“Zo...zoya...” Aditya called her hesitantly. She pulled back from the hug and tugged her hairs behind her ear, looking down.

“Amm… let's go home.” He spoke took hold of her wrist gently.

The old awkwardness was gone. They walked silently to house.

“Oh my! What happened Adi?” Mrs. Hooda gasped as she saw Aditya's nose bleeding when they entered.

“Mumma… I am fine… it's ju-”

“Just what? It's bleeding Aditya!” Arjun said, completely annoyed of Aditya's carefree nature. Mrs. Hooda brought first aid box and pushed both of them to sit.

“Di… What happened?” Noor asked, kneeling beside Zoya.

“Wo…”

“Let me explain…” Aditya started as Mrs. Hooda was cleaning his wound.

“What? Let me talk to the commissioner! Third incident? Will they arrest only after a girl will be raped and murdered?” Mr. Hooda started to search for his mobile, very angry on the management.

“Leave it dad! Police is already searching for them and patrolling every night and I have also reported about what happened with us. It is just a matter of time. They will be caught soon.” Aditya spoke.

“Still! Whenever I will be meeting him, I will talk to him about this.” Mr. Hooda said, kind of unconvinced by Aditya's explanation.

“You are meeting him day after tomorrow.” Arjun reminded Mr. Hooda.

“Di! Are you hurt?!”

“I am fine Noor.” Zoya replied and nodded in a convincing manner.

“No! Zoya, no hiding! Tell me clearly were are you hurt. He just now told you fall down.” Mrs. Hooda demanded as she moved towards Zoya from Aditya.

“No… Aunty… really…” She spoke, but Mrs. Hooda took hold of her wrists and saw scratches on her palms.

“This is what you call nothing? Haan?” Zoya shut herself up after this. Mrs. Hooda was being a Mamma bear.

“Aditya… you drop both of them in your car. Arjun will bring their car from behind. Then you both return together.” Mrs. Hooda instructed. Arjun and Aditya nodded, not at all complaining about Mrs. Hooda's instruction.

“No… no Aunty. Really. Noor will drive… we will…”

“Zoya bete! Listen to us. They will drop you.” Mr. Hooda persuaded, gently. Zoya was not able to deny him.

Aditya came down with his car keys and Noor handed her car keys to Arjun and they all moved out to see off the Raichand sisters.

“Zoya… I will call your maasi and explain everything to her. Don't worry. Okay?” Mrs. Hooda said.

“No aunty don't call her. She will worry for us unnecessarily. I will explain her once I reach home.” Mrs. Hooda nodded in understanding.

“Zoya, sit at the backseat. You will be more comfortable.” Aditya spoke when Zoya started to get in the front seat.

“Adit-”

“Noor, you too sit at backseat with her.” He said interrupting Zoya. She shook her head and settled herself in Aditya's car.

Mr. and Mrs. Hooda bid them bye and they left.

“I liked both the girls. Really!” Mr. Hooda told Mrs Hooda as they walked in.

“Hmm…! Me too.” Mrs. Hood agreed, smiling.
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Zoya kept glancing at Aditya once in a while and then looked out of the window. Though she said she is fine, but she heard her heartbeats in her ear clearly. It was beating too fast. Her hands, too were shaking, so was her body. Effects of adrenaline rush, still on its peak.

‘What if something bad would have happened?’

“Zoya!” Aditya's loud voice brought her out of her thoughts.

“Huh?”

“Where are you lost? Are you all right?”

“Ya… ya, I am fine.”

“Right or left from here?”

“Right.” She answered and looked beside her to find Noor fighting with sleep desperately.

“Noor… sleep. I will wake you up.” Noor nodded and slept on Zoya's shoulder.

Hardly in fifteen minutes, they reached Raichand Villa.

Both the sisters got down and Arjun also got down parking their car inside. Noor walked towards him.

Aditya slid down his window and Zoya smiled at him.

“Aren't you coming in? Maasi will be happy to meet you and I can make you a cup of coffee.”

“Not that I would like to deny the opportunity to have coffee with you and meet your Maasi, but not today. You need rest.”

“I was a trouble, wasn't I?” Zoya asked biting her lip lightly.

“No, you wasn't. If Mumma heard you she will kill me.” He said, smiling wide.

“Why?”

“Because she will think I made you feel like this.” He laughed. She smiled wide.

Her heartbeats were coming back to normal. Her body was coming back to normal. Now, she was able to feel burning and itching sensation on her knees. Maybe, she got her knee skin peeled off, when she fell down and now they're bleeding.

“Bye… then…” He spoke, not knowing how to say goodbye.

“Yeah! Bye. Good night.” She smiled and replied.

“Good night.” He wished back. Arjun came and wishing Zoya night he sat beside Aditya. Giving a last assuring smile to Zoya, Aditya reversed the car and left.

Coming inside, she calmed her panicking Maasi down and explained what happened, hiding that maybe her knees are bleeding.

“You sure, you are fine?” Massi asked again.

“Massi! I said I am absolutely fine. Now, I am going down to bed. You too sleep. Go!”

She came inside her room sat at the edge of her bed, taking a deep breath.

‘It's over. Nothing went wrong. Everything is fine.’ She assured herself, closing her eyes and again taking a deep breath.

She changed her dress and wore a loose, comfy top and shorts. Sitting on her bed, she took out the fist aid box from her nightstand and started to clean her wounded knees.

It was half past twelve in morning. She pulled the blanket upto her chin after lying down, trying to sleep when her mobile rang.

Sighing, she picked up the phone frustrated but her expressions changed glancing at caller's ID.

Aditya calling.

“Aditya…?” She spoke picking up the call.

“Amm… hey, sorry if I disturbed your sleep but... I wanted to know if you are fine.” She resisted the urge to roll her eyes.

‘He is being nice, isn't he?’
‘Over-Nice.’

“I am absolutely fine Adi!” He kind of got startled when he called him Adi, but then let it go.

“Good. You should sleep then.”

“You aren't able to sleep, are you?” She asked.

“Amm… yeah.” He admitted sheepishly.

“Take a good novel or any book and read few pages of it. You will fall asleep in no time.” She advised and he roamed his eyes around his room only to spot a heap of hardly four or five books, which are his college textbooks.

“I don't have books. I don't get time to read.”

“It's a good habit to read and about time, you don't have it for things Adi, you make it for what you really want to do. Don't give me that excuse.”

“What should I do now?” He asked, quietly, knowing she was right.

“Count sheeps! Sleep and let others sleep! Night!” She snapped.

“Okay, okay… why are you getting mad?” She sighed and rubbed her forehead.

“Sorry Aditya. I didn't mean to… all I want is a good, sound sleep. Why don't you meet me tomorrow evening in the cafe. Will it be fine with you?”

“Yeah, sure but wh-”

“Good! Good night!” She spoke enthusiastically and hung up the call.
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“Why she wants to meet…” He muttered and then looked up the the ceiling as he was lying straight down on his bed.

“Oh god! I hope she is not going to continue what she did in school!” He spoke, exasperated, face palming.
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