slowly. She sighed. These men were simply too much but she was determined to do this.

"Yes Dr. Modi….lets go out of here and forget Armaan I will handle him" she glared back at him and warned him with a look.

"Fine......lead the way" he shrugged and got up to follow her, his eyes still searching for Nikki, who for some reason he hadn't seen till now.

Ridhimma leads him to the cabin and sees him look around as if searching for someone and stifles a giggle. He had the forlorn expression of a lover on his face but look at him hide his feelings for their friend, who she knew he was searching for and who, she very cleverly had gotten off duty for half the day by pleading to Dr. Keerti.

She leads him to his cabin and he asks her once again what she wanted to talk about.

"Sit Dr. Modi….you may need it" she instructs and he looks at her surprised.

"Excuse Me?" he asks.

"Please sit" she instructs again, ignoring his surprised question. Furrowing his forehead, he does do as told but taps his feet restlessly, getting irritated by her pacing in front of him.

"What is the big suspense Ridhimma?" he snaps irritated.

"No suspense…..I …ahem…am actually here representing all the interns" she starts and Abhimanyu rolls his eyes. Here she went again he thought.

"Sure….do tell what I can do to please you all" he says, not meaning a single word.

"Dr. Modi…we all are tired….of you and Nikki…trying to hide your feelings you know" she blurts and his mouth falls open. What was he hearing? That too from Ridhimma?

"What?" he shouts and Ridhimma's heart lurches at the unpredictable man's reaction but she continues.

"There is no need to get upset…..it's just so apparent but leave that…..we are throwing a small birthday party for her, tonight, at a small restaurant…..so we want you to come too" she delivers.

"Look….I don't think that it is a good idea" he remembers the last time the interns had ganged against him and he was in no mood for a repeat.

"We think it is…..Dr. Modi…..we all accept you….we also accept you for Nikki….we know she can never get a better partner than you….please….forgive us and Nikki" she softly says, taking the seat opposite him, her eyes pleading.

"Why this sudden vote of confidence?" he asks, his brown eyes blazing suddenly with curiosity.

"Just because we can see what you two feel….we know that you don't want to make Nikki choose between yourself and her friends , that is why you stay away from her and she doesn't want to make you accept those friends who insulted you, so she stays away from you…..we friends can't bear to be the reason anymore for this…..we are her friends…..and we know you love her like no one has ever loved her…..so this is our gift to her …..Please" Ridhimma explains and touches his hand gently.

He looks at her with surprise and then she sees his lips set in a grim line and a hard expression enter his chocolate eyes and she withdraws her hand.

"I don't think she needs this…not on her birthday….thanks for your acceptance" he closes the topic and as Ridhimma opens her mouth to argue, he turns away.

Ridz places an invitation card on his table and leaves, leaving the decision on him to give the woman he loved dearly what she desperately wanted on her birthday.

Everyone had wished Nikki on her 24^th birthday but still she felt that something was missing. She smiled, but the sparkle wasn't there, she was happy but the contentment wasn't there. He would never wish her. For some reason that hurt. She had concluded yesterday night that she loved him…..more than life but she didn't dare and tell him that. She didn't want to drag him through the humiliation her friends had bestowed upon him ever again.

"Nikki……come on….out" Muski's voice snapped her out of her reverie.

"Coming" she replied and took a last look at herself in the mirror. The girls had insisted she wear this off shoulder fuchsia pink dress and leave her hair open. She had wanted to curl them but they had insisted that she looked better in straight. The color made her skin glow, so she had just put on lip gloss and an eyeliner and gotten ready for her evening out with them.

All the guys whistled when she entered the restaurant and she blushed deeply. Her eyes quickly scanned the crowd but she didn't see that face which sent her heart in an overdrive. Her smile dimmed considerably and her lips set in a grim line.

"Hell with him….he doesn't remember ….smile Nikki….and enjoy with the people who actually love you" she spoke under her breath and went ahead and met her friends and received her wishes.

The evening was fun. All the guys danced with her one by one, the seniors too danced and participated in the fun and she felt lucky to have so much love around her even if her heart did miss him like crazy. The food was incredible and the cake was her favorite strawberry shortcake.

"We will cut the cake after you open the gifts" Ridhimma announced and Nikki looked at her in surprise.

