Beyond the Boundaries

Chapter 1

I have written this book on and off over a period of 1 and half year as it's written by me and a co-author (We both have never met in real life) and then we both had some life struggles that halted the journey and then we continued. Your valuable feedback will help this unedited version turn into something read-worthy :) We are more than grateful for your comments <3 - Kruti and Zee

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Islamabad, Pakistan 2016

The ringing of the phone at three a.m. broke the silence of the dimly lit corner at the end of Al Saayad Street, Islamabad. Zoya Kazmi rapidly moved her eyes back and forth, rubbing off the sleep from them as she moaned and looked around, searching for her cell phone which buzzed intensely.

'Who the hell is dying at this hour of the night?' she thought to herself, yawning and struggling to keep her eyes open. Zoya had always been a heavy sleeper. It wasn't easy to wake her up.

At last she found her phone. Grabbing it from underneath the pillow, she looked at the caller ID. The call was from India. Confused, she sat straight up in her bed. She did not know it yet, but this was a call that was going to change her life forever.

Current Day, Bangalore, India 

The silk and muslins were lying across the living room. A few beads were hanging loose from a chain of beads pinned to a bulletin board. A laptop sitting in the corner had some rough sketches copied from a notepad with the same sketches drawn in pencil.

Maahi was restless, checking her phone again and again. At some point, she had given up on the promise not to check her phone for at least 2 hours and work on those client deadlines. Arya's wedding outfit was due in one week and her *dupatta was still not in place. Her thoughts were not working in sync with her promises to her clients and there she was; checking her phone again.

She stared at herself in the mirror looking at her big brown eyes and the skin colored in honey dew. Her black and gold hair smelled like warm summer breeze that smelled like ocean winds and her pouting lips were pink like her sun kissed cheeks. She was what people defined as 'attractive'.

'Who do I look like?' she thought to herself. 'Maybe a lot like my mom.'

A picture of herself standing in front of the Eiffel Tower was framed in the living room. She looked at it and her thoughts wandered to a warm cozy bed, a beautiful cottage and him.

A few years back, Maahi was the kind of girl who could make you laugh until your stomach would hurt. But no one would risk agitating her, as when angry, she would explode. Like dynamite.

'Where the hell are you Oliver?!' she vented to herself. She opened her laptop and started punching the keys so fiercely, they could have disintegrated. Her eyes slashed and closed into slits. She was staring heavily at the screen. She took a pencil and paper from the nearby table and began scribbling. Her words slurred and came spewing onto the paper.

She scratched her head. It was hot outside. She had been living in this place for a few years, but it no longer appealed to her. She wanted to run somewhere faraway to the land of beautiful monuments, or the dazzling Eiffel Tower.    

*Dupatta - Dupatta is worn in many regional styles across the Indian subcontinent. Originally, it was worn as a symbol of modesty. While that symbolism still continues, many today wear it as just a decorative accessory.

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Hello Readers,

"Beyond the Boundaries" is my much awaited upcoming book that I wrote with "the girl I found on Wordpress", with whom I connect like a soul sister, who is much younger but on the same page, who seeks global peace as I do and who belongs to country most hated by my country. Through this book we wish to set an example of pure friendship, beyond borders and artificial boundaries, a kind that is pure and dwells in every one of us if we wish to share it with someone across the comfort zone. The story is somewhat inspired from our own life and how me wet.

** This is non-edited version posted just as written. Your feedback will help me write better :)   

A note from Zarfasheen

"Friendship between Kruti and I is nothing short of a magical and whirlwind of fateful events that brought us closer together and made us stick through thick and thin. I was just another blogger in a pot of million others in a desperate need of expression and Kruti was one person who made me realize that I have ability to do things, write stuff that I never thought I could. She made me feel special. We started to talk on instant messaging soon enough and a bond we share has a stamp of its own. Calling each other indecent, cursing, presenting crazy ideas and what not that both of us were ready to implement at any second was a testament to how similar we were (or the kind of craziness we shared.) We would always make fun about the rift between India and Pakistan and how it is blown out of the proportions for no good reason. We always speculated of what will happen if we ever get caught and the ever famous torture techniques would make us laugh and shiver at the same time. Between all this goofing around an idea took its roots that what if we were to write a collaborative book. Kruti believed in this idea wholeheartedly and got us both on board. Throughout its making once in a while one of us would be taken with doubts that whether this book will see the light of the day and one would assure the other that It will happen. It's meant to be. After all there is a reason two of us met; we are supposed to make it worthwhile. Something that can make a difference and to serve as a bridge between India and Pakistan" 

– Zarfasheen Zia, Co-Author, Beyond the Boundaries  

** Please let us know in comments about how you like the story :) We would really appreciate all honest comments.