Chapter 1

"All candidates, please check your admits. Then enter the room one by one."

Soon as the announcement was made, a bespectacled guy with long black hair tied back in half ponytail, started to move agitatedly. Did he bring his admit? He must have, after all he checked it thrice before leaving the apartment. Here it was. Thank go……Ugh! Now, he had to collect all the other stuff that he took out of his bag to look for his admit. Quick, quick. The line started to move.

"Hey. Watch it, little guy," said a tall dark youth who collided with Surya.

"Oh. I am sorry," Surya replied.

Once inside the room, Surya looked around. The rest of the group was tall, quite tall. All the youth in the room were taller than 1.90 m, except for him. But he knew no one could beat him in acting. As the entrance exam progressed, Surya slowly relaxed and started to pay attention to everyone's performance. His own performance was quite good.

"Okay, the next candidate is Mr. Vidyut Sharma."

"Hello, everyone.” A deep, rasping voice spoke up. Surya automatically turned and found it was the same youth with whom Surya had collided earlier! “Umm, today, I will be performing a poem. It is called 'Rainy Alley' by Dai Sharmashu.

“Holding an oil paper umbrella, I

pace through a long, long,

and solitary rainy alley.

I hope to come upon

A girl like lilacs,

Distressed and grudging.

“She has

The color of lilacs

The scent of lilacs

And a lilac's concerns,

Grudging in the rain,

Resentful and hesitating.

“She paces in the drizzling, desolate lane,

Holding her oil paper umbrella,

As I do,

Just as I do,

Soundlessly wending,

Aloof, cheerless, and unhappy."

Surya drifted into a dream-like state as he listening to the poem. He felt like a window had opened up inside his heart and lilac flowers of the color lavender were floating all around him. Lavender, his favorite color. Who could tell that the guy with such emotionless face had such soulful voice?

The day dragged on with more performances and activities.

At last, at 5:00 p.m., the exam ended. By that time, Surya had made one or two acquaintances.

"So, you see this University is my first and last choice. I did not even apply to anywhere else," said the guy Surya was talking to.

"I did apply to a few others," said Surya, "but I would really prefer this since I plan on settling down in Mumbai."

Suddenly, there was a loud thump, and someone almost pushed Surya over.

"Oh, sorry." It was the same tall fair guy, Vidyut something. "I guess it's my fault this time, huh?" Vidyut continued, with a crooked smile on his face.

"That's okay," said Surya. But he did not know if he liked that smirk on the dark youth’s face. Or did he like it too much?

Anyways, he had to rush back to his place. He is dying from hunger and the chicken from yesterday's takeout was getting cold.

Chapter 2

Surya heard his phone ringing faintly in his sleep-addled mind. He got home really late last night. Going out is always tiring.

"Yeah?"

"Babe?"

"Yeah, it's me."

"Are you up yet? Get ready and come down quick."

"I just woke up."

"Doesn't matter. The crew will not wait for you. Gosh! I will give you half an hour."

"Okay, okay."

"And...did you...?"

"Did I what?"

"Nothing. Come soon."

"K. See you downstairs."

Surya tried to mentally count how many times have Vidyut's calls woke him up in the morning in the last few months. Then suddenly he remembered what he was ruminating about when he went to sleep last night. That mobile app! He immediately grabbed his cell phone to open the app. He still couldn't understand how people believed that the app worked and he will prove his point today.

By the time he got down, the whole crew was there waiting to start the day's shoot.

"Hey Surya, have some milk and a sandwich." A kind female voice floated in. Surya immediately spotted Na’arvi, his producer who was offering him breakfast. She was a little chubby in the face but she was cute nonetheless. Surya also appreciated how she took care of her actors and how friendly she was.

"Thanks, Na’arvi," said Surya taking the plate from her and took a seat at the nearby table.

"Where is Vidyut?"

"He is in the other room. What did you do last night? Your face looks swollen," asked Na’arvi. Na’arvi again had that godforsaken camera with her that she used to make the video diaries for the shooting and featured all the cast and crews.

"I went out last night with friends, got back really late."

"Went out huh? Then why were you on facebook so late last night, commenting on other people's facebook posts?" Na’arvi was ready with her barrage of questions again, thought Surya. But he has a point to prove as well.

At that moment, a tall dark man entered the room but refused to acknowledge Surya. He walked across the room, moving past Surya and plopped on the sofa.

"Do you know last night your comment on her facebook update caused a stir? Why would you comment about her so late at night?" continued Na’arvi. Fangirls always caused a stir if they found a BL movie or series actor chatting with another female.

"Who said it was at night? It was this morning," replied Surya in his defense. "I was thinking about her mobile app. How would it know what time you fall asleep?"

"It probably tracks the time after you fall asleep." Na’arvi tried to explain.

"But what if you have insomnia. If you just lay there on the bed. How will it know then?"

"The fact that you are fixating on such an idea…."at last Vidyut broke his silence. "Why would you dwell over such trivial matters?" Vidyut sounded annoyed. But Surya was not going to give up so easily, nor did he reply to Vidyut. Surya kept going back and forth with Alok, the cute actor, playing a supporting character in the series, sitting right in front of him.

"Look," explained Surya to Alok and Na’arvi,''she says she slept for eight hours and five minutes, but where is the proof?"

By this point, Vidyut was positively irked and had to interrupt.

"You press the button before going to sleep..." Vidyut’s deep voiced cut in.

"But what if I press the button but I cannot fall asleep," argued Surya.

"You delete this stupid app right now. It is not suitable for you." The usually calm Vidyut was getting agitated, Surya could tell. His cheeks were turning bronze red.

"I know it is not suitable."

"But still you fixate on such trivial matters. What use does it serve you?"

Now it was Surya's turn to get annoyed. After all it was his personal matter.

"What use does it have? One needs to be persistent and organized in life."

"Your stubborn attitude towards everything is ..."

"One just needs this kind of persistence," Surya kept re-uttering those words.

At this point everyone else had shut up, both of them realized.

Vidyut was not even facing Surya anymore. Surya also got quiet and started playing with the chair like he always did when he wa upset.

"All this is useless and you know, your life is tiresome."

"No, it is not,” contented Surya. "It is as fun as it can be."

Vidyut did not want to continue arguing. There was no point. He would just be provoking Surya and he knew how stubborn Surya was. He would never give up.

Moments later, Na’arvi tried to have another conversation with Surya. She hoped at least this time it led to something cute and sweet for her behind the scenes video to delight the fangirls.

"When did you go to bed last night, Surya?"

"Me? Umm, I was still out eating at around 2am last night."

"Then, did you see his facebook update?"

"Whose?"

"His," answered Na’arvi, pointing towards Vidyut. Vidyut was curious as well about what Surya thought of the post, but of course, he could not ask Surya directly, could he?

"I did not check facebook last night."

"Really?" Vidyut could not believe it. All this for nothing.

"Yup."

"He did not see it." Vidyut started clarifying to Na’arvi but Surya interrupted.

"But…I saw it this morning." There was a naughty smile on Surya's face as he uttered those words. Vidyut felt something warm in his chest.

"What do you think?"

"Not bad."

"Not bad?! How can you praise me with just a 'Not Bad' when I tried so hard," replied Vidyut, exasperatedly. But that was a mock exasperation and both Surya and Vidyut knew that it was just a cover for his delight.

But no one was as delighted as Na’arvi. She got the 'behind the scenes' video that she was hoping for and more. Oh, and she would have to remember to clarify to her future audience that the facebook post that Vidyut updated was a short 'rehearsal' video from Vidyut and Surya's lovemaking scene. *cough*

Chapter 3

It was the first day of University. Vidyut was happy he got into Mumbai University. Most of his close friends got in too, and the dorm room he found also fit him well. He made sure that it could accommodate some basic provisions, namely the fridge and the air condition. Presently, he was standing outside his class surrounded by friends.

"So, you took acting major at last. Why were you hesitant?" asked Rig. Rig was Vidyut's cousin's boyfriend.

"Yup, I am still unsure. But being so handsome, I thought why not? I might look great on screen."

"No." said Raag, Rig's cousin. "No one is more handsome than my Alok."

"Thank you, Raag,” Alok cut in, “but I do not care to be on screen."

"Why?" Vidyut asked. "Too busy shopping for perfumes?" Everyone laughed at Vidyut's light-hearted jab at Alok's hobby.

