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Chapter 11 - Criminal & Gang
[Ahar's P. O. V.]
It took us two hours of waiting in the crowd until we actually went inside the Gurudwara.
I begged God to save my mother's health as well as help find Sanya.
Everyone chose a crowded area to settle down. I went outside to sit and relax. I had been receiving too many disapproving glares from Shravan's family. They certainly didn't like my presence.
My phone suddenly rang displaying, Laksh. I picked up, confused. My brother didn't pick up yesterday and never called me at nine in the morning. He should've been at school.
Did something happen?
"Laksh?"
"Ahu, meri jaan (my dear/life)." I froze at the tired voice. Only she called me "Ahu" and only she could say it so . . . motherly. "Are you okay?" Was it really her? I hadn't talked to her since last year, though recently I saw her on a hospital bed before she got shifted. "Hello?"
"Mumma, how are you?" I asked, trying to control my emotions.
It's been so long!
I grasped the railing near me and turned my head away from anyone who might see me. I couldn't believe this! Bhagwan ke ghar der hai andher nahi (There's a delay in god's house not darkness/All is fair in life even if there are slight delays).
"Healthy as a horse," she replied. Her fragile voice told me otherwise. "Someone said you were hurt and in the hospital--"
"It's nothing," I interjected. She was the one in the hospital fighting cancer for months and she was concerned for me? "I fell and sprained my ankle, but I'm all good. How is your treatment? Is it working? Are the doctors even doing anything except asking for money? I swear to God, if anyth--"
I heard a soft chuckle.
"If I die, there's nothing you can do," she said. I bit my lip hard, swallowing hard. Tears were welling up and I didn't want to break down. Not after I had tried to hold up so long. "It'd be nice to live to see my grandchildren, however."
"You aren't even allowed to see your children, Ma. Grandchildren are a far stretch," I said bitterly. It was true that those stupid doctors wouldn't allow us to see her except for the window in the hospital doors. "Wait, how'd you even get on the phone--"
I heard loud voices in the background.
"Laksh forgot it here, yesterday," Mumma replied. "Doctors are coming, so I have to leave. Love you. Come and see me soon, okay? With my damaad (son-in-law)."
"Son-in-law? Mum--"
The call ended.
I exhaled loudly, setting the phone on the ground. I hoped the doctors took care of her. She wasn't getting a son-in-law for a long time. I have to see her sometime soon.
I sat alone wondering how much more I was going to get tested. Wasn't being separated from my family enough torture? Did my mother need to be in a hospital?
Shravan soon came to tell me to start heading for Langar (food from communal kitchen). Everyone settled down in tight space. I was stuck between Preet and Shravan.
His family eyed me weirdly but said nothing.
"Shravan, on a scale of one to ten, how much is your family against me?" I inquired.
"Fifty," he replied.
Very assuring.
"Gasp! Shravan, don't you have any shame walking around with a stranger girl before marriage?" Preet said, flinging her cast-free arm out, dramatically, before retreating. "That's what everyone's thinking."
"Ahar's a friend," Shravan said.
I tried to hold back my smile. I didn't have to defend myself.
"Ek ladka aur ladki kabhi dost nahin ho sakte (A guy and a girl can never be friends)," Manan butted in. He sat on Shravan's other side. Shravan paid no heed to his cousin's comment. I knew he was still upset over the fake kidnapping ordeal.
"Hey, I thought we were friends, Manan," I said, offended.
"Maine kounsa mana kiya. Main toh sirf dialogue maar raha tha (I never said no. I was just throwing a dialogue)," he grinned, giving me a thumbs up.
"Har ek friend kamina hota hai (every friend is a rascal)," Preet quietly sang next to me, making me laugh.
We finished eating and headed back to the cars. Time to go back to Harayana and meet Anchal, today. He even sent me a text to bring Shravan along with me, today.
Manan dropped us off at the ice cream shop.
"I don't trust your boss," Shravan mumbled before we entered.
"All I ask is you trust me," I told him, half joking. "I still want that first wedding invitation."
He cracked a smile and nodded.
He really needed to frown less and smile more. Suits him much better.
"I know I'm good-looking, no need to stare," Shravan said, nudging me forward. I immediately frowned. I was not staring at him! "It's okay. I'm pretty used to it." He gave a sympathetic glance before walking past me to Anchal. What the hell?!
I sighed and hurried over.
I definitely wasn't staring at Shravan.
"Hey," Anchal said. There were no customers, so he instructed us to sit on one of the tables. Shravan eyed my boss skeptically. "I was also a part of your family's plan," confessed Anchal.
"I'm so shocked," I said flatly.
Even Shravan wasn't surprised. We knew no one was to be trusted.
"Where were you the real kidnapping night?" Shravan asked.
"With your sister--"
He did not just say that. My mouth formed an "o" shape and I raised my hands to my face to cover my astonishment. Shravan's hands clenched and he was ready to pounce on Anchal. I could see his face turning pale. The tension levels rose suddenly.
"What do you mean?" Shravan asked, leaning forward and enunciating each word.
"Nothing like that," my boss said. Even he realized his mistake. "Your sister needed me to look over a project of hers. I'm her English professor."
"That's what you wanted to tell us?" I asked.
I didn't want an argument erupting.
"No," Anchal said, shaking his head. "I know the fake kidnapping stuff sucked and I apologize for that. I did as I was told, thinking it was going to be harmless. Manan informed me Sanya and Arun actually got kidnapped and I can't even imagine what everyone's--"
"I don't need your sympathy," Shravan interrupted.
Always so polite, isn't he?
Anchal gave him a tight-lipped smile. "If you insist. Anyways, I wanted to help. Arun and I went to the same school and college until our field specialities separated. We're very good friends. I really think the kidnapping could be related to his court case." That got our attention. "It's still in progress and Arun's the prosecutor. He told me the day before the kidnapping that some men had begun to bother him. They cut the brakes of his car one time, punctured his tires another, and even beat him up once. They wanted him to drop the case."