Chapter 46

The next week Nandani plunged into the website, retrieving all her sketches, quotes, and notes before calling up the developers. Some guy named Tony who was probably her age pulled up his files as she sat on the other end of the line.

"So can we do this extent of work on the budget in six weeks?" Nandani asked him.

Tony paused again and when he spoke, she heard mild confusion in his tone. "I think so. Listen we are not in the business of ripping ourselves out, but it looks pretty good to me. Remind me what you are looking to change?" he asked Nandani.

She popped open a window and put in their web address, something she had not done since they bought the domain name last fall. Instead of a blank page staring back at her, she found something else entirely.

"Dream Girl" was written across the screen in black script, along with an edgy graphic done for the menu across the top.

Her head was suddenly spinning. "Uh, Tony, I will call you back," Nandani said, clicking off distractedly.

It was not a blank page. It was a website. Their website, in fact. The one she had outlined in the business plan. How the hell had this happened?

"Mukti!" She called out loudly over her shoulder. Nandani heard her footsteps on the floor rather than saw her enter, as she was utterly captivated by what was on her screen.

Mukti peered over her shoulder and gaped. "This is freaking amazing! Did you do this?" she asked her.

Nandani shook her head confusingly. "You didn't?"

"Hell no," Mukti replied.

Nandani's fingers continued to click through the navigation, page after page shining out at her from the glossy screen. The 'About' section said they were based out of New York and San Francisco. There was a strip of pictures of her and Mukti, running diagonally down the page, but the way it was styled and matched with the web page made it look chic. Mukti and Nandani had taken those pictures last year while they had gone to the mall, and Mukti had the copies.

It could not be Crystal.

Realization dawned on Mukti's face as she took in the photos, her mind clearly working through the same logic. "These photos were on my bulletin board at home. The only people who could have seen them were my parents, and they would not know what to do with a website if it hit them in the face.

"Or..."

Manik. Their minds landed on it at the same time.

What? Nandani could not believe it. He had made her- them a website? She guessed he had gone through her notes often enough when they had been hanging out, to know what they had planned. Come to think of it, he might have even offered suggestions on a few points. But more importantly, why? And when?

Chunks of the website text were still unfinished, as would be expected. But most of the heavy lifting to set up the theme and navigation had been done and done beautifully.

Nandani did not want to think about how much it had cost him. But she knew that as much as the site was helpful it was also symbolic. He wanted her to know that he supported her. Supported them.

She scrolled all the way to the bottom, where the developer's name resided in tiny print. Next to it was a message: Merry Christmas, Nandani.

If she had not already been sitting, she probably would have collapsed as the energy whooshed out of her. He had done this more than three months ago. And had not told her.

Mukti's eyes widened. "Oh Lord," she said, dropping ungracefully into a chair. "He can be a bossy asshole sometimes, but you have got to admit this is a pretty epic gift." Seeing her friend so quiet, Mukti said, "Nandani, are you okay?" And then grabbed the arms of Nandani's chair and swiveled her away from the computer screen to face her.

Nandani was all ready to insist that it had just been a long week, that this had been unexpected, and she was simply overwhelmed. To her horror, tears began welling up behind her eyes. Spilled over onto her cheeks.

Mukti's eyes widened and her voice softened as she moved closer. "Hey! Nandani, talk to me."

"I do not even know..." Nandani said through sniffles.

"It is okay, I will wait." Mukti paused, being quiet for a long moment. Possibly the longest Nandani had ever seen her silent, but she was not in the mood to remark on that. "Is this about the website or Manik?" Mukti asked.

Nandani looked at her and the tears started spilling over her face again, the second time this year. Mukti's face blurred but she heard her sigh.

When Mukti spoke, the words were clear. "I know I probably have not been the easiest to talk to about this. But I kind of figured there was something bigger going on when you showed me that site." She paused like she was trying to collect her own thoughts. "If you do want to talk, I promise I will listen, and I won't judge," Mukti told her.

Mukti was trying hard to be open. and knowing her, she was not going to let this go until Nandani started talking, and that too from the beginning.

Nandani told Mukti about the party. About running into Manik, how he had come upstairs to check on her. Nandani avoided some of the details that related to her family, and also Manik's secrets that he had shared with her. Because those secrets were not hers to tell.

When Nandani got to the end, Mukti sat quietly for a moment. "I did not know you guys have gotten so close."

"It is stupid, I know. I never saw it coming and was not looking for it. But he was just there and I guess I expected to be able to brush him off. He completely snuck up on me, Mukti. At the worst possible time, when I did not want anything or anyone," Nandani said.

"Does he stop you on your bullshit?" Mukti asked wryly.

Nandani thought back to the numerous times they had argued about things. "Oh yeah," she replied.

"And does he make you smile?" Mukti asked.

"More than anything," Nandani replied.

"And do you love him?" Mukti asked.

Even though Nandani had asked herself the same thing a million times, she took in a deep breath before answering. It burst out a second later. "I think, I do."

"Well, then, that is all there is to it. You know, Nandani, for all your time with Aryaman, I never thought he was it for you," Mukti said.

Nandani was struggling to keep up with her. "Why not?" she asked.

"You guys were good together, but you never fought. You never pushed each other. You never seemed that serious about each other. And even when you broke up, I never saw you as upset as I did this year since you and Manik fell out," Mukti told her. She thought for a moment. "For all the shit Manik's pulled over the years, he usually comes through when it counts. Though the whole 'wooing on the website' is a new one for me."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. "It cannot be that simple, can it? Feeling this way makes the rest of the problems disappear?" Nandani asked Mukti.

"It might not make the rest disappear, but maybe it makes it worth fighting for?" Mukti replied.

A/N: To be continued...