I thought you explained his point of view well though...he was best friends with Aliya too before their relationship and he managed to mess it all up by taking her for granted...I don't think he would want to repeat the same mistake with Nandini...'cause his feelings might possibly be even stronger for her...and that scare anyone...plus just because Manik and Aliya broke up doesn't mean they stopped caring about each other...common misconceptions I tell you...no wonder relationships aren't successful as teenagers 🤪