Vidyut looked around smiling. Something caught his eyes, that round face with big round eyes wearing glasses. He distinctly remembered that face from the day of the exam. At the same time, those almond eyes caught his, and by reflex, both youth raised their hands to wave at each other. Vidyut usually did not wave at people like this. Round face started to walk towards Vidyut's group.

"Hi."

"Hey."

"I think we met in the exam." Round face said. Vidyut remembered seeing him but they never talked.

"Yes, I think so."

"I am Surya."

"Surya, hmm. I am Vidyut." Then one by one, he introduced Surya to his friends.

"So, you are in the acting classes with me, I believe?" Surya asked.

"I think so."

"Did you find a room at the hostel?"

"I actually have a room at the dorm. Are you looking for one?"

"In fact, I am."

"You can move into my room."

"What about me?" Alok interjected.

"You can move in with Raag."

"I hope I am not causing any inconvenience." Surya did not want to cause trouble between friends. He was the newcomer here.

"No, it's okay. You will like my room."

It was not long before Surya settled in Vidyut's room. Just looking at all the comforts, Surya knew he got lucky.

"Hungry?"

"Yeah. Wanna order takeout?"

"No, I got this." Saying this Vidyut brought out his spicy chicken curry.

"Wow, you cook?"

"Sometimes."

There was a knock on the door at this point.

"Can I come in?" It was Alok. He is kinda cute, like a bunny, thought Surya.

"Are you eating the whole curry by yourself?" asked Alok.

"Yes, there is none left for you." Vidyut's jokes were obvious but Alok did not find them irritating at all.

Alok proceeded to serve some of the chicken curry for himself.

"Where is Raag?"

"I do not know. He is an idiot. I do not keep track of idiots."

"Gosh! You guys fought again?"

"No. I said I do not care about idiots."

"Why aren't you taking more chicken?"

"Huh? Me?" Surya suddenly became self-aware. "No, I am full."

"Do not be shy. Here, have some more."

"No, really, I am full."

"Do not say no, I am giving it to you. So do not resist."

"Okay." Surya relented but something stirred inside him, a feeling that Surya could not shake off.

Chapter 4

Some of the relatively easier scenes were already shot. However, Na’arvi figured that it is better to practice the more intimate scenes before the actual shoot. Surya had the same thoughts as her, and Vidyut was just happy that he would get to push Surya around more. Surya felt that practicing was the best way to keep the atmosphere light and stove off any nervousness. Vidyut played along with him.

"Gosh, this novel is sixty-percent intimate scene," chuckled Vidyut as he was going through his lines.

"Life is sixty-percent intimate scene," reasoned Na’arvi, the author of the novel and producer of the BL series that they were shooting based on it.

"And this novel is for BL fangirls, they like it this way," added Surya. Apparently, Surya had researched the subject, ships, fandoms, idols, fangirls, fanboys, and what not. It did not surprise Vidyut, given how much of a stickler Surya was and Vidyut respected him for that. Vidyut respected him for many reasons. But then, Surya would do something cute and fluffy and he would just want to squish....

"Vidyut, what do you think?" It was director Briharshi. Right now he was in bed with the assistant director, both of them kind of chubby, and they were doing a demonstration of what Vidyut and Surya were supposed to do. It was hilarious, to say the least. Basically two balloons rolling around in the bed.

"Yup, it shouldn't be that difficult. Surya?"

"Yeah, we can pull it off," Vidyut can tell Surya was trying hard not to laugh.

As they started their rehearsal, Vidyut hopped up on the bed. Surya followed suit.

"Action."

Surya started spewing his lines. Vidyut liked how easily Surya could transform into Arya and still be equally alluring. The mood was starting to build up. Surya was a really good actor, Vidyut thought. He emoted so well. With no camera being shoved at one's face, it was even easier. Vidyut could see Arya's playfulness in Surya's eyes.

"Give it up. I won't come easy." warns Puru.

"You will." Puru starts tickling Arya behind the ears and Arya bursts into laughter. Puru could not hold on longer and gives in.

Vidyut could not take it anymore either. Surya's playfulness was already pushing him to edge. He pushed back Surya's hands to the bed and held them there. The next moment he attacked Surya's right cheek. He hoped Surya did not find him too aggressive. But, Vidyut had to stay in character. He continued to kiss Surya's cheeks, ears and neck, although Surya was trying hard to push Vidyut back. But suddenly, Surya's facial expression changed from playful to full of passion. Vidyut could see Surya was caught in the moment, his eyes were closed, his lips were puckered, and he was breathing heavy. That was Vidyut's cue. He removed all the buttons of Surya's shirt with one yank and exposed his chest. He was about to continue down his kisses.

"Are you really turned on by me?" Surya teased.

"Shut the f*ck up." Vidyut burst out laughing and slapped Surya. It was a running joke. Everybody in the crew said Vidyut had a “crush” on Surya.

The whole crew started laughing and that eased up the tension that had built up in the room. Surya knew perfectly how to loosen a tense situation.

"WTF, Surya", yelled Na’arvi lightheartedly. "That was a perfectly good moment and you completely destroyed it."

"You were recording the whole time? Gosh! Did you take my permission?" Vidyut asked but Na’arvi knew Vidyut was just teasing her.

"To hell with your permission." She retorted back, mockingly. But, in her heart Na’arvi knew where Vidyut's concern came from. He was always so possessive about anything related to Surya. She will prod them about it someday.

"You should be the director, one of these days." Said Jui. She was Na’arvi's assistant, and basically followed her wherever she went.

"With these two, do we even need one? Haha."

The whole crew decided they will all go out for dinner tonight.

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The four main actors were seated at one table. Surya ordered chicken again and Vidyut knew he would end up eating at least half of it, since Surya will not be able to finish and will try to split the meal. The crew were sitting at another table. Na’arvi, her brother Latik and Valmik, who was Vidyut's cousin, were sitting at an adjacent table.

"Oh, by the way, I fixed the Arya’s tank top problem." Latik informed everyone excitedly. "I took one from Dad. We just need to make holes in it."

"Aww Latik. Thanks. Now, you want me to wear Uncle's old smelly tank top." Surya complained.

"Just trying to solve the problem bro."

"Do not listen to Surya, Latik. You did good," Briharshi, the director chipped in. "Do you know how hard it is to shoot when your actor's wardrobe is uncertain."

"Guys, I also found something for Surya. His sandals. I got an old pair of mine," said Valmik. He was quite helpful from the beginning. He was the one who found Vidyut for Na’arvi and insisted Vidyut play the lead role.

Na’arvi was finding all this amusing.

"Surya, why do not you have your own wardrobe?" Na’arvi teased Surya.

"Yes Surya, where are your clothes? Why are you being so thrifty, huh?" A couple of others repeated what she said.

"Hey," Vidyut spoke up now. "Stop heckling my Surya. Surya, I will buy clothes for you, okay?" Vidyut said in a joking tone. Everyone laughed at Vidyut trying to be all protective about Surya.

"Geez. Who needs your clothes?" Surya shot back at Vidyut, but he was only jesting and Vidyut knew that.

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After they returned to their rooms, Vidyut went straight to bed.

"Won't you change your clothes?" Surya asked as he was changing into something comfy.

"To hell with changing clothes. Come here." Vidyut pulled Surya to bed and started wrestling and squishing him all over the bed.

"Haha."

"Stop it. I have to go, wash my clothes," Surya complained.

"No clothes washing for today. We are going straight to bed."

"Noooo."

"Yesss."

Chapter 5

Surya had settled in nicely in his new dorm room. The schedule was not as busy yet. Unlike other students who were sharing their rooms with two other people, he was just sharing it with one other person, Vidyut. He knew Vidyut for only a couple of weeks, but that time was enough to change his first impression of him. Underneath his brooding demeanor, Vidyut had a cheery and sunny personality. He had strong bonding with people close to him. He had the charisma that Surya himself always longed to have, the kind of appeal that people naturally gravitate towards. But beyond that charm was a child-like innocence that would sometimes come through.

Surya himself made some of his own friends in the class. Veer was a guy from his hometown. He sometimes hung out with Veer. He also introduced himself to a couple of girls. Today, he did not have class early morning. So, he planned to sleep in till noon. He was awakened, though, by Vidyut's alarm. As he was debating whether to get up or go back to sleep, he looked down from his top bunker bed. Vidyut, who occupied the bottom bed, was lying there in a weird face down bottom up position.

