FF : Curiouser and Curiouser!(Ch17pg104)DISCONTINED.See Pg106 - Page 63

Originally posted by: bookworm-ALS--

Chapter 14 : Strategies.

The first time she had seen Abhay, Nalki had been drinking his blood, having a little fun on the side after the ball had ended. Neither of them had seen her at first, and Piya had watched, in horror that grew from a ball in her stomach to bile in her throat, threatening to consume her if she stood by and watched anymore.

Because she could see the Mutant's eyes in the darkness, and they were dead. As though there was nothing in them anymore. It was the first time she had seen a mutant.

She had never been able to stop the scream that rose out of her throat.

Nalki hadn't stopped, but the Mutant's gaze had turned to her, and for the first time she saw it in his face - the terrible humiliation and pain.

She blinked, and then strode forward. "Nalki!" Nalki did not release the Mutant immediately, but after a few seconds, he did. The Mutant fell to its knees, falling on the ground.

"Nalki, you will release him immediately," she told him coolly.

"Why?" said Nalki. "I was merely snacking."

"Because," she replied, "I want this one."

Nalki bowed. "As you wish, my lady."

He'd left then, and she fell to her knees beside the Mutant whose eyes were the bluest blue she had ever seen. Whose eyes were closed now.

She dug into the handbag she always carried and pressed the pain-reliever and antiseptic mixture into the wound at his neck, willing his eyes to open again.

The Mutant gave a low moan, and she applied more pain reliever on the wound. "It will be all right soon," she said softly. "Very soon."

Voices reached her ears. Women laughing, men talking. If they saw...

"I have to go," she murmured. "You take care of yourself."

She applied a final film of antiseptic and pain reliever onto his neck, adjusted his face into a better position, and somehow managed to drag him to the side, so that he would at least be concealed unless someone was looking for him.

Then she rose to her feet, turned on her heel and left, little realising that the Mutant was watching her go, wonder and awe in the eyes she had so admired.

"My, my. Look at that face!" Radhika's effervescent voice broke into Piya's musings. She blinked, realising swiftly that it was lunch break. The staff room had several people moving around, but it seemed as though no one had paid attention to her. Luckily.

Radhika sat down in front of her, and Piya blinked as she laid eyes on her new bag : heavily sequinned and in about four colour, eye-catching was an understatement to describe it. "Nice," she said dryly, sipping her now-cold cup of tea.

Radhika grinned.

Over the last week, the two of them had become firm friends. Piya, who had had very few real friends in the past six decades, and none female, had found herself drawn to the other woman's lively chatter, quirky accessories, and unconventional opinions. She could not say what it was that had made Radhika single her out, though, and she hadn't the courage to ask her yet.

Radhika dismissed the bag with a flick of her hand. "Forget that. What had you looking like romantic heroine? I half expected you to sigh."

Piya scrambled to form an answer. "I- er- really liked the book you sent me yesterday," she said at last, and it was not a lie. She had liked it.

Radhika grinned. "The book, or Mr.Knightley?"

"The book," said Piya firmly, but a hint of colour crept up her cheeks obstinately.

Radhika nodded sagely. "I see. The denial stage. Good, good. You can keep it for a few more days."

"Oh- but I-" Piya pulled out the book from her own, less eye-catching handbag. "I brought it back for you-"

Radhika shook her head and covered Piya's hand. "Keep it with yourself. You can return it to me later."

She smiled at Radhika, who said, "Listen, I don't like it here. Want to come to the drama room?"

Piya looked at her in surprise. "Why?"

Radhika shrugged. "Tell you there."

She rose, and Piya followed her out of the room.

"Right," said Radhika, plunking herself down on a chair and gesturing Piya to sit. "The thing is," she began, "I've been hearing gossip about you."

Piya blinked. "Me?"

"You know Arjun Roy? Student Counsellor?"

The man was a big time loner. She'd passed him a few times, and he could've put any Mutant to shame with his aloofness. The most he'd ever said to her was "Nice to meet you."

