Chapter 1
The scene opens with a boy running for his life, breathless and terrified. Right behind him, a strong, determined man chased him down, a stone clenched tightly in his hand. In one swift move, the man hurled the stone. It struck the boy, who collapsed to the ground instantly.
The man was Aditya.
He stood tall in blue jeans and a crisp white shirt, his well-built frame commanding attention. A scarf was tied around his head, holding back his long hair. His face was handsome, sharp, and fierce—burning with anger.
He grabbed the boy and shouted,
“Speak! Will you ever dare to harass a girl again?”
The boy trembled. “No… no, I won’t… please forgive me, brother. Let me go.”
A crowd had gathered by now, but not a single person had the courage to step in.
After a moment, the girl who had been harassed spoke softly, fear still in her voice.
“Brother… please let him go. He might die.”
Aditya looked at her, then shoved the boy away in anger and stepped back.
That was when his eyes fell on her.
She stood quietly in a pale yellow salwar suit with delicate white patterns, a white dupatta draped over her head. Kohl lined her eyes, and a soft tint of color touched her lips. Her face was partially hidden behind the dupatta, but the wind kept lifting it gently. She tried to hold it in place, fixing it again and again. Loose strands of hair fell into her eyes, and she brushed them aside with shy, graceful movements.
Aditya’s heart skipped violently.
For a moment, it felt as if his breath had stopped.
The crowd began to move, faces passing by—but to Aditya, no one else existed. In that sea of people, he could see only her.
Suddenly, someone bumped into him.
“Are you blind? Can’t you stand aside?” the man snapped and walked away.
Aditya didn’t respond.
His eyes were still searching for her.
And then—
within moments—she disappeared from his sight, like light fading from the eyes.
*********
Hiba had finally returned home. Her family was small but close—her parents, a brother, a sister, and her cousin sister, Nida. The house felt alive again with familiar voices and comfort.
As soon as they settled down, Nida said casually,
“Hiba, please make a glass of lassi.”
Hiba smiled softly.
“Yes, of course,” she replied, then added gently, “but the prayer time is about to end. Let me offer my namaz first.”
Nida sighed and leaned back.
“Hiba… we just arrived. I’m already so tired.”
“That’s okay,” Hiba said calmly. “I’ll pray first and come back.”
With that, she walked toward the washroom to perform wudu.
Nida stayed seated. A moment later, Hiba’s mother entered the room with a warm smile.
“Oh, you both are back already?”
“Yes, Khala,” Nida said. “I’m very thirsty. I was thinking of making some lassi.”
“Of course, dear. I’ll make it right now,” her aunt replied. “Where’s Hiba?”
“She went to pray. She’s making wudu.”
Hiba’s mother smiled with affection.
“My innocent child… may Allah always keep her safe.”
Then she glanced at Nida and added teasingly,
“And may He guide you a little more too!”
“Khala…” Nida protested lightly. “I do pray!”
Her aunt smiled knowingly.
“Yes, beta—but not only Friday prayers. The others are fard too.”
With that gentle reminder, she walked into the kitchen to prepare the lassi.
A little while later, Hiba returned after completing her prayer. Nida was scrolling through her phone and looked up.
“Don’t you ever get tired?”
Hiba smiled peacefully.
“I do get tired,” she said, “but Allah gives me strength.”
Both of them smiled at each other just as Hiba’s mother came in, carrying two glasses of lassi. They drank together, laughing softly.
Soon after, the two girls went to their room and quietly settled down to study—
the house filled with calm, warmth, and unspoken peace.
**********
Aditya doesn’t go home. Instead, he parks himself at a roadside tea stall, staring at his cup like it owes him answers. Clearly, he’s waiting for someone.
Suddenly, a hand lands on his shoulder.
“Yo bro! How’s life?”
Aditya looks up, unimpressed.
“Since when have I been waiting for you, huh? Where did you disappear?”
The guy sighs dramatically.
