"Do you still like him?" Parth asked as we walked toward the common study room where everyone was gathering to study.
"I never liked him, he was just my crush." I frowned, disagreeing with him.
"Yeah, whatever," Parth scoffed, rolling his eyes.
Hee knows when I lie.
"Okay, honestly, I don't know. Yes, he is good-looking and attractive, and I've had a crush on him since the first year, but beyond that, I'm not sure. Plus, I'm scared of relationships and all that comes with them," I replied without hesitation.
Parth and Aakash are the only one who knows me so well, and they have been aware of my crush on him since the beginning.
"I know you're afraid of relationships and friendships, but you can't keep restraining yourself and your feelings, Sanvi. Go with the flow; if you feel something, don't suppress it. What if things work out and lead to a happy ending, just like your books? Think about it - you can't live with this fear of losing people forever," he said gently.
"I know I won't restrain myself par voh baat toh kare, mujhse nahi ho raha ye ek tarfa pyaar. He doesn't even know I exist; even if he does, he thinks of me as his brother's best friend, nothing more," I whined, looking at him.
Why would the famous basketball team captain Akshat Malhotra like you? my subconscious mind said.
Yeah, I know you are right, so shut up, I yelled at my subconscious mind.
Yupp, that's me, jyada baat karne aati nhi toh dimaag se hi baat karti hu.
Hehehe!
"Stop avoiding him, fir dekh tera ek tarfa pyaar kese-" he was about to complete the sentence when Aakash jumped into our conversation and finished it with, "do tarfa pyaar mein badalta hai," Parth and I chuckled.
"I can't wait to call you bhabhi and play with my nephew and niece," Aakash nudged her arm with a teasing grin, and I gasped, looking at him.
This guy- seriously, no one can beat him in teasing!
I smacked his arm, and he and Parth laughed at my flustered face.
"For god's sake, guys, abhi hum dost bhi nahi hain," I yelled at them, trying to hide my blush.
"Arey bhai, Rajdhani Express hai; dekhna, do hafte ki dosti mein tum log kitne close ho jaoge," Parth said, and Aakash nodded in agreement.
I shook my head; there was no way I could argue on this topic, so I nodded, trying to hide my blush, and moved toward the big round table where everyone was seated.
I greeted Rudy Bhai and Abhi Bhai, who were sitting in front of me on alternate chairs, leaving the middle chair for Vaani, who was nowhere to be seen. Akansha was sitting beside Rudy bhai; I greeted her too, and Parth sat on my left side, Aakash sat in front of Parth.
I noticed he was not here yet.
Before I could say something, I was pulled into a bear hug by none other than my sweetheart, Vaani.
"Oh God, I missed you so much, my Vii!" she exclaimed, hugging me tightly and making it hard for me to breathe.
"I missed you so much too, my Nii," I replied with the same enthusiasm. She left me with a chuckle, laughing at her nickname, and took a seat between Rudy and Abhi Bhai.
"You guys greet each other like you guys are meeting after ages," Parth mocked us.
"None of your business; just admit you are jealous," Vaani replied with a scoff.
"I am not jealous of anyone here, and why would I be? No one can change the fact that she is my best friend first, then your friend," Parth retorted in a duh tone. Everybody laughed, enjoying their banter.
"Hello guys, kis baat pe itna hass rhe ho mujhe bhi batao." Akshat spoke, sitting beside me
"Hello guys, kis baat pe itna hass rahe ho? Mujhe bhi batao," I said, taking my seat next to Sanvi-my sunshine.
"Nothing, bhai, bas aapka dushman mujhe pareshan kar raha tha," Vaani replied dramatically, rolling her eyes. "Aap bilkul theek bolte ho-he's so annoying."
I chuckled, knowing exactly who she meant. "Koi na, ignore kar usko jaise vo exist hi nahi karta."
She nodded in agreement while Parth scoffed in mock offense.
This is a classic Vaani-Parth war.
"Waise bhai, aaj itni der kyun laga di?" Aakash asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I had to meet the coach. Kyu, tujhe koi kaam tha?" I Frowned.
He shook his head quickly. "Nahi, nahi... bas... do tarfa-"
Before he could finish that sentence, Sanvi launched her pen at him with perfect aim.
He caught it just in time.
"What the freak, woman? Pen kyu feka?" Aakash yelped dramatically.
Sanvi shot him a glare and mouthed something only he and Parth seemed to understand. They both cracked up while the rest of us stared at them, confused.
"Are we missing something?" Vaani asked, doing her usual eyebrow wiggle, and the rest of the group nodded in agreement.
"Nothing, just an inside joke," Sanvi chuckled nervously.
Was she blushing?? Why was her face was red?
Parth and Aakash were visibly struggling to hold back their laughter.
"Inside joke? Aisa kya joke hai jo humse share nahi kar sakte?" Akansha asked, crossing her arms suspiciously.
"Wohi joke jaise tum teenon humse 'girls talk' ke naam pe sab chhupate ho. This is just... best friend talk," Parth smirk.
Aakash and Sanvi nodded in sync, earning loud scoffs from the rest of the group.
I smiled quietly, watching Sanvi trying hard to act unaffected.
She looked... adorable.
Before the conversation spiraled again, I jumped in.
