139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTcKQVdhQ2k
The day began with a groan from every corner of the classroom.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXHHKo3JH3e
"Surprise test in the first period," someone whispered.
And within seconds, panic replaced play.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4HVh7ZO8NI
Nobody had studied.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4qrFwaws7J
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.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsYU4FwN0a0
She glanced sideways—and saw Rahul leaning subtly over his notebook, flipping through pages like a ninja.
Effortless.
Confident.
A little too cool.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6LP0eSfDaW
Before she could stop herself, the words slipped out:
“Rahul… can I copy from you?”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgbwlZOMbwY
He looked up, just a flick of the eyes.
“Yeah, sure. Just cover me if the teacher comes around.”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNjc3pSOI1l
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.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjlELBhRnLr
She nodded furiously, cheeks turning that familiar shade of rose.
“I’ll warn you,” she promised.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcxpBzqJAHA
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.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ829ngnvV2r
“Thanks,” she whispered.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJn9AyJIMSp
He grinned. “No worries.”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWfPA5kMxdF
And just like that, something tiny, something important… began.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZfS2jLRAN0
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwaoaFMVbWD
---
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7PTKH9Sn89
From then on, little moments started stringing themselves together like pearls on an invisible thread.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsQkscYfR4Q
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.”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv2nITlTlx4
The truth?
She couldn’t bear the thought of giving up that spot beside him.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYjjU4OwiYV
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQaqZHX01Xo
---
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRm3bjVErfw
One day, during an English class, their teacher stepped out to use the washroom.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX5gmxfU3Ay
“Rachel, write down names of anyone who talks.”
The power had been granted.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLGWIfhRnK4
And of course, Rahul and Sambhavi couldn't help mocking her. Whispering jokes, laughing at Rachel’s exaggerated seriousness.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqrm5GYPq7N
Minutes later, she scribbled both their names on the board.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡShJLdu8ZHS
Sambhavi gasped. “Rachel, are you mad?!”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfI4KNahTuZ
Rahul laughed harder. “She really wrote our names?”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgQnnfcEF7p
When the teacher returned, she barely glanced at the board.
“Next time, don’t talk in class,” she said simply.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH9jk0yTiNS
No scolding. Just a warning.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVkk3Nh53uy
Relieved, they all got back to work. Rachel, being her usual overachiever self, quickly finished her assignment and rushed to submit it.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDfgaDtjKzy
“Stop her!” Rahul whispered.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcbEx2E1uf1
In a blink, Sambhavi and Rahul grabbed the back of her shirt, pulling her back like co-conspirators in a comedy scene.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyFHa5zIECR
In that chaotic moment, her fingers brushed against Rahul’s hand.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmYXxjMmTHx
Soft. Warm. Feather-light.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ55PImhMGUI
Her pulse raced.
A first touch.
A blink of connection.
She pulled her hand back, pretending nothing happened, but inside she was melting.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgo7COnmiut
They all burst into laughter and then finished their work together, handing it in as a trio.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6uzRuxqn3P
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQJJq91VwF8
---
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIvhYcGoVg1
On another ordinary afternoon, Rahul was munching on a chocolate, casually leaning against the bench.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfc6RSjdut0
Sambhavi leaned toward him and said, “Give me a piece.”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFOq9FP8eaR
“No,” he replied with a teasing smirk.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpVbq7mWAMi
“Please…”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVcOXupIMF3
He turned his face away dramatically.
“Still no.”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhn38O1ydp3
She nagged. She pouted. She nudged his arm like a kid fighting for the remote.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXesaZbFl7J
Finally, he sighed and handed her a small piece. “Fine. Take it.”
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYOAYt6ceNX
She popped it in her mouth like it was made of gold.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡymvl54PCmi
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.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzVq7qlBLun
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2SlUnxvq0l
---
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRLuxjNL7dq
These moments—tiny and ordinary for the world, but everything to her—kept happening.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNdlmpCCtOq
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.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡx0Ji06uDCz
Her feelings weren’t loud.
They didn’t scr
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPXqD1zauxu
eam.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOir00p81xM
They just... bloomed.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjwaHXT5g5a
Slowly. Softly. Silently.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt2CJOxGy3B
Like pages turning in a book no one else was reading.
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2AtXpTKa4r
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVO92OchiSm
139Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqzR6i5r7en
---
ns216.73.216.238da2
