They’d just reached the exit when the bike started sputtering. Aarushi slowed down, stopping the bike at the roadside. She swore under her breath. What now?
“I really don’t want to say this, but...I told you so.” Will sang as he jumped off the bike.
Ignoring him, Aarushi ran her eyes over the dials, examining each one. She slapped her palm against her forehead as she remembered.
“The tank’s empty.” She told him. “Idiot,” she muttered to herself.
“The petrol pump is at the next intersection. We’ll have to walk there.” She explained, getting off and grabbing the bike’s handlebars.
She looked up to see Will scanning their surroundings and she did the same. For a few moments, she’d forgotten about it, about the danger.
“Umm, here. I’ll hold it.” Will suggested, gesturing towards the bike.
“I can do it, no worries.” Aarushi said, not letting go of the handlebars.
“I insist. I won’t let go, if that’s what you’re worrying about.”
Aarushi shook her head. She stared at him for a second, wondering if it was a good idea, before nodding and letting him handle the bike.
They walked to the end of the road in silence, horns and blares from the traffic ringing through the air. The petrol pump was at across the road, with a barrage of vehicles blocking their way. Will stopped just a couple of steps away from the crossing, swallowing.
“It’s been years since I got here, but this traffic still terrifies the shit out of me.” he admitted, staring at the cars that whizzed by with wide eyes.
Aarushi laughed. It had taken her all of her life to get the hang of it, it was no surprise it scared Will.
“But you pulled me off the highway, right?” Aarushi said, her voice loud enough to carry over all the honking vehicle.
“Yeah, but I was running then, using my powers. Here, I'll have to walk.”
“Tell you what, I’ll cross with the bike and you can get there with your super speed or whatever power it is that you use.” Aarushi suggested, stopping herself from teasing him.
Will scanned their surroundings once again before nodding.
Aarushi waited for a break in the traffic and then calmly made her way to the other side, turning her head every which way to spot any oncoming vehicle. If you live in India, you’d be pretty familiar with the roads and how to travel through them without dying. And if you don’t, well, hopefully you’ll never have to experience it yourself.
As she reached the petrol pump, she realized Will was already there.
“Damn. It’s a wonder you’re still alive. How do you do that?” Will asked, amazed.
“Practice.” Aarushi answered, wincing. She was alive...but her dad had fallen prey to this mad traffic...Hadn’t he? She shook the thought away. Now was not the time to be thinking about it.
She got enough petrol for a couple of days before they got back on the road.
She zigzagged her way through the growing traffic, and she was sure she heard Will swear a couple of times. It made her grin. One of the things she loved about riding a bike was the thrill that came with it. The adrenaline rush of getting so close to a racing car and then leaning away, seconds before you could be turned into a bloody carpet.
She wondered if her love for riding had something to do with her dad’s accident. Was she trying to get herself killed? She had no idea. But she did know that she loved riding her bike as much as she loved her books. But clearly, Will didn’t.
She flashed her lights, turning into the trail that led to her home, which was basically in the middle of nowhere. You could say that it was a suburban house, though technically, it came inside the city limits.
Aarushi parked in their driveway, sighing in relief at the sight of her home. Her mom said that her dad's family had owned this land, so dad had decided to build their house here. Though even after living here for almost six years, the city still hadn't reached anywhere close. There were woods all around them, and the only other house close by was her best friend's. Other than that, it was all deserted.
Her best friend, Sam—whose actual name, Sampriti Das, was so old Aarushi wondered how she put up with it—was someone she’d known all her life. She was more like a sister to her, she’d always been. The earliest memories she had were of the two of them playing Princess with Aarushi’s dad. She remembered the curly haired, brown eyed babbling beauty that was, and is, Sam. They’d shared everything from their favourite foods to their favourite books. And though Sam acted like her namesake sometimes—like an old lady, of course—she was the only one Aarushi loved as deeply as she loved her family. Sam was a part of her family.
“So, I’ll see you tomorrow?” Will asked, bringing her back to the present.
Aarushi nodded, staring up at her house and sighing when she noted the dark windows. Her mom wasn’t home yet, thank goodness. Explaining why she’d been late and why there was an American boy with her to her mom would’ve been scarier than facing Markus again. It wasn’t that her mom was scary or even strict, but ever since her dad had left them, she’d become a tad bit overprotective.
“Yep, ten o’clock.” Aarushi affirmed, turning to look up at him.
Will nodded. “Okay, then. Good night, I guess.” Will mumbled, scanning the woods around her house.
“Is he...here?” Aarushi murmured, following his gaze.
Will shook his head and smiled at her reassuringly. “Nope. and don’t worry, he won't get anywhere near your house.”
“You’re going to stay here?” Aarushi asked, surprised.