"Hey buddy, are you okay?"

"Hmmm?"

"Are you okay? Why are you like that?"

"Like what?"

"Are you sick?"

"Oh no. I am okay."

Then Surya watched Vidyut slowly rise up from the face down position to a sitting posture and opening and closing his eyes a few times. In that moment, Surya could not help but think of Vidyut as a little bunny. He smiled internally.

"Do you have an early class today?"

"Yes."

"Okay, have a good day, then. I am going to sleep in till noon."

Vidyut slowly made his way through the room without making any noise.

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In the evening, Surya planned to meet up with Veer at a nearby café. Veer was already waiting there with a female friend by the time Surya got to the café.

"Sorry, I got caught up with a library card issue."

"That's okay. Hey Surya, meet my friend Dimple."

"Hello, I am Surya."

"Hi, I am Dimple."

Surya took a seat opposite Veer and Dimple, facing the entrance to the café.

"Hey, what are you doing this Saturday? Wanna go to the theater?" Veer asked Surya. Surya contemplated. He had some assignments that he was planning to work on in the weekend.

"I am not sure. I have some homeworks piled up."

"Oh come on, I will bring one of my female friends. Haha," Dimple teased. "It won't be awkward." Surya broke into an uncomfortable laughter. He knew that dating and meeting someone of opposite gender is a part of college life.

"Okay, I will let you guys know by Friday."

"Are you guys from the same place?"

"Yes," Veer answered "we are both from Bhopal. But we went to different schools."

Slowly, the ice broke. Dimple seemed to be a little talkative, but was quite friendly. Surya liked that. Surya wondered if Veer and Dimple are already dating. He would grill him about that later.

All of a sudden, a large party of seemingly spoilt rich kids entered the café. He could see Alok and Raag among others. They all walked past him and went far back.

"Spoilt kids." Veer remarked

At that moment, Surya saw Vidyut emerging through the entrance. Vidyut was not looking at him, so Surya thought it is better to ignore each other. But, just as Vidyut walked past his table, he bumped into Surya.

"Ah sorry."- Vidyut

"Watch it."- Surya

"I will be out late. Do not mind if I wake you up in the middle of the night."- Vidyut

"Do not worry. I will be fast asleep."- Surya

Vidyut smiled his crooked smile and went on to join his party.

"Why did he talk to you?" Dimple asked. "Do you know him?"

"Yeah, he is my room-mate."

"Really? Wow."

"Why?"

"Nothing, my friend used to date him. Do you know the Sharma family of the 'Sharma Biscuits'? He is the first son of that family."

"Oh, I did not know that." Surya replied. "But, I thought he must be rich." Then the three changed their subject of conversation to class schedules and work load.

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It was around 8 p.m. that Surya returned to the dorm. Surprisingly though, Vidyut was there in the room.

"You did not go out tonight then?"

"No, I changed my mind."

"So your family runs the 'Sharma Biscuits'?"

"Yes, why? You want some?" Vidyut asked teasingly.

"Yes, I am a little kid, please give me some biscuits." Surya made some little kid gesture, which Vidyut found cute.

"Okay, but there is nothing for naughty kids here." Vidyut continued to tease.

"Haha, what naughty thing did I do, huh?" Surya was being playful as well. He went to his cupboard and fetched his face mask.

"What is that?" Vidyut asked.

"Face mask."

"For what?"

"To make my face brighter."

"Then why doesn't it work?"

"Shut up." Surya countered with a fake anger.

"No, no, sorry. Haha. I am just kidding. Go ahead, carry on."

"You know, you can use it as well. It is really good for the skin. Your skin will feel different." Surya informed Vidyut.

"Really?"

"Yeah. You can try it and see. Here." Surya almost insisted that Vidyut use the face mask. Vidyut took the mask from Surya.

"Okay. How do you do it?" Vidyut apparently had never used any such thing before. So, he started going through the instructions on the label.

"Here, let me." Surya took the tube of the face mask back and sat in front of Vidyut. He poured some into his hands.

"Close your eyes." Surya asked Vidyut.

"Huh?"

"I will apply it on your face, and you can see how it works. Close your eyes."

Vidyut relented. He closed his eyes, as Surya ordered. Vidyut was amused by Surya's childlike excitement. Slowly, he felt Surya's hands putting the thick cream on his face. Firm fingers went rubbing from his forehead, to his cheeks and around his lips. Surya's fingers were tickling his lips.

"Haha."

"Hey, do not smile. Keep your face straight for the next 15 minutes. I am almost done. Then, you can wash it off and see the change."

"Gosh! I did not know you were so beauty conscious."

"It is not beauty conscious. It is about taking care of one self. Here, I am done."

"Thank you, Surya. Now, it is your turn, right?"

"Huh?"

"You put it on me, let me put it on for you." Vidyut teased Surya.

"No thanks. I am good."

"No way, come here." Vidyut suddenly pulled Surya in and locked his arm around him. Surya tried his best to get out of Vidyut's grip, but was failing miserably. This guy had a lot of strength in his arms, even though Surya never saw him work out. Vidyut somehow managed to open the cap of the mask with the other hand and started applying it on Surya's face.

"Okay, okay. I give up. Let me sit straight. Hold on."

After they sat up straight, Vidyut slowly started to apply the mask on Surya. Surya was surprised by how tender and caring Vidyut's hands were. He face had a look of intense focus as he was completing his job.

"Done. I am a quick learner, right?"

"Cuz, I am a good teacher."

Vidyut smiled. "Yes, you are."

When Vidyut washed his face, it actually did feel softer than before. Was it the mask or Surya's hands, he did not know.

Chapter 6

Continued from chapter 4

... Vidyut pulled Surya to bed and started wrestling and squishing him all over the bed.

"Haha."

"Stop it. I have to go, wash my clothes," Surya complained.

"No clothes washing for today. We are going straight to bed."

"Noooo."

"Yesss."

Vidyut was lying on top of Surya now. He had a smirk on his face. He held Surya's wrists in his hands and pinned them on either side of his head, making sure Surya couldn't move his body too much. A silence set in as Vidyut contemplated his next move. He could feel the thumping in Surya's chest. A small lamp provided a bit of lighting in the room, but that was enough for Vidyut to make out the tear spot on Surya's left cheek bone. Vidyut zeroed in on it. He kissed the mark first, then gently moved on to Surya's cheek bone. Surya knew where this was going. Vidyut was obsessed with Surya's left cheek mole, among other things. Soon, Surya felt a familiar biting sensation on his face.

Suddenly, a cell phone started ringing. It was Vidyut's. Both of them looked to their right where the sound was coming from.

"Mine." Vidyut got up to fetch his cell phone, while Surya remained in bed. It was Na’arvi calling Vidyut. He DID NOT want to take the call right now. He disconnected the call and messaged her that he would call her back.

"Who was that?" Surya said as Vidyut returned to bed. His voiced sounded a little scratchy.

"Na’arvi. I will call her back later." Vidyut laid himself down on Surya again and continued from where he had left off. Sometimes Surya felt that Vidyut could be quite objective when it came to love making.

"Do you think it is something important?" Surya kept questioning.

Vidyut sat up a little and looked at Surya. Immediately, his eyes went to Surya's big wide open eyes. He was looking up at him again with those soulful eyes. There was a moment's silence. Vidyut ran his fingers over Surya's eyes. He could not hold himself off any longer. Surya should be feeling his urgency all this time.

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Na’arvi just got back to her room, when she got a call from director Briharshi.

"Hello."

"Hello Na’arvi, this is Briharshi."

"Briharshi. Hi. What's up? Are you home yet?"

"Yes, I am calling from home. Actually, I am calling because of an emergency."

As it turns out, director Briharshi started feeling chest pain soon after he got home. He called his family physician, who was generous enough to pay him a visit that late at night. However, what he suspected was quite serious. He advised Briharshi to get admitted to a hospital immediately, and take off from work for at least two weeks.

"Do you need a ride to the hospital? Do you need any help?" Na’arvi asked with concern.

"No, it is okay. My assistant is taking me to the hospital. I just wanted to let you know, before I left."

"It is okay, Brisharshi. Do not worry about us. Just take care of your health, okay? And take as much time off as needed. I will pay you a visit at the hospital."

"Thank you, Na’arvi."

Na’arvi got off the phone with Briharshi, but she already knew that it was quite a situation they got themselves in. Producing something was never going to be easy, she knew from the beginning. A lot of unforeseen things can happen.

