Part 24 Evil plan

The practice started in full swing. Not only Arnav and Khushi but all the Athletes practised for their respective events. Arnav and Khushi continued their regular training, and Arnav didn't make any moves that could embarrass Khushi. They could not avoid Sheetal to practice with them because they wanted Aman to join them. So, to get the team's understanding, they practised together.

They sat on the turf after completing the warm-down.

"ASR, however, we must win the race... because this meet will be held in OUR college. If we lose, no one will respect us. We will have to win at any cost."

"Why should we bother when Khushi is with us? When she is in our team, we will win," Arnav said, smiling at Khushi.
That irritated Sheetal.

Sheetal gave her best to show her sincerity because she didn't want them to doubt when they lost the race. Yes, that was Sheetal's plan.

"Khushi won't let us get defeated. She will definitely make us win," said Arnav.

Jealousy wavered over Sheetal after hearing this. She smirked because she knew they would not win. Until Sheetal was there, their team would not win. She had already planned the whole thing.

The meeting was going to be held at their college. The whole college would see it, and if Khushi failed, she could never regain the students' trust, even if she won individually. After that, she could never get up from the defeat.

With the date closed, the practice was severed. Arnav didn't disturb Khushi because he knew how important this performance was for her. Winning this meet meant a special place for her in the college's history because he knew how talented she was. Even Khushi expected this to be one of the most significant milestones in her life.

After practice, when she reached home, her mother pointed at a bag and said,

"Your food is here."

Khushi got fresh in up and came back. She opened the food while her mother opened her cupboard. When her mother took the paper bag out, Khushi rushed to her and took it off her hands. It was Arnav's school uniform coat.

"It was my new jacket from the company for the event."

Eventually, her mother's eyes turned towards the entrance and to her surprise, Arnav was at the door. Khushi turned around and was surprised. Arnav, out of curiosity, said,

"I'm here to deliver a jacket for the sporting event... we didn't give you anything before..."

Out of nervousness, Khushi hesitatingly said,

"It's my old jacket. Not the new one."

Khushi's nervousness made Arnav suspicious. He was eager to know what was inside the bag.

Garima welcomed him and made him sit. She offered him some food. Arnav refused, and for formality's sake, he took a piece of meat from Khushi's plate and ate it.

"No, no, beta. I will get something," Garima said.

After seeing him, Khushi got up to wash her hands, but Arnav stopped her and told her,

"Eat first, Khushi."

Khushi continued to eat. Garima brought out a plate with a roti and some vegetables.

"Amma, he only has protein-rich food and no carbohydrates", Khushi told Garima.

"Nothing might happen in a day" Arnav accompanied Khushi and had the food.

"I came here to give you new gear for the event even though you have been practising with old ones. As a sponsor, I am responsible for giving you new equipment."

Khushi agreed and said that.

"I will try out the new gear tomorrow, and if it's comfortable, I will carry on with the new one. If not, I will be continuing with the old one."

After that, Garima came over and told him,

"Wash your hands on the plate, beta"

"It's ok, Aunty. I will wash outside."

"No problem, beta. Just wash your hands on the plate."

Arnav washed his hands on the plate itself.
After having food, Khushi went inside to wash her hands. Using this gap, Arnav checked out the bag inside the cupboard and found his coat inside the bag. Arnav was surprised by seeing the coat, which was his school uniform. He didn't know how it ended up in Khushi's hands. It even had his name tag on it. He placed it back and came back to sit down before Khushi found something. Arnav thought about how it had ended up. Then he remembered about the accident with Ashok. When he was heavily injured, he took him to the hospital. That day, his coat was bled up. So he had to remove it.

He wondered why Khushi had his coat even though they had never met. Arnav was deeply in thought about what kind of obsession this was. Was that out of respect or something else? Even though he was keen to know what was happening between them, he didn't want to disturb her before the meeting.

The meet

It was the much-awaited MEET. The meet started grandly, with four district colleges attending. It was going on full-fledged. Even though everybody knew about the stories about Arnav and Khushi being state-level players, nobody had witnessed their performances before. They were curious about their performances.

By this time, Khushi had already won two gold medals in 100 and 200 m. Arnav also won gold in his events, whereas Aman had already won second place in the javelin throw.

Students eagerly awaited the last event, the mixed doubles relay race. Before lunch, their college got selected for the final event. Everyone was waiting for the event out of expectation. Sheetal gave her one of the best performances ever in the semifinals.

The expectations were heavy as they had already achieved success in their events and had already broken the expectations in the semi-finals by winning first place. Even other college students and professors are keen on watching their sports.

They were given to continue the same formation practised all the way along. Then came the final call for finals. Everybody was under pressure. As usual, Arnav was at the starting point. The finisher would be Aman.
Arnav came to Khushi and extended his hand to shake hands. While shaking her hands, he said,

"You are the best in this place. You are the best in the world. This whole event is your future. Concentrate on the track; nothing else is important," he pressed her hand warmly.

He went back to his place and stood in this position. Everybody went to their starting positions. Arnav was on the ready line. The race started.

"ON YOUR MARKS... GET SET... GO..."

As expected, Arnav was the first to hand over the baton to Sheetal. Sheetal was leading for the first fifty meters and eventually fell. She didn't stand up as soon as possible. She took her time. She acted as if she was hurt. She came last and gave the baton to Khushi. By this time, Arnav was already near Khushi's place. When he saw Sheetal tripping, he had nothing in his mind. He just went to Khushi to encourage her. By this time, Khushi's mind was already filled with only thoughts about Arnav's last words before the race. When she saw Sheetal falling, nothing was on her mind. She just wanted to win. It was just Arnav's words going on her head. She was in a ready position, waiting for Sheetal to hand over the Baton. She was waiting with her hand extended behind. The second the baton was in her hand, she started running like a bullet. She didn't want to see or hear anyone, but Arnav's voice made her look at him once. Arnav ran with her, shouting,

"Khushi, you are the best. You can make it."

To be continued...