INVISIBLE STRINGS // SARAJ

visitors

"We have to head over to the new location now, it's rural area" Arjun informed Savi, as everyone started boarding the bus for another hour drive. 

"I'm excited about this" Savi said, a bright smile on her face. She had lived remotely with her mother when she was really young, though she didn't remember the perfect detailing the wamr emotions were still strong. 

"Chalo fir" Arjun slung an arm over her, and called Rajat over who jogged towards them. 

The bus ride back to camp was surprisingly calm, though Savi wasn't prepared for Arjun's relentless teasing.

"Oh, come on," he said, grinning as he nudged Rajat. "You two spent an entire night alone together and came out alive? That's a miracle!"

"Arjun," Savi warned, glaring at him.

But Arjun was undeterred. "In fact," he continued, gesturing dramatically to a seat, "why don't you two sit together? Bond some more."

Before either of them could protest, Arjun plopped into another seat, leaving them standing awkwardly in the aisle.

Savi sighed and slid into the seat by the window, while Rajat took the spot beside her. For a while, they sat in silence, the hum of the bus filling the air. Savi leaned against the window, watching the trees blur past. Beside her, Rajat sat with his arms crossed, looking uncharacteristically relaxed. They hadn't said much since getting on, but the silence felt comfortable. The sun had hid against the clouds creating a gloomy atmosphere, but Savi enjoyed it none the less, she always felt like it was the perfect weather to sleep in, causing her eyes to droop slowly. 

"So," Rajat started, breaking the quiet, "you planning to sleep through the rest of this ride or what?"

Savi turned her head, biting back a smile. He always remembered the small things. Deciding to tease him, she feigned a yawn. "I thought I might, but your presence is so... electrifying. It's hard to relax."

He smirked. "Oh, please. You've been buzzing with nervous energy ever since you got on. I did sense something amiss"

"Nervous?" She raised an eyebrow, deciding she had to end what had started on as teasing which was starting to enter borderline flirting. "Don't flatter yourself, Chasmish."

He groaned. "Still with that nickname? You really don't run out of material, do you?"

She grinned. "I aim to keep things interesting. Unlike you, who has been staring at his phone for twenty minutes without saying anything. What's so fascinating, anyway?"

"Texting Aashka," he said simply, locking the screen and tucking his phone away.

Savi didn't say anything for a beat, not knowing if it was a good topic to tread on but she made up her mind that she couldn't just stay quiet, it would defeat the purpose of bringing things back to a normalcy, "You're getting service? That's so unfair, I need to send a few texts too"

"I'm sure your one friend won't miss you much" he teased, a small grin tugging at his lips.

"We're talking about my friends Rajat not yours" She laughed. "We're not all loners you know"

They continued bickering like that for a while, with a few background comments from Arjun.  Rajat shared a ridiculous story about Arjun trying to charm a librarian into waiving his late fees, and Savi countered with her own tales of Priyanka's over-the-top dramatics when she misplaced her favorite lipstick.

At one point, Savi glanced out the window and sighed. "You know, it's nice to just talk like this. No fights, no rain, no random fainting spells."

Rajat chuckled. "Yeah, well, don't get used to it. You'll find a way to annoy me before the day's over."