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9. Happy Dust
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A Few Hundred Poppies 10. Deshi Wedding: Part 2
"WHAT?!" Earning several turned heads, I bit my tongue. We stood by the balcony of the high-ceilinged hall with its avant-garde decor, detached from the simmering crowd of relatives and family friends. I lowered my voice to a hush, "What? No, Fariah! Fucking no!"Fariah grimly tapped the floor with her heels. I eyed them with jealousy - Ma never let me wear pencil heels, she said that it makes people conceited, which is pure bullsit. "Well, Zayan seemed to hit it off with you at Fiona Api's wedding. It seemed fishy to me too when he bitched about you like that," she muttered, tapping her lip with her index. "Did something happen between you two?"As I struggled to answer the question, to my relief, a figure appeared beside me to save me. I was low-key getting mad at continuously being the damsel in distress, by the way, but West's look quelled my chagrin and invoked appreciation."Hi, Fariah," West greeted, settling into a comfortable stance beside me. The teal shirt peeking from unde
A Few Hundred Poppies 11. Champagne Under the Stars
"So, this is a fancy wedding," West remarked, his eyes on the champagne fountain in a corner. It wasn't something you typically see at a Bangladeshi wedding, only Bengali elitists and drunkards drink in public. Bapi had remarked that it was a method of giving oneself delusions of Western (well, and Christian) grandeur. We were following the gang of cousins back to the centre of the room as the bride and groom sat on a royal blue sofa on the stage, posing for photos. Just a while ago, they'd exchanged their vows and wedding rings."Yeah. It's pretty much the fanciest I've ever been to," I replied, smiling at the kid who'd just toppled over a mound of sweets and was looking around to see if anybody had noticed."Adi!" I halted at Bapi's voice. West paused as well. Bapi briskly walked over to us, staring curiously at West."Er- Bapi, this is West, he's the groom's family friend, and my classmate at EA," I explained, low-key impressed by my own proficiency at lying."Assalamu Alaikum, un
A Few Hundred Poppies 12. Punishment
The first time Lee and I had gotten in trouble because of the boys had been when they'd sneaked porn magazines into the school and hid one in each of our bags. And I never thought that I'd say this, but this time's punishment was worse than watching Miss Flaxen and Mr. Gonzales flirt in detention everyday for a month.On Thursday, the six of us uncomfortably shuffled out from the Principal's office. Troy was the first to groan. "I don't believe this.""I literally know nothing about planning something this big," West huffed, violently shoving his hands into his trouser pockets and leaning defeatedly against the wall. I realised that the corridor in front of Principal Sen's office always had a limey scent about it."You're worried about the planning? I can't believe that they're cheating us out of our prom night," Lee cried, on the verge of tears. I slung my arm around her waist (I had a tough time reaching her shoulders)."I've been dreaming about a senior prom for forever. And why th
A Few Hundred Poppies 13. Best Friends Girlfriend
Okay. This is getting ridiculous.Holding the blue sticky note in my hand, I banged my forehead against the locker door. In the familiar neat cursive, the words 'I'd prefer your kisses to the sun's, even in the bleakest winter' were written on the paper."If you're trying to cause concussion, check out jumping from a cliff. It'd be more efficient," West's deep voice chimed in and I almost smiled at his sarcasm. Almost. I turned to face West, now casually leaning against the locker beside me with a hand shoved in the pocket of his green school trousers, the thumb sticking out."Hi to you too," I grumbled, making a vain attempt to rub the tiredness from my eyes with a finger. As we made eye contact, the warmth of his brown eyes had a chamomile-tea effect on my mood."Ever and Lee broke up," he stated calmly, studying me as if he were trying to figure something out."I know. It sucks," I shut the locker door with a thud, leaning on it like him.He raised an eyebrow at me. "You're really
A Few Hundred Poppies 14. Rani
