It had rained heavily that night. Amaya was upset with the events of the evening but thankfully Rhea had spared her that evening. She spent the entire night crying her heart out under the blanket. The lightning and thunder outside gave a good cover for her sobbing. She wondered why her life had turned out to be the way it had.

The next morning, the sky had cleared. As always, Amaya got ready early and left for the school. Her mind was elsewhere when she opened her locker and another note fell down. She stared at it for a long time wondering if she should even pick it up. She had convinced herself that it was a prank. Her heart and mind were in a bitter conflict. Heart was telling her to believe in it, to believe in herself but mind was sure it was a trap. Taking a deep breath, she finally picked it up. After checking the corridor for any signs of who it was from, she opened and read it.
'Seeing you cry broke my heart,
I am hoping we can have a fresh start...
Where I am the reason for your sweet smile from ear to ear,
and not responsible for your moist eyes and tear...
You are the sweetest person I have ever known,
and maybe I have never shown,
but I like you, I really do. and I want to be your friend!'

Her eyes sparkled yet they still had a tinge of sadness in them. She smiled and checked the corridor once again but failed to see Aditya hiding behind the pillar. She then took a cute little box out of her bag and kept the two notes neatly in them. She placed that box in her locker and left from there, her mind still in a turmoil. Aditya was hurting seeing the pain he caused her. Her eyes were telling the story of what had conspired last night. Looking at what mess he had created, he had made up his mind to speak to her that very same day and confess.

At the end of the Math class, Amaya excused herself citing health issues and left before the next class started. Aditya seemed worried but it was too late for him to leave. But someone else did leave the classroom without the teacher noticing.

"Hey Amaya, wait. Please wait." Amaya was in tears when she left the class. Hearing someone calling her name, made her conscious and she quickly wiped her face but the stains still remained. Without turning back, she started running in the opposite direction. But the voice caught up with her. As she covered her face in embarrassment, he came and stood in front of her. "Man, you are fast!" He tried to catch his breath. "You?" Amaya was surprised to see the person in front of her. "Oh! Sorry. I am Badal." Her expressions changed from surprise to horror. "Please. Leave me alone. I know Rhea sent you, but please I am not feeling well. Please spare me." She started to move away but Badal held her hand and pulled her towards him. Their bodies almost collided sending them both into a frenzy. "Stop. No one sent me. I am here out of my free will. I just.. .I just wanted to say something to you. Something that I could not write in my notes." She was stumped and stopped making any effort to release herself from his hold.

Their eyes were locked into each other. "Can we talk? Please? Let's just sit somewhere." Saying this, he held her hand tightly and led her to an empty classroom nearby. All she could do in that moment was follow him. He picked her up by the waist and made her sit on the desk then he pulled a nearby chair for himself. Amaya was stupefied and could not react in anyway. As he smiled at her, her heart was following a rhythm of its own. "Oh, god! You are damn beautiful. Your eyes sparkle. Never had a chance to see them up close." Blood slowly but steadily rushed to her cheeks. However, she reminded herself who he was and how she needed to be careful. Her eyes cautiously trying to read the intention in his.
Seeing how confused she was, he slowly got his hand and touched the crease on her forehead. She shivered and pushed his hand away. "Relax girl. You really are beautiful and I am not lying. I really like you. I had been trying to tell you through my notes, but Rhea suggested I speak to you directly. So, you see, I had to ask you in person to tell you that I am real. I will be very direct instead of writing any stupid poetry. Would you be my girlfriend?"
His gaze was now fixated at her face. He somehow looked tensed, as if he feared rejection. The thought brushed his mind but he let it pass. Who would reject him and definitely not a girl like her! He was good looking, rich and smart.
Amaya's heart was racing and head was spinning. Everything started to become blur in front of her eyes. Before her body gave into the pressure and she passed out, she saw a glimpse of Aditya hurriedly passing by. Seeing him brought the memories of the previous day.
As Aditya was hurriedly pacing from near the classroom, he thought he saw someone in one the empty rooms. He ran back and was surprised to see a passed out Amaya resting on Badal's shoulder.
"What did you do?" He thundered inside the room, visibly worried. Badal who was already shocked by Amaya's reaction to his proposal, was standing there, clueless about what he should do next. He was about to just leave Amaya on the table, unconscious, when Aditya stepped in, raging like a bull. It scared Badal a little.
"I did not do a thing. We were just talking and she passed out. Here, let me put her on the table and call someone."
Badal was about to carelessly put her down on the table when Aditya rushed and picked her up in his arms instead.
"Move over. Let me take her to the infirmary." Badal was a little taken aback but did not object.