“Bro… if I start explaining, the tea will get cold.”
Aditya takes a loud sip of chai and smirks.
“What happened—your dad kicked you out again?”
“Daily routine, bro.”
“Then why do you drink so much that you can’t even stand straight?”
“Tu rehne de,” the friend snaps. “At least your dad doesn’t care what you do. You roam around like an orphan.”
Aditya’s smile fades.
“Yeah, and at least no one yells at me,” he says quietly. “But tell me—who worries about me? You’re lucky. Your mom asks where you are, how you’re doing. I don’t even have that.”
The friend softens.
“All I have is a rich dad,” Aditya continues, half-laughing, half-bitter.
“He’s too busy with his girlfriends to remember he has a son.”
“Bro… maybe talk to him once? What if he actually wants to meet you?”
Aditya snaps back,
“So now I’m a burden?”
“What nonsense! You’re my brother, man.”
They both fall silent and sip their tea.
After a moment, Aditya’s friend—Anuraag—leans in like he’s about to confess a crime.
“Bro… I’m in love.”
Aditya raises an eyebrow.
“Congrats. Who’s the unlucky girl?”
“I love her a lot,” Anuraag says seriously. “But she doesn’t even look at me.”
Aditya laughs.
“Well, with a face like yours, even mirrors hesitate.”
“Ho gaya?” Anuraag snaps. “I’m serious!”
“Then go tell her.”
“Are you mad? In front of the whole college? What if she slaps me? My respect will turn into milkshake!”
“Respect? Since when do you have that?”
“……Help karega ya nahi?”
Aditya sighs.
“What do you want?”
Anuraag grins like a criminal mastermind.
“Kidnap her tomorrow.”
Aditya spits his chai out.
“WHAT?! KIDNAP?!”
“Arre sun to le! You kidnap her, I’ll come there and confess my love. If she says no, at least the insult will happen indoors.”
Aditya stares at him.
“She’ll say yes out of fear, not love. You want a wife or a hostage?”
“Bro please! Just once!”
“No. Absolutely not. This is the worst idea in human history.”
“Okay… then at least see her photo.”
“Show it.”
“She lives in my heart.”
Aditya glares.
“Should I cut your heart open and take a screenshot? PHOTO. NOW.”
“I don’t have one,” Anuraag says sheepishly.
“But I’ll follow her tomorrow, tell you what she’s wearing, and you—”
“STOP,” Aditya interrupts.
“This is nonsense… but for my brother—chai is on you.”
Anuraag beams.
“My hero!”
They clink their tea glasses like idiots, laughing—
two broken boys, bad ideas, and one shared cup of chai.
********
Hiba was on her way home from college.
At the same time, the girl Anurag claimed to love was also returning home.
By sheer coincidence, both girls were wearing the same outfit that day—a black suit salwar with a red dupatta. To make things worse, Nida had taken leave from college that day.
Anurag followed the girl from a distance. His phone was connected to Aditya’s call.
“She’s coming,” Anurag said quietly.
“What is she wearing?” Aditya asked.
“Black suit salwar… red dupatta.”
“Okay.”
“When she sits in a cab, you take her in your car. I’m coming after getting ready.”
“Fine. Leave it to me.”
Hiba stopped a taxi to go home. A car pulled up—it looked like a taxi. She sat inside without suspecting anything.
That car belonged to Aditya.
After driving some distance, Aditya stopped the car and got out, asking her to step out as well.
“We’ve arrived?” Hiba asked, confused.
The moment she stepped out, Aditya pressed a cloth soaked in chloroform against her face. Hiba lost consciousness instantly.
Her face was covered, so Aditya didn’t recognize her.
He took her to a deserted place and tied her to a pole. Then he stepped aside and tried calling Anurag—but there was no response.
After some time, Hiba regained consciousness.
She panicked, tears streaming down her face.
“Who are you? Why have you brought me here? Please let me go!”
