Begusarai

005

A new day brought new hope.

Except for Niyati, whose hope had been crushed. As she left home with Shivu dii, her mind was blank, the events of the previous day long forgotten—well, not entirely forgotten, as the thought of those nights made her heart race. But that was okay. She had control over her heart now. Her parents hadn’t raised a coward.

Yet, when she glimpsed that man from the classroom window, her heart started pounding again. In broad daylight, clad in a white shirt and light blue denim, he looked less like a human and more like a deity. The sunglasses obscuring his eyes were a blessing for Niyati; otherwise, she might have been lost forever.

How had she never noticed this before? Where had her mind been these past few months?

“Is that scene actually normal?” she asked. Asha and Richa were also glancing out the window.

“Yes and no. Gayatri usually gets dropped off outside the gate, but whatever,” Richa replied. Sitting on the windowsill, Niyati noted the crowd surrounding him. In a girls' college where men were a rare sight, a handsome man would naturally attract attention.

No one approached him directly; their eyes followed his every move.

A sigh escaped Niyati’s lips. Last night, for just a brief moment, she had hoped to be noticed by that handsome man. It wasn’t ideal, nor would she ever admit it, but the tiny hope had ruined her sleep.

“He is just so handsome, god!” Asha exclaimed dreamily.

“You have a boyfriend, remember?” Richa reminded her, jumping slightly as Asha slapped her wrist. “Have you lost your mind? Don’t say that out loud. If anyone hears and the news spreads, I’ll be in big trouble.”

Niyati rolled her eyes. Back in Indore, people gossiped about relationships all the time. But here in Begusarai, just seeing a girl and a boy together could become the next hot topic. Having a boyfriend and talking about it was a big no-no.

Asha had only mentioned it because Niyati had seen a message from her boyfriend on Asha’s phone when she went to the washroom.

All they knew about him was that his name was Mukesh, he was a college dropout, and worked in a local garage. He had seen her on her way to college, followed her for days, and eventually, they got together. Also, the phone Asha was using had been given to her by Mukesh—another detail.

“Wait, is he looking for someone? Why is he circling the premises like that?” Richa asked, and Niyati looked down to see that the sunglasses were dangling from his hand as his eyes scanned the area.

“What is he looking for?” Niyati wondered aloud.

“Oh no, I think the rumor was true,” Asha said dramatically, a hand over her mouth.

“What rumor?” Niyati asked before she could stop herself.

“That... our college is going to undergo a much-needed renovation phase,” Asha said. Niyati blinked, once, twice, then three times, staring at Asha.

“Did you forget to take your anti-crazy medication today? The college just celebrated its silver jubilee. They already renovated the entire building for that. We complained about the noise daily. How could your memory be so bad?” Niyati asked.

Asha looked part embarrassed, part sheepish. “I’m sorry. Okay. But I told you what I heard.” Clearly, Asha wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed.

Grabbing Asha by the shoulders, Niyati shook her. “Stay away from those gossip mills.”

“Okay, okay, let me go,” Asha said.