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It all started when I was seven years old....

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Baba was a PSC aspirant and Vitthal, Advait's father, was into politics. He wanted to be a bigshot politician. He and my Baba were schoolmates and best friends. Baba helped him in every step. Baba cleared the PSC exam and became a sales tax officer. And Vitthal, stepping on the political ladder, became Vidhayak of our small town. They both were happy.

It was the time of Vithhal's party elections. He was running his rally all over the town. That's when I saw Advait for the first time. Or I should say, Advait saw me for the first time and liked me. I don't know what he found in me because I saw nothing in him. My Baba was carrying me in his arms and Advait was in the jeep with his father, in the front of the rally. Vithhal, with my father's continuous help, became Vidhayak for the second time. Advait, barely seven then, saw me for the first time. He couldn't take his eyes off me. Whereas me, I was curious and a little envious of the privilege he had of riding in the jeep in the front. That day marked the start of my doom.

Advait and I went to the same school. I was in Advait's school. His father admitted me to Advait's school. Everyone was Advait's worshipper. All were chamche. Thankfully, we both were in different sections. During lunch breaks, he would look for me. And god, he was such a stroke of bad luck for me. An evil eye. Whenever he was around, something bad happened to me, always. I was in pain, every time. Once, I was descending the steps of the front gate, Advait called out to me from behind, "Jheel?" I stopped and turned. Misfortune fell on me. I twisted my ankle and fell face-first down the stairs. My ankle was in a cast for two weeks.

Advait brought me chocolates as a consolation. I ate it and immediately started growing red and itchy. I almost had an anaphylactic shock. Fortunately, I was given treatment on time. I found I was allergic to chocolates. Advait visited me at home, with a box of sweets, kaju katli. He apologized. My Baba, who trusted and believed in Vitthal, in my language he was Vitthal's bhakt, refrained Advait from apologizing, stating there was no need. My Baba cannot hear a single word against Vitthal and his family.

I was very happy when Aai bought a bicycle for me. I used to ride it every evening after school. Advait came one time with his cycle. The costliest of that time. My friends in the colony immediately became his fans. I didn't like that. Advait politely nodded at them, a mere kid he was and didn't have to act all superior, and he smiled at me. I was on my bike on that particular second, I lost my balance and fell in a ditch. I was injured and bruised all over my body.

I had decided to avoid Advait's eyes at any cost. I couldn't close his eyes so I closed mine. My best friend Shweta. I chose her to be my guide. But she was weak for beautiful things. And a handsome boy was no exception. She forgot to alert me, busy staring at the older boy, and I collided face-first with my class teacher. She scolded and slapped me. I frowned, angry. Shweta shrugged helplessly. I looked around. And sure enough, Advait was looking at me from a floor above.

I remember one day suddenly Advait came to me during lunch break. He gave me a box of sweets, rasgulla, and said, "Will you be my friend, Jheel?" I opened the box and stuffed my mouth with rasgullas. I looked at him and simply shook my head in denial. His friend? Never in a million years. I don't want any bad luck. The smile fell from his face and he left without a word.

After that particular day, I didn't see Advait. I was happy. Life became mundane and simple. No more buri nazar on me. After a month, I got to know that Advait and his family, except his father, shifted to Bhopal. God blessed me finally.

I topped every class of my school life. And then chose to give Neet. I failed continuously. I don't know why. I gave my hundred per cent but still. I was in Kota for two years. I was one of the top ten in my batch. Still, Neet was far from me.

I became restless and doubtful. For the fourth time, I gave Neet and god blessed me again, I qualified. I got such numbers that MGM Indore's cutoff marks were above mine. Therefore, I chose GMC Bhopal, the second best in MP. And Vitthal Thakre, over the years, had stepped up to the highest ladder.  For the past eight years, he was the chief minister of our state. And this election, he won for the third time. Baba brought us to meet him. My admission to GMC Bhopal was secondary to Baba, meeting Vitthal was primary. Over the years, Baba and Vitthal had lost contact. But for Baba, Vitthal was still his best friend. He was proud of his best friend's achievement.

The chief minister's residence was in tight security. We were thoroughly checked before given the green light to enter. I was exhausted from all the admission procedures. It took two days for admission. I looked tired and haggard. My hair was dishevelled. Because I had to go to the hospital for a medical checkup for admission, I chose to wear an old T-shirt and worn-out jeans. Baba had to choose that day to visit Vitthal.

