31. Decorations

Radhika's POV

"We should just finish everything ASAP and- OH MY GOD!", I gasped as soon as the stage came in sight.

Calling it a stage feels illegal, to be honest.

I don't have words to describe how beautiful that thing is.

They have created a whole castle as the backdrop of the stage.

How did they even manage to do that?

"Is this thing for real? Or am I dreaming?", Rishi asked, awestruck.

We usually have our lectures and all that stuff on the other side of the campus, so we don't really come here, and hence we hadn't seen any decorations until now.

Suddenly, a girl called us, "Hey, you two! Put these banners on those two corners of the castle!", she pointed out the exact area.

They were both dark blue colored banners with something written on it in gold.

Both were long, vertical banners with 'One campus, endless memories.' And 'Dream. Create. Inspire.' written on each one respectively, along with a crown at the end of both.

I took the banners and climbed the stage, while Rishi followed behind with a ladder.

He placed the ladder on one corner of the castle and I moved forward to climb on it.

"Let me do it, honey. It might be a bit risky.", he said.

"Don't worry, I've got this.", I said, climbing the ladder.

"Okay, just be careful."

He passed me one of the banners with one hand, while his other hand rested on the ladder.

There was a rod already attached to the castle like the ones we use in curtains, and I just had to slide the banner onto the rod.

I held one end of the rod with one hand and the banner with th-

A sudden gust of wind made the whole banner fold around my hand.

I left the rod hanging and smoothened the banner, and was about to try it once again, when another gust of wind blew the whole banner right on my face.

This made me lose my focus.

I clumsily tried to pull it off my face but it kept clinging to my face stubbornly due to the wind.

Why the hell is it so windy all of a sudden?

From somewhere below, I heard Rishi, "Honey, the whole ladder is moving. You'll fall-"

Too late.

Before either of us could do anything, the ladder wobbled harshly under my clumsy attempts to pull this thing off my face, and I lost my balance completely.

I yelped, squeezing my eyes shut as gravity did its thing and I fell straight dow-

Wait.

This wasn't the ground.

A very human groan sounded from underneath me.

"Ahh! Get off me, honey!"

Shit.

I scrambled upright so fast I nearly fell again.

Rishi let out a sigh of relief as he stared at the sky, before looking at me.

We stared at each other for a second.

And then-

We burst into laughter.

The kind you laugh after experiencing the most embarrassing moment of your life.

As our laughter slowly died down, I straightened up and held out a hand for him.

"You're doing it this time."

He grabbed my hand and pushed himself off the ground with a little too much enthusiasm.

The movement pulled him upright far too quickly.

One second he was on the floor.

The next-

He was standing directly in front of me.

Too close.

My breath caught for half a second as I stared into his eyes, unblinking.

He stared back with the same intensity, and somehow, all the chaos around us blurred.

All I could focus on was his eyes, which were a little hidden due to his hair falling on his face, his breath, which I could feel on my face, his hand, which felt a little too warm against mine.

My eyes flickered to his lips for the tiniest second before I forced them back to his eyes, and I swear I saw his eyes darken a little at my action.

The wind blew a little faster than usual, making both our hair fly over our faces, but even that interruption didn't make us look away.

Until-

"Ow!", we both groaned as the rod fell straight on both our heads.

We stepped back, massaging our heads.

I avoided his eyes, finding the stage a little too amusing.

He cleared his throat, not looking at me himself, as he took the rod and banner in both his hands, "H-Hold the ladder."

I looked up as he climbed up the ladder and started working on the banner with an expressionless face.

I placed a hand on my heart to calm myself down, while the other remained on the ladder.

Control, Radhika.

What were you even thinking?

What if you had misread the situation?

What if you ruined the friendship?

My conscience scolded me.

But my mind was busy replaying the whole moment.

He somehow managed to do it really fast and climbed down the ladder.

"Finally."

We both looked down at the voice, only to find Prakash standing there with his hands on his hips, "Are you sure you'll manage to hang the second banner before graduation?"

I blinked.

The second banner.

Right, we still had another one.

Rishi turned towards me, but before he could say anything, I speak, "Don't even expect me to do it."

He sighed, already moving the ladder to the other side of the stage.

I was about to follow him when Prakash called out, "Disney world, if you're free, then come help me by the fountain."

The ladder rattled loudly as Rishi placed it on the other side of the castle with more force than necessary.

"I should be holding the ladder.", I told Prakash.

He waved it off, "Don't worry. He'll manage. The fountain needs you more right now."

I glanced at Rishi, who was already halfway on the ladder.

Why is he in such a hurry?

"Rishi, be careful-"

"I'm fine, honey. I'll be done in a minute. You should go help Prakash.", he said, not even looking at me.

I hesitated for a second, glancing between the two, before sighing, "Alright."

I followed Prakash towards the fountain, not before glancing at Rishi one last time.

