07

Chapter 4

Author’s POV:

The enthusiasm in the hospital was at its peak. Everyone was deeply focused on their work.

All the interns were gathered in the general hall as instructed.

“Good evening, students. As you all are present, let’s start with the purpose of this gathering. I want to see sportsmanship and camaraderie between all of you. To enhance this aspect of your skills, you’ll be divided into pairs and must submit your research by next week,” the senior head announced before heading back to his workspace.

“Students, those who have decided on their partners, may now register their project topic and their teammate’s name here,” said a senior doctor.

Being introverted, both Siddharth and Noor didn’t register their names yet, as neither had decided on a partner for the project.

A man then announced all the teams to the intern batch.

“Alright, since all of you have chosen your partners except for two, you will be paired together. Siddharth and Noor, you’ll be working as a team. Please submit your topic after discussing it with each other.”

Both of them were startled to hear their names and glanced at each other, trying to locate their project partner. A wave of shock passed through both of them.

“Isn’t she the one who was the reason for that day’s collision? She’s going to be my partner! God, do you have a personal grudge against me?” Sid thought to himself.

Meanwhile, another whirlpool of thoughts was spinning in Noor’s mind.

“I don’t even know him. I just hope he isn’t a chatterbox. How the hell am I supposed to work with a complete stranger on a project? Can’t I just do this alone without involving anyone else?” she mentally prayed.

Gathering her courage, she decided to ask him about the project topic.

“Hii, should we now discuss the topic we could opt for the project?” she asked hesitantly, wondering about his reaction.

“Tum vahi ho na jo mujhse takrayi thi aur meri files gir gayi thi? I can’t believe mujhe tumhare saath kaam karna padega,” he said furiously.

“Ohh hello, tum takraye the mujhse. Samjhe? Aur haan, mujhe bhi koi shauk nahi hai tumhare saath kaam karne ka. Bade aaye!” she deadpanned back at him.

He then went to the in-charge with hopeful eyes.

“Sir, can you please pair me up with someone else? It’s a request,” he asked.

“If you have anyone who can be your pair, then you can change your partner,” the in-charge replied.

As he didn’t have any friends in the hospital, he went back to her to ask if she had a replacement.

“Can you choose someone else as your teammate?” he asked softly this time.

“I don’t have anyone who could be my partner,” she told him honestly.

“Students, please quickly register your choice of topics,” the announcement increased their pressure.

“We don’t have a choice; only we are left to make a team,” he sighed.

“Now, think about the topic for the project,” she said.

After discussing it for a while, they decided to start working on it the next day.

---

The doorbell rang sharply, and when the door opened, it revealed Yukti standing at Noor’s place.

It was 3:30 PM, and they had planned to explore the city when the clock struck 4.

At 3:45, Noor stepped into her house and found her best friend sitting on the sofa, sipping coffee.

“Oyee, yahi rukiyo main change karke aayi,” she said, climbing upstairs to her room.

After five minutes, she returned wearing a short yellow kurti paired with a white palazzo. Meanwhile, her best friend was dressed in a blue kurti with blue denim.

Noor's outfit
Yukti's outfit

They both went to the market, enjoying the scooty ride.

This was their favourite thing to do—her best friend riding the scooty while she sat behind, sharing all the stories of her life.

They reached the market to do some shopping, and after that, they went to have street food.

“Chal golgappe khaane chalte hai,” Noor suggested.

“Haan theek hai, par uske baad momos. Okay?” her best friend demanded.

Agreeing to each other’s conditions, they went ahead to munch on the delicious street food.

(A.N: Mujhe bhi likhte waqt bhookh lag gayi.)

“The guy who collided with me, maine uske baare mein tujhe bataya tha na?” she said.

“Yeah, what about him? Do you like him?” Her best friend’s eyes sparkled with joy.

“Nahi pagal, we are in the same team for the project Awasthi sir assigned. It’s a pair project,” she said, sounding disappointed.

“Aree fir to sahi hai. Maybe, it is a sign from the universe,” she teased, wiggling her eyebrows up and down.

“Why do you have to find a romantic angle in everything? He was blaming me for walking blind and colliding with him,” she scrunched her nose.

“Meri maa, bas takkar hui thi. Also, you don’t have any friends there. So it’s better ki tu use apna dost bana le,” she suggested.

“Pata nahi yaar, bohot khadoos hai vo. Whatever, now just focus on the momos,” she said, shifting her attention to her plate, digging into the delicious paneer momos.

“Khaana to mast hai yaha ka. Ab to har weekend tere saath aungi,” she commented happily.

“Chal gedi maar ke aate hai,” Yukti suggested.

Excitement filled her body as she started the scooty.

The nostalgia of roaming aimlessly hit both of them—the days when they used to bunk tuition for these moments.

After roaming around the entire city, they reached home around 8 PM.

“Khud jaayegi kya ghar? Raste mein mar mat jaaiyo,” Noor scoffed at her.

“Nahi Bhai lene aa raha hai. Dekh vo car aa rahi hai na, wahi.” she said, pointing at a white car approaching them.

Due to the dim light, the car was only slightly visible, but the person inside it was hidden.

“Acha, main chalti hu. Weekend pe aati hu main,” she said.

“Haan chal, nikal abhi. Ho gaya aaj ka,” Noor waved at her.

She went inside, changed into comfortable clothes, and started doing some paperwork for the project.

When the clock struck midnight, she cleared her study table and jumped into bed, waiting for sleep to come and give her some rest.

“I have to deal with that guy tomorrow. God, I need energy to talk to strangers.” Saying this, she wished for a beauty sleep.

Words: 1k+

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( The photos belongs to their respective owners )

Signing off

Author

Kalaa✨

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