The moment I stepped inside college, I noticed Hriaan glaring at me from the distance. We both had our lectures, so we went to our respective classrooms, but once I and Arushi went to the cafeteria for lunch, Hriaan arrived and sat across from us.

"You failed to keep your promise," Hriaan accused. "Why did you fall sick? Couldn't you have informed me? I was hopelessly waiting for your tiffin every day."

"I got a new phone just now," I told him and gave him the large lunchbox I had brought.

His eyes glimmered, and he instantly started enjoying the food Mom had cooked.

I began googling about the companies I was going to apply to when KD's dinosaur scream pierced my ears.

"Oh my god, what's this ancient gadget?!" KD exclaimed and took my phone from my hands.

He glided his fingers on the keypad and rotated my phone in every angle.

"Boomer!" Mahreen yelled and crushed me in her arms. "You don't know how much worried I was. Are you feeling well now?"

I nodded and removed Mahreen's hair poking my eyes. She handed me a box full of treats. As Hriaan was done eating my lunch, he started attacking the sweets given by Mahreen and succeeded in stealing a few before Mahreen warned him.

Ayushi was eating her snacks, and Hriaan's gaze landed on her plate. KD jumped in action to save Arushi's lunch, and both guys started fighting.

Mahreen, as usual, was cheering for them to beat each other, and Arushi closed her ears when the chaos ensued.

Arushi and I kept on looking like audience as Mahreen, KD, and Hriaan fought like children. We thanked our luck when the bell rang, signalling the end of the lunch break.

Me and my best friend instantly picked our bags and left for our lecture. On our way to the classroom, I noticed Arushi mumbling to herself with a smile on her face.

I nudged her even if I knew the reason behind her smile - she told me to ignore her, but I started teasing her about how KD was trying to save her snacks from Hriaan.

As expected, her cheeks turned pink, and by the time we took our seats in the lecture room, her whole face was flushed.

I didn't poke her in details, but I kept mentioning how she was so comfortable around KD and how much stuff they had in common. Thanks to that, I was also able to distract myself from worrying about applying for new jobs.

After the lectures, I took lift from Suhana again when she insisted on me coming together with her and Akshay. I didn't want to make her feel bad, so I took her offer; I was amazed at how much time was saved through car.

I was happy about reaching the studio early, and when our remaining teammates, except Tejas, also arrived soon, KD called Tanmay Sir to inform him that the whole team was assembled.

I was wondering if Tejas was finally going to be late, but he arrived with our mentor and raised his eyebrows at me.

"What a surprise!" he commented.

I wanted to roll my eyes but stopped as I remembered how he had helped me earlier.

"You went for a check-up?" Tejas asked me.

"Yes. Thank you for asking," I replied.

"No need to thank me every time."

"Why not? It is basic etiquette."

"But it is getting annoying now."

I frowned. "Annoying? Really? If you don't want me to keep thanking you, then stop helping me. I never ask you for it, do I?"

He pinched my cheek. "Looks like you have too much energy now."

I told him to leave me, but he warned me to take back my words or else I would have to bear the punishment till the end of the day.

"Thejash, leafe vee," I protested.

"You can't even talk properly." He laughed.

"Are you guys fighting again?" Tanmay Sir asked.

I started complaining to him to scold Tejas, but Tejas pulled my other cheek. I was not able to speak even one word correctly.

"Now you totally look like a hamster," Tejas said.

Hamster? He is stretching my cheeks like rubber. What is wrong with him? Did his personality get a new switch?

"TJ, leave her already," Suhana scolded him. "Why are you troubling her?"

"Don't blame me. Bhoomi knows how to end the punishment herself," he replied.

I tapped his arms in defeat, and he left my cheeks.

"This is not fair," I grumbled and rubbed my face with my palms.

"What you said was fair then?" Tejas narrowed his eyes.

"Did I lie?"

That earned me a flick on my chin. Automatically, I raised my hand to hit him in return, but fortunately, I stopped before I received my death certificate.

"Why did you stop?" Tejas provoked. "Didn't I already say that you can beat me up if you want?"

"I am not a violent person," I lied.

"Really? I remember you landing a high-kick to Rehman though."

"When did I?" I asked in confusion.

I have thrashed Rehman a lot of times, but when did Tejas witness that? Is he making it up?

"Forget it," Tejas said.

"No. How can you blame me without evidence?" I retorted.

"TJ, Bhoomi, I will throw you both out if you keep fighting like this," Tanmay Sir scolded.

"It is all her fault." Tejas pointed at me.

I looked at him in shock, but before I could explain myself, Tanmay Sir told me to focus on the dance class.

He fixed the first half of our choreography, and for the second half, he asked if any of us wanted to give any suggestions.

I instantly raised my hand up. "I have a few ideas, Sir."

