92. WELLWISHER HARSHAD?

Ram:- you bring happiness to our life ( teasingly ) and you are smarter than your two pig-head brothers. 

Ca:- Dad!…….. Stop comparing me with a pig. 

Ma:- ( hiding his smile ) Yes it’s their insult that you are comparing rhinoceros with a pig. 

Ca:- ( angrily ) shut up!….. You….. MANIK THE GIRAFFE MALHOTRA.  

Before Manik comes back with a sarcastic remark Nandini scolds her brother hiding that playful grin. 

Nan:- Bhai, stop calling him Giraffe. 

Manik smirks and gives a victory look to Cabir with an attitude. But his smirk went off hearing her further. 

Nan:- GIRAFFE IS NOT AS TALL AS HE IS! WRONG COMPARISON. 

Manik opens his mouth with a gasp and takes a minute to realize her words. 

Nan:- compare him with……. Um……. with a lighthouse. 

Ma:- ( sarcastically ) and I will compare you with that little light of the lighthouse because you are so tiny like a safety pin. 

{ Reference picture of a safety pin who doesn’t know what it is.} 

Nan:- ( angrily ) Safety pin!………………… 

Ish:- ( with disbelief ) my kids can turn the emotional situations into playful ones. I hope that they never attend any funeral or else the dead person will come alive hearing their comedy. 

Ram:- should I continue? 

Nan:- ya….. I will see him later. 

Ma:- aww……. Baby, you can check out me any time anywhere until you are satisfied. I am all yours. 

Ram:- ( hissed angrily ) stop flirting with my daughter at least not in front of me. 

Ma:- so should I move to the next level leaving my flirting skills?

Raman shoots daggers at him with his eyes while Manik continues. 

Ma:- or what is this “not in front of me”, will you let us be together alone? You always come in between us like unexpected rain. 

Ram:- I will pray that in the next birth god will make me a bijlee ( light ) because I desperately want to fall on you on that rainy night. 

Manik just shows a lip tight smile not giving him enough attention. 

Nan:- Dad, ignore him, please continue your story. 

Ram:- ya…… where I was? 

Nan:- ( smiles sheepishly ) you were sitting on the couch beside Manik at Malhotra’s residence. 

Raman cries dramatically hearing his daughter whereas Cabir pats her back proudly. 

Ca:- you are going on the right path, baby sister. You are making me proud of my teachings. 

Nav:- if this is your teachings then I will keep my babies away from you. 

Ma:- ( palms his face ) not only you Navya, I will also keep my babies away from their mother. ( eyeing Nandini ) 

Both the brother-sister pouts hearing their respective partners. 

Nan:- ( threatening ) and that mother will kick your ass if you do so! 

Muk:- Dad, they will not stop their bickering. You tell me If Manish’s wife and daughter both are dead then, why is he behind our Nandini. 

Manik interrupts from behind and corrects her statement possessively. 

Ma:- MINE!…….. NOT OURS’ NANDINI…….. ONLY MINE NANDINI!…… 

Nandini goes all aww on his possessiveness and pulls his cheeks with a grin making everyone faint seeing their moments. 

Nyo:- ( palming her head which is spinning like a grinder ) just seconds ago they were fighting and now……. 

Alya:- they are showering love at each other. What are they? 

Dhr:- beyond our assumption! 

Whereas Raman cringed his face and ignored the lovebirds. 

Ram:- Manish is behind Nandini because he thought that SHE IS HIS DAUGHTER. 

Ca:- what the hell!……. Nandini is ours’ daughter. ( angrily ) How can you doubt your blood, dad? 

Ram:- stop your running pigs, Cabir. 

Abhi:- Dad, it’s horses, not pigs. You are using the wrong phrase. 

Instead of Raman, Manik answers. 

Ma:- he is a pig so his pigs were running not horses. 

Everyone gives him “what the hell is he saying?” looks except Raman who appreciates his explanation and pats his back. 

Ram:- Cabir, there is no doubt that Nandini is ours’….. 

Manik cringed his face again hearing “OURS’ NANDINI” while Raman continued. 

Ram:- Manish thought that I replaced my dead daughter with his one i.e. Nandini. But this is false. He wants to give me the same pain that he went through without his daughter. That’s why he wants Nandini in place of that girl Sona. 

Their intense moment is abrupt by the watchman who comes running. 

Watchman:- Sahab…… Sahab…… koi aadmi aaya hai aur woh apne aap ka naam HARSHAD bata raha hai. Woh bol raha hai ki use Manik Sahab se baat karni hai. ( Sir…… Sir….. a man has come and he is telling his name HARSHAD. He wants to talk to Manik sir. ) 

Ma:- ( angrily ) Harshad! What is he doing here? ( to the watchman ) Tell him to go away. I don’t have the mood to talk with him. 

