Episode 6:
Haunting Past
Scene: Agastya's Apartment.
Agastya's POV
It is late evening when I returned home from the theatre. I turned on the light of my apartment and went straight to my window the first thing to get a glance of her. When I left in the morning, I guess, she was still sleeping. Besides, I was in hurry since I woke up late.
Huh? What's this? Her windows have got the blinds suddenly which wasn't there until today morning. But why? I can see the lights from the sides of the blind and a shadow as well. I'll check if she is fine.
Scene: Sweety's apartment
Agastya pressed the doorbell for quite some time and thought probably her door bell might not be working, so he knocks the door for few more times.
"Sweety... Sweety...", He calls as he feels suspicious of something wrong.
He dials a number.
"Hello... Farah I want Sweety's number. Jaldi message karo mujhe abhi ke abhi", he barked into the phone and disconnected.
He knocked again but there was no response. His phone beeped and he immediately called the number Farah had sent. It was the landline number. The phone rang multiple times and went to the voicemail recorder.
"Hello Sweety, kya tum andar ho? Please darwaza kholo. Main kabse tumhara wait kar raha hoon tumhaare darwaaze par.", He said with concern
"Excuse me Mister. Would you mind coming with us?", came the voice from behind.
He turned around and noticed that it was a police officer.
"Hello Officer, Sweety, a friend of mine is inside and I am trying to get her open the door for quite some time but she isn't opening. I saw the light and a shadow from my apartment which is just opposite. She must be in some danger. Could you please help me check?", Agastya speaks hurriedly.
"Come with us Mr.", The officer says sternly.
"But Sweety...", says Agastya pointing at the door. The door opens and Sweety glares at him with her crossed hand.
"Sweety! Tum thik ho?", Agastya runs back and hugs her. She doesn't hug him back, neither moves. The officer pulls him and takes him along. Agastya looks at her in shock. The cold reaction on her face had returned and he wondered why.
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Scene: New York Police Department (NYPD) office.
"Listen Ms. Farah, Ms. Sweety has complained that your friend, Mr. Agastya Rao, has been troubling him even after certain reminders.", The Officer informs
"Officer please, she is actually our colleague, so he just went to meet her cordially. He means no harm to the lady. Please Officer, I ensure you that he will not repeat such offence again.", Farah pleads.
Agastya sat on the chair, lost in his thoughts staring at the floor. Farah wiped her forehead in despair.
The officer goes inside the cabin and makes a call. He comes out after sometime.
"We are releasing him on warning this time but next time if he tries evading Ms. Sweety Kaur's space then the consequences will be grave for him.", The officer warns.
Farah sighs in relief. She signs the necessary documents and pulls Agastya who was still sitting on the chair like a lightening struck carcass.
He gets up and boards a taxi with Farah. There was an absolute silence in the cab and until they reached home. Upon going upstairs, he went into his room and stood near the window blankly staring at Sweety's blinded window. Farah and Rishab came up with dinner for him. When Farah saw him standing at the window, she lost her calm.
"There you go!! Agastya have you lost your mind?", She said pulling his arms and facing himself to her. He turned his head glued to her window. Farah turned his face by holding his chin forcefully.
"Tum sunn rahe ho meri baat? Maine tumhe pehle hi kaha tha ki jo galati tum kar chuke ho pehle usse doobara mat doharao. For F### sake use your brain. Don't let someone else screw your life again. Last time badi mushkil se sambhala hai tumne apne aap ko, jaan dene chale the tum uss self obsessed Rumi ke peeche. Ab yeh!", She said pointing her hand at Sweety's window. He turned his head again towards Sweety's window. Farah glared at him.
"Udhar math dekho!!", Screamed Farah with gritted teeth. She pulled the curtain of his window agitated. Rishab pressed her shoulders to calm her. She holds her head in both her hand and turns around gasping for breath.
"Agastya, Broadway's tumhara dream hai and you've already gone through a lot to come here. Ab yaha aake tum Sweety ke peeche ghumoge toh sab kharab ho jaayega dost. Kal tumne uske liye itna kuch kiya but uske baad bhi uska behaviour nahi badla tumhari taraf balki aur extreme ho gaya. Aaj ek mauka mila tumhe sudharne ka agar usne doobara complaint kiya na toh tumhara career khatre mein pad sakta hai.", Rishab advises. Farah turns back and looks at him.
"Rishab iss se kuch nahi hoga, you wanted this room right? Agastya you are exchanging the room with Rishab and that's final.", She gives him an ultimatum.
Agastya looked up at her with moist eyes.
"Par usne aisa kyu kiya? Kal raat ko she broke down infront of me and showed her vulnerable side to me. She needs me Farah. She needs me! She is lonely and broken to the core. She isn't like Rumi, trust me!", Agastya says with tear filled painful eyes.
"Wrong Agastya! She doesn't need you but you surely need a psychiatrist! Now move your bloody ass and go to Rishab's room. Now!!", She yells.
Rishab escorts him out of the room but Agastya sits on the couch in living room. Rishab and Farah sit beside him on either side and they eat the sandwich.
