The airbase skies are bright at 5 in the morning. Tanvi hurries to the hangar in sector 53 where the first of the Shakti aircraft drills are supposed to take place. She is half an hour late as against her reporting time because she overslept. To add to that, she couldn't find a transport vehicle right away. Now she's an hour behind her reporting schedule. This never happened before. She is prepared to apologize to Harjot and fully receive her wrath, any other disciplinary action too. Anything is acceptable. But she just doesn't want to miss any action.

But to her horror, it turns out she arrived way too late. Or it's possible Harjot ma'am was in a hurry. The superior officer isn't present in the hangar; there is no sign of Samrat, and one of the Shakti aircraft is missing!

Tanvi curls her fists in disappointment. Samrat... his smile would have been her pillar of support. Wait, one out of thirteen Shakti aircraft is missing and so is Samrat! This means???

"Samrat ne—"

Panicking slightly, Tanvi turns to the engineering girls, the only ones present in the hangar. The other pilots are missing too! Probably they are with Harjot? Where's Samrat?

"You girls,Samrat ki plane take off ho gayi? Itni jaldi? Tum logon ne uski final check toh kar di hai na?"

One of the girls replies in a nonchalant tone, "Final check? Harjot ma'am was in a hurry. Aur Samrat ko bhi koi pareshani nahi thi. Who bothers with the final check? Samrat was fine with it and so was Harjot ma'am. His plane took off not long ago."

Tanvi's jaw drops. "Arey, par aise kaise? Tum logon ko pata hai, take off se pehle ek final check to banta hai! Harjot ma'am bhi yeh jaanti hongi! Fir bhi?"

"Relax! Kisey rules ki padi hai? Harjot ma'am ke liye bhi sirf kaam se matlab hai! Aur Samrat! Shayad uske liye bhi! Bada hero banna chahta hai na hamesha! Bina sawal kiye, jab Harjot ma'am ne kaha, jet udao, udaa le gaya!"

Tanvi clicks her tongue. "tum log engineers ho, tumhe Harjot ma'am ko samjhana chahie tha! Ki ek final check ke bina take off nahi honi chahiye!"

A moment's silence. Another of the engineering girls breaks her silence. "Why would we bother for the guy who was mean to us during the Valentine's party?"

"How mean!" Tanvi scoffs at the group of engineering women dressed in overalls like her. "Zara apne chehre aaine mein toh dekho! You are saying Samrat was rude to you, lekin bewajah nahi na! Jaise tum log karte ho! Can't you girls at least be professional?"

"Professional? Tanvi, agar tum professional ho, aur professionalism dikhani hai toh, why are you late? Apne dost ki itni fikar hai toh jaldi aa jati!"

"Woh—" Tanvi begins to speak but then decides these girls aren't worth her explanation. Besides, arguing won't take her anywhere.

"You guys are the worst! Shayad Harjot ma'am bhi kam nahi! Where's she? Aur Samrat ke baki squad members kahan hai?"

The girls shrug. Tanvi is at a loss for a moment what to do. Then she decides to check in with the Air Traffic Control tower. At least ATC se pata lag sakta Samrat ki aircraft kahan hai aur kis condition mein hai...

***

Finding familiar faces inside the ATC is a small relief for Tanvi. Two young officers Nutan Randhwa and Tarun Saxena greet her as she steps into the spacious standalone cabin of the tower. "Hi, Tanvi!"

Yep, this is not the engineer Tarun Modi who tried to hit on her but the ATC techie Tarun Saxena.

Tanvi returns their hi. Soon Tarun looks away, glancing at the radar display with a sigh.

"I know you're here to communicate with Samrat but there's bad news... not exactly bad news but... Samrat ki aircraft se humari communication toot gayi hai. Kuch 10 minute pehle."

"Kya?" Tanvi lets out a small, anguished shriek.

Tarun nods, suppressing another sigh. "The weather systems are reporting sand storms. Theek wahi par jaha se Sam ki aircraft guzarne wali hai... So.... That might be the cause of this disruption in communication."

Sandstorms in a desert, a common weather phenomenon. Tanvi's shoulders sag once more in agitation. A hint of worry also enters her heart. "God, really?!"

Before she can stop, she's vocalising her thoughts and frustrations.

"Last night, I checked the weather systems at the airbase sone se pehle! I saw the warning of the sand storm. Maine Harjot ma'am ko bhi bataya tha! I sent her a message. Even so, she went ahead with aircraft trials! Aur Samrat ki aircraft ek final check bhi nahi kiya! Is this how things are supposed to go? Samrat bhi.... I heard those girls murmuring. Suna tha, he volunteered to go because of the same reason! Uska squad fly nahi kar raha uske sath! Yeh sab... Ugh...."

She trails off with a sigh. Nutan and Tarun send her sympathetic looks.

