As the sun dipped below the horizon, Vyani perched herself on the rooftop terrace, initially having climbed up to retrieve the shuttlecock. But Now, she found herself engrossed in conversation with Tis.
"And then that guy caught me just before I could fall! I was—"
"Okay, okay, I get it. Can we please focus on whether there's been any progress with the 'mission'?" Tis interjected.
"You were handling it, right? You know how swamped I am with school and everything," Vyani replied, a hint of frustration in her voice.
"So, you're saying you want to Die? Good choice," Tis said, his expression stern.
"I know I need to track down the Hucia thief, but Tis, I genuinely don't have the time. Can’t you just, like, stop time or something?"
"We can’t go out during the day because of your school schedule, but what's stopping us at night?"
"No, not today. I have to write an article for the school magazine. Plus, where would we even go? We still don’t have any leads."
"This is so complicated! Every woman wears jewelry, so how can I tell if anyone is watching me? My powers aren’t functioning properly too."
"Umm... I know, right? How can you expect women to go without jewelry in India? But I have an idea."
"No, no, I’ve heard enough of your ideas. I don’t trust you, and a human mind, of course, isn’t reliable."
"Just listen for a second."
"What ridiculous idea do you have now?" Tis asked, exasperated.
"We can start by talking to the girls at my school, then both the ones I know and the ones I don’t. How does that sound?"
"But how will we do this exactly?" Tis questioned her.
"Ummm... listen, I’ll get them to meet somewhere private. If they see you and do something noticeable, then—"
"They'll see the face you've given me, and as you said, I look fine, so it's possible. But if she's smart enough to control minds and dreams and create a fake version of me, then of course she won't fall for a simple trick," Tis replied, showing interest in her idea.
"I know, but it's a start! At least then we can narrow down our suspicions."
"It'll take time for me to regain all my powers here. Then maybe I can make these people forget what happened, and we can do whatever we want."
"Really? Wow!" Vyani exclaimed excitedly.
"Yes, and..."
As they continued to share their thoughts, the sky darkened, signaling a shift in their friendship. Tis's green form glowed in Vyani's eyes, providing her with an unspoken comfort, a shoulder to lean on without even touching it. Unbeknownst to them, Tis's perspective on humans was beginning to change, challenging his previous notions of hatred. What had begun as a bond rooted in animosity and coincidence was evolving into something deeper and more meaningful.
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Next day, the house was buzzing with activity as Vyani searched for her lost sock, her mother’s voice echoing through the halls—it was music to her ears now, as she had grown accustomed to it all. Her brother was still in the toilet, doing his thing, while her sister was deep in sleep, preparing for her upcoming move to a different state for college. Vyani always made sure not to disturb her sister's beauty sleep since she was a light sleeper. Finally, when she found the sock, she dashed out the door, ready for school.
But she wasn't even halfway down the path when she facepalmed in realization.
"Shit, shit, did I leave the article on the table?" she muttered in vain, turning around to sprint back to the house. Somehow, she managed to grab the thin paper in a swift motion as she rushed out, only to spot a familiar back standing and waiting.
Her next mission was to sneak past the devil himself, "Ayaan".
She opened the door and bolted by him, not daring to look back until she had covered half the distance down the road.
"She really is stupid," Ayaan muttered to himself, smirking as he caught a glimpse of her fleeing form from the corner of his eye.
"Let's go, bro! We're already late as hell. Oh, was that...?" Nishkarsh asked Ayaan, both curious and shocked at the sight of Vyani running like a rocket.
"Yaa... It was her, 'the pixel-sized stalker'," Ayaan remarked as they began walking.
"Hmm... It's hard to believe that a model student like her can also be late," Nishkarsh added.
"If a moron hadn't crashed my bike, I wouldn't be walking here with you, you know," Ayaan teased Nishkarsh.
"Yaa, and that moron is also walking with you, so please stop with the taunts now," Nishkarsh quipped back.
"I don't want to ruin my reputation in this school," Ayaan stated with determination.
"Your reputation? Oh, did you even have one, and isn't it already ruined?" Nishkarsh playfully mocked Ayaan, who just shot glares in response.
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Vyani stood there in the morning assembly, second in the queue, feeling the April sun hitting her face hard—she was definitely sun-slapped, as her expression showed.
She couldn't help but blame the school for making them stand in height order, but at least the Smriti girl was shorter than her. The principal was droning on about something, while students around her were knocking down, some even being sent to the nurse's room, which she considered the cheap infirmary. Her eyes caught Ayaan smirking and laughing with Nishkarsh in the latecomers' queue, enjoying the shade while the obedient students were suffering under the sun.
"Vyakhya beta, listen!!" Her favorite teacher, Mishri mam, nudged her and whispered something in her ear. In that sweltering assembly, her words quickly grabbed the attention of the other students standing like zombies.
"So, I have to check the uniforms of everyone and report the wrong ones to you?" Vyani confirmed with her teacher.
"Yes, the inspection is coming up. I've told Amisha, Shiksha, and the others the same; they are on it. Now, you go and check the latecomers line. I'm heading to the staff room for a minute, then give me the article, okay?" Mishri mam instructed.
"Late-latecomers line? Ok-ok," Vyani replied, already feeling the weight of the task. She walked out of her queue and stormed towards the latecomers' line, muttering to herself, "Why always her?"
She began with the last student, hoping that by the time she reached Ayaan, the assembly would be over. However, the students at the back were all in proper uniform. For the first time, she found herself wishing that someone would wear mismatched socks or something equally improper in those small bodies. But it seemed that nothing went according to her wishlist—actually, nothing ever did.
As she approached Nishkarsh, she eyed him awkwardly.
