CHAPTER 6: EVERYONE KNOWS ABHI CAN'T LIE

Perhaps it was the dark that had their heart pushing against their chest. Anyhow, Misha found herself staring at her companion's deep black eyes. It was far more interesting than the principal. Misha found herself agreeing with her subconscious thoughts about the girl's pretty face but did not seem to read more into it. Unlike her, Mil had created a soap opera starring the two. The mother and father would detest them getting married and then would disown them when the most surprising bomb would be dropped, the fact that the girls will be adopting. Or would Misha prefer getting pregnant? Mil's new task was to research about the same.

The two broke contact when the principal started, his deep voice echoing through the microphone. It wasn't supposed to work so and hence Mr. Amber found himself getting stared at once again.

"Tch…" It echoed.

One could find Amber trying to figure out how it was a problem on his plate. It didn't matter. He was like a younger brother of a family who gets yelled at even if he stays still. His only fault was 'existing'. Sometimes Amber would be jealous of the man. Even if he didn't accept so. The principal was just a few years older than him but so successful, popular even. To juxtaposition, Amber was dull and struggling for work. To think that an Amber would lose its shine and fade its colors. If he was a jewelry, he would be thrown away and abandoned. Amber laughed; he has been through those emotions even as a human.

By the time the microphone had been attended and mended to, the entire hall was in chaos. The students could not leave such an opportunity to pass idling away. Along the Indian accented voices was mixed a slight hint of the British. It wasn't so that foreigners attended the institute. The story went somehow as such: whenever a new historical fiction aired on the television, teenagers would lose themselves in the fantasy. This process of method acting could have created geniuses if schools did not kill individuality.

When the principal took back his position, he appeared rather furious. Nobody would have imagined that the lecture would extend for half an hour more that day. While the situation was disadvantageous to some, Mil was enjoying her precious time with Misha. They talked and giggled and talked again.

All in sweet, soft whispers.

"Okay… pfft… then what's your favorite animal?" Mil asked in muffled giggles. If the two could see each other's red faces clearly then there was no doubt they would end up crashing on the ground. Fortunately, the dimness came to the rescue.

"A mushroom" Misha held her hands across her mouth in an attempt to calm down.

The two struggled to hold back their laugh.

"Mine's a sock." Mil cracked up again.

Now here's a thing about playing games during a lecture, the laugh is funnier than the joke. And the fact that you are not supposed to laugh is the funniest. It was Misha who proposed the idea for the game. The rules were rather simple. The two had to ask questions simultaneously and the other had to answer the opposite of the reality. In that case, the answer to 'Are you a girl' would be a 'No', and the answer to 'What's your favorite food' would be candles and so on.

"Who do you have a crush on?" It was Misha's turn.

"Mr. Amber." Mil stressed her eyes towards the dark, hoping to catch a glimpse of the girl laughing in hushed frequencies. Mil continued, "Who do you have a crush on?"

"Hmm… Mil Mahal." Misha gave her brightest smile.

For Mil, it was the cruelest, that too, under the shade of dark. Mil took a note to herself not to go to the theaters with Misha even if the two end up dating. At least not when it would remind her of every second, she felt her heart crashing against her chest and falling down miserably.

"Why did you go silent?" Misha's voice fluttered across Mil's ears like a warm breeze. "It was the game, don't worry, I don't have a crush on you."

Someone please tell Misha to stop!

"I know. I just thought that the principal was announcing something."

He was.

"From the next Monday, attendance will not be mandatory. This has been made possible only due to the countless requests made by students. However, you must attend at least two classes a week to be issued your final exam admit card."

The entire hall started cheering loudly. Misha joined in the fun. Her voice was loud enough for some students below to look above. Misha didn't seem to mind the unwanted attention. Mil was struck in her own dilemma. She didn't want to attend school, that was for sure. But then she wouldn't be able to spend time with Misha.

"So will you attend school only two days a week from now?" Misha asked Mil

"Not sure." Mil turned towards the girl, "What about you?"

