An unfriendly reminder
“How does it matter? The blood’s the same.” He scoffed, leaving her aghast.
“I can’t believe you’d say that.” She whispered, appalled.
For a second, something flickered in his eyes, something close to regret and guilt. But before Naina could decipher, Sameer had hidden his emotions behind his cold stoned face.
“Yeah, well get used to it. I’m full of surprises.” Sameer snorted, glaring into her eyes, as if ready to rip her apart.
She laughed inwardly, remembering the irony of his words. Once he had promised a world of happiness with this very phrase. Now he threatened darkness filled with despair where she could feel herself burning alive.
“What? You’ve got nothing to say now?” He sneered, lips curving into a cruel smirk.
Naina raised her head and heaved a breath, mustering all the courage she had left in her, “Get out.”
Sameer sensed her voice similar to the calm before the storm. Still adamant on putting up a fight, he provoked, “Excuse me?”
Disgusted at his obnoxious attitude, she hollered, “I said leave, Sameer!”
He barely quivered, hands still balled into fists while she continued, “You have no right to barge into my house and accuse me!”
Before he could say anything in retaliation, a knock resonated through the bathroom door, startling them both.
Naina composed herself, pushing her hair behind her ears and took a deep breath. She shot Sameer a glare before opening the door, only to find a smirking Preeti slanting on the door frame.
“I thought it would be you.” She grinned, shifting her focus onto Sameer.
While Sameer looked away in irritation and embarrassment, Naina tried to hide the same but failed as the crimson color painted her cheeks.
“What are you doing here?” Naina asked her cousin pugnaciously, resting her hands on her hips as if ready to interrogate.
“Don’t even dare to argue with me here, Naina. In fact, I should be the one asking you this question.” Preeti scrutinized her gaze, her arms crossed in front of her chest.
“I couldn’t sleep. So I decided to take a shower to help me calm down.” Naina answered in mumbles.
“And you invited him to entertain you?” Preeti raised her brows at Sameer. He looked back in surprise, waiting for Naina’s excuse.
“He doesn’t need to be invited. He’s one of those mannerless people who barge in at odd hours.” She spat, eyeing him viciously.
Sameer’s lips curved inwards into a thin line as he gritted, “I was about to leave.”
“Hey, I’m not complaining.” Preeti held her hands up in defence. “You both can continue for as long as you want, only a little quietly maybe?”
“There’s nothing left to be said.” Sameer scowled, her gaze never shifting from Naina.
“It’s pointless when the other person refuses to listen.” Naina glowered, barely audible to herself.
“I absolutely adore this harmless banter.” Preeti cooed sarcastically before reprimanding, “When on Earth will you both grow up and sort out your differences. It’s been three years.”
“Some things can’t be sorted out, Preeti.” Naina reasoned with a tinge of regret shimmering in her voice.
“Only because you don’t want to, Naina. All you both want to do is hold onto past grudges.” Preeti lashed out impertinently.
“Fine. Suit yourself.” She exasperated when she received silence from the duo.
As she turned on her heel, Preeti added, “And yeah, please argue all you want, but on the balcony. I need my sleep.”
With that she left, leaving a dumbfounded Naina and Sameer behind.
“Wow. I never thought Preeti could vent out like that.” Sameer broke the silence.
Naina’s tone replicated his shock-filled voice, “Me neither.”
“I guess short tempers are exclusive to the Agarwals.” Sameer smirked to which Naina scrutinized her stare.
“It’s time you leave, Sameer.” Naina indicated bluntly, shifting her gaze to nowhere in particular.
“It’s time I do.” Sameer scorched her through his rueful tone and ambiguous words. Unwillingly, she turned back to him, only to find remorse in his orbs.
They covered the short yet seemingly never ending distance between the bathroom and balcony in silence. The air menaced its way down their throats while orbs robotically remained fixated into the oblivion. Naina clenched her hands together, debating on her thoughts while Sameer balled his into fists, determined on staying away from the girl he had received and equally tormented with pain. Dawn was about to break, as they noticed on the horizon. And maybe their bond too, Sameer scornfully added to his thoughts.
He swooped over the ledge after checking the wooden ladder in place as she whispered, “I’m sorry.”
Her unexpected apology startled him as he clarified, “What?”
“I’m sorry.” She repeated, still fidgeting with her hands and gaze.
“Woah. I didn’t know Naina Agarwal could apologize too.” Sameer taunted, provoking to get a snarky remark from her. Apologetic Naina didn’t do well with him, nor was he familiar with.
She gritted through her teeth initially, eager to retaliate, when she reminded herself of her purpose.
