The alarming sound of the final bell indicated Sanvi that the assembly had already started. She ran her way through the school campus towards her locker and threw her belongings inside it. Huffing and sweating profusely, she reached the assembly hall and hopped into her line only to be pulled back by her class teacher.

"Sanvi Dixit? What kind of behaviour is this?" Her teacher roared, dragging her to a corner.

"I am extremely sorry Miss! I was late for the assembly for the first time and I couldn't figure where I should go so I hopped into the line like this. I sincerely apologize. It won't happen again..." She pleaded to her teacher stammering all the while her head hung low.

Her teacher had known her to be a sincere and obedient pupil since the first day of school. She was punctual and well-mannered in every aspect. Her teacher was particularly bewildered to experience such an absurd act by the very well-behaved Sanvi Dixit.

"This must be the first and the last blunder Miss Dixit... Look at your classmates and juniors staring at you! Oh what a terrible joke must all these seem to them! No manners, no discipline! You being a school prodigy must set a good example for the other kids." Her teacher warned her and allowed her to enter the assembly.
Her head was still hung low.

Sanvi's POV~

The kids? Well Miss would surely need an ambulance if she learns about her kids' conduct at Rathore's party last night.

"Great start of the day." I begrudgingly murmered under my breath, silently sliding into the girl's line and not once pulling my head up.

I could still interpret from the corner of my eyes that everyone was oogling at me as if I had grown two horns. I closed my eyes and sighed. They would be gossiping about this incident for the rest of the day. I could almost feel that my plan to stay away from the crowd's eye was going to be an utter failure. It was shame that a school of such stature as St. Louis would have such gossipmongers as its students.

"What else would be more interesting than seeing the class captain, herself getting scolded right in the beginning of the day and then gossiping away about it for the whole day.." I couldn't help but roll my eyes at the horde of my own classmates. What? I didn't owe them shit. I couldn't care less about how they spoke about me behind my back.

However among those hundreds of pairs of eyes, I could specifically feel one one pair staring at me intensely.

Oh no.

He had been watching me since the moment I had entered and got called out for being tardy. Could this be anymore embarrassing?

As I involuntarily looked up, I caught his eyes and my stomach tightened. Why on the earth did I feel the need to immediately look away and not hold onto his gaze for a few seconds more? That would have helped me maintain my sternness to a certain degree.

Was I already that intimidated by Rathore?

The thought made my blood boil and quite unknowingly, my eyes caught his line of sight yet again and I was stupefied. We had a large distance between us but that didn't stop me from figuring out how his chocolate brown eyes held a strange glint in them while they bore into mine through his expressionless countenance.

I had never noticed. I had never bothered to notice his eyes before that. They were hypnotising. Why, oh why after passing so many years with him as a batchmate, was I so keen on noticing his features today? I groaned internally.

I forcefully shifted my gaze towards the podium but the next instant looked back at him yet again. What the hell is wrong with me?

He was still looking at me and it was just then when he decided go pucker his lips out at me, as if attempting to blow me a kiss before snarkily smirking at me. I immediately turned away, feeling extremely flustered by his act.

What was I thinking? What was I imagining all this while? I absolutely need to stop fantasizing about my enemy this instant! A snobby jerk is always snobby jerk!

I turned back with an air of dignity and simply stuck my tongue out at him. That was perhaps not what I had previously intended to do but I couldn't help it. It got funny all of a sudden. I was seriously losing it.

******

"Vee! Vee!" Veronica came running towards me while I was in the locker room sorting out the homework papers which I was supposed to bring up to the Teacher's Room.

"Why were you so late to the assembly today, Vee?" She huffed leaning against the locker chamber.

I could suddenly feel anger rush through my veins when she stood by my side, smiling and completely unbothered by her own actions last night. I was so troubled because of her the other night. She was so calm and peaceful that morning that it almost seemed like it was not her but me who had gotten drunk upto her throat the other night and did those stupid things.

