Rags To Royals (Royal #1: Book 1) | ✔

34

-• this weekend •-

Drenched from head to toe and shivering like soaked rats on the side of the road, the four of us are finally allowed to enter the palace. This time, a poker face isn't helping Yuvraaj keep his emotions hidden. He looks undeniably cocky for the state he has reduced us to, as we four, probably the only ones to rebel against him sans Ayush, tremble like a leaf on a dead winter night.

I fish out my card from the pocket and it drips with water. We, the third floor occupants, struggle with opening our doors. I swing my card up and down, trying to dry it since the scanner refuses to accept it.

Agastya groans in frustration and the voice echoes throughout the corridor walls.

I slump against my door, tired of trying to air dry myself. It wasn't happening anytime soon and I was already exhausted from the day's events. It isn't even dusk yet.

To my left, Ayush gives up and sits down as well, flashing me a frazzled, mirthless smile. I smile back, looking at Agastya's direction to see him kneel on the carpet and wipe his hands dry, along with the card before he gets up and successfully opens the door, calling us losers on his way inside.

The three of us waste no time to crawl over the carpet and do the same before rushing back to our doors, succeeding this time.

I sigh in relief and open the door, bidding, "See you for dinner," behind me as I enter the room.

I quickly take a shower and change into something comfortable before drying my hair. My eyes go to the to-do list I've glued above my desk and I read the tasks pending to be completed. Tossing the towel on the ottoman, I grab an energy bar from the drawer and sit on the desk chair, getting down to work immediately.

A few hours later, there's a knock on my door. I wheel my chair closer and pull it open.

Yuvraaj stands at the threshold, a shiny new phone in his hand. I quickly lurch forward to grab it. "Mine!?" I ask excitedly.

"All your previous data is cloned into this, only your phone number is changed. Be careful who you share it with." He explains.

"Yeah, don't worry," I smile up at him, clutching the new iPhone to my chest.

"There are a few security apps in there keeping your phone protected so don't try to uninstall or change their settings. I'll also know where you are 24/7," I frown at that. He adds it so casually if I wasn't paying attention, I would have missed the words. "For security purposes. Don't worry, I won't be stalking your whereabouts every minute of the day. I've added Vivaan's number as the first emergency contact, followed by mine and then Dad's. This will be the last time you'll have to change your phone." He reassures me, referring to my previous two phones. "You should go back to your studies. See you at dinner." And then he leaves just as deftly, closing the door after him like a real gentleman. I let go of my curbed smile, looking down at my phone and wheeling the chair back to the desk side. School work forgotten, I dive into the world of iPhone, mostly struggling to figure out the way it works for the majority of time.

I call Janet, hoping I'm not disturbing her.

"Janet! I got a new phone!"

"Yeah, I realised that when I couldn't reach your old number. Anyway, your latest phone is not a news, tell me did you go through with the plan?" She asks curiously.

I suck in a deep breath. "It's a long story,"

"We've time of the day, baby,"

So I relax back on the chair and detail her about everything that happened from the beginning of my day to reaching the middle of it. By the end of it, my throat runs dry. Whew, it was indeed a long day and it isn't even over yet.