Taking a deep breath and exhaling lightly through her mouth, she attempted at a serene yet sympathetic smile and spoke, “Yeah, well get used to it. I’m full of surprises.”
Sameer barely dangled on the ladder, yet stood floored by her savage reply. One side of his lips curved into a lop-sided smirk before he let out a few chuckles to himself.
Grabbing the parapet in support, he appreciated, “I must say, nice one.”
She seemed to have let down her walls for a few seconds too, for she joined him in his giggling fits, “Don’t mistake to underestimate me, Maheshwari.”
“Never have, Agarwal.” He raised one eyebrow at her.
She instantly pointed her index finger at him while rolling her eyes, “Yeah, sure.”
He instinctively clutched her finger and defended with a short laugh, “Fine, let me rephrase.”
“Never have I regretted anything this much.” The simile slowly dissipated from the corner of his lips. What remained was utmost grief. Naina gulped at the sudden change of atmosphere and gulped.
Composing herself, she emphasized with austerity, “I’m sorry about your mother, Sameer.”
His face hardened at the mention of his mother and more so at her apology. He passed a long stare, debating whether to retort or forgive. His cold stare made her a little uncomfortable, yet she refused to shift her gaze, wanting to know what was going in his conflicted mind. For some peculiar reason she wanted to reach out to him, and she still felt she had the right to.
“It’s fine. It doesn’t matter much.” He shrugged indifferently, leaving Naina appalled.
He looked away and decided to descend down the stairs of the ladder when she probed, “How-where is she?”
He eyed her, suspiciously at first before pulling up a nonchalant look, “Probably killed herself.”
Naina gasped at his atrocious words before reprimanding lightly, “Sameer!”
“I don’t care!” He lashed out raising his head to meet hers as she clutched the parapet, far from his grasp but close enough to feel the tension brewing between them.
“You know that’s not true. You care, and we both know it.” She tried to pacify. His jaw clenched at her words as he realized how difficult it was to pretend around her.
When she received a long moment of silence in return, she continued, “How is she?”
“Let’s save that for another day, Naina.” He brushed off the matter and she understood he wouldn’t speak of it. Not tonight. Maybe sometime soon, she hoped.
Naina barely nodded before he left, not once turning around to face her. Her hands slipped from the parapet of her balcony as she heaved a sigh. Where had life brought them?
Preeti had just begun to squirm in bed, trying to hide from the morning sunlight when her eyes widened.
“Do you even sleep?” She questioned hysterically, opening one eye to check their digital clock. 7:47 AM.
Preeti rolled her eyes and sat on her elbows, waiting for an answer.
“Good morning to you too, dear sister.” Naina flaunted extra sweetly while taunting with a smile.
“So...how was your encounter with Sameer Maheshwari?” She smirked, asking for a daily dosage of gossip.
“Nothing that requires mentioning.” Naina quipped, turning back to facing the mirror as she tied her hair in a high ponytail.
“Oooh, secretive, are we?” Preeti cooed while Naina exhaled an exasperated sigh.
“You never get tired, do you?” Naina turned to her sister, fixing her outfit.
“Not when it involves people as interesting as you both.” Preeti smiled, getting off the bed. Inching towards her, she remarked while Naina applied a thin line of kohl under her eyes, “Why are you always dressed like this. Like someone from the army?”
Naina stiffened at the mention of the profession while Preeti realized her mistake all too soon.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it in that way.” She apologized, trying to decipher her sister’s emotions through the mirror hanging above the dresser.
“It’s fine.” Naina muttered under her breath while slithering past her to the door.
“Running away again, dear sister?” Preeti provoked, halting Naina in her tracks. She wished to rebut but ultimately decided otherwise, realizing she had no convincing excuse left to give to her sister.
Straightening the invisible creases on her black tee-shirt and slipping her cellphone in one of the upper pockets of her black pants, she answered, “Tell Chachiji I’ll be home in an hour.”
Naina had only started pacing on her bike when her ringtone interrupted, distracting her. At first she scrunched her eyebrows, wondering who could have possibly called her. She had informed her family members about her whereabouts; well she had instructed Preeti, but all the same. None of her other contacts knew about her new number, she didn’t find it necessary to inform distant relatives or schoolmates who hardly cared. And after last night’s fiasco, Naina had not been expecting Sameer to call. She figured he needed time and space. After all she had been asking for and fighting against the same all this while.
Pulling out her phone, she tensed at the unknown number. Looking around cautiously, she abandoned her bike to a side before stepping away into an isolated alley. Dubiously, she answered the call and put the phone to her ear.
“MXP, care to explain your actions?” A deep baritone voice erupted through the receiver.
Swallowing a lump, she got straight to the point, “How the hell do you have access to this number?”
