|Chapter Thirteen|

Huffing and muttering an 'excuse me,' or a 'sorry!' every now and then, Aisha pushes through the crowds of people, her hand securely clasped to Vivek's in case she loses him in this dense mass. One thing which Aisha discovered now is that Vivek's extremely uncomfortable and panicky in gatherings.

"The names have been selected by our exceptional judges," the hostess, a tall woman dressed in a sleek gown, speaks with a smile. She's occupying the centre of the stage where three judges are standing with warm smiles.

"Out of hundreds of contestants, only twenty-one have made it past the prelims," the woman says, leading to a short murmur arising in the crowds.

"Weren't there gonna be only twenty qualifiers from the prelims?" Aisha asks Vivek who shrugs with equal cluelessness.

"The final spot has been a tie," the hostess explains with a smile. "Two different contestants had performed the same kind of braided side-sweep and this led to quite confusion for the judges."

The jury smiles and laughs at the words and nod their heads in agreement. Aisha feels her heart hammer against her chest. She had performed a side-swept braid.

"Now let us begin with the names," the hostess speaks, unfolding the card in her hands. She begins naming one participant after another, leading to cheers and applauds every few seconds as happy contestants skip their way up the stage.

Aisha's hand clasped Vivek's fingers tighter with every passing name which isn't hers. "The eighteenth qualifier is Jayden Spears," the hostess says.

A small round of applause runs through the crowds as the brunette boy meanders his way up the stairs to the stage with a small smile. Aisha realizes that this is the boy who had written that letter to Veer. Well, at least someone from her school will be representing this contest.

The crowds turn dead silent when the final two names are to be announced. Since it's a tie, the twentieth and twenty-first names would be declared together.

"The final names are," the hostess speaks. "Tarika Mohan."

A loud cheer erupts right beside Aisha and the girl standing next to her nearly tramples over everyone in her excitement as she rushes to the stage with a big smile. Crestfallen, Aisha internally gives up, her grasp over Vivek's hand turning weak. She looks up at him when he squeezes her hand.

"Still one name to go," he tells her with a smile.

"And Aisha Medhi!"

"What...?" Aisha asks, disoriented, when the name processes in her head.

Letting go of her hand, Vivek yells excitedly, clapping the hardest amid the applauding crowd. "Go!" he tells her when she doesn't move, paralysed with disbelief.

Nodding shakily, Aisha walks past the crowd, ascends the stairs and stands beside Tarika, the girl who had tied her.

"Congratulations to all the qualifiers and a very good luck to all the participants who didn't make it this time. We hope you will come back the next season..." After that, everything else tunes out for Aisha as she thinks about this achievement, her eyes never leaving Vivek's face who is still clapping with a soft gaze trained on her.

____________

"They better allow more than one person with the participants from the next round onwards," Veer grumbles, offended that he didn't get to witness Aisha on stage when the qualifiers were being announced.

"Of course, they would, Veer," Aisha tries to comfort him with a smile.

Sneezing into her handkerchief, Payal mutter an excuse, slouching back on her seat. "You really shouldn't have come, Payal," Vivek tells her, only to receive a non-committal wave of her hand.

The group is now enjoying a quick little treat by Yash at the cafe situated right inside the building before heading back to school. Having over an hour to spare, Aisha decided it'd be good change for Vivek as well who had spent hours in the contest with her.

"Jayden Spears also made it into the competition," Vivek informs the group.

"Who?" Veer asks, glancing up from his milkshake.

"Jayden," Aisha repeats for Vivek, a smirk on her lips as she looks at Veer with a knowing look.

"Oh, shut up!" Veer tells her with a cringe.

"What did I say?" Aisha asks, blinking innocently.

"There he is!" Payal says, pointing a hand at the entrance of the café where a group has just entered.

Aisha spots the brunette boy who strolls in with a bunch of senior boys and girls, grinning and talking. Jayden's dressed in a plain white T-shirt with some sort of a logo and faded jeans. If Aisha didn't know from Veer that Jayden is a junior, she'd have never been able to guess for Jayden swiftly merges with the rest of the group with his broad shoulders and mature demeanour.

"He's hot," Aisha muses. Turning back, she widens her eyes when Payal is grinning at her suggestively. "Oh God, no!" Aisha shakes her head quickly. "I'm so not dating him."

"Was worth a shot," Payal sighs, wiping her nose with another tissue.

"Isn't that Tarika?" Vivek asks, gesturing at one of the girls accompanying Jayden and the group. "The girl who tied the twentieth position."

"Oh, yeah," Aisha nods, glancing at the girl with strawberry blonde tresses. "I'll be back in a moment, guys," she tells her friends before getting out of the seat.

"Don't tell me you're gonna hit on her!" Payal says only to earn a death glare from Aisha.

Turning on her heel, Aisha heads off for the group who is now settled over a table. Some of them, including Tarika, are still standing and conversing with their friends.

"Hey," Aisha speaks up when she reaches the strawberry-blonde haired girl.

Tarika turns to glance at Aisha, a smile from the previous conversation still lingering over her lips. "Hi," she greets back with a grin.

"I'm Aisha Medhi," the raven-haired girl speaks, stretching her hand out for Tarika to shake.

"Um...hello?" Tarika shrugs, not really recognizing Aisha as she shakes her hand. "I'm Tarika Mohan."

