700 ᏦᎥᏝᎧᎷᏋᏖᏒᏋᏕ ᏗᏇᏗᎩ

Chapter 13: The Sky Didn't Like His Confession

The summer wind carried the faint scent of dust and chalk, brushing through the half-empty school corridors. The 11th-grade public exams had begun - a time when laughter and noise were replaced by whispers and sighs of students flipping through last-minute notes.

For Harshan and Ishwaani, it wasn't just exam season. It was the final chapter of the year that had quietly tied their hearts together.

Each exam day ended the same way. The crowd would rush out through the gates, but Harshan would wait near the old banyan tree outside, pretending to check his answers. A few minutes later, Ishwaani would appear - her hair slightly messy from the summer wind, clutching her question paper, her smile faint yet warm.

"Terrace today?" she'd ask softly.
"Of course," he'd reply, trying not to show how much he'd been waiting for that question.

Those evenings on the terrace had become their world. With books scattered between them, they'd revise a few lines and then drift into talks - about dreams, about how fast time was passing, about how silence felt comforting when shared.

Chapter 13: The Sky Didn't Like His Confession

One evening, as the sunset spilled gold over the rooftops, Ishwaani pointed at the fading orange line in the sky.
"Do you think the sky remembers us?" she asked.
Harshan smiled faintly. "Maybe. It keeps our secrets, at least."

Their revisions were often more about heartbeats than formulas. Sometimes she'd tease him for being serious, and sometimes he'd make her laugh with his awkward jokes about trigonometry and tension in circuits.

By the time their final exam arrived, something had already changed between them. There was a quiet fear of distance in their smiles.

That afternoon, after the last paper, the school gates looked different - lighter, as though even the walls knew this was the end of something. The sun burned bright, but neither of them rushed home. Without words, they met one last time at the terrace - the place that had held all their stolen moments.

The sky was soft and blue, a few clouds drifting lazily. Harshan leaned on the wall, looking at the faraway street. Ishwaani sat near him, her bag resting beside her feet.
"Harsha..." she began, her voice trembling a little. "I'm going to my grandma's house with Ankita for the holidays. Maybe for a few weeks. So we... we won't be able to meet."

Harshan looked at her, forcing a small smile. "Maybe I'll go somewhere too then."
"Somewhere?" she asked curiously.
He turned toward her, pretending to think. "Maybe to your grandma's house."

She laughed lightly, but it faded when she saw his eyes. He wasn't joking - not entirely. His silence spoke of something deeper - something she had always sensed.
"You don't like staying home, do you?" she asked softly.
He shook his head. "It's... hard. When they fight, it feels like I can't even breathe."

A pause settled between them - heavy, real. Ishwaani's eyes softened. She reached out and touched his hand gently.
"Don't worry, Harsha. I'm here for you," she whispered.

He looked at her - really looked. And for a moment, the world blurred.
"Will you be with me till the end of my life?" he asked suddenly, half teasing, half trembling inside.

There was a silence

She froze - the question carried something more than he realized. Her heart raced, her lips parted, and then a quiet smile curved them.
"Harsha," she whispered, "before I joined this school... we've actually met before."

He blinked. "What?"

"Have you ever wondered why ishwaani is talking to me only even though there are many people or why she is not frightened with me "

"Cause i know u before joining the school"

"At the tuition center.
His eyes widened, memories flickering faintly -  He had forgotten.
"I was going through a lot then," he murmured.
"I know," she said gently.

"Also did you think that you are such a handsome guy so a girls keeps interacting with you even though you avoid her many time" she said mockingly with a light smile

"Okay, you are embarassing me stop, but seriously if it weren't you by this time I'll be stuck somewhere in my mind" said Harsha

"You changed my life" he said gently

Her eyes shimmered, and she looked away, as if gathering courage.
"From that moment, Harsha... I've always watched you. In silence and after joining school I ended up loving you. I waited for you to remember - to notice me. And when you finally did, it felt like everything fell into place."

The words trembled out of her - fragile, beautiful, real.

For a heartbeat, neither moved. Then Harshan reached forward, holding her hand tighter - their fingers locking in quiet disbelief.

The sky above them deepened into twilight. A single star blinked through the fading blue. Ishwaani looked up and pointed.
"See that one?" she whispered. "Let's name it after us. That star will be us - even if we're far, it'll remind me that somewhere, you're looking at the same sky."

He looked at her, his eyes soft, voice trembling. "

Ishwaani..."

And just as he took a breath to say the words he'd held inside for months, a sudden sharp voice broke the silence.

"Ishwaani!"

They turned - Ankita stood at the entrance of the terrace, her expression stormy. In a heartbeat, she walked up and grabbed Ishwaani's wrist.
"What are you doing here with him?" she hissed, pulling her sister away. "Come. See him for the last time."

Harshan stood frozen - his heartbeat echoing in his ears. Ishwaani struggled slightly, her eyes wide, filled with helplessness.
"Harsha..." she whispered, reaching out her free hand toward him.

He took a step forward - but Ankita pulled her away before he could reach.

The sky above dimmed, the breeze heavy with unsaid words.
As the terrace door slammed shut, Harshan stood alone - the star she had shown him still shining faintly in the darkening sky.

He whispered her name once - softly, as though afraid the wind might carry it too far.

And the night answered with silence.