That night, I couldn't sleep.
I stared at the ceiling, my thoughts bouncing between two names.
Adithya. Arskaan.
Adithya made me laugh. He talked so easily, joked so freely.
I could be myself around him. I liked that.
But Arskaan…
He hit different.
He didn't need to say much.
His silence sometimes spoke louder than words.
His small gestures — remembering my favorite snack, pulling out a chair without saying anything, sending one random reel that made me laugh at the exact right moment — those stayed with me longer than I wanted to admit.
⸻
The next day in school, everything felt louder.
Or maybe it was just my thoughts.
Ruby and Daisy were still dramatic. Saanvi had joined their little act and made it even more ridiculous — they started rehearsing a couple dance for no reason at all.
The whole class was clapping and cheering them on.
I laughed, even clapped.
But my eyes kept drifting toward Arskaan.
He didn't look at me.
Not once.
⸻
Later, during the break, I was standing near the corridor, eating the snack Adithya gave me.
He came over and leaned casually against the wall beside me.
"So, you still haven't talked to Arskaan?"
I sighed. "What do I even say?"
"You don't have to say anything. Just… be you. That's enough."
I looked at him.
"You think he's mad at me?"
He didn't answer immediately.
Then he said:
"I think he's… hurt."
I bit my lip.
"I didn't mean to hurt him."
"I know. But sometimes, people get left behind even when we don't mean to leave them."
That line hit me.
Hard.
⸻
Adithya changed the topic, talked about something silly, and I laughed — the way I always do around him.
But deep inside, something stayed heavy.
Because even though Adithya was special…
Arskaan was something else.
And for the first time, I admitted it to myself:
I didn't want to lose either of them.
But I had already started drifting.