Do opposites really attract?

Chapter 39 - They know about us.

After a long exhausting day, I returned to my room and took a well deserved bath with a glass of my favourite wine. It was such an overwhelming day and this was much needed. I didn't prepare myself to meet Naina, I guess there are some things in life you simply cannot prepare for. She's a nice girl, I can see why Manik was once in love with her. I say once because now I know he's in love with me. I have no reason to be jealous of her, but for some reason I am. There's a little part inside me that feels insecure and worried about Manik being around Naina. What if his feelings come back for her? What if her feelings come back for Manik? These are all ifs and I need to focus on the is's. Manik is my boyfriend, he is with me. He is madly in love with me. He is the guy I love so much. He is the one I trust. I need to stop letting these ifs consume my mind.

I was lost in my thoughts when I heard a knock. It couldn't be Manik, he would come through the adjoined door. I fastened my robe tighter, put on my slippers and peeped through the whole. My face lit up when I saw the friendly face and I immediately opened the door and jumped onto the figure and engulfed them in a hug.

"Aray careful! You'll squeeze my baby!" Anushka screamed.

"Sorry sorry sorry, I completely forgot. I was just really excited to see you. That hug was so needed. It's been an overwhelming day."

"I know! That's why I'm here and I bring this joy in a bottle." She said as she held up a bottle of alcohol.

"Definitely need this! Come in, I'll fill both of us a glass." I said excitedly.

"Yes please!" She replied as she took a seat on the sofa.

I filled a glass of the bubbly for both of us and threw myself on the sofa. Anushka took a sip of her drink and a thought immediately occurred to me.

"Shit! You can't drink that. Omg I'm supposed to be a doctor and I let you drink alcohol. What is wrong with me?" I said in shock.

"Nandini, calm down. I am aware you can't have alcohol when you're pregnant. This is an alcohol free mocktail." Anushka said calmly.

"Really?"

"Yeah, check! If I can't drink, I'm not going to let you drink either. You need to support me!" Anushka said with a smirk.

"Of course. To be honest, I don't even like alcohol but every now and then when I feel upset and overwhelmed, I drink a glass or two. It makes me feel better. Recently, I have been feeling that way a lot." I said as I took a sip of the sparkling drink.

"Ah yes, that's why I'm here. Hardik told me about your interaction with Naina earlier."

"Word gets around real quick here!" I said with a nervous giggle.

"Of course! Nothing can be kept from me but on a serious note, how are you holding up? It's never fun to meet the ex."

"Honestly, I feel crap. When I ran to the field to help Manik, she was there. She was helping him and giving him all this healing advice. That's what I do! Then he called her Doc, that's our thing! He calls me Doc! Why would he call her that? Or was that their thing which he just started to use with me? Now I'm just overthinking things." I ran my hands through my fair frustratedly.

"You are overthinking. Manik loves you, he cares about you. Being a doctor, it was her duty to help. Manik shouldn't have called her Doc but maybe it was just a slip of tongue. Also, I can assure you that Doc was not a nickname he ever used for her. They used to call each other the cringiest nicknames like honey pie, shona babu, and Raj and Simran." Anushka said with a cringe look.

"Oh my God, DDLJ references? No way!" I said in disbelief.

"I know right! Raj and Simran is exclusively reserved for SRK and Kajol."