I would have given Vibhan's bonfire dinner five stars if Ayzere wasn't staring holes into my soul.

After Arushi and I got back from the washroom, our friends had begun dancing. I was hungry, so I first took my medicines and then asked Vibhan if I could have dinner early. He had no problem, so I left with Arushi and KD to eat. Soon, Hriaan also joined us.

The four of us were eating at the small food joint Vibhan had given the catering order to, when Ayzere arrived and glanced around.

Hriaan called her to sit with us, and she hesitated for a minute before she agreed. As Hriaan was sitting beside me, taking up a lot of space, Ayzere sat beside Arushi and Kshitij. She was sitting diagonally across from me, and KD and Hriaan were keeping her busy in the talks, but it seemed like her eyes were stuck on me.

I was feeling very weird, so I avoided looking at her and just smiled whenever I accidentally glanced in her direction.

When we were done, our other friends also arrived and occupied the whole food stall. As my group was done eating, we got up and decided to play around the beach till others had their dinner.

Arushi and KD again decided to take up on a boring activity of strolling while discussing stuff that I knew I would never understand. Therefore, I was left with just two persons. Hriaan was totally in the mood to play pakdam pakdai (run and catch), and I also liked his choice, but Ayzere was not willing.

After seeing her act very reserved, Hriaan gave up convincing her, and we both decided to play by ourselves.

Unfortunately, I kept getting caught, and it was very hard to chase Hriaan. He kept pushing me into the sand whenever it was his turn to catch me, and I was slowly turning into Sandman.

While we were playing, Ayzere was just following around slowly, shivering in her thin dress. She kept looking at the ocean sadly, her gaze turning harder whenever it landed on me.

I again ignored her, and taking advantage of my distraction, Hriaan threw me into the waters. He laughed like a donkey when the tidal waves kept washing me back and forth whenever I tried to get up.

"Help me, idiot!" I yelled at him.

Hriaan's eyes teared up as he fell down on the ground clutching his stomach.

"You look like a small tortoise struggling to come out of its shell." Hriaan laughed. "I will die of laughing at this rate."

I picked up handfuls of sand in both of my fists, and when Hriaan was having a laughing fit, I reached him and dropped some of that sand in his mouth.

"You didn't have dessert, right?" I chuckled.

Hriaan spit out the sand and grabbed my right arm before I could escape. He pulled me up effortlessly and yelled a way cry like a caveman.

"I will sacrifice you to the ocean!" he announced.

He started running, dragging me like I weighed nothing, but before he could again throw me into the dark ocean, I was pulled back by my left arm so strongly that I ended up losing my footing. My face was just an inch away from planting itself into the silky sand.

I placed my right palm on the ground and supported myself. I turned my head and looked up. Tejas's fingers were wrapped around my left wrist, and he pulled me on my feet swiftly.

"Bro, why do you have to be such a spoil-sport?" Hriaan grumbled.

Tejas looked at his best friend angrily. "Can't you play games safely then? What will our juniors learn if they see you being so careless right now?"

Hriaan rolled his eyes. "Relax, man. Shorty has no problem, so why are you getting so worked up?"

I cursed Hriaan mentally when Tejas directed his blazing gaze on me. Suddenly, his grip on my wrist also tightened, and I felt like I was going to get beat up.

Ayzere reached us and asked Tejas why he looked so mad.

"We were just playing pakdam pakdai," I told Tejas. "And Hriaan wasn't going to actually throw me far away. There is only two of us, so we are just pretend playing. You want to join us?"

Tejas pursed his lips. He glanced at Hriaan, who repeated my offer. Ayzere grabbed and pulled Tejas's arm holding my wrist.

"Come on, TJ, I was watching them the whole time. Nothing happened. We are here to enjoy, so keep your serious persona aside for some time at least," Ayzere scolded.

Tejas huffed and left my wrist. As soon as he stepped back, Hriaan shot me a mischievous smile and pushed Tejas down.

Before Tejas could hit him, Hriaan rolled him further into the oncoming waves. After that, he turned towards Ayzere, and she widened her eyes in shock.

"I am wearing a dress!" she screamed.

Hriaan looked at me. "Your turn, Shorty."

I let him pull me up by my arms and swing towards the ocean. It was so much fun!

I told Hriaan to do it again, but Tejas got back on his feet and tackled his best friend. Both guys started a match, having fun by themselves. I wanted to join them too, but I knew I wouldn't have come out alive from their duel.

"You are Bhoomi, right?" Ayzere asked, gaining my attention.

