'Dear Diary,
I am back to this hell again. I had always hoped for this school to be my happy place, away from the hell I must call home, but my luck ran out again. I do not know why Rhea chooses to make my life hell. I do not ever cross her path. She still picks on me. I want to study hard and get a good job so that I can finally escape the hell hole along with mom and build a good life for us away from all the demons of my life. I hope this semester is different and I can study in peace for my boards. Please Bhagwan, give me strength to find my way. Please! Please! Please! Good night now. See you tomorrow.'

Amaya completed her daily ritual of writing in her diary. She had no friends at school so her diary was her only friend. Everyone avoided her to avoid the wrath of Rhea, the most popular girl in the school who had a bone to pick against Amaya. Why? Because when Amaya joined the school in 8th Grade, she stole the top spot from Rhea. Amaya was smarter and way more intelligent than Rhea in every way, but what she lacked was confidence. Amaya was a shy girl who always avoided attention. She did everything to stay away from the limelight, but the special attention she got from Rhea made it difficult. The more Amaya tried to stay in the shadows, Rhea's antiques pulled her into the spotlight, always ending in Amaya getting embarrassed in front of the whole school. Even the teachers knew about the bullying but who would want to go head-on with the daughter of one of the Trustees of the school. One way or another, Rhea always had her way.
Amaya went to sleep hoping for a better tomorrow. But a nightmare awaited her the next morning.

"Good morning, Sunshine !!" That familiar voice fell on Amaya's ears and she nearly jumped out of her skin. With wide eyes, she stared at the girl standing in front of her. In a fraction of a second, she was out of bed and standing on her shaky feet. "Rhea... What are you doing here?" Amaya stammered through to the end of her words.

"I am your new roommate silly! Isn't that fun?" The sarcastic smile on Rhea's face was unmissable. Her minions Raina and Priya mirrored her expressions like they always did. The trio was pure evil and poor Amaya was stunned by the revelation. Not sure how to react, she ran inside the washroom and closed the door behind her. Warm tears fell down her cheeks, her heart palpitating with fear. Her room was her safe place, where she hid from her bullies. And that was being snatched away from her. The fear of not being able to study gripped her. Her final escape plan was at risk. She quickly tried to pull herself together. She could let people destroy her present, she had nothing much anyways, but nothing could take her future away from her. The future she was studying so hard to build.

It was after the second class that Amaya finally went to school. She would now have to provide an excuse for her absence. Hoping she would not be questioned much, it being the first day back, she entered the class. Completely unaware of how things in her life were about to change. A change for good for the first time. "Ma'am, please may I come in?" Amaya's sweet voice echoed in the class, falling on a pair of ears that were desperately waiting for it.

Since that morning he saw Amaya on the road, Aditya had spent his entire holidays thinking about her. He even had dreamt of her a few times, waking up the next morning with the broadest smile. Not seeing her in the class had made him restless. He wondered if she had left school, but her name was there on the attendance sheet. His heart hoped for a miracle. When he heard her voice, he couldn't help staring at her, his lips curved into a smile. She looked exactly the way she did before that morning. Two neatly pleated braids, her glasses, the school dress everything was the same, yet something had changed. Aditya was feeling things he had not before with Rhea and that excited him. Wanting to explore more of his feelings, he took a deep breath and stared at his girl.

Amaya was a first bencher, who was only interested in the classes, making notes throughout for self-study. Normally she sat alone on a two-person bench but that day she saw Rhea sitting there. She looked at her wide-eyed and realized how Rhea was trying to make her life hell. She decided to go and sit on the only other empty seat at the back. Things would need to change. She told herself to just focus on her goals and not think of anything else while walking toward the empty seat.

Amaya's day was going from bad to worse. On the other hand, there was someone whose day had just turned bright. She did not realize who she went and sat next to. Aditya's heart was racing. Ignoring everyone around, he turned to his side and kept staring at Amaya hoping to get a good look at her. "Hey there, good morning! Are you alright?" A voice broke Amaya's trance and she looked to her side only to realize how she had jumped into the well to avoid a pit. "Oh, no! Rhea is going to kill me." Amaya reacted as if she had seen a ghost. She looked at him with those doe eyes that looked visibly upset as if about to cry.

"No, no, no... Don't cry. Why are you crying? And Rhea will do no such thing. Just relax." His words made no difference. Amaya was not able to focus and Aditya was upset seeing her upset. "Rhea and I are not together anymore." Amaya looked at him in surprise. "You see, she has no reason to do anything now." Aditya tried to place his hand on hers but she pulled back her hand disappointing him in return. There was silence between them now. Amaya was lost in her thoughts and Aditya was busy staring at her with admiration. He wondered how he had not noticed her ever before. The last semester before their board exams was going to be interesting, he thought, smiling to himself.

