How could I be so stupid? How could I not see this coming?

Who was the only person who wanted revenge from me? It was clear. NP had to be the one and only Neeraj Pandey. How did I miss it?

Stupid Ananya, stupid!

I suddenly went through Sunday night's events when we had been to that party. I had stumbled across Sagar, Neeraj's elder brother who had informed me that Neeraj was at the hospital because the gang had certainly done a number on him. I also remember confronting Varun about this and the way he had told me parts of Neeraj's and gang's history.

"The next day I tracked down Neeraj and fed him what he deserved and now I don't think I regret that", Varun had said, at the moment.

Oh boy! He surely was going to regret that.

I was afraid now. 

Fear acted like the shackles holding you down, it behaved like the constant hammer burying you deep in the dirt. It was madness; driving every inch of mine crazy.

I wasn't afraid of getting hurt, neither physically nor emotionally. I was terrified of the uncertainty of this fear. The consequences aren't predictable, it's the 'randoms' which are worst. I knew bad stuff was going to happen , just not when and where and that was what scared me.

I stayed in bed for what seemed like hours, not getting a minute of sleep. I had to tell this to the gang now, I would be a fool not to. I saw the clock showing five and without a second thought I was out of my room, standing in front of Varun's room and knocking on his door. He opened the door in a minute as if he had been anticipating this.

 As soon as I saw him the I choked on my words. He didn't have a shirt on while he was dressed in some joggers that hung low on his hips and a pair of mismatched socks. Without meaning to my eyes decide to stay on his rippled torso.On the left side of his of his chest was a tattoo- a bird whose head is directly itched over his heart while the wings are replaced with flames, cascading over the whole left side of his chest.

What did that tattoo mean? When did he get it?

I guess I had been staring a little long because my face burnt red. His eyes were dilated, groggy and dazed. He was too confused to pass a snarky comment to rile me up and I was happy for that. So, he didn't expect me here, still he was at the door in a minute. Did he ever sleep?

"Angel, what happened? Are you alright?", I must look horrible because his confused expression took less than a second to transform  into caution and concern.

"I think...no I know, that it is Neeraj who set this up",I exhaled as he took in my revelation.

"What?",he berated his expressions giving in nothing as they went blank.

I went on to tell him about the note and how it said that NP wanted revenge from me. Apparently this NP has to be Neeraj Pandey because he was the only one who would seek revenge and the initials matched too. It made sense. His face was blank and glazed. It was like all the emotions had been sucked out of him while his eyes became darker than they ever had been.

Without uttering a response to my monologue he went into his walk in closet and came out dressed in some t-shirt and had the same joggers as before.He grabbed his keys and phone from the nightstand and started putting on his shoes.

"Where are you going?", I accused.I was starting to get pissed off now but confusion took over me.

"I need to go and see him",he replied dryly still not looking at me.

"I will go with you",I demanded.

"No, you can't", he rejected.

"Why do you need to go this early? It's like five in the morning", I thought I was putting up a good argument. I just didn't want him to go alone.

"Ananya, just stay out of this, okay",he reprimanded and I shot him a 'you-have-got-to-be-kidding-me' look.

"I am already pretty deep in this",I hissed boring holes into him while he bend down to tie his shoelaces.

"So, do me a favor and stay put till I figure out a way to pull you out of this",his voice was still dead.

"Why do you have to be a jerk all the time? Can you not just let me come with you? I need to face Neeraj",I said the last part reluctantly. I didn't want to see a cell of him but I wanted to make sure that Varun won't do anything stupid. I hated violence.

"That isn't a very good idea", he sighed, got up and walked towards me.He was closer than I expected, I could feel his minty breath over me. Didn't he just wake up? Wasn't he supposed to have a bad breath or something?

My thoughts were quickly brushed aside when I felt his hand touching my hair and tucking a loose strand behind my ear. His eyes boring into mine with an intense expression.

"Angel, will you please trust me on this? I would be back before you know it", his voice was husky which gave me an unusual feeling as he looked down at me, his eyes showing no hint of falseness. The proximity surely interrupted my thinking process. I couldn't form comeback in my head.