She wasn't late to school, was she? She didn't get scolded the teacher first thing in the morning, did she? It felt like all the good deeds I had attempted to accumulate by lending her my helping hand last night had gone down the drain while Veronica had absolutely no idea about it.

I even lost my damn first kiss..
I knocked down those thoughts at that particular moment. The person in my focus right then was this girl who has been looking at me weirdly since past few minutes.
I shook my head.

"Ahem.. I should be asking you that Veronica. Where were you yesterday night? Do you have any idea how much you worried me last night? Do you even know how much I had to go through just to make sure that your drunk ass was in good hands and that you were dropped off safely to your house, knowing full well how your parents might've reacted had they known about your late-night shenanigans!?" My voice rose to a certain degree where I had to look around to see that there weren't people eavesdropping.

Veronica seemed taken aback by my sudden outburst.

"What are you staring at?" I barked. "Answer me!"

"What did I do? I dont remember anything of last night!" Veronica caught her head in between her palms.

"I honestly think you're still drunk, aren't you?" I pulled her to sniff around her mouth to which she swatted my hands away.

"Do you need me to smack you to remind you of your acts?" I rolled my eyes at her and she scrunched her nose.

"Wait! We were at the Rathore's! Rishabh Rathore, that handsome brat of our batch? You know him Sanvi! The guy that irritates you! Your sworn academic enemy? I won't call him handsome if that irritates you." I sighed at her dramatic disposition. Of course I know Rishabh Rathore. Perhaps a little too much since the accident of last night.

"He threw the party. I was with Pavan's group. It was amazing. The entire school was there Sanvi! You won't believe the extent of the crowd! I drank a little... And then we danced.. It was fun..." She giggled remembering the party.

It wasn't fun for me!

"And then I dont remember any of the happenings after that..." Her expression indicated that she most definitely was so hammered that she had no idea what kinda mess she created after that.

"YOU DRANK A LITTLE? A LITTLE? You freaking called me in the midnight and were slurring away nonsense! I got so scared that I drove out there in the cold and crashed the party in order to drag you home. It was a relief that I had Pavan's contact number and when I couldn't find you in that godforsaken crowd, I pleaded him to drive you home safely and albeit sneak you in secretly."

"What?!" Veronica was so shocked that her eyes turned into wide saucers.

"Check your damn phone!" I bellowed pulling her phone out of her pocket and handing it to her. Bewildered, Veronica scrolled through the gazzilion calls and text messages from me last night and looked up to me with puppy eyes.

"I had warned you not to pull me into any of those stupid parties that you attend. And I have specifically advised you to be responsible in this kind of activities! Always be vigilant and careful and not run into any social gathering people rave about. I was indeed right in my conviction. I have seen things last night that I want to wipe out from my memory but cannot." Veronica physically winced as I laid out the chart of the troubles she had made me go through the other night.

"For the starters, it was a long cold ride out to that posh neighborhood at that point of night. Then I couldn't find you in that awful throng of sleazy teenagers! The smell, the sweaty kids! Half of some of those underage kids were making out right in the hall and ugh! My heart was racing to the breaking point when I thought about the bad situations you might have fallen into in that drunk state of yours. What if bad people took advantage of you? What if you got hurt? And that Rathore! Never in my wildest dream had I imagined myself stepping into his threshold for anything! A party at Rathore's? I'd rather step on a Lego block and get stung by a bee rather than visit his party. But last night I had to cross that border because I was so worried about you. Do you know what that jerk did? He ki.. Ugh" I halted right before I could have hurled out everything in the spur of my speech.

What would I tell her? That I was making out in some corner of that mansion while I was supposed to be looking out for her? That I just lost my first kiss to the one person that I claim to hate with conviction? That I was enjoying the kiss? That I changed over there and almost had a sleepover? Saw him shirtless? My hormones took over my mind so intensely that I was fantasising about Rathore the whole time? And that I still am hooked onto that absurd feeling?

