46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGT797nADcr
The day began with a groan from every corner of the classroom.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVbMhIJt7ld
"Surprise test in the first period," someone whispered.
And within seconds, panic replaced play.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAIfHbIWJlD
Nobody had studied.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsCfmxK41YJ
Sambhavi sat upright, her spine stiff with anxiety. She wasn’t one to cheat—ever. She always believed in trying, no matter how hard the question. She began scribbling answers to whatever she knew, lips pressed together, forehead creased.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3WNaXTbo86
She glanced sideways—and saw Rahul leaning subtly over his notebook, flipping through pages like a ninja.
Effortless.
Confident.
A little too cool.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkiRFYgsOsR
Before she could stop herself, the words slipped out:
“Rahul… can I copy from you?”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt4vFMgaS7B
He looked up, just a flick of the eyes.
“Yeah, sure. Just cover me if the teacher comes around.”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTJ6OY8RfvI
Her heart skipped.
This was the first time he spoke to her so casually.
It wasn’t romantic. It wasn’t poetic.
But it felt like a line from her favorite song.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQkeeVhacjo
She nodded furiously, cheeks turning that familiar shade of rose.
“I’ll warn you,” she promised.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiGqt0A0Pao
Throughout the test, Sambhavi kept her eyes on the teacher like a hawk, whispering alerts every time the footsteps got close. Rahul copied calmly. When it was all over, she turned to him with a smile.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxrNliZNS5n
“Thanks,” she whispered.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSdarSBAHcl
He grinned. “No worries.”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ56ClsdwoxZ
And just like that, something tiny, something important… began.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvUVFOEXPLL
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeLv3bj6FWi
---
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA43y9kGdBi
From then on, little moments started stringing themselves together like pearls on an invisible thread.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡehgW7BzqVj
Sometimes Rachel would swap seats, and Rahul’s friend would slide into the bench beside him. But Sambhavi stayed.
She made excuses—“I’ll get scolded if I move,” or “I can’t see the board well from there.”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwzi2XNzDFz
The truth?
She couldn’t bear the thought of giving up that spot beside him.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9jFrienXtv
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW4rn6jaCc9
---
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHyJsjJH8Mn
One day, during an English class, their teacher stepped out to use the washroom.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ99aif7a21I
“Rachel, write down names of anyone who talks.”
The power had been granted.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNbSooRE3eb
And of course, Rahul and Sambhavi couldn't help mocking her. Whispering jokes, laughing at Rachel’s exaggerated seriousness.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Neb3cmmSa
Minutes later, she scribbled both their names on the board.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ39QkXxv89r
Sambhavi gasped. “Rachel, are you mad?!”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlnDOW9A5bJ
Rahul laughed harder. “She really wrote our names?”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmbn3csMrvR
When the teacher returned, she barely glanced at the board.
“Next time, don’t talk in class,” she said simply.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqwoMwvGI8Q
No scolding. Just a warning.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡshV63rA1Kd
Relieved, they all got back to work. Rachel, being her usual overachiever self, quickly finished her assignment and rushed to submit it.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFbhkrKYwo
“Stop her!” Rahul whispered.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZVvXX03Dl7
In a blink, Sambhavi and Rahul grabbed the back of her shirt, pulling her back like co-conspirators in a comedy scene.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtTNpVNfxXT
In that chaotic moment, her fingers brushed against Rahul’s hand.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkDXvYx6q5N
Soft. Warm. Feather-light.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVZBzb89GKo
Her pulse raced.
A first touch.
A blink of connection.
She pulled her hand back, pretending nothing happened, but inside she was melting.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxeAEqustMj
They all burst into laughter and then finished their work together, handing it in as a trio.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXTHH1wX2eH
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGyR7T8LFsx
---
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfQvVVn74AZ
On another ordinary afternoon, Rahul was munching on a chocolate, casually leaning against the bench.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQhHsEZaFB6
Sambhavi leaned toward him and said, “Give me a piece.”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOHDl1OeSQ7
“No,” he replied with a teasing smirk.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMuviJNICoV
“Please…”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDcd4OqZLsi
He turned his face away dramatically.
“Still no.”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqZug1up7m0
She nagged. She pouted. She nudged his arm like a kid fighting for the remote.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDRSn2VVDUn
Finally, he sighed and handed her a small piece. “Fine. Take it.”
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ29BeyiCHu2
She popped it in her mouth like it was made of gold.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnSlBgGnkOa
That day, Rachel was absent. Sambhavi sat with Rahul and his friend, feeling like she had accidentally stumbled into a dream she didn’t want to wake from.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQDsqiPy6ms
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK3yZsffi1u
---
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyh6V8MLCgc
These moments—tiny and ordinary for the world, but everything to her—kept happening.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7XMzICon1k
She listened closely when he spoke, memorizing the way he said her name.
She peeked at him when he wasn’t looking.
Sometimes, she pretended to sleep, resting her head on the desk, just so she could stare without fear.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvx4923dFRl
Her feelings weren’t loud.
They didn’t scr
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr6n2Ih9AbO
eam.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ71HPpE6y5P
They just... bloomed.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJsHwbnvD0X
Slowly. Softly. Silently.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7zvA3w8wU4
Like pages turning in a book no one else was reading.
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgS5t38kyyU
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcWazy2OYLn
46Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9B6q0JQWX0
---
ns216.73.216.30da2
