Chapter 10: Daddy Cool, Part 2

It was lunch time. Avantika, Shruti and Tania were at their usual table in the big cavernous hall that was the school cafeteria. Tania's veggie pizza was delicious. Mushrooms, baby corn, capsicum, diced tomato and lots of cheese. Just the way she liked it. She listened, amused at Shruti's account of her kid brother learning to skate, "and then he is like okay I have the hang of it now, takes a step gingerly and then falls down on his butt yet again."

Natasha and Ritika walked past them. Avantika was friends with Natasha and waved to her. They stopped at their table.

"Hey gals," Natasha said, "a bunch of us are planning to catch Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani today. Wanna come?"

"Oooooh... Ranbir Kapoor! What time?" Avantika asked.

"Like now. He's so cute in the promos."

"School?"

"Bunk!"

"How're you going to get out?" Shruti asked, looking up at them.

"Oh, don't worry about that. Ritika has a way." Natasha smiled at Ritika. "Yes or no?"

"No," Shruti replied for the three of them, her arms outstretched to demonstrate reason, "No need to skip school, yaar."

As they ambled off, Ritika smirked. "I told you Natasha. They're good girls. They always do the right thing."

"We could have gone," Tania said when the two of them were out of their earshot.

"You can go, it you like. They are right there," Shruti said, pointing to the cafeteria counter.

"I don't want to now."

"Come on let's not fight over something silly," Avantika said.

"And your Ranbir Kapoor is here anyway," she said to Tania, tilting her head towards the cafeteria entrance.

Tania followed her gaze. It was him. She was glad of the seat she had chosen to sit; he could see her right profile. The acne was much worse on the other side.

She had noticed Dhruv for the first time at the basketball game against Ramjas. They won 82-79. And he had scored two baskets in the last minute of the game. He became the school hero. Hers too.

She thought of him as someone outside her league. But then they met up in Model United Nations. He was Israel to her Palestine. She remembered the first time he spoke to her. She was surprised he knew her name. They had spoken to each other a few times since then. But her physiological reaction remained the same each time she saw him. Quickened heartbeat, dry throat.

How could one individual have such an impact on another without even being aware of it? Young love. How little it asks. Just a sign of reciprocation. Please like me the way I like you.

She stole another look at him and the spell broke. He wasn't alone. Aditi managed to make even the drab school uniform look sexy. Her skirt was way above the knees, in open defiance of school rules, top two buttons of her shirt undone. She was being her flirtatious self, leaning on his shoulder as they walked together. She was laughing at whatever he was saying. The slut!

They were a few feet away, when Tania lifted her head and his eyes met hers. In that moment, everybody else ceased to exist. Aditi vanished. Shruti and Avantika also. The angry cafeteria lady and her two assistants too. It was only him and her. And then they looked away and everything returned to normal.

He winked at her before moving on. With a smile, she turned to her friends. Shruti still sulked, stabbing at pasta with her fork but Avantika raised her eyebrows.

They laughed when their eyes met.