Bhoomi, move your butt!

Shaking my nerves into action, I moved forward with a loud thud on the floor. Even though I was conscious of Tejas' presence, I was also aware of my responsibility. For the starters, I didn't put too much energy in my routine and kept my moves basic.

(👆Bhoomi's first performance)

I went back after doing an air flare topped with double coin drop before a front flip. Instantly, Hriaan challenged Akshay and Vibhan, and I wondered if he even saw my performance or not; he wasn't bothered about me at all.

I took my time to observe Hriaan, and after him, Akshay and Vibhan took the stage. For some time, Tejas and Hriaan competed with Akshay and Vibhan. Rehman whispered to me that I didn't need to hold back. I nodded and when my turn came again, I took a deep breath and closed my eyes for a second.

Lord Shiva, help me in not embarassing myself in front of TJ.

Copying Hriaan's attitude, I challenged Hriaan, and he chuckled as he waved his hand at me in dismissal.

"Won't waste my time on a newbie," Hriaan said.

As I was advised not to speak, I bobbed my head at him and shrugged my shoulders. I curled my ring and pinky finger and pointed the hand-gun at him. He smirked at my action, and I acted like shooting a bullet at him.

"Prove yourself, Shorty," Hriaan said.

Okay, then.

I shuffled my feet and did three rounds of flares before jumping and grabbing my right foot, doing consecutive rotations on my left palm. Once I got back on my feet, I saw Hriaan nodding his head in approval. I looked beside him and saw Tejas staring at me in disinterest.

Aw man, he is really hard to impress.

Hriaan nudged Tejas to go ahead, but TJ glanced at me for a second and then looked at my crew captain.

"I thought you wanted to win this game, Vibhan," TJ said.

"This shorty isn't worth it," Hriaan added.

"Hey, no need to look down on-"

I stopped Akshay before he blurted out my name. Emperors were clearly underestimating us the moment I came into the picture. I signalled Akshay, and he understood what I meant.

"Two on two," Akshay said.

I fist-bumped him and pointed at Tejas and Hriaan. Both of them grinned when I told them to come forward; It was so obvious that they weren't taking me seriously, so I had to show them what Akshay and I could do.

(👆Left side is Tejas and Hriaan, and the right side is Akshay and Bhoomi)

Akshay went first, and Hriaan was having fun as he deemed Akshay worthy of an opponent. When my turn came, Tejas was ready to destroy me within seconds. I wouldn't brag, but I think I also held my grounds strongly.

Just like Vibhan said, they were also dancers like me. No more, no less.

Feeling a surge of energy inside me, I shook my body to the rhythm and twisted my torso at a weird angle, gaining a gasp from the audience. I did a halo at the end, and Tejas shook his head.

"Get a hang of the battle, Boomer," TJ said.

My eyes were stuck on him as he moved in sync with the music and didn't miss a beat. It was a pleasure to see him.

(👆Tejas' single performance)

After admiring him and absorbing his moves like a sponge, I entered with a front flip. I teased Hriaan and did a few flares before I did some popping and tried to improvise the moves TJ had done.

"He is good," Hriaan commented.

During my routine, I noticed TJ pursing his lips. At least, he thought of paying attention to me. I was really happy for that small achievement. When I was done, I moved back. Hriaan and Akshay battled again, and as I was enjoying their dance, I sensed someone staring at me intensely.

When I looked at the source, I saw TJ looking at me. I fangirled in my mind. Soon, it was my turn again. I was on cloud nine, so I gave my best. I was so lost in b-boying that I didn't realise that I had moved extremely close to Tejas.

He looked so gorgeous from up close, but maybe I missed the enraged expression on his face because I was pulled back by Vibhan and Rehman when they saw Tejas take a threatening step towards me.

I could feel the tension.

"Chill, TJ," Akshay said.

