*Recap*

Her feet refused to stop running until her body hit a taller and sturdier one.

As he felt her fall in his arms, he noticed the way her eyes looked at him.

He had seen those eyes before.

———————-
[He was almost certain that he had never seen her before. Mussoorie was known for its feisty and lively people. Where did this distressed woman come from?

She stayed in his arms for a few seconds, and those seconds were quite enough for him. Quite enough for him to notice the fear in a dark eyes, the way her lips quivered in fear, the way her cheeks showed outlines of her tears.

This was quite possibly the first time Aditya had ever been this proximal with a woman. This close ever since the love of his life Pooja passed away two years ago.

However he still couldn't wrap his head over why this woman was here, and what she was doing in his arms.]

Aditya: (Confused) A-Aap theek toh ha———

Zoya: (Crying) Woh...Woh Log hume Maam daalenge! Hume...Maar...

Aditya: Kaun? Kaun maar dalega?

Zoya: (Crying) Hume bacha lijiye! Hum apne sasural waale se bhaagkar aaye hai! H-Hum A-Auli se h-hai aur——

[Note: Auli is another hill station in Uttarakhand, next to Mussoorie.]

Aditya: Auli? Tum iss sheher ki nahi Ho?

Zoya: Dekhiye hum aapke saare sawaalo ke jawaab denge bass——

[Suddenly, the voices of a group of men was heard in the distance.]

Men: (Screaming) ZOYA! ZOYA SIDDIQUI! AULI SE BHAAG GAYI LEKIN UTTARAKHAND SE BHAAGKAR DIKHA! KAMEENI!

Zoya: (Crying) Ya khuda! Dekhiye, hum aapke saamne haath jod rahe hai, humaari madad kijiye! Khuda ke waaste!

Aditya: Arre Ho Kaun tum? Na jaan-pehchaan! Jaao, kahi Aur Chali jaao! Tumhaara Kya bharosa, koi dhongi nikli toh? Main Itna bhi bewakoof———

Men: (Spotting Zoya) Woh rahi! Chalo, pakdo!

[Aditya's reflexes forced him to act quick, and immediately he grabbed her hand before running with her, at the fastest pace.

Zoya quickly ran out of breath but at that moment, all that mattered was her life. She tried keeping up with his pace, but his hand in hers made it seem like he was almost quite literally dragging her with him.

They ran for a good seven minutes until he took behind an old building, and both of them finally took their first breathe.]

Zoya: (Breathless) H-Hum...Ahh...

Aditya: (Looking behind the wall) Lagta hai woh log chale gaye hai

Zoya: (Breathless) A-Accha? Ya mere khuda, aapka laakh-laakh shukar h-hai...Hum...Bach gaye——

Aditya: Accha ab tum apne raaste, Main apne raaste

Zoya: (Scared) Ji? Lekin...T-Theek hai...

[Frightfully, she took a few steps ahead, her eyes constantly aware of her surroundings, but Aditya could see the state she was in.

His eyes fell on his watch which read '11:30 Pm', and eventually, he gave in.]

Aditya: Ruko

[A wave of relief flushed over her and instantly, she turned around, to meet his rather sympathetic face.]

Aditya: Bahut der Ho gayi hai, Main tumhe kissi hotel mein chhodta hoon, Kal subah Chali jaana, jahaan bhi jaana hai

Zoya: N-Nahi...Humaare sasural waale jaante hai ki Yahaan Mussoorie mein humaara koi nahi hai...Hume yakeen hai unke Log kissi na kissi hotel mein thehre honge Aur———

Aditya: (Irritated) Yeh tumhaara vehem hai, Chalo, Kuch nahi hoga

Zoya: (Scared) L-Lekin...

[Aditya and Zoya entered the taxi, and throughout the ride, Aditya couldn't help but notice how red with fear her eyes were. He noticed the way her hands were constantly folded in prayer, like she was hoping that god would do something to rescue her. He noticed the numerous band-aid's plastered across her arms and a big bandage around her right elbow.

Who was this woman? And why did he feel like there was so much pain surrounding the mystery behind her? ]

Taxi driver: Yeh lo sir, hotel aa gaya

[Zoya's eyes flared in fear and slightly peeped outside the window, while Aditya quickly exited the taxi and looked around.]

Aditya: (Irritated) Yahaan par koi nahi hai, gaadi se utaro Aur chalo, Main bahut thak chuka hoon

[Hesitantly, Zoya stepped out of the car while Aditya got into the car, waiting for Zoya to get into the hotel.]

Aditya: Ab jaaogi bhi? Mohatarma, Mere paas duniyaabhar ka waqt nahi hai! Chalo! Jaldi!

[Zoya turned around and began walking towards the hotel.

At around the same time, Aditya's eyes fell on the drivers rear mirror and he instantly noticed a group of familiar faces.

It was those men.

Aditya didn't know what he was doing, but he just did what his heart told him to.]

Aditya: (To the driver) Bhaiyya, gaadi start karo, Main Abhi aaya

[He ran out the car, towards Zoya and pulled her hand, making her body spin and meet his, and without saying a word, pulled her along towards the car, and she ran with him and inside the car, confused as ever.

The moment she entered the car, she noticed the reflection of the men in the rear view mirror, and her eyes trailed the men as they walked right past the car.

At almost the same moment, she ducked down and held onto Aditya's arm, somehow trying to shield herself.

A few seconds later, she reopened her eyes and quickly let go off his arm after noticing how close she had gotten to him.]

Zoya: (Scared) S-Sorry...Woh...hum...

Aditya: Bhaiyya, gaadi start karo, Panchmarg Avenue jaana hai

[The entire car ride was silent.

Zoya didn't know where she was headed but something in her heart told her that Aditya could be trusted.

Aditya didn't know why he was taking this unknown woman to his shelter, but something in his heart told him to. ]

*In front of his house*

Aditya: Chalo

[Zoya hesitantly entered the house, her fingers constantly wrapped around the ends of her white chiffon dupatta.]

Aditya: Aaj raat tum Yahaan reh sakti Ho. Kal Chali jaana jahaan jaana hai

Zoya: Suniye...

Aditya: Paani kitchen mein hai Aur——

Zoya: (Tearing up) Shukriya...Aap...Aapne humaari jaan bacha di, aapka bahut bahut Shukriya

[Aditya silently nodded before leaving the room and sitting on the couch in the living room.

Zoya hesitantly sat on the bed before bursting into tears, and Aditya, carefully listened to her muffled cries.]

Zoya: (Crying to herself) Allah miyaan, Aaj aapki wajah se aapki Zoya sahi salaamat hai! Aap Bass iss tarah humaari hifazat karte rehna, Hume uss parivaar se door rehna hai...w-Warna...Warna woh Hume badi berehmi se maar daalenge!

[Aditya couldn't help but listen to her speak, and he was left confused as ever. So confused and muddled that he slowly fell asleep on the couch while Zoya slowly cried herself to sleep, curled in the corner of the bed.

Only fate knew what was going to happen to Zoya.]

——————————————
Presenting to you the first chapter of Judaai!

Hope you guys liked it and find the story interesting!

Thank you so much for reading! Please vote if you did! This is a new couple and new show, so all the love and support would be appreciated! My babies AdiYa are too precious 💕

I'll stop with how sizzling they are lol

Love youuuu

Chandni ❤️