Tarun rises from his seat and pats Tanvi on the shoulder. "Relax, yaar. Samrat se humari communication toot gayi. The radars are not picking up his location. But it's fine, yaar. Samrat is capable of handling his plane even in the storm. Kaise bhi woh apni jet ki safe landing kar sakta hai."

Tanvi swallows and chuckles a little. "I know... but I will still worry about him na. I mean I should be logical. Lekin..."

This time, it's Nutan who chuckles. "Haha, dil per koi logic work nahi karti hai na! How can we not worry about our beloved?"

"Be-beloved? Guys!" Tanvi laughs and tries to brush off what's been said. Nutan holds a hand out—

"Na. Na. Tumhare chehre per jo dikha tha maine vahi bola! So don't try to brush it off!"

Tanvi laughs and shakes her head. Though internally she's ashamed of herself. Why, at this rate, the entire airbase could be aware of her feelings for Samrat. Can't they assume it's just a friend, colleague worrying for another? She'd been only professional and kept her job first, so how do people know her true feelings?

"Tarun, Nutan. Aisi baatein Sam ke samne mat karna, please!"

Nutan shrugs again and chuckles goodnaturedly. "Haha! Can't promise. Lekin okay!"

Tanvi thanks them both. "Main hangar par jakar Samrat ka wait karti hu."

Tarun nods. "Okay. Agar Mujhe Samrat se koi message mila to I will contact you."

"Thanks!" Tanvi pats her comm device tucked at her waist of her overalls and exits the ATC tower, waving her friends bye. The radio she has at her disposal can only be used to communicate within the airbase, not with Samrat in his aircraft. It sucks but she is grateful that she can receive a message from Tarun instead. She can count on Tarun for information. And she can only hope that the good information will find its way to her soon.

At the hangar, the women engineers are all preparing to go back to the airbase. "Harjot ma'am ne wapas bulaya hai... We'll have to tackle other activities. As Samrat se communication nahi ho raha. Ma'am decided it's a waste to stay here."

Tanvi resists the urge to stomp her foot. These girls already know Samrat's jet is out somewhere unable to communicate! Why explain now? Yeah, to agitate me!

Tanvi doesn't know if she has the permission to wait in the hangar but her decision is made.

The engineering women wing gives her a stink eye and drives away in their Jeep. One of the guys from Samrat's squad, Arjit, approaches her. Someone has to stay in case Samrat returns. Everyone can't abandon him.

"Tanvi, Harjot ma'am asked everyone to return to her office. Let's go back to the base."

Tanvi shakes her head. "agar Samrat aaya toh... I will wait for him."

Arjit wordlessly holds out the keys to a jeep parked nearby. "That's the jeep that we're leaving behind for Sam. Agar Samrat aaya toh, tum dono uss jeep se airbase aajaana."

Tanvi thanks Arjit and clutches the keys. She watches him drive away with a sigh. The day passes rather painfully. Any hunger pangs she has by the evening disappear as she watches darkness descend upon the hangar interiors. She's had a water bottle and a few energy bars. They didn't help with her fatigue. The scorching heat too isn't shielded by the hangar's cover

She turns on one of the amber lamps in the front of the hangar. In contrast to the interiors, the sky is still bright. Various shades of reds, oranges, yellows and pinks, spread across the sky. The view is so beautiful unlike the scenario where some sand storm is still raging. Earlier Tarun updated that the unfavorable weather would continue for a couple of days at least.

Recalling the little tidbit of conversation doesn't ease her weight.

"Come on, Tanvi! You got this!"

Hope overpowers the unrest in her heart. She lets the beautiful sight of the sky sooth her. This is a good distraction, also it helps to think, somewhere on the horizon not far away, Samrat is viewing the same scenery more clearly while flying his aircraft.

"Samrat... I'm waiting for you because I'm your teammate. Also your friend. And because I love you. I'm not breaking any rules being here na..."

Her words dissipate into the stillness around her. Tanvi pats her comm device again.

The sky steadily darkens. Her hopes dwindle just a bit. What if...

Is his plane well fuelled? What's taking him so long? Even if the weather conditions are bad, he should have made a turn around! He should have come back by now. A whole day passed and there is no way Shakti aircraft has that much fuel to last!

What if... Negative thoughts threaten to disrupt her peace. Tanvi stubbornly rekindles her hope. She has been pacing back and forth at the hangar's entrance. Now she returns inside and plops on a chair. She has a view of the runway and dark sky above. All around her, absolute silence. Samrat will return. I can't give up hope. Yeah, waiting alone is hard though... She hums a tune under her breath to calm her restlessness.

*** 

🌀TBC 🌀

🌈✨word count: 1663

❣️💬📚Up next: Will Samrat return? What awaits him and Tanvi? A confession? Yes, onesided though it may be! How does it even happen though?🫠🤔stay tuned for more

❣️💬👄V & C! Tysm for reading <3