Hriaan agreed with Akshay, but TJ kept glaring at me. I brushed it off, and the host announced that if we continued like that, the competition wouldn't end anytime sooner. Though the judges were enjoying, they had to choose a winner. For the moment, both teams were on par with each other.

As adrenaline rushed to my mind and the craving to battle again with TJ clouded my common sense, I took a powerful stance and pointed at Tejas and Hriaan.

Hriaan raised his eyebrows in surprise. "You wanna battle one on two?"

I nodded and gave an okay sign to Akshay, who alerted me that TJ had marked me his target so I had to be careful. I misunderstood his warning as a good thing that TJ would be observing me.

"What say, Tejas?" Hriaan asked.

Tejas nodded and flexed his neck. "Game on, Boomer."

(👆Left side is Bhoomi. Right side is Tejas and Hriaan)

I smiled under my mask and took the first turn. I wasn't surprised when TJ showed off his amazing b-boying skills mixed with krumping. Hriaan on the other hand was trying to intimidate me, but I waved him off.

Vibhan tried to talk to me while TJ was dancing, but I motioned at him to relax. In the end of our round, Tejas looked as if he got a chance, he would murder me for sure.

"That's all you got, Boomer?" Tejas taunted.

Oh, guess I managed to piss off TJ.

The host intervened our battle. "Only two more rounds left. Let the final of the finale begin!"

"You and me," TJ told me and ordered his crew to stand back.

Tejas' authoritative tone was scary, but I nodded. Akshay was worried, and Vibhan also looked at me in concern.

"You wanted me to help you, right? Looks like I am getting the chance do so. So chillax, guys. I got this," I whispered to them.

"All the best, Boomer," Vibhan said, and I elbowed him in the stomach.

"I hate that name, okay?"

I was going to yell curses at Akshay and the rest of the guys for butchering my name, but I heard a snap of fingers very close to my face.

When I turned my head to the front, I saw Tejas standing mere inches away from me. I could have written that scene off as romantic, but it was anything but that. TJ had a murderous glint in his eyes, and his body radiated off the same.

"Eyes on the floor," TJ said.

My jaw hit the floor when he started dancing. I had lost the count of how many times I had been awed by him since I came to the arena. He danced to 'Easy' by 'Danileigh'.

(👆Tejas' second last routine)

I clapped when TJ was done, which made him narrow his eyes at me.

"He is provoking you, TJ," Hriaan commented and laughed.

What? I am not provoking him. I genuinely enjoyed his routine.

I ignored Hriaan's comments and levelled my breathing. Tejas said eyes on the floor, so that's what I was going to do. I removed all of the distractions in my mind and danced all out.

(👆Bhoomi's second last routine)

After a few minutes, the final round began, and my crewmates patted my back.

I rolled my shoulders after Tejas was done mesmerizing the audience along with the judges.

(👆Tejas' final performance)

"Now let's see what Boomer has got in store for us. Audience, give a round of applause for Boomer!" The host said.

(👆Bhoomi's final performance)

The beat dropped, and I was back in motion. I forgot everything in the moment as I let the music guide my steps. The experience was exhilarating, not only because I got to perform in front of Tejas but also because I danced with my heart and soul.

With my last step, I saluted my idol, which made Tejas' eye twitch in confusion, but seeing his recognition was enough.

"All right, everyone! The battle has ended. I would request our esteemed judges to announce the winner," our host announced.

I joined my teammates and could feel their anxiousness. I knew we did well, but I wasn't going to break my heart for not winning.

Every second seemed like an hour as the judges discussed the end results. Our rival crew, The Emperors, looked really confident unlike us. Well, this underground battle wasn't a big deal for them; they had participated mostly for fun.

"Attention, everyone. The judges have reached a conclusion, and now I will announce the winner of the underground dance battle," the host said.

"Please let us win," Rehman prayed.

"And, the winner... of the... dance battle... is... Can you guess...?" The host asked.