"Who was that?" Lucky, Na’arvi's secretary, asked as she came in the room. Lucky lived next door. They had all booked a guest house to stay at during the shooting. Only some of the crew commuted from their homes.

Na’arvi described the whole situation to Lucky.

"Wow, so basically Briharshi is out for the rest of the schedule." Lucky always got to the center of the problem. That was why Na’arvi was so fond of her.

"Yes."

"For now, the assistant director can handle the situation."

"Yeah, but he might have to handle the situation for the rest of the series. Lemme call Vidyut and see what he says."

She dialed Vidyut's number, but her call got disconnected. Moments later, she got an sms from Vidyut saying he will call her back. He was probably still out. Na’arvi was thinking, she must up her game. With the main director out of the scenario, she did not know how the rest of the web series would play out. But, then the image of Vidyut and Surya, together, came to her mind. She felt that no matter how the series goes, the natural chemistry of Vidyut and Surya should be enough to pull it off and maybe, she could actually sell them as a couple to the fangirls and in fan-meetings and that should be enough to hype up the web series.

Suddenly, another realization dawned on her. She had just come up with their couple name, 'Virya'.

Chapter 7

Classes were in full swing. For Surya, college was much more enjoyable than high school; he was studying all his favorite subjects. Acting, acting and more acting. Also a little bit of literature and history. Vidyut, his roommate, on the other hand, rarely made it to class. He spent a lot of time at home, which was apparently not that far from the dorm. The time that he did come to college, he spent a lot of it with 'Stylers'. That was the name Vidyut's nearest two friends, Raag and Alok, went by. They were some kind of music group.

This morning Surya woke up before Vidyut, as was usual. He was preparing to leave for his classes, when Vidyut called him out.

"Surya, are you going to theatre class at 2 o' clock today?"

"Yeah, you will be there?"

"Yes. I guess."

"Okay, see you in class then." But, Vidyut did not reply. He had gone back to sleep.

At 2, Surya headed to the theatrical arts class. As soon as he entered, Dimple called out his name and he made his way over to her. In the last couple of months, Surya had made some good friends and Dimple was one of them. He was still unsure if he wanted to date anyone, though. When he left his hometown, he promised himself that his one and only goal would be to become a successful actor.

"Ready with today's monologue?" Dimple asked. Dimple was there to just have fun, Surya perceived and she loved to embarrass the teacher.

"You mean the ten page Shakespearean monologue that people would barely understand. Yeah."

Suddenly, there was an increased chattering in the classroom. His roommate Vidyut had just arrived with his friends. Vidyut's friends circle was sort of the popular crowd of the campus, but as a roommate, Vidyut was quite modest. Vidyut could also cook, which always surprised Surya and would frequently share his food with Surya.

"Okay, class, this is our third class of the semester." The teacher addressed the class. "Starting this week, our classes would get more regular in preparation for the upcoming class drama. So, I hope you all prepared your monologues for today. Who wants to go first?"

"He will." Yelled out Raag and pointed towards Vidyut. Best friend in the truest sense, thought Vidyut and mouthed "F**k you" to Raag.

Vidyut walked up to face the class. He had no idea what that f**king monologue was.

"Hello everyone, I am Vidyut and I will present to you the most chilling Shakespearean monologue you have ever heard. But first a little about Shakespeare, he was a good person, a very good person. He wrote some very good stories in his lifetime, like about this couple who died." By that point, almost everyone realized Vidyut was trolling and many were laughing blatantly.

"Okay, okay. That's enough. Please go back." The teacher sent Vidyut back. "Someone else wants to volunteer?"

"I can." Dimple offered immediately. She pranced up to the front.

"Okay, mkh mkh," Dimple started clearing her voice, "So that you understand how serious I am, I'm going to say this in English. As your leader, I encourage you from time to time, and always in a respectful manner, to question my logic. If you're unconvinced that a particular plan of action I've decided is the wisest, tell me so, but allow me to convince you and I promise you right here and now, no subject will ever be taboo. Except, of course, the subject that was just under discussion. The price you pay for bringing up either my Veernese or American heritage as a negative is, I collect your f--king head. Just like this f--ker here." The class was impressed and some were snickering but the instructor was not happy at all. Because, of course, this monologue from the movie 'Kill Bill' was in no way related to a Shakespearean monologue.

"Dimple, please go back to your place." The teacher was positively disturbed. "Surya, can you come next?"

Surya was quite well prepared with his monologue but somehow the cheery mood of the class was affecting him.

"Sure." He walked up to the front.

"Hello, how are you? I am Surya and today I will present a monologue from Mid Summer Night's Dream as F*ck... I mean Puck." At this point, everyone burst out laughing. Vidyut smirked a little. The teacher realized that even Surya is no good today, but he let him continue.

"Gentles, do not reprehend:

if you pardon, we will mend:

And, as I am an honest F*ck... I mean Puck"

By this point, every single student in the class was rolling on the floor laughing. Even Vidyut could not control himself anymore. He burst out laughing, his laughter all sunny and innocent. In that moment, Surya's eyes caught Vidyut's cheery smile and his heart skipped a beat.

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The next day when Vidyut returned from class to the dorm, Surya was agitatedly going through his stuff. He seemed nervous and in a hurry. Vidyut watched him for a minute or two.

"You okay, bro?"

"Hmm, yeah yeah. Umm.." and he continued fidgeting and messing with his stuff.

"You were funny yesterday, that was damn good. Haha." Vidyut mentioned the Shakespearean 'tragedy'. Surya thought about it for a moment and stopped.

"Haha. Thanks. You were funny too."

Surya's cell phone started ringing at that point.

"Hello." There was a female voice on the other end and Surya took the phone outside.

But, Vidyut had already heard the girl's voice because, of course, Surya being Surya put the phone on the highest volume possible. Silly Round face, Vidyut thought and smiled internally again. Vidyut had never come across anyone like Surya in his entire life. Surya probably had no idea how unintentionally funny he was. The other day in the gym, Surya fixatedly kept hitting the basket ball with his behind and insisted that it was funny. It was funny, but Vidyut would not admit that. Vidyut usually liked to keep a little distance with people (unless they are his really good friends). But, with Surya, it was getting more and more difficult. He always managed to make Vidyut smile and Vidyut did want a friend like that. May be he would slowly let Surya in his circle. But, Vidyut was aware of his gullibility and some people in his circle were really mean.

"Date?" Vidyut asked Surya, when he came back in after he was done on phone.

"Huh, no. Just a friend. We will hang out a little."

"Female friend."

"Umm," Surya hesitated a little. "Yeah."

"Then, that is a date. You sure you wanna wear that, bro."

"Hmm, why? Doesn't look nice?"

"Gosh! A flowery shirt on a first date. Are you dating a guy or what? Gosh!"

"Hey , hey, hey! This is a good shirt, okay. It brings out my complexion."

"F*ck complexion! Wear something nice and simple, that matches you. Do you have a black or a white shirt?"

"Yup, I have a black one. One sec." Surya quickly changed into a black shirt.

"What are you doing?" Vidyut asked again when he saw Surya tucking his shirt in his pants. "Is this a job interview? Tuck it out." Vidyut almost ordered Surya.

"No, this looks more manly to me."

"Gosh! Would you tuck it out or what?" Vidyut was this close to pull Surya's shirt out himself.

"Okay, okay." Surya relented. "You know in my hometown, this dressing is not considered manly at all."

"Welcome to Mumbai."

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After Surya left, Vidyut himself started thinking about calling up his longtime on-again off-again girlfriend and 'spend some quality time' with her. But then he did not have the energy to deal with her sh*t again. So, instead he called the Stylers and asked them hangout with him. They lived one floor above.

"Ummm, when will college end?" Alok asked sleepily. "Guys, will you please not smoke in here?"

Vidyut and Raag had just lit cigarettes and on hearing Alok nag, Vidyut placed his mouth right in front of Alok and exhaled all the smoke. Sometimes Vidyut would love to tease Alok's diva-like personality, but instead of getting angry, Alok just smiled faintly.

"By the way, I found out about a street dancing group. You guys in?" Vidyut asked the Stylers. He was always keen on dancing and knew he must have some good moves if he wanted to make it to the show business.

"Sure." Raag agreed.

"I will be there to just watch." Alok said, like a true lazyhead.

