Second Chance (Vol.1) Squandered

65: Janab Aditya Hooda

Zoya: Aditya! Aditya Rukiye!

Flu turned her head so fast that she almost cricked her neck. She had heard the first word before... The same intonation, the way Zoya said Aditya in that voice... minus the fury... She had heard it before. Where? Where? Where?

Then she remembered where.

At the train station and again at the mall! In Paris!

Flu was dumbstruck.

Zoya ran up the last flight of stairs. Everyone else froze where they were.

Zoya: (angrier) Janab Aditya Hooda!

The last 3 words cracked the air like a whiplash.

Arshad craned his neck from the last bottom-most stair to look up and Arjun turned on the top stair to look down as Zoya raced up; both wondering what Aditya had done now. As Zoya stormed past them, the girls wondered what could have transpired in 2-3 minutes to transform Zoya from all smiles to fuming without exchanging a word with Adi who seemed to have activated some dormant volcano inside Zoya.

It was almost 1am. Sanju quickly herded them all into the girls room afraid their voices will carry to the floor below. Her parents and Hooda Uncle-Aunty had retired to the rooms on the first floor roughly an hour ago. She pulled in a stunned turned-to-stone Adi by clutching the back of his jacket quickly just as she shut the door. In her hurry she locked the last man Arshad out.

All looked super confused, curious, worried and uncomfortable.

Adi alone had a contrary expression on his face. He looked like Zoya had kissed him on both cheeks and had whispered 3 sweet words of the likes of Honey Sweetheart Darling privately into his ears.

Zoya: Aap aimak hai?

Adi's look became impossibly goofier.

Zoya: Hassi choot rahi hai aapki?

Arjun: Zoya! Calm down! What happened? Bhai! Aaapne ab kya...

The look on Adi's face stopped Arjun mid-sentence. Arjun was torn between sad and amused; both emotions were neck to neck vying for the top spot.

Bhai was lost to the world; indulging; soaking the moment like a sponge. The blistering heat of Zoya's fury seemed to caress him like soothing cool breeze in a scorching desert; first warm rays of the sun on a winter morning. Bhai was smiling like an idiot yet his smitten look inspired poetry.

Noor looked from Adi to Zoya and back unable to fathom the contrary expressions. Sanju was anxiously chewing the tip of her thumb not used to such drama. She came from the genteel world where her friends, neighbours, parents only sulked; never sparred words. Clu and Flu were lost unable to keep up with the sparse exchange; a good part of which was in a foreign-tongue. Arshad was frantic outside the door rattling the doorknob.

Zoya snapped her fingers twice in quick succession in front of Adi's face.

Zoya: Hum aapse hi mukhatib hain.

Adi:(startled back to his senses) Huh. Hmmmmm. (frowning) I am all ears. Go ahead. (chin up) Irshaad!

Just then Sanju realized Arshad was locked out and was rattling the door knob crazy. She had problems turning the knob as Arshad was holding on to it or alternately turning it the wrong way on the outside. Finally she turned the knob and a desperate worried Arshad toppled into the room. Sanju swung with the door and would have hit the wall if Arjun had not caught her and stopped the door. Noor did not miss the grateful look Sanju threw Arjun. Arshad stumbled into Adi's arms.