Aditya walked toward her and shouted,
“Don’t you dare scream!”
But then—he froze.
Those eyes.
They were the same eyes he had seen that day in the market. His hands trembled as he pulled her mask away.
It was Hiba.
The girl who had unknowingly made his heart race.
Aditya was stunned. He turned his face away, his heart pounding.
It’s her…
Crying, Hiba begged,
“Please let me go. I don’t have anything. I don’t even have money.”
Something inside Aditya broke.
The girl he had started falling for… was actually the woman his friend claimed to love.
He walked away without saying a word, leaving Hiba there—crying.
Aditya tried calling Anurag again and again. No answer.
He searched everywhere—the tea stall, the college, his house, even beer shops—but Anurag was nowhere to be found.
In the evening, Aditya returned.
He noticed Hiba murmuring something softly. First, she turned her head slightly to one side, then the other. She was praying—offering salah through gestures, because her hands were tied.
Aditya stood there, silently watching.
He approached her with food in his hands and said softly,
“You must be hungry. Eat something. I’ll untie your hands.”
Hiba was terrified. Her eyes were lowered. She didn’t touch the food.
“There’s no poison in it,” Aditya said gently. “And no drug either. Please eat.”
She flinched even more, shrinking into herself, though his voice was calm.
So Aditya broke a piece of the food, ate it himself, and said,
“If it were poisoned, I’d be dead by now.”
Hiba slowly looked up. After a moment of hesitation, she finally ate.
---
Next Morning
Aditya was asleep nearby.
Hiba shook him nervously. He woke up in shock.
“What happened?”
“I… I need to use the washroom,” she whispered.
“Go.”
“My hands and feet are tied…”
“Oh—wait.”
He quickly untied her.
After using the washroom, Hiba decided to run.
She reached the door—but the moment she touched it, a loud alarm rang.
The door had a fingerprint lock.
Hiba froze in fear.
Aditya arrived, his face unreadable.
“Where were you going?”
She collapsed in front of him, crying.
“Please… let me go home.”
His heart softened—but Anurag was still missing. He couldn’t act yet.
“Go back,” he said quietly.
She kept crying. Aditya turned away and left.
---
A while later, Aditya finally found Anurag—walking with the other girl.
“Hey… bro,” Anurag greeted casually.
Aditya grabbed him by the collar.
“Yesterday you said you loved one girl, and today you’re roaming around with someone else?”
“What are you talking about? This is the girl I love.”
“Then who is the girl I have with me?”
Anurag laughed.
“She told you herself yesterday—and today is our wedding. Don’t forget to come for food.”
Aditya’s blood ran cold.
“So… who did I kidnap?”
“I don’t know,” Anurag shrugged.
“Looks like you kidnapped the wrong girl. My girl is right here.”
“Oh shit…”
---
Aditya rushed back to Hiba.
She was again whispering softly, moving her head right and left, counting something on her fingers—praying with a tasbeeh that wasn’t there.
Aditya cleared his throat. Hiba flinched.
He spoke gently,
“What is your name?”
She whispered fearfully,
“Are you going to kill me?”
“No… I just want to say something.”
“Please… don’t tie me again,” she pleaded.
Only Aditya knew how ashamed he felt hearing that.
“Listen carefully,” he said.
“I’m not a criminal. I won’t harm you. This was a misunderstanding. You can go home.”
Hiba was confused—unable to understand what was happening.
Aditya untied her completely.
“Do you want me to drop you home?”
She stepped back silently.
He understood.
“Alright. Do you have money?”
She shook her head slightly.
Aditya took out some cash and handed it to her.
“Take this… and I’m sorry.”
Hiba ran away without looking back, disappearing into the distance.
Aditya went back inside the room—and noticed something.
Hiba had forgotten her tasbeeh.
He ran outside, but she was already gone.
Aditya held the tasbeeh in his hand.
A silent memory.
A mark of regret.
*********