Will nodded, “I’ll be in the back, don’t worry. Give me a shout if anything’s wrong, okay?”
Before she could protest—It’s October! It’s cold! Aren’t you hungry?—he was gone.
Aarushi ran her palms over her face, the exhaustion of the longest day of her life finally setting in on her. Hitching her bag up, she walked up the few steps, unlocked the front door and stepped in.
She turned on the porch lights as she closed the door, making sure she locked it. She didn’t think it would do any good against Markus, hell, he could fly in through a window if he wanted to, but the gesture still reassured her, gave some semblance of normalcy to her crazy day.
She turned on the lights in the living room too, before making her way upstairs to her room.
Her bedroom was her favourite place in the world. Other than when on her bike, this was the only place she felt safe in.
The wall with the door was covered with a floor to ceiling bookshelf that spanned the width of the it. Her dad had made it for her years ago, and it was sturdier than any shelf she could've bought online. It housed all the worlds she has lived in, and all of the ones she had yet to discover.
Against the wall on the right side of the doorway, was a desk and a chair, that faced the window. Her laptop lay on the desk, along with a few pens and stationary. She placed her bag on the chair, as she gazed out the window at the darkening sky.
She wondered if Will was somewhere down there. The night was unexceptionally chilly, she realized. Wouldn’t he catch a cold? Or are the Nephilim immune to that?
“Will?” she called, her voice low. She wondered if he could hear her. Should she speak up? But before she could shout, there he was, standing right beneath the window.
“Yeah?”
“You won’t catch a cold, would you?” She questioned him, as a gentle breeze blew in, raising goosebumps on her bare arms.
“Nah, it’s not that cold for me, don’t worry.”
“Because you’re a Nephilim?” she quirked an eyebrow.
Will shook his head, “Because I’m an American. I haven’t been there in a long time, sure, but I did spend twenty years there.” he grinned.
“Oh, of course.” Aarushi mumbled, mentally kicking herself for her stupidity.
“I’ll see you tomorrow then, good night.” She said, waving slightly.
Will smiled at her, nodding.
Aarushi closed the window, because Markus could fly in, after all.
Sighing, she took a seat on her bed. Staring at her colourful bookshelf, she rested her head against the wall.
Today had been a havoc. She'd already been so exhausted with school and then all of the running around and everything else had tired her out. But she knew she wouldn’t be able to fall asleep. She was too tightly wound up. And she also had that package to open, she realized. The one her dad had left for her.
Groaning, she quickly changed out of her clothes. She took a quick shower in order to keep the stress at bay. Dressed in pyjamas, and feeling as fresh as she could after twenty four hours of sleeplessness, Aarushi pulled the package out of her backpack.
Again, the thoughts crashed through her mind, one after the other. Why had her dad left this for her? Had he known he was going to die? Did Markus have something to do with her dad's death?
As she was about to tear through the package, she heard the crunch of gravel, a sound she was used to and recognized immediately. Her mom was home. And so was her little sister.
She put back the package back into her bag, promising herself to open it before she went to bed, and made her way downstairs.
Her mom was already in the living room, placing her handbag on the coffee table.
"Hey, mom." Aarushi greeted her, filling up a glass of water and handing it to her and then taking one for herself. She filled up a Frozen mug and handed it to her sister who was lying sideways on the couch.
“Drink up, you lazy girl.” Aarushi teased, spilling drops of water on her not-so-accidentally.
Piya squealed, jumping off the couch. She grabbed the mug and readied herself to chase Aarushi when their mom interrupted.
“Piya, drink your water.”
"Rough day?" Aarushi asked, noting the sigh in her mom’s voice.
Her mom nodded, grimacing. “Explaining how the law works to people who don’t want to understand it is really difficult.” She sighed, leaning against the kitchen counter.
"Does that mean it's pizza time?" Her six year old sister questioned innocently, her eyes examining the vacant countertops.
Aarushi chuckled, before mussing up her sister's hair. "Yes, it's pizza time. Sorry mom, couldn’t make anything today."
"Yay!" Piya sang, jumping up and down in delight.
"But only if you get changed quickly." Aarushi warned. That was all it took to have her rushing into the bedroom she shared with their mom.
"You look tired." Her mom commented, her eyes scanning her from top to bottom like an x-ray machine.
"Yeah, I had a lot of projects to submit today. So I couldn't sleep much last night."
Her mom nodded. "Sleep early tonight, okay?"
She nodded her head, even though she knew that wasn't going to happen.
"I'll order the pizza." She whispered, pulling her phone out of her pocket.
~~~~~
Hey lovelies,
Hope you enjoyed reading this chapter! Would love to hear what you think about the story so far!
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-Ankita.