On the way, I saw Siddharth and Ruhi working on the fairy lights. Ruhi had climbed a ladder, her heels kicked off beside it, while Siddharth stood there holding the ladder.

How are they not fighting already?

Anyway, we reached the fountain and Prakash started explaining how we have to decorate it with vines to make it look aesthetic, and how there are going to be mickey mouse statues on either side of the fountain and all that.

Just as he turned away to get the materials, I heard hurried footsteps from behind me.

I turned around, only to find Rishi running towards me.

"What? Is everything alright?", I asked in concern.

He breathed a laugh, "Yes, of course. What could happen?"

"Then why were you running like that?"

"I... I was just...no reason actually.", he stammered.

I raised an eyebrow, "And what about the banner?"

"It's all done."

"So quick?"

He managed to smirk, "It was just a piece of cake for me."

I rolled my eyes.

Prakash walked back with the materials, surprised to see Rishi, "You're here already."

Rishi just shrugged.

"Anyways, hold this, Disney World.", Prakash said, giving me a few vines.

Rishi cleared his throat, "Why don't I take over now? You might have other important things to do."

"Not really. Everything's under control-"

"Are you sure? Because I think I just saw Ruhi and Siddharth fighting over something on my way here."

Prakash sighed, "Oh God! Okay, you take over. I'll see what's going on."

Rishi grinned, "Yeah, sure!"

His face was shining as Prakash walked away.

He noticed me looking at him with narrowed eyes, and his grin faltered.

He cleared his throat again, "So, umm, what do I have to do?"

I handed him the vines and explained how we have to wrap it around the fountain.

Rishi immediately started working casually, but I couldn't help getting suspicious.

He noticed my side eye.

Letting out a nervous laugh, he said, "Prakash is a little weird, isn't he?"

"Is he?"

"I... I mean, we told him our names and he still calls you Disney World. Like, 'Disney World'? Seriously? What a silly name.", he rambled.

Oh.

OH.

That's what this is.

I crossed my arms, "Why? I like that name."

The vines fell from his hand.

I bit the inside of my cheek to control my laugh, "I mean... it has a meaning to it. Unlike the nickname you gave me."

His eyes widened, and he looked clearly offended, "Excuse me? You don't like my nickname for you? How can you say that, honey? I... I call you 'honey' because you're sweet and kind and you have such a sweet voice and because I like calling you something that only I get to call you and... and how can you say that his nickname is better... I... I don't even like his nickname. I don't even like the fact that he gave you a nickname in the first place."

I stare at him in disbelief.

I like calling you something that only I get to call you

The words bounced in my mind.

I don't even like the fact that he gave you a nickname in the first place

Is that... possessiveness?

I felt a flutter in my heart at the thought of him being possessive for me.

He seemed to have realized what he just said as I watched him open and close his mouth again and again.

My mind was still replaying every word he said, and with every word, my heart felt a little lighter.

I bit my lip to control the smile forming on my face at the fact that he got jealous of a stupid nickname.

He noticed my smile, and his eyes were suddenly very interested in the small pebble on the ground and he kicked it with his leg, "W-why are you smiling?"

I looked away too, "I'm not smiling."

I totally was.

He might have noticed the slight pink on my face because his lips curled up into a small smile too.

And he looked... relieved.

As if my smile had answered a question I didn't even know he had been asking.

But I was far away from that.

I was feeling butterflies in my stomach and my mind felt too giddy to think straight.

He picked up the fallen vine, "We should... umm... Get back to work."

I nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

We worked silently, not meeting each other's eyes.

But I felt like I needed to say something. Anything.

So I said the first thing that came in my mind after it calmed down slightly.

"By the way...", he looked up, "Jealous Rishi is...cute."

I took a second to prepare myself before looking at his reaction and when I looked up-

He was blushing.

Aditi's POV

"Does this look good?", I asked, stepping back from the direction board I had just finished painting.

Naman had written the locations on the arrow and I volunteered to paint Disney characters on them.

There were six arrows in total, three facing left and the other three facing right. So, we decided to paint Disney couples on every left-right pair.

The first two arrows had Nick and Judy.

I just finished the second pair of arrows. Stitch and Angel's painting stared back at me as I waited for Naman's approval.

"It's perfect, Adi! They look so cute!", he replied.

"What should I paint on the third pair?", I questioned.

"What about Mickey and Minnie?", he suggested.

I shook my head, "They're already around half of the campus."

"Hmm... Then Rapunzel and Flynn?"

My eyes widened, "That's too much effort in very little space. The girls would kill me if I did his smolder wrong."

He chuckled, still thinking.

Suddenly, he straightened up, "Aditi."

"Hmm?"

"Tinker bell."

A smile formed on my face, "That's a good idea, Naan! But hey- she didn't have any lover."

"What about Peter Pan?"

"She had a crush on him, but he always saw her as his friend."

