"We're here."Aabir announced, stopping the car in the hotel parking lot.

"Finally!"Khusbu exclaimed before pushing the passenger door open and getting out.

"Ah,My back! It got stiffened."Simi groaned,placing her hands on her lower back, exiting the car.

"That's because we are sitting in one position in a car for so long due to traffic jam."I said as I got out of the car after her.

The rest of them got out of the car one by one,following us.

"Well...I hope you guys enjoyed the day."Akash asked us.

"Ofcourse we did.It was a day full of fun."Misha replied earnestly whereas Simi and Khusbu and I nodded along to her words .

"There are many beautiful places in Mumbai that we didn't get to visit yet . If we weren't running out of time,I could've taken you guys there."Aabir told us glumly.

"It's alright.We've seen enough places .You did your best to make our tour joyous and memorable.Thank you."Khusbu spoke up.

"Yes."I agreed."Thank you so much for these two days.We really had a great time because of you two."I expressed gratitude on behalf of everyone,glancing between Aabir and Akash.

"I also enjoyed so much with all of you .I am happy that I got to make new friends."Akash said joyously.

"Same here."We said simultaneously that broadened his smile.

"Alright,guys.It's time for us to go."Umang announced.

"Aren't you two staying in the hotel?"Arhaan asked, furrowing.

"No."Kabeer answered "Actually we're staying at Aabir's house."

"Oh,I see."Arhaan acknowledged.

"Hey,Why don't you stay with us at our home?It will be fun."Akash invited him.

"Yes,dude.Come with us."Umang requested Arhaan,following Kabeer and Aabir.I felt Aabir's request was half hearted,though.

"Ah.."Arhaan hesitated and I could guess his answer already.

Arhaan wasn't very close to Aabir from the beginning.Since they knew eachother,they hardly had interaction .So,staying at his home would be awkward thing for him .He would be comfortable here in the hotel with us.

"Um...I'll prefer to stay in the hotel with them."He declined them as I expected."But thanks for asking."He added.

They seemed to understand him and gave him a nod.

"See you tomorrow then."

Umang and Kabeer nodded before hugging Arhaan and greeting us girls good bye and getting back into the car.

I looked at Aabir and my heart almost skipped a beat when he looked at me at the same time and our eyes met.

"Bye."He said with a subtle smile.

"Bye."I wished back , smiling meekly.

Then he got into the car and drove the car away.

Once the car went out of our sight,Arhaan and we ,girls turned and walked in the hotel, sharing the same elevator and heading to our hotel rooms.

"Good night,girls."Arhaan wished when the elevator opened at the 6th floor and we walked out excluding him.He didn't come out of the elevator as his room was at the 9th floor.

"Good night."we wished him back.

He waved his hand, smiling our way one last time before the door of the elevator closed and the metal box ascended.

Returning to our room, we freshened up and changed into a comfortable clothes.

After taking a rest for an hour, I did wudu and performed Isha Salah.Then I called my parents and talked to them .There I got to know that my father was coming to India the next day in morning flight to attend the wedding.I felt so happy and excited upon hearing this news that I jumped like crazy on the bed as soon as I hung up the call.

After all,I was going to meet my father almost six months later.The last time we'd met was in Kolkata right before shifting to Dehradun.

When my friends asked me the reason of my sudden excitement and happiness,I gave them this good news and they also became happy for me.

Later,We skipped the dinner as we had ate a lot of junk foods throughout the day and we were full.We decided to sleep early, firstly because we were exhausted and secondly because the wedding functions were starting from the next day.Since the upcoming days were going to be eventful ,we needed proper sleep to recharge ourselves.So,as decided we went to bed early and we slept off in no time .

But I woke up in the middle of the night,not because of any noise or any interruption but because of my haunting dream.

I was covered with cold sweats.My heart was frantically beating against it's ribs as I vividly remembered those jumble images and overlapping voices that I'd seen and heard in my dream just a while ago.

For a while I just lay with my head on the pillow and looking up at the ceiling, waiting for my headache to subside.

The room was dimly lit,silent except for the alarm clock ticking and Simi's low snoring and Khusbu,Misha's stirring in the bed.I made sure to not disturb their sleep as I didn't want to burden them with my problem.

When my headache subsided a little,I tried to go back to sleep but found it harder to fall asleep.

Since sleep was far away from my eyes,I decided to pass time with my phone until I feel sleepy again.As decided,getting up from the bed and taking my phone in hand,I walked in the balcony.

I decided to scroll through Instagram to kill time.It's been 10-15 minutes I was scrolling through Insta posts and videos when my phone started ringing and it flashed Ankita's name.My lips parted into a smile reading her name on the screen and I was quick to answer the call .

"Hey,Ankita."I greeted cheerfully.

"Hey."She chirped."What's up,girl?"

"All good.What about you?"

"Same old,same old."She answered.

"So..how did you call me at 2 am in the night?"I asked in wonder.

