Time - Out

Arjun didn't even wait to listen to what Manya's secretary had to say before he disconnected the call and ran, leaving everything behind. He had had enough of this drama and the game of hide and seek, which he had been thrust into without anyone seeking his consent or issuing him a warning. He had to find out who was behind all this, and he needed Manya by his side for that. First and foremost, he need to make everything clear between them and now, he knew how exactly he could go about it.

His mind was running fast, but his legs had been working just as hard, having covered the distance that would take five minutes within two. As he reached the place where Manya lay, he quickly knelt by her as he unconsciously shrugged away the hands of both girls the who had been hovering over her. He half-barked, “What are you both doing here, neither of you even called the ambulance! Can't you see, she is bleeding so badly from her head?” He managed to hold her head and put pressure against the place the blood was gushing out from, commanding again, “Call the doctor as soon as you can! We have already missed too many crucial minutes!!”

He then bent his head slightly lower to get a clearer glimpse of her face, and whispered, “Don't worry Minnie , I won't let anything happen to you. Just like you have always protected me in our childhood, now it's my turn to do the same!” Saying this, he lifted her in his arms and he walked towards the secret chamber, announcing “I am heading to my personal room, and you know where you to have bring the doctor. But till the doctor arrives, somebody please bring the first aid box to my cabin.”

************************

Ishaan was in the parking lobby when Vendy had been calling him, busy talking to the person he suspected beyond the murder or suicide- he was not sure anymore.

*He didn't know anybody apart from them who would have a motive to kill Shekhar, because he knew he was the type of person who didn't like to offend people unless pushed to a corner. The only outlier was the kidnapping incident and even then, he knew the reason for it was not Manya, but Ishaan himself! He knew the motives behind it very well, but he had projected the circumstances in a way that would put Manya in a state where she was not safe alone, so that he could get more access to her and allow him to get closer to her. But anyway, it was not his headache about who was alive and who is not; the main motive for him was to win Manya over by any scenario. Each time he failed, it spurred him on further, as if she was the trophy for the race he was running against Arjun Chauhan. Until now, he might have been reluctant to let her go because he knew that he would not be able to find a girl like her, but now it was the question of his ego as well! And he couldn't lose her, not when it was Arjun Chauhan standing against him. *

After seeing Vendy's call on his waiting list for the second time, he got really annoyed. He remarked to himself, “How stupid can this girl be! How come she doesn't understand that the person she wants to marry is never going to, because he has zero interest in her. And why would he- of course he did not have 'Arena' in his name, but he sure does have the blood in his veins! And isn't it pretty much obvious by now, Vendy darling, that we Arena's don't like the people who chase us ! I mean, know your limits ... neither are you as beautiful as Manya, nor do you belong to a business family! So what do you even think about yourself!”

He was busy chastising an imaginary Vendy in his nager, when his phone rang for the third time. He looked at phone and said out loud, “This call better be important, or God only knows what will I do with you!” Issuing this warning with not a soul present to hear him, he picked the call and replied in a very annoyed tone, “Yes! What do you want now?”

A panicked voice replied, “Manya- Manya!”

“What Manya?! Speak fast, damn you!”

“Manya is unconscious, and she is bleeding from the side of her forehead.”

“What! And you are telling me this now, where are you? Tell me the location, I am coming there right now!”

Saying this, Ishaan also rushed towards the location Vendy had told him about. But by the time he reached there, he found that Arjun was already carrying Manya and walking towards his so-called secret room.

*This guy- it was like Satan had appointed him as his own personal devil to mess up everything in his life! He swore to God, if not for Manya, he would never act like a guilty person in front of him. After all , he was the one who was responsible for ruining everything he had planned. And it was because of him that she now remembered her past as well! All his hard work of keeping her away from her memories had gone in vain, just because of him. Before meeting with Arjun, he genuinely didn't understand when people remarked that jealousy could make a person go insane with rage!*

He clenched his fists and headed towards Vendy, knowing that he couldn't take out his anger on anyone present there, apart from her. Grilling her with his smoldering glare he spoke “You know very clearly that here you only have one job, right? Or do you still have any doubts regarding it?”

