The couple had just boycotted using voice calls once they became so addicted to see each other constantly. The prolonged video calls had just made the enduring bond between the souls more stable. Since Ankush stepped in Inayat’s life, her watch became the most essential article that she would just not step without. She literally counted minutes to talk to this intellectual soul.

This guy had really managed to take her on a journey that she truly deserved all her life. He had so proficiently managed to bring that lost smile back on her face that she had lost 3 years back somewhere. Both of them were so intricately woven in each other’s fabric that it was just impossible for them to not to talk to one another. They would not even let the minutest details get missed during their conversations.They discussed everything from their childhood experiences, their school experiences, their past lives to their friends and their relatives as well.

They behaved just like kids having monologue speech when Ankush would mention about his besties Junaid, Jimmy and Sarmad and a few more souls he could count upon during his entire lifetime and his senior Gautam who got married to a sweet girl from Phillipines and their Punjabi boss who would often ask Ankush to drop him back (Ankush would often mimic his words which made Inayat laugh a little more that day).

Inayat, who had just met Ankush once was now virtually aware of all his relatives including Akshay, his brother- the only person Ankush would listen to and the one who used to awake due to Ankush’s whooping cough. His father- who is now retired and usually spends his nights sitting in the balcony. His Mother- well she is retired too but is slightly more inclined towards Akshay. That Jammu wale pyaaraji and Dehradun waali Buaji; Ankush’s favourite Baby bua(sarcastically) and the loving choti buaji.

Ankush’s kiddish talks had just managed to keep Inayat busy all the time thinking about him. But, everyday she made herself more determined to detach herself from him as even the thought of life without him would haunt her badly. Everyday she woke up, she would convince herself to find a few reasons not to love him so much but every night looking at him sleeping with his mouth open.....she lost it all to him.

She wanted to take all his addictions away but she kept getting addicted more to him. Her routine had become so predictive that it looked like a railway meal itinerary to me. She started finding time to think about other things in life but everyday she would just fail as Ankush took all her hours, minutes and seconds. The itinerary went something like this:

7:00 AM- Dr. Arora’s message would have managed to wake Ankush up from his peaceful sleep

8:00 AM- The tea lover must have been sipping a few sips along with a toast (Though he loves coffee equally and I just wish he avoids the heated argument with his mother)

8:20 AM- Ankush must have started for hospital and yes Inayat could expect his call after 10 mins ( I hope he only smokes once meanwhile)

9:30 AM- Ankush must have reached the hospital ( His surgery days were better than the OPD days as she would get to see Mr. Handsome dressed up in surgeon’s suit) 

1:00 PM- Ankush must have been exchanging his lunch bites along with giggles with Gautam

4:00 PM- Oh yes! The day gets over for Mr. Surgeon and she could now expect a call any moment

5:30 PM- Ankush would reach back and could again indulge in a heated argument with his parents ( She hoped Mr. Angry would save some cups today)

7:00 PM- If Inayat’s prayers worked well then Mr. Surgeon would go to Nursing home else he would just bang the door and move out, threatening his parents that he would not come back. He would just call her in frustration telling her the tales of how his parents annoyed him today. She somehow knew how to absorb his anger and would give him some tips to ignore the things. 

10:30 PM- This was the time that would bring them closer. He would often cough badly due to his excessive smoking and she would plead him to quit smoking.

She would often request him to sing those beautiful songs for her which would just seize the life for her. “Lag jaa Gale” was their favourite and Ankush really managed to sing it better than the original. He would often fall asleep while talking and she would keep looking at his innocent face. He would often ask her to “Be like that”. She would further wait for him to take a nap so that she could ask him to take off his spectacles and they would exchange goodnight wishes and sleep peacefully.

The nights were filled with each other’s warmth and comfort and the days were equally blissful to make them feel connected even when they were miles apart. She would often request him to cut on the number of cigarettes and he would often advice her to be little less daring. She would calm him whenever he fought with his parents and he would act more matured whenever she argued with her family. It looked like the two lost souls who had been exhausted by life’s hardships had found a common destination.

It seemed like the entire setting had been set up by some love cupid sitting up there in the sky. The air of melancholy had completely vanished away. It was all replaced by common feelings of love, affection and care for each other. They would often make plans to meet but destiny had something else to unfold for them.

Inayat had to go outstation for some unexpected work when she suddenly received a call from Ankush announcing about the fight he had with this parents. He further affirmed his desire to commit suicide as he was completely drenched in the feelings of agony and anger. By now, Inayat had also learnt how to counsel him during such course of time. She kept him busy the entire evening over the call.

Suddenly he disconnected the call promising her that he would not switch his phone off. He had only promised because promises are meant to be broken. She kept calling again and again but all in vain as he simply chose to ignore. Her soul was completely shaken as she experienced a swift panic attack. She gathered some courage to gulp inside a bubble of air to keep herself alive and to regain her senses back to normal. She felt so helpless as she was sitting beside her husband on her way back to the city.

All she could do was to pray her mystical soul to guide some instant action. She managed to make some silly excuse and asked her husband to stop the car sideway due to the sudden urge of puking out. On this pretext, she immediately called her best friend Mihika and briefed her of the situation instructing her to call and message this silly guy to take a clue of the situation.