A chuckle resonated from the other end causing Naina to grunt nervously, “We’re tracking your every breath, so don’t try to act smart with us.”
“I wasn’t. This is my personal phone and you should not be contacting me through this. Have you forgotten the protocol?” Naina challenged, her voice a little more tenacious than a few seconds ago.
“Don’t explain the rule book to me, MXP! I’d rather you explain your actions at the Library the other day. How dare you attack?!” His threat echoed in her ears.
“I should be questioning the same. That attack wasn’t part of the deal.” She rasped into the phone, although in hushed whispers.
“You seem very eager to reveal our motives and your identity to him. Do not forget, you are bound to us.” Naina’s face contorted at the reminder, at the situation life had put her in.
He continued, “You act this way, you pay for it. One step at a time, MXP. Do not even consider revealing our deal to him.”
“This sounds more of an order than a deal. Anyways, you hear me out too. You try to attack him, you’ll pay for it too. I will do anything to protect him. Consider this a warning and do not try to take this lightly.” She warned, austerity brimming in her voice.
“You do what you’re told to do, or else we’ll have to take strict measures against you and him.” His voice bellowed followed by a long beep, indicating he had hung up.
Her hand trembled, the device about to slip from her grasp. Clutching it tightly, she let a lone tear escape her reddened eyes. At least something was fortunate enough to escape this situation, this burden, this life.
A constant dribble echoed in his ears as he toyed with the tennis ball in hand. His interaction with her played on loop in his mind, leaving him perplexed. Sameer failed to understand her. At times she was so distant, so unfathomable. There was once a time when words weren’t needed to convey emotions between them. And now, it seemed as if words only added onto the growing burden of misunderstandings. Three years had indeed changed a lot. Changed him, changed her, changed them and their lives.
And yet there were times when she reminded him of the Naina Agarwal he knew, of the compassionate and understanding companion he once shared every feeling with. Like last night. Her orbs still held concern for him, her voice still had the soothing effect on him. How he wished he could liberate himself with her, free her and him of every barrier holding them back. How he wished they could revert to their old lives, when simplicity was everything. How he wished they could remain engulfed in the bond they had promised each other for an eternity.
“How I wish we weren’t like this, Naina.” Sameer whispered to himself, tossing the tennis ball in his hand.
Pramod Maheshwari seemed to have noticed the biting tension in the house, specifically in his son’s room. As he inched towards Sameer’s bedroom, he stopped at the threshold and remarked, “So you met Naina.”
Sameer grabbed the tennis ball in his hand as he looked up, his long, disheveled hair partially covering his eyes.
“I met her at the Navratri party. I thought you knew. From what I remember, you both had an unpleasant encounter too.”
Pramod cleared his throat at the incident and prowled at his son instead, “You both have clearly met after that evening, Sameer. What did she say to you that has left you so disturbed?”
“Nothing that concerns you, father.” Sameer spat, looking away.
“What has left you angry with me?” Pramod shrieked at his son’s obnoxious comment.
“Just because I sympathize with you does not mean everything is settled between us. You’ve had your share of mistakes, some of which have deeply affected my life, Dad.” Sameer’s face distorted in pain at the remembrance of old yet vivid memories.
Before he could express his guilt, he probed in urgency, “Have you told her something you shouldn’t have, Sameer?”
“Don’t worry. Your secret is safe. So is our deal.” Sameer brushed off indifferently, tossing the ball on the floor once again.
His father inched towards him and rested his hand on his shoulder, “I know how difficult this is for you. I know how much pain you’ve been going through, because of your mother, because of her.”
Sameer had taken in the consolation until his father mentioned her. Brushing off his father’s hand, he stood up to meet Pramod’s gaze, “Don’t bring her in this. This isn’t her fault.”
“Now see, that’s where you are wrong, Sameer. Don’t let her get to you this time. Don’t reveal our intentions this soon. Remember, one step at a time.” He alerted, with an underlying threat to his words.
“Don’t get so eager so soon, Mr. Maheshwari. Let me handle this. I know you’re aware of the incident at the Library. And I know you didn’t bother mentioning it to me beforehand.” Sameer rasped, catching his father off guard.
Pramod stuttered, “I-I was about to--”
“I don’t need an explanation.” Sameer intervened.
“I would never willingly harm her. I never want to hurt her. I’ll protect her, no matter what. So let me handle this. Don’t you dare do anything to her.” He may have lowered his voice, but his orbs raged with fury spoke volumes, even to a stern man as his father.
“How long will you cling onto the past, Sameer? Let it go.” Pramod advised as his son had turned his back to him.
Swiveling back Sameer whispered lifelessly, “Oh how I wish I could, Dad.”
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