Pooja's POV

I couldn't believe that it had been nearly a year since I had stepped into this place. Mugging up anatomy, breezing through physiology, throwing up on biochemistry. Hectic yet fun. Lots of fun. Feeding the cadaver and looking innocent when the teachers found remnants of 'mentos' and 'polo' down caddy throats. Freaking out when accidently swallowing sample blood while trying to pipette it out in the Physiology lab. Laughing our heads off calculating each other's body mass index and fat percentage. Making fun of guys who made a fuss about taking off their shirts when we had to examine them and bearing their taunts "touch me some more". When we had no choice but to do it! Knocking urine all over the neighbor's books in biochemistry and apologizing profusely for it while offering your urine as compensation.

Knock, Knock ! Someone was at the door

"Come in!"

It was Rekha and Pranshita, my lab partner, who I had nothing in common with.

"You wouldn't believe what just happened?"

The door flew open a second time. It was Shahana, my roommate.

"Can you believe that female? She actually swallowed a million pills! She tried to kill herself! But well, she didn't manage to. So she's still alive. She's getting a lavage done, I believe. Sonya found her . Imagine if she hadnt?"

Smrithi barged in gasping, "You will never believe what just happened!" Thank God it wasn't her it happened to. I was pretty sure she'd be the first to crack under the pressure!

"Wait!" I said, "who swallowed the pills?"

"Someone swallowed pills? Who could be that stupid?" asked Smrithi.

I looked at her baffled, "What were you talking about then?"

"Oh! Nothing, nothing important", she blushed. Did I mention she got onto my nerves; a lot? She was one of those girls who thought the world revolved around their pretty little heads!

"Jyothi...That quiet girl in our class...the female who nibbles on her pen and pokes the cadaver with it and nibbles again?" said Rekha.

Why would she have tried to kills herself? Craving for attention I bet.

Rekha's POV

Why would someone try kill herself? Pranshita was crying. We were in the middle of a full blown discussion on when suicide would be justifiable. How mental health problems shoudl not be stigmatized. About depression vs impulsive behavior. Speculating why Jyothi would've done it or tried to, when Pranshita burst into tears. Smrithi had her hand around her already.

"Hey what's wrong?"She asked.

"She told me that she ran out of codiene and the pharmacy was being mean about selling them to her... For her cough... So I asked an intern to...". She was virtually inaudible.

"Cheer up! Codiene doesn't kill! Besides, it doesn't even come in tablets. It's a syrup!"

"You don't understand... I gave her a blank prescription form that I had... She must've filled it in herself", she said in between sobs.

It was people like Jyothi that perished first... The weak.

Smrithi's POV

Room number 502. My first time in the hospital.

"Hey... You'll be ok..."

"No, I wont! Why didn't they just let me die, Smrithi?", asked Jyothi. She had dark circles under her eyes.She sat up on her bed, and looked at the ceiling. I saw a girl who had given up on life.

"It doesn't do to run away from problems, Jyo. No matter how big they seemed. There may not be a way around it. You'd probably have to take the way through it. You didn't die 'cause you weren't meant to. Great things are waiting to happen to you. Do you want the last moments you spent on earth to be the worst ones in your life?"

"Smree, I'm so glad you're here. People I don't even know popped in and asked me very personal questions. Most of them were curious. The others were watching me, as though they were waiting for me to do something again."

She looked away, tears filling up in her eyes.

"Maybe it would help to talk about it... to someone... If you're scared we'd judge you,why don't you try talking to..."

"It was my dad Smree..."she cut in. She was crying now and I hugged her. "My dad went missing a couple of years ago. He was a neurosurgeon. Just disappeared one day. No note,nothing. The only thing he took with him was a ring my mom had got him from Egypt. With some weird inscription on it", she was smiling now. "We tried finding him...his pictures all over the papers...I guess I found him now..."

She turned around and pulled out a platic bag from under her pillow..Nothing couldve prepared me for this. Neatly wrapped in it was a shrivelled finger. Sure enough, there was a ring with something strange inscribed on it.

"I dissected my dad, Smree..."'she whispered. I felt dizzy... faintish... but I couldn't pass out now, not when she needed me. I hugged her tight.

