39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFs55Gw3jjT
The day began with a groan from every corner of the classroom.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzceR1njqgR
"Surprise test in the first period," someone whispered.
And within seconds, panic replaced play.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdTvXyOLGNa
Nobody had studied.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL1LTlZoOqU
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.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwwYRNc4rWk
She glanced sideways—and saw Rahul leaning subtly over his notebook, flipping through pages like a ninja.
Effortless.
Confident.
A little too cool.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf1LLAwuWIa
Before she could stop herself, the words slipped out:
“Rahul… can I copy from you?”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxBRGoPLbs5
He looked up, just a flick of the eyes.
“Yeah, sure. Just cover me if the teacher comes around.”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLhHpAhFJoY
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.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaCWtccOxOX
She nodded furiously, cheeks turning that familiar shade of rose.
“I’ll warn you,” she promised.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH4Jd1rdrXT
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.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNWprEIp9pE
“Thanks,” she whispered.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqMKhdgcVx9
He grinned. “No worries.”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTnSiwQl3Al
And just like that, something tiny, something important… began.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzLnRMokgok
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmj38OyZ1hv
---
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5FPslCiOan
From then on, little moments started stringing themselves together like pearls on an invisible thread.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHKA047b0Nz
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.”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqN0ZVl4Dtd
The truth?
She couldn’t bear the thought of giving up that spot beside him.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpBjNLSsejx
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsadfqJRGSy
---
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKklJ55aCfT
One day, during an English class, their teacher stepped out to use the washroom.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxUYEiyCTDr
“Rachel, write down names of anyone who talks.”
The power had been granted.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgVksdnfBvV
And of course, Rahul and Sambhavi couldn't help mocking her. Whispering jokes, laughing at Rachel’s exaggerated seriousness.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyFkzfodTvW
Minutes later, she scribbled both their names on the board.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6LxfDVNlHj
Sambhavi gasped. “Rachel, are you mad?!”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqnsV87LoFi
Rahul laughed harder. “She really wrote our names?”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1ZVFxGIasa
When the teacher returned, she barely glanced at the board.
“Next time, don’t talk in class,” she said simply.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡov9hCJYIIM
No scolding. Just a warning.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj2vGdapFBi
Relieved, they all got back to work. Rachel, being her usual overachiever self, quickly finished her assignment and rushed to submit it.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfJNdRNOOak
“Stop her!” Rahul whispered.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7urO5D42gN
In a blink, Sambhavi and Rahul grabbed the back of her shirt, pulling her back like co-conspirators in a comedy scene.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIEaiF8igCY
In that chaotic moment, her fingers brushed against Rahul’s hand.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwckyt6BmRX
Soft. Warm. Feather-light.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEwgs6KWAhh
Her pulse raced.
A first touch.
A blink of connection.
She pulled her hand back, pretending nothing happened, but inside she was melting.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjVTFnh0a9V
They all burst into laughter and then finished their work together, handing it in as a trio.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW8zwuEWmB9
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIFFlywA8tt
---
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1iLjX97Kik
On another ordinary afternoon, Rahul was munching on a chocolate, casually leaning against the bench.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpv7Nrxz0Ce
Sambhavi leaned toward him and said, “Give me a piece.”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi6a81fZbD0
“No,” he replied with a teasing smirk.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPqEzXOtVN
“Please…”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDTfo5u82Iw
He turned his face away dramatically.
“Still no.”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGtY0kC0HBf
She nagged. She pouted. She nudged his arm like a kid fighting for the remote.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf179hqw0kv
Finally, he sighed and handed her a small piece. “Fine. Take it.”
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwAg7VDsHi4
She popped it in her mouth like it was made of gold.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQNCaVxofX5
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.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzp4yikcX05
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu2adGftB04
---
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzNilkQPJhr
These moments—tiny and ordinary for the world, but everything to her—kept happening.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvsztF9pdDH
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.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdSzF63crtz
Her feelings weren’t loud.
They didn’t scr
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6zDulsuFDQ
eam.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3o6NWEKXEI
They just... bloomed.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDKNepA8QT5
Slowly. Softly. Silently.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡswGKhzwTYq
Like pages turning in a book no one else was reading.
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBhtr6oP3E6
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwzK8JajGsu
39Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJrHh71jBMP
---
ns216.73.216.53da2
and then Add to home screen.