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22. The Kreep House
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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 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 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 1. Hershey's
things are as awkward as you make them to be, reallyEdelweiss, EnglandOn the 30th of December that year, I suddenly realised that I couldn't read anything when the letters were brought closer than a foot to my eyes. Dr. Amiruddin announced me blind by +1.75 the next day, and therefore I dramatically slipped a pair of silver-framed reading glasses atop my nose at the ball drop. Ironically, it was also the year I saw more of reality than I had all my life.And that reality has a very mean sense of humour - having spent sixteen years in a town full of generic white boys, I could be found perpetually bored and prone to rejecting the few who asked me out, and when I'd said that I would like it if a transoceanic guy or two joined this school, I meant a Mexican ex-villain's only heir or something, so that I could fall in love, get ignored, get my heart broken and end up writing a good book.Instead, life handed me an arrogant, outrageously handsome Pak-Korean asshole with an acquired taste
A Few Hundred Poppies 2. Brown Privilege
maybe sometimes, things happen just because we believe they will-Sure, at the Fullers' barbecues, we'd sloshed around with half of the town's police force, but I'd never really met the deputies who dosed on the night shift. From up close, the two were depressing as hell. Last night, the drunk teenagers from the college party next door had awoken Mr. Fuller up and he'd called up his pals at the police station. They'd cruised in in the Volvo, insisting on recording our statement. In spite of all the drama, Ma marched into my room at 6:30 sharp, adjusting her dupatta over the royal blue salwar-kameez she loved to wear to work, sporting her finest frown. Our relatives often said that I was the spitting image of her, but my nose was much flatter, and whereas her hair was wild, mine was much more tame, albeit curly like hers. Among the things we had in common, my favourite were a pair of arched eyebrows and curious doe-like eyes, both of which were jet black and occasionally erupted burs
A Few Hundred Poppies 3. Aunts & Guns
it's a bad week to be aliveThe brass nameplate beside the iron-wrought gate had lost its lustre and was scratched in several places, the words 'Professors Afsar & Saroor Rashid, 15 Taylor Avenue, Edelweiss' embossed in Times New Roman on its surface. Taylor Avenue wasn't really an avenue because there weren't any trees lining it, but nobody seemed to care. The pebble muttered a tiny curse as I kicked it away from the sidewalk, swinging the chest-high iron gate open. As I crossed the small but well-kept lawn with heavy steps, the savoury scent of cooking beef made a roar stir up in my stomach.Maybe I'd earned Allah's pity. It was pretty rare for Ma and Bapi to arrive home before me on weekdays, and I could definitely use not having to stick rice from the fridge in the microwave for lunch. Finding the front door open, I trudged across the foyer and gingerly peered into the kitchen, mentally groaning when I realised who it was.It took Poppy Khan exactly 3.78 seconds to notice me, and
A Few Hundred Poppies 4. Drowning
only to realise that it was a fucking mistake _"Why are you hugging the tree, weirdo?" West appeared out of nowhere, a perplex annoyance printed on his features. By the willows behind the greenhouse, the wind was sweet as it blew over the small lake, cooled itself and caressed my cheeks, puffed and red from wrestling with the willow tree that would've told me to fuck off by now if it could speak."I'm. Trying. To climb the damn tree! Aagh!" I shrieked as I fell flat on my rear with a loud thud, making the two finches who'd been tilting their heads and watching my endeavours with interest fly off the branch in alarm. The two-feet fall left me sprawled tiredly on the ground, and I pressed my hands together in a futile attempt to soothe my palms coarse from tugging on the bark. "Why're you here? I thought you hated my face as much as I hate yours," I hissed through gritted teeth, clambering up from the grass. I noticed that West's hair was much messier than yesterday, making him look r
A Few Hundred Poppies 5. Cornered
should've learnt fucking karateThe biggest moral dilemma that I would face if Aladdin's genie decided to show up in my life would be fighting the urge to permanently erase calculus from the face of the Earth instead of pollution. Glancing at the clock, I impatiently clicked my tongue and scratched off the equation I had just written on the worksheet. I was supposed to meet West at the curb ten minutes ago, but this calculus shit was impossibly lengthy. He's waiting...But so what? He's a jerk.With my back to the door, I was busy exerting an immense concentration on exerting concentration on solving the math. Therefore, I noticed neither the creak of the iron gate opening nor that of the front door, and the mischievous footsteps to my door went unheard. Suddenly, a firm hand landed with a thump on my shoulder."Boo!" A familiar voice yelled, making me jump up from my chair with a terrified squeal."AAH THe FuCK?!" I stumbled and not-so-gracefully landed on the floor — with a foot s
Latest chapter
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