"I know him," said Piya. "What about him?"

"Rumour has it..." Radhika took a deep breath and leaned forward. "That he's smitten. By you!"

Piya burst out laughing. "You're crazy!"

Radhika smirked. "No, I'm not."

She leaned closer and said in a low voice, "I've heard talk. I heard them say he's always looking at you. And those flowers on your desk yesterday? Those weren't kept by a student."

Piya frowned. "Who then?"

"Arjun, who else?" said Radhika. "Mrs.Dhawan saw him buy the flowers in the morning. So there!"

Piya stared at her for a full ten seconds, then burst out laughing. "Nice. Good one. You had me going there."

Radhika snorted. "Fine, don't believe it."

"Hey, come on!" said Piya.

"He could have bought it for another girl. Or- or someone dead. And it could be a student. It could be a coincidence! Wait, I'll talk to you in your language-" She racked her head, then finally spouted, "There is nothing more deceptive than an obvious fact!"

Having quoted Sherlock Holmes back at Radhika, Piya leaned back with no small sense of satisfaction- the disbelieving expression of Radhika's face was very enjoyable.

Eventually, her friend composed herself enough to say, "I knew I shouldn't have given you that book. No more Sherlock Holmes for you. Come, we'll prove it. Or I'll prove it, and you can hide and just listen."

"Radhika!" said Piya, annoyed. "I just told you-"

"Lalalalala, I can't hear you!" said Radhika, stuffing her fingers into her ears. "Now move your lazy behind! We're going hunting."

She caught Piya's arm and half-dragged her outside the room. "Radhika, what are you planning? Radhika, don't be rash. Radhika, there's no need!" hissed Piya under her breath, trying to look as though she was walking of her own free will, giving tight smiles to the students who turned to stare.

Radhika huffed. "I do not argue with obstinate men. I act in spite of them."

Piya blinked. "Who-what-"

Radhika grinned. "I'll tell you if you start walking. I'll drag you if you don't. Thirty minutes still left, you know."

She chose the first option.

They found Mr Roy in one of the classrooms, doodling something on a notebook with his pen. "Ooh, doesn't he look all scholarly with those glasses?"

Piya hadn't thought about it, but as they watched, she realised Mr Roy was rather good looking. In a scholarly way, as Radhika said.

"All right," said Radhika. "I'm going in. You- stay pressed here, and don't start moving when I go. You're going to stay and hear me out."

Piya fished in her bag for her planner and a pen, attempting to look as if it was usual for her to be standing in a corridor.

Radhika stalked inside with a flourish. "Hello, Arjun."

She could hear his deeper voice. "Good afternoon, Radhika Ma'am."

"Oh, do drop the Ma'am," Radhika trilled. "You're not my student."

She heard the clearing of a male throat, then nothing. "Actually, I wanted to ask you something, if you don't mind, Arjun?"

"Oh? No- no, of course not, Radhika Ma'am."

"Are you interested in Piya?"

Silence, then Piya heard Radhika again. "You know? New Chemistry teacher?"

A clearing of his throat again. "I don't think-"

"Don't think," said Radhika. "Just say yes or no, because someone was asking if he could date her, you know? Now, listen- I like you, and I thought you liked her, so I said I'd ask her and see, and I haven't asked her yet. So- what do you say?"

"Radhika Ma'am-"

"But it's all right if you don't, of course," came Radhika's smooth voice. "No problem, no hard feelings. I'll just-"

"Wait," came Roy's voice. "It's not that. I do like her, but-"

Pause. "But?" said Radhika.

Piya's pen slipped out of her hand, and she bent down to retrieve it, her head swimming in shock.

"I don't think she's interested in me," he said. "It would be foolish to-"

"My dear, dear Arjun," said Radhika, "How can she be, unless she knows you better? You know what? Ask her out."

"Right- right now?"

"No, I wasn't suggesting that," said Radhika. "Sometime later in the day, or the week? That's up to you. So, should I talk to her?"

