July 2005

Vikram flipped the pages of the book he was reading. It was a collection of photos that detailed photos with changes in exposure setting.

This was all Vikram had done in the past two weeks that the holidays had started. He hadn't even stepped out of the house ever since. He terribly missed hanging out with Ruvee and Aditya at Ruvee's house and it had only been two weeks since the vacations started. There were two more weeks to go and Vikram didn't know what he was supposed to do.

He stared at the photos on the book and there was one with mountains in the background and it was taken during a late afternoon in low exposure. The road and the sky seemed dimly lit but the mountains stood in absolute darkness in the background, creating a very appealing contrast.

Vikram sighed. He wished he could capture something like this.

Ruvee had advised him to go out and explore the city while taking photos but Vikram hadn't seen that advice through. He tapped his foot on the edge, still making his mind up on whether he should stay in or go out when the door to his room flung open.

Vikram looked up from his book and his eyes grew wide in surprise.

"Mohit?" Vikram asked, seeing his best, well former best friend standing at his door.

"I am back, bitches." Mohit said followed by a burst of big laughter.

Vikram rushed to the door and Mohit caged him in a choking hug, patting his back lightly.

"What are you doing here?" Vikram asked once he was free.

"I am here for two weeks. Break before next term." Mohit said, walking in and looking at Vikram's room carefully.

"This room has not changed."

Vikram shook his head and shut the door. "You've been gone only six months. Why will my room change in your absence?"

Mohit picked up the Rubik's cube from Vikram's desk and went on to sit on the edge of the bed while Vikram took a seat by his table. He noticed that Mohit seemed a little off.

"So, how have you been?" Mohit asked, turning the sides of the Rubik's cube.

Vikram shrugged. "Fine. I guess. Not that you care."

Mohit laughed. "You can't blame me. The life I have there, it's amazing. And the girls are so hot."

Vikram was about to say something when Mohit got up, twisted his arm around Vikram's neck in a choke. "Come on."

"Where?" Vikram asked, trying to be free. He had missed his best friend but now, not so much when he remembered how often Mohit like to choke him for no reason at all.

"To my house." is all Mohit said before pulling him out of his room and out of the house.

THIS FELT LIKE Vikram's routine life was back. He held one controller of the PS2 in his hand while Mohit held the other.

"I am telling you, bro." Mohit began, "It's paradise there."

"How so?" Vikram asked, not sure of what he was doing in the game. Was he just about killing everyone or was about to get killed? Vikram wasn't too sure.

"It's party culture all year round. Last week, I had my first beer."

"But... you're still seventeen."

Mohit laughed and shook his head. "Exactly. One of my friends from school just randomly decided to go to a college party and no one bloody noticed us."

"What if someone found out?" Vikram asked worriedly.

Mohit looked at him disapprovingly. "But they didn't. Besides, it's fun to break the rules every once in a while."

Vikram wasn't sure he agreed but he didn't say anything. He knew Mohit would call him a sissy for it.

"So? Made any new friends after I left or are you still a pathetic loser?"

Vikram closed his eyes in frustration. He had been living a pretty decent life in the past months, without the usual name-calling. Vikram thought of telling Mohit that he wasn't a pathetic loser like Mohit thought he was. He thought of telling Mohit about Ruvee and how they had become very good friends and maybe even about Aditya but for some reason, he didn't want to share what he had with them with anyone, especially Mohit. It was not worth it.

"How long are you here for again?" Vikram asked.

"Two weeks. Why?"

"Two weeks too long." Vikram whispered to himself and came to a sudden realization.

At first, Vikram was miserable about the fact that Mohit wanted to study in the US. When Mohit had left, Vikram didn't really have anyone else. And although Mohit was as terrible as they came, Vikram hadn't really had any other friend to be able to see the kind of person Mohit was.

But the last few months that he had spent with Ruvee and Aditya made Vikram see Mohit in the true light of the kind of person he was. It was only now that Vikram realized, even though back then he needed Mohit, it was not because of the friend he was to Vikram, but only because Vikram had no choice but to call him a friend. It was, to his understanding back then, better than being alone.

