My Ex - Crush

Episode 62

Arjun’s POV:

It had been almost a week since I last spoke with Deepika. The semester exams were finally over, but she was busy as usual, locked in her group study sessions with her friends. Meanwhile, I was drowning in preparations for the final rurals review. 

Her team had breezed through the final internal review with glowing comments, and honestly, I couldn’t bear the smug taunts from their side. Services team always seemed to have their act together. But I wasn’t about to let that get under my skin—I had my own team to lead, and I wasn’t satisfied with what we’d presented so far. 

On the first day after exams, I summoned my entire team to the department. 

They arrived reluctantly, clearly annoyed. Vinoth had been keeping his distance since his submission mishap, even though I’d reassured him it wasn’t a big deal. Anusha, predictably, was the first to whine. 

“Arjun, semester exams just ended, and you’re already calling us back? Can’t we get a break?” she groaned. 

“Guys, listen up,” I said firmly. “We’re redoing all the sheets for the rurals final review.” 

“What?!” Indhu blurted out, her eyes wide with shock. 

The room erupted with complaints. 

“Redo everything? Arjun, that’s insane!” Bhavani exclaimed. 

“We’ve barely recovered from exams!” Vinoth added, clearly exhausted. 

“Look,” I said, cutting through the noise. “Our last review sheets were subpar. We can do better—I know we can do better. I want this final presentation to be the best one this department has ever seen.” 

“But every other team is done! They’re all relaxing now!” Anusha protested. 

“Let them rest if they want to,” I said, my tone cold. “We’re not here to compete with them. We’re here to give our best. That’s what matters.” 

The room went quiet. I could see the exhaustion in their faces, but I wasn’t about to back down. 

For the next two days, we worked like maniacs. Late nights turned into early mornings, and no one got a minute of sleep. But the new sheets we produced were detailed, precise, and—most importantly—something I was proud to pin up for the final review. 

The review began with the Physicals team. Predictably, their lack of teamwork showed; they had split into two groups, and the cracks in their coordination were obvious. The reviewers’ comments reflected that. 

Then came the Services team—Deepika’s team. As expected, they pinned up the same massive set of sheets from the previous review, with a few new inferences. Their presentation was polished, and they got excellent comments. Deepika had practically covered the entire classroom wall with their work. Typical. 

When it was finally our turn, I could feel the nerves in my team. 

“Don’t mess this up,” I muttered to myself as we began pinning up our sheets. 

Just as I was adjusting the last sheet, I caught Deepika walking past. She leaned slightly toward me and murmured, “All the best.” 

I didn’t respond, only gave her a brief nod before turning back to my work. 

Our presentation went far better than I had hoped. The reviewers were engaged, asking detailed questions that we confidently answered. Their feedback was overwhelmingly positive. For the first time in weeks, I felt a weight lift off my shoulders.