Ishq-e-Watan

Chapter 17- Good Times Together

CHAPTER 17

GOOD TIMES TOGETHER

Karan glanced around the street. It was peak time on a Friday night. Euphoria would be too full for people to just linger around. His gaze lifted to the back entrance. No guards.

He opened the window, peeking in cautiously. It was empty. He opened it wider, slipping into the corridor. He put the mask up over his mouth and nose, the black cloth covering most of his face. The vent was right above his head. He stretched up, quickly unscrewing the bolts. He lifted himself up, climbing in. He put the vent in, leaving the screws at the end.

"I'm in", he whispered into the com.

"Seedha jao aur right", Faizi's voice said. "Peechhe waali side rooms honge."

"Copy that." He crawled through quickly, stopping at the end of an entrance of the vent. He peeked through the middle, eyes flicking around the room. It was empty for now, but there were chairs and tables strewn around. He quickly fixed the camera, before crawling back. It took him over an hour to crawl around the vents and place the cameras in all the rooms, but he was finally done just after 8.

He hopped down from the vent, screwing the bolts quickly. He tightened them, slipping out the way he had come.

"I'm out", he muttered. "Cameras check kar. Saare chal rahe hain?"

There was a pause. "Sab theek hai", Faizi said. Karan straddled his bike, wearing the helmet and zooming off, away from Euphoria.

---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---x---

Monami hummed to herself, as she filled the water in her water bottle. A vague sense of a figure looming hit her and she lifted her head, looking around. Her eyebrows furrowed. She shook her head. No one.

'Yeh horror movies mat dekha kar, Monu', she said. 'Phattu kahin ki. Paranoid ho gayi hai. Andheri raat mein, bhooth saath mein. Yeh hi sab soojhta hai warna.' She glanced around, shivering slightly. 'Chal, back to room, Monu.'

A noise made her pause and she glanced behind herself.

'Aaj pehli baar itne saalon mein kisi insaan ko dekhne ka mann kar raha hai', she thought. 'Koi ho jaao prakat. Aise hi tehelte tehelte. Bas bhooth mat hona. Yeh Sid 'kuchh nahi, kuchh nahi,' karke horror movies dikha deta hai. Kal bahut peetungi ise. Achha waala bhoot chalega par. Friendly, funny waala. Woh ho. Insaan se bhi better.'

She turned a corner, pausing when she felt the presence loom again. Her gaze fell on a movement, and her eyes widened, seeing the shadow.

'Kisi bhi movie mein bhooton ki shadow toh nahi hoti. Matlab, koi insaan mera peechha kar raha hai? Kyun? Mera kyun?'

'Monami, please thoda dhyaan rakhna. Hum tumhe sab kuchh nahi bata sakte, par bas... academy mein bhi, especially jab koi aas paas nahi hai, toh aankh aur kaam khuli rakhna.'

'Kahin isi cheez ke baare mein toh Faizi Sir warn nahi kar rahe the?' She thought. 'Monu... bhooth chodh, yeh toh insaan hi lag raha hai. Ab kya karoon? Yeh pretend karoon ki mujhe kuchh nahi pata? Nahi, nahi, aage changing room waala chhotu sa corridor hai. Wahan par koi cameras nahi hain. Agar isne attack kar diya toh? Kisi aisi jagah baith jaati hoon jahan par cameras honge. Wahan attack bhi kara, toh bhi pata chal jaayega. Mess! Mess chalti hoon. Coffee pee lungi, thoda calm bhi feel karungi aur ise shaq bhi nahi hoga ki main aise hi kyun random jagah par baithi hoon.'

She turned around, walking to the mess. Her hands tightened around the water bottle, when the shadow moved. She licked her dry lips, glancing at the wall. The shadow was still moving with her. It really was following her.