"If I got a dollar for every time you made that face today, I would be a millionaire by now," Shikar commented as soon as Ragini got into the car- her movements were shaky and unsure.

Lakshya smacked him in the head and received a glare in retaliation. "But for real though, that look reeks of detrimental dentist hives."

"I literally have no idea what that is supposed to mean," his brother told him honestly, confusion settling on his forehead. "But whatever. What did you find?" Shikar asked Ragini impatiently.

She braced herself with a long deep breath. "A long lost heritage."

"Yes and we are hoodlums of the Mumbai underworld." shikar said sarcastically.

She rolled her eyes at his lack of seriousness. Well, it does sound absurd. "Miss Sharma and I are first cousins," Ragini stated like it was an everyday conversation they were having.

A beat passed between the three. "What!" the brothers screamed in unison, shocked beyond their wits.

"Mr Sharma was walking me around the neighbourhood as I tried to get some information. We stopped by the chappel and she just appeared out of nowhere. They recognized each other," she paused, gathering herself.

"We didn't know your mom had siblings." Lakshya started and immediately regretted it seeing raigni slump further in her seat.

"I didn't either. She never told me and I always assumed she was an only child. They are feuding siblings...apparently."

"How do you feel about this?"

"I don't know," she pushed out, turning a frustrated hair through her hair. "I am just confused. God, I should be writing a bildungsroman at this point."

Shikar undid his seat belt and pushed open the door to the passenger seat. "Talk about skeletons in the closet," he commented in a low voice when he was outside so his friends didn't hear him. Going over to the right side of the car, he slid in beside Ragini. He pulled her in for a comforting hug as a pall of silence overtook the car.

Ragini pulled away but kept her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arm around her in quiet assurance. She soaked in this spectacle of familiarity- her staunch friends ever present like the birds chirping every morning. Everything was changing and yet nothing seemed to be for the good. Save for the singhania, best thing ever.

Her mother was back and while Ragini loved her she was still adjusting. Her best friend's biological family were becoming a prominent aspect of their lives. Her uncle whom she didn't know about until a couple of minutes ago was also back into their lives.

Lakshya warmed up the engine, reading it to return home. They all had a long day and he was sure Ragini would want to rest up before the inevitable talk with her mother.

"Let's go back to school. Maybe a little jamming session can help take your mind off things." shikar suggested to which Ragini merely nodded.

Hearing his brother, Lakshya changed his mind and destination. They were heading back to school. Music had always been their escape- their safe place. Although they would be a member short, it was still liberating to play their respective instruments and let the melody sway them to a utopia where things were a lot easier. It provided them with empirical relief from the chaos brewing around them.

---broken promises---

Ragini walked into the house aimlessly while thinking hard for a way to ask her mother what was going on along with how to break this news to her best friend. She was thankful that Anjali had a night shift and left the house earlier. Aditya was out too. Something about a business associate's dinner. She didn't need to answer their questions with lies and feel guilt about hiding the truth- she was also a bad liar.

She climbed up the stairs and looked at the door across from her own room - Divya's. She had half her mind to head over and just come clean but that wouldn't soften the blow. The more she thought the narrower her vision became. Is this what people call tunnel vision? Cause either way it's going to be a disaster. Freaking rip-off Ted Bundy's version of a massacre.

She sighed and turned the knob to the door of her room. Ragini slapped a hand over her pounding heart when she spotted her mother on her bed in her room. "Mom! Don't do that!'' The room was dark with the lights switched off and she didn't expect a human to be waiting there quietly like a ninja. "What are you even doing here in the dark like a freaking ghost?" she asked when her heartbeat settled a little.

"Doing a seance darling," Sanjana stood up and walked closer to her nervous daughter. "I should be the one asking questions. What were you even doing there?" Sanjana asked her instead, giving her a pointed look. When Ragini simply looked away and shuffled her feet, Sanjana crossed her arms. "Is there something I should know?"

A lot. "Other than long lost relatives who happen to be in the same city, no." She shrugged carelessly.

"In order to keep this conversation immaculate and non-vexatious, let's put away the snarky."

"It's going to take all of my non-existent self-control to do so, Mother. So let's just skip the verbal brawl and you can go home to a nice glass of red wine. The 1864 one in the cupboard." she said before receiving a glare from her mother. "Fine. I ran off the day you and Dad announced your divorce plans to me. Remember that?" she continued when Sanjana nodded. "I met Miss Sharma on the way and she brought me to her house so that I would be running around on the streets at night. The house was Uncle Sarthak's.