"No!" insisted Arjun in a surprisingly strong voice. "Absolutely not- please."

"As you say," said Radhika. "See you around, Arjun."

"Yes, uh, thank you."

Piya was still standing there in shock when Radhika came to her. "Well? Am I right, or am I right?"

Piya turned to her slowly. "Can we not talk about this right now? I need time... I can't-"

Her friend's eyes softened. "No problem."

Chatterbox Radhika said not a word when break ended and both went to their respective classes- ironically, it was the first years Piya had next.

She set them all an impromptu test, using the silence to sit at her desk and think.

Arjun Roy. He was good looking, she knew that. A bit shy, too perhaps. Which wasn't bad either.

But she didn't know him.

Yet, a voice which sounded like Radhika spoke in her head.

What would Abhay say? She thought. Would he be angry at her again? But for what? She hadn't even agreed to date anyone. And why shouldn't she? If she was going to living in the human world, what harm was there in interacting with some of them? Hanging out with them? Going out with them?

Humans were nice. Many of them had treated her with respect and liking.

Wait, why was she even considering this? Arjun hadn't even asked her yet. She ought to think about it later.

Decision made, she pushed the matter to the back of her head.

When class got over, she collected everyone's papers and began to shuffle them into a neat pile as the students began moving out.

"Here- you dropped one."

Piya looked up to see that Abhay was holding one of the answer sheets. "Right, thanks," she said, hurriedly averting her eyes from him. Why was she feeling so guilty?

"Are you all right?" Abhay enquired.

"What? Oh, yes, yes, of course I am," Piya replied. "Thanks."

Abhay scrutinized her face, but found nothing, except that she was flustered. Possibly because she had dropped a sheet.

"Well- all right then," he said finally, and left.

Piya exhaled in relief when he left, and then was instantly annoyed. Why was she feeling guilty? Abhay didn't see her that way. She shouldn't see him that way. They were two strangers who had once been friends. They were supposed to be related now.

If she stayed all the time around Abhay, she would never get over him, she knew that well enough. She ought to open her mind to other people.

It wouldn't be easy, she knew. But humans had been doing it for ages. She could do it too, couldn't she?

Abhay went back to his friends, to see Misha and Sumit eagerly debating the pros and cons of the latest Khan movie. T stood a little apart from them, staring off into space. She turned and gave him a slight smile. T had warmed up to him eventually, even though she still spoke little. Mostly, she seemed to be watching people. Which made Abhay wary of her.

"I'm telling you-"

"No, you listen to me!"

T and Abhay exchanged commiserating glances with each other as the four of them walked down the corridor. Sumit threw up his hands at last. "Fine. Fine! You win. All right? Happy?"

Misha grinned smugly. "So what are we doing tonight?"

"Tonight?" Abhay echoed. Every weekend, Misha wanted an outing. Last week, she'd taken them for dinner, and had fought long and hard when Abhay and Sumit wanted to pay the bill. They won, of course, but only because of T, who'd somehow managed to say a few quiet, well chosen words that made Misha give in.

"Let's go see a movie tonight," said Misha, and named one Hollywood movie that had done very well in recent days. "You lot in?"

They all said their yeses, Abhay with some reluctance. The last time, he'd refused, citing homework, but Chand and Haseena, and even Piya had promised him that she would be absolutely fine, because she would not be leaving the house. Nothing had happened so far, but Abhay didn't want to leave anything to chance. But if he kept refusing, then they'd be bound to suspect something sooner or later. And he couldn't have that.

Not for the first time, he thought irritatedly of Piya becoming a teacher. Why had she done such a think anyway without even asking him first? It made protecting her that much more difficult if they were hanging out with different people.

Between classes, he had kept track of her, having memorised her time table. Even so, he was on tenterhooks, knowing it would only take a few minutes if she was discovered. Minutes he might as well-

He spotted her then, walking with the Literature professor. Out of the corner of his eyes, he watched the two women move slightly ahead, apparently deep in talk, but nevertheless not out of his sight.

