The day after the funeral 

Aditya Hooda took pride in the fact that he never drank for the hell of it. No alcohol consumption at parties for example. Even if it meant that his (relatively) drink free life became a gag in their.. no, his friend circle, at least his liver was healthy - which was more than he could have said for the rest of them.

But today was not one of those times. He opened up the chest of drawers in the storage room and patted his hand around behind the numerous locks and keys in the dusty compartment for one thing: the key to the drinks cupboard. He needed some alcohol to numb his reality for a little while. A sardonic smile formed on his lips. He'd found the key a lot faster than he'd expected.

Aditya gripped the bottle by the neck as he climbed back up to his room. There was a deafening silence around the room. Adi's footsteps created little sound as he tread carefully towards the armchair near the window. The light of the brilliant midnight moon lit up the oak of the seat. Once again, his gait dragging him across the floor, Aditya made his way there and sat himself down. The mouth of the bottle glinted wickedly in the light and he was only too willing to succumb. He needed to lose his senses in the solitude of the night to be numb from daybreak onwards.

His eyes screwed up in disgust as the first mouthful travelled down his throat. He gagged slightly but ploughed stubbornly on. Within half an hour, he'd downed over half the bottle. He took another gulp and the liquid still went down as if he was forcing shards of glass down his throat – it was a sharp, painful sensation. Despite all this, Aditya achieved his objective. He rested his head against the back of the seat and shut his eyes. A ghost of a smile settled on his lips.

The same moon sought to guide Zoya Siddiqui home from the funeral. A few minutes later, she found herself in the driveway of what, in a few hours had gone from being their home to being only hers. It had been one hell of a day. It wouldn't be a stretch to say that she'd been to hell and back in the last 10 hours. But now, she needed to keep her feet firmly on Earth, she could succumb to the pain. The only distraction she knew was work. Yes, she would go back to work tomorrow. Zoya knew she needed to immerse herself in work so as not to let the loss consume her, the void suck her in.

She looked towards the stairs, one simple question bugging her: Did she have the energy to go up there and get hit by another tidal wave of pain, exhaustion and grief? Judging by the numerous tear tracks that covered her cheeks and the migraine she'd induced, the answer was a resounding no. Slipping off her flats, Zoya set the dupatta on the banister and dusted down the kurta she'd borrowed from Laura. She sent her a text, requesting her to drop off the jumpsuit at her place next week and that she'd return the kurta to her then too. Zoya searched briefly for her files for work tomorrow in the glow of the moon that showed through the window. Those were her crutch and she had to find them. She found them in little time and stowed them in her rucksack. Shutting the cabinet behind her, Zoya stepped into the living room. There was a deafening silence and her footsteps created little sound as she tread carefully towards the sofa near the window. The light of the brilliant midnight moon lit up the leather of the seat. Once again, her gait dragging her across the floor, Zoya made her way there and lay herself down. Her mind a whirlwind of all the tasks in line for tomorrow, she let her eyelids cover her weary red rimmed eyes, in hope of catching a few hours of sleep.

While Zoya had made up her mind to go to work, on the other he side of town, Aditya Hooda had one thing clear: he wasn't in the right place emotionally or psychologically to continue work and franly, he doubted if he would be within the next 2 years. Before he fell asleep in the chair for a few hours, he made a note to send in an email to the airline regarding this. For now though, he hoped to catch a few hours of sleep.

A few hours later, at 6 AM to be precise, both of them were up. For Zoya, the house was still empty but at Adi's, it was a different situation. As he slipped on his blazer, he heard the key turn the front door lock. His parents were often working the night shift so their routines were rather mismatched – not that it had really mattered till now. Aditya clasped the watch onto his right wrist as he descended the stairs, a mild pain pulsing in his temple. Slipping on a pair of sunglasses and a pair of trainers, he left the house.

Zoya smoothed down the pleats of her grey dress and fixed her hair as best she could. She could make no mistakes today. Hoisting the bag she'd packed only a few hours ago on her shoulder and slipping on a pair of black flats, she left the house. It was time for work. She took the usual route to the library and as it was a Monday morning, the streets were awake in a rather sluggish sense, what with weary parents and guardians taking their reluctant kids to school or adults making their way to work, sustained only by the energy of the coffee they'd downed only minutes before.

Zoya stood in front of the automatic doors of the library for a minute, just to compose herself before throwing herself heart first into the busy schedule. She walked in, her head high and shoulders pushed back – she could not look weak, it was counter – intuitive to do so. She could hear the murmurs of her co workers as she made her way to the desk in front of the storage room. She caught Laura's eye from across the room. Zoya almost let this thin veneer break when she saw the compassion and worry that swum in her eyes but she restrained it. She had to get to work, it was the only way. Zoya took the last few steps towards the desk, stubbornly shutting down the urge of her body and soul, demanding that she walk back out and go home, that she needed rest. No, she knew what to do. She took a seat in the chair, her knuckles pale as she clutched at the armrests in an effort to regain control.

Around an hour later, after Adi had wandered without much of a destination in mind, he found himself stood in front of the doors of the local library. He had never been near the library, to be honest, it just wasn't his cup of tea. However, Pooja's death had changed everything. He owed it to her, promised her that he'd be happy but he was now lost. How ironic it was, he mused, that he now chose to walk into a place that only furthered his journey into nowhere. The library, as Pooja loved to say, was a world of endless possibilities. With her words echoing in his mind, Aditya entered the library.

