He woke up when the alarm clock kept near his head rang at 7.30 a.m. He was not sure if he had slept or was thinking about Hina with his eyes closed. When he could not come to any conclusion, he decided to simply smile and proceed towards the bathroom and started brushing his teeth.

For the next four or five days, his condition stayed the same, although he remained alert while in office. But there as well, when he visited the bathroom, he would sit and get lost in his thoughts and forget where he was, what he was doing and why he was sitting. In fact, once he started talking to himself while looking into the mirror and combing his hair at the office. Coincidentally, Mohammad Ali was standing right next to him. He immediately realized what Asrar was doing and whispered, ‘Oye, Romeo, please spare the mirror! You can imagine her in any other place you like.’

Asrar immediately came back to his senses and fumbled, ‘Uhmm … nothing, just like that …’

Mohammad Ali mimicked Asrar’s tone, ‘Nothing … nothing at all.’

From Thursday onwards, a little transformation could be seen in Asrar’s condition. One could say that he was successful in controlling himself to an extent. He repeatedly reminded himself that he had to keep his emotions in check. Even after those attempts, when he lay down on the bed after a tiring Friday, Hina’s memories came to his thoughts. He started thinking about their next meeting on Saturday. He decided to just look at Hina to his heart’s content while she sat in front of him in McDonald’s. He would try to look at the colours of her soul by peeping into her eyes. He would keep gazing at her nose, her forehead, her hair but would still be very conscious of the fact that she did not realize that he was looking at her. Such thoughts kept passing through his mind.

He woke up with the call for the morning prayer on Saturday. Everyone in the kholi was still fast asleep. He kept turning from side to side for a long time. Suleiman Vanu was regular with his morning prayers. The moment the azan ended, he got up, wore his kurta and went to offer namaz in a nearby mosque. Asrar got up and sat leaning against the wall. He felt a restlessness in his heart. There was fear in this restlessness. He had never given a thought to the fact that if their relationship did start off, how would it culminate? He did not even own a house in Mumbai and buying one was a Herculean task. Could he take her to the village? How would a girl from the city adjust to village life? These thoughts troubled him for a long time. To console his heart and escape this feeling of doubt, he told himself, ‘Worry not! For those who do not have anything have the help of god. If he is benevolent enough to get me to her, He will also take care of everything else.’