Chapter 5

The room is wide open, and smoke is coming out of it. I run towards it, thinking there is a fire. Turns out the smoke is from the cigarettes, and yes, a few papers here and there has caught fire as well. A burly figure lies on the adjoining bed, unaware of the chaos that reigns. Running to the bathroom I fill a bucket with water and pour it all over the books, ashes and the person herself.

Samantha wakes up in a fury, shaking her head to dispose her wavy hair out of her face. Her eyes are blurred, and she takes a rudimentary look at my direction and screams in rage. She jumps up from her bed and her hand is on my throat when she finally looks at me, staring right at her, matching her rage. Her grasp loosens and she looks down at her feet.

"What are you doing?" Her voice is hoarse.

"I'll tell you what I'm doing." I say, anger making it hard for me to talk. I pick up her burnt notebooks and shove them on her face.

"Do you realise what would have happened if I didn't come here when I did? You'd be burnt to ashes, you moron." She looked up, shocked. I don't think anyone here would be alive if they called her a 'moron', and here I am, still breathing. I shock myself sometimes.

"Yeah, I-" she starts.

"And what's your deal, huh? You think you're such a badass, scaring the daylight out of anyone who dares to meddle with you. You'd do whatever you wish, and no one's going to stop you. Is that correct? I'm going to tell you, Miss. You owe me big time. And I am not letting you treat this place like a pigsty, is that clear?"

I thought I was done for. Instead, she says, "Okay. I'll clean the room."

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"You did what?"

I didn't know Ayush could shout so loud. I screw up my ears and face before hushing him up.

"Why are you shouting like that?" I ask.

"Uh-oh. He might have wet himself again. Don't sit too close to him, Sam." Mriganka giggles.

Faheem snorts his cornflakes out. Laughing, he says, "Well, he is right, though. You're either too brave, or too crazy. Apart from the fact that Samantha is scary, that girl has more money than the rest of us put together. She might not look it, but her family is made of gold. How could you talk to her like that?"

Mriganka sneers. "Pssh, why wouldn't she? That girl could have died if Samara had not done what she did. Anyway, I don't know why you people are all scared of her? I mean, she could be made of money, and she'd do, what? Bribe some authorities to take off your student visa, tops. But Samara doesn't have that string attached, neither do I. We're not scared of her." She claps on my back.

"Right. You would be the one to stand up for yourself in front of her." Faheem laughs.

"Why not? You think I am a coward?" She moves on to him like a bull that has seen red.

"You are." Faheem sticks his tongue out and runs away, Mriganka following him, laughing her head off.

"You jerk. I'm not a coward. I'll show you." She manages to catch his hand and pulls him towards herself. Faheem stumbles, and his face comes to stop near hers. "I will…"

Her mouth falls open.

Faheem keeps laughing, and pokes a finger on the side of her stomach. "You lose, Noodles."

Mriganka takes a brave attempt at smiling, it is quite a success. He doesn't notice anything strange.