Probably that was why Vikram had always been oblivious to whatever Mohit did or said to Vikram, how he constantly bullied him and insulted him. And the only reason he was able to see the difference now was because of the two people who had come into his life, which would never have happened if Mohit was still in India.

"Where is Shruti, by the way?" Mohit asked, breaking Vikram's chain of thoughts.

"Hiking in the Alps I suppose."

"So you've been indoors all summer?"

"Yeah!" Vikram said. It wasn't as bad as Mohit made it sound. Vikram liked the comfortable confines of his room.

"This was what I was afraid of." Mohit said, hitting pause on his game. "Come on." he said, getting up.

"Where are we going now?"

"The mall."

Vikram looked at Mohit in confusion. "Did Shruti's spirit possess you or something?"

Mohit laughed. "No, you idiot. The mall has a games section. Let's go and have some fun."

"Yeah." Vikram shook his head. "I am not really in the mood for that."

"Shut up." Mohit said and pulled Vikram by his hand. "You're coming and you're going to have fun."

Vikram was not having fun.

And the worst part was, hanging out with Mohit had become a daily activity where Mohit would just show up and take him out to random places Vikram did not want to be in, out of which the games section of the mall was the most common. In the past one week, Mohit had taken Vikram to a cricket match, to a pub, which they got into after Mohit bribed the guard at the door, the gym (which Vikram hated the most) and then again to the games section at the mall.

"Hit it!" Mohit yelled at Vikram who was holding a big you rifle in his hand. "Shoot!"

Vikram sighed at turned to the screen. He pulled the lever, only to shoot randomly because he hated this game.

Mohit let out a huge grunt and pushed Vikram aside to take the rifle from him. He then turned to the screen and shot down all the animals that could be seen.

"This is fun, isn't it?" he asked for the nth time and Vikram just smiled and nodded.

In a way, this was still better than all other places Mohit had taken him to.

And Vikram did have a moderate amount of fun when he played the racing game but apart from that, they played everything Mohit liked, which mostly involved shooting, just like now, and Vikram just couldn't understand his obsession with shooting things.

Just like all other days, one game led to over thirty more and the only break Vikram got was when Mohit came up to him saying he was hungry.

Thank god! Vikram thought. At least now he would be able to go home!

But that didn't happen either.

"Let's go to the Blooming Orchid." Mohit suggested as they walked out of the mall.

"What?" Vikram asked, recalling that Aditya worked there. "Wh... why there?"

"What do you mean why there?" Mohit asked. "Is there a reason I shouldn't go?"

Vikram looked at Mohit in panic. First, he didn't want Aditya and Mohit to come face to face because he knew what happened the last time that happened. And second, he didn't want to see Aditya either because his heart was palpating and he didn't want Mohit to find out what his and Aditya's relationship was. Not that he knew himself, but still.

Mohit and Aditya used to be teammates in football. That was until Aditya beat the shit out of Mohit and he had to move to another country. Vikram still didn't know what brought this upon Mohit and he still didn't know whose fault it was. Neither did he want to find out tonight.

But Mohit wasn't the one to listen and he only stopped forcing Vikram once they were at Blooming Orchid.

Vikram sighed as he sat by one of the tables at the restaurant, focusing on the menu.

The number of times Gaurav revamped the menu was unbelievable. Didn't he start serving Spanish food some time ago? Now there was no trace of Spanish. The menu was back to good old Indian.

Gaurav arrived and began chatting with Mohit almost immediately, asking him about his life as a teenager in the US. Gaurav was fascinated by everything he heard and kept saying how he wished he had split his semesters between Europe and the US.

Vikram heard some parts of their conversation but mostly his head kept turning to the kitchen, hoping Aditya would show up. But then he remembered that it was perhaps best if he didn't show up because Mohit was here and who knew what would happen if they came face to face again.

Gaurav took their orders and left when Mohit turned to Vikram.

"So, what have you been up to since I left?"

"Studying, mostly." Vikram said.

Mohit shook his head. "You gotta have some fun bro. Studying isn't everything."

Vikram closed his eyes. And so he had been told. Honestly, Vikram sometimes wanted everyone to shut up for a while and not give him any advice because none of them worked.

"Sure." Vikram said but before he could tell Mohit off, Gaurav came back, and this time, with Aditya.

