~ And in the end, we are all humans, drunk on the idea that love, and only love can heal our brokenness!
-F. Scott~

The field was really vast, and it was all fenced around, with beautiful trees around the circumference. Each one of those had beautiful and colourful flowers blossoming in clusters, a few scattered on the ground too. Nandini found herself running to collect them, giggling all the while, aware of the eyes following her every move. When she thought she had collected enough, she turned around and smiled, her eyes shining with joy as she walked with her tiny feet, wobbling half the way, straight into a pair of waiting arms.

"I will weave you a garland Appa", her toothy smile made her father dearest laugh, and he picked her up to twirl her around and all Nandini could hear were the echoes of her own, bubbling laughter.

The sudden, unexpected thunderstorm scared Nandini and she turned around to find the flower blossoms gone, and only dark clouds around, the beginning of the drizzle petrifying her. The water drops on her extended palm also brought the realization how she wasn't little any more, she was all grown up. She frantically looked all around, her eyes searching for her father but even after calling his name out loud several times, she could not hear a reply, nor could she locate him.

Tears began to roll down her cheeks, but before she could break down into full fledged sobs, she found two frail hands wiping her tears and she jerked her face up to find her Appa standing with a smile, shaking his head at her, rebuking her for crying when she knew he hated her tears. Nandini smiled back too, but when she took a step towards him, wanting to hug him, he Disappeared, like he was never there.

Nandini sat up with a jerk, sweat beads glistening on her forehead, and all over her neck and chest. Her cotton kurta had been soaked despite the AC. She breathed hard for a few minutes, taking in her surroundings and letting herself believe it was just a nightmare, nothing else.

Just a nightmare!

She turned her head and watched Manik sleep by her side for some prolonged minutes. He was sleeping on his stomach, his hands making a mesh over the pillow on which he was resting his head, tilted to a side. His breathing was soft, and regular. She found herself relaxing as she concentrated on his breathing instead. With a shake of her head, she leaned down and kissed her husband's head, before moving out of the bed.

Throwing multiple rounds of cold water on her face, Nandini took a deep breath and looked into the mirror.

"It was just a nightmare Nandini, it's okay. Appa is okay, okay?", she talked to herself, wanting the particular dream to be wiped out of her memories. Outside, in her room, the wall clock read 4 am. Nandini's eyes stopped at her sleeping Manik's face for a moment again, before wavering over to the window bed. With slow steps, she walked over and sat down, her eyes taking in the blue sky and the thousands of stars twinkling across.

She then found herself walking back in her memory lane, to the night she had found Manik sitting here, watching the sky for the first time. That was their first proper conversation, the first time he  had shared something with her, and she had felt like she was still his friend. The first time she had realised that Manik was very different and yet, he was something she could grow used to and never get bored of. His words from that night came running back to her, and she found herself grinning. Trust Manik to relive her deepest worried without doing anything.

"I like watching the stars disappearing into nothingness, with the rising sunrays. Its like, just a few moments ago, it was their teritory, the sky, and now, with just the air of sunrays, they are gone! It makes me believe nothing is going to last, no matter how beautiful it is, but that also doesn't mean what comes after is any less pretty!"

Nandini found herself smiling subtly as she thought about her life, in a trance. She remembered her seven year old self standing with eyes full of tears, holding her father's hand and questioning about why her mother didn't live with them like her friends? Why had her mother chosen to live with Aiyappa instead? That night, when her Appa had held her close while she had wept the loss of her mother, understanding the concept of death for the first time, life had seemed like a burden to her. She hadn't known if she would ever come out of the guilt that her birth took away her Amma, but eventually, with time, she had. She had learnt to fight those tears, and celebrate her mother's memories around their home, and bug her father to tell her more about her Amma until the point it began to feel like she wasn't gone, she was there with them, which in a way was true. She was there, with both of them, in their hearts.

Nandini exhaled, and rested her cheek over the closed window glass, still looking at the stars. She thought about the day she had seen Manik for the first time.

In a white formal shirt and black jeans, he had caught her immediate attention when she had seen him sitting in front of her father, holding a black file. He looked intimidated, and quiet, fumbling with his answers initially but once the questions had drifted to the case, and law, she had seen a spark of visible confidence in him, his eyes ablaze with a passion she found in her writing. That image of him, had stayed with her, and that was the very reason she had befriended him during those days when he would come over to her house to prepare under her Appa.

She remembered all of that like it was yesterday - the proposal, her Bua's taunts, her rejection, her college assignments and her busy life, ultimately pushing even his friendship away. As soon as he had felt that distance, and learnt about her Bua and her taunts, he had taken his steps back and began avoiding her too. And then, his parents loss had been the last nail in the coffin.