“Umm... tie?” she asked hesitantly.
“Oh, do we have one?” Nishkarsh replied jokingly.
“Make sure to wear it tomorrow; it's Mishri ma'am's order,” she said, looking up at him.
As she awkwardly made her way to Ayaan, she wanted to get this over with quickly; it was evident in her eyes. Somehow, she managed to lift her gaze, only to find his eyes intensely fixed on her.
“I don’t have a tie either...” he said, tilting his head with a smirk, his eyes drawing her in.
She quickly looked away, glancing down at his large shoes.
“Th-These aren’t school shoes, either.”
“Yes, I have eyes,” he replied sarcastically.
“Then use them, asshole,” she muttered to herself. She responded, “Tie... shoes... and,” she looked up, “your hair... fix it tomorrow; it's Mishri ma'am's order,” she said before turning to leave.
“What’s wrong with my hair?” Ayaan asked bluntly.
She looked back, cursing herself for even mentioning his hair. In a low but confident voice, she managed to reply, “They’re longer than what the school permits.”
“Do I look bad?” he asked, smirking.
"It's Mishri ma'am's order, make sure you fix them."
"Do.I.look.bad?" he repeated.
Vyani looked up at his hair... No, not at all. If someone said he looked bad, that person must be blind. He was stunning, a sight to behold, truly a vision to appreciate. But of course, after knowing his reality, Vyani couldn't find him as appealing as before. HE WAS JUST A WATCHER; YES, THAT'S HIS REALITY. She stood there, staring at his hair, unable to utter a word, as somehow she replied,
"You can ask this to Mishri ma'am herself..." As she started walking away from him, her heart thumping like a bullet train.
Ayaan smirked and whispered to Nishkarsh, "Looks like the pixel-sized stalker is getting bolder now."
"Come on, we don't have to deal with her now," Nishkarsh chuckled.
"That 'we' doesn't include me," Ayaan replied with a smile.
"What? What do you mean?" Nishkarsh asked, shocked, to which Ayaan responded with a chuckle.
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It was the sixth period of the day, Vyani was washing her face after a boring period of physics, still Ayaan's voice echoing in her brain.
"Then which tuition classes are you joining, Vyani?" Shiksha's voice brought her back to reality.
"Huh? Tuition? I still haven't decided yet."
"Ohh, inform me too after you find one; we both can go together."
"Yes, I will."
"Well, I really like Avni; she and I vibed perfectly," Shiksha said, laughing.
"Ohh, she is stupid, ain't she?" Vyani laughed and replied back.
"I mean, it's good that me and her are sitting together. I don't know how you sit with Amisha."
"Haha, she is fine too, just Anirudh, you know."
"So you felt it too? I knew he likes her." Shiksha said loudly laughing.
"Right? Ohh my god, I knew it too! He keeps pestering me to exchange seats with him again and again, hahah."
As the girls high-fived, the laughter echoed in the washroom, momentarily pushing away thoughts of Ayaan and the chaos of the day.
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It was daytime when school ended, and Vyani was making her way home with her bag slung over her shoulder. Suddenly, she spotted a cat that was badly injured. Vyani knelt down to gently caress it, but the cat limped away, trembling in fear. Her heart ached as she wondered what could have happened to this little creature to make it so terrified of even a gentle touch.
As the cat retreated into the bushes, Vyani called out softly, "No, don't go in there, little kitty; there are thorns!" But the frightened cat remained frozen, stepping back from her reach, overwhelmed by both fear and pain. Looking around for her Tis, she realized he was nowhere to be found. Students from her school passed by, but none seemed to notice the distressed animal. Vyani decided to help; she took out her water bottle, opened the cap, and poured a little water onto the cap, sliding it toward the cat. However, the little orange creature remained still, shivering but unable to move due to its injuries, trapped by the thorns behind it. Confused, Vyani had never encountered an animal so afraid of her, and she continued her attempts to reach out to it for several minutes.
"What is Pixel doing over there, sitting like that?" Ayaan asked, noticing Vyani from a distance. Nishkarsh, who was waving goodbye to some girls, followed Ayaan's gaze. "Yeah, that's Vyani, right?" he replied.
"Let’s go check on her," Ayaan said as he started walking toward her.
"What will we do? We can't just talk to her," Nishkarsh protested.
"Just follow me," Ayaan commanded, his tone leaving no room for argument.
As Ayaan and Nishkarsh approached, Vyani had already given up. She had tried everything to make the cat drink water and even attempted to hold it, but it wouldn’t budge. The poor creature was shivering violently, and every time Vyani reached for it, it scampered into the bushes, injuring itself further. Defeated, she stood up and decided it was best to head home for now.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSp6vwBQ5dv
Ayaan and Nishkarsh moved towards the cat once Vyani was at a distance.
"Oh shit, it's hurt badly," Nishkarsh exclaimed as they assessed the situation.
"I can see that too," Ayaan replied, leaning in to try and pick up the cat. To his surprise, the cat didn’t resist at all; it limped right into his embrace. "She is bleeding; let's take her home!" Ayaan urged.
Nishkarsh nodded, and they both sprinted toward their houses, passing by Vyani, who was still feeling down about the incident.
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........Vyani's POV.......
"What? How did they—" I mumbled, watching those two jerks run off with the very cat I had been desperate to help just moments ago. I took off after them, my mind racing. Why had the cat been so resistant to me? I had even bathed today... Could it be that animals see beauty or ugliness in humans and are drawn to the ugly? A wave of sickness washed over me as I felt sad inside. Why was that little kitty so afraid of me? It was like she was seeing something in me that I couldn't, it's scary.Did this have something to do with the Hucia and everything? Could animals really recognize me? But why were they afraid of me?
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