|the naive rebel|
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xxxix| she's missing
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

word count- 1520

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Third Person
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[Wednesday night (Night of the event)]

The night sky is aglow with bright city lights.
The pale crescent moon shines like a silvery claw in the sky. The occasional barking of faraway dogs breaks the maintained silence.

Ishaan finds a cosy spot on the terrace as he rests his hands, fingers drumming an incoherent tune on his knees. One arm behind his head, while he sits with his back resting on the wall and head slanted, admiring the celestial beauty.

The event had ended smoothly, Aditi had reached Mumbai and Inaayat is, well, sleeping-or rather tossing in her sleep, thinking about the happenings of the day.

His mind follows her thoughts, as it wanders thinking about the day's happenings, and how he had started doing things-for her?

Ishaan is swaddled with uneasiness and confusion. His mind is overstressed and his heart gurgling in anxiousness.

Before, he can try inferring the hidden feelings behind his gestures, his phone rings breaking the chain of his musings.

"Hmm." He keeps the phone, balancing it between his ear and shoulder. His uninterested tone causes the speaker to burst in his share of chuckles.

"Why are you awake so late, oldy?" Kabir questions and Ishaan closes his eyes in dismay.

"So, have you started sleep-calling these days?" He retorts trying to head Kabir towards a direction away from the real topic.

"I am very much awake, thank you very much. Now, stop trying to deviate me. What are you thinking so deeply, that's keeping you awake at this ungodly hour?"

"How do you-"

"I did tell you, we share a soul connection. Whenever your soul feels uneasy, my soul starts shivering." Kabir squeals imitating a feminine voice.

"Shut up." Ishaan rolls his eyes, but he does smile at his best friend's antics.

"Yeah yeah, now why would you care for my poor heart -which by the way you manage to crush every time, clenching it in your fist. Shattering, breaking and smashing it."

"I pity Tia sometimes. No, wait-all the times. How does she even put up with you,"

"That's because she loves me, and which reminds me, how's Inaayat?" Kabir smirks, slyly dodging Ishaan's fist which would have given him a black eye if he were present before Ishaan.

"How on Earth did the word love, remind you of my co-worker." Ishaan bluffs, sighing.

"Co-worker. Big words, oldy. Also, if you didn't realise-you haven't answered my question, yet."

"She's good?" The questioning tone doesn't go unnoticed by Kabir, who is having the time of his life. He knows his friend well.

"Are you asking me or telling me?"

"I am telling you. Thinking about it, she met her sister after such a long time so I think (biting back the 'know') she's good." Ishaan covers up, distractedly feeding Kabir's thirst of knowing the insights of his life.

"Guessing by the pretence weighing in your voice, I think you had something to do with that."

"With what?" How can he give up without trying for the last time?

"Please drop the facade, you are extremely bad at it. You helped Inaayat meet her sister, didn't you? And then you question the relation between love and Inaayat." Kabir darts a bull's eye, evoking the simmering queasiness to now boiling violently.

"Kabir. Why did you call me in the first place?"

"Ishaan, you need to stop avoiding it." Kabir's voice is stern. "You can't keep your thoughts and feelings concealed forever, you have to face them and if you don't, you'll be doing injustice with her and with yourself," Kabir warns him.

Ishaan had always shielded himself from such thoughts, after his sister's death, he had limited his life to his work and only work. He had become a robot, working and solving his cases, training the recruits but not failing to fulfil his promise. He had never met anyone who could want him to start feeling human emotions again.

Inaayat was surely out of syllabus, and he certainly isn't prepared for her.

And so isn't his heart.

"I'll call you later." And he did it again, running away from his feelings.

The call did nothing but only increased Ishaan's malaise. Even the bright stars fail to lighten his mind, the shimmering and twinkling movements of the orbs appear like the periodically lightning bulb.

And like the haziness of the night, his thoughts fade away, pushing him into the state of deep slumber and freeing him from the heavy and murky emotions spuming within him.

.

.

.

The sun pours over him, another day has dawned, bringing with it new hopes and certainly some dark subsequent events. The rising sun casts a rosy hue across the morning sky. Golden fingers of sunlight light up the scene, as it manages to wake Ishaan up from his sleep.

The soreness in his neck and the numbness of his legs, start the wave of discomfort in his body. Stretching a bit, he stands up.

Before he starts pondering over the leftovers of the last night, his phone rings.

"Ishaan? Can you come to the old age home, there's an emergency." The voice is weak and is breaking. The call disconnects before Ishaan can shoot his thread of questions. The scare of something happening to his mother petrifies him and he dashes the home.

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"Is Ma fine?" He asks as soon as he spots Tripti near the home's gate. The place looks calm and fine. He still wanted to make sure that nothing bad had happened to his mother, the only family he is left with.

"Nirmala is absolutely fine, Ishaan. Why do you look so terrified?" Tripti inquires.

"I received a call, she called me here urgently." He can finally feel his heart beating normally. Only he knows how the fear of losing his mother has been eating him-his soul.

"But, I didn't call you and every worker here knows that only I handle Nirmala's issues," Tripti tells, guiding him towards the in-house temple where Nirmala is with her other friends.

"See." Ishaan sees his mother sitting with others, praying and sitting calmly. Her face looks happy which relaxes his mind. Meanwhile, Tripti excuses herself as Ishaan stands at the door.

The phase of trepidation he had experienced, had scared him to death.

The fear of losing someone they care for, someone they love, can render anyone aghast.

And maybe that's why he has been avoiding to acknowledge his feelings for a certain someone. He can not live a life where he is always scared thinking that he can lose a dear one, someone, he likes, so easily.

Just the way he lost his father, sister and his mother's memories.

"Ishaan, I guess there was a mistake. Kirthana called you, mistaking the other Nirmala for your Mom. We have two Nirmala's in our home, the other one experienced a sudden anxiety attack this morning, she's well now, though." Tripti tells Ishaan about the error which had brought him to the home.

"I am sorry. I know how sensitive this topic is for you, and because of Kirthana's irresponsibility-"

"It's fine Tripti Ma, I am just happy that she's fine," Ishaan assures her as they walk towards the exit gate. "What are the doctors saying about her recovery, is there any chance?"

"Ishaan, the doctors are slightly hopeful but they aren't saying anything concrete as of now." She informs him but continues, "Ishaan, future is very unpredictable, you never know what can hit you or what can change your life completely. You can't do anything to prevent the happenings planned for the future. Yes, you can take precautions but you will never be able to change it. Nirmala will be happy, no matter what. But, are you happy?"

"I-"

"No. You aren't. Ishaan you need to start thinking about your happiness, don't let your life be overshadowed by your past." Before Ishaan could agree or disagree, his phone rings again. Disturbing him for the third time in the same stretch.

"Yes, Sameer." Ishaan attends his call, seeing Sameer's name being displayed on his screen. After Ishaan's truth was revealed to Sameer, he had started calling Ishaan only when needed. Wanting to avoid the rudeness Ishaan would spew at him.

"Shaan. She's missing. Angel is missing."

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Oooooh!! So? How did you find the chapter?

What do you think about this latest development? What do you think happened to Inaayat?

Just to make it clear: this chapter started from Wednesday's night and ended around Thurday's afternoon.

Don't forget to vote, please?

Next chapter marks the end of phase three.

Until the next chapter,
keep dodging the bullets,
ऊ.