"Here," said Radhika, handing her phone back to her. "I programmed Arjun's number in your phone. So if you feel like calling him, don't hesitate!"

Piya blinked. "Am I supposed to call first?"

"Well..." Radhika shrugged. "It's a modern age. You do what you like!"

Smiling, she walked off.

Piya hung back, waiting for Abhay to come so they could leave.

He arrived five minutes later, his face grim.

***********

Ricardia :

Kraya stared wordlessly at her brother. "You...you can't do this," she begged him. "You mustn't."

Her brother looked at her as one might look at a stray animal following a man back to his house. "Go home, Kraya. Politics is not for you."

Kraya watched in disbelief as her brother walked away. Her brother, whom she'd begged and pleaded so she could save his soul. Out for power, for vengeance.

Out to destroy their nation for the whims of a madman. She stared up at the moon in the sky, then, bones started cracking in the deserted alley.

Where one a tall, dark haired woman had stood, there stood a large wolf with black fur... And hazel coloured eyes.

The wolf howled to the moon, a call of loss and longing, and seconds later, it was running, running through the alleys of the city, undetected till it reached a modest looking house, whereupon it lifted it's front paw to the door, which clicked open.

The wolf walked in and pushed the door closed with its nose. Bones reformed and shifted into the woman Kraya once more, the pale skin of her face no longer hiding her tears.

***********************

Faye :

"Sir?" The Strategist known as Anthony Weiss waited till the Head Strategist had finished speaking with Dahlia before speaking. "Sir, this is about the Mutants."

The Head Strategist's eyebrows rose, and Anthony doubted himself again. Everyone knew that the Head Strategist held Mutants in discernible contempt. Would he listen to Anthony?

"My quarters, Weiss," said the Head simply, and strode ahead. Anthony followed him to the private office of the Head Strategist, where, being a very new recruit, he had never stepped in before. He controlled the urge to look around, however, and instead focused on the man in front of him.

"Take a seat, Weiss," said his superior formally.

"Please state your business," he said, leaning back and closing his eyes once Anthony is seated.

"Sir- the fact is that a routine check was performed last week on the number of Mutants, especially with the new pool coming in from Europe," he started. "The overall total is now one hundred and fifty six."

He produced a folder and lay it in front of the Head, but there was no response. Anthony wondered if the man was even listening, and for a few seconds he went silent, debating with himself once again.

"Weiss, when do you continue?"

The soft question, asked without opening his eyes, jolted Anthony into speech.

"Sir- sir, actually, I went into the archives for a full headcount on Mutants since the beginning," he said. "I- I did this as I had a suspicion that some Mutants are missing."

Night- black eyes opened and looked directly. "Continue."

He took a deep breath. "There has been a total of three hundred and twenty nine Mutants converted since 1953. Out of them, we have lost a total of fifty three Mutants since now in various casualties."

He produced a thick file and kept it on the desk. "I also added the recent losses- seven in the Faye-Ricardia border skirmish. One presumed dead, who was guarding the Princess. One has been...out of action," he said guardedly.

"With all these addition, the total comes up to sixty-two," he said. "That leaves us with approximately one hundred and eleven missing, with no records."

There was no mistaking that the Head Strategist was now very, very interested. "When did you discover this interesting fact?" He asked Anthony.

"Last week, Sir," he answered. "My superior in the Monitoring and Archiving department considered it a calculation mistake, but I don't agree, Sir."

"My apologies," he added hastily. "But if you would just look at this-"

He produced another folder. "This has the details of the missing Mutants. If you'll go through them, Sir, you'll realize that-"

The Head Strategist held up a hand to silence him, then reached for the folders.

Anthony watched him go through the details he'd painstakingly collected, hoping it wouldn't get trashed. And he wouldn't lose his job.

After about a half hour, the Head finally spoke. "How many people worked with you on this, Weiss?"

"No one, Sir."

"No one?" The reprimand held an edge.