"Meaning Miss Sharma is..."

"Your niece and my first cousin." Ragini completed her sentence with a sigh. This is just getting dumber by the second.

"That doesn't explain why you were there today and not in school. Inherent dislike for education in teens notwithstanding."

Ragini tried to think of a good reason as her mother started her down. "I...wanted to thank him and his wife for their hospitality. I kind of bolted before I got a chance to do it in person."

Ragini was a kind person. She saw the good in people and wanted to help everyone around her. It also made her the target for bullying but she retained her altruistic nature in spite of the threats that came along with it. Sanjana could easily buy into the fact that she would return weeks later to thank the family who helped her out in her hour of need.

"You never told me about my extended family," Ragini announced to change the topic. If they continued, she would have to reveal more information than necessary.

Sanjana plopped onto the bed and rubbed her hand over her temple. "It was better that you didn't know. I mean you weren't going to see them anyway. What was the use in finding out?'' Sanjana stated rhetorically questioning her own decision, seeking confirmation that it was the right call. "At least, until today that is."

"What happened between the two of you?" Ragini asked after a beat.

Her house was not enormous; a two-bedroom apartment complex that she owned with her brother- enough to accommodate their now small family. Their story on the other hand was long and tragic if one were to hear it. To them, it was the will of a stronger entity and they accepted it.

The two siblings' parents had departed the land of living three months shy of their eighteen-year birthday. Under any other circumstances, the house they lived in would have been confiscated by the authorities but since their age complied with the legal standard, they regained possession on their birthday. It was a quiet occasion - with the silent company of each other and memories surrounding every corner of the house. They carried on their lives as routinely as possible in the absence of parental figures.

They had each other and for now, that was enough despite the emotional highs and turbulence of the deteriorating relationship.

Sanjana came home and dropped swiftly on the couch in the living room. It was a tiring day at school and she wanted nothing more than to get to bed and sleep. Lazily, she grabbed her bag from where it had fallen on the floor, slung it over her shoulder and walked to her room.

"Hey big boy," she greeted her brother with a smirk, failing to notice his sullen face.

"Sanjana," he gritted out, bringing a stack of papers towards her and dropping them on the bed. He had gotten back a little earlier than her since football practice got cancelled. He wanted to check what they would be doing for dinner but Sanjana wasn't present. So he decided to wait there and ended up stumbling upon them. "What the hell are these?"

She frowned at his tone and reached out for the papers. Her face dropped as she read the contents of it. "These are the question papers for our finals," she noted, flipping through the pages and checking their authenticity. Indeed they were Clementi town secondary's year-end examination papers with the school insignia stamped on every page. "Where did you get these?"

He glared at what he thought was a silly attempt to dodge the question. "I should be asking you this. Where did you get them, Sanjana Sharma?"

"These are not mine."

"Don't play dumb with me," he shouted, "they were on your desk and in your room."

The girl stood up and faced her brother with an assertive stare. "I have no idea where these came from. They are not mine."

"Questions papers for this year's final examinations, Sanjana! They are in your damn room!" he repeated as if it would make the false statement true.

"I didn't steal them. I have no clue they got here," she responded calmly, hiding the quiver of her body. "You know better than anyone else, that I will not cheat."

"Yeah, I did," he agreed, giving her a tiny ray of hope before it quickly shattered. "Until I found these lying on top of your desk just days before the start of the exam period," he shouted, making her flinch.

"Sarthak I did...where are you going?"

He snatched the papers from her hands and fleeted into the kitchen as Sanjana screwed after him. He tore them up into tiny pieces.

She didn't stop him. This wasn't her doing and neither did she intend to cheat. Her parents had instilled values of integrity and determination in them. She did not need these papers to top the cohort- if only her brother had as much faith in her.

Grabbing a match stick from the counter, he lit it and threw it on the pile, watching it turn to ash.

Sanjana quickly pulled him away from the flames. "What the hell is wrong with you?" she reprimanded, running to grab a glass of water to put out the fire. "You could have burned down the entire house, idiot!"

"Arson is better than stealing the question papers just to get a good grade."

"I didn't!" Sanjana bellowed back, taking a step closer to her brother. "Trust me."

