Tenth Grade was Fun!

17. THERMOS OR SON?

The next day, I decide to confront Ved in music class since we weren't in the same apartment anymore nor can I find him alone in school.

Courtesy of an overcrowded school.

Wonder why it didn't work in the beginning when I met Ved in school though.

I get ready for music class and pack Ved's notebook—the one in which he had written that he likes me, for proof—into my music class bag along with other music class stuffs and take my bike, whose tires are thankfully inflated and ride all the way to my music class.

When I reach my music class, I'm panting hard from riding my bike all the way here.

You gotta start that workout you stopped doing, you dumbass.

Yeah, yeah, I will. But for now, we got a situation in our hands.

I had started earlier than necessary from my house so that I could reach here soon and talk to Ved alone.

I wait beside my parked bike for Ved to come, my feet tapping against the ground as I bite my lower lip in anticipation, my eyes trained on my clenching-and-unclenching fists.

Suddenly a hand comes in my line of view, rests on my chin as it pulls my face up to meet the face of its owner and its thumb gently frees my lower lip.

"What're you doing here so early?" Ved asks me, his hand moving from my chin to my cheek as he strokes it and I can't help but compare it to how Nikhil did.

Nikhil's was so soothing.

Yeah, I know right?

I internally sigh in bliss as I remember how Nikhil's hand stroked my cheek and how they ran against my arms and my waist when we kissed—

"Hey Vicky, you alright?" Ved asks me, as I snap out of my daze.

"Yeah, sorry. I just...zoned out." I observe that he has put some space between us.

Good.

"Okay, so why're you here so early?" He asks curiously.

"Oh, I just...um, wanted to talk to you about something."

He nods gesturing me to go on.

I rummage my bag and get his notebook outside, frantically flipping pages to get to the question in which I read about that.

"So I was going through these extra questions yesterday and I came across this—" I point out the question to him and he squints at it, his eyes slightly widening after sometime.

"—and I thought maybe you had a more elaborate answer which I might find more easier, so I went to the last page and—"

"Did you read it?" He interrupts me.

"Yeah. But I swear it wasn't intentional. I just thought it might—"

"Vicky."

"—help me understand, whatever you wrote, that is, but then—"

"Vicky."

"—I just read it so I wanted to—"

My rant is interrupted abruptly as Ved leans in and kisses my cheek, his lips lingering longer and pulls away, looking straight in my eyes.

"I never wanted you to find it this way, but I..." He trails away and takes a deep breath before continuing.

"I like you Vicky, I really like you so much. And I...I want us to be more than friends, please." he finishes and I can't help but notice a hopeful expression on his face.