"Just one, Sir. Vir Saldani. He helped with the missing Mutants."

"Very well. And the head of your department is-?"

"Pierre Knox, Sir."

"Pierre Knox, " repeated the Head. "This is the one who had said your findings were an error?"

"Sir."

He didn't want to speak against his superiors.

The Head Strategist regarded him coolly for a moment, then rose. "How many people have access to these details, Weiss? To all the details of each and every Mutant?"

The question surprised him, but then he remembered that the Head Strategist, too, was relatively new.

"Sir, it is accessible to anyone in the Omnius, should they look for it," he answered.

He had the strange sense that his answer displeased the Head immensely. He simply asked him, however, "What are your views on Mutants, Weiss?"

Anthony had been expecting it, and had prepared accordingly. "Sir, I have never disagreed with the official policy."

"Weiss, if you do not speak frankly to me, you will lose your job," said the Head Strategist in a quiet threat. "What are your views on Mutants?"

He swallowed several times before he said, "Sir- with all due respect, with no offense intended- I do not believe that Mutants are being treated fairly."

Dead silence. Anthony ploughed on relentlessly. Might as well say everything.

"Sir, I believe they would...they would serve us better if they were treated with respect. I do not believe they are emotionless monsters."

The man in front stared at him with those penetrating black eyes that reminded him of lasers.

The Head Strategist was a dangerous man, but he held his gaze.

"Arrange it to be deleted from the common archives," he told Weiss after a minute. "Only the people working in Monitoring and Archiving will have access to this kind of details on the Mutants, and that too after obtaining video and written permits from the Queen Alizia, or myself."

"But, Sir-"

"You, too will have access," he said, almost as if to himself.

"Of course, at the end of each week, you will send your reports to me, Weiss," he continued. "Reports detailing if and why you accessed the details on Mutants."

"But, Sir- I don't have the authorty to-"

"You do now," he was told. "Congratulations. You are now officially the new Head of Monitoring and Archiving."

He turned, typed in something in the wall-length computer behind him, which sprang to life.

"Your finger prints on this, please."

In shock, Anthony put his right palm down on the pad put in front of him, which glowed green.

Five seconds later, the cool female voice echoed around the Omnius, "Anthony Weiss is now Head of Monitoring and Archives, replacing Pierre Knox."

Anthony stared at the man in front of him.

"Thank you," he was told. "You may go over your duties now. A file has been sent to your date system already. I expect you to be following my directions within an eighteen-hour-gap. I hope you understand that it is of paramount importance?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Very good. You will please send Pierre Knox and Vir Saldana to me when you leave."

It was an order and a dismissal, and Anthony recognised it. "Yes, Sir. At once."

The Head Strategist inclined his head, and Anthony let himself out.

He made the way to his department, stopping to answer the congratulations of Strategists passing by.

His friend, Vir Saldana looked exultant when they met, if a bit nervous on hearing that he was asked to go to the Head Strategist. His superior, Knox, developed a strange dilation in his eyeballs before his face became stony on being told the same thing.

Before the sun rose, another circular went around the Omnius, announcing that Vir Saldana of Monitoring and Archiving was being shifted to the Tests and Technology department.

No circulars went out, but the rumours began to spread slowly but surely through the Omnius that Pierre Knox had lost his job. No one knew why.

No one would also know that the man would be deported out of Faye the next night.

The Head Strategist watched the sun rise in front of him as he placed his hand on one of the many identification devices outside his house.

Completing the procedure, the Head Strategist went inside his house, locked the door and leaned against the wall, becoming a vampire called Siddharth as his emotions rose to the surface.

Fixing himself a tumbler of blood, he downed it quickly, then pressed a series of buttons that opened a hidden staircase that went to the basement.

The basement of Siddharth's house was built for emergencies such as high- intensity bombing, nuclear blasts or tornadoes. It was, in a sense, now more fully stocked than the house. Especially the bedchamber.

Siddharth entered the bedroom, his eyes moving over the still-unmoving body of Mutant 14003.

