_____ April 4, 2018 _____

- niha -

What are we even going to tell him? He must love his Dad so much! It's been just them since 4 years! Looking at April go Mad, even I went mad in Avi's house when Meera Aunty told about Doc's Family. Looking at the tension growing, Mom bought us here. She hasn't spoken a word after seeing April's state. I'm damn sure, if April wasn't here, I would have an interrogation session. And, I deserve it this time!

April was sitting right in front of me on the bed while I was on my chair. She thinks a lot. It's been 10 hours since the missing and no one was more affected than her. She missed Hastha and Doc and even T! For the fact that she hated T, this was totally unexpected. She felt they're never going to come back again. She didn't care at all about what the media did, or what her Grandparents said. She just wanted them back, that's it! She still thought, all of this was her fault as she feel weak and went outside the room.

My chain of 'April Thoughts' were broken when April's phone rang from the living room. She doesn't even seem to listen. 

"Are you ready for, ready for.. The perfect storm, perfect storm.. 'Cause once you're mine, once you're mine.. There's no going back!..."

Even if it was just for like 10 seconds, that song hit me. Dark Horse. April always changed her ringtones and we called her on purpose at times just to hear her next new ringtone! Pretty Sick they all are. And, this one was perfect right now!

It was Jake. I picked up.

"We need you here in ten minutes girls. The police is here and they need all of us and our parents while they do the questioning. And guys, no matter what happens, don't tell a word about Infinity. Nick's orders. There's media here too!"

I told this to April and she went crazy again.. "Like what even? We are worried about three of our friends going missing and all they want is fresh news? Like, humanity is totally gone? What the f*ck even? Such assholes." She got up, took her side sling and walked to the door. I followed her.

"Mom! We have to go. The media and the police want us for the questioning. And after Swaroop Uncle's request they have kept it in Avi's house itself. We are fine now Mom, thanks for getting us here." 

"Thank you Aunty. You're the sweetest. This Niha here, is really lucky to have you." April smiled up. Looking at her, up so close, I just realized how very pretty her smiling face is.

And all Mom did was Nod and take the keys. "I'm taking you!"

In two minutes we were there. Gosh! There were so many people here. Way more than the number that was there when we left. All the new faces along with the old ones stared right at us as Me and April walked in and sat on one of the chairs kept side by side for the questioning. The boys were already there and let out a sigh when they saw us in the 'Anti- crying state'. We had determined to stay strong for this questioning!

"So.."

"Stop right there!" Nick said, getting up and handing the reporter who 'So'd us a paper. "You cannot Question us until you are sure that we are the ones because of whom Doctor, Hastha and T went missing. There is a case that we can file against you for this, you know that?" Woah!

"What?" Asked one of the other reporters.

"Oh yes! It hasn't even been 24 hours and you're already questioning us with all this set up? You should have known that there are minors here. So, we can actually file a case against you for emotional torture via media for irrelevant information just for your benefit of a spicy Headline! So, you better stop that question before you even finish it, Sir!" The added 'Sir' was Nick's way of talking.

"We have been waiting here since half an hour and you are telling this now? If you knew so much about the law that you have a paper showing it, you could have just shooed us off as soon as we came! Why all the drama and the waiting? You even called the girls!" said one of the young reporters. He probably didn't know much about the media business!

"Oh yeah! When you can create unwanted drama in the newspapers early in the morning without even us knowing about it, and that too, on the very first page, then why can't we? Now we're even. Tomorrow, you better post an apology news article saying that you immensely apologize for writing nonsense in the first page of today's newspaper. Else, even I know how to deal with your Newspaper. Get that?" Wow Nick, you're Amazing!

And guess what? After April initialized, we all started giggling. She actually smiled for this. Way to go Nick! He sure does know how to put on a show. He knew this will be a change in mood, that's why he told Jake to call us!

"Now, get out of my house!" Nick's Dad spoke up. "I was quite, not speaking a word to you, thinking they are guilty! Hell no, I am! And you better do as my Son said, else you know what I can do, though my 21 year old is enough for you right now!" It feels so good when parents understand and stand by you. Swaroop Uncle obviously wanted to ask us many Questions, but in front of the media he just acted like he's totally with us.

They were out in a jiffy! All their lights and cameras and notepads. They must've even put a new reel in those cameras.. Waste!

"Now. Tell us.. Are they going to come back?" said Hastha's relative. 

"We, we don't know. We never expected all this to happen, Aunty. We just went there for finding answers. Little did we know that our Adrenaline Rush will lead to such a big loss. Probably a permanent one." said Jake, his head all down. None of us wanted all this to happen.

"I will surrender to the police if they aren't found by tonight! You can put any case that you want. Tell this to Hastha's Mom too." said Nick looking at who would be Hastha's Far Sister-in-law!. What the hell even? We aren't going to let him take it all on his head! He knows that they probably won't be found by tonight and still he's talking all this?

"We all are surrendering!" April corrected him with an intense look thrown his way. He wasn't supposed to object that! But, Nick is Nick!

"No ways! None of you are going to say or do anything. You didn't listen to me once and all this happened. I won't let you do that again! No more talking about this! Eat something all of you, you look like patients." How could he be so calm? But nevertheless, we weren't going to listen to him.

The questions and the scene of us sitting in that room waiting for Infinity to do something, came again and again into my head. Hastha's smile. T's protection clothing. Doc's worries. All of it was pricking one part of my mind continuously. And the fact that he has a seven year old, it kind of killed me. I don't know why, but I did this..

"What about Doc's Son? Where is he now? Is he going to come here? Are you going to tell him?" 

