Aiyoo Ayyappa- MaNan FF

Chapter 28 SPACE OR..

"Manik..." Nandini whispered as she saw Manik walk out into the rain out of the shed. It was raining lightly and the droplets of water were dripping down Manik's wet hair onto his face. Manik didn't turn to look at Nandini but took fast steps towards where the bike was parked. 

"Manik please..." Nandini shouted as she started to take equally fast steps after Manik. Manik didn't turn to look behind eventhough he did hear Nandini calling out his name. 

"No...I cannot let her once again create an illusion in my mind. I have to close my eyes out of this sort of an illusion. I don't want to once again be cheated by darkness..defeated by illusions." Manik thought as he walked with faster steps. 

Nandini ran after Manik and rushed ahead of him and stood blocking him with both her hands spread out sideways. Manik paused his footsteps to a halt.

"Manik..please ek chance do.. to explain myself" Nandini pleaded with Manik. 

"Ek chance doon?? Then what was it I gave U, Nandini? U are asking for chance and I gave U 2 minutes to convince me. U have nothing more to say than what U said..am I not right, Nandini? Enough is enough! Chuck it!" Manik hissed looking away from Nandini. 

"I can't let it go...I can't let you go, Manik..I can't let this chance go..I can't let U go away like this..leaving things like this!" Nandini raised her voice in a pleading tone. 

"U can't let this chance go? What chance do U want? I think giving U a chance to meet me was a chance in itself. I don't think every girl gets this chance. I don't randomly meet girls, Nandini. I'm not a casanova! I gave you a chance, but U played with my feelings" Manik retorted looking angrily. Nandini wiped the droplets of water falling onto her face as she breathed heavily looking at Manik. 

"I was not playing with your feelings..trust me. I didn't want to hurt U, Manik. I was just scared.. I know..it's a chance. It's a wonderful chance, Manik..a chance to meet U. I agree..when I first picked up the call..I unknowingly gossipped about U to U. I am wrong..I realize it. I shouldn't have made assumptions about U...I was wrong...I confess" Nandini said moving one step closer to Manik. 

"But...Manik, at that time, I was speaking like any regular viewer of Fab 5 would do. I did not know U on a personal level, I did not know the real Manik Malhotra. What I saw..What I felt, I said to U! Do U think if I knew U were real Manik Malhotra, I would say all of that to U?" Nandini asked Manik with a questioning look on her face. 

"No..U wouldn't. U wouldn't dare to say such things in front of me. Because U know that I have a different side to me. Didn't U feel that the moment I started calling U back itself?" Manik retorted looking with intensity at Nandini. 

"Yes..I know..U scared me actually. U are very different. I thought U are the kind of guy..who was full of attitude, who was indifferent. I thought U are full of yourself..but Manik..that was a first impression of mine. Every person has such an impression about another person. We go by appearances and behavior at the first instance!" Nandini put forth a theory of hers. 

"Achcha? So U made an assumption from my appearance and my behavior that I'm full of myself? Like seriously! When did I act that way?" Manik asked with an expresson of disbelief. 

"U know..U didn't act that way. But I generally get this impression that guys who were sunglasses style maarte hai! TV serials pe sab dekhte ho na? U ran away from girls..and I felt that U were rude." 

"Haan TV pe, serials main tho log sunglasses lagaate hai...but hello?? That is coz we have to be a part of the glam-world. Do U think that makes us have only a life of glamour side? We have our families, friends, our own life, Nandini! We sit in our home..sip lemon juice, play games, watch tv shows, eat rajma ka chaaval..we have such a side too. We have feelings..emotions, we have a side to us which U don't get to see. So what if guys wear sunglasses on tv shows, does that mean they are full of themselves? It's just a way of showing style, making a new style statement...setting a new trend, Nandini! How can that decide the character of a person?" Manik argued back. 

"I..I know..all that are not basis of a person's character. But then...when we watch them..we feel that way and I felt that way and without knowing I spoke my impression about you to you" Nandini replied trying to justify herself. 

"Ok...so that was the first impression. Then tell me.. what after next phone call...what was your feeling about me? After U spoke to me about Amms, about Ayyappa...the way I spoke to U...what was your feeling about me? Did U feel I was full of myself? " Manik asked with a look of curiosity in his eyes. 

"After the next call...I felt that maybe U are not full of yourself like I thought. U know...that's why I wanted to say a sorry...that's why I cried coz I was hurting you with my words..." Nandini said with a look of guilt in her eyes. 

"U wanted a sorry...and I wanted it face to face. Now that U are face to face...ask me for forgiveness!" Manik demanded. 

"Sorry...can U forgive me?" Nandini asked with a pleading look in her eyes. 

"Sorry for what?" Manik asked. 

"Sorry for making opinions about you without knowing about you..can U forgive me?" Nandini asked in a pleading tone. 

"Ok...Nandini..what U wanted was a sorry...and I give it to U...because U dared to speak out why U spoke that way to me over phone and in your eyes I saw that U really are sorry for speaking that way about me. I give you forgiveness for that.." Manik said with a calmed expression on his face. 

Nandini couldn't believe her ears. "Finally I earned it...I earned the sorry that I had wanted to have all these days. Thanks Ayyappa!"

"Thanks..Manik...Thanks a lot!" Nandini said with a huge smile on her face. " U can't imagine how I am feeling right now. Thanks for forgiving me. Thanks for understanding me. So can we be friends?" 

"Tchh..No..." Manik replied cocking his head sideways as an evil look spread over Manik's eyes. 

"But why not??? U have already forgiven  me...so why can't we be friends?" Nandini asked with a confused look on her face. 

"I don't trust U, Nandini. I don't trust U enough to make U my friend and trust is the basis of a relationship. If U had met me as Nandini from the start..if U had stated your correct name innocently, we would've become friends. But now..we can't be friends!" Manik replied in an affirmative tone. 

"But..Manik..U can trust me now..U saw me..U met me..I confessed why I stated my name wrong...now I am the real Nandini in front of U..then why??" Nandini whispered looking perplexed. 

"U confessed...but I didn't forgive U yet for lying to me on your identity. I cannot forgive U on that, Nandini!" Manik replied folding his hands. 

"Please Manik..I will do anything to get your forgiveness??" Nandini pleaded moving a step towards Manik. 

"Anything??" Manik's expression suddenly changed with a look of interest in his eyes as his eyes gleamed with an evil aura. 

"Yes..anything U say..I will do..to make U forgive me...please Manik.." Nandini pleaded once again. 

"Ok...so since U are willing to do anything...I too want to see what U can do..to what level U can go to win my forgiveness!" Manik replied enjoying this new turn of events. 

"So...what do I have to do?" Nandini asked looking curiously at Manik. 

"I will tell U what U have to do..but not tonight. Tomorrow morning, U will get to know. Meet me" Manik replied with a little smirk on his face. 

"Tomorrow? Are we meeting tomorrow also?" Nandini asked her eyes enlarging with surprise. 

"Haan...why?? U can't?? Didn't U crave for my forgiveness, Nanduuu? 5 second main re-thinking?" Manik asked with an evil smirk. 

"No..I can't..I have to go to SPACE to attend classes. It's my first class!" Nandini replied softly. 

"Achcha?? So U really don't need forgiveness do U? Ok! Now I give U two options- (1) Go to SPACE and attend your 1st class (2) Meet me! and I'll give U a second chance. What do U choose, Nanduuu?" Manik asked waiting for an answer

"Ayyappa...first day in SPACE...Aiyooo should I bunk to meet Manik..if chacha-chachi comes to know..they'll inform Amms and if Amms comes to know..she'll be angry..what do I do??"