LEECH

CHAPTER THIRTEEN - BHAVNA (NOW)

Riva is beautiful.

The rooms they've provided for us are situated in a separate block, away from the hustle and bustle of the classrooms, because unlike other schools, Riva apparently doesn't like to give holidays to kids. The last Cluster was held by Bayview, and we got two-week holidays during the final two weeks.

Classes have also been arranged for the athletes and cheerlead team, to minimise the loss of precious time. Considering the vast syllabus of grade eleventh, I'm glad for this feature, even though it would be tiring as heck.

Each room is meant to be shared by four of us, but I'm the only one in ours. The building overlooks the massive school field, currently shrouded in darkness. It is where Sanket and our team, as well as many others, would spend their days practising and training. It's going to become really familiar to us over the course of the next two months.

Suddenly, I hear a scuffle behind me. Expecting it to be Srishti, I turn. My grin quickly fades away when I notice Disha standing in the doorway, awkwardly looking at the floor.

My blood runs hot and cold. What exactly is she doing here?

"Bhavna?" She says, looking up at me with those large eyes that make her look innocent. Snake.

I don't reply to her. I don't feel the need to talk to someone like her. If she has to say something, she'll say it and then leave.

She notices my silence, but doesn't comment on it. Instead, she continues. "Can I ask you for a favour?"

She's not in the position to ask anyone for anything, but I don't say that. Instead, I lean against the wall, listening to what she has to offer.

She hesitates. "Can I...well, can I stay with you and Srishti here?"

That gets my attention. Alerting, I stare at her, aghast and flabbergasted. What did she say?

"Disha, do you know what you're saying?"

Her eyes are downturned. "Yes. Yes I do, I've nowhere else to live. Everyone is shunning me out."

That's the consequence of your own actions, I think. "So you're here to beg me to let you in?" I roll my eyes.

The line of her mouth hardens in response. "I'm not begging anyone, Bhavna. Srishti was my friend way before you were hers."

"And yet you and I both know very well that if Srishti were here, you would never have been able to step into this room."

She rolls her eyes, and it boils my blood. If this goes on, I'll lose my calm and that won't be good for anyone. Mumma taught me better. "I know Srishti better than you do, Bhavna." She says. "You're so naive that you could never stand knowing the real her."

My jaw clenches involuntarily. I breathe in. "You don't have any right to talk about her."

She laughs in her hoarse, mocking way, sounding every bit like a crazed woman. "You don't know Srishti. That Aisha, she found out about the real her and ran —"

"Don't you dare talk about Aisha —"

"And you would, too. Once you know her, all of you will. Only I know her real self and can stay with her after." She says, smirking and looking pleased.

My brain is working overdrive trying to catch up with her words. Disha is just bluffing, she wants to create discord among us and use that as an opportunity, but is she? Srishti never told me the truth about what happened between her, Aisha and Yash, just that something bad happened. Earlier, I was just giving her space and later, so many other things happened at the same time that it slipped off my mind. So, is she hiding something ugly from me?