Three months later,
"Finally,. Welcome to senior year", I exclaimed as we walked inside our new classroom.
10th A.
Exams were over, and this time I was the 3rd rank holder of our class. Second, Aliya.
I should tell you this, she is that good in social science, because of which she managed to grab the second position. And offcourse I was happy for her.
And, the first ranker, any guesses? It's no rocket science. Who else other than him.
Amaan.
Don't know how he always manages to get the top rank. Everytime.
He scored 97%, which was 6 % more than Aliya and 8% more than me.
Whenever his name was announced in assembly for collecting his medal for scoring 1st, I can see a big smile spreading across his face, but more than him, there's a big smile on my face.
It's really weird, but I feel so proud whenever princi made him wear that golden medal, like it was me who was receiving that golden medal, not him.
When princi was done making Amaan wear his medal, he call Aliya for giving her silver medal, then me for bronze.
When we three took our report cards and medal respectively, we stood in front of all the students who were clapping for us in the auditorium. Amaan in middle, me on his left side and Aliya on his right.
Damn.. I was standing so close to him, our arms almost brushing against each other. I started feeling jitters inside my stomach.
It feels so good to stand beside him.
I keep smiling, lost in my own la-la land named Amaan-dreamland, when I heard a voice.
His voice to be correct.
"Congratulations", he had said bending a little towards me, close to my ears. His voice was low and gentle.
I blinked few times to confirm if I heard him right, or was I just hallucinating. But I guess I was right, he actually wished me.
"Umm... Thanks", I mumbled trying to hide my blush, "and.. And you too, Congo", I continued with a smile, looking back at his direction to which, he gave me heart breaking smile.
"Thanks to you too", saying this he started walking out of the stage when it was announced to go back to our respective classes. But I stood there, lost in my chain of thoughts, still trying to register about the latest incident happened just here.
.
.
"Whoa aaj to party banti hai boss. (Whoa, this calls for celebration today)", Aliya was literally jumping while shouting this as we at last headed to our class.
"Party, kis khusi mai? (Party, for what reason?)," I asked confusingly. "Tune to mujhse jadya marks laye hai na? Then tu party de. (You scored more than me? Then you should be the one, giving party)," I said confusingly.
"Come on Kavya, I was not talking about giving party for coming 2nd or 3rd", she exclaimed rolling her eyes at my confuse self.
"Then?", I asked still in confusion.
"Stupid... you guys talked, for the first time, toh party toh banti hai na", she grinned from ear to ear, making deep patch of blush to form on my both cheeks.
"Ohooo... someone is blushing", she winked at me.
"Shut up Aliya it's nothing like that", I spoke, not meeting her eye, and started walked little faster than her.
"Then it's like what Kavya?", she teased again as she jogged and stood in front of me. And with that we continued our teasing session. Better to say she teasing me. (Rolling eyes in process.)
.
.
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Few weeks later.
Time's going fine, and, normal with studying hard, it was our 10th after all, and we have to give 10th boards this year. Then there were my stupid friends, and him.
That day, at assembly was the first and last time we talked. After that we never talked again.
It was not like I was expecting him to talk to me anyways. But still I'm a human, and we humans always expect for something we can never have.
Stupid human feelings. I know.
.
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"Attention students I have an announcement to make", our class teacher, Miss Leena said coming to our class, making us all silent. Everyone looked at her direction in confusion as what she was going to announce.
"So this announcement is about Annual Day, which is coming next month. And you all have to participate in it as this is your last year in school", she announced.
"Wohooo...", everyone started hooting at the name of annual day. Because it's just not the annual day for our school, but it's school anniversary, and as much as I remember this time it's going to be more grand as this year will be 50th year completion of our school opening.
Now, let me tell you all a bit about this Annual day thing of our school.
It was the day, when our school was inaugurated, and to celebrate the anniversary, every year annual day was organized, by students participating in different kinds of culture programs like dancing, acting, singing, and other performances.
Forgetting studies, everyone started discussing what they going to perform in annual day.
Every class teacher was assigned with the work of helping students with their performances, making list of the students, the songs and etcetera etcetera.
.
