Chapter 2
Yug came to a screeching halt and cursed in a way that he was sure Masa would have disapproved of. The sharp thud against the rear of his beloved bike hadn't sounded promising and it was with trepidation that he rose and glanced at the splatter of mud that was currently oozing towards his end wheel. But under it he could clearly make out a dent. Though small, it was noticeable and he realised that someone, the same person who had been strolling mindlessly in the middle of the road, had probably graced him with a handful of muck, and a significantly sized stone.
Face contorting in anger, he pushed overgrown locks out of his eyes and scanned the dusty road for the culprit; coming face to face with a young girl whose murderous expression matched his own.
"Agar bike chalaani nahi athi tho sarak par kya kar rahe ho!"
Growing annoyed by the second, he stalked towards her and grasped her arm, looming over her and using his height to intimidate the chit of the girl standing before him. Surprisingly, she squared her shoulders and instead of backing away [like any sane person would have done], she gave him a mocking smile and stomped heavily on his foot.
Yug yelped in surprise and jumped backwards, only for her to grasp his shoulders and knee him deftly in the stomach.
"Agli bhar hath lagaya tho chappal se maroonghi. Samje thum?"
He grit his teeth in reply and tried to remember why exactly his Masa had warned him never to hit a girl. At that moment he couldn't think of a singe sane reason. Suddenly there was a gasp and Yug, for the first time, noticed another girl standing slightly behind the Jhansi Ki Rani. She was taller than her companion by maybe an inch, but more slender with round eyes that flitted between him and his attacker in worry.
"Vrinda, pagal hogayi hai kya!"
"Thu kuch math bhol. Is bathameez ko sabak sikhana hi hoga…sarak par tho aisa chaltha hai jaise iski baap ki hai."
Yug snapped back to attention and forced himself not to strangle her pretty little neck as he clenched his jaw.
"Dekho, ghalthi thumhari hai. Ek tho binah dekhe mere bike ke samne agayhi. Aur upar se bina waja mar ne lagaye. Agar thum larki nahi hothi tho…"
"Tho kya huh?"
She took a purposeful step forward, hands perched on her hips as she tilted up her chin and stared defiantly at him. She had grey eyes, which should have been dull but instead sparked at him, narrowing slightly as she opened her mouth, probably to threaten him again.
Just like that, Yug lost patience. He had been travelling for the better part of the last three days and the last thing he wanted was to stand here taking punches from someone who was too small to be this hugely irritating. And so, before the Jhans – Vrinda, he mentally corrected himself – could utter more than a strangled cry, he hauled her on to his shoulders and brushed past the other girl [the nicer one, as Yug had already summarised].
Vrinda shrieked in his ear and continued to rain punches down his back. Her legs flailed wildly in front of him and Yug caught a knee before it could knock him in the chest.
"Agar thumne mujhe abhi neeche nahi uthara tho…"
Yug smiled and complied, dropping Vrinda in the filthiest puddle of mud that he could find. There was, he thought, some justice in watching her muddy form staring at him in open-mouthed shock.
"Agli bhar mujh phar hath uthaya tho isi thara thujhe uthar-oon gha. Samjhi?"
And he got on his bike and left before she could collect her bearings and do little more than splutter in the mud.
Sampoorna
Bindi
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