"Come on LoLo, try to move your body a lil. Otherwise, you will forget which is your hand and which is your leg." Vidyut teased him again.

"Shut up".

Raag's phone started ringing. His current girlfriend was calling him. After he finished the call, he informed the other two that he had to go.

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Surya returned to the dorm at nine p.m., which he would say was quite late for him. In the north, where he is from, people would rarely stay out after seven p.m., you see. As he was approaching his room, Alok open the door and came out of it.

"Hi." Surya greeted Alok

"Hi...Oh Hiiiii. Looking handsome!"

"Haha, yeah. Just went out with friends."

"He means his girlfriend." Vidyut shouted from inside.

"The color suits you." Alok chirped happily and left.

Sometime later that night, Vidyut asked Surya if he wanted to join him for the street dance group. Surya readily agreed.

"I know some moves already." Surya informed him."You wanna see?"

"Sure."

Then, Surya did some hip-hop and b-boying. Vidyut was impressed.

"At least, there is something you are good at." Vidyut said.

"There are many things I am good at. You just do not it know, yet. Haha." Surya replied and Vidyut wondered what those things could be.

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Next day, Surya, Vidyut and Alok went to the dance class. Raag was still busy with the thing he was busy with the previous night. As Alok had indicated, he had no dancing skills at all. He had the worst hand-eye-body coordination Surya had ever seen and Surya could barely control his laughter. Eventually, Alok just gave in and sat in the corner. Vidyut, on the other hand, was not bad at all. He had a natural sense of rhythm. Surya himself took dance classes for several years and his dancing looked quite professional. He figured he had to be as well-prepared as possible for his future career.

"Okay, let us divide ourselves in groups of two and come up with some acrobatia moves."

Surya and Vidyut decided to stick together.

"Can you pick me up?"

"Huh?" Vidyut was taken aback by Surya's question.

"I know some moves but you need to be strong enough to pick me up." Surya clarified.

"I can try." Vidyut lifted him up bridal style.

"Oh god, no no. I wasn't talking about this. Haha. I get the idea. Okay, okay. Put me down, put me down." But, Vidyut kept on holding him up and just started fooling around and running around with Surya in his arms. Vidyut thought it was rather funny. Eventually, after he put Surya down, Surya whispered into his ears what moves he was thinking about.

"Okay, Vidyut and Surya, you are next. Let's see what moves you guys came up with."

Both of them stepped up. Surya jumped onto Vidyut's arms and then his back and likewise, they performed the series of acrobatic moves the way they had planned. It was smoothly executed and everyone there was very impressed.

"Wow," the instructor said, "That was very impressive. You guys practiced very well."

"No, no. This is the first time we are doing this." Vidyut said proudly.

"Wow, you two have the perfect coordination."

"Of course, we do." Surya said. "We are a match made in heaven, haha." Surya bantered and Vidyut smiled, faintly.

A Match Made in Heaven.

Chapter 8

Next morning Surya had the chance to sleep in till late. Na’arvi had already informed him and Vidyut of the situation with director Briharshi and that assistant director Janak would take over. But, since Janak needed time to wrap his head over his already existing responsibilities as well as the new ones, he gave them a day off. Na’arvi did not want to waste even a single day, though. So, she planned a ‘Countryside Date’ day.

The idea was that 'Virya' will go to the countryside (or the nearest countryside that they could manage to find near Mumbai city) and shoot some of her behind the scenes videos, may be ride the bike that they were going to use in a sequence. Vidyut was telling Surya all this, but he was still half asleep. He was dead tired yesterday and then.....

Umm, anyways.

The idea of riding on a bike wasn't boding well with Surya after last night’s workout.

"Can we just take a break today?" Surya asked sleepily.

"Come on, coomme oonnn." Vidyut persisted. He, on the other hand, was excited by the idea of going for an outing. It had been a while since he had spent some quality time with Surya. "It will be a nice break for us. It has been a while since we spent some quiet time."

"Quiet time, with Na’arvi there with us? Haha."

Yeah, Vidyut knew how every time they want to get cozy, Na’arvi shoves her little camera to their faces. But, since she is paying them, she does own every second of their time.

"I will get us off the hook early. Then we can go somewhere. Come on. If the shoot resumes from tomorrow, the schedule will get hectic again. We would barely spend even one minute alone."

Surya agreed eventually.

When they got out, they spotted Na’arvi already waiting for them with a car and a cute purple scooty. Her brother Latik and her assistant, Lucky, were also standing there with her. The idea was to find the nearest countryside and shoot some 'lovey-dovey' scenes.

"After that I will pay a visit to Briharshi at the hospital. Do you guys wanna tag along?" She asked the boys.

Vidyut and Surya looked each other for a moment too along.

"Umm, ... yeah. Sure, sure." Surya replied.

'Virya' rode the bike while the other three drove the car. After 15 minutes of driving away from the city, they found a scenic landscape with paddy fields and dirt roads. The air was fresh, unlike the polluted city air, and the weather was nice and sunny.

"Let's make a stop here," Na’arvi said. They looked around to figure out the best way to capture their ‘Countryside Date’.

"I can drive the bike and Surya can sit on the back and hold onto me like a lady," Vidyut said with a teasing smile on his face. Surya swatted him on the head playfully.

"Shouldn't you be the one sitting on the back?" Surya retorted.

"Your back? Sure." Vidyut teased him again and got another swat in the return. Na’arvi was half listening to their camaraderie, while trying to fix the video camera.

"You know what," Surya went ahead and sat on the front seat of the bike. Vidyut quickly ran to him and started to push him off his seat. Both of them were trying their best to push the other to the back seat. Vidyut quickly gained edge and successful pushed Surya to the back.

"Okay guys, why don’t you start riding the scooty like a couple in love, and our car will follow you with the camera?"

"Sure." Vidyut replied. He was ready to drive the scooty. Surya was annoyed that Vidyut overpowered him and he wasn't ready to give in so easily. So, he went ahead and sat facing backwards.

"What a loser!" Vidyut jabbed.

"Shut up and start driving already. Do not keep the customer waiting." Surya snapped.

Vidyut started the scooty but was careful in driving it because Surya was facing backwards. He did not have much to hold on to for support. The bike started running at a lower speed on the dirt road and Na’arvi started recording.

After 5 minutes or so, Surya started to get dizzy from facing backwards.

"Hey, hey. Stop. Stop. I wanna turn around." Vidyut stopped and Surya sat properly this time. They started riding again, all the while Na’arvi was shooting the boys.

"You know why I turned? Because I want to hug my Vidyut," Surya was talking to the camera now. "Like this." Then he hugged Vidyut from the back. Vidyut knew Surya was just pretending but he did not mind really, as long as he got Surya holding on to him.

"You know why my Vidyut is the best?" Surya kept chatting with the camera, "cuz he never lets anyone else ride his bike. Just me." Gosh, Surya was really stretching this, Vidyut thought. He was probably still a little cranky.

"Do you know why I love Vidyut, cuz he will let me do anything." Surya kept on ranting on camera. "like he will let me put both my legs on his lap while he is driving, like this." Then he brings both his legs up on Vidyut's lap on the scooty and kept holding on to Vidyut.

"Okay, okay, you wanna drive?"

"I do not drive, I ride."

"Shut up. Stop being a smartass. Get on the front."

This time Surya drove the bike and Vidyut sat on the back. The scooty was quite small and Vidyut could barely fit on the back seat. Surya started slowly and was a little unsure at first, which worried Vidyut, but eventually it got smoother.

"Hey, do you want to do some tricks?" Vidyut asked Surya.

"What trick?"

"Let's make a heart sign with your right hand and my left hand like this." He gestured to Surya holding up his arm and curving it like one half of a heart.

"Okay."

"Hey Na’arvi," Vidyut called out to Na’arvi. "We are going to do a trick."

"Okay." Na’arvi replied. "Go on. I am recording."

Virya made a cute heart sign with their hands and did a few other tricks as well.

"Where did you find this gay-ass scooty? The f*cking engine keeps failing." Vidyut asked Na’arvi after they were done with the recording.

"Umm, actually, it's mine." Replied Na’arvi's secretary, Lucky. Lucky was a fangirl and loved 'Virya' as a 'ship'. She was psyched that Virya just rode her scooty and did not really mind whatever feedback Vidyut had for the scooty.

"Why do you have this jerk of a scooty? Na’arvi doesn't pay you?" Vidyut said jokingly. "Next time you buy a scooty, let me know. Okay?"

