My Ex - Crush

Episode 37

Deepika's POV:

"Did they say the bus would come at 8 p.m.?" I asked Meera as we sat on the department's front yard lawn, lazily plucking grass.

"Yeah, and it’s 10 p.m. now!" she replied, sounding utterly exhausted.

Most of us had shown up in our PJs, expecting to sleep through the night trip. But with the bus being late, we all looked like a bunch of homeless beggars sprawled across the lawn.

"I’m hungry!" Joshitha whined, rubbing her stomach dramatically.

I handed her the sandwich I’d brought from home, and without a second thought, she wolfed it down.

"You are truly shameless, Joshitha!" Meera scolded.

"Why? What?" Joshitha asked, stuffing her face, completely oblivious.

"You own a real estate business and still act like such a miser!" Lavanya teased, shaking her head.

"That’s why we own a real estate business!" Joshitha shot back with a smirk.

We all burst into laughter, and just as my eyes landed on the corridor, I caught sight of two sharp eyes staring straight at me—Arjun. He was sitting there with Arul and Vinoth, talking animatedly about their "useless team."

I couldn't help but smirk. Arjun better be careful. Should I mess with him more? After all the torment he’s put me through, he deserves it!

Meanwhile, Sri Devi ma'am and Kiran Sir were on the phone, clearly stressed out, trying to figure out where the bus was. We had been waiting for what felt like ages.

Sanjay and Manoj soon joined our little lawn circle, and the boredom was getting unbearable. We needed to do something to pass the time.

"Let’s play message pass!" Meera suggested, bouncing with excitement.

"Are you a school kid?" Sanjay snorted, amused by the idea.

"But we’re too bored! Let’s give it a try!" Lavanya chimed in, and we all agreed.

Manoj was the first player. We sat in a circle, holding hands, and Manoj had to catch whoever was passing the message—a tiny signal sent by lightly squeezing the next person’s hand. If the message made it around the entire circle without him noticing, Manoj would lose. If he caught someone in the act, they would become the catcher.

"Deepika!" Manoj called, narrowing his eyes at me. Meera sat on my left, Lavanya on my right.

Manoj was watching my hands intently, his gaze darting back and forth between them like a hawk. I nudged Lavanya's hand ever so slightly, signaling her to pass it on. The message started its journey.

"Ah-ha! I saw your hand move!" Manoj pointed at Sanjay, who had tried to send the message to Joshitha.

"No, I didn’t!" Sanjay protested.

"Don’t cheat! You’re out!" Joshitha declared, giving Sanjay a little shove.

Sanjay sighed and took his place in the center of the circle.

"Can we join?" Vinoth asked, walking over with Arjun beside him.

Not again. I groaned inwardly.

"Of course!" Sanjay said, inviting them in without hesitation.

As I feared, Lavanya quickly scooted over to make room for Arjun, who ended up sitting right next to me. Great. We held hands, but Arjun didn’t even glance in my direction. Yes! My scare tactics were working!

The game resumed, and I was cautiously waiting for the signal. Suddenly, I felt something... Arjun’s finger was gently scratching the inside of my palm. My heart jumped, but I forced myself not to react. I passed the signal to Meera, trying to act calm, but inside, I was screaming.