The next day after the Subhash Jayanti program, I reached school a little earlier than usual. As I entered the campus, the cool morning breeze brushed against my face. Students were chatting everywhere, some laughing, some rushing toward their classrooms.
And then I saw her.
Payel was standing near the corridor with her friends. She was smiling, laughing freely, her eyes shining with that same warmth that always made my heart skip a beat. For a moment, I just stood there watching her. I wanted to go and talk to her, ask how she was, maybe tease her about something.
But before I could take a step forward, the bell rang loudly.
Great timing, I thought.
I sighed and walked toward my classroom.
The moment I stepped inside, I noticed something unusual. Two familiar faces were already waiting for me at the last bench.
Abhi and Sayan.
Let me tell you something about us. Our trio was probably the most famous group in the entire school.
First there was me — Sarthak, the most popular boy in school. People knew me as the debate champion, sports captain, and the backbencher who somehow still managed to score good marks.
Then there was Sayan, the quiet genius. He rarely spoke, but when he did, it was always something intelligent.
And finally there was Abhi — the most dangerous backbencher in school. Teachers feared him, students admired him, and trouble seemed to follow him everywhere.
Together, we were known as the deadliest trio of the school.
The moment I entered the class, Abhi shouted from the back bench,
"Oye idiot! Come here!"
I glared at him.
I swear one day I'll kill this guy.
Just as I was about to reply, our class teacher Amrita ma'am entered the classroom.
"Sarthak! Sit at your place immediately."
I rolled my eyes slightly and walked toward the last bench. As I sat down, I gave her a deadly glare.
To be honest, she was probably the only teacher in the school who had a problem with me. And the reason was simple — I hated the way she taught mathematics.
Instead of solving problems herself, she would just ask students to come to the board and solve them. And whenever she tried solving something herself, sometimes even the answers turned out wrong.
Suddenly, Abhi poked my shoulder.
I was already irritated.
Without thinking, I punched him lightly on the arm.
"Are you mad?" he whispered.
Sayan, sitting beside us, burst into silent laughter.
I turned toward him and gave him a cold stare.
He immediately stopped laughing.
Sayan was smart enough to understand one thing — if he irritated me right now, he might not survive the day.
So instead, he leaned toward me and asked quietly,
"So… how was yesterday's program?"
The moment he said that, all my anger disappeared.
My mind immediately replayed yesterday's memories — Payel in her saree, her smile, the way she held my hand.
I sighed dreamily.
"Abe yaar…" I whispered. "Kal wo kitni pyaari lag rahi thi… mera mann kar raha tha usse bhaga ke shaadi kar loon."
Sayan smirked.
"Ahaaa… finally we found the weakness of Sarthak — the most popular boy of our school."
We both started laughing quietly.
But our fun didn't last long.
Suddenly Amrita ma'am looked toward us and said,
"Sayan, come and sit on the first bench. If you stay with them, you will become like them."
I frowned.
What exactly is her problem with me?
Ten minutes later, I was already bored to death.
Just then, the classroom door opened and Sanjay sir, our science teacher, entered.
"Sarthak, come with me."
Inside my head, I celebrated.
Thank you sir for saving me from this horrible period.
I quickly got up and followed him outside.
As we walked through the corridor, I asked,
"Sir, why are you in such a hurry?"
He suddenly stopped and looked at me.
"Sarthak, the science fest is in two days."
My eyes widened.
"Wait… what?"
He continued calmly,
"And you and Payel are representing the school."
I froze.
"Sir… in two days? And we haven't even started a project yet!"
He smiled slightly.
"That's why I called you. For the next two days, you don't have to attend classes. Focus only on the project."
I was still unsure.
But then one thought crossed my mind.
Payel was my partner.
Without wasting another second, I said,
"Okay sir… I'm ready."
We went to the junior block and called Payel from her classroom.
As she walked toward us, my heart started beating faster again.
Sanjay sir explained everything to her.
For a moment I silently prayed,
Please God… let her agree.
And thankfully, she smiled and said,
"Okay sir, I'll participate."
I almost jumped with happiness.
We sat together in the science lab to discuss ideas.
For a few minutes we were completely confused about what to do.
Then suddenly an idea struck me.
"What if we make a model showing the gravity of different planets?"
Her eyes lit up.
"That's actually a great idea."
I crossed my arms proudly.
"Of course. I am the science topper of my class."
She raised an eyebrow.
"From last."
My pride instantly collapsed.
My sigma aura had officially gone into negative numbers.
After laughing for a moment, we divided our work.
I started writing the theoretical part of the project while Payel began building the model. She was really talented in art and craft.
Meanwhile, I borrowed Sanjay sir's phone to gather some information about planetary gravity.
We worked together for hours.
By the end of the day, our project was halfway complete.
When we finally left school around 3:30 pm, I asked,
"Won't your mom get worried because you're late?"
She smiled.
"Nah… I already informed Maa."
We walked home together, talking about random things.
That night, after dinner, I lay on my bed thinking about the entire day.
And one thing was clear.
Spending a whole day with Payel felt… special.
The next morning we came to school in casual clothes as instructed.
I waited for her near the gate.
When she finally arrived, she was wearing a simple blue kurta.
But somehow, she looked unbelievably beautiful.
For a moment, I forgot how to speak.
"Why are you staring like that?" she asked, smiling.
"Nothing," I quickly replied.
Inside my head though—
Wow.
When we reached school, everyone was staring at us because we were not in uniform.
Suddenly the principal called me.
"Sarthak, the assembly commander is absent today. Can you handle it?"
I looked at my casual clothes.
Seriously?
But when Payel whispered, "You can do it," I immediately agreed.
Even in casual clothes, I somehow managed the entire assembly command.
Later we returned to the lab and continued working.
While shaping the planets, Payel accidentally dropped blue paint on my hand.
I sighed dramatically.
"Great. Now my hand is blue."
She laughed softly.
"Relax. It suits you."
"Does it?"
"Yes. Makes you look less serious."
We both laughed.
As we placed the Earth model on the board, an idea suddenly came to my mind.
"You know something, Payel?"
"Hmm?"
"Every planet has its orbit."
She nodded.
"Maybe people do too."
I smiled slightly.
"Then I guess my orbit somehow keeps bringing me back to you."
For a moment, she didn't say anything.
She just smiled softly and continued painting.
By evening, our project was finally complete.
When Sanjay sir saw it, he was genuinely impressed.
"Excellent work," he said.
The next morning was the Science Fest.
When I reached the venue, my heart was already racing.
Around two hundred students from different schools were participating.
And near the entrance, I saw them waiting.
Sanjay sir…
and Payel.
The competition had finally begun.