Ten Days Later

Urooj opened her eyes because of some kind of disturbance in the room and found someone sitting on the other bed. "Why are you still up?" She muttered and slept one more time but her brain signaled something that snap open her eyes. Pushing off the blanket from her face she looked at the bed.

"What's going on here." She muttered andl switched on the night lamp to recognise Tevy sitting on the bed and a girl was lying beside her, both of them were having Cola drink.

"Is this a time to have party?" Asked Urooj and both of them laughed.

"Get back to sleep babe," said Tevy. For the first time Urooj noticed a tattoo on her neck and shoulder. A red dragon whose tail was ending near the left earlobe and its open mouth was covering the shoulder of the owner of soft and flawless skin.

"Aren't you feeling cold?" Asked Urooj after noticing what Tevy was wearing. Shorts and a tank top. "And you're having cold drink in this weather... You'll catch cold Tevy, don't play with your health at the time of exams..." Tevy saw Urooj with amazement, maybe it was the first time when someone was truly concern for her, the other girl was laughing and making fun of Urooj for being a duffer.

"Wear this. Please." Said Urooj while passing her a sweater and Tevy wore it without a delay.

"Why don't you try some cold-drink, Urooj? This will help you to be safe from the cold." The other girl passed the tin can towards Urooj who was confused. From childhood to now she knew that having colddrink and icecream in such cold weather is not good for health but here a senior was telling her opposite.

"No, thanks."

"Oh come on, just a single sip won't harm you to death."

Urooj gave a nervous smile and tried to refuse but then she considered the last sentence, a sip wouldn't harm her to death. She out her hand to grab the can but Tevy grabbed her wrist.

"Go to your room." Said Tevy to the other girl who rolled her eyes and asked Urooj to have just one sip.

"Stop it, don't do these things with her, she is not like us. And go back to your room." Tevy's instructions were powerful enough for the girl to leave the room.

Urooj saw Tevy, even in this darkness she was looking a little red. Touching her forehead Urooj gasped "You have a fever Tevy,"

"I'm fine Urooj."

"No, you're not. You're feverish. You already have a cold, you shouldn't drink cola in such weather.." Urooj scolded Tevy without knowing that the so called cold-drink was actually a treatment for her cold because it was mixed with Brandy.

"Give this to me and sleep now." Snatching the can of soda from Tevy Urooj ordered her. For the first time Urooj was behaving like a mother, Tevy kept watching her for a few moments and two tears rolled down from her eyes.

"What happened Tevy?" Urooj asked sitting next to her roommate. Worried.

Tevy cried out hard on Urooj's shoulder but the reason was unknown nor Urooj found in herself to ask. She knew the value of shoulders on which you can cry without getting bombarded with numerous questions. She knew sometimes only crying and sharing your pains can feel like a remedy, so she let Tevy cry without disturbance. Her hand regularly caressed Tevy's multicolored shoulder length hair and soon the sobs lowered.

"Wanna talk?" Breaking the hug Urooj asked but Tevy shook her head.

"Take care, if you need anything just shake me badly without hesitation..." Helping Tevy to clutch herself in the warm bed Urooj instructed and covered her with the duvet. Tevy looked at this girl and realised that some people can be innocent. Real innocent.

"I'll find him out for you. I promise." Tevy closed her eyes and Urooj smiled but shook her head.

"No need, it's better for me to focus on my books instead of that stupid boy. I promised my brother to make him proud, I don't know why and how I forgot my motive?" Urooj remembered her motive one more time and laid down on her bed. She wanted to become rich. She wanted to earn a lot of money so that she could buy happiness with a ten rupees note and medicines at the time of need. She wanted a good future unlike her parents who lived and died in between the struggle of lower income and higher expenses.

"Urooj." Tevy whispered with closed eyes.

"Hmm?"

"Do you have a loving family?"

"Umm... I only have a brother, yes he is loving and caring. My parents were also nice but... Destiny's game! They're not in this world. I miss them almost every day." Urooj uttered sadly. Even right now she was remembering the time when her parents were healthy and happy. Life was pleasant at that time.

"I also miss my parents every day," Tevy muttered without opening her eyes. Urooj felt sad for her friend.

"Your parents are also no more?" She asked. For the first time they were discussing personal life otherwise Urooj didn't like Tevy and Tevy considered Urooj an idiot bookworm.

"They're alive. But no more with me." Tevy's reply was a confusing statement.

"What do you mean? As far as I know you go to meet your family every month." Urooj was confused and Tevy smiled like a sarcasm.

"When I was 2 my parents decided to separate their paths. Mom took me along, dad filed a case for my custody as if I was a commodity they both wanted. For the next one year I was becoming the rope of tug of war... Sometimes here sometimes there, then they both got married. My step-father didn't accept me, he forced my mom to send me to my father, the court case was settled down with this... I was living with my father for the next few months, he is a billionaire, but his second wife did not want to see me in her home so I was sent to the hostel at the age of 3, I celebrated my fourth birthday in the hostel when dad brought a cake for me along with many gifts and toys, From that day to now I meet him every year on my birthday only. And mom... I also meet her once in a blue moon." Tevy shared her pain with someone for the first time, Urooj didn't know that the girl with multicolored hair, numerous tattoos and piercings was hiding so many pains in her heart.

"So where do you go every month?" Urooj couldn't help but asked.

"Haha... I go for adventure..." Tevy smiled, Urooj stood up from the bed one more time and gave a hug to her friend. "Never feel yourself alone, I'm here with, you can share anything with me, I won't judge you." Tevy looked at the girl three-four years younger than her. The girls who were roommates for the last few months suddenly became friends. True friends.

"Go back to your bed baby girl, save these hugs for him." Tevy winked and Urooj gasped and moved back.

"What? No." Urooj's eyes widen. Tevy laughed and turned her side, soon she slept under the influence of alcohol but she took away the precious slumber from Urooj's innocent eyes.

She laid down on her bed and felt her heart drumming faster than usual, hands and legs shivered. How could a girl even though of a boy in this way? Urooj's heart questioned. Hugging a boy? Her legs felt numb with this thought, the whole body shivered. No way. A girl should never hug a boy. Never. Never in whole life. At least until they are married.

Marriage? From where this marriage thing came? Her heart asked and she closed her eyes as if a child wants to hide herself from someone but the face was there peeping out from the darkness of her imagination.

"What's happening with me?" She asked herself. The girl who never thought of any boy now seeing a face every now and then. Was that normal? If it was because of the teen hormones then why it never happened before? Why was she thinking about a boy who was nothing for her but an intruder?

Is this called love at first sight? She asked herself. All thanks to bollywood films to introduce teens with only one emotion on the name of entertainment. 'Love'. The overrated genre.

"No no... I won't do anything like that... I just want to find him out... Nothing else." The real innocent Urooj told her fearful heart who was scared after only thinking about falling in love.

She knew very well that Good Girls stay away from boys, Bad girls are those who befriend with boys and talk to them in an over friendly manner. Being a good girl she remembered her mother's lesson and controlled her heart to think about that stranger. However failed!

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