"I saw you online.So,I thought of talking to you."She replied."By the way,why are you still awake at this late night? As far I know,the wedding functions are starting from tomorrow.You should go to bed early."

"I'd slept early but woke up."I answered.

"Why?"She asked"Did you see those weird dreams again?"her voice was laced with concern now.

"Yes."I exhaled heavily.

"When you left Kolkata,you'd almost stopped seeing those dreams.I thought you got rid of it by now."

"I also thought I would get rid of it.I barely managed to do so.But recently,I keep having dreams and it has become more weirder than before.These dreams are on another level now."

"What did you see?"

"That's hard to explain.Sometime blurry images and sometime clear pictures.And the voices I hear seems to overlap,I can't make out any of the words."I said,skipping that part of my dream where I always did find myself running in the wood as she already knew this one.

"I don't know where this dream come from nor do I know the reason for such a scenario.But the things I see or hear seems to be real to me as if I'm a part of those moments."I exhaled sharply.

"I think familiar people and atmosphere becoming a connecting link that acting as a trigger and causing a chain flashback.Perhaps you're recalling the memories of your past."

"I don't know.I really don't know whether those flashes are the memories of my past or just my imagination."I said, frustrated.

"Zara,I suggest you consult with your doctor.He may give you the proper explanation."

"What explanation could I possibly get from the doctor?"I got agitated."As always he'll say the same thing that the apparitions I saw in my dream may have formed out of my distorted memory.So my fantasies and the apparitions were from that.Then he'll prescribe me some antidepressants and would suggest me to not think so much about those dreams."

"Hey,don't get upset.Everything will be okay soon."her voice was soft , consoling.

I took a deep breath"Yeah"

"Alright.Enough of talking about me.Tell me about you.Why are you still awake?"I changed the topic.

I didn't want to talk about this anymore.The more I talk about it,the more it was gonna depress me.

Perhaps She understood my deliberate change of the topic and she played along with me.

"Come on,You know my night schedule, don't you?"She sounded as if I asked her the obvious.

Well ,I really did ask the obvious.

"Oh,ha.What a silly question I asked!You must be watching your drama series,right?"I chuckled.

"Yup."She giggled.

I knew it.

"So what is it this time?Chinese or Korean?"

"Korean.A rom-com."

"You don't get bore of it ,do you?"

"I can never get bore of it.Cause that's my only way to release my stress.As a med student you know very well how stressful our life nowadays are.For me,watching drama is my way to escape from all the stresses in life.It's my stress buster just like ice-cream and music are yours.These dramas make me smile and recharge my energy. "She reasoned.

I couldn't argue back.Afterall ,We all have our own ways of releasing our stress.

"Fine,I gave up.You won."I put my hands down .

I heard her laughing out aloud and it made me chuckle.

"By the way,I've seen those photos that you sent me in the evening."She said when she was done laughing "It seems you're having a great time with your friends in Mumbai."

"Yes.A lot ."I admitted .

She hummed .

"Speaking of photos, I've something to ask you."She exclaimed, suddenly excited.

"What is it?"I got curious .

"I noticed a handsome guy in some of your photos that you sent me recently.I want to know who is he? What's his name?Is he single or not?"

"I don't get who are you talking about."I was confused.

"Yeah,Right .You've got so many handsome boys around you.How will you know who I meant?"She murmured and I couldn't help but roll my eyes at her comment.

"Well..I'd seen him first in a group photo of your brother's engagement. In that photo he was dressed in blue bandghala coat .Even today I saw a photo in which you were with that handsome guy along with a little girl,holding candyfloss in hands."She said and I got who she meant.

"Oh,You must be talking about Aabir.He's my sister-in-law's cousin and Misha's classmate in college."I told her.

"Oh,his name is Aabir,I see."She acknowledged."Wait a second!This name rings a bell."She paused."Hey, Isn't he that arrogant guy you mentioned before who treat you like Mr.India?"

She still remember!?

I got surprised.I'd mentioned him to her once or twice when I just knew him for a month only.During that time he used to ignore me completely as if I was invisible to him .This kind of behavior of him used to piss me off and I needed someone to badmouth him.Since Misha and Khusbu forbidded me to talk about him,I'd no one but Ankita to share my pent up frustration and anger over him.But I didn't think she would remember it until now.

"Yeah,that's him."I confirmed.

"You two looks very comfortable together in the photo.When did you two come in a good term? Doesn't he give you cold shoulder anymore?"She asked me curiously.

"He has changed now.He doesn't give me cold shoulder anymore.Now he talks to me.He even smiles at me....occasionally."I told her.

"Good for you.You won't feel awkward around him anymore then."

"Yeah."I agreed."And you know what,Ankita?I was wrong about him earlier."I felt the sudden need to clear his image to her.Otherwise she could get a wrong impression on him.

