I was getting irritated by the smallest of things. During the grihpooja (home ceremony), kids were continuously running here and there, and one of them had even stepped on my foot two times.

Instead of involving myself in my friend's celebration, my mood was getting sour by each passing second. The thought of tanking today's dance challenges just because I couldn't get enough rest was making my anxiety shoot up.

Attending Shlok's grihpooja was feeling like a burden, and the dilemma of just leaving or staying there was increasing my headache.

I wanted complete silence, but there were a lot of guests at Shlok's house, and I knew I had to bear with it because it wasn't my home. I was already getting late, so I didn't wait for my friends and decided to sit in the first row being seated for food.

I didn't like how I was feeling about it, but the interactions between Unix and The Emperors were fuelling the sourness I was feeling since I came here.

I waited for the food to be served, my eyes drifting in my friends' direction.

I wish I can also be happy like them in reality. My whole plan is ruined. Why didn't I check Shlok's WhatsApp message earlier? My mind is going numb. When will the food arrive?

After five minutes of wait, the food was served by one of Shlok's cousin, and I sighed in relief. I instantly took a piece of poori and after dipping it in the sabzi of chhole, I moved the first morsel towards my mouth, but I couldn't taste the food.

(Chhole and poori👆🏽)

"Boom Boom Boomer, how could you eat by yourself?" Akshay asked and held my wrist.

I tried to pull my hand towards my mouth, but Akki took the morsel from my hand and put it back in the plate.

"Akki, what are you doing?" I complained.

"What am I doing?" he asked in surprise. "What are you doing? How can you leave your friends like this and sit by yourself? All of us always eat together, so why are you acting like you don't know anyone here?"

I didn't feel like arguing with him, so I ignored him and picked up the morsel again. Akshay slapped my hand and pulled the plate away.

"Aren't your ears working? I said you are eating with us," Akshay said.

"Akki, give me my plate back," I said.

"No."

I moved my hands to grab my plate, but Akshay pushed my forehead back.

"You are coming yourself or not? I won't allow you to eat without us," he warned.

"I don't want to eat with you guys," I said angrily.

Akshay furrowed his eyebrows. "Why not?"

Because I feel like beating each one of you.

"Because I am getting late for my train," I replied.

I snatched my plate from Akshay, but he held my right hand.

"You can come with me, Boom Boom Boomer," Akki said.

"I don't want to," I said.

"Why are you being like this? Just come with me and Suhana."

"No!"

Akshay held both of my hands. "I will take you with me even if you refuse. Remember, you were stronger than me when we were in kindergarten, but things have changed now."

"Akki, I am really not coming with you. Let me eat, will you?" I scolded.

He shook his head and began pulling me off my spot. I resisted, and when he kept pulling me against my will, I felt my head throb with a strong ache.

Why is he trying to control me? I don't want to go with him, but he is still forcing me. Things are already not going my way, and Akki is also ignoring what I am saying. I don't want to take a lift from him and his girlfriend. Why won't he just listen?!

When Akki pulled me once more, I huffed and pushed him away with all of my strength.

"Just leave me!" I yelled.

I didn't realise how much force I had applied until I saw Akshay stumble backwards and fall down on his back.

"Akshay!" Suhana yelled and came to help him.

She helped him sit up, and even if I knew that what had happened was not good, I was still feeling angry. And after seeing Suhana support Akshay, the feeling of helplessness in me only increased.

"Are you okay, Akshay?" Suhana asked her boyfriend.

Akshay nodded, his eyes on me. I noticed him looking at me with a hurtful look, but I ignored him.

It is all his fault. Why is he looking like that at me?

"Bhoomi, what happened?" Suhana asked me.

"Ask your boyfriend," I snapped.

I bit my lips when Suhana's face fell after hearing my reply. Before I could repair my mistake, Akki frowned at me and patted Suhana's back.

"Don't bother her, Suhana," Akshay told his girlfriend while looking at me. "Let's go before someone blows off her fuse again."

I fisted my hands, but Akshay left with Suhana before I could respond.

I blew my fuse? Really? Why was he trying my patience then? Is he a kid? He doesn't know the meaning of 'no'?

Someone bumped into me from the left side.

"What the fuck?!" I cursed.

"Bhoomi, it is not good manners. We are at a function, so we should not forget our etiquettes."

I rolled my eyes after recognising Kshitij's voice. Like always, he had no sense of personal space and had banged into me while sitting beside me.

