Chapter 1

Dead eerie silence pervaded through every nook and cranny in the house. The walls bled with inky blackness absorbing every minute sound in its darkness. Nothing stirred. No rustling of leaves from the trees just outside the window, no creaking infrastructures of the pipes and woodwork nor even the rhythmic ticking of the bedside clock was heard as Ayesha lay prostrate on her bed holding her breath. Deep deathly silence. A bead of sweat trickled down her face. Eyes wide open straining to catch even an outline of a shape amid the blackout. The deep black void plunged her so deep that she was unable to let out so much as a quiver from her voice. She was terrified but could not shift any part of her now immobile body that lay frozen to her bedsheets. For there was something in here with her sitting at the corner of her room that glided over to her side. A shadow that grew and towered over her eclipsing the fraction of light left in her vision stifling and suffocating the the air around her while her breath hitched in her throat and she simply lay there helpless in utter terror while all her senses abandoned her. And her thudding heart came to a stop.

Ayesha opened her eyes to a racket of noise outside shattering the tranquility of the early hours of the morning. She had woken up drenched in sweat, her nightdress stuck to her skin and hair clung to her face and her first thought was to rectify her immediate discomfort. She slid her cover off and moved languidly towards the window, with heavy darkened eyes squinting against the harsh brightness of the morning that bathed her room from dark to light as she prised the curtains open. She pulled open her window inhaling a lungful of the fresh air drifting in, enjoying the breeze that rippled through her clothes drying out some of the night sweat.  She closed her eyes savouring its early morning coolness before the soaring summer heat that would later settle into the morning. 

Down below was the boy from next door who had been scrambling with his bike, a cigarrette in his mouth wearing just a rather ripped vest on tattered jeans,  with hair plastered to his skin a proof that he had been labouring away for quite some time in the heat. He had stopped at the sound of the creaking window and was watching her now. Silently.

She opened her eyes to his sight and felt a shiver raising her hairs on end over her body. There passed a good few seconds as the two watched each other and it felt like a never-ending moment although it was over in a matter of seconds.

Ayesha was rooted in spot transfixed by his gaze experiencing an odd sensation as if she had been through this before.  The boy took the cigarette from his mouth and flicked it away, he continued to eye her as if nothing else could intrigue him more, an ambiguous smile creeping on his lips that reached his eyes too. She returned the subtlest of a smile before pulling her curtains on him and steadied herself to sit on her bed again feeling slightly giddy.

'Ayesha, what are you like?' She said to herself shaking her head. She glanced back at the window and absent mindedly moved to it again peering out from the curtain half expecting to see him. But he had gone.

After a refreshing shower Ayesha slipped into a short summery dress and tied her hair into a ponytail before skipping down the stairs ready to satiate her morning appetite. Memories of the night completely erased with the brief encounter of morning promises. Just as she cane downstairs she was led to a sounds emanating from the living room. Ashi's voice? She sounded like she was out of breath. Ayesha was even more confused hearing another voice with her. What she saw made her stop in her tracks. Her older sister Ashi was snuggling with a boy in the sofa. He had his head buried in her long straight hair and his hand was moving up her thigh.

'Ewww! Chi, chi chi!!' Ayesha exclaimed making the both of them jump.

'Ayesh?!!!' Ashi straightened her dress and smoothed her hair in place while the boy moved away from her ackwardly and combed his hair back.

'How come you're still home! I thought you had class today?'

'I think I should be the one doing the questioning dont you think?'

'Umm, look I may have forgotten to tell you about Randeep' Ashi muttered blushing profusely.

'No kidding!' Ayesha replied appalled for them all and to have caught her own sister in a compromising position. 

'Hi little sister' Randeep interjected cheesily with a guilty look in his eyes. 

Ayesha threw him a sarcastic look and turned her attention to Ashi.

'Ashi how could you?! How long have you been sneaking away to be with your secret boyfriend huh?'

'It doesnt matter Ayesha, stop being so naive. We love each other and just needed some privacy, you know how dad is like.'

'Yeh but, why didnt you tell me? Im your sister. Does Kristina know?'

'Well.. she does only because-'

'I don't believe you Ashi.' Ayesha said disheartenedly and stormed out of the house in a huff. She was always the last to know about things and was getting sick of being second in line. She wouldn't tell on her of course, but she was itching to spill the beans simply because Kristina had been informed first, it affected her that people like Randeep or Kristina took priority to her in Ashis life. But then she decided to just blow off steam and walk it off that way because the last thing she wanted was to get Ashi in trouble from dad. She picked up her pace without looking behind her hearing the fading voice of her sister as she moved further away. And was so preoccupied by her thoughts that she failed to spot her stalker behind her. He had been on her tail since she left her house and was advancing closer to her. She spun on her heels and came face to face with the same boy she met that morning. In closer view he was very fair, with beauty spots marking his face and what he lacked in physique his boyish good looks made up for, his mass of curly hair was wet from the heat and clung to his forehead and he wore a serious expression on him as he surveyed her.

Ayesha took a step back and furrowed her eyes.

'What do you want?' Ayesha said half curious half alarmed that she had been followed.

'You dropped your bag. Here..' He took a cautious step towards her.

Ayesha took her bag and slung it on her shoulder.

'You came all this way to bring me my bag?'

'You know what they say, love thy neighbour. And since you're my next door neighbour..'

'Thanks' she muttered abashedly.

'Do you have a name?' he asked cooly.

'Its Ayesha'.

'Ahh so your name is as pretty as your face.' He teased.

She blushed, she wasn't used to flattery of this sort, from a boy atleast. 

'Whats your name?' she said quickly trying to divert attention away to a new topic but failing miserably as he smirked seemingly at her embarrassment.

'Raghav. I just wondered if you are alright, seeing as you're new to town..walking all this way alone is not really safe you know..' 

Ayesha became aware of the distance he was breaching as he took another step closer.

'I can keep you company till you reach to wherever you want to reach.' He said enigmatically studying her reaction as she looked away conscious of his gaze on her.

'Uh...thats ok.. thanks. I was just heading to the grocers, which is.. right here..'  Ayesha mumbled and walked backward feeling somewhat unsettled. Raghav brushed a hand through his hair smiling at her.

'Alright, well..was nice meeting you..catch you later' he winked and headed back. Ayesha watched him disappear into distance and a thought sauntered to her mind. Love? Beware thy neighbour more like.