**SCARS** - SanDhir FF (CH6 - REAL FRESHERS PARTY; UPDATED @ PAGE 29) - Page 2

"Earth to Sanyukta.."

"Huh?"
Ela was looking at her like she had grown horns.
"Where are you? And why aren't you eating?"
"I don't know.. I..

"Hey guys!!" someone shouted from behind her making her jump.

"Adi! You idiot!" cried Sanyukta.

"Helllooo ladies! You all look beautiful."
Aditya was wearing a t-shirt captioned 'Drink bear save water, have bath with the neighbor's daughter.'
Sanyukta looked in time to see Sneha choke on her orange juice after seeing that. People were laughing at him...but that's what Adi did. He had gelled up his hair in weird spikes and had an ear pierced. He always made sure he looked distinctive.

On session first days the breakfast was especially delicious. Everyone ate in excitement, that is, everyone except Sanyukta.

The bell rang again. It was time for assembly.

"Form a line all of you. Girls and Boys separate." Pr. Vinita Joshi shouted from across the hall.
All the students headed for the quadrangle. Mount Carmel's Quadrangle was huge. Olympian size, as it was the one place which connected the three campus buildings together. The school students, intermediate students and college goers all attended the assembly here. Usually the assemblies were held on the intercom.. but on every Wednesday and any other special occasion the assemblies were held here.

The college students were on their way to the assembly when Sanyukta asked..
"Where's Tanisha? Kahi dikhayi nahi de rhi? Aur Paras..?"
"Arre.. wo Tanisha toh university entrance pass nahi kar paayi.. so she had to leave. She has taken admission in some college in Kolkata I've heard." Tami replied.
"Kya? Really? That's sad.. I can't even imagine how miserable I would be if I had to leave MCA, or either of you for that matter!"
"Yeah.."
"Paras toh abroad chala gaya.. London. Graduation whi se karega.." Ela said.
"Good. I won't have to look at his face now." Tami frowned.

Paras was Tami's boyfriend until last fall.. But they had a bitter breakup.

"Well... ye kyun nhi chali gyi..! Someone go and tell her that she's not needed here." Ela was talking about Vidushi Kumar. Vidushi was their class mate who had joined MCA in the intermediate at the same time Ela and Tami had joined. Clearly Vidushi and her friends hated Tami, Ela and her friends. MCA's population was divided into the cool and the not-so-cool students. But the cool themselves had several different groups among themselves. Specially the girls. Vidushi walked the earth like she ruled it which annoyed everyone, mostly Tami and Ela. Today she had a grey sweatshirt and shorts on. The shortest shorts you would ever see.

"Usse chod na! Waise iss baar I've heard that ST. Laurels se bahot saare students yahan college me admission le rhe hai.."
"Haan...aur .."

"Miss Tamanna Qureshi and Miss Elakshi Rao! Have you girls forgotten which house you both belong to?" It was Pr. Vinita again. The girls in their banter had forgotten that they had to join their house mates.

Sanyukta looked at them moving towards the South house rows.
"These two are so hot. Paras and Tami have broken up. Maybe she'll go out with me now.." She overheard some guys talk about them. She looked over. Tough luck Pranay, she thought because knowing Tami she wouldn't be interested in a guy like him.
Sanyukta knew both Tami and Ela too well now. When they had first entered school she had thought they were snooty and arrogant bimbos, but gradually she got to know them better and realized that they were both incredibly good people at heart. Before them, Sanyukta used to hang out with a lot of people...but none were as close to her as these two are now. She trusted them more than her friends of eight years. They smiled at her from across the row.

North House rows were standing to the right along with East House.

The college students were standing to the far behind.

For some inexplicable reason, now that Sanyukta wasn't distracted and wasn't talking to Ela or Tami she started feeling paranoid again. The entire student body had settled down now and Pr. Nandita Walia took over the mike on the stage.
"Good morning students. Today is the first day of the session and..."

Sanyukta was anxious again. Every moment she was feeling more and more uneasy.
She was afraid for some reason. Why? What is wrong with me? She questioned herself.
Sanyukta had the weird sensation that she was in danger. That the danger was heading towards her. It was threateningly close to her. She looked around. All she could see was a swarm of colourfully dressed students. She craned her neck to look further. No, nothing peculiar.

Meanwhile the Principle of MCA was called over to the stage. Pr. Anita Desai walked over and smiled coldly at the crowd.
"Next we call upon our guest speakers for the day, who have taken out the time from their busy schedule to address you all here and share a few words of encouragement. First, please welcome with a warm round of applause business tycoon and successful entrepreneur Mr. Dev Singh Shekhawat."

Sanyukta clapped distractedly. She didn't even look at the man walking over the dais. She was in danger. She knew. She was looking around everywhere to notice something, anything that could possibly cause her harm.

"Also we request..."

Sanyukta's heart was thudding painfully in her ears. Just then Tanvi called her from behind. She turned.
"Hey Sanyu? Tujhe pata hai.. ye Dev Singh Shekhawat ka beta bahot.."

"...Mr. Ashok Rai to come upon the dais. He is a huge name in the Indian Publishing Industry and..."

Sanyukta turned around in shock. Had she heard right?
Yes... She had. Because there he was. Onstage.

He was here. He was actually here. Was she having a nightmare again? This man whom she had last seen ten years ago was here. He was here. Ashok Rai was standing in front of her. In her school.
The man onstage was smiling at the crowd.

Sanyukta couldn't breath. The air reaching her lungs was too shallow.
He was here to hurt her again. Yes, he would hurt her again. That's what he is here for.

Bile was rising in her throat. Her sight was getting blurred.
She was going to fall... Like she fell in those nightmares everytime. She was going to fall here...again.

Her knees gave away and she collapsed.
Before hitting the ground she felt a pair of hands on her waist for a second and the next moment, for the first time in her life...
she blacked out.

...