The Birlas' - BHAVANA

Chapter - 22: Aradhna and Neil (Part - A)

In the Designer Boutique:

"Neil! Mujhe tum se kuch baat karni hain. Abhi...Please..." Aradhna sounded too vulnerable for her request to be denied. 

Neil and Manjari shared a troubled look. Aradhna looked at Manjari with pleading eyes and was about to request but Manjari nodded in No. She could feel the urgency in Aradhna's tone and her shattered expressions worried her. 

For a few minutes at least, Manjari was only thinking of Aradhna and not Akshara. Aradhna's pain had her attention and Manjari didn't want to see her in pain any longer. 

After the trauma Akshara gave her, she has always been wary of any woman that came into their son's life. Abhimanyu had none but Neil had a few friends who were girls. She was actually troubled by Anahita initially until she discovered her story and sincerity.

Double checking and second guessing any woman's intentions that happens to be a part of her son's life became a second nature to Manjari. Although she was careful about never letting her inhibitions create a nuisance, she personally acknowledged it and tried to work around it without troubling anyone just for her sanity. 

She did try analyzing Aradhna after she realized Neil might have soft corner for her, but the way she handled Neil throughout the audition escapade of Roohi, almost buried her inhibitions. She embraced Aradhna just the way she would accept any of Neil's friends. 

Her son had a different set of friends every couple of years and then they vanished from his life like they never existed. She never understood how Neil managed to move on like that and one fine day confronted her son. She was shocked to know Neil's reasons and was left speechless.

Neil is someone who either trusted completely or he completely wouldn't. Even with his friends, he was like that. He never thought twice before being there for them, helping them, seeking help and showering them with care and protectiveness. But the moment he found something fishy, he would detach. 

This happened rarely because he gave his trust blindly and freely. Unless and until something goes too out of the line, he wouldn't even think of questioning. But when that did happen rarely, it would split up the group with Neil not succumbing to any pressure and not budging from his stance. 

Finding a mid-ground always became impossible after that. At the end of the day, how many would side with someone who is the potential reason behind splitting up their group? So, Neil never stayed back to even see if anyone wants to stick around with him. 

He didn't want to put them in a spot. Also, he had too much experience in moving on by then and that helped him move on to a new set of people whenever he genuinely got connected to them. It took a while, but he managed pretty well. 

Neil is someone who is fiercely protective of his loved ones. There were times in his early twenties when he stood up to Abhimanyu for suggesting against choosing that particular lot to be his friends. Neil revolted and made things so serious that Abhimanyu had to let him deal with his friendships and the aftermath on his own.