"What are you doing?" I asked him in frustration. "There is so much space, but still you are sitting so close."

KD shrugged. "We are friends, so deal with it."

Friends...

He had gotten himself a plate, so I thought that he would just eat his food in silence, but he took out his phone and placed it in front of my face.

"What do you think?" he asked.

"KD, I am getting late, so will you let me eat?" I complained.

"Of course, but please help me with this. I want to take Arushi on a real date, and for that, I need your help. You don't even reply to my messages. What are you so busy with nowadays?"

Earning money to save my family, what else?

"KD, let's do this later, no? I have to catch my train," I told him.

"Just come along with me. I promise we won't get late," KD offered.

"KD..."

"Bhoomi, I am not asking you to give me your kidney. We have the same destination, so let's finish our meals quickly, okay? We will discuss my matter during the ride. If we get late by even one second, you can punish me however you want. Deal?"

I imagined myself rushing to catch my train, then crunching myself in the crowd, not getting a seat and traveling for over an hour, and again running to catch an auto while fighting the impromptu rains. The thought itself made my remaining energy seep out.

I took Kshitij's offer when he convinced me once more, and after eating our food, both of us left Shlok's house after meeting Shlok's family.

On our way towards KD's car, I noticed Arushi looking in our direction. I waved her bye, but her eyes were stuck on KD. When she glanced at me, her face was blank. I didn't think much of it and got inside his car, and within a minute, we were going towards our destination.

"What did you want to ask me?" I asked KD.

He gave me his phone and told me to check all the places he had listed for his date with Arushi.

"Did things progress between you two?" I asked KD.

A small smile broke out on his face. "I think there is some progress. Arushi does not change the topic now whenever I mention anything romantic."

I raised my eyebrows in surprise. "Really? That's good."

"So which place will be the best for the date?"

I reviewed the list and short-listed a few locations. I also told him that Arushi wasn't that fond of surprises, so it would be best if he could give her some idea before he went on a date with her.

As Kshitij had promised, we reached Sarthak's studio on time, and I got a little time to rest before the dance marathons started.

Half an hour later, everyone was present in the studio, and as scheduled, Suhana started the day with her dance challenge.

I was worried if she was upset about what had happened at Shlok's house, but my doubt was cleared when she acted normally with me. It wasn't the case with my best friend though. Akshay was not talking to me and kept taunting me about how I took a lift from KD but acted like Akki was kidnapping me when he was asking me to come along with him and Suhana.

I thought he was just overreacting and would stop after some time, but even after Suhana's round was over, he refused to properly talk to me.

I realised that he was angry about my earlier behaviour, but he was also forcing me against my will. Moreover, my mood was very bad in the morning, and I ended up taking it all out on Akshay.

We were best friends, so I was sure Akki wouldn't stay mad at me for much long, but he was proving me wrong. Before Danny's dance challenge started, I stopped Akshay when all of the trainees were exiting the practice hall for a break.

"Akki, what's wrong with you? I am trying to talk with you, but you keep ignoring me," I complained.

"I am just returning the favour," he replied coldly.

"Excuse me? Don't act like I am the only one at fault. You were literally pulling me when I had already refused to go with you. What was I supposed to do at that time?"

"But why were you refusing in the first place? It wasn't like I was suggesting anything new. All of our friends were there, but you were the only one acting like you didn't know anyone."

"Our friends? Which friends are you taking about? All of you were busy with Tejas and his gang. What was I supposed to do?"

Akshay frowned. "Tejas and his crew are also our friends, Boomer. Why are you behaving like you don't know them at all?"

I scoffed. "I really don't know them, Akki. Apart from Hriaan, The Emperors are your friends, not mine. They never were and won't ever be in the future. Since the beginning, they are treating me like I am the only one who stood against them. The rest of you guys got the easy way out."

"What are you saying?" Akshay asked in surprise. "I thought that issue was over way back. Aren't you and Tejas on good terms now? He helps you so much, so why are you still complaining about him and his crew?"

"I knew you won't understand," I grumbled.

"How will I when you won't tell me? I am not a psychic. You have no time for any of us nowadays. Where you go, what you do, you tell us nothing. Do you even still consider me your best friend?"

I looked at him in shock. "Why would you ask something like that, idiot?"

"Because you clearly seem to be ignoring me. You took lift from KD but pushed me off when I had suggested the same. Is this how best friends treat each other? If you really consider me your best friend, then tell me what's going on with you nowadays."