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After discussing for around two days which songs to included which not. What and how many kinds of performance will perform. It all came to the conclusion that in total thirty numbers of stage performance should be done which includes fifteen dance performances, like one will be opening dance ceremony on the song Satyam Shivam Sundaram, then ten songs to be sung along and five drama. Some of them will be romantic like Romeo Juliet, a political view drama, a sentimental one (about different shades of life), a historical one and, last one is of a student life showing his journey from school-days to work days.
My girl team had decided to perform on the song yeh ishq haye from the movie jab we met.
This song was kinda special for me. I have choreographed the whole song by myself. I know, hard to believe, but dance is something I am really passionate about.
And now, about Amaan, well, he is the one, doing the play on the student life drama in which he is in the lead.
So all in all everything was going fine. Our practice session was going cool, until one day a shocking news came from our beloved principal.
It was that, we, tenthers have to perform one more dance and it will be duet performance, which means everyone has to dance with a partner.
The name of the partners, as who is going to dance with whom will be decided by the chit system in which, in one bowl names of all the girls will be written and in another bowl name of boys will be written.
Our class teacher will pick two chits at the same time, one from the girl's bowl and one from boy's bowl.
"Please God ji koi bi chalega but not him. Please. (Please God anyone but not him)", I pleaded as teacher calls my name written on chit and was about to open the other chit.
It was not like that I don't want to dance with him. Infact, I'm dying to, but it was just that I know I will be nervous around him, and I'll be clumsy with my steps.
But I guess the ball was not in my court today. "And Kavya's partner will be Amaan", announced the teacher.
Screw her.
And screw this stupid chit thing.
Now, I have to dance with him which I really don't want to.
Yeah right. But I guess few seconds ago you were saying, you were dying to dance with him. My inner voice mocked.
'Can you please just shut up?' I scolded myself mentally, or better to say my inner self.
It's depends on you Kavya, either you want me to shut up or not, and for now I can guess you are screaming inside your head that yes I'm going to dance with Amaan. My inner voice spoke again, sarcastically this time.
And even if I don't want to admit but yes, I am screaming inside my head, in happiness, but as the little stubborn bitch I am, I'm not going to accept it.
'You can go to hell you know'. I told her. And before my inner voice can again disturb me, I thought to distract myself.
I looked around to see what everyone was doing or maybe what he was doing, what's his reaction after knowing that we are going to perform together. If he was also shocked as I'm or not, but to my disappointment no, he was not.
He was as usual calm with his signature blank expression staring back at me.
Offcourse.
Why would he? It's not like he like me or something right? So he doesn't care if he is going to perform with me or anyone else. Every girl here is same for him.
My inner voice sigh heavily at this. Maybe she too agree with me on this.
.
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"Yaar, I really don't think I can do this", I huffed at Aliya who was enjoying her cheesy pasta during lunch break.
"Don't worry Kavya everything will be good", she assured me with her mouth full of pasta and cheese dripping from the corner of her lips.
"Oh god Aliya. First stop eating like a kindergarten kid", I said rolling my eyes, and she too rolled her eyes wiping her mouth with tissue paper.
"And, as you were saying to chill, how am I supposed to chill? It's easy for you to say that because your partner is Pratik", I huffed then continue. "He is so friendly and very understanding. Not like him who don't even talk to anyone easily", I groaned to which she chuckled and I glared at her watching her chuckle. And it made her stop her laughter.
"Okay, relax Kavya, aur tu chill kar, tu faltu ki tension le rahi hai. Infact, tujhe to khus hona chahiye, tera crush boy tera partner bana hai. So, enjoy your company with him. (Chill Kavya, you are taking tension for no reasons. Infact, you should be happy that the guy you have crush on, you are going to perform with him)", she winked at me saying this.
'I guess she is right. Yeh faltu ki tension lekar kuch ni hona. I should calm myself. And aisa thori na hai like woh meko kha jayega. Just relax Kavya.
(Yes I guess Aliya is right, I was taking tension for no reason, and it was not like he is going to eat me alive or something.') I tried to convince scared little self.
And, I should start mentally preparing myself, because from tomorrow onwards, our practice for the duet dance will be starting, and tomorrow only we will be informed, on which song we will be performing.
I just hope I won't make a complete fool of myself in front of him, and in front of everyone.