I whined, "Why today? Can't we meet him tomorrow, Baba? Just look at me! I look like a homeless girl!" Baba chewed and looked outside the car window, the upper lakeside was serene and beautiful, "doesn't matter. Nobody is going to look at you anyway. And Vitthal is not free like you. He is a chief minister. He pulled out time for us from his busy schedule. Be grateful for once!" "Look, Aai! Baba always speaks bad about me!" Aai made a sound in her throat but said nothing. My brother, who was driving, snickered along with my sister, who was sitting beside me. I pouted. My sister giggled, "I told you to wear something better but you never listen. Moron!" I glared at her, "It was you who told me to wear old clothes cause today was a medical checkup!"

"Shutup! Don't misbehave in front of Vitthal. Or else you will see my wrath, Jheel. Out of my three children, my youngest had to be ugliest and hopeless in every aspect. Look at your elder brother and sister, they qualified Neet in the first attempt. Your brother became a doctor. And your sister is in her final year. And you? You took four years to just qualify Neet! I am feeling ashamed already before even telling Vitthal about you and your shortcomings!" Baba glared at me. I looked down. It has always been like that. I had concluded long before that he hated me for some reason. Nobody said a thing. He opened the car door, "we are here, be on your best behaviour, Jheel. Don't speak." And he was out. We all followed him. Guards stood at the entrance. They all were carrying guns. Instead of being like guests, I felt like we were being seen as criminals with all the guns pointed in our direction.

We were led inside. The interior was modern yet had the essence of history and culture. We were instructed to sit in the lounge room. One of the guards said, "Mantriji will be here soon. Wait and eat the snacks served." All of them were wearing kurtas. I thought guards wear suits. Strange. We were served samosa, kachori, namkeen, kaju katli, dry fruits, fruits, chai, and sharbat. My family politely accepted the snacks and started eating. Aai noticed that I was not eating and said, "What's wrong? Why aren't you eating?" I squirmed, "I want to use the washroom. Urgently!" Aai stared at Baba. Baba halted mid-chewing and glared at me. A guard cleared his throat, "Let me lead you." I immediately stood up and followed him, ignoring Baba's glare and disapproval.

I came out in the hallway after using the washroom. Nobody was outside. I frowned. I didn't remember the way back to the lounge room. I followed the path that I thought I came from but got lost. I was in a hall kind of room which overlooked the lake view. It had ceiling-to-floor windows. I was awestruck. I stood before the window and admired the view from the chief minister's residence.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" I jumped and turned towards the voice. My heart almost leapt to my throat. A man was sitting on the couch facing the windows. How did I not see him sitting there? His back was towards me. I cleared my throat, "I-I came to meet Vitthal Thakre ji. I was in the lounge room but lost my way back. Can you --" He turned to face me. My words died down once I looked at his face. Chiseled jawline, grey eyes, black hair, fair skin, and bow lips. He was breathtakingly handsome. He smiled, "Take the left hallway, then turn right, and go straight." I nodded, "thank you." I turned around but stopped when he spoke up, "what's the purpose of meeting him?" I didn't think much of his question, assuming he lived here so maybe he knew Vitthal. I told him, "my father is his best friend. We came to Bhopal for my admission and met him before going back." He nodded, thinking. His gaze fixed on me, intriguing, "what admission?" I answered, "GMC Bhopal." His eyes glowed, "congratulations, Jheel. That's wonderful!" My heart suddenly raced. How did he know my name? I looked at him, curious and confused, "you are--?" His smile was sweet as he answered, "I am Advait. How long has it been no, Jheel? Fifteen years, seven months, three days and we meet finally."

How the hell does he know the exact time gap? It was creepy. And his continuously smiling face was off-putting. I remembered that he was a buri nazar for me when we were young and how happy I was when he was gone. I forced a smile. I don't believe in buri nazar anymore but I still don't get good vibes from Advait. I forced a smile. "You staying in hostel?" I don't know why he was so interested in knowing about me. Nevertheless, I told him, "no. I will live in apartment. We are still searching for it." He stepped closer, "Koh-e-fiza, lalghati, mp nagar are nice residential areas near GMC. Do you want help in searching houses?" I shook my head, disliking any kind of help coming from him, "no. It's okay. Thank you for asking. But Baba knows someone who will help us in finding houses. I just wanted to live with family. Nothing more. You know, for safety purpose." He smiled in understanding, "yes. Safety is very important."

I shifted on my feet, before turning to leave, "I, I think I should go back." He nodded, "Until next time, Jheel." I didn't turn around but still could feel him smile. I left. I don't want to see or meet him again.

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But it was just the beginning. Start of hell.