Dhruv thought, indeed those people are trying to frame him in some murder case until he saw some photos flung by Sohit and shouted, “Then, who the hell killed her?”

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     Nyna was lying in a blood pool with her eyes and mouth half-opened, indicating her soul left through the mouth.

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     Dhruv felt weak in the knees, lost all his strength, and fell down in shock. A teardrop of pain formed in his left eye’s tear duct. But it didn’t drip down. As the pain increased, the teardrop  became hugger. When it was unholdable it rolled down his face. He had shut his mouth tightly and gave a wail of anguish. He wants to kill that bastard who did this to Nyna.

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     Sohit left the room as he got an urgent call. When Sohit came back, Dhruv was lying down and moaning with pain. Sohit quieted him with a glass of water, and asked him who is she and what exactly had happened that night. He drank some water and gulped back tears, and recalled what happened the previous day.

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11th February 2020, Bangalore

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     "Though we serve for the same company, we work in two different blocks in Bellandur. Her office is around 1km from mine. She stays in a hostel, which is just beside my flat, where I stay alone. She called me at 11 AM for her pen drive, which I’ve taken from her long back. I informed that it is in my flat. She asked for my flat key, as she needed it urgently. She came to my office, collected the keys, and rushed off without a word. Since I’d a demo that day, it took around 9 PM to pack my bag. I’ve called her a couple of times before I started from the office, but there was no response. I’ve messaged her about my flat keys.

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     Meanwhile, I’ve packed everything and went to the cafeteria to have something. The moment I entered the café, I received her call. She asked me to come and collect the keys. I immediately started to her office and waited near the gate. I saw her from a distance striding in a pear-green colored chiffon shirt tucked in light beige pants casually. She saw me and came close to me. She was sweating a lot as if she just came out of the gym. As both of us were famished, we went to Mimya restaurant, it was a bit more crowded than usual. Luckily we got a table outside in the garden. We ordered gunpowder potato and a veg combo. I wondered how they could maintain the same taste every single day so perfectly. 

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     When we stepped out, it was around 10:30 PM. We started driving back to my room. There were no stars in the sky. Seems like they all have fallen in this beautiful city and taken the disguise of decorative lights in all the shops to attract lovers with exclusive offers, as valentine’s day is approaching. Haplessly, I don’t have anyone to surprise me with gifts. The sky appeared very dark as it had applied some charcoal black kajal, indirectly hinting that it’d rain soon. No branded AC can beat this climate. I slowed down the bike as the cool breeze came close to my cheek and whispered not to miss this moment.

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     When checking for the vehicles behind us in the mirror, I saw her tucking a strand of hair behind the ear. Her clavicular short gold chain is barely visible on her glowing skin which rebled along with the yellow-colored street lights. A random glance of her met mine in the mirror. Immediately I looked away and never saw her back again in the whole journey. I wished my office would be a little far away at that moment.

 

     A small raindrop trickled down my helmet visor. She asked me to drive faster before the rain starts. I’ve raised the accelerator. Suddenly huge raindrops started hitting me. Since she doesn’t have a helmet I avoided going through the main road by taking a shortcut route, which has a lot of pits. As the rain became heavy my breath made the helmet visor foggy. In addition to this rain, there was no power on our way. I was unable to see properly. Before I raised the helmet visor, a bike which was going in front of us had stopped suddenly. Involuntarily my fingers squeezed the front brake and planted my left foot firmly before I lost traction. She slewed forward and brushed my back. It excited me and was a little uncomfortable. It was because I’ve had feelings for her on and off, as she always talks about friends being friends. I’ve acted as nothing has happened. Our clothes became transparent. When we reached our flat, she asked me if she could use my washroom and have an umbrella. We reached the third floor. I asked her for the flat key and opened the door. The moment we entered the flat, she switched on the light.

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     WOW! I’ve no words. My flat was amazingly decorated. The ceiling stuck with black and golden colored balloons, whose lips got tied up with a long golden curly ribbon, having my photos on the other end. A huge inverted u-shaped arch of balloons was elegantly placed against a wall in the hall, where the wall was covered with a gold foil curtain & fairy star lights. A 'Happy 27th Birthday’ banner was decorated at the center of the wall along with hanging paper flowers.

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     If she hadn't had feelings for me, she would have kept a distance between us. But I thought this act of hers clears all my questions. Her soft voice from behind said, "Happy Birthday Dhruv". When I turned back, she stood just behind me. I looked into her dark brown eyes, smiled, and said, “This is the most memorable birthday of my life, thank you for all your efforts”.