The bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch break. Everyone grabbed their seats as the lectures resumed. The day dragged on, and finally, the last bell rang—school was over. I slung my bag over my shoulder and made my way toward the bus.
Haaaa, today was exhausting.On the way, I passed by the school canteen—the place where they scammed students into buying whatever crap they cooked that day. Who knew I'd ever feel nostalgic after seeing that dump?
The buses were packed as usual. The younger kids took the front seats, while the back was occupied by seniors, their loud conversations echoing through the aisles.As I stepped onto the bus, my eyes landed on Ashika, sitting alone at the second-last seat, gazing out the window.
Bingo.
A golden opportunity to sit next to my crush after so many months. Maybe today wasn't such a bad day after all.Ashika was my first love, apparently. Seven whole freaking years. That's how long I had a crush on her. And in return? I got rejected several times. A normal person would have given up after that, but we're talking about me here. No matter how much reality smacked me in the face, I still clung to the tiny hope that we'd somehow end up together.
Yeah, I know—I was dumb. But who doesn't act like a fool when in love?
Suppressing my nervousness, I quickly sat beside her before she even noticed. She turned and saw me grinning like an idiot.
"What's going on? You look happy. Found someone cute in your new class, huh?" she teased.
"Shut up," I said, laughing.
As if I'd just move on. If that were the case, I would have done it years ago. She was the only girl I had ever seriously liked.
Wait.
Why am I suddenly thinking about Shivika?
Get your head straight, dumbass.
Ashika noticed I was lost in thought and asked what was up. I brushed it off and changed the topic.We ended up talking about random stuff—our day, school gossip, pointless arguments that led nowhere. That was how we were. We had no common interests, no shared hobbies. And yet, I had fallen for her in the strangest way possible. It wasn't something I planned. One day, I just realized it. By the time I was sure of my feelings, it was already too late.As usual, she started trolling me.
"You should be calling me 'big sister' now, you know? I am your senior, after all."
"Oh, shut it," I rolled my eyes.
Roasting people was her love language. She'd throw insults at me like they were casual greetings. Sometimes, I'd fight back and roast her instead, and when she had no comeback, she'd just glare at me, mumble slurs under her breath, and call me terrible.We laughed and talked for an hour without realizing how much time had passed. It felt normal. It felt right.
Then, the bus reached my stop.
I hit Ashika on the head lightly—a silent goodbye. That's just how we were. I got off the bus with my little sister and walked home.
As soon as I reached my room, I collapsed onto my bed and pulled out my phone.Damn, everyone has new friends already.I scrolled through Instagram, watching my old classmates post stories with their new groups.
Laughter-filled pictures. Inside jokes I wasn't a part of anymore.
I put up a shell in school, acting like I was fine. But at the end of the day, I was just alone in my room, wondering what went wrong.
When did everyone move on… while I stayed stuck in the past?
The shell cracked. And beneath it, I was once again the five-year-old kid who had lost his mother in a crowd—small, helpless, and alone.
At some point, I fell asleep, exhaustion drowning out my thoughts.
When I opened my eyes, it was already evening. The clock read 6 PM. My face felt sticky with dried tears. I sighed and splashed cold water on my face before getting up to clean the house. If I didn't, my parents would start yelling the moment they got home from work.
After doing the dishes and tidying up, I sat at my desk to go over what we had studied today. That's when a notification popped up on my phone.
[Gitarth sent you a friend request.]
I stared at it for a moment before accepting and giving him a follow back. I didn't think much of it at the time.
But little did I know… that one click was about to turn my entire life upside down.
A strange yet beautiful story was about to begin.
This year was going to be a hell of a ride.