"Sanvi..what? Did you get into any trouble? Look at me." Flabbergasted at my unmindful demeanor, Veronica pulled me by my shoulders and began inspecting me for wounds.

"What did Rishabh do? Tell me!" I closed my eyes and sighed as she enquired me with inquisitive eyes.

"Did something happen between you again? Did you guys fight? What? I am so sorry for getting you into this! I shouldn't have called you like that. Shit. I am so ashamed!" She was almost on the verge of crying and I couldn't help but pull her towards me for a hug.

"Nothing happened. He didn't..we didn't fight or anything. I am not hurt. We just..argued about things and he was being the cocky self he usually is. I am alright." I sighed as she eased into my hold.

"I had my scooty and I reached home safely after making sure Pavan had dropped you off." She pulled away and I saw her eyes dart towards my swollen lip. I had forgotten to conceal the little red patch beneath the lower lip from last night when we...ahem.

With crooked eyebrows, Veronica pointed towards the exact area I was dreading about.

"How did you hurt yourself?"

Shit.

"Ah. This? Oh I just..scratched myself in sleep." I looked away and began shuffling the papers.

"Are you sure?" Did I sense some suggestiveness in her tone? Did she figure something out already?

"Hey! Promise me, no parties from now on! The Championship is around the corner and I hope you know how important the year is for our class?" I knew I had to change the subject because I was drowning by the second. And what better way to do that than to transition into my Class Captain mode?

"Yeah yeah alright!" She rolled her eyes at me and scoffed.

"You know... I was just asking that to make sure that Rishabh hadn't troubled you last night. I know how he annoys you all the time and I was particularly surprised today when I noticed the weird exchange between you guys at the assembly hall." I stiffened immediately when she uttered those words. She WAS suspecting something!

"Whatever do you mean?" I attempted to sound clueless but who was I kidding? I sounded like a quibbling rabbit in a trap.

"The eye-banter? Sanvi, almost everyone noticed that! You guys definitely had some vibe going on out there. Since when did you rivals began making funny faces at each other?" I gulped.

"Since always. You know how irritating he is! He was humouring me since I was scolded for being late. The Class Captain being late must've been amusing to that jerk. So I just played along. Showed him how unbothered I am of his nuisances..." Lately I was convincing a lot of people with lies and I didn't even feel remorse for that. The thing between Rishabh and I, whatever it was or was going to be, should never come out. I didn't wanna feed the tattlers until the Championship. Well I didn't want to feed them regardless of that.

"I'll believe you since you were basically late due to my stupid actions last night. I am sorry for that." She puckered up her lips at me and pulled me in for another hug. Wow so many hugs today. Normally we would barely speak two sentences in a day and I almost felt like that was the longest we had spoken in the few years of knowing and calling each other 'best friends'. I'd repeat it again, Veronica was really patient with me and I respected her for it. She knew I didn't like to speak much and that I can be eccentric but I had to give it to her for sticking with me despite my idiosyncrasies.

"Alright. Let's go get changed for the class..." I grabbed my papers and bag and rushed out, leaving a bewildered Veronica running out behind me.

"Wait for me, you indolent girl..." I smiled a little while trudging into the Teacher's Room. All the students had begun clearing out for the PE class and I was still stuck running an errand. I'd gladly take up such more responsibilities if that helped me avoid PE. I sighed and ran to change once the bell struck.

"Dixit..." I was going to enter the washroom when a familiar husky voice interrupted my pace making me jerk back towards the voice. I soon realized that my resolution to avoid him would never work if he would go around seeking me out first.

I saw him march up towards me in his tracks, all ready for the class. Oh how much I kicked myself in my mind for immediately noticing how his tee-shirt with the school logo clung to his well-defined chest.

"You must have been forgetting something?" He asked me, folding his arms across his chest.

"Uhm.. What?" I furrowed my brows at him, not getting what he wanted to imply.

