Somewhere in Between

Barely Functioning

HM gives him a death glare.

The poor guy almost drops the scalding pitcher of chai on himself in fear, running away.

Urmi grimaces, schooling her features.

She didn't mean to traumatize the unsuspecting fellow.

"Maddam sir?" Santu asks once more, hoping to calm her down.

HM looks up at her little sister and sighs.

"Arrey woh apni Hero ka nikamma bhai call kar raha baar baar," Urmi reveals defeatedly. "Mereko laga uska phone tute ga toh uski aqal thikane ayegi. Lekin nahi. Yeh toh haath dho ke piche pada hai mere."

Who in their right mind sold a phone to that leech, HM didn't know, but since that morning, he'd been calling her constantly, trying to get her to talk to him.

She didn't want to talk to him.

Neither HM. Nor Urmi.

And she thought it was made abundantly clear by how many times she had already ignored his calls so far.

But he seems to have lost his brain cells along with his phone that day because he just wouldn't take a hint.

As if she needed any more headaches to deal with today.

"Lekin woh aapko kyun call karein ge?" Santu asks in her masoomiyat. And despite everything, HM can't blame her confusion.

Neither of them knew what the hell was going on. And Urmi's growing disdain for their ex-DSP was probably not making any sense to them without having the proper context of why she hated him so much.

"Pata nahi, chotu," HM deflects, putting her head in her hands as the headache gets worse. "Mera toh sar phat raha hai."

And maybe it's because her head is down, that HM doesn't pay attention when the two constables suddenly lose interest in the conversation and turn towards the new company that showed up.

HM doesn't get a chance to turn, however, when there is another vibration and the screen in front of her lights up with the name that makes her blood boil.

This time, Urmi has had enough.

She picks up.

And goes off.

"Abbey jahanum ke jeev, narkh ke nevale, dozakh ke deemak, tujhe samajh nahi aata ke mujhe tere se baat nahi karni hai?!" Urmi yells into the phone before he can even speak.

The poor audience behind her is caught off guard by the outburst and nearly jumps at the way she violently spews curses at the bane of her existence.

Urmi doesn't notice, and continues without warning, "Chimkadar ki beghar aulad, tereko pata hai ke mein Haseena Mallik nahi hai toh baar baar mereko phone karke kyun mera bheja fry karta hai?!"

If she would just turn her head sideways a little, maybe HM would've seen her younger siblings helpfully gesturing her to shut the hell up. But when AS decides to keep talking, all she can see is red.

"Chup! Ek dam chup! Warna teri jibaan kaat ke, garaam tel mein paka ke, kaande aur mirchi ka tadke ke saath tujhe hi wapis khila degi mein," Urmi proceeds to paint a graphic picture of her plan as Cheeta and Santu immediately put their hands on their mouths, traumatized just by the description of it.

Even the last of her audience is sufficiently disturbed by it.

"Nahi, mein nahi sune gi teri baat. Tere jaisa leechar mene akha world mein nahi dekha. Abbey jonk bhi kisi ka khoon choosne se pehle tere se training leti hogi," Urmi still continues, pouring all her frustrations and pain into this quite cathartic flood of insults.