"That's okay. Thank you for your generosity." Lucky replied shyly. But inside, she thought she just fainted. Did Vidyut just offer to buy her a scooty? Oh My God. If this gets out, all her BL fangirl friends will kill her. But that was not anything unexpected of Vidyut. She knew how generous he was with everyone.

Eventually, they started heading back. As promised Vidyut and Surya accompanied Na’arvi to the hospital to visit Briharshi. He was recovering quite well and was to be discharged soon. But, there was no way he would be back to the project any time soon. Na’arvi worried about it but kept quiet for now. After spending a while with director Briharshi, Virya said their good-byes and left the hospital. It was afternoon and the sun was still high up.

"Hey, I saw a fair at Wankhede stadium. Do you wanna go?" Vidyut asked Surya. They still had almost half of the day off and he wanted to do something fun with Surya. It had been while since the two really hung out, just the two of them.

"How? Walk from here?" The stadium was at least five miles from where they were standing now.

"I will call a taxi-cab." Vidyut replied.

"Let us take the bus."

"Bus will take time. I wanna be there right now."

"What? Haha. Why are you getting so excited? Are you a kid?" Surya was amused by Vidyut's sudden child-like enthusiasm.

"I am not, but you are."

"Shut up. Let us take the bus. It will save some money."

"Will you stop being such a stickler for a second? I am calling the cab. I will pay."

"If you call a taxi, I am not going. I wanna ride a bus. Ride a bus. Ride a bus." Surya kept insisting. In the end, Vidyut agreed and they got on the bus.

The bus was jam packed, probably because many people were going to the same fun-fair that Virya were going. The fair in the Wankhede stadium was a popular yearly event held every summer. In the bus, there were no empty seats and they barely had space to stand. Vidyut hated this stuffy jampacked atmosphere. He did not know how Surya could bear it. As the bus started moving, it jerked a lot. When he turned to his left to check on Surya, he noticed a couple of dirty looking men standing right beside Surya. Gosh! Those perverts had to just come and stand right beside Surya, Vidyut thought.

The more the bus was jolting, the more one of them kept shoving onto Surya. That was it. Vidyut could not stand it anymore and glared at that man. But, the man ignored his scowls and kept pushing onto Surya. And Surya seemed quite unaware of all this.

"Hey Surya, why do not you come to this side? It's jerking too much over there." Vidyut said.

"No, I am okay." Surya replied.

"Then let me stand over there." Vidyut somehow managed to move in that jampacked bus and situate himself between that idiot and Surya. However, it seemed that the idiot learned nothing and now he was trying to place his hand on the support rod where Surya was placing his hand. That did it, Vidyut lost his cool.

"Yo man! Watch it." He warned the guy.

"Watch what? He your boyfriend? F*cking fa**ot."

"What did you say?" Vidyut was in full-on rage mode now and ready to take a swing at the man. Suddenly, the bus halted.

"It is our stop. Let us get off." Surya spoke at last. He was able to slice through the crowd quickly and get off the bus. Vidyut followed him closely, but he was still livid with what just happened.

As soon as they got off, Surya started walking in a general direction.

"Where are you going? The stadium is in the other direction." Vidyut called out after Surya.

"I know." Surya replied, but he did not stop. He kept walking. Vidyut followed him. Surya was walking fast and Vidyut had to hurry to catch up.

"You are pissed? That stupid f*ck was being a f*cktard." Vidyut tried to explain but Surya did not reply. Vidyut knew that Surya was annoyed with him over what transpired in the bus. He knew that Surya never liked it much (rather got pissed) whenever Vidyut tried to protect him. Surya was a man after all, perfectly capable of taking care of himself. He probably thought that Vidyut was a jerk for creating a scene like that. But, he did not care, really. Vidyut would do whatever it takes to protect the man he loved.

They walked like that silently for ten more minutes. Surya's pace had slowed down now. They found themselves in front of a small open grassy area with a few shrubs and plants here and there. It looked kind of deserted. Surya went down to the area and stood against a railing. He was looking at the view from the railing. The sun was just setting and there was a beautiful glowing red light everywhere. They could see the blinking city lights. It was a quiet, calm moment.

Vidyut lit up a cigarette. Surya had not looked at him even once since they got off the bus. They usually did not get into arguments much, and whenever they did, Surya had the tendency to shut out everything.

"Give me one." Vidyut heard Surya speak.

"Huh?"

"Give me a cigarette."

Vidyut handed him one.

"Lighter?"

"Do not have one. Used the last of my matchsticks as well."

Surya looked at Vidyut for a moment to see if he was kidding. Then he brought the cigarette to his lips and turned towards Vidyut to use Vidyut's cigarette to light up his own. He held Vidyut's head steady in his hands, so they can touch the tips of the cigarettes. All the while, Vidyut's mind was racing. He was sure it could not be a simple cigarette lighting. He had a strong feeling that this was some sort of precedence. He looked at Surya. Surya was staring at him, hard, right into his eyes. Now, his heart started racing as well.

Surya backed up a little. He removed the cigarette from his mouth and removed Vidyut's as well. He stared at Vidyut for a moment or two. His breathing was getting heavy. He slowly ran his thumb over Vidyut's soft lips. He pried the lips open a little. Vidyut was slowly realizing what Surya wanted. He could feel the pressure of Surya's hands on his head. They were pressing him down.

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At last, Vidyut stood up from his kneeling posture.

There was a playful smile on his face.

"My turn," he said trying to turn Surya around.

"Shut up, no." Surya replied, swatting away his hand. He put his trunks back on.

"What? I helped you out. It's my turn. Please."

"Then suffer. That's your punishment."

There was a dirty smile on his face. Vidyut did not know what Surya was planning on, but whatever it was, he looked forward to it.

"Are you going to stand there like an idiot, or are you coming to the stadium?"

"Yup, coming."

They made their way towards the stadium.

Chapter 9

Surya could not believe it's already five months into college. He is doing very well in his acting class. His dancing skills have improved too, thanks to the street dancing group he joined. As it turns out, his good friend Dimple is a killer dancer as well. She is already in a contemporary dance group and he has seen some of her moves. Just Killer. That's all he can say. In fact, she is a really nice kind of a girl, sweet and friendly. It would not be bad if he asks her out, may be.

"Do not you get tired of staring at yourself, all day long?" Surya heard Vidyut's voice in the background and realized he is holding a mirror in his hand.

"I never get tired of looking at this handsome face." Surya replied.

"Is that why you keep staring at my handsome face?" Vidyut quipped, with a mischievous smile on his face.

"Shut up. I do not stare at your face." Suddenly, Surya got all shy, which Vidyut found a little weird.

Surya could not believe Vidyut actually noticed that. He thought he was not that obvious. And the reason he stared was very simple. He found Vidyut amusing. Very amusing. He watched Vidyut in most of his classes. His acting class, his dance group. He could tell Vidyut was always trying his best. Like a little kid trying to get the biggest jar of candy. He suddenly remembered the time when Vidyut was watching a street dance video in his class. Surya was so happy that someone shared his deep interest of street dancing and could not help but go and ask Vidyut about it. Once they started chatting, he realized that not only they were street dancing enthusiasts, but they also shared common interest in singing too. Vidyut even showed him an interesting app where you can actually record covers for songs. Wow. That day was the real icebreaker between them. They even ended up going out for dinner and dancing.

"What are you doing next week?" Vidyut asks him.

"Next week? You mean for Christmas?"

"Yes, some of us are arranging a campus party."

"Oh, I might visit Bhopal on 24th but I will be back here for 25th. May be then..."

"Great, then you are in."

"Huh? ...Haha. Okay."

After class, Surya was supposed to meet up with his friend Dimple. He was still waiting for the right time to officially ask her out. She is one talented girl. Acting, singing and, most of all, her dancing. How someone can be so talented in everything, he wondered. If only he can take some inspiration from her.

"Hey Riri boy, wassup?"- He turned and saw Dimple was walking towards him.

"Not much, Dimpu, my girl."

"Haha. I like it."

"What?" Surya asked, feigning innocence.

"What you just called me."

"Okay, then that's what I will call you from now on, haha. Umm, are you going to the Christmas party?"

"Of course. Do you think the party will start without me?"

"Umm, I am going too. Umm..may be we can...go together?" Surya was a little nervous asking a girl out for the first time. What if she turns him down, what if she hates him or worse, slaps him?