Everyone were quite taken aback by that! "He should be told! He can't stay a day without Mohan. This few days visit of Mohan itself was was a tough one for him. The boy had fallen sick once, when Mohan went for a month to Paris regarding a conference. He had to tell the caretakers to get him to Paris. So, they better find Mohan, else, his son may himself come here to find him!"

A tough guy, eh! I was just imagining how will he be! Little Doc, plumpy and a huge spectacles on his face. How are we even going to deal with him?

"Mom! Can we get some food, while we are upstairs? We need some rest. At 2 o' clock I'll have to go with police to KRI for some identifications." 

She was silent. She actually didn't say a word at all since she came to know about the incident. Nick didn't wait for an answer. He just went upstairs signalling us to follow. He wants to talk about something!

"You think the same thing happened to Kanishk?" Aunty spoke up, quite loudly actually! Now that made us freeze right where we were. What are we even going to tell her?

Avi went near her. "Mom, that was the blast. This is a total different thing!" 

"I know. But.." 

"We saw his body. Please Mom, he's not missing, he's dead." He just ran upstairs. "Come on people!" I could see he suddenly went rash. Avi always became that whenever we spoke of Kanishk. All this time, I never understood him. After 10 years, after meeting him again, I thought he was still the same, fun loving and smart. But no, this KRI was getting different sides of him out. He usually keeps making fun of me along with Nick whenever we three are together, but that's like totally stopped now! He's just so much into something, probably Kanishk, that he has lost it! This side of Avi was something everyone feared. It was destroying him and we couldn't do anything about it.

Rajni Aunty just sobbed. I and April went and hugged her. She loved Kanishk so much more than her own sons, Avi had told us! She cried hugging us. "One boy went forever and other two are going away too. What will I even do?" "Nothing and no one is going away, Aunty. Promise." said April. It was funny how she was the weakest right now, yet her strength was infinite when it came to making someone else strong. April was someone to look forward to. Even after the whole world in her previous school going against her, she's still going strong and amazing! If I was there, I would loose my shit and go harsh on anyone who would come on my way. But no, that wasn't April! She just spread parts of herself no matter how much of hatredness she received for being good. I guess that's the thing about good people, they never lose the goodness they possess no matter how much of bad is thrown their way. Suddenly, I wanted to be her!

"You girls go up and rest a bit. We have some talking to do." said Swaroop Uncle, taking Aunty in his arms. She was still wiping off her tears.

We slowly walked up. 

"Girls! See this." said Avi, pointing at the T.V. screen. The Camcorder was connected to it.

"Huh? How did we even miss that?" said April walking right into Avi's direction.

"Yesterday, after all of you slept, I went through both the camcorder recordings. We saw the cam that was in April's hand, but totally forgot about this one after it lost it's battery. I saw it at 4 in the morning yesterday and found this. Wanted to show you guys before anyone else."

"But, I thought, there was no power provided to KRI?" I was rather confused. While we finished the setting up of the laser compound, just before we went in, there was a light in the far end of KRI, where the completely burnt building was located. The part we didn't bother to look over. It just came for a second like someone switched it on by mistake. Not sure where it came from, there was no closed rooms there though!

"We never even bothered to on any of the lights assuming there's no power! How very stupid were we?" said Nick walking front and back. "And, did you guys even think? The Laser Compound. Our Shadow man wasn't caught in it as he ran! None of us were. It was turned off! They know our every move. Infinity and nothing, this is all a set up!"

"But, why? Why T and Hastha? Doc is understandable." 

"Scaring us, probably?"

"Okay, we're scared! Now?"

"Hopefully they'll return in 2-3 days with hell-a-lot of wounds and immense drugs embedded into their systems rightly delivered in our doorstep!" said Jake. This ain't a movie, dude!

"Jake. This is serious. I can't think anymore for now. We'll see what to do." said Nick.

"Just check for the power when you're going there, okay?" I asked him. He nodded. 

Aunty was on the door with some nice smelling Samosas. We ate, quite hungrily. The rest of the day passed when we just sat there doing random stuffs to change our minds. All in Vain!

5 o' clock. Nick still didn't come back. He wasn't picking up his phone. We planned to wait till seven. Swaroop Uncle was also not home. Hopefully, there are together.

"Kids! Come here!" we heard my Mom screaming from downstairs.

"What's it Mom?"

"Actually, They won't be coming tonight, Nick and Swaroop! You better go home, Jake and April. You must be tired. If you want to stay here, then that's okay too."

"Is it a problem, Aunty? I don't want to go anywhere until tomorrow at least." "Same here" Jake agreed with April. Even I don't want them to go!

"Obviously, No! I was just worried about your parents. I'll talk to them. Just freshen up and Jake, you can wear Nick's clothes while April, Niha's clothes would be great for you. Okay?"

Nods. 

It was such a shit thing."The number you are trying to call is currently Unreachable!"  was the only thing Nick's number gave us right now!

We slept at around 10. I don't know when I fell asleep, though! We woke up at 8 a.m. April was wearing my pajamas. She slept well. Probably all the previous night left out sleep was completed.

We went to the ground floor and yes, of course, we were on T.V. 

Wait.. What?

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A little drama never went out of style, right? So, this was the last of the After-Missing drama. Hope you liked it. And, I just happened to change the Genre from Mystery/Thriller to Science Fiction according to how the story line is planned. So, the story will go a little shocking in the mere 2-3 chapters that's on it's way. Excited to write it!

Updates every Wednesdays and Sundays! Finally decided that, haha.

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