Manan FF - Kaisi yeh Yaariyan season 3 - Chapter 123 & note - Page 13

"Bhaiyaa ek plate kanda poha dena" That's how a city changes you. That's how Mumbai was changing Ranbir. From a leisurely makkhan wala paratha at 11 to an earthly kanda poha at 5 in the morning. Ranbir was beginning to love these early morning walks, sometimes in and around his complex in Lokhandwala, sometimes along the juhu beach. Today he had driven to Bandstand after a late night house party at Mukti's place.

This was the only time in the day, when one could actually hear the sound of waves crashing against the rocks over the honking cars, the only time when the roads were remotely deserted and Ranbir loved to watch the city wake up from slumber and slowly get back into its groove.

His days passed in a blink and before he could track one day, the next would hurriedly roll in. But even in such a short time, he had seen a lot, both literally and otherwise.

He had driven around Mumbai, he had been to Powai for his interview, which he had cracked more than comfortably and was slated to join from today. He had also been to Bandra and Nariman point to different night clubs with Navya and Mukti and to Andheri to witness Navya transform seamlessly into RJ Navya Naveli. He had thoroughly enjoyed those two hours in the radio station, listening to the soulful voice and words of Navya. This girl was rustic and completely unpretentious, she clearly lacked the finesse of a girl born and brought up in a metro but

Beneath her jokes and heavily accented Hindi, lay a very deep mind and when she went On- Air, this facet of her clearly took over. He loved the time at the radio - station more because in Navya, he saw Cabir. For a while he felt like he was watching RJ Bira and that invariably brought a smile to his face.

He had met all the members of FAB5, known some of them(Alia & Dhruv) and understood the others (Mukti). All of them except the one his brother loved the most, his jigar da tukra, Manik. No, Cabir hadn't been Partial towards any one of his friends. Infact, he had been universal property, each wanting to claim a piece of him and he he gladly indulged them but when it came to him wanting someone to protect him, it had always been Manik and Mukti in that order. He knew Manik could fight the whole world for Cabir, well in a way he had, and not just the world but death too. He was the last one to see his brother alive, the only one to save him at that point. Manik was to Cabir, what Ranbir could never be.

He so wished, he could meet Manik again, just one time. He wanted to hug him and thank him for all that he had done for his brother...For having stood by him when his private video clip with Raghav came out in public, for always standing by him like a rock when the whole world mocked him for being gay, for letting him occupy his heart and his home when their own mother had thrown him out, for pulling him back to life when he was steps away from committing suicide, for hundred other things he knew and thousands that he didn't. If only he could meet Manik one day ...

In his thoughts he had forgotten to eat the poha which had now turned completely cold. He ordered another plate and prepared to drive back home as it was close to 6.30 and he didn't want to be late for his first day in office.

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What an awesome weekend it had been. The flashes from the last night still gave him blushes, there had been so many memories that it would be really difficult for him to pick one as the SHOWSTOPPER. But then that's how it always had been with her...No matter what the flavour of the moment, no matter what shade of grey or purple or yellow the circumstances where, she always found her spot in it and God knows how but she always felt like the perfect fit. She could be absolutely hilarious with her stupid antics and he just loved teasing her, primarily to see that angry pout on her baby face. But then he equally loved her wise, comforting side, her telepathic connection with his heart. Despite being the pillar that he was, both factually and figuratively, she held the fort for him when his courage crumbled and this was something, no one else ever did for him. Everyone he had met in the last 3 years including his dad had only seen & acknowledged his strong self, it was only and only Nandini who not only knew his vulnerable side but also had the heart and guts to protect it. But like the seven colours of rainbow, Nandini had more to her. Though he absolutely hated to see her in pain, he healed by healing her. How easily she switched roles, from a caregiver to a care seeker! When she did become vulnerable, which was not only when she was in pain but every time she was confused or scared, she wholeheartedly surrendered to him. She just became a small baby and he had to be her guardian. And then, as if that wasn't enough, she could be a stunner too. She was neither a bimbo, nor voluptuous if you were to go by the standard rulebook of men, but the static & dynamic electricity he felt around her, only he knew how difficult it was to keep his hands off that pocket size seductress. All in all, if he were to summarize this whole mini essay that he was scribbling in his mind about miss Nandini Murthy, someone had created her just for him. They were these two people with dented edges but together they fit like the missing pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.

It was ironic, that he had actually come to Mumbai to search for his lost past, but now, with the flashes getting more and more frequent, he was actually dreading the day he would regain his memory. He was happy with Nandini, living in the moment.

Who knew what lay there, in his life from 3 years ago? What if there was something which could ruin this, which could pull her away from him...Life would never let him be at peace. He always had to be at receiving end, one way or the other.

