Chapter 21: chapter 21

Part 21: new class beginning The fresh academic year had begun — Class 10. New textbooks, new syllabus, and new pressure.  But for Riya, something didn't feel new at all.  Something… or someone… was missing.Dhirav.After the Class 9 result, he had gone to his gaon to visit his grandparents house.  it was a short trip, just for a few weeks, but for Riya, the school felt incomplete.She sat on her bench, staring at the back row where Dhirav usually sat — his absence felt louder than all the noise in the classroom.Lunch break came and went, but her laughter wasn't the same.  Even Pihu noticed.“What happened, Riya? You are very quiet today,” she asked gently.Riya tried to smile. “Nothing… just Dhirav, it’s not right…”That evening, as she returned home, she found a message waiting:Dhirav: “White Crow! How is my 4th rank queen?”Riya: “School feels completely empty without you… class too.”Dhirav: “You have become emotional.”Riya: “Just a little… just no fun without you.”They messaged every night — little updates, inside jokes, silly emojis, and sometimes, just a “Missing you” with a white heart.One night, Riya wrote in her diary:“Earlier it was just friendship, now it has become a necessity. Whenever he is away, it seems that even school is a little different. Maybe something more than friendship is happening… or has already happened.”Dhirav sent her a photo one evening — sitting under a mango tree with his notebook, captioned:“I am reading from the notes given by you. It would have been fun if you were here.”Riya replied instantly:“I am not here, but I have memories. Come soon, Monkey.”He was away, but close to the heart.The distances only deepened their bonding… and maybe something else too.