Chereads / The Academic Rivals / Chapter 30 - Shot-29

Chapter 30 - Shot-29

~Sanvi's POV~

"Rishabh..." I inhaled sharply as the icy bonnet of the car came in touch with the warm skin of my back.

"What the hell do you think of yourself?" Out of all the things in the world, that question was perhaps the least expected one after I had given up on my own partnership and risked my postion in the team while defending the jerk rebuking me right then.

I was entirely baffled.

"What the hell are YOU doing? Didn't you leave a while ago?"

Rishabh gritted his teeth in response as he held me close to his body such that not even a slither of air could pass through us.

My chest was pressed up against his body as my hands automatically gripped his shoulder for support. The compromising position had already turned on all the red sirens in my mind.

Evening had fully engulfed the silent empty school campus and if anyone remaining in the campus had to spot us in such a position, they'd definitely misinterpret the whole situation.

But what confused me in that situation was how his eyes appeared entirely erratic, much different than any other expression I'd ever seen on his face.

"Hah, of course, you'd want me to scram early! The Good Girl would surely want to conspire some more with all those other baboons in the team."

"Whaa..baboons? What the hell are you talking about?" I pulled my hand out of his hold and tried to push the cement wall off of my body.

"wHaT?" Rishabh spat sarcastically, tugging me even closer to his warm body.

"Don't even try to deny that you want me out of the picture in the context of the Championship. I know you out of all those people will have the most to gain out of this if I am indeed kicked out. Didn't you enjoy the little show your partner put up in the cafeteria a few minutes ago?" His words made me shoot my gaze up to his face.

I didn't know why I was rather softened at his insinuation. I bit back my immediate retort against the blatant insult considering the fact that it was not a good day for the Great Rathore's ego.

"Rathore... I didn't mean that when I asked why you haven't left yet. It wasn't even close to what I was implying!" I gasped when his grip around my waist tightened almost immediately.

"And no. I didn't enjoy any of Aakash's vindictive speeches." I mumbled under my breath, fighting against my inbuilt restraint from admitting that to his face.

"Hah! Dixit didn't enjoy my humiliation? Her own enemy being insulted in that manner? Oh, come on." His tone was of a genuinely surprised one.

He dipped his face down to my neck making me gasp yet again.

"Liar..."

He whispered in my ear, making me squirm against his body. His breath felt ticklish on my skin and I almost felt my knees buckle.

"I don't care if you do or don't believe me. All I have to say in this matter is that Aakash is not me. What he says or how he acts has nothing to do with me. And I don't agree with him here."

"Wow, Sanvi Dixit. What has gotten into you? Aakash is your partner. At least stay loyal to him.." I rolled my eyes at his sarcasm as he feigned shock at my words.

"He's not!" My hurried admittance seemingly puzzled him. It puzzled me too.

"He's not your partner?" I shrugged as Rishabh's eyes began sparkling all of a sudden, making me feel quite uncomfortable being under his hold at that particular moment.

"Release me now if you don't have anything better to say." I uttered in frustration.

But what even was his need to hold me like that in the first place? I was extremely conscious of every touch and every brush and every point where my body came in contact with his. It felt weirdly hot being in his warm arms like that.

"No. I won't. You need to answer me first. Why have you been blatantly ignoring my presence since the past month?" Rishabh looked right in my eyes and asked the question I was truly dreading, making me gulp visibly.

I had been deliberately slipping out of every occasion in which we had to face each other. The busy mid-terms and the whole Championship scenario helped a lot in that context. I had ardently hoped not be in another compromising situation with him and thereby fling mud at the little self respect I had managed to keep untainted.

But it was eventually a futile attempt on my part. I wouldn't be able to escape for long and I kind of knew that deep down. And he had yet again managed to pull me in a compromising position right then.

His actions surely angered me but the prospect of explaining the need to stay away from each other truly agitated me to a whole another level.

For a genius, he was rather short-sighted.

