Chapter 7
Monday had finally arrived Zoya woke up with a new sense of excitement and enthusiasm after getting ready she made her way down to the pickup point she knew Kiran was going to be running late so didn't wait for her. As she waited for the bus she could see a good number of students congregate out side pickup point A where the bus for C.M.D.F.A came. Zoya looked around her there were a lot more new faces she noticed, she quickly jumped on the bus as it parked up and took her seat looking out the window she saw Indu, Sam and Naveen run for the bus making it just in time.
On the other side Leya, Sofia and Zack waited patiently for their bus to arrive, which was now five minutes late. Karan came down with Yash and Rohan, Leya nearly lost her balance seeing him, Karan seemed to have that effect on a lot of girls but Leya she was definitely something else. Karan who had his own car teased his little group of friends as he walked past see 'see you guys soon...' He shouted as he jumped into his car and sped off. 'So rude...didn't even offer us a lift' Leya pouted Zack started to laugh 'Leya firstly it's a two seater so do the math and secondly Karan never lets anyone sit with him...he is more of a lone rider' 'what...not even you guys, what kind of a friend is he?' she had never heard anything so weird 'well you see guys are an exception to the rule we get to jump in from time to time but girls...nope...never...no way in hell'.
Students from both colleges had their work cut out for them their day was jam packed, where Zoya and the other medical students were stuck in back to back lectures all day, on the other side Karan and his colleagues were attending various workshops and classes.
After a long day Zoya was too exhausted to walk back, she met up with Kiran and Indu and waited for the bus she couldn't wait to get back home, she needed her bed.
It wasn't just the first day the whole week followed a similar pattern, week upon week their respective courses and studies intensified, giving them little time to socialise, at present the only social life they had was when they all met up to catch the bus.
Zoya had neatly fitted into her own little routine. She was always up early due to her prayer time, she would walk to college as part of her keep fit regime and spend her time in the library until lectures started she always took the bus back to halls. In the evening she would go to the gym for an hour, spend a short time filling her stomach up and then studied until she fell asleep.
Zoya sat in the library she had a pathology test and wanted to make sure she covered everything. At the same time Dr. Amraan and Dr. Mehak walked past, Dr. Armaan had seen Zoya in the library a lot, especially in the mornings. He had been made aware by many senior doctors how well Zoya was doing, she was always amongst the top three when it came to grades 'I can really see this girl excel, she seems so dedicated' he said to Dr Mehak 'one of very few who takes this seriously, a lot of students don't realise how hard it can become once you start slacking' Dr. Armaan nodded in agreement and they continued to walk past.
Indu, Sam and Atul stood outside the lecture hall all in a panic 'I can't remember a thing, I am so badly going to fail' Sam moaned 'Join the club' Atul said, Zoya caught the end of their conversation as she walked towards them 'guys you need to stop stressing, if you get all worked up then obviously your brain is going to be able to concentrate' Zoya's words fell on deaf ears she didn't know what to do so left them in their state of mind.
As everyone took their seats the invigilators came round and placed the test papers in front of them 'ok you have exactly one hour and fifteen minutes and your time started now' as soon as he said now everyone turned over their papers. 'Ya Allah please let me do well' Zoya sent up a silent prayer before she started answering the questions. After a good forty five minutes Zoya looked up to stretch her neck her eyes wondered around the hall, she couldn't help inwardly laughing at the faces Sam and Aliza were pulling she looked further across and found Atul and Abdul sitting staring at their papers looking a little tense too, Zoya closed her eyes 'Ya Allah please let my friends do well, they have worked so hard' she sent up another prayer for her friends.
As everyone exited the hall the low whispers started to increase in volume, students started to compare answers some getting excited that they got it right others moaning. Zoya always refrained from joining in she didn't see the point of going over what could not be changed, what's done is done so move on were her exact thoughts.
Zoya's group was not meeting today, being a Friday and having just finished an exam no one was in the mood for anymore studying, they had all decided to go to the Student Bar, Zoya as usual excused herself and walked back to halls, she grabbed a sandwich and a black coffee on the way back, she had gone to the same place as her and Karan had come sometime back.