The watchman nods and turns to go out but stops hearing Nandini.

Nan:- bring him inside. He is our guest. 

Hearing this, the watchman looks at Manik for confirmation who is glaring at Nandini. Without any thought, he turned and looked at Raj who nodded and permitted him to do as Nandini says. 

Ma:- ( angrily ) Are you mad, Nandini? 

Nan:- ( cooly ) NO!….. I AM NANDINI. 

Ma:- ( while gritting his teeth ) both are the same. And why do you call him inside? You don’t know him. 

Nan:- That’s why I call him because I don’t know him but I want to know him. 

Manik’s head blasts like a volcano and his ears start erupting steam which scares her for a second. While others look at them with surprise. 

Dhr:- weather didn’t change as fast as they changed their mood. 

Alya:- I agree….. 

Ca:- arey,… I toh…. Didn’t even change my clothes as fast as they shift from romance to fight and fight to romance. 

Nav:- then, stop wearing clothes and start wrapping leaves like early humans. 

Nan:- Can we discuss clothes later? As Mr. Harshad is here. 

Manik hissed silently and murmured, “Why does she do the opposite of what I always say?”.

Raj replies who heard his murmurs. 

Raj:- ( like an experienced husband ) because no matter what a wife will always stay a wife who never gives a damn to her husband. It will take time but you will get habitual to this. 

Manik flared his nose and again started glaring at Nandini. But soon his gaze fell on Harshad who came inside and stood in front of them. 

Harshad:- Manik…..

Manik turns his face and seeing his tantrums Nandini greets Harshad making him annoyed like hell. 

Nan:- Hello, Mr. Saxena. Welcome. 

Ma:- ( murmurs ) Welcome my foot! 

Harshad:- ( with a bright smile ) Hello to you too, Nandini. 

Manik rolls his eyes in frustration hearing their extra sweet greetings and interrupts them. 

Ma:- come on the point Harshad. I don’t have enough time to hear your sweet talk. 

Harshad takes a deep breath before starting. 

Harshad:- Till now you know that my father kidnapped your fake girlfriend Sona and he wants Nandini ( eyeing Nandini ) in place of her. 

Nan:- ( surprisingly ) How do you know that Sona is Manik’s fake girlfriend? 

Harshad:- ( with a sly smile ) because you are the girl who took his heart as no one does. 

His statement blew everyones’ mind but still composed himself Manik asks. 

Ma:- How did you get to know this? Because I didn’t disclose about us because of Akshat Dhawan. 

Harshad:- Manik, I know you from school. I admit that we are not friends but why did you forget that we are rivals? We know each other more than our families. We can predict each others’ moves before one can step ahead. ( with a smirk which Manik hates the most ) And the shine you had last night while looking at Nandini says everything. 

Nan:- ( with wide eyes ) Mr. Saxena, if you don’t mind, can I ask something? 

Harshad:- go ahead, Nandini. 

Nan:- By any chance, are you in boys? I mean, are you interested in boys or precisely in Manik? 

Haering her, everyone hit their head with right palms whereas Raman looks down in embarrassment and murmurs, why this girl asks stupid questions from strangers?”. 

But two boys are shocked more than anyone and they are none other than Manik and Harshad who look at her with utter shock. 

Manik comes back on the earth and palms Nandini’s lips stopping her crazy thoughts. With this act Harshad too came out from his shock. 

Harshad:- what the hell!!! 

Ma:- ( hissed ) Nandini, why are you asking that? 

Nan:- Manik, I am doing it for you. 

Ma:- for me? 

Nan:- yes, look. If he is interested in you then, you guys will make a good pair because you guys are so similar and know each other well. ( excitedly ) He got to know about us while looking into your eyes which our family couldn’t see. This shows how madly you guys are in love with each other. 

Both the rivals are looking at her with wide eyes and open mouths not believing their ears. 

Harshad:- ( rubbing his sweat with wide eyes ) Manik, palms her mouth until I finish saying for what I come here. 

Manik nods scaredly and does as he said while on the other side Nandini smiles with a thought “aww, made for each other couple!”. 

Harshad:- I come here to inform you guys that my father won’t harm Sona. You guys can go and bring her back without letting Nandini be involved in this. I am giving you the address Manik. 

Shock is a small word to describe Manik’s state and why not! He and Harshad never had a normal conversation till now but he is helping him and trying to save Nandini but WHY???

To be continued…