"Are you for real, Rathore? Why does it matter to you that I am ignoring you? Which of course, I am. I won't deny it." I scoffed.

"At the very least, we could save some energy rather than arguing or fighting every second we cross paths. Besides, I don't like your stupid face." I tried to push him back by his arms, veiling my utter discomfort talking about these stuff with a rather ironic statement.

I didn't even care to notice his rather handsome features...untill that weird accidental kiss we shared that night. I was frustrated.

What on the earth changed within a night? I felt like my consciousness had been replaced with an absurdĀ  version of Sanvi Dixit from a weird parallel universe.

What a conundrum.

It appeared as if you ignored him, he would immediately come back pestering you and then if you did acknowledge his existence, he'd be all up your nose, messing with you for being too defensive about it.

Ignoring him was the best option to avoid any sort of mishaps between us. I thought that it would be the best way to keep away from him by not engaging in our regular disputes. It would do him good as well.

I couldn't afford incurring Father's wrath again when the Championship was still at stake. Havocs followed everywhere we went together, so a bit of distance was much essential in our case. Perhaps a little bit too much, especially after that unexpected kiss.

I just simply couldn't figure out which screw had come loose in my biological composition that night for me to be daydreaming about my enemy and his luscious lips all day long.

"Hah!" He scoffed derisively.

I twisted my lips, attempting to keep my eyes away from his lips which were really close to my own face.

"Did you already forget about the supposed punishment you have managed to bring upon both of us? Do you think ignoring me would help you get on the right side of Father after the two of us had specifically been reprimanded by him?" He squeezed my arm tightly, making me scrunch my eyes shut.

"I wasn't even the one to begin all these! It's always you. You're always the one who initiates the fights between us." He was seemingly agitated at my reluctance, spewing quite a stupid comment on his part.

Oh he just did not blame me for our enmity! It takes two to tango. His words took me by anger. I flared my nose while charging at him.

"It seems that you don't know your own self Rathore. You should be grateful that I haven't yet complained to the teachers about how you go around taunting me about every damn thing. Do you expect me to digest your indolence without retaliating?" I spat viciously.

"I never begin our disputes. Don't even dare to put all the blame on me. Hadn't you punctured my tire that day while I was already strained with my own problems, I wouldn't have beaten you up. I simply fought back because YOU acted against me on the first place. You're nothing but a BULLY to me." I bellowed with indignation.

"And honestly, I should say tit for tat because you're getting a good taste of your own medicine with Aakash's pettiness. Karma might just be finally catching up to you for what you've done to me all these years. But I am not a scumbag like Aakash to kick a person at their lowest."

What the hell was the guy's problem? I almost felt like ripping my hairs out for defending that jerk back in the Cafeteria. He clearly didn't deserve my pity.

"And stop freaking manhandling me everytime. You've got no right to touch me." I pushed him with all my force and he stumbled back a few steps.

He simply looked down at his shoes with an evil smile curving his lips up. Knowing his reactions so very well over the years, I should've been ready for what was coming next.

"A bully, you say?" Rishabh pulled his head up slowly.

He had me pinned down with his raspy voice, dangerously lowered down an octave. I was transfixed all of a sudden. His eyes turned dark, like the ones back in the Cafeteria.

I was truly a wimp to shudder at that but I did do it internally, not showing it outright. There was just something about the gaze that had always intimidated me. But I would bury myself before exposing a tad of that effect in front of him.

"If I am a bully, then what does that make you, Sanvi?" I gulped in fear and immediately shut my eyes as he pulled my face extremely close to his, such that the tips of noses brushed against each other.

My stomach tightened and I deeply breathed in his intoxicating fragrance.

Did the guy bathe in the Heaven's personally customised cologne?

Why did he smell so damn delicious?

What?

"An extremely peculiar creature that liked kissing her bully?" My eyes shot open as his mouth inched dangerously close to my quivering lips.

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To Be Continued.