It was only the second day of school, but for Sara, it felt like she'd been holding her breath since she stepped onto the campus. Everything was new — the faces, the voices, the rhythm of the place. But today, something shifted.

She had made a friend.

Riha.

"Bhai, itni garmi ho rahi hai March mein, June mein kya hoga?" Riha exclaimed, wiping her sweat like it was her full-time job.

"Sach mein yaar, itni garmi ho rahi hai, do bacche toh dhoop mein chakkar kha ke gir gaye ." Sanchi replied, shaking her head like she was witnessing the end of the world.

Riha wiped her face again. "Yaar, hum apne aap ko samajh rahe the ki garmi thodi normal ho jaayegi, par lagta hai yeh garmi apna extra kaam kar rahi hai."

Sanchi laughed. "Bhai, yeh garmi apne aap ko top-tier feel kar rahi hai. Sabko lagta hai, 'Main hi hoon duniya ki sabse badi garmi.'"

Riha made a face. "Bilkul! Aur hum jaise log, bas dekh rahe hain 'aisa kyun ho raha hai?' Matlab, ham ne toh is baar socha tha, garmi ko apna dost bana lenge ."

Sanchi raised her eyebrows. "Haan, par yeh garmi apne kaam karne ka tareeka samajh gayi hai. Tum samajh nahi rahi, iss baar yeh kisi ko bhi apni purani dusmani dikhaye bina apni zindagi jeene wali hai ."

Riha looked at her and sighed dramatically. "Yaar, ab toh hum soch rahe hain, ki garmi ko apne dost banane ka mann ho raha hai."

Diksha started laughing. "Bhai, yeh garmi  aur tum dono ke beech mein 'bond' ban jaaye bas . Lagta hai mujhe bhi tum dono aur garmi saath apni friendship establish kar leni chahiye ."

Riha shook her head, smirking. "Mujhe lagta hai yeh garmi bhi hum sabka  'test' karne ke liye aayi hai. Jaise apni friendship ka ek 'heat' test ."

Sanchi burst out laughing. "Aur hum sabka ka response hai – 'Chalo, jitna tum karoge, utna hum chill karenge ."

Sara watched them laughing and enjoying their friendship, her smile fading slowly. The sound of their carefree laughter seemed to pierce right through her, like a reminder of something she once had.

Her eyes drifted to the ground, feeling the weight of the silence that hung between her and the memories of her best friend. It wasn't just the heat that was making her feel this way—there was a coldness, a distance that she hadn't been able to fill.

She sat on her seat , wishing for the presence of someone who understood her without words. The memories of late-night talks, inside jokes, and the comfort of knowing someone had her back made the absence of her best friend feel like a dull ache in her chest.

The more she tried to push the feelings away, the more they crept up on her, pulling her into a wave of nostalgia. Why did things have to change? she thought. Why couldn't things stay the way they were?

Riha and Sanchi's laughter faded into the background as Sara's mind drifted to a time when everything felt whole. She tried to smile, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. She longed for that old friendship, the one that had been so easy and effortless, without the complications that time had brought.

"Hiee, you are new here, right? I'm Sanchi Gupta," Sanchi introduced herself, her bright smile cutting through the silence and pulling Sara out of her trance.

Sara blinked, startled for a moment, before meeting Sanchi's eyes. For a split second, it felt like she was still caught between her memories and the present moment. Sanchi's warm presence was enough to bring her back to reality.

"Oh, uh... yeah, I'm Sara," she replied softly, trying to force a smile but feeling it falter at the edges.

Sanchi, sensing the subtle shift in Sara's mood, tilted her head slightly. " you can count us a your friend i am really fun- loving girl unlike Riha ."

Sara hesitated, her gaze dropping to the ground. But then she giggled at Sanchi's remark, the sound escaping before she could stop it. "Hehehe."

Sanchi, ever the friendly soul, offered a comforting smile. "Well, if you ever need any kind of help , we're here. I'm usually not this sunny, but hey, the heat's making everyone a little more... extra." she said, gesturing to herself dramatically with a grin.

Sara couldn't help but chuckle at Sanchi's antics and laughed freely . 

"Good morning, class." Shreyash sir entered the classroom with his usual calm aura, placing a thick stack of notebooks on the desk with a soft thud. His eyes scanned the room briefly — half-sleepy faces, yawns being disguised as coughs, and one student clearly trying to hide a phone under the desk.

