The Greatest Villain of All Time

Chapter 21: Arasi

I never had anyone to talk to. Kavita was there but she wasn't the one who could understand my problems. I couldn't approach Guruji either. I felt immense shame to tell him my problems, it made me feel pathetic.

Now, naturally, I don't like to talk. I don't want to. Being an audience is better than being the one on stage, I can only sit through conversations wondering when they would end. Kaavya and Anirudh do sometimes get lost in their deep conversations and they both rant me their problems. I'm a good listener.

But they also complain why I never open up. Why I never share my problems to them like all friends do. Only if I could be honest, I would tell them that I'm afraid. I fear that I and my silly problems will come off as pathetic. I fear getting ridiculed. I fear of not being understood...

The past three days, however, I'm on cloud nine. I feel on the top of the world. I'm starting to notice how everything is so beautiful around me, except humans. When I'm on Roth, I can take a break from worrying about father and humans and their thoughts and even my thoughts for that matter. My mind is light as a feather, so much so that I don't stop myself from saying what comes to my mind.

I cringe internally, thinking about all the things I had said to Onkar yesterday. He didn't need to know how I think about friendships and relationships. You never know when he will spread rumors about me and I have a ton of them already circulating around the school.

He's your academic rival. He comes second to you, everytime. What if he takes revenge on you? Parin says.

I groan, crossing my fingers.

You should be careful, my dear.

'Yeah, I would stop taking Roth. I'd lost control so...'

But then what about your restlessness? Your tapping foot is troubling others, you know.

"Can you stop that?" Anirudh sounds irritated as he points down at my foot.

Taking a deep breath, I press hand on my knee. "Sorry."

See?

'But I can't keep taking Roth. Last time I did so, I ended up in a hospital for days. Father was so disappointed.'

The bell rings making the students fly out of their classrooms. Dread settles at the pit of my stomach as I near the lunchroom to continue the project. Even when being in the same classrooms, we never went in that lunchroom together. I always made sure to reach first.

I spot Kartik entering the lunchroom first. His skin is dark like a mud brick and has a height that I always yearned for. When we make eye contact, he looks away with an obvious blushing face which in return make his cheekbones stand out. Even if I hadn't had even a word with him, I can figure out he is a shy guy.

He pulls in Onkar who is looking in his book and walking, rubbing his straight-edged nose. He's a total nerd from what I have heard about him. You can't say the same thing about me because I was forced to be a nerd. And I figured that if I'm having people complaining about how I'm late unlocking my second soul, I shouldn't give them more chances to talk me down.

When Onkar and Kartik take their seats too, they don't gaze at me with a different eye, or snicker behind my back. They take their seats in front of me, an awkward silence settles between us.

"I think we need to hurry and finish this. The deadline is next week." I say to break the ice. Onkar's brows go up, surprised, at maybe I'm finally contributing to this project.

"Yeah, right." He exchanges a glance with Kartik.

"But before we start, we have something to ask." Kartik tells. My brows knit together. Hope they are not going to ask why I was acting weird at first and now I'm trying to take charge of the situation?