Chapter 32

The emcee walked on stage with a mic. "Tonight we have two awards to give out. The judge's choice award and the people's choice award. Well, put your hands together friends, for the judge's choice award goes to the student designer, Archie."

Mukti knew the guy Archie but didn't hang out with him. The emcee then announced, "The people's choice award will be announced later once we have had a chance to tally the votes in the ballot boxes." There was excitement among students as to who would claim the other award. The emcee then gestured to them. "Now everyone, please give a big hand to all the student designers and welcome our Los Angeles showcase, the famous designer, Blake Evans."

Blake was showing a work collection. He had Nandani dress up in a swingy gray jacket and slouchy black pants, with high over-the-knee black boots. They changed her hair slightly. the makeup was redone in smoky earthy tones. She got to keep the glossy lips. Nandani loved it all. The clothes were a completely different style than Mukti's, but they were stunning and feminine.

After the walk, she carefully stepped out of Blake's designs and replaced them with a gold shift dress that though being glamorous but felt ordinary after all the amazing dresses she had worn that night. Blake had grabbed Nandani and kissed her on the cheek. He pressed a visiting card into her hand.

Still floating, as if on cloud nine, Nandani made her way up to the top deck to look for Mukti. Instead, she ran into Aryaman.

He looked down at her, his face so familiar though she had barely seen him in six months. It struck her that he was not as tall as Manik. "I did not expect to see you here," Nandani said.

"Emma told me about it. I wanted to support you guys." He leaned over to give her an awkward hug. It was actually kind of sweet. She made a mental note to murder Emma.

"We did pretty well, huh?" Now that the hurt had gone away, talking to him again was easier, Nandani thought.

"You did amazing. All of you," Aryaman said.

Nandani smiled and looked around. "Listen, Nandani. I did not have a chance to say it before, and I totally understand why you did not respond to my texts. But I am sorry about the way things ended. And I was hoping we could be friends. Would that be too weird?" he asked her.

Nandani sucked in a deep breath and thought about it. She was surprised, the hatred she had been harboring for so many months had mostly evaporated. They would probably never be close, but she did not want to avoid him anymore. "Sure, Aryaman. Friends."

His face split into a smile. "Great. So... we can grab a coffee or something else, sometime?" he asked her.

Nandani glanced over his shoulder and saw Mukti and Manik talking. She had not known whether he would be coming over. Mukti was excited, probably recounting her victory. Manik's gaze found her's, locked, before dragging back to Mukti.

"Yeah, okay," Nandani said absently, her attention far past him.

When Manik saw Aryaman talking to Nandani he hugged Mukti quickly and let her go off the other way while he made a beeline for them. Her eyes begged Manik to remember their rules. He pulled up between her and Aryaman, even though Nandani wanted him closer.

"All is well?" Manik said, looking between Nandani and Aryaman.

"Aryaman and I were just talking. Thanks for coming Aryaman. It was good to see you." And this time it really was. Her smile was genuine as he turned and walked away.

Manik turned to her without saying anything for a moment. The wheels were turning. "Should I be worried?" he asked finally.

"He was just being nice. I think he feels bad about how he left things." Nandani was though still a bit uncomfortable with Manik since their fight about the fashion show two days ago. They had not broken up, but they had not cleared the air either. She was not sure she could be with him if he did not believe in her. Even Aryaman who had zero stakes in this was doing a better job of pretending support at the moment.

"And what about how we left things?" Manik asked her.

Nandani sighed and looked around, unsure of what to say. But Manik saved her.

"Okay, let me start. I need to say two things. First, you were unbelievable." His eyes warmed, and she knew he did not just mean the dress and the hair and the makeup.

"Thank you, Manik."

"And second..." he trailed off for a moment before starting again. "I did not come here to fight. I wanted to see you. But can I ask you something and not have you take it the wrong way?" She looked at him cautiously. Waited.

"Why does this matter so much to you?" He gestured all around them. "Why do you want to make this your life? It does not strike me like you. It is just a bunch of pretty clothes on pretty girls. It is not real. You are so much more than this, Nandani."

She tried to quell the rising emotion and instead channel it into an explanation. He did mean well. "It matters because me and Mukti, together, we are creating something beautiful for people. Something they can wear on the first day of school, or a date with their boyfriend, or while going out with friends. Something to live their lives in, work in, play in. And no matter where they go, they are going to feel special. They deserve to." She could tell Manik was trying to understand. "I may not be the artistic genius Mukti is, but it means something to me. It is a feeling that we can share with girls everywhere."

Nandani could sense it might be hard for Manik to grasp. He looked at her with those intense brown eyes.

"But fashion does not seem like a real industry," he said.

"It is a pretty real industry. Just because we don't build things out of concrete does not mean it is not real." She pulled the card from her clutch. "This guy just offered me five thousand dollars to model for him" Manik's brows furrowed. "And before you say anything, he is legit," Nandani smiled.

Manik's eyes widened a little. "I guess so. What did you say to him?"

"It was tempting, but I said I was pretty busy getting Mukti's and my line up and running. I asked Blake Evans if I could look him up to get some feedback, and that maybe I would take him up on his offer once we get the 'Dream Girl' label rolling."

Manik was pondering on this, and it looked like he gave in. His face softened into a smile that was just for her. Manik glanced around casually before leaning over so his mouth brushed her ear, just once. His dark hair grazed her cheek. "You look like a fantasy tonight," he murmured. Nandani shivered and he pulled back to look into her eyes. "Can I take you home?" he asked.

She wanted to. So badly. "I would like that. But tonight is about me and Mukti."

Manik's face fell a little. "Are we okay?"

"We are good." Nandani reached out and took his hand in the darkness. She squeezed it.

He nodded like he understood, or at least was trying to. "Okay well, you guys have a good night. Don't get into too much trouble," Manik said and retreated to the background.

An hour later the people's choice award was announced, and that it was the student designer Mukti who had won the award. Mukti and Nandani were jumping up and down because they were so excited. It also turned out the award also came with a one thousand dollar cash prize, which Mukti and Nandani split between them, with both deciding to put the money toward their trip to New York this winter.

Nandani texted Manik to tell him.

Congrats, Nandani. And so it begins...

She smiled at his reply.

Goodnight Manik. I am glad you came.

Goodnight Nandani. I am glad I came too.

The rest of the night was a blur, but a happy one. They celebrated by drinking way too much champagne and fell into bed in the early hours of the morning.