I nodded. "Yes."

"You and Hriaan look very close. You guys dating?"

I blinked rapidly. "What?! Why would you think so?"

Ayzere shrugged. "I just said what I saw. If not Hriaan, then," she glanced at Tejas, "you interested in TJ?"

Do I need to answer her question? She has been looking at me weirdly for a long time now. Is this what she was wondering about all this time? She already thought that Hriaan and I were dating, and if I don't clear out my position, she might end up saying something to Tejas that may unnecessarily cause misunderstandings.

I don't have much knowledge about her as I have hardly interacted with her, but I can't seem to trust her.

"I am his fan," I told Ayzere. "And also of the whole team of The Emperors."

Ayzere raised an eyebrow. "Sure."

"Hey, Shorty, help me!" Hriaan yelled.

I mocked him. "You didn't help me before, so why should I help you?"

Tejas wasn't letting Hriaan get up, and soon, all of our other friends also arrived, and it was all chaos.

The guys were running all over the beach like madmen, tripping over their own feet. Vibhan had already given up as no one was listening to him. Akshay and Suhana were missing, while Arushi and KD had walked off so far, that they looked like two small dots from my spot.

It had gotten very late, so Vibhan let us fool around for some time before he called up everyone missing and did a roll call. Breathing in relief, he announced the end of his celebration dinner, signalling for us to take our leaves.

The Emperors were carefully guided towards their personal vehicles by Hriaan and Tejas, while my crew was being handled by Vibhan and Shlok. One by one, vehicles started leaving.

Ayzere waited for Tejas to return and got inside his car the moment he arrived. He thanked Vibhan for the invitation, and after he met with Akshay and the rest of our crew, he glanced at me.

"Bye, Tejas." I waved at him.

Hriaan raised my hand higher. "You are lacking sincerity, Shorty. Move your hand faster. Haven't you realised yet that Mr. Perfectionist is very strict about everything?"

I chuckled but bit my lips when Tejas narrowed his eyes. I pushed Hriaan towards his car when he started rotating my hand like helicopter.

"Good night, everyone. I don't know about others, but I will surely get a very nice sleep tonight," Hriaan said and stretched himself like a cat.

"Me too!" I said happily.

Hriaan got inside his car and drove off after waving us bye. Tejas also got inside his car and drove off after checking that his team, alongwith Mahreen and Suhana had left.

After them, I and my friends also left for our homes. I was really thankful to Vibhan as I had missed Yukta's party. The small retreat was very much needed.

The last day of the break also got over, and the second round of solo evaluations began. Simultaneously, we needed to do our college projects too. And to keep up with the updates, I needed a phone.

An average new smartphone would have costed me around at least 10k to 15k rupees, and my bank balance was already in the minus, so I had no choice but to trouble my parents.

Dad agreed to buy me a new latest model on EMI, but unfortunately, Mom refused. She reminded me of our financial condition and told me to borrow my sister's phone for the time being. I felt bad, but I knew that my mother was also right.

Therefore, I used Dhara Di's mobile. It wasn't a smartphone and was the same model like Mom had. I could use it only for calling and messaging, and nothing else. For any updates about our lectures, I troubled Arushi, and for my dance classes, I depended on Akshay.

It was really frustrating because both of my best friends had become really obsessed with their own phones. They gave me their mobiles to use, but unlike earlier, now they had passwords to their WhatsApp and other social networking sites.

I had to disturb them every time I needed to check any messages, emails, or reference videos. And whenever I was at Arushi's place for late night studies, she was busy chatting most of the time, and Akshay was also the same. I was the only one who studied in our group studies.

Due to rains, Akshay and I mostly practiced at college and Vibhan's studio as travelling to Sarthak's studio was not possible every day. We were taking our mentors' consultations through video calls, but there was a huge difference between learning through screen and face-to-face training.

For the second round of solo evaluations, I had selected Lyrical, so I was betting on Shlok to help me through the difficult parts of my choreography. He helped me but most of his time was spent pampering Jiya only.

Because I wanted to ace my dance exams, I bore the torture of romance all around me, while my friends were totally not bothered and were busy climbing up in their love lives.

But thanks to them, I saw various stages of love that a human can go through at the same time. While Arushi was just at the beginner stage of having a crush, Akshay was a bit ahead in the race; though he hadn't yet revealed anything, I knew he had moved a lot farther. And as for Shlok and Jiya, both of them flirted openly and acted like they were married for ages.

