I Lost The Stars

Chapter 8

Trapped.

That is what I felt like.

I was trapped inside the office as was everybody else. The news flashed heavy rains and hail storm in all parts of Mumbai. Tides were all time high and an advisory was issued to everyone to stay tonight wherever they were and not head out. Some people had already went home but many were still inside the office. Unfortunately I was one of them.

I had tried calling Aarav several times. Despite everything, I desperately needed him to know about it. I needed to tell him what his brother was planning behind his back and how his dream was on line.

'Dammit.' I cursed at my phone as it failed to connect the call for the 50th time.

My eyes went up to the upper floor just to meet a chocolate brown pair of eyes looking straight into mine. He rested his one hand in his pocket while other casually held a cigar. The look on his face challenged me. It challenged me to disobey him to take a step ahead and face the tide.

As he moved away, I mentally prepared myself to face the consequences. I did something, no sane person would do. I did something, I did not even expect myself to do. I ran. I ran out in the storm. I did not care if it would engulf me but I couldn't let Ayaan Malhotra succeed. I could not let him play with the lives of the naive.

~

The worst kind of fear is the fear of the unknown. When all I could see was pool of water filled on the streets of the city, and I, stuck in it, the determination with which I ran out of the office was now replaced with fear. Fear of what lied ahead of me. Ayaan sir's words rang in my ears.

I did not fear being the collateral damage in this fight of brothers but the doubt between whether I wanted to help Aarav more or prove Ayaan something rose in my heart.

I shook my head to take these thoughts away from me. The least thing I wanted now was them. I bent down to catch my breath. I had came a long way. I looked at the GPS of my mobile once again praying that it had not stopped working and I thanked god it still showed me the way. Aarav's house was just a few kilometres away now.

'Beta, aage ka sara rasta kharab hai. Aaap uss taraf kyu jaare ho?' A slightly aged women passing by asked me. She shivered as she spoke to me and the clothes she wore gave away her vulnerability to me. I felt bad for her.

'Aunty, It's really important for it. Muje jaana padega.'

'Aap ye le lijiye' I took off the coat I was wearing and put it on her shoulders. Although it was completely drenched but she needed it more than I did.

'Beta par ..'  I did not wait for her to finish as I started running again. I heard her saying some blessings to me but I did not want to stop again. The rain had slowed down a little but I could not trust the winds. I had to reach to Aarav before the night ends.

My clothes sticked to me like a second skin. I failed to feel my legs attached to my body. I felt numb but I smiled. I smiled as I catched my breath and saw the stunning mansion just across the road from me. I had made it here.

A flush of blood rushed back to me as I saw my destination ahead of me. Dragging my numb feet ahead, I started moving again slowly across the road. I took out my mobile once again to call Aarav. I patted my mobile phone to get it working. Guess, it had given up against the rains. All I could see was a black blank screen and then nothing.

Beep.

Beeep.

I heard a car with full beam headlights rush over to me and next I knew I was rolled over it.

'Madam, Madam?'

'Sahab ko bula ke aaao'

'Antaraaaa?'

Blank.

~

'You look hot while brooding over.' A girl wrapped in silk sheets spoke to the man standing with his back in front of her, looking over the night sky.

'And I thought we dropped flirting just before coming to bed.' He spoke slowly.

'A girl can always dream, Ayaan.' She smiled pulling the sheets off her.

'Wish your dreams stay dreams only, some dreams are scary than the reality. I hope the reality is clear between us.'

'Not when dreams are as stunning as this.'  She closed the distance between their lips turning him around while he just chuckled ruthlessly.