He dialed her number only to get the voice message "The number you have dialed is currently switched off."

Switched off? Why was her number switched off? May be because she needed some sleep. How many times had he tried to put her to sleep! he had to sing her two songs and make up one random story and still the naughty girl wouldn't sleep. All she ever did was to cuddle him tightly and just blabber, blabber about anything and everything that came to her mind or for that matter to her lips, which started with the children in her school and went on to her own childhood dreams, to which flavours of ice cream she liked & which kind of skirt she looked best in to God knows what else. It's not that she couldn't talk sense, it's just that with him, she didn't need to distinguish between sense and nonsense and perhaps she thought that by staying up the whole night she could hold back time.

Good that she had switched her phone off to sleep. How else would she teach her tiny tots, especially with a not yet perfectly fit body.

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Her head was still throbbing, her face was hot, almost feverish. Her heart was beating like a drum, gone out of rhythm.What an anticlimax to such a beautiful night. She shouldn't have let Manik go, she just shouldn't have.

That jerk was finally out of her house but she was still shaking with fear and she couldn't do anything to calm herself down. It was just 6 am, and she was pacing up and down her living room with her broken mobile phone in hand. The closest mobile shop would open by 9 at the earliest. Either she will have to buy a new one or repair this one, whichever took less time.

She was dying to talk to Manik, only he could calm her down. Should she contact her using using Gtalk or mail? No, no he must be on his way to Pune and if she did anything rash, it could be fatal for him, given his impulsive nature. The pain that Manik had nursed with so much love was surging back and with it a sickening wave of nausea. What if he had touched her, what if he had...how could her own grandma certify this guy, how could she send him to stay with them. And how, could her own uncle be so gullible? Were they blind? Sometimes, the only person she could trust was Manik..He could always see danger beforehand. He had warned her again and again to stay away from that asshole. She should have told him.

'Get a grip on yourself Nandini, think straight' she continuously repeated in her head. She would take the day off from school, get her mobile repaired or buy a new one, first speak to Navya and then call Manik over to tell him everything. This Neel was crossing all his limits and if she didn't do anything soon, he would go to any damn extent. She had had a close escape this time, but she might not be this lucky every time. This had to stop ASAP!

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Author Note:

Why does it happen again and again that just when you need your voice the most, it betrays you. May be the writer is speaking way too much from her desk than she should be. Nevermind, all that the writer wants to say is, 'A Thankyou' is not enough, but then English language doesn't really have a synonym for 'Thank you', so 'Thank you' it shall be.

I was almost in a break-down state when I had posted about my miseries on Thursday. And it wasnt just a physical break down but a outcome of multiple reasons working simultaneously. And you have to trust me here, I didn't have the least idea that so much love actually existed in the world, and of all people I would be fortunate enough to feel it, even if its for just one time.

I read and reread your comments and suggestions and made the following changes:

1. The first thing I did was to move out of my designated seat in office and shift to the cafeteria for a few days. (Yes, I have the facility of working from the cafeteria and if you wanna know how it looks, here's a snap). Sometimes a little change from the regular can really help.

2. Then i decided to take it slow and reduce the number of updates to 3/4 in a week from the earlier 6/7.

3. As far as replying to every comment is concerned, I CANT do it in india forums, I DONT do it on facebook but I can't help dong it on Wattpad. If only I could tell you how precious each and every single comment is..If only. Also My India forum readers deserve a special shout out, a huge shout out infact. I have stopped sending notifications, I hardly ever reply personally to every comment and yet the amount of love they shower doesn't reduce by a micro-inch. There's only as much as a human like me can do, but there's infinitely more that the universe is capable of and I shall pray to the universe for all of your health and happiness.

4. I started reading few other MaNan FFs. but I eventually realized thats not working for me because its taking my focus away from my own characters and uknowingly influencing my writing in a negative way. So that will have to stop.

5. I listened to a lot of TED Talk videos. They are very very encouraging and enlightening and I learnt a very important couple of lessons.

6. I just took a chill pill. Really??? I am not sure on this one.

N now I am getting back in the groove... but none of the above would have helped without your love and concern. A writer is as good as her readers, so you define me.

One help I need from u guys and its not time bound. Because I am not always in the same state of mind, the quality of my content and language varies from time to time. Please let me know if you have felt that any chapter is particularly weak. I would reread it and evaluate the flaws. Going forward too, if you ever feel I am writing crap (in kinder words, not as per my average standard). It will be a little tough to the ears but the product should always be bigger than the creator. keep blessing me guys...

The writer is indebted to you for your love.