"Haha. Sorry. I cannot. I already promised someone I will go with him."

"Oh."

"Maybe you can go with your rich boyfriend."

"Rich boyfriend?"

"Yes, that Mr. Paris Hilton."

"Huh, Vidyut?? Oh, god no. I do not want to listen to his nagging for the rest of my Christmas day party."

"OMG. You are one faithful friend!"

So, that was how Surya's first attempt at asking Dimple out ended. She was not entirely unhappy about it, at least. May be the New Year.

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Surya returned from his parents place in Bhopal on 24th, as promised. Vidyut texted him beforehand, telling him to find him as soon as he arrived. He was really looking for some helping hands for the party. Surya looked around for Vidyut and found him in their auditorium hall. That was where the party was supposed to be. However, it was far from looking like a party venue. All the decorations were lying all over the floor and Vidyut's friend circle was busy taking selfies and chatting in Whatsapp and what not. And in the center of all this was Vidyut.

"Wow, this place looks amazing." Surya commented, with his ever-present sarcasm.

"Hi. Yes, we did not get much done. We are discussing what will be the best way to put the decorative lamps. Then the decorations themselves won't take much long."

Every year, the ruling student's association arranges the party. This year Vidyut's friend circle won the student election. And this is the result. Surya sighed, silently.

"Umm, okay. I think since we do not have much time, let us do it in teams of three. One can work on decorations, the other can work on lighting and the third team should arrange the sound system."

"Yup. That sounds cool." Vidyut replied, nonchalantly. Cool? At least, Surya got things rolling. Soon, the decorations were put in place. Surya, being a stickler and perfectionist, ensured everything was running smoothly and in place. The 'rich kid' group was not as bad as he thought. At least, they were carrying out his instructions.

It was late, around two a.m. when they finished.

"Guys, let's have some beer." Someone suggested.

"I do not think any bar is open this late." Someone else commented. In the end, they all went up to Surya's room. Some of Vidyut's female friends also came in, which Surya was a little unused to.

"Guys, wanna play a game of truth or dare?" Alok asked.

"Shut up, you just wanna kiss some guys." A girl teased Alok.

"Better than your dirty lips." Alok teased back and got a smack in response.

Everyone is pretty much drunk, Surya thought, and so was he.

"Ok. Let's spin the bottle." As suspected, the first target was Alok.

"Dare."

"Kiss a guy!" Vidyut cried, laughingly.

"I will kiss you." Alok replied and jumped towards Vidyut and started attacking Vidyut with fake kisses. Surya found it hilarious. He was really drunk, he thought.

In the next spin, the bottle stopped in front of Raag. He also chose dare and unsurprisingly was asked to kiss. A girl, this time though. Soon, it turned more into a kissing game. Seemed like everyone was kissing everyone; however, at least, the kissing was limited to cheeks. But, kissing girls even on cheeks is not bad, right? However, the Kiss Gods were not as kind to Surya. The bottle never seemed to stop in front of Surya.

"Aww, please god, can the bottle stop in front of our cute Surya? Haha. He is the only one getting left out." One of the girls joked. She was sitting quite close to Surya, too and getting very comfy. But, Surya was thinking about New Years and Dimple.

And as if the Gods listened to her prayers, the bottle stopped right in front of Surya.

"Oh no." Surya said, acting terrified of the outcome. "Umm, truth?"

"Shut up b*tch. We only take Dares." A guy hollered. They were now dangerously drunk it seems.

"Okay, fine. Dare." Surya immediately agreed.

"Kiss." Vidyut demanded immediately.

"Yes, I will kiss you, you little princess." Surya wanted to tease Vidyut a little because Vidyut seemed to be evading the kisses from everyone the whole night.

"No f*cking way. Stay away from me, you gay f*cker." Vidyut yelled but there was faint amusement in his voice.

"No way. Come here, my princess." Cried Surya and charged towards Vidyut. The whole act was pretty hilarious, Surya trying to give fake kisses to Vidyut and Vidyut trying his best to avoid them.

"You little Round face! Wait." Suddenly Vidyut turned over and slammed his mouth to Surya's. In the next moment Surya realized Vidyut's whole tongue was shoved inside his mouth. That was all he could remember before everything went black.

When Surya opened his eyes next morning, the ceiling looked a little too high. His mind was not up and running yet. The first thing he felt was his brain throbbing severely. He tried to look around and found that he was not in his bed. He immediately sat up and saw that he was actually on Vidyut's bed, while Vidyut was sleeping on the floor. Some of his friends were sleeping there too. One guy was sleeping near his feet on the bed. Ughh, another drunken night. He looked at the clock. 12:30 P.M. Quite late, but he has woken up later. He got up from the bed and started waking everyone up.

Soon after, everyone left. But, Vidyut was still lying prostrate on the floor, sound asleep apparently.

"Hey you idiot, wake up....Vidyut."

"Ughh, why are you shouting?"

"Get on the bed, do not lie on the floor. I need to clean the floor."

"Later."

"Come on, get up." Actually, it bothered Surya somehow, looking at Vidyut, the rich princess, to lie on the floor like that. He started kicking him now.

"Come on, get up...now."

"Okay, okay." Vidyut slowly started getting up, in his typical motion, and eventually got to his bed.

Surya immediately got to cleaning up the room. There was something bothering him though, something in the back of his mind that he could not put his finger on. Something from last night that he just could not remember, thanks to all the beer he drank. However, he did not dwell on it. There was not much time left before the party and Surya was looking forward to it.

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By six o' clock, Surya got dressed and was ready to leave for the party. But it would not start before seven. So he decided to hang out with his friend Veer, for a bit. Vidyut was not in the room either. Most probably, he would go to the party with his own Whatsapp friends.

"Hello, Veer?" Surya rang up Veer. "Did you already leave for the party?.....Oh I see. Me neither. But, I am ready. Let's hang out for a bit before it starts......Where? In the Arts section cafe? Okay. I'll be there."

When Surya went in the café, he spotted Veer. There were 5 or 6 of his other friends too, from his acting class.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing much." Veer seemed a little uncomfortable, but Surya did not badger him with questions. He looked around.

"I checked out the venue, looking cool. Nice job."

"Yeah. Thanks." Surya did not realize that they knew about him helping with the decorations. May be that was what was bothering Veer.

"Did you guys see Dimple?" Surya asked, pretending to be cool about it.

"Nope. So, did you find a date for today?"

"If I did, would I be here hanging out with you losers?"

Soon, it was seven and the group headed for the party. When they reached the venue, there were already throngs of people arriving. The hall was indeed very nicely decorated, Surya was appreciating his own work. It was a very party like ambience. One of his favorite rock music was playing too. Surya tried to search for Dimple, but she was still nowhere to be seen.

"Dude, let's get something to eat." Rana suggested. Rana was really nice and they seem to hit it off. He had a chubby looking face, which gave brotherly vibes to Surya. Once Rana suggested, Surya realized he was quite hungry. He hadn't eaten anything since last night. The whole group made a beeline for the snacks table. Surya took some of the pastry and a slice of cake. As he turned to eat, his eyes went automatically to the door. He saw Dimple at the door, looking flawless. But what caught his eye was the guy beside her. Standing there with his arm around her waist was Vidyut.

Suddenly the pastry turned bitter in his mouth. An anger like feeling surged within him. The music was suddenly sounding too shrill to his ears. Dimple's eyes caught his. She seemed like she will approach him to talk. But he did not want to. He threw away the uneaten snack and left the scene.

One of Surya's favorite hangout place was the rooftop of his section building. Whenever he wanted to get away, or get some studying done, he would go there. So, unsurprisingly, he went to the rooftop this time too, to cool off. There was no one else there right now. Everyone was at the party. Again, the scene at the party flashed before his eyes. Dimple standing there with Vidyut. He realized how angry he was, but did not know why. Dimple did tell him that someone else asked her out. But, never in his wildest dreams, he would have guessed that it was that idiot Vidyut. Why would he effing do that when he clearly knew that Surya was trying to ask Dimple out?!! And Dimple even asked if Surya was going to the party with Vidyut? Was she making fun of him? She never even talked kindly about Vidyut; how come she agreed? Why the heck is everyone out there to get to him? Ughh. This is so messed up. He decided not to care about it anymore and go back to the party and enjoy the night.

"Hi." Just then he heard a female voice and turned. Dimple was standing at the entrance to the roof top.

