Shuttles And Stars

Sia

After Neeraj and I exchanged goodbyes, I turned around only to find Netra and Meera with those mischievous grins plastered across their faces. They were pretending to cough, clearly trying to tease me.

“Oh God, not again,” I muttered, rolling my eyes.

Meera couldn’t hold back anymore and burst into laughter. “Come on, Sia! We all saw it—there’s definitely something between you two. You can’t deny it!”

“I’ve told you a hundred times already,” I replied, exasperated. “I don’t have feelings for Neeraj. And I don’t have room for that kind of thing in my life right now. I’m focused on my duties. Love can wait.”

Netra smirked and crossed her arms. “We didn’t say you like him. We said he likes you. Big difference, yaar.”

Before I could respond to that, a stern voice behind us made all three of us stand at attention. “Lieutenant Joshi, my office. Now.”

It was Col. Rajput. I hadn’t realized he was within earshot, and judging by his expression, he had heard more than I would have liked. I gave Meera and Netra a look that screamed, This is all your fault before following Col. Rajput to his cabin.

Once inside, he closed the door and turned to me, his face stern. “Lieutenant, I overheard a bit of your conversation earlier.”

I swallowed nervously but nodded. “Yes, Sir.”

He stood behind his desk, his arms crossed. “You need to remember that as officers in the Army, there is no place for glamour or personal distractions. Friendships or relationships that can blur lines are not what we stand for. Keep that in mind.”

I nodded stiffly. “Understood, Sir. I assure you, there is no distraction on my part. My focus is entirely on my duties.”

Col. Rajput gave a curt nod. “Good. Let’s keep it that way.”

As I walked out of his cabin, I felt a mix of frustration and embarrassment. It wasn’t like I was doing anything wrong, but now even the Colonel had his eyes on me.

When I rejoined Meera and Netra, they looked at me expectantly. “Well?” Meera asked.

I sighed. “Col. Rajput overheard you two idiots teasing me about Neeraj. He gave me a nice little speech about how officers shouldn’t be distracted by glamour.”

Netra winced. “Yikes.”

“Exactly,” I replied, shaking my head.

As we were about to leave, we realized Capt. Shergill was missing. After a bit of searching, we found him, completely drunk in a corner. He was in no state to make it back to his quarters.

“I’ll help him,” Netra volunteered immediately, going over to support Vikram. There was a softness in her voice that she couldn’t quite hide, and I couldn’t help but exchange a knowing look with Meera. We had both noticed the way Netra seemed to care for Vikram more than she let on.

“Looks like someone else has a little romance brewing,” Meera whispered to me as we watched Netra assist him.

“Don’t start,” I warned, though I couldn’t suppress a small smile.

Just as we were about to leave, my phone buzzed in my pocket. Glancing at the screen, I saw Neeraj’s name. A mix of emotions bubbled up inside me—annoyance, curiosity, confusion.

Meera, ever the nosy one, nudged me. “It’s him, isn’t it?”

I answered the call, trying to sound as neutral as possible. “Hello?”

“Hey, Sia,” Neeraj’s voice was cheerful. “I know this might sound sudden, but I’m throwing a success party this Sunday. I’d love for you and your friends to join—Netra, Meera, Vikram. I think it’ll be fun.”

I bit back a sigh. Was this really happening? “I’m not sure, Neeraj. We have a lot of responsibilities, and I don’t know if we’ll be available.”

“Oh, of course, no pressure,” he said quickly. “I just thought it’d be nice if we could all hang out.”

“Right,” I mumbled, my tone a bit cooler than I intended. “I’ll let you know.”

After hanging up, I felt irritated. I mean, who invites someone they’ve met once to a personal success party? It seemed... odd. Meera, of course, picked up on my mood immediately.

“What did he want?” she asked, eyes gleaming with curiosity.

“He invited us to a success party,” I replied, still processing the whole thing. “Why is he doing this? It’s weird. We’ve only met once.”

Meera grinned from ear to ear. “See? I told you he’s into you!”

I shot her a look that could kill. “I’m not even sure how to react. This feels strange. Who does that after meeting someone once?”

She waved her hand dismissively. “You’re overthinking it, Sia. It’s probably just a friendly gesture. Relax.”

The next morning, I decided to talk it over with Netra and Vikram. Maybe they would have a different perspective.

“I think we should go,” Vikram said, surprising me. “He didn’t just invite you, Sia. He invited all of us. If it was just you, then yeah, that would be strange. But it seems like he’s just being friendly.”

Netra nodded. “I agree. There’s no harm in attending. If he’s genuinely trying to be friends, maybe we should give him a chance.”

I crossed my arms, staring at them both. “You two are no help.”

Vikram laughed. “Look, if it bothers you, we won’t go. But honestly, it doesn’t sound like anything shady. Just a party. Who knows, we might even have fun.”

I sighed, feeling a little torn. Maybe they were right, and I was overreacting. But part of me still didn’t feel entirely comfortable.

Later that day, as we finished our duties, Netra found me alone and put a hand on my shoulder. “You okay?”

I shrugged. “Yeah. I just feel like you guys have another reason to tease me now. First, Col. Rajput gives me a lecture, and now this party invitation.”

Netra smiled sympathetically. “We won’t tease you. Not too much, anyway.”

I chuckled despite myself. “Thanks, Netra. I appreciate that.”

With a deep breath, I decided I would deal with the situation one step at a time. If Neeraj was being genuine, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to attend the party. And if he wasn’t, well, I’d set my boundaries clear. Either way, I wasn’t going to let it distract me from what really mattered—my duties.

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