2.1 | Vishal and Layla

blurring the lines of rivalry and friendship 101

It has been more than two weeks since Layla and Vishal started practicing together. The first few days were a nightmare, even to watch. They barely got any training done. It was mostly them pointing fingers at each other in the middle of the field and yelling at each other like their life depended on it. The PE teacher would have to intervene and keep them far from each other. It got to the point where I caught Layla hiding in the storage room and crying into her palms. I was sure they'd give up on each other and walk away after that day but the next day, Layla came up with rules.

Rule 1: No Popsicles before/during practice.
Rule 2: No laughing when someone falls.
Rule 3: Layla will run the 400m this year if Vishal attempts the triple jump.
Rule 4: No tripping each other or pulling Layla's braid.
Rule 5: Rivalry is temporarily deactivated.

I had to laugh at Rule 5 because that's just never going to happen.

Or so I thought.

"I thought you were stronger than this," Layla chirps happily. She sits on Vishal's back as he does his push-ups. "Just five? Give me ten more, Vishal."

"What the hell are you eating? How are you so heavy when you are so small?" Vishal strains out. The veins in his arms are popping out and I notice Layla noticing that and quickly averting her eyes.

"Are you giving up already?" Layla eggs him on. The way she is seated on his back like it's her goddam throne makes me shake my head with quiet laughter. She has no fear. Or maybe she trusts Vishal not to drop her without warning.

Vishal's lips are pursed tight as he finishes another five. He huffs out and grunts before managing to say one word. "Layla."

She understands. Gracefully, she rolls off his back and sits on her butt with her knees pulled to her chest. She watches Vishal as he sprawls himself on the ground, staring aimlessly at the evening sky, his chest rising and falling.

"You did good."

"I know," Vishal says.

Layla rolls her eyes and gets on her feet. "Come on." She stretches her hand to him and he takes it without a word.

Both of them walk towards the canteen. It has become their routine. Eating raspberry popsicles together. Layla was never a fan of it until Vishal dared her to try it. To mine, and I bet Vishal's surprise as well, Layla swooped in and took a lick of Vishal's half-eaten one.

"Nope. Don't like it," she said, shrugging to make a point.

"Okay, nevermind. I am full anyway. I'll just throw this in the bin," Vishal said, walking over to the bin. I already knew what he was playing at but Layla surprisingly didn't catch on.

"You're going to waste it?" she asked.

"Yeah. Why?"

Layla closed her eyes and then pushed the words out of her teeth, "Fine. Give it to me. I'll finish it."

Vishal raised his eyebrows. "I thought you didn't like it?"

"I don't condone wasting food," she said and grabbed the popsicle. Vishal only smiled.

From the next day, after practice, they would sit on the bench and have their popsicles quietly.

Today, Vishal buys two popsicles from the canteen and tugs on her french-braid to get her attention. For a second, I fear a war breaking out as technically Vishal just broke a rule. But Layla doesn't even flinch. She gets the popsicle from him and tears open the wrapper.

Wow. What's happening?

But this is not the first day they are pulling something like this and causing me mini heart attacks.

The other day, I caught Vishal dusting sand off Layla's hair when typically he is the kind of person who dumps it on her head. Layla fell down while running and Vishal had an arm around her as he helped her get to the nurse's room. Last week, I saw them lying down on the high jump landing pit with their legs dangling off the mat as they discussed something. Yesterday, Vishal spit out the water he was drinking as he cracked up at Layla's joke. They never allow themselves to laugh at each other's jokes ever. But now, everything is changing.

It doesn't mean they are back to being the bestfriends they were in second grade. Vishal still pulled dirty pranks on Layla and Layla's tongue was as sharp as ever. Besides, this friendliness between them only applied to the time when they were on the field. They barely maintained civil conversations in the classroom. Their hands would shoot up in the air together every time the teacher asks questions, and the one who doesn't get picked to answer, seethes and glares at the other.

To be honest, I am confused at this weird development in their relationship. It's as if both of them have one leg inside the line of hate and one leg inside the line of friendship. It's difficult to follow.

When I asked Vishal about Layla the other day during our evening game, he said, "I don't know where we stand. One minute, she treats me like a friend and the next minute, we go back to being sworn enemies."

"But man, what do you prefer? Being her friend or her enemy?" I asked.

"Obviously, her friend. If I am not lucky enough, I'll be her enemy. It's better than not talking to her at all," he said, running a hand through his hair. "It's like - I am so used to having her in my life. I don't want that to go away, you know. I like being around her... even if it means listening to her ramble on and on about how she's better than me."

"Do you like her?"

"I don't know. I am scared that if I think about it and let my feelings meddle, I will end up losing her altogether."

"I don't know, man. I think she likes you too," I said. "The way she looks at you. It's not pure loathing. There's something concealed underneath it."

"What do you mean?"

"The way Miss Rita looks at me? That's pure loathing, man. She hates me because I had the guts to write a complaint against her touchy behaviour and sign my name on it without doing the obvious and making it anonymous," I told Vishal and he laughed. "There's a difference in the way Layla looks at you. I can't explain it but it's there, man."

"I am not expecting anything. If it happens, it happens," Vishal said before standing up and walking away.

And that's why I am even more curious now.

Will it happen?

A/N

i am a bit skeptical about the flow of this chapter as the timeline keeps skipping back and forth from past to present but i hope it's not very confusing. also, the way i loved writing the small heart-to-heart between vishal and our hawk 🤌🏻

stay tuned x