Tanmay Sir nodded. "Very good. I will give you all some time to think and come up with any innovation if you have. I will review your rehearsal videos till then."

He left to sit on his desk, and I was really excited because I had built up various routines in my sick leave. I took out my drawing book and checked the sketches I had made of main dance poses.

Sir had given us time, so I started polishing those poses and drew the breakdown poses to draw a proper routine. Akshay and Suhana were brainstorming together, while Jolina was doing timepass on her phone as she was okay with anything the whole team came up with.

As expected, Tejas went to Tanmay Sir after just ten minutes, and soon, KD also joined him in the discussion. Suhana squealed in joy, and I understood that my best friend and his girlfriend had also managed to come up with a very good idea.

I stared at my final drawings and boosted my confidence. I took a deep breath and went to our mentor. I confidently forwarded my papers to Tanmay Sir, and he eyed them curiously.

"What are these stick figures, Bhoomi?" he asked.

"Those are the dance poses, Sir," I replied.

He shot his eyebrows up. "Really?"

I nodded. He started reviewing the sketches, and with each drawing, his face scrunched and eyes squinted.

"I am sorry, but I am not able to understand them," he confessed.

"I will explain them to you," I said.

I explained him the drawings, but I guess I wasn't doing a good job. Tanmay Sir still looked confused.

"What is this?" he pointed at one of the poses. "Is this a duck?"

"No, Sir. It is the male and female partner joining their hands together," I corrected him.

"Ohhhhhhh," Sir replied. "Then what's this? A T-Rex?"

"No, Sir, it is-"

"The boy has raised the girl up," Tejas interrupted me and pointed at the drawing Tanmay Sir was looking at, "and the next key pose is both of them bending in different directions. It look like a Y, but there are two people."

Tanmay Sir nodded along. "I get it now. But what's going on here then? Is this a helicopter?"

I snapped my eyes at Tejas and saw him pulling his lips in.

"Bhoomi, didn't I tell you to improve your drawing and handwriting? What is this? We can hardly understand what you have drawn," KD complained.

"Sir, I will explain it again," I told our mentor.

"Okay," Tanmay Sir said and looked at one of the stick figures. "Want to explain why this looks like a WWE match here?"

Tejas burst out laughing. I glared at him, but Kshitij started chuckling too, and Tanmay Sir also started laughing soon after.

"I will take my drawings back," I said.

Tanmay Sir shook his head. "No. I will love to keep them as they are really comical. Whenever I am having a bad mood, I can enjoy them."

I pouted, and the guys started another round of laughter. Suhana, Akshay, and Jolina joined as they got curious, and all of them began teasing me.

Tanmay Sir refused to return my sketches, so I stomped back to my spot and turned my back towards all of them.

All of them are idiots! Except Tanmay Sir, of course. He is my teacher, so I won't badmouth him.

I looked back and narrowed my eyes at Tejas; he was the first one to laugh. When he glanced at me, he went into a laughing fit.

I turned my head back to the front and refused to respond to Akshay and KD when they called me. Their laughter marathon continued for a good time before Tanmay Sir, Tejas, KD, Akshay, and Suhana had a serious discussion. Jolina came to join me and teased me about my sketches.

The discussion ended after half an hour, and all of us gathered around to hear what our mentor had decided.

I was surprised when Tanmay Sir included my suggestions.

"Sir, you finally understood what I was trying to convey?" I asked him hopefully.

He smiled. "Honestly, Bhoomi, it was very difficult to understand what you had drawn, but I got a little help."

I instantly snapped my head at Tejas. I knew what 'little help' Tanmay Sir was referring to. Tejas caught me looking at him and wiggled his eyebrows.

I removed my gaze and remembered how Tejas easily understood my pathetic handwriting and drawings. I didn't thank him for it as he would have again stretched my cheeks like elastic bands.

I touched my neck and felt it getting heated up. I fanned my face, and KD pointed out that my face was turning red. He asked me if I was okay, and I nodded.

I won't think weird stuff. I won't think weird stuff. I won't think wei-

My eyes widened when Tejas patted my head. I looked up at him, my voice getting stuck in my throat.

"Move to your spot, hamster," he said.

"Ha-hamster?" I squeaked.

"Exactly! Now you are even acting like one."

He pushed me towards my spot, and I felt my heart thumping in my ears.

No, no, no, no, no, no!

"Bhoomi, are you sure you are okay?" KD asked worriedly.

"I told you I am fine," I replied.

"Why is your face turning pale then? Oh, wait! It is turning pink now. What is going on? How are you changing colors like a chameleon?"

"I have to go to the washroom!"

Before KD could embarrass me by saying something ridiculous again, I bolted towards the washroom and noticed my reflection.