Two consecutive classes went by without a break. Aditya tried to strike up a conversation with Amaya but she avoided any kind of interaction out of fear. She anxiously waited for the class to get over. Finally, the bell rang. She quickly collected all her belongings and rushed outside. He followed suit. Rhea too was waiting for the class to get over to corner her nemesis who had dared to sit next to her boyfriend. At least who people thought was her boyfriend.

"Where do you think you are going?" Extending her arm, Rhea blocked Amaya's way with rage-filled eyes. "I am sorry, Rhea. I didn't realize it until I sat there. I panicked seeing you on my seat." Amaya stammered shakily. However, Rhea was far from calming down. The entire class was standing to watch the drama unfold which made it a prestige issue for Rhea. She had to get back at Amaya so she pushed her in anger. Amaya fell to the ground along with all her stuff. Disgraced yet again, in front of the whole class, her tears found their way out and flowed down her cheeks.
"I don't get it, Rhea. Why are you angry when he is not even your boyfriend anymore??" Blabbering while lost in her thoughts, Amaya began gathering her stuff from the floor. The entire classroom broke into whispers. Rhea was furious at the revelation made by Amaya. She was shooting fire through her eyes. Completely unaware of this, Amaya just collected her stuff and left. Rhea was not going to take this insult lightly. Her mind began churning for ways to pay back Amaya for embarrassing her. She left with her minions soon after.

Amaya always had lunch alone, sitting in a corner in the huge school cafeteria. Initially, she felt bad about not having any friends. But this loneliness started feeling very comfortable to her. Quickly finishing her lunch, she spent the remaining time in the school garden, reading books borrowed from the library. She was about to go to the garden when Rhea caught up with her. "Where do you think you are going? Come join us at our table." The most popular kids always sat at one table. No one dared to sit at that table. An invitation to sit there was fishy after what happened earlier that day. Amaya politely declined and started to leave but Rhea caught her hand and dragged her towards the table where the entire gang was seated.

"Hey, guys! You know Amaya, right. She is my new roommate. I thought of introducing her to all my friends." Rhea was being sweet to Amaya, making her shiver. Amaya failed to understand what Rhea was up to when Rhea went on introducing all the rich brats one by one. "Come sit here." Rhea first made Amaya sit on one of the chairs. Aditya was at the table and watching all this drama unfold. For a moment he thought someone had put something on the chair Amaya was sitting on but then he brushed the thought aside. He actually fell for Rhea's charade.

"So, this is Badal. The most handsome guy in our batch." Aditya looked pissed at Rhea. He knew why she was doing this. Badal Ahuja was son of an MLA. He was good at sports and gave a tough competition to Aditya. They were part of the same group but never saw eye to eye in many matters. Badal had always wanted to date Rhea and seeing how she chose Aditya over him, did not really help. Undoubtedly, he was a brat but a charming one. He knew how to woo girls effortlessly. Amaya just nodded to acknowledge Badal, without looking at him.

"This is Komal. My best friend." Rhea winked at Komal who smirked right back. Komal Sinha was the youngest daughter of a famous Bollywood actress Rajni Sinha. She was as pretty as her mother but was also gifted when it came to fashion. Academics never interested her but she was aware that she needed a bare minimum education to finally pursue her true passion, 'Acting'. Komal got a broken smile from Amaya.

"I am sure you know Rehan." Rehan was the worse of them all. He was arrogant, rude, egoistical maniac who flaunted his father's wealth and stardom at every chance he got. He was son of the Bollywood superstar Zeeshan Malik. He knew his father had big plans for him and had no plans to continue education post 12th grade. Amaya ignored him and Rehan too seemed uninterested in the events unfolding on the table. "You already know Raina and Priya." They were Rhea's minions who followed her everywhere. Amaya knew them well. They were the ones who did Rhea's bidding every time she bullied Amaya. They were always there, either throwing stuff at her, tearing her assignments and so on without even a hint of hesitation. They enjoyed every bit of what Rhea made Amaya go through.

Aditya was also there but Rhea completely ignored him. Amaya looked expectantly at him and their eyes met for a brief moment. Aditya knew Amaya was uncomfortable on that table.
"Oh! Him? I thought you two already know each other. After all, he so comfortably shared something so personal with you, for no reason." Aditya gave Rhea an annoyed look but the person standing in front of him was more important to him in that moment. He turned towards Amaya and asked, "you had your lunch?" Everyone at that table looked at him with surprise. They all knew this was just a charade, a part of Rhea's plan. But seeing Aditya feigning interest in the lowlife shocked them. "Yes." Amaya murmured completely aware of the reaction her conversation with Aditya was garnering. She peeked at Rhea who looked pissed. Realising she had outstayed her welcome, she got up and started to leave. The entire table that she was sitting at just a moment ago burst into laughter. She realised she had been played with as all heads began to turn in her direction, groups murmuring and chuckling. Her worst fears were coming true on the very first day. She hurriedly walked towards her classroom but was soon followed by her classmates.

