Adhura Alviida

Maya Mehrotra

1 year later

Aditya stared at her like she was the most beautiful creation his eyes had ever seen. Her naughty smile as she held out his towel. He extended his arm to get it from her. She stepped back while trying to hold a smile on her face.

"Zoya give me it back na!" He grinned at her.

She proceeded to run around the room and he madly chased her, hoping that these lighthearted moments would never end. That he would never lose her again.

Arjun looked at the scene from the hallway. His brother was chasing no one and having a conversation with the air. He was having another hallucination. Arjun ran his hands through his hair and sighed, unwilling to confront Aditya. The past year had been the most treacherous for him. Losing their parents was tough enough, but watching his brother die everyday wasn't exactly something he signed up for either. He remembered after Zoya's funeral, Aditya stayed in his room for days. He didn't have a morsel of food and inflicted numerous different tortures on himself. He would sometimes hold a knife between his fingers to see which it would prick first. Sometimes he would use his belt to inflict pain on himself. As if doing all these things would bring Zoya back. But one day his brother woke up and was unable to recognize his surroundings. He kept asking for Zoya to the point where the psychiatric nurse had to give him a sleeping medication for him to stop. He behaved like a child who had been denied his favorite toy. This became the norm for the past year. So when Arjun saw his brother smiling, even though it may have been with thin air he decided to stay mute.

A phone call brought Arjun out of his trance.

"Hello, Arjun?" She spoke.

"Hi baby, how are you?" He calmed down hearing the sweet melody of his ladylove's voice.

In the past year if anything good had happened it was Noor. Noor came back into his life like a soothing medicine for all his torn wounds. While Noor herself was nursing her own heartbreak over her only sister's death, they began to understand each other better and with that came the maturity their relationship lacked previously. It was strange. When death loomed around them from all sides, then they both learnt not to take each other for granted, they learnt that their time was limited and they needed each other. Though Noor suddenly decided to pursue her masters in the US, they both maintained a long distance relationship.

"I'm fine, the workload is stressing me out. But forget about that. How are you? How's work?"

She asked sensing the tiredness in his voice.

"Tiring as usual. I miss you a lot. I'm just unable to really wrap my head around anything. Managing the office is a daunting task in itself and I hate to sound this selfish but Bhai isn't getting any better at all. All day he asks for Bhabhi and reacts violently when he doesn't get her. I've hired so many nurses and none of them agree to stay with him because he keeps yelling at them saying they're not Zoya. I can't see him like this anymore." He replied.

"Baby...you know the condition of psychiatry in India. Actually that's what I've called to tell you. My university's medical center is renowned in psychiatry. There's a special department here dedicated to it. I was wondering if you could bring jeeju here. It could be beneficial to him and to you in turn." She said

"That's—wow Noor, that's a great idea. I can't believe I haven't taken him abroad yet. Noor...thank you so much. You know everything he put Bhabhi through and yet you're here looking out for him."

"Appi would've wanted him to be alright." She sighed. "She wouldn't have ever wanted him to suffer. And the least I could do is make sure her soul stays happy." She fought back tears at this point.

Arjun sensed the change in her tone and immediately decided to lighten the mood.

"Who am I kidding?! I know you're making me come there because you can't resist me baby! Stop with the lies, although I'm flattered." He joked.

Hearing a giggle on the other side, he knew his job was done.

"Come soon, Arjun."

**

New York, USA

Kicking back on her rocker chair and grabbing a warm cup of hot cocoa she sipped carefully as she watched the snow fall and stick to the ground. The sight immediately reminded her of Mussorie. Oh, how she missed that place! The beautiful mountains, the hill stations, the snow! She remembered how her bratty self even forced Yash to stay with her there after they were married. Zoya chuckled in her palm as her laughter was replaced by tears. How had her life changed! She couldn't help but wonder what if she had stayed in Mussorie. What if Yash hadn't cheated and introduced this storm into her life named Aditya Hooda? Would Yash and her have worked? Would she be able to spend Eid with her family again? Would she get to build her clay pots again?

In the last year, she suffered a lot. With Aditya's negligence and sudden betrayal she became a cold hearted beast. The car accident almost took her life had Sahir not saved her. Sahir, her childhood best friend who just happened to be in Mumbai after years rescued her from the clutches of death. As he brought her to safety in his home, she narrated her life's story to him and he immediately devised a plan to help her.

It was Zoya's choice to fake her death. She had had enough of her life. Part of her had even contemplated suicide. She didn't have it in her to face her parents after disobeying them for the second time and failing them by marrying the wrong person again. She didn't want to become a burden for them and a nuisance for their life as society would've deemed her. She didn't have it in her to mend things with Aditya anymore, she was just tired. The man who she loved, truly loved for the first time shattered her heart and threw it in her face. She was truly beghar. Life had truly given her the worst at its highest dosage.

It was then Sahir helped her to escape to New York, using the alias Maya Mehrotra. She chose Maya because it meant illusion. Just as her life had become.

Zoya was a mild little lamb, forgiving, caring and generous. Maya was the exact opposite. The cold, unforgiving, ruthless psychiatric doctor at New York University. She was every intern's worst nightmare and every doctor's biggest competition.

A creak at the door interrupted her thoughts.

"Penny for your thoughts, Maya?" Sahir asked as he entered her room with a cup of coffee for himself.

"kuch nahi, bas aisi hi..." She whispered looking back out at the storm approaching the city.

"You were thinking about him weren't you?" Sahir asked placing a hand on her shoulder.

Zoya laughed at herself in pity.

"Sometimes I can't control myself."

Sahir smiled at her. "Yeah no wonder you haven't hooked up with me yet."

Zoya gasped out loud as she shoved his shoulder indicating her dismay and began laughing.

Sahir watched her as she started giggling. He couldn't help but remove a strand of hair in front of her face and tucked it behind her ear.

"He's your past, Maya. Your future could hold amazing things." He said while giving her a mischevious wink.

**

Mumbai, India

"Arjun, where are we going? Why are we in this plane? Where is Zoya? Why are you taking me away from meri Zoya?" Aditya asked frantically as he tried to get up from his seat.

"bhai, bhai...relax! We umm...we are going on a holiday, bhai!" He thought of a quick excuse.

"But where is meri Zoya? I can't go anywhere without her, chote, you know that! You are trying to separate me from meri Zoya. You are evil, chote. I never expected this from YOU!" He yelled.

Arjun became aware of the multiple eyes on his brother's childish behavior and quickly came up with another lie to diffuse the situation.

"Uh—um...bhai! Bhabhi is there already na?! She asked us to come meet her, have you forgotten?"

Aditya scratched his head trying to recollect the memories but it all appeared as a blur in his mind. Maybe Arjun was right. He was so excited to meet his Zoya again!