Chapter 26

Chapter 22

                    The Freshers' was all anyone could talk about even after a month of the event. Some praised the electrifying solo of the college heartthrob Rey, some loved the extraordinary choreography of the Boys' group number.  Simmi and Nil's quickstep also earned many accolades from the students. But the most talked about was the Trio Dance by Swayam, Sharon and Aashi.

The students may not have been aware of the cold war waging between Aashi and Sharon, but they definitely knew that Sharon wasn't an easy person to work with. Her tantrums and unpredictable anger had made many miserable in the past. To add insult to the injury, it was widely known that Sharon and Swayam weren't getting along. So naturally, everybody expected the Trio Dance to be a disaster and not the power-packed spectacle it turned out to be. Overnight Aashi became a celebrity. Sharon and Swayam also found themselves more popular among students than before.

But the most captivating memory was when the darkness and chill of the night was driven away by gradually illuminating lanterns. Nobody could forget the moment when one after the other, the lanterns were lit and released into the wilderness of the night. The sight of hundreds of golden balls of light rising higher and higher casted a forget-me-not sort of spell over everyone who witnessed the scene.

VP sir was heartily congratulated by the College Board and trustees, who found their confidence in his guidance and teachings renewed. It had never been easy, fighting against the Trustees for the rights of his students. Especially when the Trustees and the Board were hell bent on following orthodox traditions and methods of teaching, wanting to churn out just plain BAs, B.Coms and BScs. He firmly believed that his students could have alternate successful careers simultaneously. And the batch of 2011 would be remembered more fondly than any other he headed. Not only did this batch create the most ruckus and mishaps, but they also taught him something he had long forgotten. Where there is a will, you will always find a way. If not, you will find excuses. These students taught him that one is never too old to learn and he had learnt being their friend and guide.

Because the event was such a grand success, VP sir announced a party for all the helpers, heads, volunteers and performers as a treat for producing such a wonderful show. Everybody who had been a part of the event turned up in the college canteen to celebrate a work well done. Well, all except one. And there are no points in guessing who stayed away from the party. Yes, I see you are beginning to understand our dear Niyati. But then, my dear readers, you must also have a thorough understanding of our beloved Rey. You will all know that it hardly escaped Rey's notice that Niyati was absent from the celebrations and he was willing to bet that it was deliberate. And whatever little doubt he had turned into confirmation when on inquiring Niyati's absence, Swayam replied that she wasn't feeling well and wanted to rest at home.

Even after a month, Rey could see that Niyati would avoid him the best she could. She never looked him in the eye and there were times when he could see her trying to restrain herself, but from what? To that he was still clueless and her treatment and attitude was increasingly irking him to no end. If only mujhe pata chal jaaye, is ladki ko mujhse problem kya hai, he thought to himself bitterly. He didn't know why he was so affected by her, but he chose not to ponder on the why but the what. If only he could get the girl to answer his questions. And the only way to do just that would be to catch her unguarded.

                                                 

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It was a few days after Freshers' when an incident occurred which troubled the girls greatly. They always had difficulty in believing that Niyati was Taani's sister. Not only were the differences between both stark evident, but Niyati's behavior was also paradoxical to typical human nature. Since Niyati had started college, comments on her fashion sense kept making rounds. And any gossip in the college had to reach the D3 girls. And if the girls were given a chance, they would honestly confess that they found wearing Anarkalis to college as downright medieval. Nobody did that anymore. But nobody wanted to break this to Niyati and risk offending her. So when the comments became slightly unbearable, Sharon decided to take matters in her own hands.

Unlike others, Sharon did not consider her weird or strange. Agreed that she had different preferences and was very different from her siblings, but she felt there was more to her than she let on. Call it sixth sense or girl's instincts, But Sharon knew, just knew that this was just a facade. There was something deep lurking down. Swayam didn't become overbearing for silly reasons. She had been with him long enough to know that small things didn't rile him up. He had labelled a lot of Taani's antics as weird and never thought too much about it. Kuch toh deep baat hai Niyati ke saath, Sharon thought. And she would find out eventually.

 

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"Niyati?" Sharon called as she saw her in the Locker Room. The rest of the girls followed her tentatively. "Busy ho kya?"

"Nahin toh. Kuch kaam tha ka aapko?" Niyati replied taking a few books out while keeping others back.

"Nahin. Kaam toh nahin tha, tumse kuch baat karni thi."

"Haan kahiye na." Her tone wasn't bitter, but it wasn't friendly either. Sharon was beginning to have second thoughts about talking to her when she thought she would worry about that later. Niyati hadn't been friendly with her since her arrival. But she was Swayam's sister and that made Sharon responsible for her well-being.

"Tum...ummm.. tum hamesha aise clothes pehenti ho kya?" She asked.

Niyati looked down at her suit, then back at her questioningly before replying, "Haan. Kyun? Kya kharaabi hain in mein?"

"I don't mean ke ye kharab hai. It's just that.."she closed her eyes. this was proving to be difficult.

"Kuch ladkiyan tumhare baare mein baat kar rahi thi," Kria took over relieving Sharon. "And they were..."

"Making fun of me?" Niyati interrupted with a small smile on her face.

All the girls looked shocked.

"You knew already?" Simmi asked temporarily forgetting her fear.

"Yes", she answered nonchalantly.

"And you still wearing salwar suits to college?" Neha asked surprised.

"Yes again."

"But ye log..." Sharon began but was cut off by Niyati.

"Kuch toh log kahenge. Logon ka kaam hai kehna."

All girls looked at her incredulously.

Niyati smiled, but it was a painful one. "Is duniya mein logon ko aapse hamesha problem hoti hai. Aap agar ache ho, toh inhe problem hoti hai ke aap itne ache kyun ho? Agar aap bure ho, toh ye issue hota hai ke aap so and so ki tarah ache kyun nahin ho. Agar haan mein haan milao, toh you become opportunistic. Agar apne man ki baat kaho, toh you are labelled arrogant. Apne dil ki karna matlab rebel karna hota hai. Is duniya ko khush karne ke chakkar mein insaan khud tabaah hojaata hai. Mera end meri family ko hi dukh pahunchayega. This world will barely care. Then wouldn't it be wise agar main woh karoon jisse mujhe khushi milti hai?" Saying this, she swung her bag over her shoulder and left the Locker room.

Niyati left, but her words kept reverberating across the room. The words were said so casually but they held far deeper meaning than they could comprehend. They had all suffered from peer pressure and had sometimes given in. But now, there was only one question in all their minds. How much had they lost?

[NOCOPY]

[MEMBERSONLY]

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