"My tee and trousers? I didn't gift you those as far as I remember..." He rolled his eyes at me while leaning against the door frame of the girl's washroom.

I took certain pride in my quick-witted mind. As a girl born with a great presence of mind could easily tell that the girls still changing inside must have had already pasted their ears to the wall to listen to the unusually normal conversation between a pair of enemies. If that was not of their interest then the voice of a male student, specifically of the one popular genius, Rishabh Rathore right outside the female lavatory would definitely pique their interest and compel them to eavesdrop.

Without wasting anymore time, and not wanting to fuel the gossip train of the entire school, I pulled him by his arm towards the abandoned corridor, quite far from the public eye. His expression indicated that my action had taken him by surprise. Well he might not care about his reputation but I didn't want to ride up the public radar right in the last year of graduation.

"Whoa..whoa.. What's with the eagerness Dixit?" Rathore smilingly exclaimed out once I stood in front of him with a stern expression.

"Shut up..." I bellowed at him before looking around us for any stragglers. Once assured of our privacy, I turned back at him.

"Get one thing straight Rathore. I don't want the other batchmates to know about ANY of the happenings of last night. We have a championship coming up and I don't want any distractions. You might not have any self respect but I do!" I don't know why but I felt really angry at him for some reason that very moment. And the jerk didn't yet apologize for announcing my nudity to his entire neighborhood last night. He was walking around like it was some kind of fun thing that we were involved in last night.

Well it was quite fun, wasn't it?

Shut up, mind!

I was still reeling from the morning banter with my mother.

"And what makes you think that I'll be so eager to announce an insignificant issue such as YOUR unexpected arrival at MY party last night?" He matched my pitch. Wow he was the one to yell!

"Idiot.. Not about the party! But YOUR stupid deed!" I rolled my eyes.

"And what was that?" He smirked, catching me off guard.

I was suddenly tongue-tied.

"You...You kissed me forcefully.. I believe you still remember that stupid deed?" I saw his eyes soften all of a sudden but that was just for a blink. He was back to smirking again.

I felt blood rush up to my neck. I wasn't blushing, was I?

"As if you didn't enjoy and respond equally to it?" His grin clearly indicated that he was enjoying the sudden change in my expression. I scoffed.

"Do you even know how freakishly strong you are? I would have lost an arm trying to pry you off of me, you dinosaur! I kissed you back so that I could catch you off guard and get you away from me." I flared my nose while spitting out the facts. He was the one at fault. If he hadn't groped me and kissed me in the dark without even looking at my face, we wouldn't have been in that sticky situation.

"Oh I didn't know that you need to kiss a person back in order to stop them from kissing you? Great logic. But Dixit, tell me something honestly, didn't you want me to kiss you even after that in the balcony?" He knew he had the upper hand here. I had already lost the battle last night when I had stupidly closed my eyes, all hot and bothered by our closeness in the balcony when he had pulled that stupid prank. I was really screwed.

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply while pinching my temple. I ground me teeth together to stop the rage in me. I shouldn't hurt him. I shouldn't punch him right on his perfectly pointy nose. I shouldn't disfigured his handsome face. Handsome? What the hell is wrong with me?

"That was..." I was going to give him a piece of my mind when I got rudely interrupted by him.

"I don't think you get why I am here. I should make it clear to you then. I wasn't supposed to kiss you... YOU hopped in out of no where when I was about to get lucky with my very first kiss with a very agreeable girl. She was really hot." I couldn't believe my own ears as he spouted out word after word in the most despicably Rathore fashion of speaking as there ever could be. All I could do was simply blink a bit too fast for my own liking because I didn't like what he was implying there.

"I didn't even know that YOU were the one whom I was kissing! It was right after we broke apart that I got to see your face. Otherwise, what fool would waste his first kiss on a shabby and unappealing girl like you? Go and check yourself in the mirror. You are no where close to my type."

I am sorry, what?

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

TBC