"Wait here," he instructed before heading off and disappearing into the classroom.
A few seconds later her friend, Kaustuki, came rushing towards her.
"Sanyukta, are you ok?" "Yeh sab kaise hua?" "What happened?"
"To answer your questions, yes, I'm okay and yeh sab usne kiya jisne tumein yaha bheja tha."
"Who, Randhir?"
"Yeah," Sanyukta confirmed.
"But how, kaise?"
"Long story, baad mein bataongi."
"Toh kya tum class mein jaogi iss condition mein?"
"Of course, tumhe yaad nahi hai?" "Vardhan sir aaj kuch important announce karenge." "Woh class main hai, kya?'
"No, he's not in there yet but tum abhi mere saat hostel vaapas jaogi aur Vardhan sir jo kuch bhi announce karenge, I'll come and tell you, ok?"
"But-"
"No buts, come on, let's go warna main late ho jaongi aur Vardhan sir jo kuch bhi kahenge mein miss karungi aur phir mujhe jaake Jignesh se puchna parega aur phir tumhaare paas-."
"Okay, okay, let's go"
*********************************
"Personality report!?"
"Yeah, iss assignment mein jo koi bhi winner hoga, woh next project ka leader hoga."
"Hmph, genuine help, my foot," Sanyukta grumbled, reprimanding herself for believing him again.
She should've known. That man was not worth trusting.
"Exactly, woh sab natak tha." "He wasn't trying to help you." "He just wants to be the one in control in the next project."
Aur Vardhan sir ne 'next project' ke baare mein kuch nahi kaha?
"Not yet, he told us to complete the assignment first."
Sanyukta set her chin on her pillow, hugging it tightly.
'How much worse was today going to get?' she thought dejectedly.
"Aaahhh, ab mujhe uss Randhir ke saath 20 questions khelni hogi?!"
"God, please help me!," she mumbled into her pillow.
*********************************
"Oh my God!" "How can he do this to me!?"
He grabbed his punching bag, resting his head on it, frustrated at the turn of events. He didn't expect Vardhan sir to put up such a task! This was so stupid! They weren't in elementary school. This was FITE!
What the hell is up with that personality report!?
He glared down at the sheet of paper lying on his bed.
"Agarwal, ab tumhe mujhse koi nahi bachaa sakta."
He needed that position. And he was going to do anything to get it.
"You can only pray to God for help now."
*********************************
"Where do think is the best place to conduct an experiment in FITE?"
The gates of FITE that'll be bidding you farewell on your way out."
"What's your favorite color?," she tried differently, hoping to get something out of him.
"Black, as in the gates of FITE that'll be bidding you farewell on your way out."
She sighed annoyingly.
She couldn't do this. She just couldn't do this!
They were currently in the library as she was trying to get some information out of him to fill that damned personality report, quiz, whatever and he was continuously answering her in the most ridiculous ways possible!
He was definitely not making her task easier.
Not that she expected him to.
"Look-"
"No." "You look, and you listen very carefully to what I'm about to say."
He stepped closer.
"I'm not telling you anything about myself."
*********************************
"If you're not telling me anything about yourself, then I won't tell you anything about myself either." she declared.
"Spare me the horror."
"Kaash Abhay mera partner hota."
Now it was his turn to ask.
"Who?"
Abhay, jisne kal meri madat kiya tha. "When a certain someone gave me a sprain." "Someone whose name rhymes with Bandhir."
"Oh, like that guy named Sandhir," he countered.
She did a double take. "You know someone named Sandhir?"
He scoffed. "Of course not, you idiot."
He gave a sly smirk behind his book as he heard her sigh in exasperation. He was seriously enjoying this. She had followed him all the way to the canteen trying to pull out some information for Vardhan Sir's assignment because she had no other way of knowing anything about him and she thought he had no way of knowing anything about her as well.
But he did.
*********************************
"If you don't believe me, then have a look at it yourself," Professor Vardhan offered.
So she did, and once she went through it, she knew she had lost.
She couldn't deny it. It was all correct.
But, from where did he get all this information?
*********************************
"Engineers!" Taking the last sip from his coffee, Vardhan walked towards his small group of students.
"Aaj jaise ki ap jaante hain mein aap sabke teams mein se ek leader choose karunga and that person will be your leader for the next project." "Anything you do, you must ask, inform, and report to your leader."
"Maine aisa isliye kiya kyunki this was the easiest way for me and for you." "The winner is the one who understands you, who knows your strong points as well as your weak points, who knows where you need improvement and where you just need encouragement." "Now, let's cut to the chase, shall we?"
"Team Vidushi and Sahil," "Vidushi"
"Team Jignesh and Kaustuki," "Jignesh"
"Team Randhir and Sanyukta," He paused momentarily glancing at them.
"Randhir"
*********************************
How much she hated the man standing by her side! The man who had forcefully made his way into her life, making everyday, a hell of a day. He was currently listening to what Vardhan was saying but she could see the taunting smirk his face held at now having the upper hand in this little game of war they had started. She wondered what he had in store for. He wasn't about to make her life easy, that was for sure.
So consumed by the kinds of torture she would have to go through now that she was practically his slave, she was only able to hear the last part of Vardhan's announcement.
"Now get lost."
*********************************
Tumne suna nahi, kya?
"Kya?"
"Oh, let me guess." "Your dumb, dimwit of a brain was too busy digesting the fact that your great leader was standing right next to you that it forgot to receive and process that information, right?"
She walked past him, her self-esteem impervious to his snide remark on her brain's functionality, and asked Kaustuki about what Vardhan sir was saying.
"Our project is after three days."
"In a training camp in Manali."
*********************************
Anupamaa
Arjun
Health and Fitness