"Huh?",I croaked.

"Let me go and sort this out. You stay home and rest",he offered again while his cologne had already invaded my thinking process.

"Okay",I sighed.

"Okay?", he looked surprised and took a step back finally giving me space to think and be sane.

"Yes, go before I decide to change my mind",I  hissed because I needed to get away from him. His presence affected me more than I wanted anyone to and I didn't want that happening.

"Yeah, sure",he grinned and walked out of the room.

He really was a jerk!

"Angel", he hollered and turned his head towards me.

"What?", I yelled back.

"Don't go to school today", he demanded.

"I don't see that happening", I offered him a mirthless laugh. He wasn't here to command me what to do and what not to.

"Oh well I know how to make it happen",he left with a foolish grin plastered on his face.

Ignoring his last comment I went into my room. Even though I had gotten no sleep today, I couldn't take a nap now. Because I knew the that  attempting to take a short nap was going to result in a good seven hour slumber and I was in no mood to bunk school. So, I pried my eyes open and sat on the bed with Varun's copy of 'The lord of rings'.

The harsh sunlight creeping through my window greeted me as my eyes opened slowly. I groaned loudly,rolling my head-

Wait what? --- my eyes opened slowly? When did I close them? I wasn't supposed to sleep.

I was definitely late for school. Very late. The thought crashed into my head and I nearly screamed.

I launched myself out of the bed like a rocket and ran around my room frantically.I didn't have time to shower, my hair probably was a bird's nest and it would take gazillion years to pick out a outfit now.

Lovely.

I hurried across the room into the washroom to do some damage control. Furiously brushing my teeth, washing my face and forcing a comb trough my hair until they were smooth. I looked...decent. I rushed out of the washroom, still in my pajamas's determined to go for the first suitable outfit my eyes would see.

"Nice pajama's, Princess",a voice hollered and I staggered back, surprised by the sudden voice. The wind  was knocked out of me and I nearly screamed 'Bloody murder' before I saw Danish sitting on my bed, trying too hard not to laugh at my 'oh so horrible expression'.

"I will buy you crayons later because I literally need to hurry now", I composed myself quickly and darted into the closet.

"Princess, dissing me isn't going to do you any good", Danish laughed, unaffected by my comment as usual. I chose not to respond as I wriggled out of my pants and started putting on a denim jeans.

"Princess, ignoring me too won't do you any good",he shouted again breaking into loud guffaws. I was searching for a top now, still determined at not paying him any heed.

"It's eleven Princess, you have already missed first two lectures!", I froze.

What? How did that happen? 

I quickly put on a t-shirt , hurried out and lo and behold , the clock on the night stand showed eleven am. The first time since I woke up, I wondered why didn't my alarm clock go off at seven?

"Are you probably wondering why didn't your alarm wake you up?", Danish spoke aloud my thoughts with a mischievious glint in his eyes and I suddenly knew he was the one who dismissed my alarms.

"Oh no, you didn't",I looked at him; throwing daggers through my eyes.

"Oh yes, I definitely did", he didn't even bother to deny the fact, typical Danish.

"Why would you do that?",I whined. I was too tired to engage myself in a verbal duet with him currently.

"So that, we could have fun today",he chirped like a toddler but I wasn't going to fall for his childish behavior today.

"You were told to this", it was more of a statement than a question as I recollected what  Varun had told me before he left.

"Probably.... I was",he scratched the back of his neck acknowledging that I knew the truth. I narrowed my eyes to thin slits as he gulped in nervousness.

"But Princess, you surely can use good food and Harry Potter movies right now. You look paler than a ghost", he literally had the audacity to comment on my looks when I was minutes away from murdering him.

Wait! Did he say Harry Potter? And food!

As the thought of two of my favorites settled in my head, I automatically calmed down.

"Have you ordered pizza?", I peeked from my lashes, trying to confirm whatever he was saying.

He nodded frantically grinning like a Cheshire cat,"I have asked Sunaina aunty to make hot chocolate too"

That was enough to make my anger and frustration subside.

How could you say no to food and hot chocolate? 