"You've got pretty hair, Tarika," Aisha says, peering at those dense, pink tresses. The pink dye on her naturally brown locks has set perfectly and Aisha can look and tell that it's been done by someone with exceptional skills.

"Thanks," Tarika beams at her. "It took me years of those hair and makeup course practical classes to master this."

"I guess you still didn't recognize me," Aisha giggles. "I'm the girl who tied on the twentieth position in the contest with you."

"Oh, OH!" Tarika utters, her brown eyes finally lighting up with a glint. She then turns to look at her group of friends. "Guys?" Tarika calls the seven people on the table including Jayden. "This is Aisha Medhi, my contender in the competition."

Some of them wave while the others glance at her blankly.

"It's really hard for me to believe that someone ended up performing an exact replica of the hairstyle which I made, you know," Tarika says, looking back at Aisha.

Aisha's smile falters a little. "Um, it wasn't a replica," she tells Tarika. "Just a coincidence."

"Yeah, means the same to me," Tarika waves a hand. "And when I realized it was someone like you, I was even more confused and shocked, you know."

Aisha furrows her brows at the tone which laces Tarika's voice. It was far from the sweet and happy one from a few moments back. "Uh, why's that so?" she asks the blonde-headed girl with genuine confusion.

"Oh come one, Medhi," Tarika laughs. "Someone copying a hairstyle which I've made? With just as much perfection? Give it a break!"

The group, including Jayden, grins and laughs at Tarika's words. Aisha feels her face heat up at the insult. Coincidences are bound to happen sometimes! How can Tarika accuse her of copying the hairdo?

"You know what?" Aisha asks Tarika who is looking at her with a smug expression. "I had come here to congratulate you and be friends with you. But I guess I was wrong in making that judgement."

"Yeah, sure," Tarika scoffs. "Get yourself better eyes and then we'll talk, dear."

The latter part hits Aisha like a punch in the gut. Clenching her jaw, she resists the urge to throw a smack on the girl in front of her. Tarika's group now howls with laughter, clapping at the so-called funny joke. Except for Jayden, who has restrained himself from reacting to that comment.

"I hope the universe finds you a better sense of humour, Tarika," Aisha smiles at the girls who smirks in return. "Oh, and you dropped something," she adds, pointing at the spot next to Tarika's feet on the floor.

"What?" Tarika asks, peering down at the floor.

"Your brain."

A few individuals on the table, including Jayden, snicker out at the comeback, earning a glare from Tarika. Turning on her heel, Aisha storms out of the cafe after she's grabbed her blazer from her seat and leaving her group of friends with confusion and worry.

The drive back to school is pretty silent with Veer occasionally bickering with Payal and Yash streaming songs on the music system to fill the eerie void of silence in the car. Aisha's turned quiet as she keeps her eyes focused on the scenery out of the window, her mind rewinding those words from Tarika every few seconds.

When the car halts and Yash announces that they've reached their stop, Aisha looks away from the window. Only now does she realize that her eyes are glistening with unshed tears that glaze her sight. Pulling the door open, she steps out of the Renault hastily and wipes her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt, trying her best to compose herself.

Bidding a quick goodbye to them and congratulating Aisha once more, Yash and Payal drive off to their home, leaving the trio at the street opposite the school.

"Veer, go and get Nitya, please," Vivek tells his brother.

"Okay," Veer shrugs before crossing the road and disappearing into the crowd of students who are swarming the gates of Lotus Valley School now that school is over. Sighing, Aisha crosses her arms over her chest and looks at anything but Vivek.

"I heard what Tarika said to you," Vivek speaks plainly.

"Eavesdropping is rude," Aisha says, glancing at the hazel-eyed boy.

Vivek only smirks at her ironically. "Yeah, right," he tells her. "But being racist isn't rude, eh?"

Biting her lip, Aisha averts her eyes back to her shoes. "Let's just drop it," she tells him.

"Do you agree with what Tarika said?"

"What?" Aisha asks, glancing up at him.

"That you should get yourself better eyes," Vivek explains. "Do you?"

She shrugs at him. "I don't know... I mean, if that's what it takes to be a part of the society...then why not-"

Aisha's cut off when Vivek places a hand over her mouth, gently shutting her up. She looks at him mutely, trying to decipher the emotions in those hazel hues.

Vivek shakes his head slowly. "You've been a part of this 'society' since your existence, Aisha," he tells her, his hand still over her lips. "Nobody changes you, okay?"

Smiling into his hand, a tear escapes her eye, trailing down her cheek and resting over his fingers which clasp her face. Smiling back, Vivek drops his hand off her mouth and steps back.

"Thanks, Vi," Aisha mumbles, wiping her tears off roughly.

"And I like your eyes, actually," Vivek adds quietly, not meeting Aisha's gaze, his hands pushed into his trouser pockets.

Aisha smiles wider this time. "Thanks, again," she giggles.

"Easter Bunny!"

And before either of the two comprehends it, Vivek's engulfed in a hug by Nitya. Unable to reach his towering height, Nitya wraps her arms around his waist. Laughing, Vivek picks her up in his arms.

"That's me," Vivek smiles at the little girl.

___________

Author's Note:-

Aisha made it past the prelims, so YAY! *throws confetti*

Who else wants to smack Tarika on her face like I do? Raise your hands!

What are your thoughts about Jayden Spears? Lemme know in the comments. ;)

See y'all at the next update!
XOXO