"But life goes on, right?", she asked, not crying anymore. "Ill never tell my mom about it. Let her live with the hope that he's safe and happy somewhere. That he's in the himalayas as she believes and not just another unclaimed body that was embalmed for medical science. I guess I'd rather live for her than die for him!"

She was the strongest person I ever knew. Someone who could live through anything.

Altaf's POV

She didn't say anything. I couldn't believe she left me hanging there. It had been a day and I couldn't get over it! Let me start at the beginning.

I had bought flowers. Daisies. She didn't seem like the roses type. And a box of chocolates, foreign chocolates, a bracelet. I put them in my Activa.

I messaged Smrithi to come meet me at 5. She was late. I called her.

"Hullo, five mins, Altaf!"

"Where are you?"

"I'm in the hostel. Will come to the library... 5minutes"

"Ill pick you up from the hostel you'll take 10 minutes to walk to the library!" God!

"NO!Prithvish will drop me there."

That stupid bugger Preet. I wouldn't be surprised If he had asked her out already. He had his hands all over her all the time!

She was here in less than 2 minutes.

"Hot date, hey?"said Preet,grinning.

"My first... your last!"

"Oh! Be my guest", he laughed enunciating each word.

All of a sudden I was nervous. I had been in relationships before. But this felt different. Like I wasn't in control this time.

"So?", she smiled

"Come"

She got on my activa and sat behind me. She was holding me. I didn't want to wear my helmet. She smelled so good!

"You smell good!"

"My shampoo smells good, idiot!"she laughed. I checked her out in the mirror. Gorgeous!

"Im sorry", she said suddenly.

"For what?" We were at a traffic signal.

"I mean. I want for us to be friends."

"WHAT?", I asked, little too loud. I hadn't even gotten around to proposing yet! Shit! This wasn't good!

"Take me back. I don't like all this!"

"You seemed fine some 2 minutes back! What happened?"I put my hand on her knee. She

smiled. Green light. I went ahead.

"Please take me back. If you don't, I'll... I'll jump!", she said, her voice sorta shrill.

"Off the bike? Doll, you wouldn't wanna get abraded! I'll stop here a bit... will talk to you and

take you back, k?"

This wasn't going well. Not the way I had planned it. My life had always went according to a series of plans. I thought things out a million times in my head, worked out the different scenarios and it always worked out atleast one of the ways I had already forseen. This time, I hadn't thought through this.

"Ok... Stop near the auto stand."

"Smrithi, this is really hard for me... From the time I met you, you've been on my mind... Like, all the time... I feel like this is it...". I looked at her to gauge her response... She reached over and touched my hand. I took out the flowers and gave it to her. I couldn't breathe. I was sure I was perspiring to the level of disgusting.

She looked up at me through her eyelashes. She smiled.

"I really like you, Smree..." She let go of my hand. She didn't seem happy now. How could her smile have turned upside down that fast?

"Ok...I gotta go now", she said and rushed into the nearest auto with me standing there calling out to her like an idiot. No, she didn't give me an answer.

Prithvish's POV

In alkaptonuria, you get black urine and your cartilages turn black too. Where as in phenylketonuria.

"Preet!", Smrithi screeched, interupting my thoughts.

"You won't believe what happened!", she came up and hugged me. Geroff me! I broke free.

"Altaf asked you out?"

She looked confused and then angry. "You knew about it? And you didn't tell me?" Now she looked hurt. God! So much drama in less than a fraction of a second!

"It was bound to happen. I saw it coming." I said.

"Then why didn't you warn me?"

"What's to warn? It's a good thing." At least for me it was. She'd trouble him instead! Or maybe she'd come running to me each time they fought! I'd draw the line there.

"You heard about Jyothi?", she asked.

Yes, I had and I didn't wanna gossip about it. She had enough to deal with without people adding two and two to make twenty two.

"Ya... So what?"

"Well. I think she's the bravest girl in the world. So please ask people to back off if they say something mean about her." Whoa! Okay, that totally caught me off guard.

I saw Smrithi in a new light now. She was different from who I thought she was. But no less annoying.

Damn! Pooja was late. I would start off without her.