■WATTPAD INDIA AWARDS 2019 WINNER■
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For the Delhi Tycoons' kids, life has always been too challenging, and it's no different for Arvika Deewan. It's not everyday that her divorced mother remarries another business man, and there...
Armaan Qureshi had been avoiding me after the day he helped me by fixing Daadi's stereo, for reasons unknown to me. He avoided my gaze during the homeroom periods, and was gone before anyone else during the dispersal. So Wednesday noon, twenty minutes after the bell rang for recess and I had my fill of pasta with white sauce, I started my manhunt. I knew he wasn't in the classroom; our group was the last to leave and there was no one inside when we locked the door. And so, I crossed the football grounds, and searched for him, reaching the place where I had found Mickey a few weeks ago.
Nerdy Qureshi wasn't anywhere on the ground floor, so dejected, I went inside the school building through another one of the three entrances, and found dear Mickey smoking on the stairs instead. This entrance was abandoned, no one used it for going anywhere. So it wasn't suprising that he had found his haven in here.
But unlike last time, he didn't say anything, he just looked at me until I looked away and smoked. So, without speaking, I started climbing up, until I was on top of the first flight of stairs. I turned around, clearing my throat.
"Do you know where Armaan Qureshi might be?"
He had to turn his head to look at me. "Last I checked, he wasn't my classmate."
Biting my lip to refrain from speaking something greasy in return, I turned around and started climbing again. I was in the middle of the second flight of stairs when Mickey shouted.
"He's in the terrace."
I retraced my motions, until I was on top of the first flight of stairs again. "You mean the rooftop?"
He gave me a disgruntled look before stomping on his cigarette and leaving.
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The door groaned and creaked before opening. No other entrance led to the terrace for safety purposes, and that explained why the whole area looked like the set out of American horror movies. There wasn't any noise; but the silence surrounding me wasn't the serene type of calm either. Grey clouds were covering the sky, but it wasn't raining yet. I stepped outside, looking around for the nerd, and spotting him against the wall; a Dan Brown novel on his lap, but his eyes looking straight ahead.
"Eleventh's not a good standard for reading novels, don't you think?"
I had startled him, but before he could get up, I tucked my legs beneath my skirt and sat beside him.
"What are you doing here?"
Instead of replying, I picked his book, looking at the cover. "I'm not an avid reader myself, but this thing looks cool. What mystery are you conjuring?"
He snatched the book from me, looking anywhere but at me. "You shouldn't be seen with me."
"No, you shouldn't be seen in the terrace dude. Tujhe pata hai maine tujhe kitna dhunda?! And aaj subah maine tujhe good morning bhi bola, but you blatantly ignored me, you fool!" I slapped his arm.