"Everything is in front of you, so why are you interrogating? I am not hiding anything," I lied.

Shit. I shouldn't have argued with him.

"So you really won't tell me," Akshay said. "It is okay then. Don't talk to me if you are again going to lie to me."

"Akki, I am serious that I-"

"Akshay!" Suhana called.

"My girlfriend is calling me," Akshay taunted and left.

I can't tell him the truth. I should have just kept my mouth shut. Why did I fight with him like an idiot? Is he really not going to talk to me?

"Hamster, the frown does not suit you at all," Tejas said and pressed his index finger on my forehead.

I stepped away from him. He is not my friend, so why is he being so friendly?

"You okay?" he asked.

"Why do you keep asking me that?" I snapped. "What if I am not okay? What is it to you? Why don't you just carry on with your usual attitude? Why do you keep switching your personalities like Aparichit? Ignore me like you always do. I don't need your concern."

Tejas tilted his head. "Save that energy for later, Hamster. You are going to need it the most when my round begins."

Didn't he hear what I said?

"Are you challenging me again?" I asked.

"You are free to think whatever you want." He grinned and placed a shaker in my hand. "It will help you cool down."

"I don't need it," I retorted.

Tejas started moving away. "We shall see."

I placed that shaker on a random window sill and went to the practice hall when one of the trainees announced that Danny's dance marathon was going to begin.

I started stretching myself, but my body was acting up. I was feeling stiffer than earlier. Unfortunately, unlike how I had expected, I suffered a lot in Danny's round. Along with my right arm's pain shooting up, my waist and back were aching a lot too. I applied pain relief spray, but there was hardly any effect.

I passed Danny's round with huge difficulty, and when Tejas's challenge arrived, his earlier words echoed in my ears.

I think I am going to get butchered for sure this time. I shouldn't have blown off on him. He didn't react earlier, but will he take revenge now?

All of the trainees were discussing about how everyone was going to suffer in Tejas's dance marathon; Tejas was known for his speed and that's what he was going to mentor us on in his session.

I was worried about fracturing my arm, so I went to the changing room. I wanted to check why my body was aching so much in different places even after I applied ointments.

I took off my crop top, and my eyes widened when I saw the earlier weird bruises on my waist and stomach spreading upto my chest. I turned around and noticed some brown patches on my back and the backside of my left arm.

What the fuck are these and why are they increasing?

"Bhoomi, the break is over," one of my fellow female trainees informed me.

"Okay," I replied and changed my dirty crop top with a fresh one.

After changing clothes, I joined others in the practice hall and tried to keep my anxiety in check when Tejas stood in front of us.

There was a completely different aura around him, and it wasn't a good news for any of us.

"I won't waste time as you guys already know what this class is going to be about, but I will summarise what is in store for you. With each round, the speed and tempo of the music will increase along with the difficulty level, and one by one, we shall see who will last till the end with me," Tejas announced.

Everyone nodded. Tejas smiled and glanced at all of us, his eyes stopping in my direction.

"I hope," he said with a mischievous smile, "everyone has cooled down because things are only going to heat up from this moment onwards."

I am fucked.

After warming up, everyone took their positions, and Tejas taught us the choreography he had prepared. It was no less than hell.

When everyone confirmed that they had learned the moves, Tejas told us to prepare ourselves.

"Don't try to hide from me," Tejas warned. "Even if you are in the back rows, my eyes are everywhere."

Everyone sighed, and I prayed that I wouldn't come under Tejas's radar. There were a few tall dancers surrounding me, so I thought that Tejas would not be able to observe each one of us at the same time, but I shouldn't have given myself false hopes.

As the session progressed, trainees started falling one by one. It was thanks to my willpower that I was still standing on my feet, but I didn't know for how long this willpower was going to last.

As the trainees started becoming lesser and lesser, I was slowly getting moved to the front rows, closer to Tejas's sharp eyes.

For a moment, I thought of failing to save myself, but my pride didn't allow me to do that - especially when it was Tejas's dance session.

After a few rounds, the amount of trainees became half, and I was now in the third row behind Tejas.

During the small break, I applied a lot of pain relief spray and told my body to support me. These dance marathons were really important and messing up in them was hugely going to affect my overall performance.

I steeled myself, and after the break was over, I took my position along with my fellow dancers.

