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It was late at night, when Agastya sat on the terrace, keeping his eyes watching at the same corner for hours.

He didn't knew what to do, numb and tired he sat... looking at the same spot— a stone, as if he wants to bang his hand on it and he didn't knew what came in him that he actually punched. It started with once, but the voices in his head started growing louder.

The pain shot through his knuckles, but the voices of head grew ugly... when he heard the footsteps.

It was her. He didn't have to wait for her to appear, it was always those slow, and steady footsteps that walked— so that he stopped, hiding his bleeding hand, he sat down.

Zara, came with slow steps, checking that he's sitting there.

"Arre, terrace ke bhoot" Zara acted, as if she didn't knew he was sitting there and crying.... Agastya did the same thing, he pretended as if he wasn't harming himself.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, before speaking again. "So why'd you came here?" Agastya asked— Zara parted her mouth open to say, when she suddenly remembered that she didn't went upstairs the day before- and then was ignoring him too, because of him cancelling the plan— her replies were short and curt.

"Mhm... so you want to talk with me?" He questioned, when she shook her head and looked at the dark sky.

"No, what do I even have to talk?" She simply asked, shrugging off her shoulders, still looking up.

"Really?" Agastya asked, when she simply nodded.

"Yeah! What can I say" she said digging her nails, as he wetted up her dry lips before looking at his face.

"Hmm, you're such an introvert," Agastya slightly smiles at her, hiding the storms he was silently carrying in his mind.

"Don't worry, I just don't like to speak much, I'm not shy, I just don't waste my energy on someone" Zara said, looking at his face.

"Hmm, sure! I should be scared of you then," Agastya said, trying to hide his hand from her.

"You better be," She said, as she saw blood tripping from his knuckles. As soon as he saw Zara looking, he suddenly tried to cover it only to wince.

"Ouch" he winced, when Zara removed his other hand, her eyes widened at the sight when she took her handkerchief and started cleaning the blood.

"Are you crazy?" She asked, concern laced in her eyes— ironically the cuts of her own hands came to visibility.

Agastya couldn't say a word, when she started tending to him. Even though, she did bandaged her wounds before, it was different from then.

She never touched his hand, and that made him freeze.

"Concentrate Agastya, concentrate, you need to be sad and angry, not overwhelmed" he muttered to himself, but somehow couldn't resist to stop his thoughts.

He looked at her silently, as she wrapped the handkerchief around his hand.

"What were you doing?" Zara asked, raising her furrows.

"Aa..aa...aa" Agastya said, trying to free his hand, when Zara gave him a weird look.

"What is wrong with you?" She asked, when he freed his hand.

"Zara, please don't touch, I'm feeling sh.." Agastya was telling, as his words halted when he realised what he was going to say. "Pain"

"Of course, you'll feel pain, after the brilliant act which is pulled by you" Zara said, holding his hand again. "Now let me bandage you, I'll call Vamika di" Zara said, when Agastya shook his head.

"Are you crazy? What will she think?" Agastya asked, when Zara raised her furrows.

"She'll think that you're injured, and she'll apply medicine" Zara said, as the most casual way.

"How're you so cool about it?" Agastya questioned.

"Chill, we aren't kissing that someone will think something wrong!" Zara said, as Agastya looked at her, his eyes widened.

"Wha—what?" Agastya mouthed, when Zara instantly shook her head, gulping, as if trying to take the words inside her mouth.

What did I just say?— she thought, as guilt settled in.

"I'm.. It just blurted out of my mouth," Zara said, rushing off...

"Zara... Zara" Agastya said, when she looked at him.

Zara's POV....

Me... I'm the fucking problem, who ruins everything as soon as she opens her mouth. People think that I'm introvert, shy-ish kind of person, but the reality is even I don't know what I'm going to say next... and maybe this was one of the reasons I don't talk.

I could watch him, burning with shyness. He was brushing his hand against his neck, as if we just had our first make out...

Fuck... what the fuck am I thinking?

"Zara?" Agastya said, once again, when I looked at him.

"Hmm?" I mummer, when he took out his phone.

"Terrace at 2 AM is so our thing," he said, when I checked my phone, and nodded.

"What is he even trying to emphasise?" I thought, not giving much attention, I just sat right beside him.

It was awkward... the soft breeze of air kissed my face as it passed across. Lost in his own thoughts, he still sat clenching his pyjamas.

Honestly, I can't feel anything... I don't know anything else except that he was hurt, it was written on his face. We'd a breathable distance between us, when my ponytail felt tighter, and I was feeling assy pain.

Irritated, I decided to take off the rubber band, and gave it to him. "Can you hold it?" I asked him, when he silently nods. I let  my hairs open, when he laughed at me.

I looked at him, with a hardened expression. "What?" I asked.

"Ironically..." he said, looking at his wounds. Did he saw my wounds? Is he going to talk about 'hypocrisy'?
"You're the one whose hairs are open, and then you've an audacity to call me the ghost?"

