The Zeroth Law

CHAPTER 5: THE ADONIS

"Why her?" a loud discussion around me was trying to break in through the lids of my tightly shut eyes, "Of all the girls out there why does it have to be her?"

I grabbed my pillow and put it over my head instead of below it to drown the annoying sounds of my room mates. Why were they trying to get themselves killed on Sunday morning at my hands?

"She can't be that bad", I heard Kritika's voice reasoning the earlier one, which I was finding hard to believe belonged to Shayoni. I hadn't heard her raise her voice to the octaves before. "I mean, you haven't even spoken with her before so maybe you are only being prejudiced."

I increased pressure of my hands on the pillow hoping it would act as a better sound proof device but no, I could still hear every word of the argument clearly.

"Can you not be the ultimate voice for reasoning all the time and be supportive like a friend for just a minute?" Shayoni's voice snapped and I decided I was dreaming.

The words said just a moment ago if had been said by Shayoni then it was equivalent to her calling Kritika a bitch, chances of happening which were lower than people in India not believing that fairness can be achieved in five weeks. Shayoni was one of those kinds whose hand automatically turns to that one piece of worn out dull coloured hoodie in her closet every time, who can camouflage herself in any setting of the background with skills that would put even a chameleon to shame, who can make her presence so non-existent that you could walk all over her without a tiny shade of regret, who is so engrossed in her own world that she doesn't have the luxury to agree, disagree or even feign indifference towards any views around her, and she definitely wasn't someone who could get in anyone's way, let alone judge them. So obviously it was hard for my drowsy brain to believe that what I heard wasn't a fragment of my imagination.

"Whoa!" I heard Arpita's voice from above me say groggily so I assumed she was still lying around on her bed, "I really want to meet this girl who is calling out Shayoni's inner bitch so ardently."

"Huh!" I heard Shayoni sigh and could imagine her looking extremely guilty for her outburst at Kritika, "I didn't mean to say that", I assumed these words of her were directed towards Kritika, "but I am really uncomfortable with the idea of her being our room mate."

"Why?" Kritika asked and I felt the mattress at my feet sink down an inch, so I assumed Kritika must have taken a seat there. "As far as I know, you haven't exchanged even a grunt with any of your classmates to the date. So there's a thin chance she would even remember your face."

"Urgh!" I put the pillow away unable to keep myself out of the conversation any more. "Isn't your reaction to the new room mate announcement running a little late?" I asked Shayoni in between my yawn as I raised myself up.

"I was too preoccupied with freaking out about the retrials to have any curiosity left in me about our new room mate", she replied from her bed which was towards my left. Her sweaty T told me she had just been back from her morning exercise session.

"Why don't I find it hard to believe?" I rubbed my eyes and glanced at the new bed in front of me. Adding it there had been a very tedious job because we had to shift all our three tables near mine and Arpita's bed in a line and get rid of a chair just so we could have a place to put down our feet, not to forget accommodating an extra cupboard near the new bed which now made complete opening of our room's door impossible. "Why does she get a separate bed and I have to be exiled to this bunk one and share it with Arpita?" I asked Kritika.

"As glad as I am to sleep everyday on upper berth of a train", Arpita peeped down at us with an annoyed glance, "because you don't know how to stay still even in your sleep", this one was directed towards me, "you have a point. Why does the new girl get a separate bed?"