I went on"What I said about him to you was wrong.Aabir isn't a bad person.Although he appears to be quite cold and distant ,he's very warm hearted.He looks like he doesn't care about the world or people around him but he's very kind and helpful.He's always the first one to appears unexpectedly when I need help.Although he always has that unfriendly vibe but he's very gentle to kids and he handle kid very naturally as if he has his own child at home.And he-- "

"Hey,Do you like him?"

"Huh?What?"I was taken aback by her question.

"Do you like that guy Aabir?"She asked again, making me flustered more.

"No!What made you come to this conclusion?"

"Well...When you start talk about him,you just go on and on .....be it badmouthing him before or praising him now.I've never seen you talk so much about a guy.That's suspicious.Looks like you're into him."

I became speechless.

Into him!?

That's ridiculous.

How can she conclude this impossible thing from my words?

"Zara,You still there?"Her voice reached to my ear that snapped me out of my trance.

"Yes,I am still here and it's not like that,okay?"I grunted ."It's just I didn't know him before and judged him from a distance.But now that I've seen him up close ,I realized he's not that bad."I made myself clear.

"Uh huh,Seen him up close?"I could imagine her grinning mischievously on the other side of the phone.

"I didn't mean it that way."I grouched.

"Yeah,I know."She giggled"But something is off with you ."She added,stressing her words more than necessary.

"What do you mean?"

"Well,In past when I tried to ship you with someone, you simply brushed off the topic.You never cared about it .But this time the way you're getting serious and even explaining yourself, that's so unlike you.It seems there's something something."her voice took on a teasing tone.

"Nothing ,nothing ."I retorted."Don't make assumptions,okay?It's impossible for me to like him."

"Why?He's handsome and good looking.And as you said, he has a good personality as well.So it's normal to get caught up in feelings over him."

"Come on,How can I fall for a person I barely know for 3-4 months?"I snickered.

"It is possible if he's your soulmate.Soulmates ignite powerful feelings within us.It's once in a lifetime connection."She stated that made me laugh.

"You know what?After watching too many romantic drama and movies,your thoughts have become overdramatic."

"Call me over dramatic or anything.But I've a strong hunch that my guess is correct this time.You like him.Perhaps you haven't realized this yet or you don't just want to accept it."She claimed.

I graoned"Argh!I told you I don-"I bit back the rest of the words as it was just a waste of time."Forget it.No matter what I say you're not gonna believe me .So You're free to think whatever you want.I am going back to bed.Bye !"

"Hey, don't hung up.I'm not done talking to you."

"But I am done.So, good night."I cut the call, ignoring her constant request and heaved a exaggerated sigh.

If I continued talking to her,I bet she was gonna pastering me until the sun comes up.

I thought I got rid of her but I proved wrong.In less than a minute ,my phone chimed with a notification.I tapped on the message and opened the chat section to read the message.

'You can cut my call and ignore me but you can't ignore your heart, sweetheart.As there's saying'The more you deny your feelings,the more they grow'. So If you really do like him which I believe you do, it's gonna grow with time.'

I quickly type in a reply.

'Don't run your brain on useless stuff and go to bed.'I texted her back along with an snoring face emoji and turned off wifi.

Then deciding to sleep the night away,I walked back in the room and keeping my phone on the nightstand ,I dropped myself on bed and closed my eyes.But I couldn't fall asleep, courtesy goes to Ankita.

Her words kept playing in my head.

"Do you like that guy,Aabir?"

Like him!?No,never.

Really,Zara?Then why do you think about him frequently?

I don't want to think about him .He just pop up in my thoughts.

Really?Then tell me When you look at him don't you feel some kind of fluttering feelings in heart?

It's just because I get nervous by his intimidating stare.When he appears in front me,I feel kind of nervousness that makes my heart race faster.It has nothing to do with romantic feelings.

Oh yeah?Then why does every little that he do for you make you happy?

You know,unexpected things make us happy because we never expected that they will happen to us.I feel that kind of happiness when he does something for me because it's coming from him which is unexpected.

Then why do you feel an explicable sense of happiness everytime you talk to him?And why do you get affected when he ignore you?Why do you become conscious about the way you look or the things you say when you're around him?

I shut my eyes harder,trying to keep my voice out of my mind.But it didn't help and my annoying inner voice kept questioning me about my actions and reactions around him.

At one point ,huffing,I tossed the blanket off and sat."Alright,fine.I admit that I am interested into him but not in a romantic way.I just find him kind of mysterious.His aura creates a special magnetic pull of curiosity that intrigues me and make me want to get to know him better and that's make me pay more attention to him than needed.That's it.Nothing more."I said, making myself believing the same.

That's how I spent halt of the night in giving justification about my interest in him.

*****************

Here was the new update.Let me know how was it on comment section and don't forget to vote.

And guys I've published another book named'Love You Beyond Limits ' .This book based on fantasy-romance genere.
Give this book a try.I guess you'll enjoy reading this love story.