"Look who I have here." Gaurav said. "I presume you know each other?"

Mohit looked at Aditya in shock. "What is he doing here?"

Vikram kicked him under the table to shut him up.

"I am sure he has work to do." Vikram spoke.

"No, no." Gaurav interjected. "I can let him off for some time."

Vikram looked at Aditya, who was glaring at Mohit.

"You don't have to." Vikram said but Mohit stopped him.

"Of course he has to." Mohit said with a smirk and offered the empty chair to Aditya. "Please, be our guest."

"Mohit...." Vikram hissed but Mohit paid him no attention.

"Have fun with your friends." Gaurav said and Aditya turned to him sharply.

"They are not my friends." Aditya said and turned to walk back to the kitchen.

Vikram felt the pinch of Aditya's words in his heart.

"Chicken." Mohit said scornfully. "Just like his dad."

"Mohit!" Vikram yelled but before he could understand what was going on, Aditya's punch landed on Mohit, splitting his lip open.

Mohit got up and threw his fist back at Aditya, hitting him right on the nose before a stream of blood started flowing down Aditya's face.

Gaurav and a few waiters tried to hold Aditya back while Vikram rushed to Mohit, holding him from launching himself into Aditya.

"Let's go." Vikram said, tugging at Mohit's hand. "Come on."

Mohit pointed to Aditya and his nose. "Payback's a bitch." he said as Vikram dragged him out of the restaurant.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?" Vikram asked once they were out.

"Me?" Mohit asked and scoffed. "He attacked me first."

"Yeah, after you call his dad a coward."

"Well, he is a coward."

"Mohit!" Vikram yelled. "Something is very wrong with you."

"I was the one who was hit first. He is the one who attacked me like he did the last time."

The last time, Vikram thought.

"What did you say to him the last time he hit you?"

"What?" Mohit asked, trying to press on his busted lip. "I don't know. I don't remember."

"Then try to remember." Vikram said. "Why did he hit you?"

Mohit sighed. "Okay, fine. My mom's brother lost money in Aditya's dad's investment firm and it created a lot of problems in my family. So when I saw him on the first day of school, I told him..." Mohit's voice trailed off.

"What?"

"I told him that it's good his dad is dead because I would have killed him otherwise."

Vikram's hand flew to his mouth. This was unbelievable.

Slowly, Vikram took a step back. "How could you say something like this?"

Mohit sighed. "I don't know, okay?" he asked, "I don't mean to say these things but before I can stop myself, I blurt it all out."

"That's not an excuse."

"I know, Vikram. I know." Mohit admitted. "I am working on it, alright?"

He walked back and sat down on the pavement. "I don't really have an awesome life there in the US. My behavior..." he said, "they say I am a bully." He turned to Vikram. "I am not a bully, Vikram."

Just how vain was this guy? "Yes, you are."

"But I've never hurt anyone intentionally."

"What you said to Aditya, that was intentional, even if you say it wasn't. You can't just say whatever you want with no consequences. You left for the US and resumed your life, Aditya was suspended for a whole month. Do you have any idea the kind of life he's living? Did you think what that could do to him when you talked about his dead father like that?"

"Well, it's not my fault his dad went bankrupt."

Vikram closed his eyes and pinched his nose. He then put his hands up in the air. "I... I don't know how to be friends with you anymore."

"Wait, Vikram..."

Vikram shook his head. "You keep calling me a pathetic loser because I have to friends, truth is, I'd rather stay a pathetic loser than have friends like you."

"Vikram..." Mohit called out after him but his voice fell on deaf ears. And with that, Vikram walked away.

Vikram's phone rang as he was about to go down for dinner. He looked at the screen and it was Mohit. Vikram sighed and kept the phone back in his pocket. He had avoided Mohit since that night at the restaurant two nights ago. Mohit had called him several times but Vikram didn't pick up.

Vikram was so pissed that he had told everyone in the house that if Mohit came by to the house, tell him that Vikram's wasn't home. He had come by thrice after the incident before realizing that Vikram would not budge.

As he took the steps to go downstairs, he for a text.

'I'll be at Blooming Orchid in an hour with Shruti and if you do not want the gates of hell to open, be there on time.'