Varun was seemed really calculative because he had managed to trap me inside this house today. I had an idea that he would go lengths to stop me from attending school today, but this was really clever of him.

"So, you are down for this, right?",Danish asked hesitantly, still testing waters as if I would lunge at him at any moment.

Unknowingly a smile formed on my face but I quickly reformed it into a grimace. He shouldn't be proud of bribing me and compelling me to stay home. This was still wrong.

"Yeah, I don't have any other option, right?",I reprimanded him and walked inside the washroom in order to take a shower.

"Head towards my room when you finish cleaning up!", he yelled as I had locked myself in the washroom.

I took my time in showering and changing into a fresh set of sweatpants and a t-shirt. When I was presentable I walked out of the washroom and decided to check my phone. There were no messages.

Wasn't Varun done with interrogating Neeraj? Or whatever he was supposed to do. It had been nearly seven hours since he had left. Why was he taking so long? Was he in trouble? 

Taking my whole maze of thought with me, I headed towards Danish's room which was on the first floor. I knocked on door twice and was welcomed by Amer who was smiling at me.

"Do you mind if I join you?",Amer asked being the gentleman he was.

"Of course not, I am relieved that I won't be one enduring Danish's company alone", I grinned.

"I heard that", Danish yelled from somewhere behind Amer. Amer let me in and I walked inside. I had not seen Danish room before. It seemed like a typical boy's room not much of decor but the highlight of the room was the giant tv he had. Several different wires were connected to it and remote controls dangled. He for sure was a fan of video games.

"Never thought of you as the gamer dude", I commented eyeing the equipment.

"You are yet to explore my talents, Princess", he winked at me while I pretended to gag. He was settled on the floor, resting his back by the foot of the bed with all the food in front of him. I plopped down beside him while Amer made himself comfortable on the other side of Danish. 

Fifteen minutes into the Harry Potter and Philosopher's stone and I was onto my second slice of pizza enjoying every bite of the cheesy treat, Danish was down to his fifth slice and Amer stared at us incredulously, surprised by our talent of hogging down food.

"You can easily qualify as twins", Amer commented taking over Mr Dursley's voice.

"Eww no", I faked a gag again just to rile up Danish.

"Do you seriously hate me, Princess?",he asked in a childish tone.

"Everyone does! I thought you knew that!",I conjured up my serious face.

"You are evil!", He exclaimed and got up,"I am going downstairs to get popcorn, only for myself", he announced and stomped out of the room. Amer was having the time of his life by witnessing our banter.

"You are good at this",Amer said between his chuckles.

I paused the movie and looked at Turned so that I was facing Amer.

"Why didn't you go with Varun?", I knew that he had an idea about the conversation I had had with Varun in the morning. I had hoped that he would have taken Amer and Danish with him. Because he would be as oblivious as me at what Neeraj might have planned for us.

He was taken aback by my sudden question as if he didn't expect me to spring it on him. He didn't answer, turned his head sideways and stared at the tv screen.

Did I ask something inappropriate? What's with the silent treatment?

I sighed in disappointment and decided to let this go.

"I wish he had taken me with him but he wanted that I and Danish to stay with you",he spoke out of nowhere and it startled me. He seemed to have taken a long moment to conjure up these words.

"He wanted you and Danish to babysit me in the confines of our home while he went to have a chat with someone who threatened the crap out of me!",I scoffed being both –incredulous and pissed off.

"Yeah,you can put it like that",Amer chuckled.

He chuckled. Had they lost their bearings?

"Amer it's been a while since he has gone. Did he give you any updates regarding what he was up to?", I tried my best to pry information out of him, being angry wouldn't help now.

"Ananya he doesn't like answering to people",he sighed, an ancient pain flickered in his voice.

"That must give people who care about him a hard time",I blurted.

"Tell me about it",he resonated a mirthless laugh.

"I had checked on Neeraj yesterday, he was still in the hospital, then", Amer revealed and I nearly gasped.

Why didn't anyone tell me this? If they had checked on Neeraj yesterday then where was Varun now?