Vendy gulped , she knew what was coming for her next. But she gathered the shreds of courage, she still have something in her defense. Unable to look at him directly, she spoke in a tone that was meant to be accusing, but came out hesitant instead. “I did call you two times earlier, but you didn't respond!”

“You should have texted me instead, I'm sure you know exactly how much you annoy me and do it on purpose! I am tolerating you just because of Manya, otherwise I would have ordered Vihaan to get rid of you much earlier!”

*Vihaan! The name pierced her heart like an arrow- he was the love of her life, whom she needed to get away from Ishaan as soon as she could. She still remembered the day she had met him for the first time- it had been during the auditions for the lead model of ARENA's. She had gone there only because Manya had insisted on it, otherwise she would not have applied for that audition at all, because she was well acquainted with Ishaan's behaviour. Sometimes she still got amazed by how adept this person was at hiding his emotions in front of her, and acting like the most innocent person in the world. Engrossed in her thoughts, she had been walking in the direction where the auditions were supposed to take place, and failed to notice Manya's message about the change in plans. She had ended up in a dark room, full of huge. She had collided with a stack of boxes and would have definitely gotten hurt due to the box of scissors being toppled over. But in the meantime, Vihaan had saved her by pushing her away and shielding her with his own back, causing him to get injured on his left shoulder instead.*

A tear dropped from Vendy's eye as she realized that the mark was still prevalent, and yet she didn't recognize the cruel demon that caring person had somehow turned into.

She let out a heavy sigh as she wiped away her tear, it was not the time to perform a behavioral analysis. *She knew that she was deep into this love now, and would not be able to get out of that trap; or perhaps, she didn't want to. She was not sure which of those were true, but she was sure of one thing- she loved both Manya and Vihaan! And now, she was stuck in the middle a situation where one of them was bound to get hurt!*

*Ishaan was waiting for her reply, as he knew that she treated Manya like her younger sister. He was also well aware that without mentioning Vihaan, she wouldn't be giving away the information he wanted to get, it was like she clammed up further whenever he showed an interest in knowing anything. And he knew the reason as well- the wretched girl had already managed to find out from somewhere that he had been giving Manya the medication that was prohibiting her from remembering her past.*

But when she hadn't said a word even after a few minutes, he snapped. “Are you going to brief me about the situation, or are you going to stay silent like a log of wood? I have many important businesses to tend to; so spill fast! I am waiting.”

Vendy's attention was brought back to reality as she replied curtly, “I really don't know, Ishaan. When I came to find her, she was already unconscious.”

“You are totally useless!“ Ishaan spat out, looking at her with disgust and then turned away immediately, trying to find Arjun and Manya .

************************

Arjun was looking at Manya with the same longing in his eyes, as if his most precious wish had been granted, and yet, it was placed on a mantle too high for a toddler to reach. Just like a little kid whining to for moon was shown the moon by his mother, but even having it in front of his eyes, he couldn't touch it.

He sat still like a marble statue after he was done giving her first aid; fearing that if he dared to touch her face, he might accidentally pollute her beautiful face dirty. Or worse, he might end up disturbing her sleep, or causing her pain. She had already gained consciousness once, during the first aid and he had made her fall asleep after giving her the analgesic. He was now waiting for the doctor to arrive, while roaming through the lane of the beautiful memories they shared.