I trudged down the steps to find Troy, Art and West sitting lazily on the kitchen chairs, eyes glued to their phones. "Is Ever still out back?" I asked, and West nodded, accompanied by a best-of-luck-don't-die-out-there look. Taking a breath to recompose myself, I walked out."Ever, what the hell?!" Clearly, inhaling to calm oneself down is overrated. He turned around - the characteristic tranquility in his eyes had vanished and a hint of frenzy swirled in them. Poor thing."Hey, Adi, will you go to the dance with me?" he pleaded, and I placed a hand on my hip, pursing my lips. "Shut up. You said that you and Lee have been fighting over petty things, but that's not true, is it?" I accused. Ever's gaze flickered from mine to the side from guilt."That's irrelevant. Can't we start it over? You and I? Please, Aditi," he insisted, stepping closer.I groaned, smacking my hand to my forehead. "Noooo, Ever! The hell's wrong with you?!""I think I love you," he softly stated, stepping back a
A Few Hundred Poppies 15. Crop Top, Hair Gel
"This shit's gotta be celebrated," Troy stated, grinning from ear to ear. He stood up and proceeded to clamber onto the bench, knocking Art's soda bottle off the table. "In honour of Fridays and Ever and Lee's patch up, we're gonna play...PAINTBALL!" He punched the air with his fist, and when we didn't react, he looked down at us with the disappointment of a brown dad whose kid can't solve a math problem. "You guys are on a different level of buzzkilling," he sulked, sliding down to his seat."My bad, should've thrown up some confetti - the shiny kind," I drawled, rolling my eyes. "Seriously, though, it's good to have you guys back together.""It's great and all, but the exams literally start next week, we should be studying," Art asserted, delicately pushing a fry into her mouth."I'm just gonna tell Ma that we're gonna group study. If she hears about paintball, I'll get my ass whooped," I said, taking a sip of my soda with a short slurp. From beside me, West poked my arm with his i
A Few Hundred Poppies 16. A First Date
"Oh god, West, you asshole! Not here, not here, not here!" I whisper-screamed as West yanked me down by the sleeve of the olive HazMat suit. The protective gear was padded with a scratchy material on the inside, and I could barely resist the urge to squirm in it. Allah knew when these were last washed, if they'd ever been cleaned. "Shut up, midget! I know what I'm doing!" he hissed back."This is so fucking stupid, they're gonna see us any moment!" I said, voice even more hushed this time by the realisation of the proximity of our faces. Granted, there were two fat, ugly, worn out helmets between them, but his face was still deliciously close, enough for me to see the minutest ridges along his eyelids as his gaze darted around the field. My friends may have thought that they were being clever by tricking West into teaming up with me, but I was having a very hard time concentrating on the game with his tense arms and shoulders constantly bumping against mine. Nevertheless, with Troy
A Few Hundred Poppies 17. A Murder
Having had enough, I meandered through the crowd, not apologising when I stepped on people's shoes or pushed them. When I made it to the front, my blood ran cold. I staggered backwards in surprise, and would've fallen if West hadn't caught me by the waist.After the waves of shock had passed, a storm of sadness suddenly built up in my chest and I started sobbing, turning around and burying my face in West's chest without much thought. I forced my eyes shut. Sharmaji's dead body on the floor and his blood drying on the bullet wounds remained charred to my sight. "Aditi!" The woman who'd been shrieking and wailing in a heartbreaking tune called out, making me swivel and rub the tears off my eyes. "Ah! No more new sweets, no more free sweets for you! The halwai is gone, they've taken my halwai, oh lord!" she yelled, and fell unconscious on the gravel road in a miserable heap. Some people rushed forward to help, but I didn't have the strength to.I looked to the sky, feeling several drop
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A Few Hundred Poppies 1 Month Later