"Guys, kisi ka bhi mood padhai ka nahi lag raha, so let's go get ice cream. My treat," I said, hoping to steer them away.
Everyone immediately perked up-except Sanvi.
"And you?" I turned to her, already knowing her hesitation.
She looked unsure.
So I stood up a little theatrically and offered a hand. "Hi, I'm Akshat Malhotra. Nice to meet you, Miss...?"
She looked at me, confused. "What?"
"Your name, please?" I asked again with a playful smile.
"Sanvi Sharma?" she said slowly, trying to figure out what I was up to.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Sanvi Sharma. Now that we've been formally introduced, and since I'm treating all my friends to ice cream, you officially qualify," I said with a grin.
She giggled, shaking her head. "Itna illogical introduction tha, toh pehle hi bol dete you just wanted me to come, ice cream ke liye mana nhi karti mein."
I chuckled. "Ab toh hogaya na. So, wanna join me, new friend?"
Before she could answer, Aakash appeared and slung an arm over her shoulder. "Ice cream ke liye toh ye jaan bhi de degi."
"Haan, aur mood ho toh saari property bhi," Parth added, looping his arm around her other shoulder, squeezing her in the middle.
She rolled her eyes. "Kutte bhi tum dono se ache hote hai."
The group burst into laughter.
"Sharam karo, izzat do. Hum ek respected relationship share karenge future mein," Aakash said dramatically, pausing before adding, "Bhai-behen ka."
Sanvi blushed and elbowed him hard in the ribs before storming off, muttering something under her breath.
I looked confused,
What are they talking about?
Parth and Aakash doubled over laughing while we all followed behind her-still a little confused but thoroughly entertained.
Heart on sleeve one minute, laughter echoing the next-typical us.
The gang finally made it to the ice cream parlour.
Everyone was talking over each other, trying to decide between chocolate fudge and mango twist, when Sanvi quietly walked to a corner, scanning the menu board like it held life secrets.
I followed her, pretending to study the board, too.
"Overwhelmed by too many flavours or something else?" I asked, bumping my shoulder lightly into hers.
"Confused as hell. Can you just order for me?" Sanvi asked, her eyes darting between all the flavours like she was making a life-or-death decision.
I looked at her, raising a brow. "What if you don't like what I choose?"
She waved her hand dismissively. "Don't worry. Ice cream is ice cream-everything's good. It's just... all of it looks tempting; I can't decide."
I chuckled, watching her nose scrunch adorably. "Alright, ma'am. Leave it to me."
Then, for dramatic effect, I bowed slightly in front of her and said, "Your royal dessert shall be delivered shortly."
She giggled. "No extra toppings of drama, please."
"Too late," I smirked. "Now go grab a seat before you melt along with the ice cream."
She rolled her eyes but nodded and walked toward our table, where the rest of the gang was already halfway through their bowls.
I turned to the counter and ordered her a rich chocolate ice cream with extra cookie crumbles and choco chips-safe, classic, and secretly my favorite.
Handing over the change, I couldn't help but smile.
Something was different.
Off, but in the best way possible.
I don't usually act like this. I don't talk like this-not unless it's with Ma or my sister's.
But with her... she was the exception.
Effortlessly.
Was this what Dadu meant when he used to talk about "love at first sight"? Nah, it couldn't be. That's too fast.
Too dreamy.
Too filmy.
But a crush? Yeah... I could call it that.
She could be my crush.
For now.
I collected our order and sat beside her.
She mouthed a soft "Thank you", and I just nodded with a gentle smile, something about her making it impossible not to.
AFTER AN HOUR
Everyone had finished their ice cream by then.
"Bye, guys! My driver uncle is here, see you all on Monday!" Sanvi said, glancing at her phone. One by one, everyone waved her goodbye.
But just before walking away, she turned toward me.
"Thanks for the ice cream treat. And your choice? Perfect," she said with a little giggle... and walked off-without even waiting for my reply.
I just shook my head, a stupid grin stuck on my face.
"Ahem, ahem... kya baat hai, aaj toh bade smile kar rahe ho?" Aakash teased, raising his brows dramatically.
Before I could shut him up, Parth jumped in, "Haan haan! Where's that 'I don't talk to anyone, I don't smile' Akshat Malhotra grumpy aura today?"
I scoffed, brushing them off, but that only made everyone laugh louder.
Not wanting them to dig deeper-because God knows they would-I quickly paid the bill and walked toward the parking lot.
It was Friday night, which meant everyone was heading home from the hostel. The campus would be quieter for the weekend, but my mind... not so much.
No matter how much I tried, I couldn't stop replaying that one sentence.
"Your choice is perfect."
And damn it, so was she.
There she went. No backward glance. But that smile-yeah, it was enough.
My subconscious brain mocked me-"Bhai, tu toh gaya."
I watched her walk away, that light skip in her step. Maybe it was the ice cream. Or maybe... it was something else.
************
He has a crush too on her!! but the only diffrence is she has from years and he just had crush on her!!
Koi na story abhi start hui hai.
Next chapter will be uploaded as per the schedule so stay tuned.
If you guys enjoyed it then don't forget to like share, comment, and vote
For more spoiler do follow me on Instagram
ID - _authorjaani_7
The story is about to get intresting so add this into your reading list.
See you untill next time!!!
*********
Write a comment ...