He said, when I took a sigh of relief.

I chuckled a bit at his comment, as I slowly hide my scars. I was terrified, what if he sees and tells it to anyone? To Sid?

"Are you going to sit the whole night, here only?" I questioned him, when he shook his head.

"Of course, not!" He chuckled, looking at me.

"You'd have asked Anirudh to stay back, I mean... I can't even think how're you doing" I asked him, knowing well I'm no one to tell him all this, but at a second instance, I can't leave him and peacefully sleep. He is there for me since the day we shifted. His smile is the reason I can safely sit in the class, I didn't even realise when he became that safe place.

"Zara! Where are you lost?" He asked, his eyes never left mine.

"Why didn't you let Anirudh stay here?" I asked him, when he stared on the dark sky.

"He insisted, but I don't let anyone sympathise with me, I feel weird" he told me. The persistent smile on my face now faded.

"I shouldn't be here too—" I instantly stood up saying this when a voice came. It was him.

"By anyone, it didn't meant you Zara" he said, looking at me when I raised my furrow.

"Eh?"

"I mean you are not anyone, you're sahiba, my sahiba" he said, a smile curved on his cheeks. I raised my furrows, and for sure my face would be looking as if I'm offended.

His adam apple bobbed as he spoke, "I mean, Sahiba means a higher authority, who can assert power over another person. I don't need to tell that you can assert as much as authority you want, and secondly guys can't understand emotions as girls, I wasn't allowed to express my emotions in front of him, because he'd never understand those either ways" he told, as I sat beside him.

"So, am I special for you?" I asked him, when he looked in a different direction.

"I mean... your glare is so scary Zara, so I won't say anything," he said, when I bit my lip.

I'd no intention to talk any longer, but somehow I couldn't resist.

"Bakwaas marte hue to nahi sochte that my glare is scary" I told him, a yawn escaped my mouth, breaking the seriousness of the situation.

"Zara, if you end up sleeping here, I wonder if it'd be easy for me to wake you up or drop home, so you better go back now" he told me, when I raised my furrows.

"At least tell me" I said, when he looked here and there.

"Come'n Zara, leave it for another day, do you want to complete every conversation today only?" He said, when I just gave him a side eye.

"Good night," I said, not even turning my face.

"Good night" He said in a soft tone. "Can you say this in a calm voice?"

He asked me, when a smile came on my face. I didn't cared to turn my face,

"Good night," I mumbled as I left.

Her POV ENDS

Agastya woke up earlier than he expected. It was still an hour, to his regular time and two hours before he goes to school.

Entering the lobby, he saw his father sitting on the sofa, holding a cup of coffee.

"Good morning!" His father said in his monotonous voice, when Agastya stood shaken.

"G..good morning!" Agastya said, his voice cracking.

"Hmm, why weren't you picking my call since last few days?" He asked, his voice stoic, unshakable like forever.

"I.. the school just began, so I don't stay on my phone for a long time, first school, then I study in the afternoon, then in the evening I hang out with Anirudh, then study at night, and then sleep. I rarely get phone so I usually keep it on silent." He tried explaining himself, when his father nodded.

"Oh!" He muttered.
"I'm going to shift here anyways, I won't need a phone to look at you" he said, as Agastya's eyes widened... he'd spend half of his life alone, sometimes he was accompanied by his aunt, sometimes by his grandmother, but usually was with the housemaid.

So when his father told about shifting, it didn't felt as discomfort, it was way more than that— unbearable.

He never had the presence of his father, so he didn't even knew what is it to have one.

He sighed, nodded and went outside to get milk.

***

The home next door, had the same morning chaos. Ishita woke up and was getting ready for hospital, while Ritwik was about to make coffee for him and Ishita.

"Tch. Coffee is over, again" he mutters, as he saw Zara going to washroom, while she was yawning.

"Zara!" Ritwik said, when she straightened her posture looking at him. "I'm transferring some money, go and buy coffee," he said, when she nods.

"Ok" she mutters as she wears a hoodie, and walks to her room. Her hairs were badly strangled, when she combed them? And finally wearing her slippers she went out.

As soon as she got out, she saw Agastya walking to the lift. She thought— they'd ignore each other, when Agastya, in his usual voice turned to her.

"Good morning, sahiba" Agastya said, in an energetic voice when she turned at him and nodded.

"Morning," Zara said, in her grumpy self, still rubbing her eyes.

"Morning," he said, "now say that more softly" Agastya said, grinning at her.

"Good morning," she said, again, her voice now softer.

"The day sounds so pleasant now" he said, when she walked towards the shop to take coffee. Agastya— who went to take milk to the shop earned a side glare from her.

"Are you following me?" Zara asked, as soon as they came out of the shop.

"Actually, I've to buy myself milk, so maybe not, but I won't mind following you— if you want it" he said, a grin on his face.

"No thanks"

"Bye then" he said, as he walked away.

Zara shook her head, and walked in the same speed she was.

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Tbc

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