"Hey.""Hi," I breathed, letting myself melt into my bedsheets at the way his voice made my chest tremble slightly."You know, I'm on a walk.""Oh yeah?" A smile broke out across my face when I heard Rani's protesting 'mrewol' from aside. "I guess cats aren't big walkers." It was a week after a whirlwind of exams and sleepless nights, and the day before the new moon of Ramadan.A tantalising smell of beef managed to seep in through the slit under my door, making me sniff at the air. From the kitchen, Ma and Khammi's loud exchange could be heard as they argued over the right time to put in the garlic cloves in the curry. "Yeah...and there's this lake in here. It's small. Almost cute. And you know what, come over, and bring a change of clothes. I'm gonna teach you swimming," Samar said."I-I kinda have guests over," I hesitated, despite having perked up at the idea at first. "Khammi's here with Fariah.""Seriously? It's nine in the morning," he complained as Rani again meowed loudly fr
A Few Hundred Poppies 24. Samar & I
what a fucked up little worldMy blood running cold, I gingerly raised my arms as instructed, exchanging a terrified look with West. Romeo's dashboard had started to ping manically with messages from Doc, but viewing them was out of the question now. We stepped out of the car on shaky legs. The two black-clad men pointing the guns at our heads had pale skin and monolidded eyes, and their accent was glaringly Asian when they commanded us to move forward. I noticed West's strides becoming steadier with each step while mine turned more rickety. Inching closer to me, he interlaced his fingers with mine, whispering, "Don't worry, they won't dream of hurting us, they're- they're my mother's men."I gripped West's hand with fierce force, glad that the men holding us hostage didn't mind. Although it was evident by the conviction in his voice that he knew what he was talking about, West's words had little impact on the chemical reactions raging on inside my head - how I didn't vomit then was
A Few Hundred Poppies 23. Poppies
we'll never make itWest's grip on my hand was firm enough to break my fall with a sharp tug. "What the hell?" I cried, studying the gobsmacked expression gracing West's features. Pulling myself upright, hand still in West's, I followed his gaze to the gaping blackness where the bookcase had stood moments ago. Gently pushing me aside, he took a tentative step across the threshold.At once, a series of lights flipped on inside as if by magic. I jumped a little with surprise, my hand shooting up to clutch at his arm, a whirlwind of wonder and trepidation rapidly rising in my chest.The staircase that had now emerged plunged deeper into the earth with each glass step. West and I exchanged an anxious look. "This is some next level shit," I finally said, shaking my head with disbelief. "A fucking secret door? Explain yourself, West.""I-I've never seen this before," West stammered, making me raise a brow in concern. "You knocked out this book," he said, letting go of my waist to crouch do
A Few Hundred Poppies 22. The Kreep House
let's forget all the crazy things happening, just for tonighthttps://images.app.goo.gl/1z6JXrmFLHeNrbxv6The rose gold choker necklace glinted in the orange glow of the lamp overhead. I picked it up from the dresser and inspected the glinting set of the choker and jhumkas, perfectly matching my simple yellow saree with pink floral pattern on its sheer organza surface which came with a lovely onion pink blouse. Fariah had gifted me the saree in exchange for helping her come out to Khammi as bi, and a small smile appeared on my face at the remembrance.Quickly slipping them on, I took a few seconds to appreciate my cat eyeliner, rich pink lipstick and painstakingly perfected hair.Let's forget all the crazy things happening, just for tonight.A loud knock at the front door managed to make my heart stop for a split second. "Coming!" I yelled loudly, and slipped my phone inside the hidden pocket on the underside of my blouse. The Taryn Rose heels fit my feet like Cinderella's slippers. A
A Few Hundred Poppies 21. Going South
I turned the blue scissors in my grip from side to side, as if the logic of what I was about to do was etched on its surface. DON'T DO IT! - part of me screamed. YASS BITCH JUST DO IT - the other part yelled louder. Trembling, my hand guided the glinting metal all the way up until it was just above my neck.Snap. A lengthy black lock of curly hair plummeted to the bathroom floor. "Holy shit," I muttered at my gawking reflection. "This is a really shitty coping mechanism. I love it."Snap, snap, snap.-"How's it going with the dance? Isn't it tomorrow?" Bapi asked, plopping down on my bed and taking a bite of the samosa Khammi had brought yesterday. Reeking of Old Spice, he had evidently tried his best to clean up for his first day at work after 9 days. "Don't worry, I haven't messed up any more," I muttered. As I cracked my knuckles, the crunches sounded thunderous in the autumn silence."No, I mean, who're you going with?" He finished off the samosa without a hint of gusto and disc