I washed my face, but that stupid blush wasn't going away.

Why am I acting like this? I have to get a grip on myself. It has already been so much time since Tejas and I have been training together. Why am I still behaving like I have a crush on him?

You don't then?

Of course, not!

Then prove it.

I washed my face again and took a deep breath. When I returned, I kept a poker face. During practice, Tanmay Sir scolded me continuously for failing to express the emotions, but I was having difficulty controlling my heart - moreover, the whole choreography was on a romantic song.

In my mind, I started calculating the money I had to earn, but that method proved useless.

"Bhoomi, are you attending a funeral?" Tanmay Sir scolded.

"Sorry, Sir, I will improve," I replied.

"Once more!" Sir announced.

Thanks to me, my team kept getting more rehearsals, and I got reminded of the time when I was in Tejas's team alongwith Yukta and others.

Finally, Tanmay Sir ended the practice and allowed us to leave. He gave me a lecture before leaving though; he told me that even if my body was moving, my face looked like that of a dead person.

How was I supposed to tell him that I was doing it purposely? He would have beaten me up.

I just nodded to everything he said and left to catch my train. While searching for an auto, I received a call from Eknath Uncle, and as soon as he mentioned about a job, I didn't ask him anything about wage and went to the wedding hall where I had to work.

I had planned on only finding jobs that paid highly, but I had also soon realised that my situation didn't give me that luxury of choice. To make the most money, I had to take up any work opportunity presented.

The work at the wedding hall was very chaotic. There were very few employees, and the client was trying to get most of the work done for free. If it wasn't for Eknath Uncle handling everything, we wouldn't even have gotten our wages.

The wedding ended around 10 pm, so I told Eknath Uncle to drop me near Arushi's house. I had to catch up on my studies and also prepare a resume with her help.

I reached my best friend's house, and she was revising a few chapters. I took her laptop, and it took about fifteen minutes to start up. I asked her about what to include in my resume, and she enquired about why I was applying for jobs when my schedule was already so busy.

I lied that I wanted to try some part-time jobs as I needed money to buy a new smartphone and also a mini-laptop for myself. With her help, I prepared a very nice resume and applied to all of the job postings I had shortlisted.

As it had gotten very late, I informed my mother about the same and had a sleepover at Arushi's place. I woke up early and went to my house to freshen up as I had to go to Urmila Aunty's home next.

Instead of having a rigid routine and fixed workplaces, I deemed it best to keep my schedule flexible.

Whenever I will get a call from Eknath Uncle, I will keep it as the top priority, and till I get a good part-time job, I will keep working for Urmila Aunty and other women as time permits. Until my exams start, this method is the best for me as I don't want to fall sick again.

While working like this, I waited to get a call or an email for an interview from the jobs I had applied to, and after three days, I finally got a call from a company. The location was at a city I had never gone to, and the interview timing was also in the evening, so when the time came, I asked for an early leave from Tanmay Sir and went to my interview from Sarthak's studio itself.

Unfortunately, it was raining very heavily, and it took me a lot of time to locate the company even after getting directions on the call. When I reached the place, I felt a bit scared as the location was very dull and most of the buildings were under construction.

Luckily, the office was authentic, and the interviewer was really nice and supporting. I was very nervous as it was my first interview, but I managed to answer a lot of questions. When I left, the sun had set, and the rains had gotten heavier.

I quickly searched for an auto, but the autorickshaw drivers were either demanding a lot of fare or refusing to drop me till the station due to traffic.

I was getting late, so I took an auto to drop me at the nearest place from railway station. After the ride, I paid the fare and looked around. The area was very dimly lit and less populated. Only one or two people were seen using the road.

The auto driver had told me the directions for the station, but I started feeling scared when all of the empty roads began confusing me.

I saw a woman going in the opposite direction, so I approached her and asked her to confirm the directions. She was in a rush herself, so she told me a shortcut and left.

I wondered if I should continue on the main road or take the short-cut. I kept looking left and right, finally taking the route told by the auto driver. Just after a few minutes, I felt my heart jump when a bike honked behind me loudly.

The road was empty as it is, so I didn't stop and kept walking at quick pace, but that bike stopped beside me, and I thought of sprinting.

"What are you doing here?"

I stopped when I heard the familiar voice. I blinked rapidly in surprise when Hriaan lifted his helmet's glass cover.

"Hriaan?" I asked to confirm my doubt.

He nodded. "Why are you here so late and that too all alone?"

"I had an interview here," I told him.

"Here?" he asked in confusion. "Why would you come so far from your home? Are you stupid?"

I didn't say anything and tried to keep my umbrella from flying away.

"Come on, I will drop you at the station," Hriaan said.

"Really? You forgave me then?" I asked hopefully.

He closed his helmet's glass cover. "I am helping Boomer, not you."