"I'm planning to attend three. It's an auspicious number"

"I Can't agree with that", Mil crossed her knees "तीन तिगाड़ा काम बिगाड़ा" (Translation- Three causes disturbance in work) Mil had to quote her favorite idiom. She had a knack for learning them and her favorite was the one where three was named the reason behind the all troubles. She hated the number. She had a dark history with the same too.

Misha observed her friend with a smile on her face.

"You're cute."

Mil was surprised.

"I didn't take you for someone who believes in stereotypes." Misha continued.

"I don't."

"You just did."

"Well…,"

Misha giggled.

"My turn then- What would you do if a girl asks you out?" Mil put forth her question bravely. Only if the brave in her could last longer. "I mean not that I will ask you out or anything. It's just that I have a crush on this girl and I just wanted some love advice and you're the only one I can ask about the same. Omg I just realized I never told you I'm a lesbian. Are you disappointed…"? A wave of anxiety hit Mil as she started sprouting out words like a rapper recording their album's main track.

"Calm down, Calm down. It's alright, I'm not homophobic. If that was what made you anxious. And for the record, I already knew you were a lesbian. Practically everyone at school knows about it. They just didn't say anything to you so you could feel comfortable."

"Everyone knows?" Mil's composure was no longer soft, her face had hardened and her eyebrows frowned against her forehead.

Misha lifted her hands and traced Mil's eyebrows shaped as a bow. Mil furrowed and shifted back. Had it been any other situation, Mil would have been delightful. For the closeted, coming out when they are not ready both financially and emotionally is like getting pregnant before marriage in a conservative family.

"I think I might have exaggerated. Only some people picked up on it. I heard them asking Abhi if it was true. Now, everyone knows Abhi can't lie. He just ran away without saying anything."

"And what happened after that? Did they say anything negative about me?"

"Well, I'm not entirely sure if I should tell you this. As a matter of a fact, I'm not entirely sure if this is a negative comment or not anyways."

"I have a right to know if it's about me." Mil tucked on her now dried lips.

"They placed a bet if you were lesbian or not." Misha spoke out.

"In a negative way or a friendly way?"

"Are bets meant to be negative or friendly?"

"Yes."

"I don't know, but one of them asked the others to keep it a secret. So maybe it was a friendly bet."

"Could be." Mil calmed down at this moment. And when the rage and scare died, she realized how close her face was to her companion. And under the dark, they felt closer than usual.

"If you want to confront them, I could tell you their names."

"I'd be grateful if you do so." Mil replied.

"I have a pen on me, do you want me to write their names down on your hand?"

Mil could only nod. Misha ruffled through her pocket and took out a pen without a cap. She must have lost it, just like the flaws in her.

Mil thought Misha was pretty as she bent down and took her hands.

The soft tickles gave Mil flutters as the nib tattooed over her palms. Mil could feel her heart clench against her chest. Unknown to them, Abhi stood at the entrance of the first floor. He watched as the two girls flirted with each other. Did they even know that what they were doing was flirting?

Abhi slowly skipped down a few stairs and sat down. He couldn't go downstairs as he had been caught bunking and he couldn't go upstairs as his friends needed space. As so he sat. He sat on the stairs with his knees pushed against each other. All he was accompanying by was the voice of the principal.

"What are you doing?"

Abhi jerked his head towards the owner of the voice.

"Anu…" Abhi scoffed in relaxation. He had thought that a teacher had found him. He continued, "Did you get caught too?"

"No, I turned myself in. I heard that Mil got caught and I was getting bored out anyways." Anu pushed Abhi aside and sat down beside him. Since the width of the stairs wasn't broad, their shoulders were pinned against the other's. She continued, "So why are you sitting here? Is Mil upstairs?"

Abhi kept silent.

Abhi didn't want to share what he saw. The hands, the calling each other cute… But Anu could read Abhi like an open textbook. "What did you see?"

Everyone knows Abhi can't lie.

At least not to the one he likes.