Aarav woke up with a start, his alarm blaring in his ear. He rubbed his eyes, yawned, and jumped out of his bed. He rushed through his morning routine, almost tripping on his own feet. "Shoot, i'm going to be late!" he muttered to himself.
On the other hand, Kiara woke up feeling refreshed, her morning routine serene and peaceful affair. She medidated, did some yoga, and got dressed with ease. "Have a great day, Di!" she called out as she left for school.
Aarav sprinted down the hallway, his backpack bouncing behind him. He rounded a corner and collide with a shorter, muscular boy with a handsome face and piercing brown eyes. The boy had black hair, cut short and stylish, and stood around 5 feet 6 inches tall, with a lean, athletic build. His features were distinctly North Eastern, with high cheekbones and a small nose.
"Oh no, Sorry!" Aarav exclaimed, taking in Siddharth's chiselled features and broad shoulders. Siddharth's eyes widened in surprise, his face flushing with embarrassment.
Aarav apologised and rushed off to class, leaving Siddharth looking confused.
Aarav burst into class, out of breathe. "Sorry I'm late, sir!" he exclaimed. His eyes scanned the room and landed on Siddharth, who was standing at front, looking a bit lost.
"Everyone, this is Siddharth, our new classmate!" the teacher announced. Aarav's eyes lit up. "And he's my friend from now on!" he declared, his voice ringing out across the room.
Siddharth's face turned bright red as he smiled embarrassingly. Aarav rushed over to him, grabbed his arm, and pulled him to his seat. "Hey, don't worry, I've got your back! From now on I'll call you Sid.
"Aarav's curiosity got the better of him. "Hey, Sid, can I ask you something?" he said, his eyes filled with genuine interest.
Sid looked at him warily but nodded. "What is it?"
"What made you move here from the Northeast?" Aarav asked his voice soft and non-judgemental. "And what's your family like? Do you have siblings?"
Sid hesitated, his eyes clouding over. "Hey Aarav... my past is a bit complicated," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I moved here from a small town in the hills. My family.... I had to leave because of some issues.
I'd rather not go into details, but let say it was a tough time. I'm trying to start fresh here, make new friends and move on from all that.
"But its not easy, you know?"
Aarav nodded sympathetically, his eyes filled with understanding. "I get it, Sid. I'm here for you, buddy. We'll face whatever comes together, okay?
Aarav and Sid were chatting animatedly in class, getting to know each other better.
Aarav was excited to learn more about his hometown. "....and then, I went trekking in the Himalayas with my friends!" Pranav exclaimed, his eyes shining with excitement.
"Whoa, that's amazing!" Aarav replied, his eyes wide with envy. "I've always dreamed of visiting Manipur!" Just then, Mrs. Chakraborty, their teacher, stormed into their desk, her face stern. "What's going on here?!" she thundered, her eyes scanning their scared face.
"Aarav and Sid, what are you doing? You're supposed to be studying, not chit-chatting!"
Aarav and Sid quickly straightened up, looking sheepish. "Sorry, ma'am," they claimed in unison.
But Kiara, who was sitting nearby, looked frustrated and angry. She glared at Aarav, her eyes flashing with annoyance. She was upset because he had made Sid's first day at school memorable for the wrong reasons- by getting scolded in class.
"Aarav, you're always getting into trouble," Kiara reflects in her mind, her voice laced with irritation." Can't he just behave for once?"
Mrs. Chakraborty, meanwhile, was still lecturing them. "You need to focus on your studies, not socialize! This is not a playground, you know!"
Aarav and Sid nodded, looking chastened. But Aarav couldn't help grinning while looking at Sid.
Soon after Aarav caught Kiara staring at him, her eyes blazing with anger. He felt a surge of defensiveness and marched over to her desk, his heart pounding in his chest. "Mind your own business, Kiara!" he shouts, banging on her desk. "Stop worrying about Sid and focus on your own studies for once!"
Kiara's eyes flashed with defiance. "You're the one to talk, Aarav! You're always causing trouble and disrupting the class. You're a loser and disrupting the class. You're a loser who doesn't study and makes sure no one else around you does either!"
Aarav's face reddened with anger. "That's not true! I do study, and I'm not a loser. You're just jealous because I'm friends with Sid and you're not!" Kiara sneered. "Jealous of you?
Don't make me laugh. you're a failure, Aarav. You're always getting intotrouble and dragging others down with you. Sid deserves better friends than you."
Aarav's anger boiled over. "You know nothing about me or my friendship with Sid! You're just a snobbish, stuck-up girl who thinks she's better than everyone else. Well, newsflash,
Kiara: "You're not perfect, and neither are your precious grades!"
The class erupted into whispers and cross-talk, their voices like a chorus of gossiping birds.
Did you hear that? Kiara called Aarav a loser!"I know right? He's always causing trouble!"
"Yeah he never studies. He's a total failure!"
Aarav's face burned with shame and humiliation. He felt tears prick at the corner of his eyes, but he refuses to let them fall. With a choked cry, he rushed out of the classroom, his head hung low in shame.
Sid followed close behind, shouting Aarav's name. "Aarav, wait! Aarav, please!"
Meanwhile, Kiara sat at her desk, her eyes fixed on the spot where Aarav had disappeared.
She looked taken aback, her expression softening into guilt and regret. Nisha and Saanvi rushed to her side, their voices soft and consoling.
"Hey, Kiara, its not your fault completely, Aarav started it, remember?"
"Yeah, and he's always been a bit of troublemaker having loads of anger issues," Saanvi added.
Kiara nodded, her eyes still fixed on the door. "I know... I know. But I shouldn't have said those things. I was just so angry and frustrated... and that too not his"
Kiara's eyes welled up with tears as she turned to her friends. "I feel so bad, guys. I shouldn't have said those things to Aarav. He's right, I was jealous and I lashed out."
