Love At Last

An Acquaintance

In the weeks that followed, the attack on Gaurav was a hot topic of discussion everywhere on the campus. As the management had somehow managed to keep the press mum about the events, and asked the faculty to not divulge the details of the victims' condition to anyone, students seemed to make up their own versions of the attack. Rumors, each more ridiculous than the other, spread like wildfire. Some even went as far as saying that Gaurav might have been attacked by a ghost that haunted the switch room. Fear hung in the air and students walked in tightly knit groups.

A day after the attack, policemen had come to investigate and question the teachers, employees and students. The third floor was barricaded and students were asked not to go there so as not to disturb the policemen in their work. Much to the displeasure of the management, the policemen marched in and out of the school every now and then and questioned the teachers on their way to the classes.

Zaara was quiet uneasy after the questioning. A senior police official who had barked out orders to his subordinates to question the other students, had shown an uncanny interest in questioning Zaara and Anakha himself. He interrogated them for a long time, asking the same questions twice or thrice, probably in the hope of catching them if they replied differently to the same question. Zaara felt he never believed them in the slightest. When she voiced her thoughts to Esther and Veda, they said that it might have been because she and Anakha were Gaurav's close friends. But Zaara was not convinced.

Gaurav's absence had made her realise how much she cared about him as a friend. She could see that even Anakha was too sad and worried not knowing what his condition was. Maybe that common sadness was what had drawn them closer.

They hadn't got time to visit him with all the extra classes and library sessions and it would be past curfew when the classes were over. Zaara and Anakha tried calling him on his mobile, hoping that his parents or relatives might have his phone. But no one answered. Finally, they decided to visit the hospital the faculty had taken him to, to know how he was.

"But Zaara, how do we find out which hospital he was taken to? We'd have to ask someone." said Anakha. She and Zaara were alone in their room as Esther and Gayatri hadn't come back from classes.

"Yeah. Someone who took him and Mr.Johnson to the hospital. Paul or Douglas. We don't know the rest of the teachers who went, do we?" Zaara said, closing her eyes and propping herself on her elbows.

"Mr.Johnson? Is he the peon?" she asked.

"Yeah."

After a deep thought, her voice full if doubt, Anakha asked, "You think they'll tell us? I mean, you know them. I have a feeling that Paul wouldn't. Maybe, Douglas. But not Paul. Never Paul."

"Who else do we know? I mean, if we go to some other teacher whom we don't know, they'll just treat us like any other nosy student. At least, Paul or Douglas might know that we're friends with Gaurav. Let's give it a try, Anu."

Anakha nodded.

"Hope he's fine." said Anakha.

Zaara sat up and looked at her. She looked very tired and pale. There were dark shadows under her eyes and her cheeks were slightly hollow. Zaara didn't know how to comfort her. She knew that no matter what she did to comfort her, Anakha couldn't be comforted unless she saw Gaurav.

"He'll be fine, Anu." she sighed.

*

Zaara stood outside Paul's office, her heart doing a drumroll against her chest. She was sweating bullets, inspite of the cold. Douglas was out of town and the only person they could ask now was Paul.

Anakha, who was behind her, gave her a slight push. Zaara looked back and glared at her.

"You go if you're so impatient!" Zaara turned back and snapped.