HOSTEL THINGS

I had spent the entire night playing out different scenarios in my head—what would happen on Sunday, how the conversation would flow, what I should wear, how I should behave. It was Friday, and I was already impatient for the weekend to pass. Two more days. How would I survive?

After tossing and turning, I finally fell asleep sometime in the morning. When I woke up, I realized I had to rush to college. Yesterday, Sharma Sir had humiliated me in class, and I wasn't about to give him another opportunity. I quickly freshened up, grabbed my bag, and ran.

The day dragged on. Every lecture felt like an eternity. Even the chai breaks with friends weren't enough to distract me from the ticking clock. But somehow, I made it through. Friday was over. Now, only one more day to go—Saturday.

Anyone who has lived in a boys' hostel knows how things work—clothes are a shared resource. If someone has a nice t-shirt, you can bet it has already been worn by three different people before the actual owner gets to wear it again.

That's exactly what I was thinking as I saw my roommate, Ganpat, lying on his bed, scrolling through reels. "Ganpat, do you have any good clothes I can borrow? I'm going out on Sunday," I asked casually.

He barely looked up from his phone, giving me a quick once-over before responding, "Where?"

That's when it hit me—I hadn't even thought about where we'd go. I had been so caught up in the excitement that I forgot the most basic thing.

"By the way, do you know any good vegetarian restaurants around here?" I added quickly, trying to cover up my lack of planning.

Ganpat immediately sat up. His eyes narrowed. "What's going on with you, Raghav?"

"Nothing much," I replied, trying to sound nonchalant. "Priya suggested we go out for lunch. Since we both are vegetarians and survive on hostel rice all the time, she thought it would be nice to try something different."

For a moment, Ganpat just stared at me. Then, in a dramatic fashion, he jumped out of bed and grabbed my shoulders. "What?! Are you going on a date?"

I hesitated, feeling my face heat up. "No, no! It's not a date. She just asked me to join her for a good vegetarian meal. That's all."

Ganpat's smirk widened. "Oh, sure. Totally not a date. That's why you suddenly care so much about clothes, right?"

I sighed. There was no point arguing with him. "Are you helping me or not?"

"Helping? Bro, I'll make sure you look like a hero!"

And just like that, my fate was sealed. The entire Saturday was spent knocking on every hostel room, asking for good clothes. Ganpat, the shameless traitor, made sure to announce at every door, "Bhaiyo, our man Raghav is going on a DATE with Priya! He needs to look dashing!"

And that's how, in less than an hour, my perfectly normal Sunday lunch plan became headline news in the hostel.

By the evening, every guy I passed in the corridor had something to say:

"Oye Raghav, big man! Priya, huh?"

"Veg restaurant? Bro, don't forget to order something sweet. Girls love desserts!"

"Just lunch? We all know where this is going!"

At one point, even the mess guy, Ramesh bhaiya, gave me a knowing smile and said, "Khaane pe mat bachana, ladkiyon ko bhookh lagti hai!"

I had lost all control over the narrative. I had come for clothes; I ended up getting a full-fledged wedding-level hype.

Finally, after much struggle, I managed to get a nice shirt and a pair of jeans. Not too fancy, not too dull—just perfect. But as I stood in front of the mirror, a new fear crept in.

What if Priya found out about all this? What if she thought I was making a big deal out of nothing? What if she thought I was... desperate?

I groaned. Damn you, Ganpat.

Sunday hadn't even arrived yet, and I was already stressed.