The music started, and we had just begun, when Tejas stopped the music abruptly. I gulped nervously when he stormed towards me, and I was ready to get thrown out of the class. A small part of me wanted to get relieved from all this physical stress, but it would have meant that I had accepted my defeat, and I wasn't going to do so.

"You are hurt?!" Tejas asked me.

"What?" I asked in surprise.

"Bhoomi, how can you be so careless?" he scolded.

"I am not hurt," I replied.

"I clearly saw the bruises, okay? Don't try to act smart with me."

My eyes widened for a second. I shook my head at him. "There are no bruises."

He stepped forward and pointed at my stomach. "If you are not lying, then prove it."

I pulled my crop top down. "I am not hurt. Please continue with the session."

"Leave," Tejas ordered.

What the...? He can't have his way every time.

"You can't eliminate me without the round being complete. It is against the rules," I argued and stepped away from him.

Tejas narrowed his eyes. "I won't allow you to continue."

I fisted my hands and looked at him with determination "I will complain to Sarthak Sir then. I am not leaving. We all are competitors here; showing concern is not the right thing to do at the moment."

"I will pass all the trainees then," Tejas retorted.

"You can't do that. It is cheating," I complained

He glared at me. "Fine. If that's what you want, then we will continue. But remember: if you slip up even once, you will be out that instant."

I nodded. I knew I wasn't going to last for much longer, but I wasn't going to back off from Tejas's challenge. All this time, he was talking about battling me, so I wasn't going to give him a chance to prove himself right about me trying to avoid his suggestion.

I noticed Tejas's stare on me, but I was prepared. I forced myself to continue till the last, and fortunately, I was still there when only a few dancers were left. Suhana and KD told me to quit, but I didn't listen to them.

Before the next round began, I laid down on the dance floor to catch my breath. Tejas stood in front of me.

"Do you still want to continue?" he asked.

"Yes..." I replied.

He forwarded his hand towards me, but I turned my head in the other direction.

"I can get up by myself," I said.

Tejas pursed his lips when I tried to get up, my legs wobbling. He waited for me to stabilize myself, and after checking on others, he cued the music.

I was ready to push through this round also, but as soon as the beat dropped, I crashed into the floor within a few seconds. I tried to get up, darkness covering my eyes. My headache returned like a tsunami, and I fell back on the floor.

I noticed Tejas stomp towards me as the music kept going on. He told others to continue and stood near me.

"Happy now?" he asked me.

"No," I replied and tried to move but failed.

My own body felt like a mountain to me. My limbs refused to receive the voluntary signals I was sending them. My eyes began closing, and I thought I was going to black out, but when I felt myself getting lifted in the air, a whole new wave of sensation passed through me.

Slowly, my numb body registered Tejas's touch, and I realised that he had easily picked me up in his arms.

"Tejas, what are you doing?" I asked in shock and embarrassment. "Please put me down."

He shook his head. "You are not the only one stubborn here."

He refused to let me go and started walking towards the infirmary. With each one of his steps, my heartbeat was increasing too. I feared if I was going to get a heartattack at such an early age.

My vision was not clear, so I couldn't see what expression he was making, but when he put me on one of the beds in the nurse's office, I felt the fog in my eyes clearing up.

I turned my head up to look at Tejas, my brain trying to pinpoint about why he was acting like that, but he suddenly caressed my left eyebrow with his thumb.

He was close, really close. As if he was the only person in the whole room, my eyes were stuck on him. In my mind, I was yelling at myself to look away or move back from him, but it seemed that my body had officially given up on listening to me.

Tejas held my chin lightly and tilted my head in all directions. Everything felt like a slow motion. Suddenly, he flicked me on the chin.

"You really are an idiot," Tejas scolded.

He told a nurse about the bruises he had seen on my waist, and the nurse told him that she would do a checkup. He stepped out when my check-up began, and I didn't properly hear what the nurse was asking me because my stupid brain was still processing the earlier incident with Tejas.

Am I dead? Everything feels so unreal.

"Take a nap," the nurse told me.

She helped me lay down on the bed, and after giving me an injection, she checked on me once more and left to do her other work.

Within seconds, I felt my eyelids getting heavy. As I began drifting off to sleep, I heard the curtains around the bed rustle and sensed someone stand beside me.

I was surprised when I felt a caress as light as a feather on my cheek.

Tejas? Is it him? I know this warmth, but I also know I must be dreaming. It is the medicine creating the hallucinations, but I won't complain. After a long time, I am feeling relaxed in a true sense. I wish this moment won't end; I don't want this dream to break.