‘Do not say this in front of her father,’ Vidhi warned him while looking at Hina.

They grilled him for a very long time. At last, Hina took pity on him and revealed that this was her friend Vidhi, about whom she had told him earlier. Asrar could relax now. He laughed. They were still laughing and teasing Asrar. Asrar also participated in the fun. He enjoyed meeting Vidhi; she also liked him. It was Sunday. After coming out of the restaurant, Asrar called up a friend in the kholi and spoke with Mohammad Ali. The three of them boarded a taxi and went to Crawford Market. Asrar had called Mohammad Ali there. Vidhi cordially welcomed Mohammad Ali. During the conversation, Ali told Hina that Asrar kept talking about her the whole day. Asrar looked at Hina and smiled.

Vidhi said they should take a look around Crawford Market and Mohammad Ali Road. Mohammad Ali volunteered to be the guide. It was 6 p.m. when they reached the JJ signal. They were tired of walking and stopped at a restaurant to drink tea. While having tea they debated about which beach was the most beautiful. Mohammad Ali claimed to have seen nearly all the beaches in and around Mumbai, but found that the most beautiful was Kalamb beach, which was around eight kilometres from Nalasopara station. Asrar found Manori beach the best. Vidhi gave the final judgement that all of them would go to Kalamb beach in the last week of June.

Hina told Vidhi that she would stay at her place that night. They stood and chatted outside the restaurant for a while after which Asrar and Mohammad Ali bid farewell to them. Hina said that she would call Asrar at 10 p.m.

Mohammad Ali and Asrar went back to the kholi, talking on the way. Ali praised Hina and told Asrar that he was fortunate to be with such a decent girl. Asrar said, ‘I’ve heard your item, I mean the girl from UP, really adores you.’ Mohammad Ali paused and looked at Asrar, then said, ‘Yes, she’s undoubtedly sexy.’ Something came into his heart; he thought for a moment and then said, ‘Listen, her father had a pickle shop earlier. She likes sampling the pickles and she also asks me to do the same, but she never says that she loves me.’ Asrar kept smiling and listening to Mohammad Ali. Today, after days, Mohammad Ali was in his spirit. This brief outing had made him feel better, otherwise there had been a permanent crease of worry on his forehead for the past twenty days. Asrar knew the reason behind Mohammad Ali’s unease, but he never initiated a dialogue about it. His experience had told him that wounds were healed not by talk but by time. On meeting Vidhi, he was immediately reminded of Mohammad Ali and that was why he had called him to Crawford Market.