Badal followed Aditya to the infirmary where they were greeted by the staff in a hurry.
"What happened?" The nurse asked. "She just fainted." Badal added. Now he looked worried. But more about himself. He did not want any trouble. 'Stupid girl had to pass out. Such low self esteem.' He murmured. Aditya on the other hand, worriedly followed the nurse around hoping to get an update on Amaya.
"She will be fine. She has become weak. Guess not eating properly. We will keep her here for a night. May be put her on a drip."
"That's it right. Nothing serious?" Aditya was at it.
"It doesn't seem like." Nurse assured. He took a sigh of relief. So did Badal. "Ok then, she is fine. I will leave for the class." They were standing in the room where Amaya was kept. Nurse left the boys alone.
"What did you say to her?" Aditya grabbed Badal by his collar. "What has gotten into you dude? Since when do you care about this nerd." Badal was not able to understand this reaction coming from him. Aditya toned down a little, to not make it obvious. It would only have meant more trouble for Amaya.
"You were alone in there with her and she was unconscious..." before Aditya could complete his questioning, Amaya called out to him.
"Aditya, meet my boyfriend Badal. He confessed to have written those notes to me. And you thought it was a prank. No one can like someone like me. Look, he likes me." Aditya was frozen to the ground. Wide eyes, he looked at Badal one second and turned towards Amaya. "No, I never meant that. And he cannot write those notes. He has not. Trust me." He stepped towards Amaya to warn her. How could Badal have written those notes. He wanted to tell her it was him. But he could not. It was now the turn of his head to spin. His plan had backfired. Someone else was taking his girl away from her. How could she even believe him. "You still don't think anyone can like me?" Her eyes moistened.
"No. Of course not. I am sorry Amaya. I am happy for you." Aditya took a deep breath as he saw her slipping away into unconsciousness.
Amid all this, Badal stood there. Clueless! 'Boyfriend'. That word from Amaya opened the doors for his chance with Rhea. It was all a plan. Her plan. And for that she had offered Badal what he had always wanted. Now that Aditya was out of Rhea's life, or so he believed, he knew he had a chance with her. So he agreed to do anything she wanted.

"What game are you playing?" Aditya pulled Badal outside to the waiting area.
"What game? I like her, she likes me. Who are you to question?"
"I know you did not write those notes to her. So, why lie?" Aditya was losing his temper. "How would you know if I have written them or not, unless you have written them? So, have you? Rhea would be so interested to know." Mention of Rhea made Aditya cautious. He could not risk Amaya suffering because of her.
"Of course not. Why would I write notes to a nerd?"
"Thought so. Let us go then."
"How can you leave your 'girlfriend' in this condition?" Aditya did not want to leave. But how could he stay. Someone needed to though.
"She is sleeping. And nurses are there to take care of her. Don't teach me how to take care of my girlfriend."
Aditya took a gulp of his saliva and took a long look at Amaya. He decided to leave only to come back in sometime after ditching Badal. He was worried sick for Amaya.

Aditya was back in no time to find Amaya in deep slumber with a saline drip running into her vein. Aditya sat on a chair nearby, holding what seemed like a book. This was a new territory for him. 'Books'. He studied only during exams but since he started shadowing Amaya, books had become his friends. He did not realise when he fell asleep at the foot of the bed.
Amaya opened her eyes a couple of times only to find Aditya sitting in front of her but before realising it was infact real, she fell right back into the arms of sleep. When she was finally up, he was still there but she had a memory of only dreaming about him being there at night.
"What are you doing here?" She asked while trying to sit straight up. It hurt her a little where the needles were inserted. The nurse had to try two three times before finding the right spot.
"Hey, how are you feeling?" Finally a sigh of relief  could be seen on Aditya's face. "Better. My head hurts though. How long have I been sleeping? Oh my god, did I miss the classes? " Aditya giggled seeing how going to classes was more important to his girl than taking care of her health. "Relax. It is just a day. You have missed everything after you left the Math class yesterday. But the classes today have not started yet. Nurse said you could go. But I was thinking if you want to have breakfast with me before the class starts. You really need to eat something."
Amaya could not believe her ears. Someone actually asking her to eat with them. But knowing how this would rile things up further with Rhea, she politely refused which suddenly reminded her why she was in that room in the first place. "Where is Badal?" She looked puzzled. To not hurt her feelings any further, Aditya decided to live the lie with her. "He was there all night and then asked me to fill in while he went and freshened up." That brought a smile on her face, albeit a confused one. "Was he really here? You think he likes me like he told he does?" Before Aditya could answer, Badal stepped inside the room with a bouquet of red roses. In no time, the redness of the roses was transferred to Amaya's cheeks. Badal had brought Rhea along, who wanted to check in on her missing roommate. "I was worried about you Amaya. Then Badal told me what happened." She came forward and hugged Amaya when her eyes met with Aditya, who stood there frozen, realising how this confrontation would turn out. "What are you doing here?" Panicked, Aditya struggled to say something that would make sense to the new arrivals. "Badal sent me here while he freshened up. He was after all, sitting here with Amaya, all night." Both Badal and Rhea looked stunned but managed the situation with a smile.
"Thank you for taking care of me, Badal." Amaya whispered. "Of course. You are my girlfriend. That's what boyfriends do." Badal tried to hold her hand but she coyly pulled back.
Aditya left soon after not wanting to witness any touching. It irked him to see Badal with Amaya. But he was himself responsible for it. He wondered if he should tell her the truth.
Amaya too left with Rhea and Badal after the discharge formalities and instruction from the nurse to return in a week to get her blood reports.