"You know what Agastya, I feel tum khadoos hi achche the. Arrogant, Rude who doesn't give a F### to anyone. Atleast tum khudh ko hurt toh nahi karte the", says Farah by placing her head on his shoulder.
"Yeah, I miss that Agastya too", added Rishab placing his head on Agastya's other shoulder.
Agastya placed his head on Farah's head and the three slept in the same position.
Agastya woke up and slowly released himself from both his friend's grips. He looked at the clock. It was 3:45am. He went into his room, which was dark. He pushed the curtain a little from the window. The lights of Sweety's apartment was on and she was seated in her usual place, on the window frame, lost in her thoughts while smoking.
Agastya's POV:
Why do we fear of letting go the pain? She is in pain, I know it. Because even I am in pain myself. I can understand her. Perhaps, we don't want to let go the pain because we are afraid of being hurt again. We make pain our constant companion just because of the fear of it returning back if we let it go now. She chooses to be lonely because she is afraid of being left alone in future. But Sweety, I promise you that I won't leave you alone until the day I stop breathing. You just need to try, trust and accept me.
Her thoughts were broken when her finger touches the flame of the burning cigarette. She jerked her hand upon burning and crushed the cigarette before turning of the light and going to bed. Agastya falls asleep on the bed.
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Scene: Sweety's apartment
Sweety turns on the water heating jug when her landline phone rang but she doesn't pick the call. She pours the water into the cup of instant noodles. The voice recorder turns on.
"Hello Ms. Sukhminder Kaur, It's Agastya Rao. I had called to inform you that I am modifying the script because it doesn't look realistic. I will be sending you the copy of modified script on your email address by today evening. Incase if you have any objection, kindly let us know by coming Monday. Thank you."
Sweety was raged. She dumped the noodles cup into the dustbin and went to her room. She took off her tank top and wore a turtleneck sweater and slipped in a jeans by removing her shorts. She quickly brushed her hair and wore her glasses and left the apartment with her bag and keys.
Scene: Broadway Theatre
Agastya looked out of the window and saw Surveen getting out of her car. He gets shocked to find Sweety's father getting down from the other side of the car and hugging Surveen and giving her a cheek kiss. Sweety's father waved bye at Surveen with a smile and she walked inside the Broadway Theatre.
Agastya's POV:
How the hell is Surveen and Sweety's father related to each other? Are Surveen and Sweety both sisters? Rumi aur Maira ke jaise kahi inke beech bhi koi rivalry toh nahi hai? Is that the reason why Sweety didn't wanted Surveen to be the lead performer? Is that the reason why Surveen wanted to change the script and the playwright?
He goes into his cabin and keeps pondering about Sweety when Sweety barges into Agastya's cabin.
"Mr. Agastya Rao, I had told you on the first day itself that I don't like my script to be modified. Then why the hell do you want to modify it? Do you want to take out your personal grudges on me professionally?", Sweety asked.
"It's purely professional Ms. Sukhminder Kaur. Your script is totally unrealistic. Forget about the audience, my performers themselves can't connect to it.", Says Agastya.
"Oh!! My bad! I should have guessed it earlier. If not earlier then atleast after what I witnessed yesterday in your cabin.", She said.
"What? You came to the office yesterday?", He asked shocked.
"Yes, I did! And I saw how your new performer was all over you. That slut must've given you a good blow job to convince that my script is unrealistic.", says Sweety.
"Oh!! So that was the reason behind your reaction yesterday. But for your kind information, I am not sleeping with your sister. She was trying to seduce me but I am not that easily available. What you witnessed is just a half truth.", He says.
"Sister? Who told you she is my sister?", Sweety asks.
"I saw her with my own eyes with your dad few minutes back.", He says.
"Huh! (Smirks) She is my dad's f###$$$ wife. She slept with him to revenge against me.", Sweety spoke with greeted teeth.
"What revenge?", asked Agastya.
"We were classmates and friends in performing arts college. She lost a competition against me and to revenge it she slept with my then boyfriend. I was emotionally hurt. It took me sometime to overcome the breakup. I cut off with her and decided to move on. I got selected as a lead performer in a theatre whereas she had to take a side role in a play. She drugged me on the day of performance and I f###ed up my whole play along with my theatre career. But she didn't stop there. Just because I confronted her, she slept with my father and married him as well for the money and revenge. She wants to f### every bloody person I am connected with.", She vented out her painful past infront of him.
He went and hugged her silently while she stood like a stone. Her haunting past was now brutally split opened infront of him.
"I am sorry Sweety. I am sorry for everything you went through in life and for unknowingly and unwantingly hurting you by selecting Surveen. But trust me it's purely professional. I have no interest in her in any other way.", He says.
He left her embrace and looked at her.
"It doesn't matter to me Mr. Agastya Rao. All I know is that I don't want to change my script for anyone. Not even a single word. If you don't like it, then choose a different playwright and a script. If you still try to change it then I will sue you.", She said with a cold face and walked out of the cabin.
End of Episode 6
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To be continued.. ❤️❤️