Recognition in Fragments
The days had begun slipping into a rhythm somewhere between assignments and attendance, sunrises and sleepy bus rides. The school reopened not long ago, but already the chaos of exams and tiffins, whispering juniors and chalk-powdered blackboards had returned to their usual form.
Tanvi now sat by the window in her class, notebook open but eyes drifting sometimes to the trees that stood outside like tired sentinels, sometimes to the boy who walked past her class daily at 10:45 a.m. sharp.
(Note: He's her junior. He belongs to class 10th. Please don't judge our Tanvi, its just mere attraction nothing else)
He wasn't someone she'd write poems about. But there was a charm to his calm. His name, whispered among her friends, didn't carry the weight of a "crush," just the light flutter of curiosity. They never smiled at each other. But their glances occasionally met like strangers waiting at the same signal.
Krishna, as usual, had turned the back bench into her personal study table.
"Aaj ka tution homework ho gaya?" Tanvi whispered during an English period, eyes still pretending to scan the poem on the page.
Krishna leaned over with a pencil in hand. "Kal ke test ka bhi kar diya. Thank me later." With wink.
Tanvi blinked. "How are you even human?"
Krishna gave a tiny smirk and scribbled, 'Minor introvert powers' on Tanvi's notebook and pushed it back.
Asha, seated in front, turned back. "Homework? Test? Wait, we had a test?!"
Tanvi and Krishna exchanged glances. "She's doomed," Tanvi muttered.
Chandni was too busy covering her notebook with a Barbie sticker to care. Their school may have reopened, but not everyone returned with the same level of motivation.
Lunch breaks were laughter laced with tired giggles. Discussions ranged from shampoo brands to "sir ke naye jokes." One junior even tried to touch Tanvi's feet again after hearing that she can cook good maagie. She almost tripped running away.
"Bachpan se itna sanskari kyun hai tu?" Krishna laughed, stuffing a momo.
"Woh sanskari nahi, scary hai!" Tanvi replied.
The bell rang for the final period and the class returned to their usual shape, as if chaos had been temporarily folded into desks and bags.
At 1:40 p.m., as the final bell echoed and the school began pouring out like a shaken soda bottle, Tanvi caught a glimpse of the boy again. He walked across the corridor. Quiet. Focused. And again, their eyes met. Just for a second.
She quickly looked away.
Jay had been restless since lunch. There was a certain buoyancy in his walk today, like someone who knew something delightful was about to happen. The usually slow and dusty road leading to the tuition center felt unusually alive. It wasn't the cracked pavement or the sleepy cows he passed, it was the bubbling excitement inside his chest.
Kabir noticed first. They had met just yesterday, but it didn't take long for Kabir to gauge people.
"Bro, kya ho gaya? Aaj tu energy drink pi ke aaya hai kya?" Kabir asked, slinging his bag on one shoulder as they neared the red gate.
Jay grinned but didn't explain. "Woh surprise aaj milne wala hai," he just said mysteriously.
Kabir raised an eyebrow. "Mujhe lag raha hai tu bas result aane ke khushi mein khush hai. Fir se full marks liya na?"
YOU ARE READING
Somewhere Between Almost and Always
Teen FictionThere's a boy- the kind who doesn't need to shout to be heard. He shows up in silences, in the little ways. He's intelligent, yes-a topper, someone who's naturally good at what he does. He never boasts, never makes others feel small. Instead, he car...