"How? Do you expect me to believe that these papers just magically ended up in your room? The day before the examination period? Wow, what a lovely coincidence." Sarthak snarked at his sister who was offended beyond words. This was how he usually behaved since their parent's demise- impulsive and caustic. "I am so disappointed in you, Sanju."

"Someone could have planted them there. We live on the ground floor Sarthak with no security cameras of the sort," she called attention to the fact that the teenagers didn't live with protection in their little house.

Sarthak stunned for a second, clapped his hands together which galvanized her to raise an eyebrow in question. "You thought this out, didn't you? I must say, impressive. No security cameras and being on the ground floor make for a perfect cover story. Someone so kind and generous sneaked into your room through the window and left you the exam papers."

"Just like how you thought out the story to tell the officers when they caught you behind the old mill with a bottle of bourbon." She challenged. "How convenient am I right?"

The boy dropped any and all trace of mockery he had and straightened his back. "Whatever I said was true. Those assholes told me it was a party with adult supervision. How was I supposed to know they were a bunch of cowards that ran at the first sign of trouble."

"I believe you," Sanjana nodded her head with tears glistening in her eyes. "Trust is a two-way street. I just wished you did the same."

"We later found out that it was one of the toppers from the other class who stole the papers and framed me," she recalled with a sad smile. "We used to be friends. I didn't for a moment suspect that she could do something so vicious."

"Nothing spells best friends like framing each other," Ragini responded sarcastically.

"Ex-best friends," she corrected with an irritated click of her tongue. "By that time, we were no longer in cahoots with each other."

"That sounds like some deep-rooted resentment."

"I got higher than her in our midterms. At that age, jealousy was overwhelming and detrimental all at the same time. We had a fight followed by an ugly fallout. So she wanted to get me expelled to eliminate the competition in our finales."

"But Uncle Sarthak must have found out too right? He seemed pretty apologetic just now."

"He did but it was too late by that time."

"What do you mean?"

"He found out during the results collection according to one of my friends. I had already left Mumbai after graduation and only came back with Rohan after our marriage."

"That doesn't explain why you are so pissed at him even after all these years. He wants to make up for what happened and knows the truth."

Sanjana chuckled a little at her daughters's naivety. "It's not about knowing the truth or even how irrational he became. That was understandable. An inconvenience at times, sure but understandable nonetheless."

"I didn't know you were an impasse."

Sanjana snorted at her a little. "It's about trusting the people we love. It's about supporting me when I need it. He wasn't there and neither did he believe me."

"So you are never going to forgive him? It's been over two decades, Mom." She pointed out hopefully.

"Your grandfather used to say," she took both of Ragini's open palms and placed them on top of each other, essentially getting them to mimic a clapping position. "Forgive someone all you want. Give them a chance to right their wrong. But," she released her daughter's hands and placed her index fingers on the side of her eyes. "Don't forgive with two eyes closed." she finished off with a tap on her nose. "so if you ask me about forgiveness, I honestly don't know, Ragini. But," she said seriously. "If you want to get to know him, I am not going to stop you. You're an adult and it's your decision to make."

"Really?" Ragini asked uncertainly having not expected this. She was thinking about it until Sanjana mentioned this possibility. It could be a good way to gain more information. But what about Miss Sharma? Her mind briefly flashed back to the conversation they had in the classroom after the divorce was announced. What does that mean for us?

The slightly awkward, sometimes oblivious but mature woman whom Ragini held in high regard was no longer just a teacher she met at S.P.A.C.E. She wasn't just another inspiring adult whose memory would start to fade after she graduated. She wasn't just a passerby that Ragini would think twice about as she crossed the street.

She was her first cousin. They shared blood. They shared DNA. They probably also shared a long-lost sibling.

"trust takes a lifetime to build, seconds to break and forever to repair"," she touched Ragini's arm causing the girl to look at her. "Never break the trust of your near and dear ones. It's the kind of pain you can't truly get over."

Ragini felt like a torn had pricked her sides. Her stomach churned uneasily and she shifted almost like a snail. Her lungs were useless, her breathing was getting heavier. She left her stress and worry to ebb and flow around from her fingertips. She drummed them rhythmically on the mattress. It was to make its expression in musical form- It is the way of the artist.

"Does that mean you won't ever forgive Dad? If he comes back?" she asked suddenly and Sanjana gaped slightly caught off guard with the question.