A Few Hundred Poppies 20. Ma
funnily enough, even though the nights seemed everlasting, the thoughts wouldn't end when the sun came outI woke up to a startlingly loud sob. Groggily, I untangled myself from the sheets, the white dress from last night clinging to my body. The rattle of the newspaper guy's old cycle echoed up through the window as he cycled past us. Trying to rub the sleep from my eyes, I followed the feminine sobs down the stairs.Khammi appeared distraught. Dressed in a simple cotton kameez, she sat on a tool near the base of the stairs, trying to muffle her sobs with her pink dupatta. The moment she spotted me with her bulging watery eyes, making me yelp, she launched up from her seat and pulled me into a crushing hug, her wailing jumping a pitch. Mortified, I scrambled away from her, wondering what the hell was happening. The clock hanging on the wall above the couch said that it was 7 in the morning and it had brightened outside, but nobody had remembered to turn off the glaring light. Consi
A Few Hundred Poppies 19. The Heartbreak Party
see the soul under the skinArt scowled at West's retreating figure like a connoisseur of art would at a hippie who'd graffitied a penis on Mona Lisa's head, and patted my shoulder with her soft hand. "Hey, fuck boys, right? Give it a whirl, girl! Nothing gets you over a guy like dancing."And so we danced. We danced until my feet hurt in the Everlane heels borrowed from Lee, and then I took off the heels and danced some more. Once it no longer mattered that who was watching and judging, I had nothing to fear.When we cut the huge two-tier cake, I grinned despite the word spreading like wildfire that Ruby and West had made out during a particularly passionate round of seven minutes in heaven. Ramming a piece of chocolate cake all over Ever's face while pretending to feed him, I made a wave of laughter reverberate across the room, my own sounding the loudest. Ever reached for me with a fistful of cake, but I ducked and he smeared the cake on Lee's collarbone instead. Art, Troy and I ca
A Few Hundred Poppies 18. Sixteen Going On Seventeen
"I literally don't know why the hell he hasn't asked you out yet," Lee complained, stowing the folded clothes delicately inside the closet. I was grateful for her intervention, but it was a reluctant gratitude. I liked my room like I liked myself - messed up. "I know, right? I'm getting tired of his shameless flirting," Art said, lowering her feet from my desk and swiveling on my chair to face me. I squirmed under their gazes."Why're you guys looking at me like it's my fault? It's really not. Or maybe it is, I dunno," I swung my feet, resting limply on the bed, to the soft texture of the green carpet. It caressed the soles of of feet as I drew patterns on it with my toe. The carpet became a darker green when swiped my toe forward and lighter when I moved it backwards, and this phenomenon seemed considerably more engaging than our conversation."Hey," Art leaned closer to me conspiratorially. "What if you ask him out?""I was kinda thinking the same thing," pleased, I muttered, cover
A Few Hundred Poppies 17. A Murder
Having had enough, I meandered through the crowd, not apologising when I stepped on people's shoes or pushed them. When I made it to the front, my blood ran cold. I staggered backwards in surprise, and would've fallen if West hadn't caught me by the waist.After the waves of shock had passed, a storm of sadness suddenly built up in my chest and I started sobbing, turning around and burying my face in West's chest without much thought. I forced my eyes shut. Sharmaji's dead body on the floor and his blood drying on the bullet wounds remained charred to my sight. "Aditi!" The woman who'd been shrieking and wailing in a heartbreaking tune called out, making me swivel and rub the tears off my eyes. "Ah! No more new sweets, no more free sweets for you! The halwai is gone, they've taken my halwai, oh lord!" she yelled, and fell unconscious on the gravel road in a miserable heap. Some people rushed forward to help, but I didn't have the strength to.I looked to the sky, feeling several drop