The cheers of "Emperors, Emperors" boomed through the dance hall, and it made my heartbeat race.

The host took his time anticipating and giving us a heart attack.

"It is a draw!" our host yelled in the mic. "Yes, my dear audience, Unix and The Emperors disturbed our judges' peace, but they managed to make a final decision. Both teams are tied. Congratulations!"

"We are tied?" Both teams yelled.

While my crew had a tone of happiness, The Emperors looked nowhere pleased. It was as if their reputation was damaged. Unlike them, I was happy for my team.

"What about the cash prize?" I mumbled.

As if the judges heard what I said, one of them grinned and stood up from his seat. He informed that it was after a long time he had seen a draw in an underground dance-off, but he was happy to see the amazing performances.

"Don't worry, kids. The prize will be distributed to both teams equally. Yes, one lakh each," the judge said.

"What the fuck?" a dancer from TJ's crew huffed.

Hriaan told his members to calm down and not debate with the judges. After the prize distribution, Hriaan shook hands with our team, and when my turn came, Akshay pulled my arm back.

"He is shy and isn't fond of skinship," Akshay told Hriaan.

"Really? This shorty didn't have any problem on the dance floor," Hriaan teased. "Anyways, gotta respect the boundaries. Good job, Shorty."

"His name is Boomer," Vibhan corrected.

Hriaan shrugged. "I will stick with Shorty."

First 'Boomer', and now 'Shorty'? Way to go, Bhoomi.

I nodded at Hriaan, and Vibhan distracted him before he could question my silence. Soon, the rival team also accepted the decision and congratulated us. I was waiting for TJ to come and talk to me, but he didn't. He only conversed with Vibhan even though I saw him glance at me a lot.

When I noticed that he wasn't going to come to me himself, I approached him. I lightly tapped his arm with my index finger and waved my hand at him. I gave him a thumbs up, and he squinted his eyes.

He opened his mouth to say something but closed it again. I waited for him to say something to me, but he only kept staring at me with a weird expression.

Suddenly, Hriaan arrived and nudged Tejas. Tejas avoided him, but Hriaan kept telling him to cool down.

"The battle has ended, TJ," Hriaan said plainly.

TJ didn't argue but distanced himself from his friend. He gathered his team and told them to pack their stuff. Hriaan shook his head and told me that he would like to see me in other competitions. I nodded, and slumped down my shoulders as I went back to my team.

"What happened to you? We won the prize," Akshay said excitedly.

"He didn't talk to me," I complained.

"Aw. Don't worry."

After getting our pics clicked by the authorities, we took our leave. I sulked as TJ didn't spare me a glance even when he left.

Maybe it will take me more improvement to impress him.

My crew and I were exiting the building when we were stopped by Jiya. I was going to jump at her but stopped myself in time. She congratulated us, and all of us thanked her for filming the dance battle's video for us. She smiled at us, but the moment we started moving again, she stopped us and crossed her arms across her chest.

"Do you guys take me for an idiot or what?" Jiya accused.

"What?" Vibhan asked.

Jiya glared at him. "You broke the rules."

Vibhan's eyes widened, just like us, and Jiya stared daggers at him.

"You better give me the details, or I will kill you for dragging Bhoomi into all of this," Jiya threatened.

"I am Boomer," I squeaked.

Jiya wasn't amused. She told me that she would lecture me later; I needed to get home as it had gotten really late. Rehman acted instantly and took me with him. Behind us, I heard Jiya scold Vibhan and Akshay. I wondered what was going to happen.

I was worried while coming here, and I was still concerned while going back to home. After seeing Jiya's troubled face, all of the excitement of winning was washed away.

The adrenaline rush had dropped, and I was back to reality.

"Are we in trouble?" I asked Rehman.

"You are not, we are. Let's pray Jiya won't have our heads," Rehman said. "Allah ki marzi rahi toh bacch jayenge (If Allah permits, we shall live)."