First Spark: A story of my first crush

The Mysterious Observer

With the Christmas break coming to an end, the school's annual event approached. Ishika and I with all the other performers were knee-deep in dance rehearsals, trying to perfect our moves for the group performance.

Amidst the chaos of practice sessions and costume fittings, there was a lingering presence I couldn't quite ignore - the boy who seemed to always be watching me from afar. I hadn't paid much attention to him at first, too engrossed in perfecting our dance routine with Ishika by my side. But his frequent appearances didn't escape Ishika's keen eyes.

"Shriya, guess who I spotted again today?" Ishika exclaimed, a mischievous twinkle in her eye as we took a break from our dance practice.

I raised an eyebrow, already knowing where this conversation was headed. "Let me guess, mystery boy strikes again?"

Ishika nodded eagerly. "Exactly! He was there, leaning against the wall like he's waiting for you to notice him or something."

I chuckled, shaking my head. "Well, he's going to be waiting a long time then. I have more important things to focus on, like not tripping over my own feet during the performance."

Ishika laughed, but I could see the curiosity dancing in her gaze. "But Shriya, don't you want to know who he is? He's actually kinda cute."

I shrugged, feigning disinterest. "I guess. But it's not like I'm looking for a distraction right now. We have a dance to nail and grades to maintain."

Ishika sighed, but didn't press the matter further. Deep down, though, I couldn't deny the flutter of curiosity in my own chest. Who was this boy, and why did he seem so intent on watching me? But amidst the whirlwind of preparations for the annual function, his presence remained nothing more than a fleeting distraction. Or so I thought.