He was silent for a moment, lost in thought, before he said, "But I feel like... Peter and Tink would have been a couple in another universe...", he glanced at me, "A universe where Peter finally understood what he had, and finally saw Tink the way she wanted him to."

That hit.

More than it should have.

And I don't even know why.

Noticing my silence, he spoke again, "Well, that was unnecessarily deep, wasn't it?"

I chuckled, "Yeah, it was. But I guess you just convinced me to paint them."

I picked up my brush and palette, resuming my work as a comfortable silence wrapped around us.

I glanced at him. He was just sitting there doing literally nothing but looking at me paint.

"Aren't you getting bored?", I asked, my eyes back on the board.

"What? Nah!"

"Really? What's so interesting in watching me paint?"

"It's interesting watching you paint."

My brush froze on the board for a second, my lips curving up.

My back faced him so he wasn't able to see my smile.

I shook my head, focusing on the painting, "Get a hobby, Naan."

"This is my hobby."

"Watching people work."

"When the 'people' is you? Yes, absolutely."

"Oh, what's the word for that? Yes! Creep."

"Correction, company."

"Clingy."

"Considerate."

"Crazy."

"Charming.", I could hear the grin in his voice.

Ugh! I am running out of words now.

"Delusional."

He frowned, "That doesn't start with a C."

"...Concerningly delusional."

"Confident."

"Cocky."

"Comforting."

"Cheesy."

"Cheeky."

He was clearly winning.

"Childish."

"Cruel!"

"Correct."

"Callous!", he tried to sound offended

"Clever."

"Chaotic."

"Cute.", I said.

He paused, "Did you just call me cute?"

Before I could respond, a voice interrupted us, "Cringe. Both of you."

We turned around, only to find Prakash looking at us with an 'I'm done.' expression.

Naman and I shared a sheepish look.

"You're just jealous.", Naman said.

Prakash scoffed, "Of what exactly?"

"Our superior vocabulary!", he said proudly.

I chuckled as I dipped my brush into the paint.

A second later, I reached around absentmindedly for the water jar.

Naman immediately pushed it lightly towards me and I gave him a quick smile.

Prakash watched our interaction, shaking his head, "Let me see the board."

I stepped away, letting him take a look at the board.

He observed it for a second before nodding, "Hmm... Creative."

"Cherished to know that.", I said immediately.

Beside me, Naman nodded proudly, "Critically acclaimed!"

Prakash rolled his eyes, "Completely insufferable, you guys are."

I high five Naman, as we chuckled at his words.

"I'm leaving!", Prakash raised his hands in surrender, turning away.

We heard him mutter as he walked off, "Catastrophic."

Siddharth's POV

I walked back to the main entrance, completely ignoring Ruhi's glare beside me.

I kind of deserve it.

But so did she.

We reached the entrance, where everyone was already waiting for us, and exhausted would be an understatement for the look on their face.

It was already dark and I'm sure everyone was as hungry as I was.

"Why are you carrying Ruhi's heels in your hand, Siddharth?", Aditi inquired.

I wasn't given the chance to reply.

Ruhi was just waiting for someone to ask, so that she could start ranting.

And she did.

"I'll answer that, Aditi. This monster here stepped on my heels-"

"By mistake.", I intervened.

"-definitely not by mistake, and now they are broken."

"It's not my mistake that your heels are so cheap that they break so easily."

"You know, I asked him to not fight for some time so that we could finish fast, but he came up with another way to come at me."

Rishi clicked his tongue, "What, Siddharth? When did you become so kaleshi?"

I rolled my eyes, "I'm not kaleshi, okay? What happened was that I was trying to steady the ladder but then my foot-"

Ruhi raised her hand, "Save the excuses. I just want my heel repaired by tomorrow. That's it."

"Who do you think you are, huh? Ordering me around like that?"

"Right now, I'm a victim of your supposed clumsiness.", she retorted.

"You're insufferable."

"So are you! And be ready, because I'm going to get back at you for breaking my favorite heels!"

"Who even wears heels to college?"

"I do, because, you know, it comes really handy sometimes. No one knows it better than you, now, do they?", she smirked.

I straightened my back involuntarily, "Whatever."

She grinned victoriously.

"Are you guys done?", Radhika asked.

"Yeah, I just want to go home.", Naman replied.

"I'm hungry.", Rishi clutched his stomach.

"And I'm hangry and I have no energy to go home and cook.", Ruhi added.

"Why? Isn't Raj going to make dinner?", Radhika asked.

"He went to one of our cousin's. Won't be back for a week or two.", she explained.

"I know we've been eating out a lot lately, but can we just go to a restaurant or something?", Aditi asked.

A wave of agreement swept through the group.

"But this is the last time, alright? All my money is getting wasted in food.", Naman said.

"That's not money wasted. That's money invested.", Rishi said.

"You can't call it an investment when you're eating road side chinese.", I pointed out.