A Sew Through Time [Banbudh And Budbak]

15: No surprises please

The desolate parents have given up searching for their child. Grief slithered its way into their lives whenever they saw her picture. Khushi's mother had her conscience troubled; she started to think that her daughter's disappearance was a judgement from the gods to chastise her partiality. Khushi's father, on the other hand, had developed a strict and daily habit to visit the police station several times a week in hope of extracting any information related to his missing daughter, only to be excused by shaking heads and no proper answers. A month had passed since she is lost; somehow a dead child is far more desirable than a missing child.

Ananya visited the house every morning to fetch Rockit before school. She had never dared to gather the courage to face Khushi's parents after that dreadful night. She and Souvik, after that unfateful day in the mall, had immediately gone to her house to tell them the truth, receiving tight slaps from their parents in front of the family in return. The police had interviewed them whilst they sobbed bitterly. The moment felt horrible to be revisited. She quietly unlocked Rockit from her chains. Sometimes when she had the mood, she rode on it, but on most days, she humbly let the cycle run along her footsteps.

In school, she noticed the usual students outside talking and heading towards their classes. Some of them noticed her and exalted ignorant stances or just walked away while she parked Rockit near the mango tree. Turning around, she heard someone yell her name several times.

"Why that sorry face again?!" Ishani yelled at her from a distance, wrapped in her usual self. She was taller with a pixie haircut, with a blue clip at the left side. Walking towards her, she crossed her arms and leaned, deliberately making her shadow fall on her and repeated the question

"They still didn't find her..." Ananya mumbled under her breathe.

She straightened herself and remarked, "Sooo sad! Will she be cooped up forever where she is now?"

"Shut up"

"Disgusting" the bully spoke in a sarcastic tone, "It's all your fault you let Khushi be taken away like that, don't you think? If not because of your stupidity, she would have been with us right now"

"SHUT UP!!!!" Ananya screamed at the top of her voice, making the other startle.

"How DARE you raise your voice! You think you want to scream and convince everyone that I'm the bad guy?!"

Anger simmered beneath her calm surface, she stared at her and whispered,

"Get lost..."

Ishami raised one of her arms and decided to hit her with the greatest force she could exert. The other panicked and shielded her face with the back of her arms. But she could not feel the impact. Opening her eyes, she saw someone holding Ishani's hand from behind, making her jerk backwards. It was none other than Souvik.

"You!"

"Hit her and I'll smack you" he uttered, throwing her arm away downwards, his eyes illuminated with wrath. 

Ishani looked at him with surprise and left, threatening that she would complain about his actions to the school principal. Though she was a bully, she is also the class topper and a big rival of Khushi in games, the number one teacher's pet. They already knew all teachers would mostly be in her favour but Souvik seemed to care the least. He consoled his friend and walked to their classroom.

The students who were busy talking to each other grew silent upon seeing them. Whispering wafted in the air. They seated themselves at the farthest bench away from the teacher's desk, trying not to look at the watchful eyes.

"Souvik?"

"Yeah?"

"Khushi...", Ananya whispered, "I can't sit idle like this anymore"