"Right after the incident yesterday, Varun had suspected that it had to be Neeraj behind all this. I and Danish looked for him and he was still in the hospital. We didn't have any proof to determine that he was the one to pull this crap so we couldn't confront him", Amer finished.

It took me a moment to seep everything in.They already had their doubts on Neeraj. Of course they would, they weren't stupid like me.

That meant, now that I had told Varun about the messages which were sent to me by NP, Varun had the proof against Neeraj. Right now he was probably confronting Neeraj about this.

Why was he taking so long?

"But if he really was in the hospital yesterday so he couldn't have possibly done that? And even if he did it, why would he admit it in front of Varun?",I voiced my doubts.

"Ananya, it's complicated than this. He has a lot of connections",Amer blurted out but the instant he said it, his face showed regret. He didn't want me to know this.

"Is that a bad thing",I murmured.

"Huh?",

"Having connections"

"It's a dangerous thing",his voice was lower than a whisper.

Before I could ask him why and how? Danish graced us with his presence, carrying a tub of ice-cream.

"I suck at making popcorn",he grumbled with a scowl on his face.

"A five year old would say exactly the same",Amer retorted eyeing me as if silently ending our previous conversation. He had told me more than he had wanted to and I was grateful for that.

"Did you both miss me?",Danish asked settling himself between me and Amer.

"What have to got in there?",I ignored his question and eyed the ice-cream.

"Chocolate chip",he answered.

That was my favorite flavor and only Rehan and Varun knew about it. Did Varun seriously ask Danish to get it for me? Who would have noticed and remembered these details?

How could I be mad at him when he had happen to do all this?

"Let's resume the movie",I said.

******

I spent the rest of the day pretending to watch Harry Potter while Danish just hogged up all the food and Amer wasn't the biggest fan of it so he took an extra long nap.

Kamya, Nia and Naina visited me and they were well informed about what happened in the morning. I had voiced my uncertainty and worries over Varun infront them and they just told me that this was normal of him.

Varun did not text or call. On the other side I had left him a dozen of texts and called him numerous times. All the calls went straight to voicemails. A weird feeling was nagging itself at the back of my mind. I couldn't help but be worried.

Maybe if this wouldn't have involved Neeraj then I wouldn't have been so concerned about Varun because at the back of my mind I too knew that Varun had this habit of staying out without informing anybody.Somehow guilt seemed to have made a place inside me. Varun had gotten himself into this because me.

I had probably nagged Amer and Danish a several times to look for him while they just dismissed me saying that Varun knew what he was doing.

How could they be so sure? What if he was in trouble? He should have been back by now.

Rehan interrupted my thoughts as he had come to summon us for dinner. Reluctantly, I followed him while he spoke about today's homework. Suddenly my phone started ringing and my demeanor relaxed anticipating that Varun finally called.

But it was Naina's name which flashed on my screen and without meaning to; a scowl graced my features.

"Who is it?", Rehan asked concerned.

"It's Naina. You should go ahead I will be there in five",I managed to flash him a smile.

I picked up the call.

"Ananya, where are you?", Naina asked frantically.

"At home. What happened?", I was confused.

"Where's Varun?", she asked again.

"I don't know. What's with the questions Naina?",I was frustrated now because she knew that not knowing Varun's whereabouts was making me suffer.

"You need to look at this", she hung up and before I could contemplate what she said my phone dinged.

I opened up the message, there were several screenshots from Instagram. People seemed to be partying, red solo cups in hands and disco lights everywhere.

The date mark said that these were today's photos, captured minutes ago. Who in their right mind would party on a weekday?

Most importantly why was she sending me this?

Just then a photo caught my eye and I gasped.

Go on, you can call me dramatic.

A specific green eyed boy with tousled black hair seemed to be having the time of his life in this photo. In the next photo he was pleasurably playing tonsil hockey with a brunette who for sure wasn't Mahira. There were more photos of him and the girl making out and then there were several of him just drowning drinks.

Varun was leisurely drinking and snogging his way through the party while here I was..... well .

While here I was being the most stupid person on the earth.

Varun definitely knew how to hurt people the hardest.