"But Ridhimma" she began but Ridz ignored her and lined the gifts before her.

"Ok" she sighed and started opening the gifts.

"She gasped at the bracelet Muskaan and Anjie had given her and wore it on her delicate wrist thanking them with a hug.

Atul and Rahul had given her a watch and she thanked them too, telling them that she loved it and would wear it tomorrow.

Armaan gave her a collage of their pictures with a frame which read "Best Friends Forever" which brought tears in her eyes. She hugged him for refreshing her memories and then opened the other gifts given by Drs Keerti and Shubhankar and the other guests and thanked everyone.

She looked at Ridhimma and she smiled back. "Thank you Ridhimma for the party" she hugs her.

"My gift isn't this Nikki" Ridzi smiles.

"Oh" Nikki says with confusion.

"My gift is this magic cake" Ridz puts the cake before her with 24 candles and gets the lights switched off. "Blow the candles out and wish for something you desire the most…..but you have to close your eyes, wish first and then blow the candles without opening your eyes….OK" she instructs and Nikki nods, laughing at her friend's silly game.

"Ready?" all chorus together and she nods with a smile and closes her eyes. Her heart skips a beat. She could see Abhimanyu's handsome face in front of her and crosses her finger by her side she decides to wish for him. She hoped the magic worked.

With closed eyes she bends to wish and blows the candles. When she opens her eyes she sees the candles still burning. She tries to blow then out again but they still keep burning. MAGIC CANDLES….she deduces and looks up to tell Ridz that she had figured it out when her eyes look at the face she had been wanting to see for the whole day and the words die on her lips.

Abhimanyu was standing in front of her dressed in a black informal shirt and black jeans and she gulps. When had she started dreaming with open eyes? She looked around for her friends but there was no one except him and her in the room. Confused, she looks into those hypnotizing eyes, which were looking at her and waiting for her to acknowledge his presence.

"Dr. Modi?" she addressed him as he had ordered her to.

"Happy birthday Nikki" he said coming closer to her and her heart starts beating a little faster. He knew very well what his nearness did to her but he didn't know that it drove her insane with wanting him.

"Th….Thank y….you" she stammers, taking a step back, to create distance.

"Where are the others?" she asks in a breathy voice when he keeps coming closer to her.

"You look beautiful" he says and her eyes widen.

"T….Thanks….the others?" she asks and stops when her back hits the wall.

"Pink is your color Nikki" he tells her, stopping in front of her.

"Yeah…..others?" she was losing her voice. She hated him when he did this to her. He knew he was having an effect on her and it was becoming impossible to hide too. She decides to look for the others herself, but when she tries to cross him to move forward, his hand snakes around her wrist and he stops her.

His touch sent shivers through her body and he felt that slight tremor and a slight smile came on his lips. She wasn't immune to him, even if she was trying hard to act nonchalant.

"I….I am looking for the…..others" she tells him, rooted on the spot. She couldn't break herself away from him but she knew she needed to move. She prayed he would understand and let her go.

"They left" he finally answers her and moves behind her, his other arm encircling her waist too. Nikki forgets to breathe. She closed her eyes, reveling in his touch . She wanted to rest her head against his shoulder and loose herself in the feelings she was arousing in her but she knew it was a dangerous game and if she let go today, she would never recover.

"Why?" she asked compelling herself to talk. He pulled her more towards him and her soft body was resting against his hard one.

"So you can enjoy Ridhimma's birthday gift …..alone" he replied and his hands swept her silky hair to one side , exposing her long beautiful neck and placed his lips on the vein throbbing on her throat. Nikki gasped and closed her eyes, her hands curling by her side. How she was still standing on her feet when she wanted to melt in his arms was beyond her.

"Please …" she begged.

"What?" he asked.

"Don't do this ….please" she begged him, tears flowing from her eyes.

"Why?" he asks against her neck, refusing to give in to her pleading.

"Please…..Dr. Modi" she tried her last weapon to alienate him.

"He didn't come" he turns her in his arms to make her face him and he sees the tears falling freely from those big beautiful eyes. He bends forward and kisses them away from her cheek and feels her stiffen in his arms.

"Then who came?" she asks him and he shrugs and his fingers trace the outline of her lips, his eyes following his thumb .

