~ When you realize you want to live the rest of your life with someone, you want the rest of the life to begin as soon as possible~

Manik was tired when he returned from his office. Despite the promise he made to Nandini about returning home early, he was late, courtesy an emergency case that had demanded his attention. Parking the car, Manik collected his office bag and phone from it, before wanting to central lock it, but as soon as his eyes fell on the key chain, he stopped for two seconds, admiring it. He could feel his cheeks hurting from the big, ear to ear smile his face was adorning at its sight. Earlier also, she did have her thoughts running in his system, but these days, it was like she was ruling him like a queen, his queen. Shaking his head he finally locked the car and moved towards the lift to his home.

The door was unlocked, and it made him frown, because Nandini couldn't be seen anywhere in the vicinity of the drawing room, though he could still feel her presence somewhere near. Nandini Malhotra on the other hand, was hiding behind the half open door of the study, watching him with an angry frown and a super cute pout.

Keeping his bag on the couch, he dumped his blazer above it, rolling his shirt to the elbows, simultaneously calling out for Nandini.

Nandini slapped her forehead. Why does he have to look so sexily haunting even at the end of the day? She could feel the knots in her stomach, as she saw him loosening the tie, removing the overcoat and opening the first two buttons of his shirt.

Damn her stupid, stupid heart! How she had planned to be angry and how he was forcing her to just go and kiss him!

Manik called out her name walking into the kitchen. He was surprised to see no food prepared, and neither was she answering. He hurriedly checked the bedroom, and could feel his heart beginning to race. Where was Nandini? He didn't want to think the worst, but it wasn't in his control, he didn't know what else to do, so he called her out, one last time, his voice edged higher due to the this unexpected ache paralysing him.

Nandini turned around at his voice, and immediately peeked out, the expressions on his scared face, making her guilty. She immediately banged the door of the study, trying to give him a clue, and that was all Manik needed to run to the study.

Though the distance between the bedroom and the study wasn't great, Manik was till panting when he entered the study, his eyes that were searching for one glimpse of Nandini all around, finally settling on her petite figure standing near his table. He took a few long steps towards her, and hugged her, startling her in the process, but when she felt his heart beating damn loud, she rubbed his back softly, tightening her hold.

" I am here, I am here, Just relax", she whispered into his ears, and finally felt his heartbeats coming to normal.

He broke the hug, only to kiss her forehead, before dropping his on hers. She smiled in response, holding his hand tightly in hers.

" Why weren't you responding?", He asked, and boom! Her bubble burst.

She pushed him away, and crossed her hands, making an angry face.

" Because I am angry", she turned her face from him, pushing herself to make a proper angry face, and then, dramatically spoke, "also hurt".

Manik was flabbergasted, failing to understand anything. He was still wrapping his head around the fact that she was their, she hadn't left, when she dropped these bombs on him.

" Angry? Hurt? Why?", He asked so confused, his voice extremely adorable, but Nandini turned with a straight face, arching her eyebrows high up.

" You don't know? How would you know? I know I mean nothing to you, otherwise I would have known. And you would have known too, and you know-", she was blabbering when Manik, irritated with the 'know' she was using in one paragraph, held her by her shoulders, and looked straight at her.

" What did I do to hurt you?", He asked, and she didn't like the way he did. It made her feel bad for playing with him, because he didn't even wait to confirm what hurt her. He just accepted it was him.

It was difficult pranking such an emotionally fragile person as him. She really needed to work so much with him, so for the time being, she modified her plan and asked him to wait, before running into the bedroom.

Ten minutes later, she came out with her saree done in broad pleats over her shoulders, a huge framed spectacles sitting over her neck, and her eye shadow pencil, that was long enough to imitate a stick. She looked absolutely like an old strict school teacher, just more adorable.

She could see his eyes going wide, his lips trying hard to not burst out laughing, as he put his hands inside the pockets of his trousers, his entire demeneour now relaxed. He had taken the cue, understood she was just teasing him around, and well, now two could play the game.

She walked past him, and climbed to sit on the table, crossing her legs, her eye pencil stroking her left palm in a rhythmic manner.

" So Mr. Manik husband Malhotra, why am i receiving complains about you?", She asked, pushing back the spectacles, and Manik bit his lip to not laugh.

" I don't know what you are talking about Mam", he shrugged, wanting to sit down, but Nandini glared at him making him gulp and stand straight.

" You have broken the rules of law, public prosecutor will sue you", Nandini stated again, holding her head high.

" You are a school teacher or a Judge?", He blurted out, earning a whack from her, her eyebrow pencil finally finding its utilisation.

" Ouch!", He dramtized the effect of her sly whack, making her giggle, that she hid with a poker face.

" You are accused to have been hiding things from your lawfully wedded, beautiful and cute, faithful and sincere-", she was cut off by Manik, who crossed his arms.

" Wife! I got the sentence, without those unnecessary adjectives too", he smirked, and Nandini pouted.

" You mean I am not all those things?", Immediately, her eyes began to water up, panicking him.

" Hey, hey! You were the teacher na, I mean judge. Why are you crying?", He held her shoulders, and pushed her chin up.

" Because I am Nandini and I am your-", she was about to cry, when Nandini cut him off again.

