With Love, xxxx. by Varshitha Kancharla (top e book reader TXT) 📕

Present

Kathleen was lying on the bed with one of the books in her hand which the stranger sent many days back. She tried to concentrate on reading but all her thoughts were wandering. Most importantly on Jack and Aaron. She closed her book and looked at Nina who was doing her college work. 

“What really happened to them?” Kathleen asked Nina. 

“To whom?” Nina asked while looking at her laptop. 

Kathleen sat straight and said “To them. To Jack and Aaron.” 

Nina let out a sigh frustratingly then looked at Kathleen with furrowed brow. 

“Kitty-Kat! It’s been many days since they both died. Why do you always think about them?” 

“Nina! They can’t fight eachother and kill themselves. Something was happened and I’m sure.” 

“Kat please! Don’t raise these questions again. We too will involve in that case if you won’t leave that topic. And I don’t want to spend my life in prison.” 

“Oh yeah! I’m eagerly waiting to go there.” Kathleen rolled her eyes. 

Nina kept working on her laptop while Kathleen was thinking about the unsolved questions. A lot of questions have been bugging her head. 

Kathleen again disturbed Nina while she was working. Nina gave her a deadly glare and shut down her laptop. She crossed her arms and looked at Kathleen with her raised eyebrow. 

“Nina! Leave this Jack’s topic. What happened to the stranger?” Kathleen asked. 

Nina took the pillow beside her and started beating Kathleen. 

“Stop!” Kathleen kept shouting but Nina didn’t stop hitting her. 

Kathleen held Nina’s wrists and took the pillow. “Now what happened to you?” Kathleen shouted looking at Nina. 

“Won’t you stop using the question ‘what happened’?” 

“Come on Nina! I asked casually. I mean the stranger just sent two letters and stopped after that. What does it mean?” 

“Are you missing the stranger or what?” Nina yelled. 

“No. I’m just curious.” 

Nina became silent for few minutes and started thinking about Kathleen’s doubt. Kathleen was looking at her like Nina was a detective who came to solve the mysteries and to answer Kathleen’s questions. 

After a minute of thinking, Nina started telling “Look! If the stranger is a boy, there are two possibilities. One is the stranger might be loving you and trying to impress you. If it’s the case, the stranger might be sending you a lot of things and continuously trying to impress you.” 

Kathleen nodded listening to her. 

“And two! The stranger liked your poetry and thought to convey you the same. He might have felt scared talking to you so followed you to the house and left the letters. For better encouragement, he sent few books. If it’s a girl, only second option or maybe first too. Now tell me, what do you think?” 

“You are right. I think the stranger was not stalking me. He thought to encourage me, so he wrote two letters. Moreover, it’s been many days; nearly months. Even the stranger might have forgotten about me. But look at me... always thinking about that stranger.” Kathleen banged her head with her palm. 

Nina held Kathleen’s hand and said “Kitty-Kat! If the stranger really wishes to meet you, you’ll see him, right? Why do you bother? Just leave it. And about Jack and Aaron’s death! No one knew what really happened. So it’s better we too leave about it.” 

“Fine! The stranger was not stalking. That night we drank unknowingly and reached. And about Jack and Aaron... God knows what happened.” 

Nina smiled listening to her then said “Don't load up your head with all these things. We should concentrate on our final exams, if not we have to study again and I don’t think we have patience to study again.” 

Kathleen agreed to Nina. She decided to concentrate on her exams. She then talked to her mother on phone for sometime and started doing her college works. 

Days passed. Kathleen stopped thinking about Jack and his friend. But she didn’t accept the way they died as cops reported. She just stopped thinking about that topic. She tried to stop thinking about stranger too but she couldn’t. However, she reduced thinking about the stranger. 

It’s their final exams and everyone started preparing for it. Nina and Kathleen too involved in their studies. Their exams was started and they both performed well. 

After few days, their college was finished and they both graduated. They decided to go to their native place for few days. 

The night they packed their luggage and lay on the bed thinking about their college. 

“Finally! Finished our college life.” Nina said looking at the ceiling. 

“Yeah!” Kathleen said with not so energetic tone. 

“Babe! Are you not happy?” Nina asked turning her side to Kathleen. 

“Finished the college life. What next? Job and responsibilities. Who is gonna be happy with those things?” 

“Kat! What will you do next? Concentrate on the writing or do something that everyone else does?” 

“I don’t know, Nina. I’ll decide after we again come here.” 
Nina hummed listening to Kathleen. Then they talked for a while about their college, classmates and they slept. 

************ 

“She is leaving tomorrow.” Ryan told Neil who was eating chicken like he was starved for the past many days. 

“Leaving? Where?” Neil asked without even looking at Ryan as his gaze was fixed on the food in his plate. 
Ryan sat on the chair beside him and said “Where will they leave? To their native.”

“Are you planning to go along with her? If yes, you should change your mind because you can’t kill anyone there.” 

Ryan lit his cigarette and started smoking while looking at the ceiling. He cannot see her for a while. Or maybe she won’t come again. He felt gloomy of the thought he might not see her again. 

“What if she won’t come here again?” Ryan asked. 

Neil stopped eating and said “We’ll wait for few days. If she won’t return, then we’ll make both the girls come here.” He winked at Ryan.