"Goooood morninnnngggggg siirrrrrrrrrr ." The class responded in a long, exaggerated chorus, some stretching the words just to be annoying, others already chuckling. 

"Good morning, class," Shreyash sir entered with his usual calm voice, placing a thick pile of notebooks on the table with a thump that made a few students flinch.

Shreyash sir paused, one eyebrow raised. "Aaj tum log acting class se seedha yahan aaye ho kya?"

A few students chuckled, others quickly straightened up.

"Hmm, since everyone's so charged up today," he said, dragging the word just enough to build tension, "let's do something fun... a quick round of questions from last class."

Instant silence.

Paper rustled. Heads ducked. One student even pretended to sneeze violently.

His gaze scanned the room slowly — the kind of slow that makes your stomach drop.

"Riha," he called out.

Her head snapped up. "Sir?"

"What was the moral of the story in a triumph of surgery?"?"

Riha stared. Blinked twice. "Uh... moral of the story... umm what was in the chapter ?'

A beat of silence. Then the class burst into quiet laughter.

Shreyash sir gave a crooked smile. "You heard the 'good morning' part perfectly, but the rest of the class was in ghost mode, huh?"

Riha nodded sheepishly. "Sir, I was here physically... mentally, I think I left the building."

The class laughed louder. Even sir chuckled.

"Alright," he said, amused. "Next time, try bringing both your body and brain to class. They're a good combo."

Riha smiled sheepishly, the tips of her ears turning red. She rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment.
"Okay, sir," she muttered, voice barely above a whisper, and hastily dropped back into her seat like she was trying to disappear into it.

The class was still chuckling under their breath, but no one dared to tease her — mostly because they'd all been in her shoes at least once.

Sanchi leaned over from the next bench, whispering with a grin, "Full spotlight le liya tune, heroine!"

Riha rolled her eyes, half amused, half mortified. "Chup reh. Sir ka next target tu hai."

Just as Sanchi was about to reply, Shreyash sir looked up again.

"Now, who's brave enough to answer the actual question?"
Shreyash sir's voice echoed in the room as he scanned the class, slowly and deliberately — like a lion choosing its prey.

Students avoided eye contact like their lives depended on it. Some buried their heads into their notebooks, others suddenly found the walls very interesting.

Finally, his gaze settled on one person.

"Sara."

She froze.

Heads turned. It was her second day at the school, and this was not how she wanted to be noticed.

"Yes, you," Shreyash sir confirmed, a gentle smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Don't worry, just give it a try. what was the moral of the story in a triumph of surgery?"?"

Sara blinked. Her brain scrambled for anything useful. Her fingers clutched the edge of her notebook like it was a lifeline.
She cleared her throat nervously. "Uh... sir... it is that "We shouldn't be overprotective and overcaring of someone ."

The room held its breath.

Shreyash sir paused for dramatic effect, then nodded. "Correct. That's the moral of the story ."

A few quiet claps came from the back — led by Sanchi, who whispered loudly, "our girl's got some guts in front of this 'khadoos' sir ."

Sara let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding, a tiny smile forming on her lips. Maybe this day wouldn't be so bad after all. 
As she sat down in her seat, Riha whispered from beside her, "Bhai, kya answer diya! Kisiko nahi aata tha, topper ko bhi nahi." Riha looked at her, amazed.

Sara smiled shyly, not used to compliments from new people. "Hehe... waise, who is the class topper?" she asked Riha.

Riha grinned, leaning in a little closer as if sharing a secret. "Saransh—second bench, window side. The one who introduced himself to us yesterday. Always doing masti in class and participating in every competition, even the ones that don't matter. Total mystery guy."

Sara followed her gaze and spotted a boy scribbling something in a notebook, headphones plugged in, completely zoned out.

"Hmm, doesn't look that boring ," she murmured, half to herself.

Riha chuckled. "He's not. Just... mastikhor .  he impressed teacher by his perfect rank , though. Perfect notes, perfect answers. But even he was blank today. You nailed that answer, yaar."

Sara's cheeks flushed again, the praise still foreign to her. She looked away, trying to hide her smile.

"Maybe this won't be such a bad start," she thought to herself .