"Tch.. Tch.. Tch.. Amaya has no sense of personal hygiene." Rhea entered the classroom, arms folded across her chest, smile on her face pointing in the direction of her victory. Amaya looked perplexed. She gulped down her anxiety to hold onto her tears. "Do you even take a shower? Oh, my God!! You must stink. Here, take these sanitary pads. Maybe you cannot afford." On hearing the last few words, Amaya turned to check the back of her skirt to find the red stains. She knew for sure it was Rhea's doing. She could not contain herself and ran towards the washroom. "Ewwww!" Raina and Priya marked their disgust in unison.

"What the hell was that, Rhea?" Aditya entered the class looking furious. He was on a call when all this drama transpired. He heard classmates gossiping about the incident and realised what Rhea had been up to. "What is wrong with you? As if I am playing with her for the first time." Rhea retorted, still basking in the glory of her victory. "I cannot believe it. You are a girl and you decided to play this dirty prank with another girl. Shame on you." Now the entire class forgot about what had happened and seemed more interested in the ex-couple's quarrel. "You don't get to boss me around anymore. Remember, we broke up. If you can't remember, go ask your new friend, she will announce it to the whole class once again." Aditya held her hand and dragged her to the last bench where they always sat together before. "Sit here with me. Leave her alone for heaven's sake." He grabbed his pullover and left the classroom.

Aditya checked with a couple of guys about Amaya on his way out and was told she went in the direction of the washroom. He thought for a second and knocked on the girl's washroom door before entering it. Couple of girls who were busy putting their lipsticks on were startled to see him there and before they could go dancing around Aditya, he asked them to leave. Disappointed, they left him alone there, probably wondering what he was up to. He himself was unsure about what he was doing but his heart wouldn't let him be. He didn't mind going against his friends for this girl.
"Amaya!! I know you are in there. I have just come here to say that you don't need to feel embarrassed about any of this. Firstly, it is just some colour Rhea used. Secondly, even if it was real, it is a natural thing, nothing to feel embarrassed about..." Before he could finish a muffled voice interrupted him. "Please leave me alone."

"I thought you needed help and I know you don't have any friends. I am sorry. I will go if you take this pullover and come attend the classes with your head held high. Be brave to show that a girl doesn't need to be ashamed of something so natural. I... Never mind." He placed the pullover over the cubicle door and started to leave. "Why are you doing this?" Amaya questioned him, still sobbing behind the door. "This as in? Giving you my pullover?" Aditya was just happy to be there and speaking to her. Although he would have preferred to do that under different circumstances.

"No! This. Why are you being nice to me? Why are you even talking to me, let alone helping me? What do you want from me?" Aditya felt bad for her. She misunderstood his kindness for some sort of a game. He couldn't blame her, after all, everyone had been nothing but mean to her. Earlier he never cared for her existence but now things had changed. He couldn't tell her just yet, because he himself was unsure of what this was. But he definitely wanted to explore it some more.

"May be, I am just a nice person?"

"Yeah, right!" He chuckled at her response.

"No, really. I am otherwise a nice person. I am sorry if in the past I have been mean to you. Although, I may not have been directly mean to you, I never did anything to stop Rhea from troubling you. But I want to change that. What is wrong needs to be called out. I just want to be your friend, Amaya." Aditya tried hard to express himself. But he couldn't really do that. He struggled to find words. "Why would anyone want to be my friend? No one likes me." Her innocence was making his heart flutter. He smiled to himself. "That's not true. I know someone who likes you." He meekly countered her. But there was no response. "Alright! I will not bother you. But please, don't let Rhea win. Remember, keep your head high." Still there was no response. He wondered if he maybe had made things worse. Disappointed, he left.

The lunch break was over and all students started receding to their classes. Aditya went and sat at his last bench seat and Rhea sat next to him, still puffed up. They both refused to speak to each other. Aditya sat there wondering if Amaya would return to the class and Rhea was busy gloating her little victory which was short lived. Five minutes into the class, there it was again, the same sweet voice. The entire class was surprised to see Amaya come back after the incident. She not only came back but also came with her head held high. Seeing her wearing his pullover instead of wrapping it around her waist, Aditya couldn't help but smile. Rhea was furious seeing her come back, more so by seeing Aditya so delighted.

Amaya entered the class and her eyes were searching for just one person. She spotted Aditya and their eyes met for that split second in which she conveyed her gratitude to him. He was not her friend; she had no friends in the school but in that moment she felt free, as if she was not alone anymore.