Avishi strutted into school, clutching her project like it was the Kohinoor diamond. Last night had been total chaos, with her entire family turned into her personal project assistants. Her mom was painting, her dad was cutting papers... She was now a walking zombie, but the mission was complete.
She glanced at her project like an actress looking at her long-lost love, victory music swelling in her head.
But today, her real mission was Kartik.
She’d put on her favorite lipgloss, arranged her hair so her zulfe fell just right, and even dabbed on some perfume.
She was ready. She could already picture the dramatic scene: Kartik noticing her, walking over in slow motion, some classic Bollywood tune playing in the background.
“Aaj toh yeh film ka hero mere taraf dekhega,” she whispered to herself.
Of course, reality didn’t quite agree.
The entire day dragged on, and every time she tried to “accidentally” bump into Kartik, fate had other plans. School ground...no luck. Hallway...nothing. At one point, she even “accidentally” wandered outside the boys’ washroom. But still, nada.
She was starting to feel like the sad part of a movie, where the heroine tries everything but the hero just doesn’t notice.
And then, just as she spotted Kartik in the hallway, her teacher’s shrill voice snapped her out of her filmy daydream.
“Avishi! Right here!” the teacher called, yanking her back to reality like a villain pulling the heroine away.
“Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhh.” She rolled her eyes, sending Kartik one last, tragic look over her shoulder, mentally singing,
“Hum milenge chalte chalte.” She half-expected her teacher to break into a lecture about her "school responsibilities" with full villain-level intensity.
....
Finally, her big moment arrived...project presentation time. She and her friends had poured their hearts, souls, and avishi's family’s sleep into this project, ready to wow everyone. But then the teacher, in her usual dramatic pause, announced, “Well, Akshara and avishi ,(Akshara and avishi were doing the presentation at that time each of them in their group took turns to do it) I’m afraid your project... it wasn’t quite up to the mark.”
Avishi’s internal Bollywood storm began. “Mere project ko kachra bola?” she thought, eyes widening. She’d sacrificed her precious sleep, her mom’s evening relaxation, and her dad’s TV time..ALL for this! She felt the sting of the teacher’s words like a dagger to the heart, but all she could do was give a sad, tight-lipped smile and carry her “subpar” project back to her seat.
As she stomped her way out, she imagined an epic soundtrack. But just as she was about to make her dramatic exit, she was told by one of her classmates she couldn’t even take the project home. She let out a huff and muttered, "i am taking it because "it wasn't upto mark anyways "
........
She got home, slumping dramatically against the door, eyes staring blankly ahead. She trudged to her room, dropped her bag with the weight of a thousand tragedies, and looked at herself in the mirror. Slowly, a single tear rolled down her cheek. Ah, the single tear! She almost laughed at her own dramatics but felt it, too. She whispered to herself “Bas, bas, aur nahi,” as if she were the heroine gathering strength after a heartbreak.
After changing into comfy clothes...sayonara zulfe, hello messy bun
she went to the kitchen for some snacks. As she walked in, she noticed her little sister Dhruvi, looking as miserable as she felt. Dhruvi had a high fever, her usual bubbly self now a sad little bundle of sniffles.
Avishi put a hand on Dhruvi’s head, sighing, “Yaar, hamara ghar mein toh kuch bhi sahi nahi chal raha.”
Dhruvi gave a weak smile, and Avishi grabbed some snacks for herself and went back to her room... She started eating, feeling a bit better with every bite. Food therapy was real. Afterward, she decided it was time for some other therapy....
texting Kartik. But what could she even say? “Hi”? Too basic. “Hey, how’s it going?” Too desperate. Finally, she settled on sending a reel.
“Uff,” she muttered as she picked the perfect one, “God, why does it feel like I’m proposing marriage?” After mentally debating, she finally sent it. Now, all she could do was wait.
She watched her phone like it was a ticking bomb. Waiting…
Ping! Her heart raced.
Thumbs-up.
“YESSSSSSSS!” she whispered, pumping her fist. A thumbs-up from Kartik was like winning a mini-lottery. In her world, that thumbs-up was a full-blown “I see you, and yes, you’re amazing.” She could hear her theme song playing as her inner sadness turned into a victory march. It wasn’t a confession, but hey, a girl could dream.
......
Later that night, Avishi lay in bed, staring at her ceiling, letting the memories of the day replay in her mind. She imagined Kartik’s face lighting up as he watched her reel, then smiled to herself, her heart doing little somersaults.
Her imagination ran wild, creating a full-on, Bollywood-style fantasy sequence....
Kartik, standing in the rain, his hand reaching out to her as she spins dramatically, hair blowing in slow motion, with violins and piano filling the air. She laughed quietly, realizing how absurdly filmy her thoughts had become, but couldn’t help indulging for just a moment longer.
Her eyelids grew heavy, and with a satisfied smile, she whispered, “Kartik ka thumbs-up is enough for today... ab toh sapnon mein milenge!” And with that, she drifted off, her dreams filled with the dramatic twists and sweet moments of her own filmi love story.
Reality, of course, was a thumbs-up emoji and unfinished homework. But in Avishi’s filmy heart, she knew her Bollywood moment was just a reel away.
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Hey, readers! Huge shoutout if you made it all the way to the end.. I see you, and I totally appreciate you. I know, my consistency has been like WiFi in the middle of nowhere, but I promise I’ll try to be more regular. So, stick around for more chaos, laughs, and questionable life choices coming soon!
~MEME OF THE DAY GUYS~
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