Father ?

Arjun stood up and was ready to go as soon as he declared his newly-conceived plan. He turned to Manya, to reassure her that she would have everything that she would be needing, and that he would be back in the morning. But before he could say a word, Manya simply extended her hand in front of him without saying anything. 

Arjun was confused, and kept staring at the upright hand in front of him for a few seconds, as if trying to decipher some deep meaning. By then, she spoke up "Here, hold it and help me up too." 

"But why? You can stay here a little longer, I will be bringing you some snacks and a bottle of water, with a set of blankets."

"What do you think I am thinking about at this point of time?"  

"Food? That must be it, no!?" He joked, only to come at the receiving end of a death glare from her. The glare was accompanied by a warning, "Do you have a death wish?" 

"No! No! Mercy, My lord, mercy."

"Cool then, help me stand up now!" Saying this she lifted her other hand up in the air as well.

"Yes, yes," Arjun laughed, grabbing both her forearms and pulling her up. But in his enthusiasm, he almost forgot the strength of his hands as compared to her petite frame and the delicate strength of her body. The pull was a little too strong and they ended up a small barging into one another. 

"Ouch!"  Manya exclaimed, rubbing her head.

"Show me!" Arjun panicked again.

"Oh, it's nothing, leave it!" 

"If it is nothing, then why were you screaming so loudly just a few seconds ago?!"

"Because it hurts! And before you start again, this time it was definitely your fault for pulling me with such a great force." Manya growled threateningly, but a smile managed to break through.

"I know, I know! I am sorry." Arjun spoke, full of guilt.

"Oh! Now I can't even tease you? Nevermind that, but I am also coming with you."

"Really?"

"Of course."

"But, you won't be able to get proper sleep then."

"Oh, I am used to it. More importantly, I want to go because it is my mess to clear." Manya spoke with a determined glint in her eye.

Arjun nodded, "Okay then, let's go!"

Having made their way downstairs, the two of them stepped into the car and headed towards Manya's house.

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They had just arrived, when Manya's phone started ringing. She quickly checked the caller ID, then turned her phone towards Arjun for him to see.

She smiled and said, "How much do you wanna bet that she is now feeling bored in the after party. I'm pretty sure she wants us to come to get her here and free from her misery!"

She then quickly picked the call, "Hello, Sia! Before you say anything, listen to me- if you are bored and want us to pick you up, you will have to do us a favor. Tell me, are you willing to do it?"

Manya explained the complete terms and conditions to Sia, then sat back excitedly, waiting for her reply. When she didn't get any, she thought it must be a network issue at first. Just as she was going to disconnect the call, she suddenly heard the sound of a whistle in the background. It was not an isolated shout of a whistle, but a continuous melody, which was familiar for some reason.

Within a minute, she had gone from being a teasing elder sister to the middle of a full freak-out, because the reason for the tune of the whistle being familiar had just clicked.

She shouted into the phone, "Sia! SIA, ARE YOU THERE? HELLO, SIA, say something for God's sake! Dammit, Sia, are you okay? Who is playing the whistle...tell me something kiddo, you are making me worry!"

She was calling out for Sia desperately, while Arjun was to calm her down by rubbing her arm. He patted her shoulder repeatedly,  telling her to relax and that it might be some network issue or one of her friends might know how to whistle melodies. 

All of a sudden, Manya yelled out again, "Don't you dare touch her, or else the results will not be good!"

                 ************************

Sia was terrified at what she was seeing in front of her eyes. 

*Was it her imagination, or an apparition? Was it the work of graphics, or perhaps her hallucination? Because it was not possible, how could it be possible? Hadn't he died 12 years ago?!*

She muttered to herself, "What is going on? This is a lie, it is a lie Sia...just close your eyes, and everything will be alright again- he will disappear." She closed her eyes and put both her hands on her ears, trying to block out the sound.

After a few minutes, she opened her eyes to find the person now standing even closer to her.

*Was he really in front of her? A ghost- was it her last day? She had read actual stories about paranormal events where the parents visited to take the souls of their children, as they miss them so much and wanted them to stay with them! Oh no, what if those stories were true? Did that mean that her parents had waited till her eighteenth birthday for her to grow up? And now, they had come to visit her?*

She looked around the dimly lit alley, to see if she could spot anyone else.

*Was her mother going to be there as well? Oh, what wouldn't she do to get a glimpse of her mother…everyone told her that Manya di looked a lot like her mother, and that she didn't resemble her at all. But till now, she had had only old pictures of her mother to compare herself to. That reminded her, what if she had to go with her parents…that would mean leaving behind her Manu di, Massi, Danny, all her friends, her life behind. The thought of never being able to see their faces saddened her a little, but the thought of meeting her parents at least once was compelling in itself. They would be okay without her, they might miss her, but now that Manya di was back home, they would also have a chance to live happily as a family. She would regret not bidding them goodbye, but she was not afraid of dying, when her own daddy was there, waiting for her to take her with him. She had missed them so much, but she did not want to leave them just yet, without saying anything. She didn't want to be the reason for an another trauma for her Di, Massi or Danny. She was so overwhelmed with her fear and indecision that she stood rooted to her spot.*

The person looked at her, lost in her own thoughts and spoke, "Are you okay baby girl? Haven't you recognised me? I am your dad, kiddo!"

"Daddy! Are you for real? You are not a ghost? I-"

She didn't even bother to complete her sentence and ran forward to hug him. With tears in her eyes, she whispered "Dad, how is it possible that you are alive...

Or am I dead?"

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Shambhav had been following his father from the house, as it was really suspicious for his father to go out at this Hour of night. It was quite new as well, because he generally never stepped out of the house at night anyway. He had certain doubts regarding his father, ever since he had encountered that man outside ARMA's. There had been something unsettling about the way the man had turned around with a surprised as well as hopeful look on his face. Even when he had apologized, there had been a certain annoyance in the way he had walked away. He had been embarrassed at the time, but looking back at it, he had been left with an unsettling feeling in his mind.

He had been shocked on seeing his dad enter the venue of a concert, and he had lost track of him for a few minutes due to the rush at the entrance. 

But to his luck, his father had stepped out soon enough, allowing him to continue the trail. He had been careful enough to stay in partial darkness till now, as had his father. The only reason he had been able to track him to the alley was because he had recognised the car outside the concert hall.

As soon as he observed him in the light, he was momentarily stunned. He looked on, totally amazed that his father was dressed like the stranger he had met in the afternoon.

His suspicion was growing fast and he was about to step out when his eyes landed on the girl. 

*She was his carbon copy; if only he shaved his beard and dressed like her, he would probably look like her twin. Or perhaps, she was his twin! Did he have a sister, or did his dad have a different family?! What was going on, and why were they meeting here, of all places?* 

There were plenty of questions in his head and he was determined to find the answers to at least some of them. And that was when he saw the girl finally rush forward to hug his father, calling him "Daddy"!

               ************************