Mihika’s personality is just contrasting to that of Inayat. She is more practical and often chooses mind over heart. She thus warned Inayat to stay out of this matter as she loved her more than herself and didn’t want her to land up in any unpleasant situation. Inayat made her understand the complexity of the circumstances and asked her not to give any further advice. The bond between the two girls was strong enough that Mihika immediately agreed to support Inayat unconditionally. Both of them just kept trying but all their efforts squandered as Ankush didn’t respond to any call or message.

Those 180 minutes were the most crucial minutes of her entire life and seemed like ages to her. It was the most intimidating experience for her. It looked like the hands of the clock had completely frozen and all the lights had completely been washed by the darkness.

She had constantly been praying for him when he called her up to inform that he was busy consuming alcohol to keep himself distracted. For the first time since they had met, she experienced the voracious appetite of killing him there and then. She finally took a sigh of relief acknowledging that he had reached back home.

He slept peacefully but her reflexes had completely given up as she kept thinking about him without even blinking her eyes. She felt absolutely disheartened by his absurd behaviour and convinced herself to get isolated.

The next morning she woke up with a credible attitude that she even managed to ignore his incoming video calls until she accidentally received the call. His ravishing looks in that lavender coloured shirt made her love him once again. She could not take her eyes off him.

Once again, she let her heart win over her mind. But now she had started getting the clues of his capricious behaviour and would often confront him to express his desire of getting detached to which he had always firmly denied. She would often request him to give her some time once he decides to leave as she had understood that her life without him would be entirely incomprehensible.

Her only fear was to lose him in an unanticipated manner. All his commitments kept making her more habitual to him. Her intuition kept warning her to take a step back but she ignored all those cautionary signals just to land up in an uneasy situation she is currently in. 

The Present Scenario: 

One evening, Ankush called up Inayat to inform her about the heated conversation he had with his parents again. His immature behaviour had only changed to notify her about his decision of leaving the house forever. Like the times before, she endeavoured to convince him to be calm but this time his decision was more determined than ever before.

He packed his luggage and updated her that he is going to stay at Junaid’s place for a few days until he gets resident’s apartment at his workplace. Inayat’s sluggish brain came to her rescue and immediately cautioned her to try extracting Junaid’s details which might be required sometime later but Ankush was shrewd enough not to disclose any.

Strong feelings of dismay overwhelmed her for the entire evening and gloomy emotions suspended her mind for all night. She never knew that this one event is going to bring reversal for her.....the reversal to her previous life that she had been living in before his arrival. She had never anticipated that this event will probably shake up the rest of her life. I wish she had known that this man is going to shut all his doors for her forever.

She kept calling him but he only answered to inform that later that night he had come to Kasauli to relax. Was he really out of his mind but that was not the first time that he had surprised her with his immature acts. These unexpected words even left her more astonished. She still convinced her mind that the tranquil environment there would help him to think rationally and he will be back with a transformed behaviour.

Millions of thoughts overwhelmed her mind. She tried being in touch but he preferred staying in solitude except for that 2 minute video call when a few droplets of sweat over his face made him look even more admirable. He even made Inayat notice the tilak on his forehead to which she had smiled for the last time....yes it was absolutely the LAST TIME.

Despite the gravity of the situation, she tried adopting a very optimistic attitude as he had promised to get back to her very soon. Hours kept passing by and she kept trying. His stubborn behaviour of not answering the calls brought a major twist to the circumstances. She cried, she shouted ,even screamed his name several times but he had completely disappeared. Her soul had completely stirred while she kept praying for his well-being.

This guy had given her a new definition of love. She had never craved to be with him but just wanted him to be happy forever. She just wanted to give him all her smiles and take away all his pains. She had never imagined that a stranger alone would become all her universe. For the very first time, Inayat’s mystical soul had also stopped responding to all her prayers.

Inayat had never estimated the complexity of the situation before; she failed to distinguish between reality and imagination and drew a conclusive decision. Ankush’s thoughts kept haunting her to the core as she had never imagined landing up in a situation that she had been escaping since years. More than 24 hours had passed by and she had not heard his voice or spotted his serene looks.

To come out of the current stakes and estimate the ins and outs of the situation, Inayat started to booze. She wanted to immerse herself again in the imaginary world that she had been living in for the past few days. She wanted to relive all the memories that had Ankush’s presence in it. She could not help herself or stop thinking about him.

She fagged, gulped in 2 sleeping pills as well but nothing could make the situation better for her. The two spirits had already come so close that she anticipated the bond to be inseparable. She kept consuming the alcohol to its last drop until she dialled his number again. She never knew that this 1:50 minute call would change the entire course of the relationship they shared.

She was so highly intoxicated that she does not even remember a single word of the conversation. Coming back to her senses, she tried connecting to him infinite times but he did not respond. Responding to her constant calls and messages, he texted her saying that he is in some mess right now and will get back to her once things normalise at his end. Since that day, she has been experiencing a certain weariness in her personal life. His thoughts tend to repeat endlessly in her mind. The person whom she wanted to explore new horizons with has even blocked her number now.

Certain questions keep haunting her now. 
What made him sway away suddenly? 
Did I really make him feel suffocated ?
Why did he have to block her number ?
Was all his concern pretentious ?

Inayat is feeling helpless as Ankush has blocked her from everywhere and she is simply unable to find answers to those countless questions that keep coming to her mind. She is feeling unwanted as he has blocked her number. 

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