Nisha and Saanvi exchanged a glance, then turned back to Kiara. "Hey, it's okay, Kiara.
We know you didn't mean it," Nisha said, putting a hand on Kiara's arm.
"Yeah, and we'll make it up to Aarav for you," Saanvi added. "We'll go talk to him and apologize, okay?"
Kiara shook her head, tears spilling down her cheeks. "No, no, it's not your fault. I need to apologize to him myself."
But Nisha and Saanvi were insistent. "No way, Kiara. We're your friends, and we'll fix this for you," Nisha said, already getting up from her seat.
Saanvi followed, and the two of them marched out of the classroom, determined to make things right with Aarav.
Meanwhile, Aarav was sitting in the hallway, his head in his hands, feeling miserable. He looked up as Nisha and Saanvi approached him, looking determined.
"Hey, Aarav. We need to talk," Nisha said, sitting down beside him.
Saanvi nodded. "Yeah, we're really sorry about what Kiara said. She didn't mean it, and we're here to make it up to you."
Aarav raised an eyebrow, skeptical. "You're not Kiara. Why are you apologizing for her?"
Nisha and Saanvi exchanged a glance, then Nisha spoke up. "Because we're her friends, and we know she didn't mean it. And we want to make things right between you two."
Aarav sighed, rubbing his temples. "Look, I appreciate it, but it's not your fault. Just leave it alone, okay?"
But Nisha and Saanvi were persistent. They kept talking, trying to convince Aarav to forgive Kiara and make up with her. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Aarav agreed.
"Fine, okay? I'll forgive her. But only because you guys are being so nice about it."
Nisha and Saanvi grinned, relieved. "Great! We'll take you back to the classroom, and Kiara can apologize herself," Nisha said, standing up.
Aarav followed them back to the classroom, feeling a bit silly about the whole ordeal.
Kiara was waiting for him, her eyes apologetic.
"Aarav, I'm so sorry for what I said. I was jealous and I lashed out. Can you please forgive me?" she asked, her voice sincere.
Aarav nodded, feeling a bit awkward. "Yeah, sure. I forgive you."
Kiara smiled, relieved. "Thanks, Aarav. I promise to be more careful in the future."
The two of them sat down, the tension between them dissipating. Nisha and Saanvi grinned at each other, happy that they had been able to fix things between their friend and Aarav.
The teacher, Mrs. Sharma, walked into the classroom, a stack of sheets in her hand. "Good morning, class. Today, I want to talk to you about career counseling. As you know, choosing the right career path is an important decision, and we want to help you make an informed choice."
She handed out the sheets, which listed various courses and colleges. "We have invited professionals from different fields to come and talk to you about their experiences. We want you to fill out this sheet, indicating which courses you're interested in learning more about."
The students began to murmur and cross-talk, excitedly discussing their options. Mrs. Sharma held up a hand, silencing them. "Remember, this is a serious decision. Choose wisely, and don't be afraid to ask questions."
Aarav scanned the sheet, his eyes widening as he saw the variety of courses offered. "Wow, they have architecture? That's so cool!"
Kiara leaned over, her eyes sparkling with interest. "Yeah, I know, right? I've always wanted to design buildings."
Nisha and Saanvi chimed in, their voices excited. "And they have engineering, too! My brother is studying to be an engineer."
Mrs. Sharma smiled, pleased with the students' enthusiasm. "Yes, we have a wide range of courses, from architecture to engineering, medicine, law, and more. Take your time, and fill out the sheet carefully. The career counseling session will be held in next half of the school, and we want you to be prepared."
As the students filled out their sheets, the classroom buzzed with excitement. They couldn't wait to learn more about their desired careers and make informed decisions about their futures.
The courses list included:
- Architecture
- Engineering (civil, mechanical, electrical, computer science)
- Medicine (MBBS, nursing, pharmacy)
- Law(LLB, LLM)
- Business management (MBA, BBA)
- Arts and design (graphic design, fine arts, fashion design)
- Science (biotechnology, chemistry, physics)
- Humanities (history, psychology, sociology)
- Union Public Service Commision (UPSC)
The students were eager to learn more about each course, and the career counseling session promised to be an enlightening experience.
As the students finished filling out their sheets, Mrs. Sharma collected them and smiled.
"Great, I see we have a few students interested in architecture. Kiara, Aarav, and Advik, you three have chosen architecture as one of your options. That's wonderful!"
Aarav turned to Advik, a curious expression on his face. "Hey, Advik, what made you choose architecture?"
Advik shrugged. "I've always been interested in design and building things. Plus, my dad's an architect, so I guess you could say it's in my blood."
Aarav nodded thoughtfully. "That's cool. I chose architecture because I love drawing and designing buildings. I can't wait to learn more about it."
Advik grinned. "Yeah, me neither. Maybe we'll even design a building together someday."
As they walked out of the classroom together, Aarav couldn't help but glance over at Kiara, who was walking ahead of them, her eyes fixed on the floor. He hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should try to talk to her, but then decided against it. After their fight earlier, he wasn't sure if she'd even want to talk to him.
Advik noticed his gaze and followed it to Kiara. "Hey, Aarav, you okay? You seem a little distracted."
Aarav shook his head, focusing back on Advik. "Yeah, I'm good. Just thinking about the career counseling session in the next half of the school."
Advik nodded. "Yeah, me too. I'm really looking forward to it."
As they continued walking, Aarav couldn't help but wonder if the session would bring him and Kiara closer together, or drive them further apart. Only time would tell.
Will the career counseling session be the start of a new chapter in Kiara and Aarav's relationship, or will they continue to be strangers, their differences unresolved? The future held the answer, but for now, only time would tell.