A Thing, Beyond Forever

22.

"How's the exam?" The universally hated question to be asked after an exam, especially if your exam didn't go well. 

"I got the hardest set, I guess" Noor pouted, I turned towards the rest of the girls. "We'll be glad if we could afford to get passing marks," Aisha said as she dropped her belongings in her bag and placed it on her shoulder

"Anyway, it's over now. I can't believe we have only one exam left and then we are done with school. Can you believe it? It looks like we just started" I beamed, I was beyond ecstatic with the thought of finishing school because that meant that I had to move on to a new pedestal of my life, the high school life. 

When Khatija and Zeenath joined our group, I braced myself to break the news. "Are we dropping by BR or are we going straight to home?" Zeenath questioned. 

I cleared my throat. "Actually guys, Yazan wanted to drop me home. He lives in the same area as mine" I shrugged nonchalantly as if it was the most normal thing for me and Yazan to hang out all the time. 

"Okay, no problem. Just inform any of us when you reach home okay?" Khatija added and the rest nodded before taking turns to leave the school campus except Aisha who was waiting for Talha to come. 

When the three of them left, Aisha moved towards the wall, finding us a shade below a tree. "Zuki is everything okay with you and Yazan?" 

I leaned onto the wall behind us as I scrunched my eyes due to sunlight casting on our faces, "Yeah, why?"

"I don't know" She shrugged. "Sometimes I catch him staring at you when you are distracted, like when you are talking to us or something"

"Yeah, so?" I asked plainly as if I didn't know what that meant. 

"I feel like he has feelings for you" 

I looked at Yazan making his way towards me amidst other guys and I straightened myself, "I don't think so" I lied. Of course, I felt that too but at that point in my life, I was in denial. Because he was the one who set Nouman and me up. 

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 "So, what do you guys usually do after leaving school?" Yazan asked as we were walking down a hill that led to the main street from where we used to take an auto.

"We do an after exam party" I chuckled. 

"What?" He chuckled as well thinking it was a joke but then he turned to look at me, "Seriously? You guys do parties after every exam?" His eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Nothing major, man" I shook my head, "We just have some ice cream and then we take an auto and drop everyone one by one. We divide the auto fare equally and usually, I am the last one to get down" I narrated what has been going on ever since our exams began.

"Oh, that's cool" He nodded as we continued to walk.

"What do you guys do?" 

"Umm..." His thoughts wandered, "We just meet up at someone's place after lunch and play games"

I laughed, a typical boy thing to do. "And you don't study for the next exam?"

"We do when the exam is on the very next day but when there's a ten days gap in between, why should we bother that much? Anyway, we had learned everything during the pre-boards itself, so yeah"  He stopped at the Baskin Robin's store where I along with my girls used to have ice-cream every day. 

"What?" I asked as he stood there waiting for me to react. 

He walked inside the store, "C'mon, the tradition must go on"