Chapter 13

Subhi

The next day, something had changed.

It wasn’t anything dramatic. There were no arguments, no glares, no awkward conversations. It was just… silence.

Abhimanyu and I sat beside each other in the exam hall like we had for the past few days, but today, it felt different. Colder. More distant.

I hadn’t even realized I was expecting him to say something—anything—until he didn’t.

He came in, took his seat, and didn’t look my way.

For a brief second, I thought about saying something, just a casual "Good morning" or even a nod of acknowledgment. But then I hesitated.

Why should I?

Hadn’t I been overthinking this whole thing? Hadn’t I already convinced myself that we were just two people placed next to each other by random chance?

So I said nothing.

Neither did he.

The teacher handed out the question papers, and the moment I started reading mine, I felt a strange sense of relief. At least, for the next three hours, I had something else to focus on.

But no matter how hard I tried to concentrate, I was hyper-aware of his presence beside me. The occasional scratch of his pen, the way his hand moved across the page, the way his leg accidentally brushed against mine under the desk before he quickly shifted away.

It was like we had built an invisible wall between us overnight, and neither of us was willing to break it.

When the bell rang, signaling the end of the exam, I exhaled. I gathered my things slowly, expecting—hoping?—that he would at least glance at me before leaving. But the moment his paper was collected, he stood up and walked away.

No hesitation.

No second look.

Like I didn’t exist.

And for some reason, that stung.

I pushed the feeling down and convinced myself that this was for the best.

It was just an exam arrangement. A temporary situation.

In a few days, this would be over, and we would go back to our own separate worlds.

So why did it feel like something important was slipping away?