Zoya looked up sharply as she heard someone walk through the doors. He was one of the few that had come in this early in the morning and in all honesty, stuck out like a sore thumb. He looked around for a little while, stood still in the middle of the 'lobby area'. Then, with steps slower than hers, he made his way towards one of the furthest shelves in the library, disappearing from her line of vision as he did so.

Aditya felt a gaze on him as soon as he'd crossed the threshold. It wasn't scrutinising him, it was just curious. He looked around and then made his way to the furthest shelf he could see, a little desperate to get more lost than he already felt. He took a few strides there and slowly, felt the gaze melt away. Adi's fingers danced over the spines of the books that were neatly shelved at his eye level. One in particular caught his eye. It had a maroon spine with black lettering, an elegant sort of font. Easing it gently out of its spot, Aditya looked at the cover. Immediately, he shut his eyes; he'd seen this before. His mind's eye showed him a still of Pooja's bedside table, arranged exactly the way she'd last left it that fateful evening. He could clearly see her copy of this book placed in the centre. He embossed bookmark had been slotted only a few pages in. Adi opened his eyes, his fingers clutching the book. He scanned the seating area and made his way towards a chair at one of the round tables. He lowered himself onto the cushioning and set the book down in front of him. Aditya massaged his temple a little before leaning forward to run his fingertips over the cover. A lone tear fell onto its surface and Adi wiped it off; he had to compose himself. Picking it up, he began to read. Perhaps, in an odd way, this would give him a little closure, him engaging in something that Pooja could not complete – he felt like he owed it to his wife to do that job for her. 

He'd gotten through the first chapter, the same as Pooja had, albeit for him, with a little difficulty. Some of the sentences evaded his logic. Every time he'd glance up while turning the page, his eyes would be drawn to the woman at the desk. Aditya noted that she'd been working tirelessly, working through a pile of folders that rested on one side of the space. To him, it looked like a fever had taken hold of her, an urgency to do this work, that which was beyond her current limitations.

For the past hour, Zoya noticed that this man, sat in solitude at one of the tables, had been reading a book that one of her regulars had only recently bought. Every few minutes, when she glanced at him, she noticed that his brow remained constantly furrowed. Clearly, some of what he was reading was evading him. She felt that a strange kind of urgency had gripped him to read this book, something within him had taken a hold of him, despite his knowing that it was beyond his understanding. 

After about an hour and half of reading through the book, Aditya shut it softly, taking note of the page number. Clutching it in his hand, Aditya's left palm pushed into the cushion, to support himself as he got unsteadily back onto his feet. The book was rather intriguing, if a little odd for Pooja to read. From what he perceived, it discussed an inner conflict, uncertainty and most unusually, for her to read, the consequence of fear.

Nevertheless, he'd decided on borrowing it, the book had definitely piqued his interest. Aditya Hooda made his way towards the desk and stood there for a few seconds, waiting for her to look up. She was so immersed in what she was doing that she didn't, not even a glance. He set the book down gently on the beige surface, bringing her out of the spree she was in. Zoya looked at the book and then up at the man who'd placed it there. She was momentarily speechless. Her eyes had made contact with someone who's own eyes were lost and confused but still had an immense amount of pain lying beneath this shroud of emptiness. Though it was 8 in the morning, the man's eyes were weary and he had noticeable dark circles shadowing them. Though he was young, his eyes seemed to have seen more beyond his years, beyond what he'd ever fathomed. She opened her mouth to ask his name.

Adi's eyes were met by the woman and he was stunned. The hazel looked dimmed and she had a kind of shield that looked ready to fall even if he nudged it slightly. She was exhausted and her eyes showed a pain that was hard to disguise, no matter what she did. They held eye contact for a few seconds and she finally initiated conversation.

'What is your name?' Zoya asked. She opened up the server and typed in the name of the book before selecting the table for new borrowers. He responded with 'Aditya Hooda'. She typed in his second name and was surprised to see Pooja's name pop up immediately, numerous entries in her borrowing list. She typed in his first name and scanned the code of the book. Zoya handed the novel back to him and stood up to shake his hand. 'Zoya Siddiqui, nice to meet you'. Hesitantly, he returned the gesture, clasping her hand in his. He then raised his hand in farewell, turned and walked out of the library. Outside, the sun shone a little brighter and for Zoya the work seemed a little lighter.

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A/N

So, this chapter's 2.2k words ( a small way of saying sorry for the 2 WEEK DELAY, I was caught in the tide of an insanely busy schedule). Our two protagonists have met, let's see how their journey progresses

If anyone wants translations for lyrics in the previous chapter, do let me know. This chapter was a little tough for me to write, in terms of my  link with the characters' emotions. It was heartbreaking, but a beautiful experience, as with the other chapters! If anyone sees the parallels and gets the reference implicit in the chapter (hint: it's a complete 180 on the real thing), comment below!

You guys know the drill: any criticisms/opinions, comment or vote! I'd love to hear your views on this chapter.

PS. 

A lot of appreciation and gratitude for @Bee_doesnt_hav_a_lyffor the love you've shown me in the previous chapters, sorry I couldn't reply, but you made me smile, thank you so much! 

Also, to @Riya6800 (xxishipitxx on Instagram) for the insane amount of love and motivation she's given me, love you x

Thank you all for over 500 reads up to 'Haze' (though it's highly disproportionate!) Do spread the word and keep voting, it's extra motivation!

PPS. 

The edit attached is from one of my favourite episodes, story wise, acting wise, cinematography and plot progression wise. The edit is so apt! 

Dhyan