"I don't know, baby girl. That depends on him."

"I don't think I can ever forgive him, Mom," Sanjana brushed the tear that fell on Ragini's cheek. "Whenever, I think about how he never chose me, how he didn't even care to say a proper goodbye, it hurts. I have Aditya and I love him more than I ever loved Dad. But I wished he didn't leave. Completely abandoning me, abandoning us," she leaned into her mother who readily wrapped her arms around her only child, keeping her head tucked under her chin. "I can never forgive him for that pain."

"And you don't have to,'' Sanjana kissed the crown of her head, lingering softly for a while. "It's late," Her mother slowly untangled herself and got off the bed, picking up her designer purse. "I am going to head home before your best friend-turned-sister bursts through this door to bash my head in." she chuckled but couldn't move further as Ragini caught her wrist.

"Can you...stay the night?" she asked hesitantly, not meeting Sanjana's eyes. "At least until I fall asleep."

The mother felt a burst of energy in her. This was the first time Ragini had asked anything from her. There was no way she was going to deny this request. Although she knew it was probably because Ragini was overwhelmed with the day's events, it was a chance to show her daughter how serious she was in wanting to make it up to her.

"Of course, honey," she brushed the stray hair that had fallen on Ragini's forehead out of the way. "I'll be here as long as you need me to be."

Despite the exhaustion she felt, Ragini beamed back at her mother. "That's all I ask for."

They made themselves comfortable on the bed; Ragini snuggling up to her mother wanting nothing more than to just fall asleep peacefully while Sanjana held her daughter in her arms for the first time in years. She couldn't remember the last time they cuddled. Maybe when Ragini was five. It stirred the pool of guilt in her but she was also feeling optimistic. She wasn't going to turn away from her responsibilities this time.

Ragini didn't expect this tranquillity that surrounded her as her mother embraced her in her stronghold. She felt her worries disappearing into the winds of the dark night, far away from her. That warmth, family, peace and affection she had missed for the last thirteen years filled her heart with joy. Maybe this isn't so bad after all.

She didn't want this night to end. She didn't want things to change. But she knew, it wasn't in her hands to stop this.

---broken promises---

Divya held up the coffee tumbler, the lid bound tight with the red clip she put on it. Waking up wasn't as hacknering as she thought it would be. You know since I overthought myself into a coma last night. She wasn't spiralling and neither had she talked to her mother since last evening. She heard her announce having to go in for the night shift. All things considered, she was calm that chilly morning after a quick trip to the milk store.

Maybe that was because she finally came to a decision.

Divya had always been proud of herself and her personality. It wasn't what everyone desired to have but she did and she couldn't choose it to be something else. She was strong and resilient like a tree. When a small animal runs into one, only the leaves sway but the trunk remains rotted to its spot- undisplaced. A single glare was enough to get the toughest of them all to bow down. She held it all together in front of her friends so as to be their support system. Her issues didn't matter in front of them. She could handle it herself- that's what a leader should do.

But she couldn't lie, not anymore nor could she deal with it alone if yesterday was anything to go by. Telling them the truth may change things- all hell could break lose. But I cannot hide this from them.

If there was anything she learned during Rakshit's useless therapy session, it was that her friends were not fragile. They could take care of themselves. She didn't need to do the saving. For once, she was the one who needed to be saved from herself.

She was going to tell them the truth.

However, it seemed like Ragini was the one who woke up on the wrong side of the bed. She sipped her coffee observing Ragini over the rim. She frowned, "I'd bet you money that we won't make it to school unscratched today." getting no response she turned and placed their dirty plates into the dishwasher.

Ragini placed her mug on the kitchen counter in an instant as the noise of the traffic outside was drowned out by the machine. "Really, jaan? It's seven in the morning. Anjali and Aditya are sleeping. They had a late night."

"And you are already pouting for no reason," Divya commented as Ragini self-consciously stopped the action. "So spill. What's going on?"

"Nothing," she replied a little too quickly.

Divya jutted out her hip for her right hand to fall on. "Really. That must be why you had nothing to school me on when I said we won't reach space unharmed today."

Ragini developed one of her lop-sided grimace smiles and raised her drawn-on eyebrows. "Sometimes I wish I was an octopus. That way I can slap you eight times, all at once."

Divya blew a raspberry. "Someone's in a bad mood. I didn't even offend an unfriendly neighbour today on my way back from the milk store."