" Everything. You are my everything!", He kissed her forehead, wiping her cheeks, smiling at the kid he had got for a wife. She could not even stick to her own role play.

" What are you angry for, Nandini?", He asked again, this time, holding her. It was a very cute scene, she sitting on the table, he standing in Front of her, holding her, and yet she was shorter than him.

" Aree, my role play?", She suddenly remembered she wanted to take his viva by acting as a teacher, and then herself realized that she turned into a judge midway, before forgetting everything and resuming to be her own mad self.

The changes in her expressions throughout she she realized were so lovely, that Manik was bowled over. He felt so lucky to have someone this playfully innocent with him, who lit up his life like stars in the dark. She was actually like his shining star, the one who was made just for him, to fill the empty places in his heart and make his being alive a blissful experience.

His chain of thoughts was broken by a mad version of Nandini slapping her forehead, cursing herself for ruining all the fun. He stopped her, and release her hair from the scrunchie, before tucking them behind her ears. Then he removed the gigantic spectacles, and the eyebrow pencil from her hand, and all this while she sat lost in him.

" So, what exactly went wrong to make you angry?", he asked, his hand still cupping her left cheek.

"You hide things from me", she complained, her eyes filling up. She harshly wiped them though, couldn't understand why was she getting teary eyed instead of being angry. Manik didn't speak, just looked at her to let her explain.

" You never told me you paint", and the cat was out of the bag.

Manik was completely taken aback. Of all the things he was expecting, this definitely wasn't even in the bottom of the list.

" I thought you knew", he stammered, not knowing what else to say.

" How would I know?", She spat back, finally angry enough to push his hand away, but then immediately regretted it.

" Nandini, you are always staring at some painting or the other, I thought you know. Also, we never discussed it", he tried to calm her down, not having an excuse.

When she kept on staring at him with angry eyes, he sighed before holding her hand and dragging her to the first painting he could. There, in the wraps of colours was a small 'M', elegantly written, in the lowermost corner.

Now, it was Nandini's turn to faceplam because though she analysed so much, she failed to notice this common pattern in all his works. Watching her embarrassed face made him laugh out loud, and she hit him in the chest, to not do that.

" You know you are super cute", he laughed, and she made a proud face.

" Yes, have been told before!", Her answer only made him laugh more.

"How did you know suddenly by the way?", He then asked her, as they travelled through the study, hand in hand, watching all the paintings again.

" Oh that! There is this incomplete painting kept at that corner na...", She shrugged, and he understood what she was saying.

An idea hit his brain, as he took her to that painting, removing the cover over it. She was mesmerized even at that incomplete peice of work.

" By far, this one is the most sparkling one. All bright colours", she jumped in joy at its sight.

" Because the inspiration for this is you", seven words could make her blush that bad, she had never known that before. The smile didn't want to leave her, her face was glowing like never before receiving this one sentence from him, and on the other hand, Manik was the happiest to make her happy.

He had not realized, but over the course of these past three months, his world had started revolving around only her. All he needed to live and love, was Nandini.

" Wanna paint?", Manik was giving her bouncers on bouncers and Nandini didn't know how to react. She could not even nod and Manik was already setting up and empty canvas, and the colour palate.

She had painted before, but very naive and basic ones. She wasn't well equipped with it. Nandini looked up to him, and he came to stand at her back, holding her right hand in his, helping her draw the first stroke. She felt so comfortable in his hold, like she was made to be here.

Together they drew several strokes, before she got confident enough to be on her own, and both started painting on the same canvas, at times running the brush over each other's hands accidentally. Later, it became intentional, and the colours started to be more on their cheeks and clothes, than the canvas. They giggled so much that their stomach we're hurting, both nobody was ready to stop.

Once done, they stopped to take a good look at the canvas. No one could tell, what it was, or what it resembled, but they both knew this one was going to be their best one ever.

She was still admiring her peice of art work, when she felt his arms around her waist, and in the next nanosecond, she was in his embrace, melting within his hold.

She rested her head on his chest, letting him hold her as she supported all her weight on him. Manik picked her up, bridal style, and walked over to the bedroom, putting her on the bed. Before she could get conscious, he lay down beside her, and turned to hide his face in the hollow of her neck.

"Just for a few minutes", he mumbled, but Nandini was more than happy to let him be. She started to knead his hairs, holding him close, letting him be comfortable with her. It was not everyday that he initiated this intimacy that she loved so much.

" Some days I wonder what I did to deserve you", he whispered in her ears, and it tickled her, making her giggle.

" Exactly what I Did to have you", she answered, making him chuckle.

The sound of their empty stomachs broke their special moment, making them giggle like teenagers. Before she could give an excuse or be embarrassed about it, he put her hand on her mouth.

" I ordered already", he informed her, and in the same instant, the door bell rang.

Both had their favorite chinese, with one ice cream tub each, talking and joking about the evening. Both were basking in this subtle level of comfort and this bubble of joy, content in the moment.

Nobody knows what is stored in the future, but everyone can enjoy the present, can't they?

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Note: So, did you guys have fun? :-)

Also, the next twists and turns are going to be a little heavy, so stay prepared.

And yes, no more updates until 21st February. Will resume after that. Please comment about how was the chapter rather than 'update soon', because I can't update now.

Have an amazing time, and miss me!