It had been an uphill battle convincing her parents to let her stay back. Jameela aunty’s alibi that Srinagar had not seen any other skirmish that day or in the week after had helped marginally. What had helped most was the call Atharva had made to her father. Amaal had wanted to snatch the phone and hurl it away at the way it had made her feel like a child. But then Atharva had told her father —
“Your daughter is capable of taking care of herself and the entire party here singlehandedly, even so, her safety is my responsibility.”
Her father had not been placated immediately. But Amaal had kept sending him Atharva’s speeches, his profile, his background, his articles that she was planting on a weekly basis now into different sets of news outlets across Kashmir and the rest of the country. And slowly, without officially forgiving her for not returning, her parents had returned to ground zero.
Srinagar had returned to ground zero, too, simply because KDP had not undertaken another event. She didn't have the courage to ask Atharva to approve one. But the silence in the city also pointed to the fact that how important KDP was becoming, that the militants had to shoot it down from even mingling. That had given Amaal hope.
And she had changed gears, establishing contacts with news anchors in Delhi. The last month had been incessant travelling, from Delhi, Mumbai and Srinagar, to finally Jammu — where she was now throwing anchor for the long haul, much to her father’s relief.
AMAAL
Reached Jammu City
DAD
Lucky you, what tasty food
Rajma chwal
AMAAL
I know right!
DAD
Now stay there forever, don’t go back to Srinagar
AMAAL
:/
MOM
Try chocolate barfi from kwality
You loved it when you were a baby
AMAAL
I am still a baby
She looked up from texting, her forearms on the trolley’s handle, pushing it down the relatively uncrowded airport. And Amaal found the man she was told would come to receive her.
“Hi!” She smiled, locking her phone and dropping it into the handbag compartment of the trolley. “Going somewhere?”
“No.” Samar replied, ignoring her bait to start a conversation. Hands inside his camouflage cargo pants, he looked like the sour candy he always was. He wore a white T-shirt for a change today, maybe due to the summer heat in Jammu. Why did he still dress like he was in the military? She would have to ask Adil. He was her gossip partner.
Amaal brought the trolley to a stop in front of him and stared at his T-shirt. “I was told a white party Santro would come.”
“It’s outside.”
He still didn’t get her jokes. Why did she even try?
Amaal stared at him, unable to figure out what was happening. He was the founder of KDP. Bigger here in Jammu. Why was he playing driver for her, especially if he was so opposed to it?
“Stop looking like that, Atharva asked me to watch out for you.” He began to reach for her trolley handle but she pulled it back, turning and pushing it out — “I am not a child who needs watching.”
He was by her side as she brisk-walked. Why was Atharva hell-bent on making her the ‘Girl we all should protect.’? Ok, so she was the only girl in their band of boys. But this was going overboard. Telling Samar to ‘watch out for her.’