"How many times have I told you not to jinx things?" Ragini chided her coming over to put her own cup in the sink and face her sister. "And you don't need to offend the milk store owner or his customers. you already did it over the years."

"In my defence," Divya drawled out. "when I called the owner stupid, I really thought he knew." she shrugged.

"You said that If he qualified for what people call 'handsome' the earth would be filled with single ladies who wouldn't want anything to do with babies birthed from him." Ragini let the water run align on the used utensils in the sink, carefully washing them. "That's downright insulting."

"Describing," she quickly corrected drying the washed plates with a cloth. "Ragini I was describing him. It's not my fault he behaved like a donkey overdosed on booze."

Ragini couldn't help but burst out into one of her roaring belly laughs, "Well, he was being kind of an ass."

Divya let out a snort, "he is an ass. Not a very pretty one either. Yikes, I feel bad for his dog," she sneered. "Anyways, I saw Sanjana leaving the house earlier." the rockstar still wasn't particularly fond of the older woman but tolerated her being in close proximity for the sake of Ragini. She made that known with her unkind glares thrown in Sanjana's direction every chance she got. She could have sworn Sanjana even cowered and stuttered in her steps a couple of times. Maybe that's why people think I am scary.

The pianist awkwardly cleared her throat and straightened up. "Yea, she," the pianist hesitated for a split second, thinking how to put this in a way that wouldn't set off her protective best friend. "She stayed the night."

"I am sorry. What?" the rockstar carelessly dropped the plate onto the dry rack and turned to face her bandmate. "Did she force you? Did she ask for your permission? I swear to the skies if she didn't I'll personally make sure ..." Divya rambled on before Ragini had the chance to respond. She more or less slammed the fragile ceramic cup back down on the counter and was ready to charge out.

As much as Sanjana was trying to make up for thirteen years of absence, Ragini had requested to take things slow. Divya intended to make sure her sister was as comfortable with this as she could be with this new change. Her mother staying over was a big leap from just weekly dinner plans and occasional popping by.

The guitarist stepped past Ragini before she was yanked back by a pull on her wrist. "Relax," the latter said holding her by the shoulders firmly "I asked her to stay the night." she clarified, keeping her voice even. "I was feeling..." she trailed off unsure of which adjective would truly encapsulate all her ethos. Sad? Insecure? confused? She couldn't tell her truth right here, not without the Maheshwari brothers there for moral support at least.

"Feeling?" Divya probed impatiently. "Did someone do anything to you?" she asked seriously, a dark look on her face, probably plotting that person's murder. Damn it. I am not supposed to do that anymore.

"Let's go to school. I'll tell you there."

"Why not now?" she stopped Ragini's advances to the door with a quick sidestep. "Have you told Sanjana about Shahid?" Divya remembered mentioning that Sanjana and Rohan were unaware to this day of their former schoolmates's misdeeds. She assumed with their mending relationship, Ragini would have had the chance to fill the absentee mother in on the details of that fateful night.

"No, I haven't." Ragini sighed, briefly wondering if she could ever bring that up to anyone, let alone her mother. Would I scare her away? What if she doesn't want me anymore after knowing that? As quickly as they came, the insecure child shooed her worries away with a quiet hum to herself. She cleared her throat before continuing. "Trust me, you will want Lucky and Shikar to be there too. We have a lot to catch up on." Ragini left the kitchen to grab their bags as Divya followed behind solemnly.

She sucked in a deep breath. "I guess I will. Cause I have some things to tell you guys too."

Ragini squinted her eyebrows. "Does it have anything to do with you being gone the whole day yesterday?"

"Possibly," came Divya's short reply as they got into her car. "Look," she drummed her fingers on the steering wheel idly. "There have been a lot of things I haven't told you or Lucky and Shikar for that matter. We haven't even spoken about what happened during Musicana. And I am sorry for hiding so much from you guys. I just didn't know what to say or do." she felt her breathing getting a little ragged as the drumming on the wheel increased.

"Hey, hey," Raigni quickly held onto her hand that was in the gearstick and ran her thumb across it. "I understand what you are going through. We haven't told you some things either and it's about time we did."

Divya looked at her, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Let's just get to school, okay."

She nodded and started the engine, driving off to S.P.A.C.E unaware of what the future held for them. 

A/N: Don't forget to R&R!