INVISIBLE STRINGS // SARAJ

late night walks

That night, after everyone had fallen asleep, Savi slipped out of her window.Her feet landed softly on the ground, and without looking back, she made her way down the street, heading nowhere in particular.

As she walked, lost in thought, she didn't notice the figure approaching her until she nearly collided into him.

"Careful," Rajat's voice came through, his hand reaching out instinctively to steady her.

Savi blinked, startled. "Oh, great. Just what I needed."

Rajat smirked, his usual teasing tone returning. "Sneaking out again? What's the drama this time? Last I heard, you were starring in your own item song."

Savi's lips twitched despite herself. "You saw that?" She looked up at him, narrowing her eyes in mock suspicion.

"Yup. Got the full performance," Rajat replied, eyes glinting with amusement. "Chikni Chameli, huh? A bold move even for you."

Savi shot back with a smirk of her own. "Well, you know, if you're gonna make an impression make a good one" She paused, giving him a teasing look. "Jealous?"

Rajat, who hadn't expected that, stuttered, "W-What?"

Savi burst into laughter, shaking her head. "Relax, I'm joking. You should've seen your face."

Rajat grumbled under his breath, embarrassed. "You're ridiculous."

As the laughter subsided, Savi casually brought up, "My Badi Ajji thought it was very batameez, and foolish of me.... talking of that you know who else thinks I'm foolish? Ishaan Sir."

Rajat raised an eyebrow. "Ishaan Sir, huh? He's a good teacher. Though, I hear all the girls have a thing for him."

Savi wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Not a chance. I don't know what those girls see in him."

"Right," Rajat said, dragging out the word teasingly. "So you're immune?"

"Completely," Savi shot back, rolling her eyes. "He's young, but... not my type."

"Sureee" Rajat dragged out grinning and Savi nudged his side with her elbow. "Ouch!"

She just stuck her tongue out, "Anyways, I think he's a good teacher but he picks on me too much. I don't know, it's like he almost has something against me"

Rajat doesn't respond for a beat, thinking. "Maybe his family knows your family?"

"No that's not it, I know they don't know each other like that" Savi responds, kicking a rock as they continue walking. 

"Well to be honest, he doesn't really need a reason to pick on you, you're annoying as it is" He quips, "Full support towards him"

They continued their playful banter, discussing which teachers they liked and which ones they couldn't stand. Rajat relaxed a little as they walked down the quiet street, falling into the familiar rhythm of their back-and-forth.

Suddenly, Savi stopped, her eyes narrowing as she spotted a girl standing near a shop across the road. "That's Aashka," she said.

Rajat glanced over, confused. "Who's Aashka?"

"She goes to a different college," Savi explained brushing it off, tilting her head. "But what's she doing standing out here alone?"

Before they could figure it out, a car pulled up beside Aashka, and without hesitation, she climbed in. Rajat watched as the car drove by, catching a brief glimpse of Aashka through the window. She was pretty—beautiful even.

Savi noticed the way his eyes lingered and nudged him with her elbow. "Hey, chashmish, stop staring."

Rajat blinked, snapping back to reality. "What? No, I wasn't—"