"Okay, then. Boomer will gladly take your help."

I hopped on the pillion seat. I was carrying my raincoat with me, so I didn't get completely drenched. Within a few minutes, I was at the station.

"Thank you on behalf of Boomer," I told Hriaan.

"Now go home early, and don't come to such places for interviews by yourself. Even if you get a job here, how will you manage? Don't take such risks," he adviced.

"Okay," I replied. "What are you doing here then?"

"I had some work at the factories."

He gave me a few information about his family setting up new factory plants, and we both took our leaves after he saved my new number in his phone.

I got my delayed train and scrunched myself within the thick crowd. I reached my home after changing two trains and standing on one leg for two hours. The scene wasn't any foreign as this was the situation of Mumbai locals every year.

I was hungry and ate like a demon when I reached home. By the time I slept, the clock was showing 12 am.

Hriaan was right. I couldn't afford traveling daily so far for a part-time job and also worry about getting a return transport and reach home so late. I decided to reject the job even if I got selected.

It was funny because I didn't get any call of selection. I kept applying for every job possible, and within this time, the team rehearsals ended and the final day of team evaluations arrived.

I succeeded in not turning into tomato sauce because of Tejas and managed to convince Tanmay Sir that I wasn't a dead body that was dancing with Kshitij.

On the same day, I got an email confirmation from two of the part-time jobs I had applied for, and my confidence was boosted when I secured the jobs.

Thanks to it, I was able to fully concentrate on the final team performance, and according to me, it was very good. Sadly, I couldn't join my team for the after party as I had to go and work at an event.

The next day, I had to report to my new workplaces one after another. It was going to be very hectic, but I prepared myself for it.

In the morning, I prayed to Ganapati Bappa and left home to reach Airoli (a city in Navi Mumbai). My new workplace was a famous branch of a fast-food restaurant, and it was on the first floor in a huge shopping complex.

I reported half an hour early, and there were two more freshers along with me. The preparations were going on, so our manager took us to his cabin and explained all the responsibilities. The freshers were going to be on a probation period of three months, and I was given the roles of a server and cleaner. The other female fresher was given the responsibility in the kitchen, while the male fresher got the front desk duty.

After getting familiar with all the employees and the workings, we were given more details about rules and regulations and allowed to leave after getting our offer letters.

I was very happy as it was my first offer letter, and after admiring it like a golden pot, I made my way towards my next workplace. It was at a call centre, and I had to work as the office girl.

I had gotten two part-time jobs and both of them could be done in the morning itself, leaving me time for the rest of the day.

I happily skipped after confirming my second job, and when I reached my home, I announced the news to my mother and sister.

With these jobs, I was going to earn decently and also get time to freelance. As I was going to start working like a regular salaried person from the next day itself, Mom told me to take rest. I was so much excited that I couldn't sleep, and instead of napping, I calculated our expenses.

Keeping all the positive thoughts in mind, I started my part-time jobs, and the beginning was smooth.

I had gotten well acquainted with all of my colleagues and did my work diligently. Surprisingly, at my fast-food restaurant job, it had been only four days of the freshers joining when our manager announced that an inspection was going to be held.

I was okay with it because I had experienced the same thing when I had worked at the events for Eknath Uncle. Everyone looked very nervous, and I was confused because the performance of each employee was very good and the customers always gave four or five stars for the service.

As we were freshers, we were told to keep doing our work while the seniors handled the owner coming for the inspection.

I kept doing my work of mopping the floor when I heard two familiar voices coming from the entrance.

I looked up and saw Jyoti Jaiswal arrive in the restaurant, and behind her, Ayzere followed with a shopping bag in her hand. Both women were giggling, and Jaiswal Aunty was smiling ear to ear while conversing with Ayzere.

What are they doing here? I wish I don't have to deal with them.

"The owner is here, guys. Be on your best behaviour," our manager announced.

"Her?" I asked him and secretly pointed at Jaiswal Aunty.

When he nodded, I cursed under my breath and quickly turned my back towards the familiar women.

Why is my luck like this? Why does Jyoti Jaiswal has to be the owner? Well, can't help it now. If I keep my head down, she won't notice me. I have mopped the floor, so I will just go and stay in the backroom.

I hurriedly picked up my bucket and started escaping.

"Bhoomi?"

I sighed when I heard Jaiswal Aunty call my name. For a moment, I thought of acting like I didn't hear her, but my manager signalled me to greet her.

I don't want to!

If you want to keep your job, then be professional, Bhoomi.

Taking a deep breath, I put my best smile on and turned around to face the women.

"Good morning, Ma'am," I greeted.

"Good morning," Jaiswal Aunty replied, her eyes shining like she had caught her prey.

I hope I don't lose my job when I have just started.