It had been ages since she had seen him properly she knew he had the afternoon off too and wondered if she should call him , not being able to make up her mind she finished her coffee and changed into her gym gear and headed out, as she started jogging her phone rang it was her brother in law 'Salaam Bhai how are you?' 'Good, how did your exam go?' 'It went well I think, just have to wait until next week to find out how well I suppose, how is Zaynah?' 'Your sister is fine, mad as ever, what are you up to, hope you are making the most of your evening' Zoya laughed 'yup, totally I just got home a little while back, am heading towards the gym and then have a romantic date with my books' Anwar took in a deep sigh 'Zoya why do you keep doing this to yourself, why do you exclude yourself from everything, how many times have I told you, tried to make you see that you are not different, but the same as everyone else. Zoya five years is a long time to be away from home and it will become harder and harder if you don't...' Zoya cut her brother in law off 'I know Bhai, it's just...I am ok, and I promise I will try and be a part of everyone more...just a little more time' 'fine...you go and run your run and I'll speak to you later'.
Zoya plugged in her headphones and started the treadmill every few minutes she would increase the speed, she started to run like never before, her heart was pounding, she knew she should stop but couldn't find herself to it was only when she felt he leg give way that she quickly pressed the emergency stop button. Zoya felt the muscle in her leg constrict she tried to steady herself but lost her balance as she fell back she let out a gasp she had expected to hit the solid ground hard but she never reached, she found herself being held in someone's arms.
Zoya opened her eyes to see him looking at her , his expression worried and eyes searching. Karan had seen her falter as she stopped the machine and ran up to her, as Zoya fell back he managed to catch her his hand was secured tightly around her waist 'are you crazy, what the hell do you think you were doing Zoya?' the tone of his voice took Zoya by surprise, she leant on him slightly to pull herself up, as she stood up straight she lost her balance again.
Karan put his hand behind her back and pulled her towards him from the waist, Zoya held her breath as her face stood merely inches away from his. Slightly pushing him back Zoya lowered her head 'here...sit here' Karan said as he led her to the bench behind them. Zoya rubbed her leg and winced in pain 'I think I have pulled a muscle' she said, Karan sat in front of her kneeling down on one knee 'here let me' he placed his hand around her leg and pulled it up to rest on his thigh, Zoya quickly bent down and tried to stop him, but he carried on despite her protest.
Zoya's breathing started to escalate, she felt a weird sensation wash over her, she carried on looking down at his face as he rubbed and massaged the back of her leg. Zoya's started to feel more and more uncomfortable his soft touch was creating havoc within her she needed him to stop 'Karan please, its ok...I am sure it's fine now...thank you' Zoya was barely able to speak. Karan looked up he tried to read her expression but couldn't, he put her leg down and stood up holding his hand out 'try standing up' Zoya took his hand and stood up, the pain was still there but had subsided considerably 'can you walk ?' he asked, Zoya took a few steps towards him but in limp 'let me help you get back to halls, the first aid officer may be able to give you something for it'. Zoya nodded and took hold of his hand, he held her close with one hand holding hers and the other wrapped around her shoulders to give her support.
Zoya leaned into him she felt like she was going to drown in his scent, the close proximity and his heavenly smell were doing her no favours, she started shaking desperately wanting to distance herself. Karan felt her shake in his hold and felt her move away as she did he held her that much closer and tighter. After a testing fifteen minutes they finally reached Maple High, Karan called for the warden and asked for Zoya to be taken to the medical room. Zoya turned around to face him 'thank you Karan' she said giving him a nervous smile. Karan smiled back as he let go of her hand he squeezed it gently 'no worries, and seriously no need to say thank you, will you let me know how you get on?' Zoya nodded and turned to leave following the warden towards the medical room.
Zoya lay in her bed it was only half five in the afternoon, her mind replayed what had happened earlier she could feel herself fill up with warmth. She decided to text him to let him know she was ok and also to thank him once again.
Hi, thank you once again for your help, am ok, applied some balm so should be up and running in no time.
It didn't take long for Karan to respond
Good to hear, next time try not to go too crazy. And like I said before no need to say thank you
Zoya was about to respond when she received another text from him
Would you like to go and get a bite to eat from the canteen?
Zoya smiled, the first thought that came to her was why wasn't he going to the Student Bar he didn't seem the type to miss out on any social gathering.
Are you not joining the rest of them at the SB?
Karan was going to go but for some reason felt the need to stay back. There was a strange unknown force that pulled him towards her; Karan had never been short of female attention his looks that crowned him a Greek God, down to earth nature, charm and social status attracted more females than he could handle. In all his 18 years Karan had never been the one to chase the girl, his way of life never gave him time to become romantically involved with anyone but for reasons beyond his own understanding he felt compelled to be around her and if that meant giving up a night out with the rest of the gang then so be it. Karan responded to her text message.
No, thought I would give it a miss today, so what do you say are you up for it?
Meet you downstairs in an hour.
Came her reply instantly lightening up Karan's face.
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