Today, Nandini regretted those actions. She wished she would have been with him, even if as a friend in those days. She even thought about if they had actually fallen for each other all those years ago- technically, he had, she hadn't. And yet, she could not deny the beautiful present she was living. Manik was right - what came after wasn't less pretty.

She didn't realise when sleep took over her and she fell asleep in the same position, her head resting on the window, her arms crossed around her chest, and a soft smile on her lips, which was inevitabe, after all the last thought that had crossed her mind before sleep took over was Manik.

Nandini woke up, sometime later to find herself tucked in bed, cocconed in Manik's arms. His hand was draped over her, his face in her hair and his lips touching her bare neck- it was giving her goosebumps. She tilted her head and saw it was still 6:30 in the morning. She ywaned, and scooted more closer to him, hiding herself in his chest this time. The movement broke Manik's sleep and he pulled her closer, kissing her head with sleep laden eyes and then softly patted her head until they were both asleep again.

Two hours later, when Nandini finally rolled to her side and struggled to open her eyes, she realised sun rays were already in, the window was opened and her husband wasn't in bed anymore. Sitting up, she tied all her hair in a loose bun. Still sleepy, she yawned again before moving out of the bed, stretching her arms to fight the laziness.

Freshly out of a shower, she wore a pink kurta set, and let her wet tresses fall down her shoulders. She didn't have the morning lectures, which meant she had enough time to air dry them. Done with her moisturizer and kohl, she walked out of her room, wanting to lay eyes on her husband who she eventually found in the kitchen, tossing a dossa in the pan. The fact that he was shirtless, wearing only his formal trousers, his hair still wet from his shower, made Nandini grin. She went ahead and hugged him from back, resting her cheek against his back, startling him.

He grinned back, raising a hand to hold her hand wrapped around him, and bent slightly to kiss it. Plating the breakfast, he turned around and held Nandini by her shoulders, looking at her. Even though she was smiling, he could see the worry creeping in her eyes.

"How many times I have to tell you to not work yourself up so much Nandini?", his fingers slightly traced a pattern on her cheek while she shrugged, not bothering to answer.

"For all your boldness and mischief, you actually act like Akshara Bahu sometimes!", he giggled, wanting to tease her and he knew it worked, when she glared at him, pouting. He was quick to lean and kiss her pout, surprising her this time, but before he could pull back, Nandini cupped his neck, and pulled him closer, kissing him square on his lips.

Breaking the kiss, Manik looked at her with so much love, that Nandini found tears gathering in her eyes. Shaking his head, he pulled her with him to the dining table, and sat beside her, tearing a bite of the dossa to feed her. It wasn't rocket science for Nandini to understand that he knew how disturbed she was without her telling him directly. He knew well south Indian cuisine was her comfort food.

"Chahe sukh ho, chahe dukh ho,
Dil ne tujhko hi pukara.
Tune humko hai banaya, tune humko hai sawara,
Jahan ko toh rab ka hai, hume tera hai sahara
Bus tera saath ho, chahe jo baat ho
Tere kahne se kar jayenge"

" We will go meet Appa now only okay, I know you won't breathe normal until you know the matter", Manik spoke after sometime, and Nandini had never been more grateful. She wasn't scared to go alone, but she also didn't know what to expect. She had given it a lot of thought but she could not guess any reason for her father's reluctant behaviour.

An hour later, they were both outside Murthy residence. Nandini stopped for a second and looked at Manik, who gestured her to go ahead, squeezing her hand. Nandini exhaled loudly and finally they both rang the bell.

Asha opened the door and her eyes widened to see Nandini unannounced. Both read the mild panic in her eyes, real clearly, but it was also accompanied by relief. She didn't speak anything, just moved aside making space for them to enter. Nandini hugged Asha Tai and walked inside, not even bothering to wait for Manik, but when she pushed open the door to her father's bedroom, she was shocked to see him setting a bagpack, few files scattered around his bed and his lawyer's cape kept on one side, all pressed and neat.

"Appa?", Nandini's gasp was met by Nilesh Murthy's surprised eyes, who was frozen on spot to find Nandini standing on the door, with Manik behind her, looking at him with scrutinizing eyes.

"Nandu?", Nilesh forced a hesitant smile, walking forward to hug Nandini but was stopped short by her question.

"Where do you think you are going?", Nandini's voice was stern, but both the men could read the underlying panic in her voice.

Nilesh's eyes met Asha's who was standing behind Nandini, with Manik and the old lady gestured him to speak. It was anyway, time.

"Old age home".

P.s: Last three chapters to Go! 🌸