My Ex - Crush

Episode 4

Arjun's POV:

We got on a crowded bus and had to stand for almost half of the journey. After some time, two seats finally opened up. Deepika took the window seat, and I sat beside her.

Since it was raining, all the windows were shut, but Deepika went ahead and opened hers. Almost immediately, an elderly woman behind us started shouting, and Deepika closed it, looking annoyed.

"I can't even enjoy the cool breeze," she muttered under her breath.

I smirked, finding her frustration oddly amusing.

A little while later, she talked briefly with her mom over the phone, then popped in her earphones. I did the same, and we both settled into a peaceful silence. A few minutes passed, and I noticed her head bobbing along with the movements of the bus. She had dozed off. Gently, I shifted her head to rest on her bag, careful not to wake her.

She didn’t sleep last night—that much was obvious. She didn’t have to do my assignment sheets, but she still did. I felt a pang of guilt as I thought about it.

As the bus neared my stop, I stood up carefully, trying not to disturb her. But she woke up the second I moved.

"My stop’s here. See you later," I said, offering a smile.

"Yeah, bye," she replied, blinking quickly to shake off the sleep.

I got off the bus and hopped into a share auto to get home. When I arrived, I found Amma sitting on the portico, grading her students' test papers.

"How many kids did you fail today?" I teased as I kicked off my shoes.

"Ten," she said, laughing as she adjusted her specs.

"Don’t forget the coffee!" she called after me as I headed inside.

I quickly changed into fresh clothes and grabbed the cup of coffee waiting for me on the dining table. Then I returned to the portico, where Amma was still sitting with her test papers, and settled into the swing.

"Where’s Preeti?" I asked.

"She’s at a friend’s house," Amma replied without looking up.

"What’s a ninth-grader doing at a friend’s place on a weekday?" I asked.

"Hmph. Should I remind you of all the things you used to do when you were in ninth grade?" Amma shot back.

I chuckled, knowing she had a point.

A few minutes later, Appa came home, drenched from the rain. He rushed inside to change and came back out to join Amma on the portico.

I took a sip of my coffee and leaned back, thinking about the girl from our class who traveled hours every day just to attend college. I turned to Amma. "There’s this girl in my class. She travels nearly three hours every day to get to college. A while back, she had a breakdown and cried her heart out, and everyone tried to console her. But after that, she changed completely. There's this one professor, our arts teacher, who kept asking her to redo a live object painting—like ten times, just giving silly reasons. And she kept doing it until the professor finally gave up. How can someone have that kind of determination?"

"That kind of grit will take her far," Amma replied thoughtfully. "Mark my words, that girl will shine in the future. People who listen to their teachers and don't give up always find success."

"Okay, school teacher ma'am," I said with a playful grin.

"You could learn something from her, you know. Imagine how much you'd complain if you had to redo the same thing ten times!" Appa chimed in.