Later that evening, Sunny and his friends return to his house. Shilpa Sharma, Sunny's mother, watches them enter one by one with a slightly exasperated expression on her face. She’s used to their noisy arrivals and antics, but today their presence seems to bring an extra level of energy into the house.
"Hello, Aunty, how are you?" he asks.
"I’d be fine if you all weren’t here to annoy me!" she replies, half-jokingly.
Just then, Sachin joins in, adding to the teasing atmosphere. He reassures Shilpa with a grin, saying, “Don’t worry, Mom. If anything goes wrong, I’ll take responsibility.” Shilpa playfully scolds him, but it’s clear she’s amused.
Despite her usual playful scolding, Shilpa has prepared a delicious pulao and invites the boys to wash up and enjoy the meal she’s made.
As they gather to eat, Nitin receives a call from his mother, who mentions that she won’t be able to return home that night due to an unexpected hospital stay. This means Tushar, who was supposed to stay with her, will need to spend the night at Sunny’s place. Shilpa agrees, offering to host him for the night and assuring him that he’ll be looked after.
The group laughs and continues eating, light-heartedly discussing their eventful day and recent exams. With a shared sense of camaraderie and the comfort of being around family, the evening passes in a joyful and relaxed manner.
Later, as everyone is still chatting, Nitin turns to Shilpa.
As the boys finish eating, Nitin’s phone rings. He steps away for a moment.
Tushar: “Hello? Oh, hi, Mom. I’m fine, just at Sunny’s place… no issues. Sure, okay. Aunty, my mom wants to talk to you.”
Shilpa takes the phone and nods. “No worries; I can handle them just fine.”
Sunny asks, “What did she say, Mom?”
“She said that Tushar’s mother won’t be home tonight due to a hospital emergency, so he’ll stay here with us,” Shilpa explains.
Tushar sighs. “My mom worries too much… but I’ll be fine.”
Nitin laughs. “Aunty, let him stay here; otherwise, he might do something silly alone!”
“Shut up!” Tushar retorts, laughing.
Shilpa smiles. “Yes, Tushar, you’ll be staying here tonight.”
“Fine, if you say so,” Tushar says with a grin.
Sunny teases, “Looks like you’re getting along with Mom today.”
After dinner, Nitin, Raju, and Akash leave, while Sunny and Tushar decide to watch a movie. Shilpa warns them to go to sleep soon, but they aren’t the type to listen. Around 11:45 PM, with everyone else asleep, they’re watching a horror movie when the doorbell rings unexpectedly, causing Tushar to jump in fright.
Sunny laughs. “It’s just the doorbell, you idiot. Let me check who it is.”
He opens the door but finds no one there. He calls out but receives no response, so he closes the door and returns to watch the movie.
The next morning, they wake up late, around 11:30 AM. Shilpa scolds both of them for staying up too late, but they laugh shamelessly while having breakfast. Around noon, Tushar’s mother calls him to check on him and informs him that she’s back home, so he can come back. After an hour, Tushar gets ready to leave. As he’s saying goodbye to Shilpa, there’s a deep voice at the door.
“Is Ashutosh Sharma home?” It’s Officer Gagan Gaitonde.
“No, sir,” Sunny replies. “He’s out of town for a business meeting.”
YOU ARE READING
Midnight Mist
Mystery / ThrillerA murder mystery that revolves around the friends who have just got rid of thier exams. Caught between suspicion and secrets, the friends realize that their innocent stop may have made them unwitting witnesses-or even suspects-in a chilling crime.