He needed answers. And for that, he needed her to wake up.

He moved closer, checking her vitals. All were steadily becoming normal. A day more at most for her to wake up, he reflected.

***********************

Ricardia :

The leader stared around at his men, and not one of them met his gaze. "You have failed to capture the Mutant," he said coldly. "You will now go after the Princess. You will not fail me. I have forgiven you this mistake, but no more. Do you understand?"

The men gave their assents, and left.

The leader walked from the room into a corridor, where a man was strapped to a bed, tubes and pipes all over him. He knew, even though no one else did, how useful this man would be. Even if he wasn't the Mutant he'd sought.

Dehradun :

Piya waited till they were in the car and moving before she blurted out, "What have I done now?"

Abhay glanced at her. "What?"

"Say it out loud and get it over with," said Piya, fighting not to squirm in her seat at his gaze.

"Say wh- oh. No, you haven't done anything," said Abhay. "It's...it's my own problems."

Relief surged through her, followed by concern for him, and then guilt for being selfish enough to feel relieved that she had done nothing wrong.

"What happened?" She asked him. "That is..if you don't mind telling me."

Over the past days, they'd settled on a tentative form of truce-friendship. Abhay mostly stayed around her out of college, but even then, he was mostly chatting with his friends on his phone.

At first, she'd felt hurt and abandoned, but then she'd started having her own chats with Radhika, who always had something to say about anything in the world. She'd given Piya an assortment of her books, saying that she'd had a "feeling" Piya liked books.

Piya got the feeling that Radhika wasn't quite the definition of a usual human, but somehow, she didn't care- she liked her. Radhika had an uncanny way of talking to people as though she knew everything about them, and though it had unnerved Piya at first, most days it was just comforting.

But this, in turn, meant that she spent little time talking to Abhay. And it made her a little more relaxed in his presence, a little less self conscious, though her infatuation- she could only call it that- hadn't dimmed.

Even so, she trusted him implicitly, and sometimes she felt as though he trusted her, too. Which was why she asked him the question now.

"You know it's Friday night," he said. "Misha wants to go for a movie tonight. I don't like leaving you."

Piya swallowed as she realised what he was saying. "Abhay...what's the problem? I don't mind. Why do you? They're your friends. You deserve it."

"Piya-"

"I have my own protection," she continued, her voice firm. "Chand and Haseena will take care of me. I won't leave the house. There is no danger. You don't have to worry. Please. Go."

Abhay said nothing. What would he tell her? He couldn't very well tear into her for not being a student, hence not being a part of the group. Not when she was being kind and understanding. It would hurt her feelings and then they would have a fight. He hated fighting with her.

"Hey." She touched his elbow, quite oblivious to the sparks shooting up his arm. "Please. Stop worrying about me. It's only a few hours."

He shook his head. "I need to talk to them."

Piya didn't say anything else, and she removed her hand from his elbow. She leaned her head against the window, trying to understand what she was feeling now.

There didn't seem to be any inside her, and then she knew how she felt. Empty.

When they reached the house she got off and went inside without bothering to wait for Abhay. She therefore missed the slight frown creasing his face as he watched her go inside, then followed.

An hour later, having showered and changed into capris and a tee, Piya put her hair up and went to read up more on Chemistry. There was so much to read, so much information.

Abhay, having discussed it with Chand and Haseena, made his way to his room. He stopped at the doorway of Piya's room, his insides contracted when he saw her sprawled on the bed with a book, most of her legs on display.

Her hair was still up.

He didn't know why he should be feeling irritated, but he was. Acting on instinct, he moved so that he was standing behind her in a matter of seconds. Her hairclip took the merest half-second to open, letting the mass of hair cascade down to her back.

Piya jumped up in shock. "What-"

Her eyes fell on Abhay, now holding the butterfly clip in one hand.

"What the-"

Shock gave way to irritation, and she lunged for the clip, only to have Abhay move it out of her reach. "What the hell is this?"