"Fuck!" Vikram muttered under his breath as he looked at the text. What was Mohit planning to do now?

Vikram hopped on the stairs and rushed to the door.

"I'm eating with Mohit." Vikram yelled back into the house as he left.

And he ran.

"Vikram baba..." Hoshiyar Singh's voice reached Vikram as he stood outside the hotel entrance, panting and out of breath. "Are you okay?"

Vikram nodded through his heaving. "Is... has Mohit arrived?"

"Oh yes, he came ten minutes ago."

Shit, Vikram thought, looking at his watch. He was a few minutes late. He knew he should have taken the car.

"Hoshiyar bhaiya..." Vikram said turning to the guard. He took his phone out of the pocket and gave it to Hoshiyar. "Call the security if something happens."

"What is going to happen?" Hoshiyar asked, worried.

Vikram shook his head. "Nothing. Just in case."

Before Hoshiyar could ask any more questions, Vikram walked in.

What he saw, stunned him completely.

Aditya was sitting with Shruti and Mohit at one table and no one was killing anyone. In fact, Shruti was even laughing.

Vikram rubbed his eyes, to see if this was real or if he was hallucinating. Nope, this was real.

"Here he is." Mohit said when he spotted Vikram.

Vikram approached them slowly. What was happening? His eyes fell on Aditya, then on Mohit and finally at Shruti.

"I... I didn't know you were back from Switzerland." he asked, taking a seat right on the opposite of Aditya. Vikram noticed that Aditya's nose had a nose-cast on it and it made Vikram feel awful. The next day after the fight, Vikram had come back to the hotel to check up on Aditya but he was off duty and it wasn't like Vikram knew where he lived or his phone number so that he could check on him. He had told himself that he'd do it later but now, looking at Aditya made him feel all kinds of weird sadness, thinking that he had ignored him for two days.

"I came back in the morning today." Shruti said.

"What... what are we doing here?" Vikram asked, turning to Mohit.

"Well." Mohit began, "I met with Shruti in the afternoon and as it happens, she and Aditya are dating."

Vikram was about to ask Aditya about the breakup and then recalled that he had asked him to postpone it till after she came back.

"So I thought..." Mohit went on, "To make peace."

Vikram was impressed. He had no idea Mohit could do something like this.

"So, Aditya," Mohit said, turning to him. "I am leaving in a few days and I'd really like us to move past what happened since you're dating one of my good friends. I said some things I shouldn't have and you beat me up and then I got revenge, so we're even."

Vikram shook his head. "That's not how apology works." he said.

Mohit shrugged, "It's as far as I can go."

Aditya looked at Mohit. "You didn't get your revenge." Aditya said, "I beat you to a pulp, you only broke my nose."

Vikram turned silent. Aditya was just looking for trouble, wasn't he? Vikram was sure that before Mohit's voice reached Aditya's ears, his fist would reach his face.

But that didn't happen.

Instead, Mohit began laughing. "He's funny." he said, laughing more. "He's got a good sense of humor."

Vikram looked at Mohit with a very weird expression on his face.

And the rest of the dinner went exactly the same, weird.

Aditya was such a silent eater that it made Vikram nervous. But he wasn't like this with Vaibhav and Ruvee. Something must be bothering him for him to behave this way. Did he not like eating with them? Vikram had noticed that Aditya had barely looked at him all night.

Once they had been served dessert, Mohit turned to Aditya.

"Can I talk to you in private?"

Aditya didn't say anything, instead, got up and Mohit followed.

"What is that about?" Vikram asked, turning to Shruti once they were gone.

"Oh, now I am visible to you?"

"What?"

"What do you mean what?" Shruti asked. "If you haven't noticed, you've been ignoring me a lot lately."

Vikram shook his head a little to grip what Shruti had just said. "I have been ignoring you?" he asked, "What about all the times you've ignored me because of your boyfriends?"

"I have never done that." Shruti said no casually that for a second, even Vikram believed she was telling the truth.

He sighed in frustration. "Do you or do you not know what they are talking about?"

Shruti shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe Mohit is apologizing to Aditya in person?"

Vikram turned to look at the two of them who were now standing at the far end of the restaurant, talking.