*He couldn't exactly pinpoint when he had started to feel differently towards her, or even remembered when those feelings had encountered him. But one thing he was sure of, that he had had those feelings for a very long time now, and they would always be there, no matter what happened from here. The realization was met with a chuckle as he suddenly uncovered a very funny, pleasant and painful memory from their school-time. He had been trying to show-off, by performing stunts in front their classmates during recess. He had continued to do so, even after she had clearly objected, but he was thriving on their validation. It was the first and last time he had ever disobeyed her, and God had punished him so hard. He laughed at himself once again as the image became clear in his mind, of how he had been trying to do a somersault on the table, and had not been able to stick the landing. He had gotten hurt, and everybody, apart from her, had left the scene in a panic. She had managed to stem the flow of blood using her handkerchief, and had shouted for help, without caring about getting scolded by anybody. Till the time he had gain total consciousness, she had done everything alone- she had never been afraid of blood, before the incident in the cave. It was moments like these when he felt like he knew her better than he knew himself, and in others, he wondered if the person in front of him was a stranger, just like he realized that he did not know what her reaction would be, after gaining consciousness.

He became worried for a moment, but in the next moment, he found himself in the lane of yet another memory. All of his memories with her were colourful - not only full of the spectrum of rainbow colours, but many more magical shades. They used to bicker about what they would become in the future, and she replied with surety 'top designer'! And the reason behind her wish, was that the world would dress in a way she wanted everybody to dress in! Everyone would be following the colour palette she would set for that season, claiming that she would be re-defining the definition of the colours and trends!He remembered how he always used to mock her fantasy in front of her, but had decided on the name 'ARMA' in his mind long ago. She always used to say that she wanted too many kids and couldn't kidnap somebody's child for that matter, so she would open a orphanage. There, she would take in all the kids who were deprived of love and affection, and she would provide it them. He would tease her once again, that it would be extremely difficult to manage that with a full-time career, and she would simply reply “No, dumbo! I would hire you then, to manage my kids of the orphanage, simple”- leading both of them to burst out into laughter.*

“Laughter” he repeated the word out loud, as he realized that that the thing which had made him fall for her even harder.

*He remembered everything from that day, every moment, clear as day. It was a summer afternoon, and they had been practicing for a drama to be performed on the school's annual day. She was dressed in a over-sized white T-shirt and shorts, and was reading through the script while directing everyone about their gestures. She was in the middle of her lengthy lecture about how they would have to carry their dresses, when a boy from junior department had replied with “Yes mumma” instead of “Yes ma'am”.Everyone had sat still, holding their breath because they did not know how she would react. But she, she laughed. She laughed really hard, saying “Aww, do I look like your mumma, kiddo?”

The boy had replied innocently, “No, but you are narrating like her only!”

“Really? Was I too strict?”

“No- nope ! You aren't strict, you were cute and sweet just like my mother,” he clarified.

The unexpected reply had made her jump from her seat; she had knelt down to come to eye- level of the kid , saying “Really? Take this kiddo, you know what, you just made my day.” She had brandished the blushing little boy with a peck on his cheek.

Arjun remembered how happy she had been at all the way back home. When they were barely a few metres away from the home, she had asked hesitantly, “Arjun, what do you think about me?”

“What?!” Arjun laughed after remembering how he had reacted in panic as he had genuinely thought that his secret was out.

“I mean, what type of mother will I be? Will my kid will also praise me, like the boy from junior KG was praising his mother?”

Arjun had been struggling to regulate his stream of thoughts, but before he could say a word, she had announced herself, “Let it be, Juno! I know it's not gonna happen, I won't be a good mother because I haven't learnt anything from my mother, then how I am supposed to be a good mother ? But let me tell you, I will be an awesome massi! I can bet on it.”*

The memories made Arjun smile again and he moved his hand towards her face, caressing her cheeks without even noticing what he was doing. He spoke in a whisper, as years later, he had finally found the right answer.

“You would be a great mother, Minnie. I wish I could have been able to say this on that day...but don't worry, I will let you know about this very soon. Just get well soon, and recover completely.” He was going to continue his monologue, when he heard Manya mumble, and placed his ears near her mouth.

“I need to tell him that I am in love with him...yes, I need to tell Arjun that I am in love with him...But before that, I need to tell him about Mausaji as well...I need to make everyone aware that he is alive.”

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A/N -Hello everyone! I hope you like the new chapter, and Manya and Arjun's lovely memories. Please do comment and let me know what you think. Sending my love to you all (◍•ᴗ•◍)❤