Abhay ignored her and began playing with it, opening and closing it, making clicking sounds.

"Abhay! What's wrong with you?"

He turned to her, the blue in his eyes like liquid as a small smirk played on his lips. "Why d'you wear your hair up at home when you hate it?"

"Because I don't want to have it falling over my face, and for god's sake, this isn't the first time- Wait. How do you know that?"

Abhay raised an eyebrow. "I know many things."

She glowered at him. "Give it back."

He stepped back several paces, now playing with the clip by throwing it up in the air and catching it. Piya got off the bed, running her hands through her untidy hair in a subconscious effort to tame it a bit.

"Give that back," she told him.

"Come here and take it," he said, as he threw it up and caught it again.

Watching it, Piya made another lunge for it, but he still avoided her hands. Carried forward by her own momentum, she rammed into him, would have carried them both to the ground if his free hand hadn't come to grip her waist, steadying them both.

She stared up at him, forgetting to be cross when he held her like that, because she clearly was a moron... And because she saw the light in his eyes. The wicked, wicked Mutant had been playing with her, and she'd just fallen headlong into it.

She pushed away from him and made a grab for the clip again, but he easily circumvented her attempts, making her groan in frustration.

After two more failed attempts, she gave up and went the whole hog at him : She pushed him to the floor so that he fell, with her on top of him.

She had no idea she was laughing as she wrestled him for the clip and he rolled over sideways, grinning too.

"God, Abhay, just stop and give me the clip," she gasped through giggled. "Hey, who's stopping you from taking it?" he replied.

She didn't know when it happened, but something shifted when he twisted sideways from another grabbing attempt, so that he was now on top of her.

The smile left his face, and he gazed down at her, those blue eyes liquid again - but not with teasing. For a few seconds, both stared at each other. Piya's breaths sounded loud to her in the sudden silence, and Abhay's were quick and shallow. She was suddenly conscious that she was wearing only a tee and shorts.

His hands came to cradle her face, pushing away strands of her hair.

She stared up at him, with dark brown eyes that were as liquid as his.

His hand went under her head, burying itself among her hair. She went still, her eyes closing of their own accord as he bent down...

His lips touched her forehead. Her nose.

And then he let go of her and moved away so fast it was almost like a whiplash, and Piya lay on the ground and stared at him as he got to his feet, the expression in his eyes clouded and distant.

He bent down and picked her clip off the ground, then offered a hand to her. She took it, dazed, as he helped her to her feet.

What had just happened?

Then she heard footsteps in the corridor, and she suddenly realized. "Piya, I thought that you might-"

Haseena broke off on seeing Abhay. "Oh. I see."

"It's fine, Mom," Abhay stressed the last word as he moved away. "I only came to say goodbye- I should go."

She watched him leave in a daze, and only when her palm began to hurt did she realise that Abhay had closed her fingers over the clip. He'd given it back.

It didn't feel like a victory.

PS. Comments make me want to update. Hint hint😆 Also, Radhika's quote on acting in spite of obstinate men? Taken from a Hercule Poirot book.

Originally posted by: .SmokeySilence.

EDITED

Abhay's reaction was somewhat how i expected and same goes for Piya. she thought he will be impressed by her but his reaction hurt her naturally. glad they also made up for that later and Abhay praised her. radhika kandpal reminds me of someone 😆 Sumit wants to date her hahaha and Abhay mustn't be happy with it 😆

Who? Who does Radhika remind you of?😆

Sid was nice. it was very kind of him to heal the mutants with others wont do and he even got medicines secretly for it. that involves some danger too still he did. what's his relation here with Abhay or piya or with the story? offcourse you wont tell before time 😛 just asking 😆

Uh...see, I'm planning this to be a real series someday so Sid would be the protagonist in the second book so...😆

What is Misha and T 😲 that was unexpected if they turn out to be supernaturals. and Chand is still keeping news for Faye? is it for himself or Piya? too much questions I guess.

Yeah, abhi toh party shuru hui hai😆

waiting for next update