I had chosen a romantic song for my performance, so I got a very nice idea after observing my friends. I took help from Ritvik Bhaiyya to polish my final choreography, and he was really happy to see me experimenting in other genres.

When I submitted my final choreography to my mentor, Udit Sir, he was satisfied. Unlike the first round, I had very little troubles this time and didn't waste any minute of my rehearsals. The urge to just go and earn some bucks to buy myself a phone was ever-present, but I had to suppress it.

My evaluations were the most important at the time, so I just focused on them. I had to tone down my expenses a lot too, but it was needed.

After one and a half week of intense training, the finals of second round of solo evaluations happened, and I was totally content with my performance.

Apart from getting judges' praises, Kshitij also complimented me a lot, but he soon complained about me not replying to his messages or picking up his calls.

He was shocked to know that I had lost my phone, and inturn I was shocked that even after meeting me so many times, he hadn't realised that yet. He thought I was ignoring his messages on purpose.

And when he heard the whole news of how I had lost my mobile, he teared up. He hugged me, and I had a hard time consoling him that I wasn't dead. I knew KD was a sophisticated guy, but I was unaware of how much emotional he was.

At least, I was relieved that he wasn't capable of hurting anyone even unintentionally. Arushi had truly found herself a gem, and I wished that she wouldn't shy away from him when things would progress between them.

KD was so much sad that he was stuck to me even after it was time for me to leave as the solo evaluations had ended. He told me to call him once I got home safely, so he could sleep in peace.

I was really happy to see his concern, unlike Tejas, who had again started acting aloof. Throughout the second round's rehearsals, I noticed how he kept his answers short and gaze even shorter whenever we were in the same place. His behaviour reminded me of the time when my secret as Boomer was revealed.

What's with his hot and cold attitude? If he doesn't like me, then why would he help me earlier? And now after showing his concern, he is again behaving like strangers. I mean, what's exactly the problem? Am I the problem? He scolds me for my own good, but he can't have a simple conversation with me?

How would I know if he actually dislikes me and is just tolerating me as we have common friends now? If that's how it is, then why did he look so bothered when he was lecturing me to take care of my health? He wants to be associated with me or not?

I am starting to feel sad now, but more than that, I am a bit pissed off. I know how much stupid I am, but I also know that I have done nothing for Tejas to give me a cold shoulder. He is my idol, but we are in the same training program now. I have taken so much efforts to keep my excitement in control and have always respected his boundaries.

And, if he was going to return to his previous behaviour, then why was he so nice to me? I understand that every person is different, and sometimes, we just don't like someone without any particular reason. For Tejas, I might be that 'someone', and I had already come to terms that he wasn't fond of me, but why did he have to go ahead and show me that side of him which makes my heart flutter?

What am I supposed to do? Why do I keep having wrong timings with him? Is this the signal from Universe that I need to completely stop my thoughts related to Tejas, no matter how small or useless they are? I just want to be his fan because I know there will be nothing beyond that, but can't Tejas even allow that? Do I prick him that much? Was he helping me only because he didn't want me to bother his friends?

Why is nothing clear when it comes to Tejas? He will never let me inside his circle, I guess. And though I am nowhere near the starting line, I think he doesn't even want me to enter his vision. He already had a solid wall around him, but I know he has constructed extra layer just for me.

So, what can I do? If he doesn't want anything to do with me, then I will also stop bothering him. I always greet him and smile first, and it has taken me a lot of time to get over my social awkwardness, but if he does not want to even acknowledge my presence, then I will also stop hurting myself unnecessarily.

He knows his self-worth, and I will also do the same from now onwards. I will also talk and respond only if he talks first. He wants to ignore me, so I will make his task easier. I also don't want to see him turning into a lifeless statue whenever he sees me; I don't want to make anyone feel uncomfortable because of me, especially someone who is clear about how he feels from the start.

It is okay. It hurts a lot, but I will manage. I know we can wish for everything in this Universe, but we can't get everything we desire. And this thing applies the best to humans. So, I will stop dissecting Tejas's every move and expression. Let him live his life in peace, and I will live my life in peace.

I was already admiring him from afar, so why do I need to torture myself by thinking about how he reacts to me? I will put a full stop to this topic for good.

I have a long break till our evaluation results are announced. I will work a lot and earn good money, so that my parents won't have to buy me a phone themselves, and as for my non-existent love life, I am powerless.

Tejas, thank you for helping me earlier. From this moment onwards, you can relax because I won't be wasting your time and energy at all. Roger that.