Chapter 4

Avinash was about to explain but was hesitant as Maya was around. Maya sensed this and retired to her room. She opened her windows and sat by the study table facing the view of cypress trees through it. She wanted desperately to work on the plot line for her story but she was exhausted. She also had piling homework too. So, she was just staring at the blank document and the cold breeze from window was comforting on her skin. She leaned her head in her hands and relaxed in the chair.

She heard muffled voices of her parents from the storeroom downstairs, she gave up to curiosity and snuck out of her room.

“I stole something from lab today” Avinash’s hushed voice had a grave tone to it.

“Have you gone nuts, what did you steal? Oh that’s why u got a sealed vacuum insulator from lab? You…” Sadha was frantically hysteric.

“I know I know I did wrong. I wanted to experiment something” saying so he dropped his voice into whisper to try and explain Sadha. Unable to contain herself Maya tiptoed on the staircase to eavesdrop. Unfortunately, the floor creaked giving her away.

“Maya, I need you to mix the cake batter, I put all the ingredients in it. It’s on the counter honey, could you please be a darling, and do it?” Sadha’s ‘trying to sound casual’ voice echoed through the hall.

Feeling annoyed on herself as she couldn’t hear the complete conversation, Maya merely grunted and wobbled her way to the kitchen.

Many things were running through her mind. What experiment was dad doing? Why is mom so worried? Maya was aware that her dad was doing research in analyzing elements with anti-gravity property. She pondered on the probability of her knowledge on anti-gravity, and whether the anonymous element can be stored in the vacuum insulator? If so, is that right now in their basement? She was oblivious to Ajith, who just dashed right past her with an empty glass tube.

Lost in thought Maya stirred the batter and unconsciously licked the spoon to taste the outcome. It tasted purely metallic and burnt she tried to spit it out but unintentionally swallowed it. “EW, AMMA, what did you put in this? it is purely disgusting and horrible as hell” Maya screamed from the kitchen.

And then it happened.