LOVE+

Chapter 24- Not too Soon

Nyonika walked in with Nandini. "Yeh kya chal raha hai yaha" she asked Manik. "Mom I can explain" Manik said. Nandini sensed that her timing is wrong and silently moved away. "Nandini, don't go because even you should know" Manik stopped her. "Manik, why are you complicating? Let her go, aunty aisa kuch bhi nahi hai" Abhimanyu tried to cover up for Manik but he couldn't.

"Maa, Alya is injured and she needs a guardian here. As I have just signed for Abhi, I called you for being guardian for her" he said very confidently. "And you expect me to listen to you" she mocked at him. "Baat ye nahi ki Alya ne humare saath kya kiya, tho hum ne kya kiya uske saath? We ignored her, abandoned and" he tried to explain but Nyonika didn't listen.

"I adored her like my daughter and what did she do? She doesn't even like my presence around. She wanted to take you away from me when you are married to her" she said feeling bad. "Tho usme kya galat tha! Every girl wants her husband to be with her, even you wanted to be with dad when I moved to New York, Alya sirf mujhse ek cheez maangi thi that I should settle down in New York but I couldn't do that for her" he justified himself and Alya.

"Isliye wo tumse shaadi karne ke liye mana kiya na?" Nyonika is hurt and Nandini didn't understood what to say. "Usne bhi apni career ke baare mein socha, she thought that choosing her career is more important than marrying me and if that is wrong even Dr. Nandini the girl you selected did the same thing" he pointed towards Nandini.

"Shut up Manik, Alya and you were in love. She knew how you would support her and what does Nandini know about you? Why would she willingly chose you over her career! Tell me if you had ever loved Nandini and she left you like Alya did" Nyonika asked and Manik shook with her question.

He looked at Nandini and remembered their first kiss. The memory was too fresh for him that her scent still lingered on his apron. He saw hurt in her eyes. "Manik, tum solution dhoondne ki jagah problem aur bada rahe ho" he came back to world with Abhimanyu's words. "Manik" he interrupted Nyonika, "Mom please aap sign kijiye" he pleaded her.

Nyonika took Nandini out with her. "Aunty please calm down" she consoled her. "I never thought Manik mujhse aise baat karega" she felt bad. "Wo gusse mein tha shayad" she tried to make her feel better. "Thank you for making me feel better Nandini, this is why I always wanted to have a daughter, beti maa ki sunti hai" she said and took her bangles from her hands.

"Nandini, I wanted to gift these bangles to my daughter and now that I feel you are, take them" she offered her bangles to Nandini. "No aunty, I can't take them, how can I!" she hesitated but Nyonika insisted Nandini wearing them. Having no option she wore bangles for Nyonika.

"Hi ma'am, aapne mujhe bulaya?" Aryaman asked Dr. Mukti. "Yes Aryaman, last time you didn't attend an important case, but this time our trustee is so keen to have you as her doctor" Aryaman sighed hearing her. "Ma'am, she wasn't there when I went to her last time" he explained. "Let bygones be bygones and go back to your work" he left from her cabin. He met Cabir.

"Ye trustee logon ko bhi mujhse kya nafrat hai yaar, kyu mere peeche pade hai" he said to Cabir. "Congrats Aryaman, trustees know you, Are waah" he fake smiled. "Abhi bhi tu nahi gaya tho aur ek complaint bhi aayega" he warned and Aryaman went. He entered the ward to find it empty.

"Oh God! Please not again" he deeply sighed and turned back. He screamed loudly as he saw something horrifying. The duty staff just outside the ward came hearing him. "Doctor, what happened?" a ward boy asked him. "Just chill" someone replied. He looked at the source of the voice. "Tum!" he looked horrified.

"Hi handsome" she blew a flying kiss to him. "You here?" he asked after a pause. "Iss hospital ki trustee, Sanjana Varma" she declared and he remembered how she teased him. Nandini went to Manik while he was still talking to Abhimanyu. "Excuse me sir" she knocked on his door. "Hmm yeah!" Abhimanyu responded before Manik could. Manik didn't speak a word. "Sir, ye Nyonika aunty ki bangles hai, she gave them because she was a bit emotional" she returned to Manik. "When aunty gave you, why are you denying to take it Nandini?" Abhimanyu asked and Manik didn't take it. "I don't want to take something which isn't mine" she said and placed it on his desk when he didn't take it.