"Are you okay?"

"Hah! Yes." Surya answered, smiling sarcastically.

"I saw you leaving so suddenly." Dimple said, slowly approaching Surya.

"Really?"

"Yeahh." She smiled faintly.

Surya turned and looked at the city view.

"You shouldn't have left your precious prince there." Surya said.

"I did not." She smiled and suddenly placed her hand on top of his. “My date cancelled and he offered.”

As soon as Surya turned towards her, she stole a kiss from his cheek. There was a faint smile on her lips. Surya realized this moment was too romantic to let go. He slowly placed his lips on hers. This was the first time he ever kissed anyone....as an adult, he thought. He was a little nervous and a little excited. Slowly the kiss turn deeper. It was minutes before they realized they were out in the cold on a rooftop, in a cold winter's night.

"Wanna come back to my room?"

"Room mates?"

"I told them not to disturb me tonight." She said with a flirtatious smile.

"Oh okay." Surya followed her to her dorm. It was just five minutes walk from the campus.

Her room smelled really nice. Like the smell of lavender. His favorite. She was smelling of lavendars too. Tonight, he wanted to embrace her sweetly and gently.

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Chapter 10

Continued from Chapter 8

"Are you going to stand there like an idiot, or are you coming to the stadium?"

"Yup, coming."

They made their way towards the stadium.

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The stadium was extremely crowded to say the least. The fair was in its full blown mode. Vidyut and Surya stood near a recognizable spot, waiting for Raag. Alok was supposed to join them too, but he was bringing his girlfriend. And with girls, well, Vidyut thought, you could never tell. Always take forever to get dressed. Vidyut thought back on his ex, Sherry. She was an exception though. Very resourceful and on top of things, did not need much taking care of. Unlike his present girlfriend. He looked at Surya, a faint smile on his face. This damsel. Taking forever to get dressed, always in need to be taken care of, almost demanding that Vidyut take care of him. An overwhelming feeling came over Vidyut and he could not help but put an arm over Surya.

At that moment Surya got a text on his cell phone and took a quick look.

"Who? Na’arvi?" Vidyut asked.

"No."

"You have a lot of secret friends, do not you?"

"So?" Surya questioned him back. Ugh, so angsty. Tonight is gonna be one angsty night.

Before Vidyut could say anything, he heard Raag call out his name.

"Vidyut!"

"Hey, you guys took forever."

"Sorry, it is just me. Alok hasn't replied to my text yet."

"I think we can look around then. He is probably busy, hehe." Vidyut gave Raag a knowing look and that irritated Surya. Surya always gets irritated when guys act so foolish regarding love making.

"I think let us wait a little or may be text him again." Surya suggested.

But right then, Raag got a call from Alok who said he will be there in half an hour and his girlfriend would be accompanying him too. So, the other three need not wait for him.

"Told ya." Vidyut said proudly, which made Surya roll his eyes.

The fair was quite bustling. There was a ferris wheel, but it was not as big as the one in Bhopal. Surya still wanted to ride it. He asked Vidyut if they could ride the ferris wheel. Vidyut found the idea absolutely childish, for one thing and scary too because he hated heights.

"Ah, do not worry. I will protect you, okay?" Surya said in a very maternal tone.

"Protect me? Haha. Protect yourself."

"Please. Come on. We haven't done anything fun since we came here and just walking for last twenty minutes."

"What are you guys talking about?" Raag interjected. He was walking a little behind. He still seemed to be exchanging texts with Alok. If these two did not have girlfriends, they would make a perfect couple, Vidyut thought.

"We are planning to ride the ferris wheel. You game?" Surya asked Raag.

"Sure."

Eventually Vidyut gave in to the requests (or rather threats) of the two. As their turn came to get into the seats, Surya went in first and somehow, Raag bypassed Vidyut to get into the seat beside Surya. Vidyut suddenly felt the intense urge to give a big tight slap on Raag's face, but he realized from Raag's mischievous smile that he did it intentionally to piss off Vidyut. Vidyut wished Surya would say something. Surya was nonchalant the whole time, as usual. In the end, Vidyut thought it was better not to create any scene there and sat on the couch behind Surya and Raag's. He was by himself in that couch and as the wheel began to move, all his biggest fears started to come true.

A sense of doom began to descend on him. He closed his eyes tightly and his silent prayers slowly turned into loud screams. He hated how the whole experience made him look like a baby but he could not help it. When the ferris wheel eventually came to a stop, he was more than ready to jump off of it. And that was what he did exactly, when it was his turn to get off the seat. He is never ever ever going to ride it again.

"Thanks for deserting me." He whispered to Surya as they were walking in the crowd again. Surya just turned to look at him once.

At some point, Raag informed that Alok is in the stadium and brought Vidyut's car just as Vidyut instructed. Vidyut was planning to drive back in car as he did not want to take a bus again, ever in his life.

When Raag went around looking for Alok, Surya tapped Vidyut's wrist.

"Let's go back."

"Huh?'

"Let's ride the ferris wheel again."

"What? No. I am going to throw up this time if we do."

"Come on. Pleeeeeaase." Surya batted his eyelashes. "We did not get to sit side by side last time. I want to sit beside you on that wheel." Surya said with bashful smile. That did the trick. Vidyut agreed.

They got on the wheel for a second time, this time beside each other. Slowly as the wheel started turning, Surya's heart started speeding up a little. He really should take Vidyut to the giant ferris wheel at Bhopal eye. He knew Vidyut was afraid of heights, but Surya could bet his money that Vidyut would love it. Suddenly, he felt Vidyut's hand on his. He turned towards Vidyut. Vidyut's eyes were tightly closed. He looked visibly distressed and was breathing heavy. His mouth was slightly open as if he was going to scream out of fear. On any other day, Surya would laugh out loud on seeing Vidyut like this, like a scaredy cat. But today, he felt different. He felt a squeezing pain in his chest. He realized he needed to be very close to Vidyut, at that moment. He drew himself close to Vidyut, all of a sudden, and put his lips on Vidyut's. Vidyut's eyes fluttered a little bit, but they did not open completely.

The sudden feel of Surya's lips on his somehow calmed down Vidyut’s wildly beating heart, instead of aggravating it. He could tell that they were at the height of the ascent, and the wheel would be descending in the next few seconds. His mouth kept holding on to Surya's, so that he did not feel the dread of the descent. He let go only when they were dangerously close to the people at the bottom of the wheel. When they got off the wheel, he was a little anxious about other people seeing them like that. But it seems they got away with the kiss. No one noticed or even if they did, they pointedly ignored it.

After strolling around for a bit, they decided to start heading back. Vidyut texted Alok where he parked his car. They all planned to go back together. Once all of them gathered around Vidyut's car including Alok and his girlfriend, they were ready to head back. Not that Vidyut minded Alok bringing his girlfriend, but everytime she sees Vidyut, she unfailingly mentions Sherry, Vidyut's ex. And that really pisses off Vidyut. Surya acts cool with it in front of everyone, but Vidyut knows that once they get behind closed doors, he is gonna throw a fit.

"Alok," Alok's girlfriend called out with a voice a little too loud for Alok, who was sitting right beside her on the backseat. "I cannot go out this Friday, we are celebrating Sherry's birthday."

Vidyut knew this message was more for him than for Alok, but he kept quiet.

"Okay." Alok replied, in his drawling voice.

"You can come too, if you want. And bring a couple of your friends may be."

"Okay."

Alok's girlfriend stopped there. She said whatever she had to say to the person she wanted to say it to. It was not like she hated Vidyut....nah, she did hate Vidyut. How can someone hurt a noble soul like Sherry, she just could not fathom. Vidyut was Sherry's longtime boyfriend from highschool. They got into college all together, planning a happy future with each other and what not. And look at him now. Sitting happily beside that god-forsaken fa...

"Umm, Alok, where do we drop you?" Vidyut's question was more for Alok's girlfriend than for Alok. He was really not on much talking terms with any of his ex's friends.

"Umm, you can drop me in front of Sherry's house. Hope you still remember where it is, ...Yuyu."

Alok's girlfriend replied to Vidyut. But, it was the term 'Yuyu' that caught Vidyut off-guard. He suddenly got distracted and failed to notice the red car that was approaching them from the side. He put the brakes on full force, but it was already too late. The only thing in his mind now was that Surya was sitting on the side where the red car would be crashing.

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