"Abhi" she breathed.

"Yes sweetheart" he answered her and she looks at him in surprise.

"Sweetheart?" his endearment had angered her. She pushes him away angrily and steps out of his overpowering embrace. "What are you here for? Play with me again? Why did you come?" she questions him angrily but all he does is grab her hand and move towards the cake. He puts the knife in her hand and cuts the cake with her. A shocked Nikki looks at him when he calmly cuts a piece and places it in front of her lips.

"Happy Birthday" he says and urges her to eat it. When she turns her face away , he puts the icing on her cheek and places the remaining piece back. As Nikki lifts her hand to wipe the icing from her face, he catches it in his grip and simply wipes the icing off her cheek with his tongue.

Nikki gasps and pushes him away. "Stop it…..stay away from m….me" she says but he shakes his head.

"I can't…….that is what I have been trying to do for the past month……but I am sorry….I can't do it anymore Nikki…..it is impossible" he says, his eyes boring into hers and he comes closer with each sentence.

"Wh….what…d….do you m…mean?" she questions.

"What part don't you understand?" he asks.

"Abhi please….stop playing games" she says when he stops close to her.

He stares at her when she opens her mouth to ask another question, his lips swoop on hers and his hand threads into her hair. He kisses her, trying to pour his feelings into his kiss. Nikki's eyes close automatically. He mind asked her to step away but her lips opened on their own will to let him deepen the kiss. She was lost. She couldn't fight him anymore. She didn't want to fight him anymore. He kissed her like a hungry man and finally when he came up for air, he saw he swollen lips and touched them tenderly.

"You make me crazy Nikki…..I love you" he tells her and her heart swells with joy. She had no hope to hear those words but he had spoken them.

"Abhi" her eyes brimming with tears she looks at him and sees him staring at her.

"I know I don't deserve you after what I put you through….but see what happens when I come close to you" he tells her, his eyes roaming her beautiful face.

"I am sorry Nikki….but I can't stay away from you …even for a second….but still you have the right to decide……I will accept it if you chose to say no" he gives her a choice.

"Then No" she answers and sees pain flood his eyes.

"Ok" he accepts her decision but Nikki comes closer and places her lips on his.

"Nikki" he asks her, not understanding what she meant.

"No….never leave me again….ever…..I love you too Abhimanyu Modi…..I love you too" she replies and revels as his arms come around her slim waist. He kisses her slowly and passionately this time, making her rage with need.

"Abhi" she pleads.

"Sorry" he breaks the kiss with an effort.

"I know….but it's hard to stay away from you" he caresses her face.

"But we are in a party" she reminds him.

"I know sweetheart…….I know" he takes a deep breath and calms himself down.

"Oh your birthday gift" he tells her and her eyes sparkle with excitement.

"You got me a gift ……give na" she orders.

He goes down on his knees and opens a velvet box with a sparkling diamond ring.

"Marry me sweetheart" he proposes and Nikki hugs him and nods her yes.

"Yes…..yes I will" she says and he puts the ring on her finger.

"Thank you…..for giving me a gift on your birthday" he says.

"Thank you for such a beautiful birthday" she replies, lost in his arms.

Nikki's 24^th birthday was sealed with a kiss and promise of everlasting love, which they were soon going to seal with marriage. This was the last birthday she was celebrating as Nikita Malhotra.

*EDIT*

Nikki absentmindedly stirred the soup they would have for dinner, Why would Armaan come back? And what did he mean by he'd be back? To her ears that had sounded like a threat, and she knew Armaan enough to know he always meant whatever he said. But what could he possibly want with her? Technically, he was the one that had wanted to "take a break" and she'd just made it easier for him. They had broken up 5 years ago, and if he knew that she had moved on, then why bother?

She wasn't going to lie to herself, she knew Armaan Mallik could get a girl ten times prettier than her. At least he could if he was anything like the Armaan Mallik from med school. Tattooed, always sporting some kind of leather jacket, racing bikes, and strutting around with a cool "I don't give a sh*t" attitude. She had been one of the only girls that didn't swoon at the very sight of him, thus becoming his ultimate challenge. They had started out as friends, later becoming best friends, and then actually dating. Nikki had been his only girlfriend to last more than a month.

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