"At least gift tho tum le sakti ho na" Abhimanyu tried one last time. "Gift dene ki right aapko nahi hai, lene ki zarurat mujhe nahi" she placed it on Manik's table and left the place. "Mujhe surgery ke liye late ho raha hai" Manik said and left the place.

"Dr. Navya, is everything ready?" Manik asked Navya in the operation theater. "Yes sir" she answered. "Vibha, there's nothing to worry about this surgery. I'm there with you" he assured Vibha. "Where's Alya?" she asked him. "She is on duty" Manik said to divert her. "Can't she come for once, I want to see her before the surgery" she pouted. "Ab ye bachpana bandh karo, you're not going to die to see Alya before the surgery" he joked.

Navya gave an injection to Vibha to anaesthetise. Manik guided Navya to continue with surgery. Abhimanyu convinced Raman to talk to Ishitha about her disease. Raman made up his mind to talk to Ishitha only if Abhimanyu also goes with him. He agreed to his condition.

Raman and Abhimanyu went to Ishitha's place to meet her. "Abhimanyu, get in, feel free" Raman asked him. "Lagta hai ye aap hi ka ghar hai" Abhimanyu commented. Ishitha came there and is quite surprised to see them in her house. "Aap dono yaha?" she asked in confusion.

"Ishitha, please meri baat suno" Raman tried to explain but she didn't listen. She stormed into her room and he followed her. After a brief discussion Raman came out. "Ye kaun hai?" Abhimanyu saw a little girl asking about him. "He is Dr. Abhimanyu, he works with me" Raman explained to her. Abhimanyu had a lot of questions in his mind.

''Hi uncle, I'm Ruhi" she introduced herself. "Ruhi, hum kuch important baatein discuss kar rahe hai tum jaake khelo beta" he said to Ruhi kneeling down. "OK papa, main disturb nahi karungi" she left and Abhimanyu is hell confused and is eager to know about her.

"Sir, ye bachchi!" Raman understood him. "Dr. Ishitha ke daughter?" he asked inquisitively. "Hmm" Raman just nodded as he drank water and offered coffee to Abhimanyu. "But why is she calling you papa!" Abhi didn't wanted to sound desperate or awkward but he surely did.

"Kyunki wo meri bachchi bhi hai, Ruhi, Ishitha aur meri daughter hai" Raman said without hiding anything. "Does Mukti knew about it?" Abhimanyu asked worrying about Mukti. He knew how miserable Mukti is regarding her father's extra marital affair and having another daughter would come as a blow to her.

"No" Raman said plainly and this rose Abhimanyu on his feet. "Sir, how could you do this to Mukti? I mean she always craves for your love even she accuse you of having an affair but this is unimaginable" he said as he lost his temper.

"Ishitha meri wife hai, Ruhi hum dono ki bachchi and humara relation illegal ya Kuch extra marital affair nahi hai, we're legally wedded couple" Abhimanyu couldn't talk after Raman's outburst. "Shagun meri pehli biwi thi, she was always interested in modeling and she never wanted to become a pregnant, isliye hum bachchon ke liye surrogacy option ko approach kiya, Ishitha was the surrogate" Raman continued.

"Ishitha was an intern doctor then, she heard of us searching for a surrogate and she herself offered to become one when her finances were low. Shagun treated Ishitha like her own sister. After 9 months, Ishitha gave birth to Mukti and I was very happy to see my little da and I never saw something huge coming in our lives. Dheere dheere Shagun had become an alcohol addict, Ishitha took care of the baby but she couldn't stay at our place"

"Shagun ko laga main Ishitha ke liye uske ghar jaa raha hu when actually I cared only about the little Mukti who was with Ishitha. She accused us of having an affair so I got Mukti home when she was 3 years old. But still Shagun didn't change. Uske shaq hi uski kamzori ban gayi, her offers were almost dull and her insecurities killed her. She committed suicide one day due to depression and I was the one who didn't noticed her depression. I could offer medical help to get better but main gusse mein tha"

Raman said as he wiped off his tears remembering Shagun. "Later Ishitha ke parents ko ye baat pata chal gaya ki wo Mukti ki maa hai, I didn't wanted anyone to blame or accuse her. Maine usse shaadi kiya" Abhimanyu felt sorry for misunderstanding them. "Aap Mukti ko ye baat bata sakte hai na sir, at least she will feel happy that her mother is Dr. Ishitha"

"From the past few days I observed how much she missed her mom and on the contrary she hates Dr. Ishitha" Abhimanyu suggested.

"No" Ishitha came out all of a sudden who happened to listen their conversation.